Roman (The Clutch 1)

“Oh my God, is that a real blue diamond?” Fiona gasps, taking Lydia’s hand for a moment, staring at it sparkle.

“It sure is. When your honey has been investing since investing was invented, you end up with nice things. I’m a damn lucky girl in this lifetime. He had it mined just for me at the Cullinan Diamond Mine in South Africa. I still can’t believe it. My Damen takes wonderful care of me, spoils me rotten. Now can I get you anything else, honey?”

Fiona leans back smiling, and replies, “No, thank you.”

“And for you, honey?” Lydia turns to me.

“Nothing for me,” Roman says, which I know Lydia already expected.

“Okay, you two. I’ll be back soon to check on you.” She walks off.

“Is everything ok?” I notice Fiona is looking around the room, assessing people at every table.

“Oh, shit. Yes, I’m sorry. I was just looking around, I’ve never eaten here before myself. And I typically don’t go to very many… vampire friendly restaurants.”

“It’s okay. You have a learning curve. I know this. You have questions; why don’t you ask me?” I want her to be comfortable. My desire for her understanding of me, of my culture, is overwhelmingly important to me.

“Okay, well, first of all. It seems like it’s perfectly normal for vampires and humans to go out to eat together, but only one of them is eating. I don’t want to be rude and eat in front of you, and it feels strange to be the only one eating at the table. Is this weird for you?”

I smile at her question. Her concern with seeming insulting or impolite is adorable. “Well Fiona, I don’t eat. So it would be silly for me to order food that would only go to waste. Unless of course, you want more food, in which case, I’d just order whatever you wanted. It’s not at all rude though to answer your question.”

“Okay, so where do you go to… eat? Drink? What do you call it?” She bites her lower lip thoughtfully, distracting me with her sensual allure. She clearly has no clue how enticing she is, but I shake the thoughts free so I can answer.

“Typically, if I need to announce it, I would say that I need to eat. Just like you would. But among other vampires, I might say that I need to feed.” I watch as she listens intently, seemingly without any judgment, absorbing what I’m saying, so I continue. “As for where I go to eat, generally, I go to Clutch. It is a bar owned by a vampire friend of mine that services the needs of vampires and their consorts. Vampires without a consort are able to find and meet, or meet up with humans who volunteer or desire to… assist in meeting our needs.”

Fiona leans back, crossing her arms and pursing her lips. I’ve said something that troubles her. “And you expect me to believe that’s not sexual?” I can sense that there’s a twinge of jealousy, and I find it incredibly arousing.

The tease in me wants to draw attention to it, but I want her to continue asking me what she’s curious about, so I refrain from joking with her about it just yet and reply honestly. “As I mentioned before, it’s not always sexual. It can be if everyone involved wants it to be. But it’s a need that we have to sustain life, just as you have the need for food to fuel your body as well.”

“Hmm, interesting,” she replies thoughtfully. Seemingly satisfied with the answer, she moves on. “What about sleep? I read that you don’t need to sleep. Is that true?”

“That is true.”

“So what do you do when everyone is sleeping?”

“I read. I talk to others. And I do live in a city that is alive all night long.”

“Good point. Is that why you picked Las Vegas?”

“I picked Las Vegas because it meets my needs. It is a vampire-friendly city, which is my preference of course. The discourse that still exists between humans and vampires will always exist in some ways I’m sure, just as there is discourse among different humans. But, this city offers me many opportunities to come and go as I please, and the multitude of interesting business propositions that it offers keeps me busy and intrigued.”

“How old are you?” she asks.

“I am five hundred and thirty-two.”

I cannot help but chuckle at how her jaw falls open. I find that every new expression she reveals endears me even further.

“Get out. You’re old,” Fiona teases me.

“Too old for you?” I shamelessly flirt now. I simply can’t help it. All I want to do is leave this restaurant and take her back to my place. I don’t even need to ravage her, even though it’s been on my mind. I just don’t want to share her right now, I’d like her all to myself.

Blushing, she gives me a coy smile. “I think you just make the cut. But it was close. If you were six hundred, I’d be out of here.” She giggles, and the sound would make my heart thump against my chest if that were still possible.

I can sense she’s becoming more accustomed to our differences, and words escape how thrilled I am to see it. Unable to help myself, I pull her to me for another kiss. As she softens into me, allowing me once again to taste how sweet she is, my thirst for her grows. I do want to bite her, and as I pull her to me, my thumb gently runs over her pulsating jugular, increasing my lust tenfold. Knowing that I can’t, at least not yet, I wrap my hand around the nape of her neck into her hair, tugging just slightly, causing her to moan yet again.

I separate us by just an inch and lean toward her ear. I can hear her heart beating rapidly; dramatically almost like a bass drum in my ears. “I told you not to moan like that in public. You don’t understand what you do to me, Fiona,” I whisper hoarsely, my throat feeling dry from greedy hunger.

Her hand begins to run along my thigh, toward my increasing hardness, and just at the moment when I think I’m going to lose my composure in public, someone lets out a stifled cough at our table. It’s Lydia, with Fiona’s raw steak.