Bad Boy Romance: Bad Marine (Bad Boy Military Romance) (Alpha Bad Boy New Adult Contemporary Male Stories) (24 page)

              As Cadence got into her car, she glanced at the clock.  She had been later than expected, but did not regret it.  Having lived an immortal life, she had only been with humans a handful of times in the last century or so.  She relished the memory of soft, warm human flesh as she drove away.  She headed north towards Lightwood Mountain.

              As she drove, she mulled over the ritual in her head.  She had neglected to tell them all aspects of it.  She did not inform them her reasoning for seeking them out and making the offer.  The truth was that she did not want to be a vampire anymore.  By creating life, she would give up her immortality.

              She arrived at the exit, and pulled off the highway.  Instead of heading to the creek, she drove around the base of the mountain to the other side.  There was a cave that few knew about, and inside was a fellow vampire, who had been waiting.  She got out of her car and hiked up to the cave, taking a deep breath before entering.  Something about this particular vampire always intimidated her.  He was the one who transformed her, and also the one who had taught her how to transform back.  At one point, she had loved him.

              “You’re late,” he growled as she entered.

              “Things went better than expected,” she answered coolly as her eyes quickly adjusted.

              “So you’re going through with it then?” he asked.

              Cadence paused before answering.  There was a hint of emotion in his voice she couldn’t quite place.  She could not remember the last time that she had felt emotion from him.  She had not seen him for a long time, and even before that they had drifted apart.

“Yes, I am,” she finally answered, “I think they deserve it, and I am ready for this.”

              “You do understand the consequences….” he took a step towards her, “You fully understand the price?”

              “I do,” she answered without hesitation.

              He came closer, almost circling her.  “Why now?” he asked.  “After all of these years, are you sure you want to be transformed back?  Don’t forget that you begged me to take you in the first place.  You said you wanted to be mine forever…”

              “We all know how that went,” she answered harshly, “I was simply a conquest to you.”

              “Not true, Cadence,” he insisted.  Was that real hurt she detected in his voice?

              “Then what am I Elvin?  And why did you leave me for so long?”

              “I regretted transforming you, Cadence.  I could no longer bear seeing the pain I had caused you.  You thought you wanted to be mine more than anything, but what you really wanted was a family.  I’m sorry that you realized it too late.  I should have mentioned the sterility before ever taking you….  It all just happened so fast.  I did love you Cadence.  I felt as if I had destroyed you though.  So I left.  When I came back with this offer, I was hoping you would not take me up on it.  I realize now how appealing it must be to give to someone else what you always wanted, but could never have.”

              “As you know, only the one who transformed you can give the blessing to change you back.  And you are fully aware of what happens when you become human again.”

              “Yes,” answered Cadence, with a detectable shake in her voice.  “It is not your fault, Elvin.  I should have thought of the consequences of my actions.  I was just so blinded by the romanticism of becoming a vampire and being with you
forever.
  I simply did not think out what forever really means.  I didn’t think about the fact that I would live with my regrets and painful memories forever, or that I would have more years to make these mistakes.  I am very grateful that you came back to make this offer.”

              “I know however feels, Cadence,” he answered, “That is why I am making this offer to you.  I just want to make sure you are fully informed.  When you help the child to be conceived, the child’s growth will be the death of you.  With each cell grown, a part of you will die.  When the child is born, it will be your last hour.  You will die.  You are giving your life force where one could not be created by other means, in order to create another life.  Therefore the price is your own life.  Your soul remains yours and moves on to the next horizon, just as if you were never immortal.  You understand these consequences and are ready to move forward?”

              “Yes, Elvin.  I do understand, and I must move forward.  Don’t you see I have no other choice?” Cadence asked, as a tear fell from her eye.

              “I do.  I understand Cadence.  You forget that I, too, am immortal.  I have made mistakes as well.  I will regret the decision to take you for the rest of my life.  I
have
regretted since I saw the pain it ultimately caused you.  I had to flee because I could not face what I had done.  I am sorry I did not stay to offer you comfort… I just couldn’t bear my own pain.  I should have been stronger for you, but I knew the only way to end your pain was this way, and I did not want to watch you die.  Please forgive me, Cadence.”

              “I forgive you, Elvin,” she said, openly crying at this point, “and I am sorry for your pain as well.  I hope that you can find some peace in this.”

              “Oh, Cadence,” he whispered as he pulled her close, “you were always my only peace.  When I was gone, I would look up at the moon and remember the night I found you.  I should have never ventured in that restaurant, as lonely as I was.  I should have known I would act irrationally and do something I would regret.  I remember seeing you there, sitting alone at the bar, so beautiful and full of life.  I had to have you.  I knew it immediately and I knew how selfish it was.  But I overlooked it, and took you anyway.”

              “I remember the way your eyes looked when you first looked up at me.  I remember the gleam in your eye.  I remember hearing your heartbeat, so calm and serene.  And I took it all from you to fulfill my own selfish needs.  I essentially destroyed everything I loved about you.”

              “I also would remember the painful parts.  I remember when you first told me you regretted not being able to carry a baby.  I remember watching your reaction every time you came near one or saw even a picture of a baby.  I should have never suggested that we try to be ‘normal’ and eat at restaurants and go on dates to improve our relationship.  Being around others with the possibility of having to be around a child that would only make your heart ache was just too much.”

              “I know now how much it hurt, Cadence.  I realized that nothing would make me happier than having a family with you.  I had never wanted such things before. It wasn’t until I thought about how happy it would make you, that the thought ever crossed my mind.  And to have a child with your beauty-!”

