by Xenia Melzer
“Wow, this is so surreal.” Sammy looked around the small blind alley where they had reappeared. “It’s nothing like traveling with the Tardis or like Stargate. It’s much quicker and with less light effects. Why’s there no sound? And are we really in Rome?”
Dre snickered. “No, it’s nothing like Dr. Who or Stargate, but then again, we’re not using wormholes and I don’t have a multifunction screwdriver. But I think it would be possible to add some light effects, if you want to. It’s all magic, after all. And yes, we’re really in Rome. To be precise, we’re in a little alleyway off Via Panisperna on Monti, which is just above the Roman Forum. We’re going to have dinner here.”
Dre held out his arm and Sammy took it without hesitation. The sun was about to set and the air was still pleasantly warm. They went out of the alleyway and around the corner of the brick building with the fading paint to the forefront, where a small blackboard sign announced that the restaurant was open. Dre held the door for Sammy as they entered the narrow hall with framed posters of old films hanging on the walls. Sammy tugged on Dre’s shirt.
“Look, Dre! La Dolce Vita!” He pointed to one of the posters with Marcello Mastroianni and Anita Eckberg. “Oh, and it’s signed!” Sammy stared at the poster with wide eyes. Dre smiled and let him look his fill before he gently tugged him toward the door that would lead them into the restaurant. It wasn’t big—only eleven tables and a small bar in one of the corners. Cobblestones made the floor, as if the room were outside on a piazza, and the ceiling was vaulted, hinting at the age of the building. The restaurant was empty because Italians tended to eat rather late in the evening. At the other side of the room, a door leading to the kitchen opened. Dre smiled when he saw Zenobia, the current matriarch and owner of the restaurant, make her way toward them. He’d known her since the day she was born, and seeing her now, over seventy years later, was always bittersweet for Dre. The woman whose hair had once been as black as a raven’s wing stretched out her hands to touch both Dre and Sammy.
“Dresalantion! How nice of you to come by. And you brought a guest?” Zenobia looked at Sammy. Dre had no doubt she already knew who his date was, but he played along.
“Zenobia, this is Sammy, my date. Sammy, this is Zenobia, the owner of this place and an old friend of mine.”
Sammy took Zenobia’s hand tentatively. His eyes went wide with shock when the old woman reached up, grabbed his nape and lowered his head to her meager height of barely five foot one. Her lips came close to Sammy’s ear and Dre felt a surge of irrational jealousy. With his demon hearing—which wasn’t as good as shifter or vampire hearing, but still way better than that of humans—he picked up what Zenobia whispered.
“Do not despair, mio piccolo passero, because hearts can be healed.”
She pressed a kiss to Sammy’s cheek, threw Dre a mischievous glance and took both their hands. “Follow me, piccioncini. I have the perfect table for you.”
Zenobia led them to a small table for two in a corner that was partly obscured by one of the columns that held the ceiling. After Dre had seated Sammy, Zenobia clapped her hands. “Food will come.” With that, she turned around, her black skirt billowing around her with a sound like a thousand bats taking flight. She was gone before either of them could utter a word. Sammy cleared his throat.
“I guess there’s no menu?”
Dre shook his head. “No, never. The restaurant has no name, either. But the food is delicious.”
Sammy smiled. If Zenobia’s cryptic words had in any way flustered him, he didn’t show it. “So, on a scale from one to ten, how paranormal is she?”
Dre chuckled, delighted by Sammy’s wit. “What gave her away?”
“She knows your name.” Sammy lifted his thumb. “She knew who I was. No, don’t try to deny it. I know the signs.” He lifted his index finger. “You heard what she said to me.” His middle finger came up. “And lastly, she gives this crazy vibe I have come to associate with non-human beings.” Four fingers waggled in front of Dre and he had to suppress the urge to grab Sammy’s hand and kiss them, one after the other.
“Wow, I forgot I’m with an expert.” Dre laughed. “You’re right, of course. Zenobia comes from a long line of priestesses. She’s human, but one with some very special talents.”
