I slept like a baby tucked snugly beneath my favorite down comforter while Mother Nature attacked the blackened world outside with a snowy vengeance. I relived my fabulous night at the movies in my dreams with smug satisfaction. I couldn’t say what movie we’d seen. It really didn’t matter. I’d spent an incredible two hours in the darkness of the movie theater—a veritable lover’s paradise—and a bit more time in my driveway when he brought me home in the arms of the most perfect man. We alternated between the throws of deep passion and a contented cuddle. It had been the perfect night. All my prayers and dreams of meeting Mr. Right paid off. Prayers do get answered!
The world was immobilized by the time my alarm besieged my perfect slumber. It was time to get up for work. Reluctant to leave my blissful memories and fantasies, I grudgingly slapped at the off button to the alarm, but it just kept ringing. After a few more attempts it regi
I was miserably stiff and sore when I awoke the following morning.I was, once again, alone in soft folds of his enormous four poster bed. This time there was a note on the pillow next to me. There was no clock in the room, but I sensed it was late morning. Grabbing the note, I slid out of bed and hobbled over to the window. I smiled as I peeked from behind the thick, drawn drapes. The sun was just beginning to climb over the horizon. The dark clouds had parted, somewhat. It looked like the sun was finally going to grace us with some of its brilliant rays.The roads had been plowed sometime in the night and a man was busy clearing Nevi’s circular driveway and sidewalks with an industrial sized snow blower. Seeing me, he stopped the blower and stared up for what I considered a rude length of time with a ridiculous smirk on his face. Nevi had raised the flame of the fireplace and the room was nice and toasty. It was so much so that I hadn’t felt chilled when
Our footsteps echoed off puke colored pea green walls as Jim and I stepped out of the elevator and followed the attendant down the desolate hall to the room at the end of the building. The door to the morgue swung open and two men in puke colored pea green lab coats walked out. They were in deep conversation and paid little, if any, attention to us as they passed by.I felt like the walls were closing in as we drew closer to our destination. The temperature dropped drastically. Perhaps it was just my imagination. If so, my body responded by shivering uncontrollably. I wrapped my arms across my chest and hugged myself protectively.Jim held his arm out to signal for me to remain in the hall while he went into the examining room to speak to the coroner on duty. I peeked through the doorway while he walked through it. I was overwhelmed by the amount of bodies on an ocean of gurneys. My heart did a somersault. Frank was one of those bodies.Their muffled conversatio
Nevi was waiting outside when I pulled his Volvo up the long circular driveway. It seemed so long ago since I’d unintentionally given the man clearing the walkway a peek of my breasts—yet it had only been that morning. Even in my overwrought condition, I couldn’t help noticing what an excellent job he’d done. Unlike the almost impenetrable mess at my place, the drive and walkways were completely free of snow. If the rest of the world hadn’t looked like a Hallmark card, one would never have guessed it was winter. I actually felt a little silly wearing my knee-high boots—which were more functional than stylish.Nevi rushed to open the car door and help me out. I leapt into his outstretched arms, eager for the comfort they offered. He held me briefly before suggesting we go inside and get out of the cold.Unlike the night before, the interior of his house was ablaze with light. As he led me to the living room, I noticed several rooms ha
The incessant ringing of my cell phone pulled me, reluctantly, from my slumber. My first thought was to wonder why my phone continued to ring instead of redirecting the caller to voice mail. I was going to have to call my cell phone provider and ask them just that.“What?” I snapped as I held the phone to my ear.“Gracious, dear, is that any way to answer the telephone?” my mother asked.“I’m sorry,” I mumbled, “I’m not quite awake.”“It’s after ten. I thought you’d be working. Isn’t this your day to work the breakfast shift?”“I have some time off,” I replied, hoping she wouldn’t ask me why. Before she had a chance I added, “Complements of Ollie.”“Well, that’s a pleasant surprise. This works out wonderfully. I’m throwing a small dinner party and I need you to come help me host it,” she said.
The valet at the country club smirked as he climbed into my beat-up Mazda. What a snob club valets can be. I’d considered driving Nevi’s far more presentable Volvo to the party, but felt uncomfortable about over stepping my privileges with it. I was sure he meant that I drive it to my house and back to his again; not around the countryside and especially not to a party he wasn’t invited to. I felt bad about his lack of invitation. I almost invited him to join me, but thought better of it. It was a little too soon for him to meet the family. Besides, my mother was up to something and I didn’t want to complicate things by introducing Nevi to the mix.I squared my shoulders, tossed my head up high, and started toward the club house entrance. I imagined I was on the Red Carpet at an awards dinner and walked the most regal walk I could muster. The arrogance of the valet was exactly why I was so determined to make it on my own. Most of the employees at
It was eleven-thirty when I pulled Nevi’s Volvo down his long drive and stopped where it circled in front of the house. What was I thinking? Was I expecting a valet or someone to park the car for me? I shook my head, started the car back up, and drove it into its assigned space in carriage house. I was just closing the door when Nevi rushed in.“I was getting worried about you,” he said.“Really?” I was surprised to hear this. “I left you a voicemail telling you that I had to go to my parent’s dinner party tonight. Didn’t you get it?”“I did. Yet, I still worried,” he chuckled. “You’ve gotten under my skin in the short time we have known each other, my little minx. You mean so much to me and, considering the tragedy with your friend, I just worry about your safety and well-being.”Wow. That was quite a statement on Nevi’s part. Could it be his feelings for me were de
When I came out of the darkness, I was resting comfortably on the bed in the room I’d been occupying. The man I’d noticed clearing the snow from the front of the house the first time I’d stayed over—and given a peep show to, I recalled with embarrassment—was carrying in a tray laden with a tea pot and two cups. He set the tray down on a small side table near the wing backed chair that Nevi was seated in and scurried out of the room. When Nevi heard me stir, he put the papers he’d been reading down and came to my side.“How are you feeling?” he asked with genuine concern.“I…” My hand flew to the bandage on my throat as the memory of my nightmare encounter flooded back to me. “Oh my god! I was bitten by a crazy woman. I think she was a…a vampire!” I turned to Nevi and looked at him as if I was seeing him for the first time. “You…she said she was…she was…&rdqu
Nevi and I spent most of the night talking. Mainly it was him talking and me interjecting with a question here and there. I discovered my lover was the leader of a large group of vampires born of humans. We decided human-vampires was a good term for them. They had banned together—along with other races of vampires which he told me I was better off not questioning him on for the time being—and they’d rid the world of a considerable amount of the rogue vampires. Unfortunately, although vampires do procreate, the rogues learned they could also create vampires by making sure the human ingested vampire blood within a few hours prior to death. Because of this, they were making vampires to replace those Nevi and his colleagues destroyed. He was sure it wasn’t just the rogues of the night-walkers performing this act. There were too many vampires for night-walkers to have been able to create them all.I didn’t know why I never mentioned Geoffrey and his v