Beth glanced at her watch nervously as she sat at a table in El Pollo Real and sipped her glass of water. Robbi was 5 minutes late and she was never late for anything! Had she decided not to come? Beth fought the impulse to call her and ask and decided to wait for a few more minutes before trying that. Just then her phone rang and she saw that it was Robbi.
“Hello, Robbi? Is everything okay?”
“Yes, I’m sorry I’m running late but getting two kids ready to leave the house is sometimes such a challenge. I should be there in about 10 more minutes.”
“Okay, glad things are fine. I’ll see you when you get here Robbi.”
At least she was coming Beth thought! She dipped a chip into the salsa and bit down, tasting the salsa caliente with a happy smile. She didn’t understand why she could still eat food but she was happy about it. At first, after Mick got over the shock of it she worried that he might resent her ability but he seemed to be okay with it. They hadn’t heard anything more from Heroku and Beth couldn’t help but wonder what else he knew.
Mick had told her that after the poker game last week he and Josef had spoken with him and he had said that if her were correct about her genetics that she was royalty! Beth had to laugh at that. Vampire royalty? Give me a break!
Still, she was different and some of the differences worried her. As time went on she became more and more susceptible in the cold of the freezer and had taken to using a blanket so that she and Mick could sleep together. It actually worked out okay because he could turn the temp down to a more comfortable level for him and she slept fine too.
But why was she so different? Something else she had figured out that she hadn’t told Mick about yet because she didn’t know how he would take it was that she could ‘see’ him in her mind wherever he was. Literally see him; when he was playing poker, when he talked to Carl, it was all clear as if it were right in front of her face. Weird, that one was just weird. So far it hadn’t happened with anyone else though and she was thankful for that.
She looked and saw Robbi carrying Brian in his carrier seat and she stood up to help get him situated. He was hungry apparently and was chewing on his fist. Beth grinned at him and laughed and he looked at her with beautiful blue eyes.
“Does he see clearly now?” she asked because she’d read somewhere that babies didn’t see clearly for awhile.
“Sure, I think. He will look at you when you are talking, so he at least knows where you are. He even is starting to smile and I don’t believe for a moment that it is gas!”
“Robbi, he is so beautiful!” Beth said wistfully as she stroked her finger down his soft cheek.
The sad look on Beth’s face hurt Robbi; she remembered that Beth and Mick were trying to have a baby before she was turned. She wondered if female vampires were able to get pregnant so she asked.
“Well, actually vampires can’t have kids, naturally that is. Last spring Mick took a temporary cure, which is another story in itself but during that week he was human he had his sperm frozen. We were having artificial insemination done when I was attacked so a baby won’t be possible now.” She leaned forward and whispered the words to Robbi but doubted if anyone in the noisy restaurant heard her. Still, it wasn’t exactly a safe subject.
Robbi immediately reached across the table and touched Beth’s hand. “Oh Bethy, I’m so sorry. How horrible.” She saw quick tears spring to Beth’s eyes and then watched as Beth swiped them away quickly.
“Yeah, it…well I had really hoped that maybe. But it wasn’t meant to be, so it has to be okay. We’re considering adoption or maybe even a donor egg and a surrogate. We both know that we want a child.”
Robbi glanced at the menu quickly so that she could feed Brian before her meal got there and when the server came both girls ordered lunch and then Robbi pulled a bottle out of the bag. On impulse she said, “Beth, would you like to feed him?” and was rewarded with a wide smile from Beth.
“I would love to, but I haven’t done that since Bri was a baby!”
“Just pick him up,” she said, as she pulled him out of his seat. Beth took him and cradled him in her arms and cooed to him, inhaling his sweet baby scent. Robbi handed her the bottle and Beth tipped it up and Brian needed no encouragement; he latched onto the nipple like a champ and happily sucked away.
“Wow, he’s really hungry,” she said. He was making small sighs interspersed with the sound of swallowing and made her smile. “Oh Robbi,” she sighed, not able to find the words for how perfect he was.
“I know.” If ever someone should have a baby it was Beth; she’d had such a good role model in Dorothy. It was terrible that she and Mick couldn’t have a child of their own. That thought made her ask about Dorothy and Beth told her about the shopping trip and that her Mom was doing wonderfully well.
“Honestly, she is just glowing Robbi. I’ve never seen her so happy!”
“Is anyone giving her a shower?”
Beth had to stop and think about it; no one had said anything to her and she simply hadn’t thought about it. “Not that I know about! Yikes, I’m a terrible daughter because I should have.”
“I think you have any excuse Beth,” Robbi said. “Hey, why don’t you, Lani and I give her one? Do you think Lani would be interested in doing that?”
