Bite Me (2 page)

CHAPTER FIVE

     The smell of something cooking woke me. I sat up and Aiden was in the kitchen working. He turned when he heard me stir. A beautiful smile split his face.

      "Good morning." He pleasantly greeted. "I'm making breakfast."

      "I can see that. Smells like pancakes."

      "That's what it is. Come on, come and get some while they're hot off the griddle."

      As I got up, there was a knock at the door. It could only be one person on a Sunday morning. I almost dreaded answering it. I didn't want Donnie to see Aiden. But, it was inevitable they'd eventually meet. So, wrapping the afghan around me, I opened the door.

      Donnie frowned. "Still not feeling well?"

      "I just got up." I grumbled, holding the blanket tightly around me. I stepped back. "Come on in."

      Donnie's nose went up in the air like a hungry puppy and looked at me, surprised. "You're making breakfast?"

     "Not me." I replied and gestured a hand to Aiden, in his boxer briefs, now putting my plate on the table. He glanced at Donnie standing beside me.

      He flashed a smile.

      "Donnie, this is Aiden. Aiden, my friend Donnie."

      I nudged my friend who was standing there with his jaw slacked at the sight of the muscled, coffee color skin man. Aiden came forward with hand extended.

      "How are you doing?"

      Donnie looked at me in disbelief but with a twinkle in his blue eyes and shook Aiden's hand.

"Hello."

      "Won't you join us? We're about to have breakfast. I make some mean pancakes." Aiden boasted.

      Donnie pulled out a chair, "Don't mind if I do."

      I inwardly groaned. I was never going to hear the end of it from him. "I'm going to get dressed." I mumbled, gathered my clothes from the chest of drawers in the living room and disappeared into the bathroom.

     I could hear their conversation from the bathroom.

    "So, Donnie, how do you know Lucy?" Aiden inquired.

    "We've known each other from high school. Two misfits trying to fit in."

     Aiden softly chortled. "Yes, she certainly is different. Are you into the Goth and vampires too?"

     "I manage a club near the West End of London."

     "So, that's a yes."

     I came out of the bathroom dressed in a black, clingy, three-quarter sleeve knit shirt, dark blue skinny jeans and barefoot. I sat down, unable to look Donnie in the eyes. I knew what was going through his mind and I didn't want to hear or acknowledge what I had done.

     Aiden was seated beside me. He smiled at Donnie, enjoying the pancakes. "Didn't I tell you, they were the best?"

     "They're delicious." Donnie agreed with partially filled mouth.

     Aiden looked at me and laughed. "How about you, Sweetness..."

     I glanced at Donnie salaciously grinning through bites of food.

    "How are you enjoying the pancakes?"

     I nodded. "They are good."

    "Considering Lucy doesn't cook, of course anything anyone would make to her tastes delicious." Donnie teased.

     I tossed him a sharp glare.

     "So, Donnie here tells me that he manages a club." Aiden made conversation.

     "I understand, you're with law enforcement." Donnie commented, now sipping from his mug of tea.

     "An inspector."

     "Are you on the latest case involving those prostitutes who had their throats torn open?"

     "I am."

     "Excuse me; eating here." I interrupted, waving my fork. "Can we please change the subject?"

     Aiden put his arm around my shoulders, "Whatever you want, Sweetness."

    "So, Sweetness," Donnie chuckled and I tossed him a sharp glare. "I assume, you're feeling better?"

     "I was but now I suddenly have an annoying headache." I sneered.

     Aiden frowned. "Really?"

    "I'll be fine." I dismissed, glaring at my grinning friend.

    "Maybe you should take something for it?" Aiden suggested.

     "I said, I'll be fine." I retorted and lowered my gaze on my food, regretting my sharp outburst.

     "Well, I should be going. I have to meet Jack," Donnie's latest fling.

     "Yes, you should." I agreed.