              At this Elvin choked, and Cadence let out a sob.  They sat together in silence, each lost in their own thoughts.  As first light began to appear in the mouth of the cave, Elvin suggested they retreat to his temporary sleeping quarters, deep within the cave where no light could penetrate.  “Stay with me tonight, Cadence.  This will be the last planting moon we will see as vampires together, and I want to find what we once felt for each other before its arrival.”

              “I’ll stay, Elvin,” she answered, and followed him through the labyrinth to his bed.

              As Sheryl woke in the morning light, she wondered if what she had experienced the night before was just a dream.  She turned to ask David, but he was not there.  She then realized that the smell of breakfast trailing down the hall is what woke her, and lifted herself from the bed to go see what was on the menu.

              Upon entering the kitchen, she was taken in to the cozy sights, sounds, and smells contained there.  The sizzling sound of the pan as it wafted up delicious smells, and her dashing husband standing over the stove spatula in hand brought a smile to her face.  Every day without fail he reminded her why she loved him so.

              “It wasn’t a dream,” he said as he noticed her, almost as if he had read her mind, “There really was a vampire.  She really was super sexy.  You really rode her face, and she is really ‘magically’ going to help us conceive.  It’s a lot to take in, huh?”

              “I’d say so,” she answered.  “Do you believe it will work?”

              “Well, I believe in vampires,” he answered, “so why in the hell not?  Have a seat, I’m about to make your plate.”

              Sheryl sat as requested and waited patiently for her plate.  As he sat it down, she realized that he had made her absolute favorites.  Sheryl had always been kind of a health nut, and for breakfast ate things such as carrot pancakes, smoked salmon and asparagus omelets, and portabella bacon.  Here were all three things, placed neatly on her plate.  “That’s a lot of food, honey,” she observed.

              “Yep.  You may as well get used to eating for two.  Did you take your vitamin?” he asked.

              “You know that I have taken it every day since we started trying.  Are you going to be the overbearingly doting husband?” she asked playfully.

              “I might,” he evaded, “Can you blame me?  I mean, this is finally going to happen, just like that.  After all of these years of treatments, planning, tracking, and having sex become a chore, one night of fun splashing in a spring will finally give us what we want.  Could it be more perfect?”

              “I guess not,” she answered.

              “I wonder why she chose us.  I wonder if this is a gift that she has, and if she helps people all of the time, or if this is a once- in- a- lifetime opportunity that we are lucky enough to be chosen for.  She mentioned something about the moon… I wonder if this happens often and if someone is up in that spring every time.  I didn’t realize until this morning how many questions I had,” he admitted, “last night was just so unreal.”

              “Yeah it was,” she agreed, “and I have a lot of questions too, but in the end none of them matter.  Would having all of the answers change anything?  Would it make a difference?  All that matters is that we will finally get to have a baby, and as a bonus, we have also rediscovered our sexuality instead of performing sex as if it were some mundane act not performed for pleasure.  I forgot how much I used to enjoy watching you go down on another girl, and how much I missed touching a soft female body.”

              “I forgot how much I enjoy seeing you with another girl too Sheryl.  You have no idea how much I missed it.  Hell, I had no idea until last night.  Just picturing you grinding her face as I fucked her…”

              Sheryl giggled and pointed her fork at him playfully.   “You’d better quit, before we find ourselves back in bed.  We have a busy day today, you know.”

              “Do we?” he asked.

              “Why yes, we have to open back up the nursery.  It needs to be aired out so we can start getting it ready,” she said.

              “Are you sure Sheryl?  You remember the last time we went in there, don’t you?”

              “Yes.  I had a hard time accepting the last miscarriage.  I know I said I wouldn’t go back in there until I was sure the pregnancy was viable.  But today I woke up with the confidence that this would work, and I want to face it again, so I can grieve properly and let it go before we move on.”

              “If you’re sure Sheryl, I will join you,” David said solemnly.

                            Cadence woke with a start, not knowing where she was.  It wasn’t sun down; she could feel it wasn’t; but here she was, suddenly awake.  She detected a presence beside her, and it took a moment for the night before to come flooding back.  She remembered meeting with Elvin and all of the things that he had said.  She remembered David and Sheryl and the promise she had made.  For a moment, in Elvin’s arms, she wondered if she had made the right decision.  Was it too late to change her mind?

              Maybe Elvin and her could be happy together forever.  Maybe she could let go of her longing for a family…  Right as she thought this, she immediately realized that it wasn’t true.  She was even more aware of this after hearing that he had the same longing.  Why had she caused him to feel this way?  and was this not a decision that was selfish in its own right?  How could she leave him to leave out his days without her, living with the regret she had caused him?

              Her thoughts then returned to David and Sheryl.  She imagined what they were doing now, as they awaited the night ahead.  Were they celebrating?  Were they just going about their day as normal?  Were they nervous and happy like she imagined she would be?  She imagined Sheryl pregnant, with a baby inside.  She would surely be radiant and beautiful.  She imagined David helping her to carry things that were too heavy.  She imagined his face when Sheryl would tell him that it was time.

              Last, she imagined them holding their brand new baby.  She then remembered why she was doing this.  She wanted to create that joy in someone else.  She knew that Elvin understood.  She hoped that he could find peace in it.  Picturing them with a baby made her indescribably happy.  In a way, it would be
her
baby too, given her life energy to take as its own.  She wondered what the baby would look like.  With parents as beautiful as they were, she was sure that the baby would be gorgeous.

              More sure of her decision than before, she wept quietly as she lay and contemplated it all.  She knew that this was the right choice to make, and the only way she would ever have peace.  She hoped that Elvin could find the same.  She turned to him and pulled herself close, drifting back into a state of sleep.