Aspens Vamp

by Jinni James

  "Daniel and I are not together I don't think."

  Michael sits back against the sofa.

  "You don't think? You've slept together."

  It wasn't a question however, I answered it anyway.

  "Yes, a few times." No one needs to know exactly how many times in my opinion. Michael almost looks heartbroken.

  "Oh. I see. But you are not actually a couple?"

  Why is he pounding this into the ground?

  "No. As far as I know we are not a couple."

  Michael sits back up so he is in my line of sight again.

  "Good."

  What in the hell is he getting at? "What do you mean 'good'?"

  Michael runs his finger down my arm which begins to make my hands shake. He takes the coffee cup out of my hands and places it on the table in front of us, then leans towards me.

  "I say ‘good’ because that means until he says you two are in an actual relationship you are fair game."

  I could only think of one word. Fuck.

  Chapter Five

  Soon I am once again surrounded by everyone. John and Ava come in right as Michael drops a bomb on me and Daniel soon follows. They all grab a cup of coffee then they all sit around me in the living room.

  Daniel comes and sits next to me on one of the plush sofas while John and Ava take the one across from us. Michael sits in one of the side chairs next to the sofa that Daniel and I are sitting in. To say that I am uncomfortable would be yet another understatement. Daniel places his arm on the back of the sofa behind me just as Michael had, I can feel Michael's eyes staring at me. I decide to just keep my eyes looking towards the beautiful mountain view we have in here. John suddenly tore my attention away from the view as he begins talking once again about JR.

  "So I just got off the phone with one of my contacts that called while Ava and I were changing." I see a smirk spread across Avalon's face. Apparently that wasn't all they were doing.

  "My contact has informed me that the vampire is still in South Dakota. The description he gave me fits JR's."

  It just hit me that I have no idea what JR even looks like. "So your contact saw this vampire?"

  "Yes Jaci, he did. He says he is a tall man, very skinny though, with white hair and red eyes."

  He must have gotten really close to him. "Does your contact know where he is then? I mean he must have been pretty close to see him that well."

  John sat back against the sofa. "Shape shifters have excellent eye sight, Jaci but no. My contact was following the vampire but the vamp must have figured it out because suddenly he was gone."

  Well shit, that sucks. We could have been done with this whole mess. Finally Michael tore his eyes away from me to speak to John.

  "So what's the plan now buddy?" John sits back up which from what I've seen is when he really means business.

  "Well Michael, I think what we need to do is wait until my contact can at least nail down the vicinity that he is in then we can run up there and take a look around and see if we can find him. This needs to be taken care of sooner rather than later. I don't want to sit here thinking he is trying to find us and then other women get kidnapped and murdered."

  Daniel sits up as well. "That sounds like a good plan John. I am all in. I can go up there with you as well. Another vampire might come in handy."

  I could tell John likes the thought of that. "That is a great idea Daniel! It gives us an advantage. Once my contact calls me back which will hopefully be soon tomorrow given how he has an idea of where to go you and I can make our way to South Dakota and Michael can stay here with Jaci and Avalon."

  Avalon does not like that idea. I can tell by the way her face went from content to blaring mad.

  "I am not sitting here on my ass while you and Daniel go find JR! No way! I'm not helpless; I could be of some use as well."

  John places his hand on Avalon's thigh and she calms immediately.

  "Ava dear, Daniel and I can handle this. Everything will be fine. I love you too much to put you in harm’s way like that."

  Avalon wasn't hearing it. "May I point out to you, dear heart, the last time you thought that I was attacked while you were gone?"

  Ava's pulling out the big guns! I can only pray John doesn't cave and let her go with him. I do not need to be left alone in this house with Michael, who I am sure is sitting over there loving every minute of this.

  "She has a point buddy." Of course Michael would open his big mouth! John looks defeated.

  "That is true. I suppose it would be easier to keep you safe while you are with me. Plus it would prevent my worrying about you. Okay Ava, you can have it your way, as usual."

