I woke up sometime later in a dull, dark place. I tried to move but found I was restricted. I rolled back. I was laying on something soft, at least. And the thing restricting me seemed to move. It had rolled over with its arm no longer over my stomach… my eyes snapped open, and I stared up at the bare white ceiling. This place seemed familiar, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I couldn’t until I tilted my head to the left and saw the man sleeping beside me.
Darcy.
That’s why this place was so familiar. We were at Darcy’s place. I was in his bed. I wiped my hand over my face and sat up in bed, letting the sheet fall to my hips. As soon as I did, my head throbbed. I cried out, waking Darcy.
“Emma? Are you okay?”
“My head. My everything. Everything hurts.”
Darcy’s hand rubbed soothing circles on my lower back.
“It must have been whatever spell your mother placed on us.”
My eyes widened. And then it all came back to me.
“Emma! Emma, run!”
“Since you’d rather remain here, you will live out the rest of your days as one of the creatures you care about so much.”
One of the creatures you love so much.
I gasped, and my hand flew to my mouth to feel for fangs. But I could feel no pointed incisors. I turned quickly to look at Darcy as a horrifying thought struck me. I reached for his mouth.
“What are you do—”
“Open your mouth!”
“Okay… but, Emma…” My name came out as ‘Mmma’ as my fingers searched his mouth for any sign of his vampire fangs. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw they were white, pointy, and perfectly untouched in his mouth. I flopped back against the pillows.
“Emma. Please talk to me. Tell me what’s going on inside your head.”
“I’m not a vampire.”
“Okay… since when did you think you were a vampire? Last I checked, I hadn’t turned you. I’ve always been careful with you.”
“No, no. I know you wouldn’t turn me. I wouldn’t let you. I mean, my mother. I thought she’d turned me. The spell… my father…”
“Oh,” replied Darcy, finally getting it.
“Yeah. He said, ‘one of the creatures you care about so much.’”
“And you thought that would be a vampire?”
I looked at him, really looked at him. I searched his face. Doesn’t he believe that I love him?
“You’re talking like you don’t believe that I love you, that I care about you.”
“No. No, I’m not. Well, I guess… a little. I just… I’m not used to this. And I guess I should be.”
I leaned into him and kissed his jaw. “I do love you and care about you. That’s why I thought the spell would turn me into a vampire… Wait, I could still be a vampire!”
Darcy chuckled and kissed my head. “I guess we’ll find out sooner or later. It’s too early to know.” He went silent and stared up at the ceiling before turning his body toward me and taking my face in his hands. “I have an idea.”
I gazed into his dreamy chocolate brown eyes and saw them glistening with wickedness. His eyes are chocolate brown when he’s not hungry or… turned on.
“Uh, oh. I know that look.”
He laughed. “What look?”
“That look. The look that says you have a plan.”
“I do have a plan.”
“Then let’s hear it.”
“The only way to test if you’re a vampire is to see if you crave blood.”