Sunrise at Sunset (17 page)

His eyes quickly met hers. Though he knew very little about her kind, he considered for a being that placed a high value on blood, such a stipulation seemed significant.

He considered the roller coaster of emotions and revelations swarming through his head in the past few days, and at times he found everything a little hard to digest at once. Still, he knew he was in love with Katrina. He was smitten with her. But her revelation about previous fatal relationships had certainly instilled a small degree of fear.
Perhaps it’s a healthy response by a human to a vampire.
However, he hoped it would dissipate as their relationship grew, because he truly didn’t want to fear her.

She regarded him with a hopeful expression, but she could sense, almost feel, the emotions battling inside of him. She realized her stipulations and rules might seem cumbersome or intimidating to a potential partner, but they were in place for a reason. Experience had taught her the importance of the rules for both her and him.

“I accept,” Caleb softly agreed as he stared into her eyes. “But you’re not allowed to let me down either.”

She took his face in her hands and kissed him deeply. His arms folded around her waist, and he pulled her towards his body. As her lips parted from his and she began to release him, his lips pressed against hers again with more passion. A moment later, he reluctantly allowed her to pull away from him. She gazed at him intently as she sat back from him, and her eyes sparkled slyly with approval.

“Done, and sealed with a kiss,” she said simply as if some secret contract negotiation had been completed. She recalled his earlier question before she had covered her list of rules.

“By the way, I have a number of contacts who are fellow vampires,” she said. “Some I even consider to be close friends, and two in particular are like family to me.”

He nodded and fleetingly wondered if he would ever have the chance to meet any of her vampire friends or associates, though the thought also sent a pang of anxiety through him.
Perhaps one vampire is enough for me for right now
, he conceded.

His stomach growled, and Katrina’s eyes darted to him before smiling with genuine amusement. It was the second time in less than twenty-four hours that his stomach had intervened on their time together.

“Come on. Let’s go get you something to eat,” she offered with a smile.

Much to his satisfaction, she agreed to let him drive her Audi sports car. He enjoyed the driving experience, and she reveled in how much pleasure it gave him. She studied his boyish grin, which briefly reflected the child he once was.

Caleb took them to a steak house across town he particularly enjoyed. They were both pleasantly surprised when a table in an uncrowded area was available. Normally, a Friday night would have involved a wait, but fortunately a formerly unused section of the dining room had just opened.

The atmosphere was casual and hosted a variety of patrons ranging from families, to couples, to groups of friends. The room was comfortably lighted, and the tables were covered with simple white linen table cloths. After ordering drinks, Caleb perused the menu, while Katrina sat quietly to his right with her back turned to most of the other patrons and watched him with interest.

He glanced at her and casually asked, “Are you hungry?” Realizing his mistake, his face reddened slightly.

One side of her mouth upturned slyly. “Yes, actually.”

“Really? Well, what sounds good for dinner?” he pressed.

“You,” she replied almost too quietly to be heard. His scent was tantalizing to her, and the ever-present desire for blood was there. It was a universal desire among all of her kind, and her recent bonding with him only heightened her desire.

His eyes widened, but he grinned nevertheless. “Oh, really?” he prompted with a hint of playfulness as he looked deeply into her green eyes.

Katrina’s eyes held his gaze, but with only a hint of amusement. She truly, deeply wanted to press her mouth against his soft neck and partake of him. She didn’t want to kill him, but she definitely craved a taste.

The waiter delivered their drinks and promised to return for their entree orders soon.

After another silent moment, Caleb’s grin began to fade, and he swallowed a sip of his drink with a single hard gulp as her eyes held his in a near trance. He had the feeling she was looking at him much like a hungry wolf would stare at a rabbit. An uncontrolled shiver ran up his spine, and she broke the trance by looking down at the menu in front of her.

“Perhaps my selecting something from the menu would be safer for you right now,” she suggested smartly.

“I’m good with that,” he agreed frankly.

“For now,” she added almost as an afterthought.

He blinked again and glanced back down to his menu, soberly realizing the double meaning in her comment. Caleb was so used to the playful banter of a conventional courtship that it shook him to realize just how seriously she took the whole blood topic.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized without looking up at her. “I wasn’t making light of your needs.”

Her hand darted across the small table, and her fingers caressed the top of his right hand. The sudden action startled him, and he jolted slightly as his eyes rushed up to meet hers. Fortunately, her expression had softened.

“I didn’t mean to be harsh, but there are moments that are actually hard for me,” she began. “I’m only trying to protect you while helping you realize how dangerous our mutual interest in one another could become. It takes years to gain control over the constant craving for fresh blood, but even when mastered, the desire for it is always present. Our recent intimacy has heightened a craving in me, and I’ll need to be careful.”

He nodded and one corner of his mouth upturned slightly. Part of him wanted to ignore the fact she was more than the human she appeared to be before him. However, a momentary doubt ran through his mind as he wondered whether he really were in danger being with her.

“You seem in such control at all times, so measured in your actions,” he ventured. “Particularly after last night, it seems almost odd that you could still be dangerous to me.”

She sighed gently. “I’ve attempted other relationships over the years, but I always regretted them. You might recall our earlier conversation this evening?”

His shoulder muscles tensed as the uncomfortable fact resurfaced.
She killed them all in the end, except one who committed suicide.
However, he was resigned to showing her how positive a relationship could be, even for a vampire.
But I wonder how many of her previous partners started with the same positive intentions?