     Donnie softly chortled as he stood. He bowed his head to Aiden, who respectfully stood with my friend. He extended a hand to Donnie.

     "Good to meet you, man." Aiden stated.

     "Same here." Donnie replied. He glanced down at me, still eating. "I'm glad you're feeling better. I'll call you later."

      I mutely nodded. Donnie turned and departed.

     I felt Aiden studying me. "You want to tell me what that was all about?"

     "Nothing." I pressed a smile. "But my headache's gone."

     "O—kay." He put an arm around me and kissed my cheek. "I had a great time last night. It's true what they say about red heads being fiery."

     "I don't want you to get the wrong impression. I'm not the type of girl that has sex with a guy after one date."

     He fondly smiled. "Hey, it's okay. I'm flattered."

     "I'm also not in the market to get serious with anyone." I blurted. Oh, I was so full of regret!

     "That's fine. We'll take it slow."

     If you want to call last night slow. I thought.

     "Right now, I'm going to clean up this mess and then I have to go. And, not because of what you just said. I really do have to go."

     "I understand. It's fine with me. I have a ton of work to do."

     "You never told me what you did."

     "I'm a free-lance writer for various magazines."

     Aiden tauntingly smiled. "Let me guess, vampire stories?"

     "Yes. And I have a blog about the reality of them."

     Aiden shook his head as he started cleaning off the table. "I'm willing to wager, there are a lot of people out there that do believe."

      "Vampirism is a phenomena right now."

       My own beliefs were coming into question.

CHAPTER SIX

     The week was passing peaceably. Except for the pin point marks on my neck, it was as if the attack never happened. Until the night I got the frightening vision.

     I was seated in my kitchen, working on the laptop, when a pain shot through the side of my neck where the marks were. I involuntarily slapped a hand on them. Visions of blood; massive amounts, flashed through my mind. I felt life draining from me. My head fell back. The room spun. And, just as quickly, it started to fade. I sat up straight. What just happened? It was as though I felt the life drain out of someone. Had the psycho vampire struck again?

     The phone rang and I jumped, startled. I immediately picked it up. It was Donnie on the other end.

     "So, what's going on with Mr. Harper?" he asked in that taunting voice of his.

     "Nothing. We're friends."
    "With benefits." He added.

    "I don't want to talk about it. We're dating and that's all it can be."

    "At least, you're having fun doing it."

    "Is there a point to your call, Donnie?" I impatiently asked.

    "No. I just wanted to know how you were doing."

     "I texted you an hour ago."

     "I just wanted to hear your voluptuous voice."

     I groaned with a roll of my eyes. "Good bye, Donnie." I groused and hung up.

     No sooner did I put the cell down, it rang again. I quickly grabbed it, thinking it Donnie again. "What?" I huffed.

     "Are you okay?" the familiar, molten voice asked.

     "Oh, Aiden." I said, apologetically. "I thought you were someone else."

     "What did that person do to tick you off?"

     "Asked too many questions that were none of his business."

     "You talking about Donnie?"

     "Yes."

     I could hear him chortle. "How are you two friends?"

     "It's always been that way. We accept it."

     "So, what are you up to?"

     "Writing."

     "I thought you would like to go to dinner tonight."

     "I could stand to get out for a while."

     "I'll pick you up at eight?"

     "Sounds good."

     We said our good byes and hung up. It was the first I'd heard from Aiden since Saturday night. I was glad he was respecting my wishes not to push us into a serious relationship. I put the phone aside and flipped on the remote, listening to the news as I finished the article for the Gothic magazine.

      Most of it was the same boring rhetoric and I paid little attention; my fingers flying across the keyboard. That was, until the reporter announced that another prostitute had just been found in an alley. I paused and stared at the TV in the living room. I put my hand to my neck. The vision of blood; the near faint. I experienced what the woman was going through. How could that be? Unless, the one who bit me really was a vampire.