The curtain that was separating the girls was finally beginning to lift and Beth’s heart begin to jump with happiness. It might still take a while for everything to be healed but she knew that they were on the way.
“Well, we should ask her!” Beth said. “Why don’t you call her since I’m a little busy?” She glanced down at Brian as she spoke, seeing that the small bottle was half empty already.
“Okay, I will and you’re going to have to burp him before he eats much more or he’ll spit it all back up.” She handed Beth a burp pad and watched as ‘Auntie’ Beth laid it on her shoulder and pulled the bottle away from Brian, much to his protest.
“Hey buddy, you just gotta be patient and give me a big ole burp!” she told him gently patting his back. “Come on Brian, you’re gonna feel great when you let it out!” She giggled as he did and was amazed at how loud it was but then realized it probably wasn’t that loud to humans.
“You were always really good at that with Brianna too. You have the magic touch Beth,” Robbi laughed as she called Lani. When Lani answered she told her the idea and Lani immediately thought it was a great idea. The girls planned to meet over the weekend to discuss the details.
As soon as he finished his bottle Brian was fast asleep again and Robbi got him situated into his seat just as their lunch was served. Robbi handed Beth a baby wipe so she could wipe her hands off and after that was done they both eyed their lunches with appreciation.
“Beth, I’m uh, surprised that you can still eat food.” She cast curious eyes around her, trying to make sure no one was paying any attention to them. She wasn’t going to use the ‘V’ word but still, it seemed a strange question.
Beth did the same look around and then said, “Well, it’s not usual, but…” She cut into her three cheese chicken enchilada and took a bite, enjoying the flavors that rolled over her tongue.
“Hm, yeah, I would imagine that is true. You look so good. Beth, I know that I’ve - that things have been really screwed up and I’m so sorry for my part in it, believing that you just didn’t care instead of what really happened.” She met Beth’s eyes and smiled at her, hoping that the words would help to begin to heal their friendship.
“Robbi, I know and I’m sorry you felt so left out. It wasn’t on purpose. It’s just a difficult thing to talk about. I love you Robbi and I’ve missed you so much.”
This time it was Robbi’s turn to wipe away tears and she nodded at her friend. “I love you too, you and Lani both.” She took a sip of her iced tea and pulled a tissue out of her purse and handed one to Beth and used another to dab at her own eyes. “Now, you gotta tell me! Is Lani dating Josef?” she asked, her disbelief clearly evident.
Beth let out a small giggle and said, “She is. She hated him, or so I thought when I left and I came home and they’re practically living together!”
“Oh my gosh, I really can’t believe it. But then again, this is Lani and it’s like trying to predict which way a whirlwind will spin. I always liked him and he was so great when we were planning your wedding. I feel so out of touch!”
“Well, we’ve just got to get you back in touch Robbi!”
“Oh, I was going to tell you this the other day but I forgot and just thought I would today. Brian is being christened this Sunday, will you and Mick come?”
Beth teared up again and nodded, unable to stop smiling. She hadn’t felt this happy in a long, long time.
Both girls looked at one another and knew that things would be okay. When she left Robbi still felt a bit guilty because she hadn’t told Beth her secret but she decided it would be better to tell them both together. So, Saturday it was. The secret would come out!
OOOOOOOOOOOO
Dorothy and Clark stood in the nursery, admiring their handiwork. It was simply done, in pastels because they still didn’t know the sex of the second baby. Two sonograms had revealed a boy but they didn’t know if they were viewing the same boy or if the other baby was still hiding behind it’s brother. Either way they were okay with it because the doctor said they were both healthy with good and strong heartbeats.
“How come you didn’t buy anything the other night when you went shopping?” Clark asked, curious as he picked up a teddy bear that was sitting in a rocking chair. There were two of them, along with everything else.
“Beth and I went into the shop but it made her sad, so we left and sat and talked. Clark, she is more upset than I realized about not being able to have a baby now. It just broke my heart.”
He nodded, setting the bear down next to its sibling. “Honey, it’s terrible, but she will get used to it in time. She’s really happy with Mick and that will make up for many other things you know.”
“I know, but I almost feel guilty,” she told him, rubbing her ever burgeoning belly. There was no hiding it, especially carrying twins. She looked closer to 9 months pregnant instead of the almost 8 that she was. They say that twins can sometimes come early and she wondered if that would happen. As long as they were healthy enough to be born it didn’t matter to her even if her back and bladder were both protesting vigorously and often.
“Dorothy, you know that she would never want you to feel guilty about it. Don’t fret about it honey, it’s going to be okay.”
She sighed and said, “I know that, but it’s still so hard.”
“Has she and Mick talked about it?”
