He moved off the bed at epic speed and was already at the door when I blinked for a second time. "Stephanie will be in to help you shower and dress. We'll discuss your… duties… when you've regained some of your strength."
"Wait!" I blurted.
He paused at the door, his hands digging into the wood. "Yes?"
"Am I still human?"
He burst out laughing and turned. "Of course… still weak, still fragile, still very much… human."
"Oh…" I nodded, my studies of vampires were clearly lacking since I'd learned that a bite could turn you or worse, kill you. "…that's good, right?"
"Depends on who you ask, I suppose." He shrugged and shut the door softly behind him.
I was too tired to focus on what that cryptic sentence may have meant and didn't have time to mull it over like I typically would because Stephanie burst through that same door two minutes later yelling, "You lived!"
Did that mean she'd thought I would die?
"Good for you." She nodded. "Things are finally looking up!" She clapped her hands and dropped a set of clothes onto the nearby chair. "Let's get you showered and looking your best so you can start producing little vampire babies."
I felt my stomach drop. "Wh-what?"
"It was a joke." She winked. "Well, the vampire babies part. Now, let's get you feeling better. I'll have Alex in here a bit later to stabilize you and—"
"Stabilize me?" I repeated. "What?"
"It's what he does." She nodded. "He's a siren — makes girls feel calm when all they want to do is pull their hair out and scream. I'd do it, but it only works on men… thus the need for him to do it. Don't worry though. It's like taking a Xanax, only it feels way better."
"I don't want to feel drugged," I mumbled, my body aching in places I didn't know even existed. "I think right now I just want a shower."
Stephanie shifted on her feet. "He didn't hurt you… did he?"
Well, my physical body was intact, but my heart was really confused. Did it hurt? No, but something felt wrong. Like I should be happy, elated even, rather than depressed and rejected.
"No," I finally answered. "I'm great."
"Good." She exhaled. "Now, about that shower."
Ethan
I still tasted her blood on my lips, was embarrassed for the first time in a century when Alex glanced up from his spot at the kitchen table to see me licking my lips like I'd just devoured the poor girl.
He shook his head. "Been that long, huh?"
"Alex…" I closed my eyes and prayed for patience. "…remind me why I let you live here?"
"I'm good-looking," he answered simply. "Besides, I'm a hell of a fighter — scrappy, I think is how you define my kind. You need me."
"Stop." I pressed my fingertips to my temples and rubbed. The ache to have her had consumed me so much that I'd run down the stairs moving so fast I'd nearly collided with a wall, and grabbed blood from the fridge.
I didn't need it.
But I craved it.
And if I didn't drink the donated blood, I sure as hell was going to drain her and enjoyed very last drop.
"I wonder…" Alex's voice pierced my thoughts. "What's it like?" He leaned forward. "Having to learn self-control all over again… being as ancient as you are?"
I ignored him.
He kept talking.
"Blood-free for a century and now…" He grinned and licked his lips. "Kind of like falling off the wagon, yeah?"
"You're giving me a headache." I threw the empty bag of blood at his face. He moved to the side and snickered. "And I'm fine. Everything is just—"
Her smell was intoxicating. She was walking down the stairs, so her heart picked up speed, her body giving off a scent of burnt vanilla and oranges with a hint of sugar. My mouth literally watered.
"Fine?" Alex said in a mocking voice. "Was that what you were going to say? Damn, man show a little decorum, you look… starved."
"I am," I whispered and fought the urge to rock back and forth. That was the problem with mating — with bonding. Nothing tasted like her, nothing ever would, and typically, having her as my mate gave me full access.
But the more I took…
The stronger the bond.
And the more I wanted…
It was a vicious overwhelming cycle. It would lead me to become emotionally invested while she, as a human, could simply pretend.
It wasn't fair.
Immortals, in essence, were cursed with a deep desire to be like a human — to possess them, to bond with them forever — while humans only felt the same draw to us if they actually loved us.
Ridiculous.
"Oh, there you are." Stephanie pushed Genesis forward and pulled out a chair.
Slowly, Genesis took a seat and glared at each one of us. "Where's Mason?"
It shouldn't have pissed me off.
But it had.
"He's none of your concern," I spat.
"Easy!" Alex chuckled. "Rule number one, don't ask your mate where the other dude is. Just… don't."
Genesis blinked at Alex then back at me. "Because you guys have the capacity for jealousy."
Alex whistled while Stephanie laughed.
Immortals were the most jealous beings on the planet. Had her school taught her nothing?
Was I to be her tutor as well?
"So…" Alex trained his eyes on her, putting her at as much ease as he could without stopping her poor heart. "Now that the mating is complete, you get to learn all about us and service your man here." He slapped my back.
Really. Really. Poor choice of words.
Genesis paled.
I rolled my eyes. "He's kidding."
Alex laughed. "I think it needs to be said that having a human at the house has already helped my mood immensely."
"That makes one of you," Genesis said under her breath.
Alex leaned forward and whispered, "Ethan, try not to be so grouchy. Keep the fangs in and all."
I extended them just to prove a point.
Genesis recoiled.
I instantly felt guilty.
Damn it.
"You won't…" I licked my lips. "You won't have to service me, as Alex so delicately put it."
"Is that what mates do?" Genesis asked, her eyes searching mine. "They…" She lifted her hands into the air and dropped them.
"If that's what you think they do, we have a very big problem." Alex mimicked her movements and winked.
She blushed.
I hissed at him and returned my attention to her. "It's like a human relationship, only stronger. You'll attend functions with me, be by my side, at my beck and call for as long as you live."
I didn't want to say until one day she just didn't wake up. It sounded too cruel.
"And when I'm bored out of my mind… I do what?" She crossed her arms. "I mean, what could you possibly need from me?"
"Adorable." Alex sighed happily. "I'm so glad we kept her."