Chapter 23

 

Harper

I walked into the restaurant and my head swam from the scent of blood that filled my nostrils. While Claude talked to the hostess I tried to get myself together. The whole blood craving was still a little overwhelming for me. I felt Reid step closer to me. “Grab my hand babe, and help yourself calm down if you need to,” he offered, grinning again. I had never had blood from a live human donor before, and I knew he could sense my excitement from our blood bond, which Reid had strengthened last night. It was weird to know I was no longer human; a few days ago the thought of hunting and sucking someone’s blood would have made me want to puke, let alone act like a kid in a candy store.

Zoë looked over at me. “You okay, Harp?” she asked, concerned.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I’m a little overwhelmed, but I’m okay.”

“Okay. Your red eyes give away your excitement, though,” she teased, orange flashing across her own eyes.

I smiled back, following the hostess to our table. I sat down and look over the menu, feeling very confused. There were so many options, and I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to order. Blood? Steak? French fries? Reid reached over, grabbing my hand and offering me a small encouraging smile. It was hard to believe this was the same guy who could barely stand to talk to me not that long ago. I now knew it was because he didn’t want to get hurt, but now he was utterly amazing. He was so attentive and loving, not to mention the sex was completely out of this world. That was one thing the movies did get right about vampires…the sex was totally incredible.

“How can they possibly make all this? There are hundreds of people, and so many choices!” I sighed, frustrated.

“Well, think about it Harper; supernaturals…speed…magic…it’s not that hard for them to produce a lot of food quickly,” Claude answered, making me feel embarrassed for even asking the question.

“Back the fuck off, Claude,” Reid threatened, reminding me that he was still very much an asshole at heart. He just wasn’t an asshole to me anymore. Noticing my flush of embarrassment, he came close. “Let me order for you tonight, okay babe?” He whispered in my ear, kissing the sensitive spot below my ear and sending chills down my spine. I nodded, but hell, if he kept kissing me like that I would probably do anything he asked.

Our waiter walked up to the table, and I knew right away that he was a werewolf. My new vampire abilities provided great heightened senses, which allowed me to know what a person was by their smell alone. “Good evening, my name is Tyler, I’ll be your waiter. What can I get you to drink and eat?” he asked. Claude and Zoë asked for beers and rare steak meals.

“Two glasses of A negative and an A positive donor please. And also, send us some fully loaded nachos to snack on afterwards,” Reid ordered, and the waiter nodded and stepped away.

Blood and nachos? That had to be the most ridiculous thing I had ever heard. “Nachos, really?” I asked, perplexed, making him laugh at my surprise.

“I’ll have you know I really like nachos. Plus, you won’t be overly hungry after the donor anyway.”

Ah yes, the donor. Suddenly I was feeling really nervous about the whole thing. I wasn’t sure what to expect from a donor; did I just go in there and dig in, or did I have to do something special? I hadn’t had a live donor yet, so this wasn’t something I knew anything about, and that left me feeling sort of lost.

“Do you want to go?” Reid asked casually.

“I guess so.” I gulped, feeling incredibly uneasy. But I guessed now was as good of a time as any other.

“Are you hungry? Be honest Harper….”

I hesitated, but I couldn’t lie to him even if I wanted to; our connection would betray me. “Yes, I’m starving.”

“Good. Now if you both will excuse us, we will be back soon,” Reid stated, pulling out my chair and helping me up.

“Don’t worry, we won’t hold our breath for a quick return, but do try to behave yourselves,” Zoë mused.

With each step I could feel my pulse quickening, I was so excited. Reid led me to a back room, where I saw a beautiful dark haired woman sitting quietly. She just sat there waiting like this was the most natural thing in the world, which seemed really bizarre. Then again, I was about to feed on a live donor so I guessed she was used to this; but even so I felt really conflicted about the whole thing. It just seemed so animalistic to bite into someone’s flesh.

Reid must have sensed my apprehension because he gave me comforting smile. “Don’t worry babe, she works here, she’s a donor; this is her job. There’s nothing to feel bad about.”

I got into Reid’s head. Reid, I’m not sure about this. What if I hurt her? I’m…I’m feeling really hungry, and I’ve never done this.

He answered out loud. “It will be fine. I’m here, trust me.”

I did trust him; I didn’t think he would actually let me hurt anyone, but the truth was I was a lot stronger than he was and he knew it. Still, he had faith in me so I should have it in myself. Reid sat me down beside the woman, gently tipping her neck to the side. I could hear her steady heartbeat, and instantly I sensed his excitement mimicking my own. “You want to get a major artery. The neck is the easiest, but any vein can work,” he explained calmly. He was so impressive; I could feel the intensity that he was feeling from the blood and yet he still had so much control over his emotions and urges on the surface. I nodded, seeing the woman close her eyes in anticipation. I zeroed in on her visible pulse in her tipped neck; being a vampire was like nothing else. Every emotion was intensified; every sight, smell and movement was sharper and clearer, unlike anything I could have imagined as a human.