“Yes, they did and he’s sad too but I hope that together they’ll get through it. They’re talking about adoption and maybe buying a donor egg and getting a surrogate, which might work. I hope they find something that will work for them because they would both be great parents.”
Clark agreed completely. He thought of all the years that Mick had watched over Beth and how much he loved her and knew that he would be a natural father. Some people would think it was creepy, the way he was always around but Clark didn’t - to him it made sense and eased his own worry about anything else happening to Beth. Those two were meant to be parents and he hoped sincerely that they managed to make it happen one day.
OOOOOOOOOOOO
Margie sat at the table ready to dip her Oreo’s into a tall glass of milk when she heard a knock on her door. She wasn’t expecting anyone and she frowned as she sat the cookie down and went to see who was there. She hoped it wasn’t Blythe Jackson, the garrulous old busy body from down the hall! Blythe had determined that it was her job to let everyone know what was going on in the community. Telephone, telegraph - tele-Blythe. It drove Margie nuts and she approached the door quietly in hopes of peeking out the viewer without making noise so that Blythe would just go away.
Instead her visitor made her smile as she unbolted the door and opened it. “Benjamin! What brings you here today?” She stepped aside so that her grandson could enter. “I was just going to have some cookies and milk, have a seat.”
She watched as he sat at the table, still without saying a word. As she grabbed another glass of ice cold milk she frowned slightly, wondering what was wrong.
“Here you are Benjamin,” she said and sat down and picked up a cookie. She dunked it into her glass of milk and waited for him to speak. She watched as he twisted his cookie apart, as he always did and popped the piece without the filling into his mouth first. “Well, are you going to tell me what’s wrong?”
“Nothing, exactly Grandmother. I’m - I’ve just been thinking about Mick St. John. Do you think he could have survived in 1952 and just went into hiding?”
“I suppose anything is possible, but why would he do that? And certainly he never contacted his family again, which would be very strange for Mick because he adored his family. Benjamin, what’s this all about?”
He popped the other half of the cookie into his mouth and took a long drink of his milk before speaking. “There were fingerprints at the 1952 crime scene and I ran them through the computer and they turned up with a match.” He pursed his lips as he made the decision to tell her what was behind all this.
“Grandmother, when I lost Michelle you told me about Mick and that made me really curious. I mean, that’s natural isn’t it since he was my grandfather? Then, when I took this job I found a file life by the previous ADA on a Mick St. John and then I met him. He’s a private investigator here in LA; and he also happens to be the spitting image of your Mick. His fingerprints are identical to your Mick’s except he’s about 30 years old.”
“Well, that seems unlikely doesn’t it? Isn’t it impossible for two people to have the same fingerprints?”
Ben smiled and thought his grandmother watched entirely too much crime TV but she was certainly right. “Yes, it is. I figure that somehow the computer system got them mixed up, although I don’t have a clue how. I’ve spent a lot of time investigating your Mick, here in the US and in France and there is no trace of him or Coraline Duvall and her family says they haven’t heard of her since she married Mick. But Grandmother, this Mick is identical to your Mick - he has to be a descendent, my cousin most likely but that still doesn’t explain the fingerprints.”
“Benjamin, I think it is all coincidence. Don’t they say that everyone has a twin out there? Most likely that is what this is.”
“No, I don’t think so. This Mick just sort of appeared around 1990 and I can’t find any record of his birth, where he grew up or anything. He told me he grew up in LA but he didn’t attend any of the schools and his social security number wasn’t used until he became a PI. No, something is going on with it all and I’m not going to stop until I figure it all out.”
They changed the subject and chatted while enjoying their snack. Catherine was going to England to teach for a semester at Oxford, quite a prestigious honor. She was excited and was working hard to wrap up her cases so that she could start the winter term in January.
As he got ready to leave he hugged her tight and kissed her soft cheek. “I love you Grandmother. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Well, I hope you won’t have to find out for awhile Benjamin but this old body is getting tired and worn out. Still, I’ve got a few years left in me, so don’t go getting all sad yet!” she said with a grin. She watched as he walked out of the hall and closed the door behind him, leaning against it.
I wish you’d just let it go Benjamin…
OOOOOOOOOOOO
At 6 pm Josef walked through the office, looking for Lani and finally found her doing a software install on Ryan’s computer. Ryan was his head of security and wasn’t here often but he still needed the ability to get into the system so that he could remote in from his office at Josef’s and check on security anytime. Lani would be installing the software there too as well as at Josef’s home computer.
Josef used his vampires abilities to sneak up on her so he could kiss her neck but she had the damndest ability to know where he was and when he was a step away she said, “Hello Josef. Don’t try to sneak up on me!”
“How the hell do you do that?”