“A witch?” Sammy looked suspicious. Since he was used to the company of witches, Dre could understand his reaction. Witches weren’t always good news. They could be downright nasty if they wanted to, so he hastened to reassure Sammy.
“No, although it’s similar. She’s a high priestess to the mother goddess, who goes by many names—Gaia, Hecate, Morrigan, Danu, Isis. The list is long, as you know. Zenobia and her family have served the goddess in an unbroken line since before the first pyramids were built.”
Dre couldn’t help it. He loved how Sammy hung on his every word.
“If this is the kind of knowledge you’re going to share tonight, then you’ve already won our challenge. This is fascinating. How long have you known them?”
“Zenobia’s family? For about four hundred years. I met her ancestor Paxe when I first came to Rome. She already had the restaurant then, and the food was just as good.”
Sammy raised a brow. “You’re kind of an uber-regular, aren’t you?”
Dre chuckled. “You could say that.”
Before Sammy could open his mouth again, a younger version of Zenobia approached their table with a carafe of wine and a jug of water. She smiled broadly at them.
“Good evening, Dresalantion, Sammy. I hope you enjoy your meal here.”
The young woman put two clay mugs in front of each of them, filled two with water and two with the dark red wine before she bent slightly forward to ignite the thin white candle between them by blowing on it.
“Thank you, Aulina.”
“My pleasure.” She winked at them and left.
“That was Aulina, Zenobia’s granddaughter.”
“Beauty seems to run in that family.”
“Not only beauty, as you’ve seen.”
Dre picked up his clay mug with the wine. “To a wonderful date in the eternal city.”
Sammy clinked his mug against Dre’s. “Cheers.”
They took a sip of their wine and Sammy’s eyes widened. “This is good.”
“Oh yeah. They know how to make good wine.” Dre looked around before he leaned over the table, closer to Sammy, who had a curious glint in his eyes. “Rumor has it that the wine the Pope drinks during mass on Easter and Christmas comes from here as well.”
Sammy’s grin was so wide that Dre feared it would split his face in half.
“Stop giving the boy weird ideas.” Zenobia had approached the table without them noticing her. She put plates in front of them, a basket with bruschetta slices and a small pot with a greenish spread. “All wine consumed during service is the wine. Everybody knows that.” She patted Sammy’s hand. “Enjoy your meal.”
Dre and Sammy each got a slice of bread, which was still warm, covered it with the spread and took a bite. Sammy moaned.
“Mm-m. So good. What’s in it?”
Dre licked his lips. The food was good, but Sammy’s groans were even better.
“It’s a mixture of ricotta cheese, olive oil, basil and garlic. One of my favorites.”
“I can see why. I could bathe in this stuff.” Sammy took another bite, making appreciative noises in the back of his throat that had Dre’s libido burning. It got worse when Zenobia brought them the next course, linguine with artichokes and a lemon sauce that had Sammy moaning like somebody was licking his body from head to toe. Apparently, Sammy loved food. His reaction to the main course, saltimbocca romana with young potatoes, had Dre’s cock straining against the zipper of his jeans, and after dessert, a panna cotta with strawberry and raspberry sauce, Dre knew he had made the right decision by bringing Sammy there. When they rose to leave, Zenobia took their hands again, murmuring something in a language they didn’t understand. Once they were out of the door, Sammy looked at h
im.
“What was that?”
“A blessing. Zenobia likes you a lot. You’re the first date I’ve brought here that she served personally.”
Sammy halted so abruptly that it took Dre several steps before he realized his date was no longer at his side. With a questioning look, he turned around.
“You’ve brought others here?”
The drama in Sammy’s voice might have alarmed Dre if it hadn’t been for the mischievous glint in his eyes. He approached Sammy, slung his arms around his waist and pulled him close. “I hate to tell you that, mo grah thu, but you’re the worst actor I’ve ever met.”
Sammy leaned his upper body back to look into Dre’s eyes. A faint blush tinged his cheeks, making Dre want to devour him right there on the street.
“I’m sorry. It’s just— You’re making me so nervous and I’m trying hard not to start with the verbal diarrhea, which isn’t working so well, considering how you’re looking at me right now. I want this to work so bad, because this is my first date ever and I’m wildly attracted to you and you probably don’t want to go out with me ever again.”