  He gives her a quick peck on the cheek, obviously letting her know he loves messing with her. She smiles at his gesture but then frowns as she looks straight towards me.

  "Are you going to be okay here by yourself Jaci?" Michael stands up and sits right on the arm on the sofa that I am in.

  "She won't be by herself. I'll be here. No worries."

  Ava tries to hide the smile that she has but she can't hide it from me.

  "Okay then. Well, it is getting late. Why don't we call it a day and get some rest. I am sure we will need it for tomorrow when my contact calls."

  Everyone agrees then proceeds to stand and make their way to their rooms. I see Michael give me a wink as he walks out then Daniel stands and offers his hand to help me up.

  "Shall we go lay down?"

  Shit. Shit. Shit. "Sure Daniel."

  *****

  Daniel takes my hand and leads me back to his bedroom. We walk in then he heads towards the window to pull the curtains closed since the sun is coming up. I'm still getting used to morning being late and evening being early. Sleeping during the day is still weird for me, which is why it is still a little hard for me to sleep an entire day.

  I sit down on the bed and kick my shoes off. Daniel begins to walk towards me. I can see the want in his eyes and normally that want would be in mine as well but right now I just feel confused. Before Michael got here I was perfectly content. Sex with Daniel is great. I could have continued to have sex with Daniel for weeks, months, even years maybe but now just seeing Michael has thrown me. Now that I know that Michael is interested it throws me even more. I cannot believe we are going to be in this house alone while Daniel goes out with John and Ava to look for JR. I could smack Ava for making a fuss for not going. I do understand her reasons though.

  As Daniel stalks towards me I can see the glimmer in his eye. He is ready for me. He sits down next to me then brushes my blonde hair away from my neck and begins to press kisses right under my ear. He makes a trail of kisses down to my collar bone. I feel like I should moan or something but I can't. Right now it isn't in me. Before his touch would have sent me over the edge but now my head is all foggy.

  Daniel looks up at me and I can tell he senses my reservations. "Are you okay, Jaci?"

  What in the hell is wrong with me? I have this gorgeous man in front of me, ready to satisfy every need I have, and yet I feel nothing. It has got to be because I am overthinking everything. What if something happens to him while they are gone? I would feel terrible. No. I need to let everything else go and see what happens with Daniel.

  "I'm fine Daniel. Really."

  That does not seem to satisfy him.

  "Jaci, I hope you don't think I'm just fucking you to fuck you. I really do like you. I think you are beautiful inside and out. You are sweet, kind, and a fast learner. You are stunning as well. I could just sit back and look at you and be satisfied. I'm just trying to let you know that I like you. This isn't just a fuck until something else comes along. Okay?"

  He is so sweet and amazing. It is hard to believe he actually likes me. A smile spreads across my face. I decide to not worry about anything else and give myself to Daniel. Anything else I can work out tomorrow.

  "Okay Daniel. But right now would you fuck me please?"

  Daniel makes love to me. It feels amazing. I almost f
eel guilty for being with him because it feels so good. We finish, talk a bit about finding JR, then we make love once more before we both pass out from exhaustion. Unfortunately I am awake again after a few hours. I look over at the clock which reads 12:00pm. It's noon. I will be so happy when I get used to this vampire routine. I try to lay here but sleep just is not going to come anytime soon so I attempt to crawl out of the bed without waking Daniel. I roll slightly to the right and fall to the floor quiet as can be. Luckily, Daniel stirred a little but just rolled over and went back to sleep. I grab my clothes then make my way for the door. I ease the door open, slip out into the hallway, and then ease the door closed again. Finally I can put my clothes on. I pull my sweat pants up and over my hips when I hear a gasp.

  "Whoa, good day to you, too." Shit. Michael is in the hallway.

  "Shhhh, everyone is sleeping."

  Michael takes his fingers and makes a zipping motion across his lips as I throw my shirt over my shoulders as quickly as I possibly can then make my way to the kitchen. I can feel Michael right behind me taking every step that I take. I make my way into the kitchen and decide I will fix some warm milk. I don't really know if anything will help me but it is worth a shot. Michael reaches up to get a cup then hands it to me as he hops up to sit on the counter.

