Page 36 of Vampires of Eden: Oliver
“Are you finally warming up to this situation, Oliver? To me?”
I can’t look at him. And I can’t lie. I do lie, though. All the time. I’m always hiding my feelings and keeping my true thoughts hidden. Lies of omission. But I’ve been taught that those kinds of lies serve a greater purpose. For the good of society and responsibility.
Lying right now feels sinister, somehow. Cruel in an intentional way that I’m not accustomed to, because I’m hiding something tangible. Something selfish.
“Can… can we just eat dinner, please? People are watching us.”
Alexander smirks. “Let them watch.” He leans in and presses a quick kiss to my cheek. I’m put off by the spontaneity of it, but I try hard to fix my face and not let it show.
Alexander sees right through it. “Oh, he didnotlike that.”
“Please don’t do that,” I tell him, my voice urgent but low. So humiliating.
“We have to try again in three weeks, Ollie. Get used to me already.” He squeezes my hand, then lets it go. I want to reach up and wipe my cheek, but I don’t.
Through the rest of dinner, I sit calmly, offering the expected and desired appearance of Alexander’s submissive arm candy mate that he’s explicitly chosen because he has the power to do so. That he happily litters with kisses and affection whenever he pleases.
I hate this.
“Well, you certainly are as impressive as everyone says.” Alexander steps off the dressing stage now that Aries has finished his measurements.
There was a scheduling mix-up. Alexander was supposed to have his measurements done before the hunting trip, but his handler overbooked him. Now, Aries is behind in making his suit.
“Vampire politicians and royals across Europe all sing your praises—you have quite the resume,” Alexander discerns.
Aries walks over to the table with his notebook. “I’ve been fortunate, your grace,” he says, sitting on the stool. “I’ll have the muslin ready for you to try on by tomorrow evening following dinner.”
“It doesn’t seem like good fortune to me,” Alexander quips while walking in my direction. A smirk suddenly appears on his lips. “It’s raw talent. Being ridiculously tall and good-looking certainly doesn’t hurt.”
“You are too kind, my lord.”
“May I ask a question?” Alexander says. “I’m genuinely curious about something.”
Aries turns on his stool so that he’s facing us. “Of course.”
“What is it like being a contemporary vampire? Moving throughout the world unbonded and feeding from whoever suits you at the moment. Focusing on your career and travel and the like because you find the concept of mating to be old-fashioned. Or worse, oppressive. I don’t quite get how feeding works with that kind of lifestyle. Seems risqué.”
Alexander’s candor is flippant and the air in the room stiffens. There’s a subtle tension in Aries’s shoulders. “I take excellent care of myself, your highness. And we have many resources at our disposal.”
“Like what?” Alexander glances down at the bench where I’m sitting and confidently holds out his hand, as if the absolute expectation is that I will take it. I have the urge to smack it away, but that would be rude and more trouble than it’s worth. Reluctantly, I take it.
“What are the resources?” Alexander goes on as I stand by his side. “If you don’t mind my asking.”
He has put Aries in an awkward position with these invasive questions. Now, we both observe Aries. Like an audience that’s paid money to see a show, we’re waiting for his answer. I think Alexander is being impolite, but there’s also a part of me that’s curious.
“There are expansive networks of individuals who live similar lifestyles,” Aries explains. His tone is stiff, much more formal than the usual ease and playful tenor that I’ve grown accustomed to. “We establish connections and look out for each other, your grace.”
“Ah, brilliant,” Alexander says, then lifts a honey-blonde eyebrow. “Do you get your sex this way as well, like network orgies—”
“Alexander.” Everything inside me clenches from humiliation. “That is totally inappropriate.”
This amuses Alexander, because he turns, grinning and pulling me toward the door. “Whoopsies—looks like I’ve upset my little mister. Later, Aries. Let me know when the stuff is ready?” He throws a hand up in casual thanks, then drags me out of the room.
I try to catch Aries’s eye before I’m through the door, but his back is turned as he works at his table.
When we’re walking along the curtain wall with arched windows, I look at Alexander. “Why did you ask him that? It made him uncomfortable.”
Alexander shrugs, still holding my hand tightly. It’s raining and damp today, so his palm is clammy against mine. We’re surrounded by a blur of slate gray from the sky and stones, but also radiant green from the rain-soaked trees and brush.
