Page 53 of Rock Bottom
“They won’t let you wander around down here. You’re cleared for the room you were in earlier, playing video games, and the public areas in that section, and then the walk between there and this room. You shouldn’t be anywhere else.” I wasn’t feeling comfortable with this conversation, so I asked, “Are you hungry? Thirsty?”
She walked to the mini-fridge and pulled a lemonade out. “Not hungry, but now that you mention it, I should hydrate. It’s dark outside, right? Any chance we can take some kind of light out, so I can play on the boulder, and you can catch me if I fall? There’s a path I wanted to try, but I’m probably going to fall a couple of times before I figure it out, and I was trying not to injure myself the day I played on it.”
I nodded and telepathed one of the security guys.Can I get one of the temporary spotlights you guys use when we need lighting away from the house? Something that’ll last a couple of hours?
I sent an image of what we needed it for, and he telepathed back.You might need two, one from each direction. I’ll put them on the back patio for you to pick up on your way to the meadow.
Thank you.
Chapter 18
Julian
I’d seen how Silver climbed the boulder through what Marco had telepathed me, that he’d gotten from security’s memories, but seeing it in person was so much more impressive. I had no idea humans could climb like that, holding on by her fingertips, powering herself up to grab another little ledge by her fingers, hanging free on a section of the boulder that leaned out. I caught her four times before she made it to the top, and when she finally did, I went up on another side, easier to scramble up because it was angled so it stuck out farther at the bottom than the top, and met her on the mostly-level top.
“I’ve never been up here, but wow, is there power.”
“I knew that, somehow. Even now, I feel…” A shrug “I’m not sure what I’m feeling, but I can tell there’s moresomething.”
I stepped to her, slid my hands beneath her arms, and lifted her effortlessly. She wrapped her legs around me like it was the most natural thing in the world, and I cradled her close, one arm supporting her, the other drawing her securely against me. I kissed her, soft at first, coaxing her lips open, teasing with tongue before claiming her mouth with everything I had.
Not just desire, though there was plenty of that. I wasn’t just kissing her, I was telling her without words how deeply she mattered — how much I care for her, how much she means to me.
When the kiss slowed and broke, she rested her head against my shoulder, her breath warm on my neck.
“I think I’ve fallen for you,” she said, her voice muffled but sure. “But what does that…? I mean, Cora and Marco are an item, so I assume vampires can have relationships?”
“We absolutely do,” I said, resting my cheek against her hair. “And I’m long past falling. I love you, Silver. Truly, deeply. Kind of ironic, since I’m allergic to actual silver, but I am head over heels in love with you.”
“The whole slave thing bugs me, but I think I understand that Marco likes me and thinks I’m good for you. How would things change if you get your freedom?”
Time for some harsh truths. “Vampire society is all about the hierarchy, and I’ll be near the bottom. Right now, I belong to Marco, and that offers me a great deal of protection. I’m important to his organization, and he’s made me off-limits. I’ll draw a substantial salary as his assistant, but slaves can’t have an income, so there’s no savings. No wealth. I’ll be starting from zero, financially.”
“So, your hours, your work hours, will be similar?”
“Probably? I mean, I’ll get a vacation, but outside of the Southeast, I’ll only be able to travel to places with a Master Vampire on friendly terms with Marco — Alaska, Nevada, Louisiana. A few others, but with some complications.”
“Most of the award ceremonies are in New York and California.”
“New York can happen without a problem. California can probably be arranged, but we’ll need to have some lengthy conversations about whether I’m to be seen in public as your partner. We both need to understand all the pros and cons.”
She sat up straight, met my gaze a few seconds, and put her head back on my shoulder. “Yeah. Okay. I dressed for the fifties, and it was fine while I was active, but I’m starting to feel the cold.”
“Do you want to go down the way you came up, or one of the easier sides?”
“I’ll go down the side you came up.”
“Or you can ride my back while I climb down.”
She grinned at me, but shook her head. “I’m good, but thanks for offering.”
While we clambered down, she said, “I understood you’re stronger than human, but watching you carry Billy across the room, holding the chain with just one hand, really hammered that home.”
“There’s a playroom in the underground — Saint Andrew’s Cross, bondage table, large rope spiderweb, spanking bench, and other furniture. If you’re comfortable with bondage, I’ll reserve a time for us so we can use it when I return.”
“I think I have to be, at this point. I know we’d talked about doing the sex-on-demand thing, maybe, with clear power exchange rules for scenes. I guess we need to have that talk in the coming weeks, depending on how much time we’ll be able to spend together.”
“If you’re going to be here a lot, enough so you’re assigned a room with a lockable closet, you’ll be able to put things in the closet and expect no one will bother whatever’s inside. It doesn’t mean other people might not be assigned the room when you aren’t here, because sometimes we have a full house, but it means when we know you’ll be here, the room will be available to you.” I’d gotten off track. “I think at that point, those conversations become necessary.”
