Page 26 of Ghoul Kisses

Last night was emotional for me. I have never been so angry and jealous of another woman. I figured Eric has had his share of women because he is sexy, rich, and a king. But to actually see it, makes me want to throw everything in my damn room against the wall. I shouldn’t be jealous, because we’re not dating. I can’t say “Hey Eric, since I can’t make up my mind to be with you, can you put your life on hold? Can you not sleep with other women?” The thought sounds ridiculous. Then the bitch tried to say he broke up with her to be with me. I don’t know if it’s true, but if it is, I don’t like the fact he would do something like that; I’m not a home wrecking whore. Sorry, but that’s not me. If a guy were to tell me he was in a relationship or married, I would run the other way. And what makes matters worse is he was with her for a few centuries. She knows his quirks; what turns him on. I bet they had bucket loads of sex. How can a person be with someone and not feel anything for them? Eric is probably lying to spare my feelings. He is nonchalant about his relationship with Mae, but her name burns a hole in my mind. Something happened for her to tell me about their relationship. Thinking about him being with her makes my stomach churn. I’m waiting for Odessa to meet me for lunch. She wants to discuss the facility that we are building. I sit at the table on the patio next to the beautiful garden. Calm and peace wash over me as my eyes beam to the bright colored flowers. Makes me want to sit and write in my journal. Fresh flowers scent the usually briny air.

Odessa takes a seat across from me and places her hand over a dead lily. The wilted petals spring back to life. I’ve heard of a lot of powers that certain ghouls have, but I’ve never seen any like hers. I stare in awe.

“Here, you can have it.” She hands the flower to me, and I tuck it behind my ear. She slides a beige folder across the metal table to me. I open it and find a blueprint of the building. The three-story building is going to be massive enough to fit over a thousand ghouls. I want a section where we can treat pregnant women. According to Dr. Edward, human and ghoul’s reproductive organs are similar, except they do not bleed like humans do and their uterus is two times bigger than ours. Ghouls are pregnant for twelve months instead of nine.

“Do you like it?” Odessa asks. I peer up at her.

“Of course. Eric gave me his debit card to purchase the equipment, but I have to get the business license so I can buy it legally,” I say.

“Nah, you don’t. I can forge the license.”

“How?” I ask out of curiosity.

“How do you think ghouls are able to live among humans? We forge birth certificates, Social Security cards, and whatever else we need.” She tucks the folder under her arm and gives me a wink.

I decide to cut the workday short. I need to meet with Vanessa in Port Angeles because she wants to see me in person. After Eric left last night, I checked my emails, and she told me she wants to meet at The Black Bird Coffeehouse. I am a bit nervous to see her because I haven’t seen her in a month. We’ve never gone this long without seeing each other, even in college.

“Odessa, can you do me a favor?” I ask.

“What’s up?”

“Could you drive me to Port Angeles? I have to meet with a friend.” She raises a brow.

“Does Eric know about this?”

I shake my head and stand up from the table. The sun kisses my cheek with its warmth, and I hope it stays like this all day.

“I haven’t talked to him since last night. I’ve been kind of avoiding him because of Mae,” I say. Every time I have to mention her, I hate her even more.

“You believed what she said?”

“I don’t know.” She motions me to sit back down.

“She lied to you. She always wanted to bond with Eric, but he refused. The reason why he dated her is because she took care of him when his brothers rescued him from the Hudson coven.” The name sounds familiar. She tucks a lock of hair behind her ear, and her smoky gray eyes look almost white.

“Eric was a slave.” Tears slide down her cheeks, and she quickly wipes them away. She pauses, reliving a memory before bringing her focus back to me.

“What the vampires did to him was horrible. Don’t say anything about it to Eric. He is ashamed of what happened to him.”

My eyes sting with tears as I consider the horrific scenarios Eric might have gone through. I want to wrap my arms around him and tell him that everything is going to be okay; that he doesn’t have to hide things from me.

“Mae nursed him back to health, and he is grateful, but he doesn’t love her.”

I don’t know what to say to that.

“He always felt like he owed her because of what she did. That’s why he let her stay in the mansion. Plus, she is Kate’s older sister,” she continues. “He feels guilty for not loving her the way she loves him.”

I begin to sob. Now I feel awful for the way I reacted to Mae. I understand how she behaved last night, but more than that, I feel sorry for Eric. He carries the guilt of not returning the love she shares. I wipe the tears from my eyes. I want to talk to him now, but he’s not at home, and I don’t have his cell number.

“I’m going to eat. I’ll meet you at the front doors in an hour,” Odessa says as she stands and leaves. Leaning back in the metal chair, I try not to give into the guilt I am feeling. Mae wants me gone; she believes that he chose me over her, and she is heartbroken. I feel bad for her but I also hope she doesn’t make my life a living hell.

Port Angeles is two hours and thirty minutes from Mercer Island, and I sleep the majority of the trip. When we pull up to the coffeehouse, the building is packed. Odessa cuts the engine, and I slowly unbuckle my seatbelt. I inhale and exhale trying to control the knots forming in my stomach. I’m so nervous about seeing Vanessa because she will be hurt that I am keeping secrets from her. I don’t know what to do.

“Do vampires come out during the day?” I turn toward Odessa. She is no longer wearing the dress she had on earlier, having changed into a trendier outfit of designer jeans and a supple leather jacket.

“No, they only come out at night.” Good. It’s two in the afternoon, so we have several hours to get back to the mansion. Her phone buzzes and she declines the call. We jump out of the black SUV and stroll to the front entrance. I stand by the door, searching for Nessa. I spot her in back by the window, and my heart nearly jumps out of my chest. She’s cut her brown sugar hair into a bob, and her complexion is paler than when I last saw her. She gazes out the window, not realizing I’m there. I point in her direction, and Odessa says she will wait by the door. Slowly, I walk to the table as my stomach knots. Will she be mad at me? Will she slap me? Who am I kidding? This is Nessa I am talking about. Of course, she will; she is a hot head at times. Vanessa might take the mug she is sipping from and throw it across the room. That’s my best friend, and I love her, but she can’t control her anger sometimes. I pull out the chair in front of the table, and a fat tear drips down her face. She stands up, and hugs me tight as her tears wet my shirt. Nessa is much shorter than me; she only comes up to my shoulders. I fight back the baseball-sized lump in the back of my throat and release her. She wipes her tears with the back of her hand. We both sit down.

“Where have you been, bitch? I’ve missed you!” I can’t tell her about me living with Eric and what he is. She will think I am crazy and try to check me into a psych ward.

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