There was a wet sheen to Sammy’s eyes now, a sheen Dre wanted gone. Slowly, he lifted his right hand and caressed Sammy’s cheek. Sammy closed his eyes at the contact, whimpering softly. “Sammy, I don’t want you to censor yourself. I already told you I’m a sucker for all kinds of knowledge myself, the geekier, the better. And I’m nervous, too. This is my first date in over a hundred years. My last relationship was terrible and ended in serious heartbreak on my side. So, as you can see, I carry my own baggage. And just for the record, I’m wildly attracted to you as well.”
A tentative smile rose on Sammy’s face. “You think we could work?”
The longing in Sammy’s voice tore at Dre’s heart, because it was so similar to his own. “Yes, mo grah thu, I think we could definitely work.”
“What does ‘mo grah thu’ mean?”
Dre smiled down at Sammy. “It’s an endearment, meaning ‘my love’.”
“Oh.” The blush on Sammy’s cheeks deepened, then he grinned. “Mavis and Maribell are probably going to kill me, but I’m really enjoying my date with a demon.”
Dre chuckled. “And it has just started.”
He slung his arm around Sammy’s shoulder and led him down the Monti toward the Roman Forum.
Chapter Five
Sammy couldn’t believe it. He was on a date…in Rome…with a demon. No, not just with a demon, with the most gorgeous demon he could imagine. The food had been beyond delicious and Dre hadn’t gotten fed up with his nervous ass, something Sammy had feared from the moment he’d dropped the glass with the marmalade. He knew Mavis and Maribell wouldn’t have approved of this date, which was one of the reasons why he hadn’t told them. The second reason was that this date was the first happy thing in a long time that belonged solely to him. After the death of his parents, all his happiness—with the exception of the bookstore—had been shared, because he just couldn’t be happy on his own anymore. This thing between him and Dre, though… It made him giddy with joy and tremble in fear at the same time. Sammy just didn’t know if he was strong enough to experience loss again, and with every second he spent in Dre’s company, his conviction grew that losing the handsome demon would be devastating. There was also the fact of Dre’s immortality, which doomed their relationship from the start. Sammy knew they weren’t meant to be forever, but he sure wished for it. His rational mind told him to end it now, before he got too invested, but his heart—and his libido—voted against that. Sammy took a deep breath, decided to give his rational thought a holiday for the time being and concentrated on the gorgeous man next to him. The streets of Rome were bustling with a first onslaught of tourists and the natives going on the prowl for the evening. Many people looked at Dre with admiration and open hunger in their eyes. Sammy could relate. His date was fine, with his red skin, the silver tattoos that licked up his neck and the backs of his hands, his long, silver hair… Sammy frowned.
“Why aren’t people running from you screaming? You don’t look that human.”
Dre pulled Sammy closer, a smile on his lips. “A mixture of selective ignorance and a dash of magic. People tend to ignore what can’t possibly be, and those with more inquisitive or open minds are encouraged to forget the moment they realize something’s odd about me.”
“But I can see you clearly.”
“Yes, you can.” Dre sounded very pleased about that. “There are several reasons… First, you met me when I was summoned. It’s hard to ignore such a blatant fact, even though you weren’t awake when I appeared in the circle. Second, you’re acquainted with the paranormal world. That takes the blinders off. Third, and most importantly, I think we’re drawn to each other, which cancels out the magic.”
“You like that.” Sammy couldn’t help a hint of pride creep into his voice. Dre must have picked up on it because he bent down to place a gentle kiss on Sammy’s forehead.
“Yes, I like it a lot. Now, I believe we have a challenge going on. What do you know about the Roman Forum? And I want the lesser-known facts.”
Sammy felt his brain switch gears. He loved a good geek challenge.
“Okay, where to start… I know! The reason the Roman Forum is on a deeper level than the rest of the city is because the Romans built on ruins, and throughout the centuries, a lot of debris has accumulated. Your turn.”
Dre grinned. “The early days of the Forum go back as far as eight hundred BC, and the people who built it first drained the area to get rid of the grass.”