     It is written that when a victim is bitten, that person will experience what the vampire is thinking or doing. They share memories. I turned off the television and closed the laptop. Getting up, I retrieved me a bottle of beer from the fridge. I wished, I had something stronger in the cabinets, but I didn't and would have to settle for the beer to calm my nerves for now.

     I pulled open the refrigerator door again and stood there, eating some left over Chinese. I then gathered my clothes and went into the bathroom to ready for the hopefully pleasant evening with Aiden.

     I changed from jeans and t-shirt to a red leather mini skirt, black lace, long-sleeve shirt, black stockings and knee high boots. Satisfied with my appearance, I awaited my date who knocked on the door at exactly eight o'clock. Still, I was cautious answering it.

    Aiden was sharp in dark gray pants, a black open neck shirt and gray jacket. His shoes were highly polished; one could see their reflection.

     His dark eyes grazed me. "Looking good, Sweetness."

     "Thank you."

     "Are you ready?"

     I nodded. I grabbed my mid-calf, black leather coat from the coat tree by the door that Aiden helped slip on me, slung my black spider bag over my right shoulder, snatched my keys from the small table and out we went.

     It was a great evening. I enjoyed myself in Aiden's company. He was laid back, sexy and funny. I'd had three glasses of Scotch. By then, my lips were loose.

     "I heard on the news tonight that there was another murder of a prostitute." It wasn't a conversation to have over dinner but the alcohol that was supposed to be making me forget about the vampire only heightened it.

     "Yes, there was." Aiden didn't seem to mind answering. "Still, with all of that blood on the girl's neck and the tears of her skin, we couldn't get any DNA from the predator. In fact, there was nothing to point to who the attacker might be. All of our technology and breakthroughs and we can't get a clue who this guy is. He's being known as the modern day Jack the Ripper. He was never caught either."

     "I wonder if Jack the Ripper was a vampire." I mused aloud, holding my glass and unsteadily bringing it to my lips.

     "I think, you had one Scotch too many, girl. What you say, we head home?"

     I nodded, downing my drink. It went straight to my head.

     Aiden called over the waitress and paid our tab. He then helped me to stand. I slightly swayed against him. Putting his arm tightly around my waist, we walked out of the restaurant.

     The cold, night air, felt good against my flushed face. Aiden's cologne intoxicated me further and my libido was on the rise. Something inside me wanted to suckle on his neck.

     He got me safely home and settled on the sofa that he didn't bother to open. He pulled off my boots and wrapped me in the afghan laying over the back of the couch. He leaned down and kissed me tenderly on the lips.

     "Good night, Sweetness."

     "Good night." I mumbled, falling into a drunken stupor as soon as my head hit the pillow.

     But Aiden didn't leave. He sprawled in the arm chair and went to sleep.

     The effects of the alcohol gave me vividly disturbing dreams. It was the attack all over again; only this time, the vampire tore open my throat. Blood poured out profusely. I could feel myself getting weaker by the second and then I died. The vampire stood over me and said, "I told you, you belong to me."

     I sharply sat up with a deep intake of breath. My action woke Aiden in the chair. He was beside me on the sofa. He gripped my shoulders.

     "Baby, you were having a bad dream." He consoled.

     "That's putting it mildly." I grumbled and pressed my brow on his shoulder.

     He caressed my back and then laid me down. "Try and go back to sleep. It's okay, I'm here."

     "I've got a headache." I moaned, draping my forearm across my brow.

     "I'll get you a couple of aspirins. Where do you keep them?"

      "In the cabinet over the sink."

      I heard him opening the doors, pop open the cap and run water into a glass. He returned and I gratefully took them. Even the water tasted good. My mouth was so parched.

      As I laid down, I said, "I dreamt I was attacked by a vampire."

     "I'm not surprised."

      "Thank you for staying with me."

      He pressed a smile. "You're welcome, Sweetness. Now, try to go back to sleep."

      I closed my eyes and drifted back to sleep; my dreams uneventful this time.