“I don’t know, but you can’t fool me, so don’t even try!”
“Okay, I surrender. Now, are you about done so we can get some dinner into you?”
“Which is Josef speak for saying you’re hungry and you want a nice, refreshing glass of AB- or something…”
He chuckled, knowing he’d been caught. “You happen to be correct Sweetness; so, are you ready?”
“Um, give me 5 minutes to finish and get my purse and jacket.” Almost before she’d spoken Josef was gone and back with both requested items. She looked at him, her left eyebrow arching in amazement but she didn’t say anything. Two minutes later the install was done and she did a quick check to make sure it was set up properly and then logged off.
As she stood up Josef helped her slip into the thick cashmere jacket because it had been very chilly for LA this late day of October and she’d need it.
“So do you know what’s for dinner? My dinner that is?” she asked with a smile.
“I believe Gerard made something called Chicken Fajitas for dinner; it seems to be a popular dish with the girls.” He pulled her to him and quickly bestowed a kiss to her willing lips as they waited for the elevator. The door opened with a muted ‘ding’ and they pulled apart guiltily which was ridiculous since everyone knew that they were together.
Lani was giggling when they stepped inside the empty elevator. Josef pushed the button and the doors swept shut and he swept her into his arms, taking her mouth in a passionate kiss. When the elevator car stopped he reluctantly stepped back as the doors opened.
In the Ferrari she placed her hand on his leg, sliding it upwards and smiled as she saw him squirm in his seat. She leaned over and whispered in his ear, “You know, I’m not really hungry. Maybe we should just skip dinner.”
“Oh no you don’t. We’re both going to need our strength,” he said, grinning at her as he downshifted to make the turn into the drive.
“Um, that sounds like a promise!”
“You bet,” he told her as he parked in front of the door, knowing that someone would move the car into the garages later. He opened her door and offered his hand to her and they headed towards the door which was opened by Franklin.
“Would you care for a drink before dinner?” he asked politely.
“No! Just dinner please,” Lani said. “We’re both, um, starving!” Her eyes sparkled as she looked at Josef, already undressing him with her eyes.
“Very good. I’ll serve immediately,” he told them and watched them head into the dining room. He smiled at the joy they brought one another and he knew that this was going to be a hurried dinner so he did his best to get it to them quickly.
Lani did her best to hurry through her dinner with Josef reminding her to slow down so that she didn’t get indigestion but this was a race for her, a sprint so to speak. When she’d eaten some of her dinner she told him she’d had enough.
“Uh uh, finish that young lady,” he told her and saw the pout form on her beautiful face. Still, he stuck to his guns and 10 minutes later they both felt better as they headed upstairs to their room.
As the door closed he pulled her to him and ran his hands down her back, stopping to cup her bottom, delighting in the delicious rounded curves. He pulled her tightly to him and felt his hardness pressed against her belly and groaned against her mouth. He walked her backwards until they reached the edge of the bed and she sat down and frantically started working on his belt and slacks fastenings.
Josef’s eyes silvered as he watched her and when she had his slacks undone her hand cupped him and slid over his heated length, stroking him delightfully until he was mindless with desire. He forced himself to step back and pull the rest of his clothes off, leaving them to drop wherever they may.
Her eyes raked him from head to toe and then fastened on the sheer beauty of his manhood. She licked her lips in anticipation and desire and started to pull her own clothes off.
“No Lani, let me,” he told her, switching to a much slower pace, not wanting to rush a moment of their time together.
He slipped her jacket off of her shoulders and slid it slowly down her arms, his hands caressing her as he went. Nimble fingers unbuttoned her blouse one slow moment at a time and as each bit of skin was revealed his kissed it tenderly.
Lani was trembling with desire by then and well aware that he could undoubtedly scent it. She was liquid heat, melting a bit more at each touch of his hand and mouth. He unfastened the button and slid the zipper of her skirt down and then tugged is gently over her hips and stared at the sensuous lace of her bra and panties, his eyes burning for her. One smooth flick of his fingers and the front button of the bra was unfastened and he glided it off of her with her panties following quickly.
Josef licked his lips almost afraid to touch her she was so beautiful. She lay there, shivering with her desire for him and her couldn’t wait a moment longer before claiming her mouth, delving deeply into it. Cool fingers stroked her heated body and small moans of need escaped both of them as he finally sank into her joyously, finally home.
Two lovers met and moved as one, hearts beating wildly as pleasure and fulfillment carried them away. His vampires kiss brought them to their destination of pleasure and they both reveled in it. Finally they were still, locked in one another’s embrace, content to rest together as love settled over them like the warmest cloak.
What more could they ask?
To be continued…
No comments:
Post a Comment