Page 24 of Taste of Forever
“You don’t?”
“No! Why would I?”
“You don’t know who I am? What clan I’m part of?”
“Again, no. But if you could clue me in on all of that, that’d be great.”
She crossed her arms, frustrated, while mine fell limply to my side in disbelief. Holy fucking Temkra, she had no idea. She’d never seen any of the territory-wide text alerts or the Craigslist posts. She was just a human getting a drink at the bar.
I rubbed the back of my neck, which felt uncomfortably tight. “I feel like we need to start over. I’m Laith, and I’m sorry about the kiss. I really thought we were on the same page.”
The woman was quiet for several long seconds. “I’m Heather.”
Heather. Even her name was so soft and pretty in my mouth. “Can I ask where you’re from, Heather?”
Another long silence. “California.”
“Ah, human world.” I nodded, trying to recall what I knew about the United States, one of the biggest countries. “That’s the one with Hollywood and avocados and shit, right?”
Her lips twitched like she was suppressing a smile. “Not exactly in my neck of the woods, but close enough.”
“Okay. Do you know where you are now and what I am?”
“Sanguine. And I assume you’re a vampire.”
“Great.” I smiled and for the first time in my life, felt self-conscious of my fangs. Her eyes went right to them with a mixture of curiosity and fear. “Just trying to find out where your baseline of knowledge is.”
“I don’t know much, but this isn’t my first time in this world.” She gestured toward me. “I mean, obviously you know that.”
“Right.” I gripped the back of a stool and stared blankly at the bar. This was not how I’d expected this to go, and I’d have to rethink my whole approach. “Can we sit down somewhere, Heather?”
Her stare became suspicious. “Sit down where? Why?”
“To explain the whole blood mate thing. No kissing, I promise. Though, if you want to kiss, you can lay one on me whenever you want.”
She didn’t seem thrilled by the offer, but not entirely repulsed by it either. Her elevated heartbeat had calmed. Those wide eyes darted all over me with an analytical curiosity, like she was filing away data to comb through at a later date. There was a sharpness about her that intrigued me greatly.
“So.” I slid into the barstool next to her, angling the chair to give her a bit more room. “When I fed from you, did you feel anything?”
“No.”
Her heartbeat quickened just before she said the word, and I could almost taste the blood rising to flush her neck and face.My little liar,I mused.
She didn’t want to admit being aroused by the feeding. Why? Because I was essentially a stranger to her?
I let it go for now.
“Humans aren’t my usual preference,” I said. “To my kind, your blood tastes watered down. Bland.”
Heather’s brows knitted together almost like she was offended. “What else do you feed on?”
“Other vampires are most common. The flavor of our blood varies, but we usually find it very hearty and comforting. Dragon shifters from the neighboring territory have a rich, spicy taste to them. Do you know what a brusang is?”
“Uh, yes.” Heather nodded. “A human who was given vampire blood shortly after death.”
“Correct.” I grinned, pleased with how much she knew already. “They taste a bit like watered-down vampire. Not quite as bland as a human, but not as potent as my own kind.”
“I see.” Heather’s shoulders were tense. Her gaze continued flitting over me, but also toward the exits.