  "What are you doing up Michael? Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

  Michael laughs like this is amusing to him. "I really get under your skin, don't I? Well if you must know nosey, my schedule was the other way around shortly before coming here. I'm used to being awake during the day and asleep at night so this new schedule will take some getting used to. I could ask you the same thing. Why are you up?"

  I place a pan over the stove, pour the milk in, and begin to stir.

  "I can't sleep. I'm still getting used to this schedule as well."

  "Ah. I thought you may be used to this schedule by now; plus weren't you used to being up nights when you were a doctor?"

  I haven't thought about my days as a doctor in a long time.

  "I am a doctor and I was used to it but we got to sleep in between patients so it didn't feel so bad."

  Michael keeps opening the cabinets like he is looking for something but I refuse to ask.

  "So you are thinking about going back to being a doctor? Even as a vamp?" I don't know if he realizes how much he is frustrating me right now.

  "Yes. I am. Why? Does that seem weird?"

  Suddenly I see him pull something out of one of the cabinets. "Found it! I knew there had to be some here somewhere. Here put a little cinnamon in the milk. It will help." I take the bottle from him and sprinkled just a bit in the milk then continued to stir.

  "Thank you."

  "You’re welcome. Now back to what I was saying. No, I do not think it would be weird for you to be a doctor now that you are a vampire, I was just curious if you would be able to work around all the blood without wanting to drink it."

  "As long as I am not hungry when I operate I should be fine."

  Finally I begin to see steam coming off the milk. Michael hands me a cup and holds it for me while I pour the milk in.

  "Thank you."

  "Anytime beautiful." Michael winks at me then hops off the counter and makes his way back to his room. I decide to take my warm milk with me into the office. If I can't sleep I might as well check my email.

  *****

  I walk into the office to see Ava on the computer.

  "Oh I'm sorry to disturb you, Ava." Avalon turns the chair around as I walk in and sit down in one of the chairs in front of the fireplace. "Do you mind if I join you in here though?"

  Avalon gets up and joins me by sitting in the chair next to mine.

  "You aren't disturbing me. I couldn't sleep so I thought I'd get a jump on my next book."

  I didn't know she was planning another book.

  "What is this one about Ava?" Avalon let out a giggle.

  "Well, to be honest...you."

  "Me! How in the hell are you writing a book about me?"

  Avalon laughs again. "I'm writing about your transition from a human to a vampire but I'm adding to your story. Real life is kind of boring, well more boring than a book."

  I love Avalon. She can always put me in a better mood.

  "I suppose that's true. I can't wait to read it."

  Avalon knows something is on my mind. I can tell by the way she looks at me.

  "What's wrong Jaci? And don't tell me the sleep schedule."

  I sigh as I drink my milk. Michael was right; the cinnamon makes all the difference. God he is so infuriating!

  "I guess I am just nervous about being in this house alone with Michael while you, John, and Daniel are gone. I thought you would stay but now that you’re going it's just going to be Michael and me. I'm freaking out Ava. Daniel just told me how much he likes me and now Michael plans on fighting for me. What do I do?"

  Avalon stands up then comes to sit next to me on the arm of my chair.

  "That's easy Jaci. You follow your heart. Do what your heart tells you."

  "Thanks a lot Ava. That really helps."

  Avalon smacks my arm. "It will if you listen to it. I think you already know what you want to do and that is why you are so nervous."

  Maybe she's right however; it does not help the nervousness I feel.

  "Who knows Jaci; this could be a good thing. Spend the day with Michael and see if it leads anywhere. If it doesn't then you know to stick around with Daniel and see what blossoms. If it does then you know what to do."

  I hate when she's right.

  "If you really want me to stay Jaci, just tell me. I will stay."

  I look up at my best friend.

  "Really?"