Katrina raised one eyebrow slightly, fully measuring the change in his body language and sensing some agitation. While it wasn’t her intent to intimidate him, she wanted to be open and honest regarding the seriousness of their pairing.

By the time he had resigned himself to asking additional questions, the waiter appeared, and they both seemed relieved by the distraction. She ordered a small garden salad with no dressing, and he ordered a well done steak with twice-baked potatoes and a side salad.

“Do you still enjoy eating regular food?” he inquired curiously once the waiter departed.

“Sometimes,” she reflected. “Some dessert items, like chocolate, still hold a certain satisfaction for me, and I’ve learned to appreciate a few other foods in small quantities. But most of the time it’s simply about trying to appear more human to those around me.”

“So you can digest food without any problems?” he asked.

Katrina considered his question briefly before responding. “Sort of. I don’t get any nutritional value from it like you do. It’s much the same way your body would react to eating grass or leaves from a tree. Although liquids are generally fine, my body doesn’t digest large quantities of human food very well,” she explained.

“I find most dishes revolting, particularly those involving cooked meat,” she continued with a wrinkled nose. “In fact, most of us don’t like the smell or taste of cooked meats. Foods prepared with fresh fruits and vegetables or grains are more palatable, although preferably in very small quantities.”

He nodded, filing the information away. Following a moment’s recollection, it registered on him how little food she actually consumed when they had gone out. As a matter of fact, on all those occasions, he suddenly couldn’t recall a time when he saw her eat anything with cooked meat in it either. He had a small epiphany about the steak he had just ordered.

“My meal won’t bother you, will it?” he asked while reaching out to the small wicker basket for a roll.

She smiled appreciatively. “I’ll endure on your behalf. Just don’t ask me to try it.”

He smiled back as the waiter briefly reappeared to refill their tea and water glasses and update them on the status of their meals. Meanwhile, Caleb’s thoughts composed an entire series of additional questions. She noticed the brightened look in his eyes and anticipated what was coming. Readying herself, she adopted a resigned, yet amused, expression.

“Do you mind?” he asked after noting her countenance.

“Proceed,” she replied while gracefully folding her porcelain-like hands on the table before her.

“What year were you born?”

She regarded him with a steely expression and countered darkly, “It’s not polite for a man to ask a lady her age.”

His eyes widened slightly, and he quickly explained, “Sorry, it’s the historian in me, you understand. Just the idea of how much human history you may have experienced could stagger the mind, depending upon when you became a vampire.”

She raised a suspicious eyebrow and ventured, “Perhaps. Still…”

He swallowed once and offered, “I respect your reluctance, and I mean no disrespect, Katrina, but how about if I were able to guess?”

One corner of her lip upturned as she considered his suggestion. She could understand his seemingly innocent curiosity and conceded, “Very well, but you only get one guess per day, and I won’t tell you if you’re close or by how much.”

“Hints?” he pressed with a playful glint in his eyes.

“No,” she stated in a superior tone. “No hints.”

He thought for a moment as he casually munched on the piece of bread he’d just buttered. She had mentioned that she had previous mates, but he had no idea how many or for how long each might have been with her.
Months? Years? Maybe I should shoot for the moon and see what happens.
Somehow, he could easily envision her outfitted in a nineteenth century dress.

“1896,” he ventured hopefully.

“No,” she stated with a neutral expression before prompting: “Next topic.”

He rolled his eyes and insisted, “Come on, at least tell me if I’m in the right century or not.”

She adopted a smirk and replied, “Well…no. Next topic.”

He shook his head and moved on rather than risk annoying her. “Okay then, out of all the people in this world you could just as easily have chosen, why were you interested in me?” he asked.

Her eyebrows rose appraisingly. That’s a question she hadn’t expected from him.

“I knew you were special the moment I met you,” she stated simply.
Never mind that you were only a child at the time
.

He watched her with a dubious expression.

“You may not realize it yet, but you have an appealing innocence about you. Your heart is in the right place, and you’re capable of extraordinary decisions and actions under unusual circumstances,” she explained.

“But how could you know all that?” he pressed.

She smiled slyly and assured him, “Trust me. I know.”

Caleb considered her response as he absently buttered another roll. She watched him as he prepared his bread and was momentarily intrigued by the delicate movements of his hands.
An artist’s touch
, she observed.

“What do you like most and least about being you?” he asked in a subdued voice as a waiter passed by a little too closely for comfort.

Katrina’s eyes darted to the waiter for a split second before returning her gaze to Caleb.

“The best part is the heightened senses that I have now,” she explained. “I see, hear, smell, taste, and appreciate so much more of the world from a vampire’s perspective. It’s as if the finer details are easier to pick out and focus on.”

“And the least,” he prompted.

She regarded him with sad eyes. “I miss the morning sunrise. It used to fill me with a sense of hopefulness, as if life could start fresh again if yesterday weren’t so pleasant.”

He nodded, realizing that he hadn’t given such things much thought.
Perhaps many of the wonders of life are wasted on humans.

He munched on his piece of bread and noticed she was studying him with a penetrating gaze. “What’s your favorite holiday?” he asked out of the blue.

“I don’t mark holidays anymore,” she stated absently. She was trying to remember the last time that she actually celebrated a holiday and found herself lost in the recounting.

“Mine is Thanksgiving,” he offered with a smile.