“Well, they won’t hear it from me.” He wrinkled his nose against the sudden smell of cheese and garlic. “Your pizza’s here.”
Travis watched her go to the door, heard her laughter as she paid the delivery guy. He had never thought to be this close to her again. Being with Sara made him feel whole, let him forget what he was, at least while he was with her.
She carried the pizza into the kitchen, then poked her head around the door. “Would you like a glass of wine?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
She came back a few minutes later carrying a tray laden with a couple slices of pizza on a paper plate, a can of soda, and a goblet. She placed the tray on the coffee table between them, then handed him the glass. She jerked her chin toward the pizza. “Does it bother you? The smell, I mean?” She had eaten in front of him before but at the time, she hadn’t known what he was.
“Not really.”
“I could eat in the kitchen.”
“It isn’t necessary.” He raised his drink. “Enjoy your dinner, Sara.”
She felt a little self-conscious as she nibbled on the first slice. She tried to imagine what it would be like to survive on a warm, liquid diet, to never eat solid food again. Bread and pasta. Fried chicken and cheeseburgers. Decadent chocolate cake. Shrimp and lobster and all of her other favorite dishes. She didn’t think even staying young forever would be a fair trade. “How are you able to drink wine?”
“I don’t know. But it’s a nice change.” He smiled at her and she smiled back. It warmed him more than the Merlot.
“Carl’s thinking of leaving town,” she remarked.
“I’m not surprised.”
“I guess whatever story he hoped to write isn’t working out.”
Travis nodded. “Joey Cannon.”
“You know about that?”
“Yeah. Overstreet mentioned him.”
“Do you think the man’s story is true?”
“I don’t know. It very well could be.”
Sara finished her dinner and put the plate aside. She didn’t know how or why, but suddenly the atmosphere in the room changed. She looked at Travis, felt her heart skip a beat when she saw him staring at her throat.
Vampire.
“Sorry.” He lifted his gaze. “The wine’s good but it’s not very filling, if you know what I mean.”
“Who do you … um … prey on? Certainly not anyone in town.”
“No. That wouldn’t be wise.”
“How do you choose them”
He shrugged, bemused by her curiosity. “Whoever’s handy, I guess. A woman walking alone down a dark street. Sitting alone in a bar. Waiting at a bus stop.”
She leaned forward, her whole body tense. “Have you ever wanted to drink from me?”
Damn, there was a loaded question if he’d ever heard one. How the hell was he supposed to answer it? All the time? I already have? Can I do it again? “I’m a vampire, Sara. What do you think?”
“What’s it like, when you bite someone?”
“For me or for them?”
“Both.”
“In most cases, blood is blood.” Not in her case, though. It had been spectacularly satisfying. “For those I prey on, I try to make it pleasurable, even though I wipe the memory of it from their minds afterward.”
It was the wrong thing to say. He could see the wheels turning, see her wondering if he had bitten her and made her forget. Damn. Just when he thought there might be a chance for them.
“How do you do make them forget?”
“It’s a form of hypnotism, I guess. I’m not really sure how it works. Only that it does.”
Her gaze speared his. “Have you ever done that to me?”
And there it was. “The truth?”
She nodded. “No more lies, remember?”
“I tasted you the night we went dancing.”
Her eyes widened. “I don’t believe you!”
He shrugged. “I only took a very little.”
“And you made me forget it?”
“It seemed like the smart thing to do.”
“Is that the only time?”
“No.”
A flood of emotions chased themselves across her face.
He held up his hand as if to stave off her protest. “I know, I know, it was a despicable thing to do, but Sara, your blood …” He shook his head. “I’ve never tasted anything like it. It’s warm and sweet and … and I don’t know how to describe it exactly, except that after tasting it once, it was all I could think about.”
Sara stared at him, wondering if she should be furious because he had stolen her blood or flattered that he liked it so much.
“I won’t blame you if you hate me and never want to see me again.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “This is all so new to me. I don’t know what the hell I’m doing half the time. But I’m crazy about you, Sara. And I don’t want to lose you. I know this is gonna sound corny, but I was lost until I met you. If you’ll give me a chance, I swear I’ll never drink from you again unless you say it’s all right.” Suddenly out of steam, he huffed a sigh and fell silent.
“You’re right,” she said, leaning back on the couch. “I should throw you out on your ear right now, but …” She shook her head. “I don’t know. Call me crazy, but that’s the sweetest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
“Sara!” He started to reach for her, then drew back. “Sorry.”
Smiling, she grabbed his hand and pulled him toward her. He sank down on the sofa beside her, his arm sliding around her waist to draw her close as his mouth claimed hers.
Sara melted into his embrace, thinking that it felt oh, so right to be in his arms. She moaned softly as his tongue teased her. Vampire or not, the man knew how to kiss!
And, like it or not, she was falling in love with him. She had no idea if such a relationship would lead to a life of happiness or if it might end in sorrow and regret, but she was determined to take a