Reid bent down, gently biting into her neck and sending my senses into overdrive. I understood now why he was so excited. Watching your blood mate feed was totally fucking hot. The little moan she let out, mixed with the smell of her blood, made every part of my body feel awakened from a deep slumber. The hardest thing to get used to about all this was the arousal level. Any time I even thought about blood my arousal level went through the roof, but seeing someone I loved drinking blood was almost too much.

His scarlet eyes locked with mine and he gently released the woman’s neck. “Now remember, we all have built in indicators that tell us when we have to stop drinking. Listen to this; it will guide you. It’s your turn now, babe.”

I licked my lips in anticipation, leaning towards her neck. I hesitated a moment, but the smell of her blood took over and I was on autopilot, slowly sinking my teeth into her flesh and hearing another moan escape her lips. The taste of her blood was beyond intoxicating, and I could feel myself sucking harder and harder. The feeling of her blood flowing down my throat was pure euphoria. I understood now when Reid said everyone had their own unique taste; hers was a glorious dark mint chocolate.

Time felt like it had almost stilled, but it wasn’t long before I heard a sort of alarm go off in my head. This must be the signal he’d mentioned that would tell me I had to stop. Truth was I didn’t really want to stop; this tasted so good I wanted to suck on her neck forever, but reluctantly I forced myself to let go.

I glanced up at Reid, seeing an almost pained expression. I knew that expression well, and it wasn’t anything close to pain. He wanted me, and I felt the same way; blood was a crazy aphrodisiac nowadays.

“Thank you for your services. I kindly ask you to leave us now,” he requested without breaking eye contact with me. “Well, that was….” He paused, searching for words. “That was almost too much for me. I’m glad you stopped yourself, because I don’t know that I would have been much help in stopping you right now. I think I could have watched you drain her and not even cared in the slightest. You make me want to do bad things, Harper Andrews.”

I smiled, knowing he meant it; I could feel his arousal pulsating through me. “Is that so?” I teased. “Well, why don’t you come over here and show me some of those bad things?”

He moved fast, but unlike before I could see him now. I was enjoying being able to keep up with him. Reid lifted me off the couch, slamming my back against the wall. I could feel his hard-on pressed up against me, and I could barely contain my excitement. Gently he ran the backs of his fingers over my neck. “You are brave, my love.”

I smiled, dipping my head, giving him full access to my neck. He ran his tongue along my artery before sinking his teeth into it, making me moan loudly with pleasure. I hoped these rooms were sound proof, because my volume control was non-existent. He released my neck. “You make me so happy. I’ve never felt so alive, Harper. How did I live before you?” he asked, breathlessly planting gentle kisses down my collarbone.

“I have no idea,” I replied cockily before his lips touched mine, kissing me passionately. I gripped my fingers into his hair, tugging gently, and his hands ran up the back of my thighs before settling on my ass.

“Are you sure you won’t miss me being human?” I frowned, breaking the kiss. What if he regretting me not being human anymore? “I know I’m not who you originally fell for.”

“I love you no matter what you are. But believe me, you as a vampire is better than anything I could have ever imagined. You’re a dream come true,” he said, kissing me softly.

“I wish I was more normal; I know it hasn’t been easy and I know I’m a handful. Maybe you would be better suited to be with someone with less baggage.”

“First off, you have far less baggage than me. Plus, why would you want to be the same as everyone else, when being different is what makes you so wonderful? It is not the similarities of people that we remember in life; it’s the differences that burn into our souls and make us who we are; who we are both to ourselves and to others. Don’t you dare wish for anything different, because it’s an insult to who you are and to everyone who loves you, Harper. And I do love you.”

I could have cried in that moment. I’d never had anyone say anything so beautiful to me.

“I love you too, Reid,” I said, moving my lips to his neck and kissing him gently. I bit down into his neck, hearing a small moan escape his lips as his blood flowed into my mouth, leaving me with a delicious mixture of orange and cinnamon flavor in my mouth. I pulled away, feeling dizzy. “You’re the dream I never even thought was possible,” I said, kissing his lips. “Now fuck me so we get back to the table and discuss how we will catch that asshole Jastin before he starts a war.”

He grinned widely at me. “Yes, ma’am.”

There was no gentleness in his lovemaking just like I’d requested, and I couldn’t help but feel so alive as I moaned into my climax.

Love, blood, and sex. So far being a vampire-hybrid was so much fun.

 

To be continued…Book 2 to follow.