  Avalon laughs as she takes my now empty coffee cup from me. "Nope."

  I stand up and hug her. "You’re a bitch but I love you."

  "I love you too Jaci. Now go to bed. You look sleepy."

  She is right. I am finally feeling pretty tired. I say goodnight to Ava then head back towards Daniel’s room. I should probably go to my own room but he'll wonder where I am so back to his room it is. I sneak back in, quietly lose my clothes, and slip back under the sheets. I feel Daniel stir then his arm snakes around my waist and he is back to sleep again. The man sleeps like a rock! Let’s hope I can do the same. Once I shut my eyes I am lost to the darkness once more.

  Chapter Six

  As I awaken I look over to see that I have slept until eight in the evening. I must have slept hard once I actually got back to sleep. The late afternoon talk with Avalon definitely helped me feel better. I roll over then realize I am alone. Daniel must already be up. I squirm out of bed, make my way to the restroom, make myself presentable, and then head downstairs.

  As I descend down the steps I discover that it is way too quiet for a house full of people. I hear the Keuriq coffee maker finishing up a cup of coffee so I know it is too quiet. I make my way into the kitchen only to find Michael standing by the counter making a cup of coffee. This can't be good. As if sensing my presence he turns to face me.

  "Good evening, Jaci. Once I heard some movement in the house I thought I'd start you some coffee."

  I look around as I walk towards the counter.

  "Everyone has left already." I'm sure he can see the panic that I feel is suddenly written all over my face.

  "John got a call early this evening and his contact gave him a location so they all decided to head out. Looks like you’re stuck with me for the night pretty lady."

  He gives me a wink as he hands me the coffee cup.

  "Don't worry Jaci, I will be good."

  For some reason I do not believe him. Instead of hanging around the kitchen with him I decide to go into the office and use the computer while I drink my coffee. That used to always be the best part of my day, now it's my favorite part of the night. There is just something about being by myself with a cup of coffee and playing around on the computer for a few before the actual day starts.

  I'm n
ot on the computer five minutes before I sense someone behind me.

  "Relaxing are we?"

  I sigh as I turn the chair around with coffee still in hand. "Well I was."

  Michael laughs as he walks towards me. "Snarky today aren't you? I was just coming to give you this. Avalon left it for you."

  He hands me a piece of paper then walks out of the room. I unfold the paper to see Avalon's perfect handwriting.

  "Sorry we left before you woke up. I know you’re probably angry but I didn't have the heart to wake you since you were awake off and on so much. Take it easy on Michael today. He cares about you. Don't forget how he has helped you. Be nice and see where things go. Don't forget to follow your heart Jaci. Much love. Ava."

  Damn you Avalon! I suppose I am being a bit of a bitch this evening. I decide to finish my coffee then go find Michael. Lucky for me I did not have to go far. I walk into the kitchen and there he is. He must just like the kitchen. I rinse my coffee cup, put it in the dishwasher, and then walk over to the couch where Michael is sitting.

  "I'm sorry I've been a tad moody today."

  Michael laughs. "Moody?"

  He sure knows how to push me. "Okay. Fine! I've been a bitch. Okay? Are you happy now?"

  Michael stands up right in front of me and places his hands on my shoulders.

  "Yes. I am happy as a matter of fact. It's okay. Would you like to go out and get something to eat?"

  Now that he mentions it I am pretty hungry.

  "Sure." I run up the stairs forgetting how fast I can move now and change my clothes. I can do this. I can hang out with Michael and be totally normal. Nothing is going to happen. We can be just two friends having a good time.

  Michael and I head out to one of the local restaurants so we can get something to eat before everything closes for the evening then decide to walk around downtown. It is beautiful here. I remember how much of a skeptic I was about Aspen but the trees, the leaves, the snow on the mountains, it is just so pretty. If I was not a vampire the cold would drive me absolutely batty but right now it feels comfortable. It is the perfect weather. I hate that I can't be out in the sun much more but I'm getting used to it. Michael looks at me with a cute little smile on his face.