“The excavation of the site took over a hundred years.”
“There are many forums in Rome, but this one was the most important because the senate met here.”
“Some of the temples aren’t dedicated to gods but to people, because the Romans thought if they had a temple dedicated to them, they would become a deity.”
“That’s a good one. I wonder if Terry Pratchett knew about this when he wrote Small Gods.”
Sammy chuckled. “I love how you can get from ancient Rome to Discworld in one sentence.”
Dre bowed with a flourish. “I aim to please. Oh, and parts of the stones of the Roman Forum were used to build other places in the city and can be found in several churches and the Vatican.”
“It’s also one of the most popular sites in Rome visited by tourists,” Sammy added.
“Okay, let’s call this one a draw. Let’s get our gelato and move on to the Catacombs.”
“Aren’t they closed at night?”
Dre smiled broadly at Sammy, which did strange things to his stomach and nether regions. “They are, but you’re traveling with me.”
Sammy giggled. “I can’t wait to see them.”
They got their gelato from a store that had about forty different flavors. It took them almost twenty minutes to decide what they wanted. Dre settled for pistachio and walnut, while Sammy went for the classics, vanilla and chocolate. The ice cream was scooped onto their cones with a spade, which made them look like little mountains. It was delicious and a bit messy. Sammy was just glad that the night air had a certain chill to it, because otherwise, the gelato would have melted before he could eat it.
“May I have a taste?” Dre looked at him with smoldering eyes. Sammy gulped and held his cone out, but Dre ignored the gesture and went for Sammy’s lips instead. His hot tongue swept over the corner of Sammy’s mouth. Sammy reacted instinctively by opening up. It was their first real kiss and Dre kept it simple, just sucked on Sammy’s tongue for a moment before he righted himself again, a satisfied smile on his face. Sammy was glad, because if Dre had kept on kissing him, he might have come in his pants.
“Delicious.” Dre licked his lips.
Sammy groaned. This was torture, albeit the good kind. And since this evening was already so perfect, he just went with the flow. He tried to scoop as much gelato as possible on his tongue, making sure Dre was watching, then tilted his head to him, offering his v
anilla-smeared lips. “Want another taste?”
Now it was Dre’s turn to groan. The demon bent back down. Almost in slow motion, Sammy could see Dre’s eyes turning crimson. He knew he should be alarmed. He knew Dre was dangerous. And yet all he felt was lust and a yearning from so deep down in his soul that he didn’t want to think about it too much. Their lips met again, their tongues starting a slow, sensuous dance that had Sammy’s entire body flushed with heat. They only stopped when they needed to come up for air. Panting, they stared at each other. Sammy caught a flash of fang from Dre and shuddered in anticipation. He wondered how it would feel, kissing Dre with his fangs out. The demon trembled under his light touch.
“We better get to the Catacombs pronto. The magic conceals only so much.”
Sammy loved the rasping quality of Dre’s voice, which assured him that the demon was as affected by their kiss as he was. They stumbled into the nearest alleyway, looking for a dark corner where nobody would see them vanishing. Dre pressed Sammy tightly against his body while he cut open time and space. They reappeared inside the Catacombs on the Appian Way, surrounded by darkness and a silence that was almost deafening. It was also colder underneath the surface. Sammy snuggled closer to Dre’s body, enjoying the heat coming from the demon. Dre held out his right hand and a small ball of fire appeared on it. It hovered half a foot above them, shedding light and warmth. Once they had eaten their gelato, which took some time because of all the kisses they stole in between, they set out to explore. Sammy loved the way their shadows were dancing around the walls like creatures from another world. With Dre at his side, he didn’t fear anything. They passed a long line of rectangular shapes hewn into the rock where the bodies of Jews and early Christians had been buried. The farther they went, the more elaborate those graves became, some of them with beautiful mosaics to honor the deceased. They stopped at one small grave where a child had been buried. Sammy felt sadness wash over him.
“I wonder what it was like, coming down here with the body of somebody you loved in your arms, putting them to rest among all the other who had gone before them.”
