David smiled and squeezed my hips. “Well, you’re a fantastic apparition, then.”

With the force of my eagerness, we toppled over the foot of the bed, his arms wrapping my body as it fell on top of his.

“I love you, David.”

“No more talk.” He grinned through our kiss. “Make love to me now, apparition.”

Chapter 18

The sun warmed the heart of my room where I lay beside the love of my life. My hand fell against his pillow but cold greeted my touch.

I sat up, panicked, and looked around.

“In here,” he called, his voice echoing.

I flopped back down. Bathroom. Still here. Relief washed over me, coming to rest beside a rise of giggles when the memory of last night hit me. My sheets were ruined again, something I was used to now, and the sticky, dried blood that pulled softly on the fine hairs of my neck didn’t seem to gross me out as much as before. With the white glow of winter morning light, I held my shimmering diamond up and marvelled at the pink tone it took, resting over dried blood on my fingertips. A blood diamond.

David popped his head around the corner, his face a mess with white cream. “Morning, beautiful fiancé.”

My smile spread from ear to ear, making remains of dried blood around my lips crack. “Morning.”

“You having a shower?”

I nodded. David stored his razor between his teeth as he plucked a towel from his shoulder and held it out to me.

“Thanks,” I said, falling into his embrace, too aware that the top of my head was being smeared with shaving cream from his chin.

“Sleep well?”

“Better than ever before.”

He pulled back and kissed my brow, then wiped the remaining shaving cream. “Good. Now, take a shower, get clean, then, I wanna make you breakfast.”

Mm, David’s breakfast. “Okay.” I stepped into the shower and ran my hand through my hair, letting the warm water separate the crusted blood from my skin. “How is it a vampire who doesn’t need food can be such a good cook?”

He tapped his razor on the sink, looking at me through the mirror, the glass shower screen leaving me nothing to hide behind. “My tastebuds are very sensitive.”

“Oh. Guess that helps.”

“It does.” He appeared in the shower, his towel gone, his naked, wet body against mine. I wrapped my arms around his neck, letting shampoo fall in thick soap mounds down the centre of my back.

“I had fun last night.”

He smiled to himself and kissed my cheek. “Then we shall have to do it again sometime.”

“Sometime? How ‘bout now?”

“How ‘bout I go get the coffee pot on.”

I opened my mouth to protest, but as usual, he was already gone, so I finished up, towel dried my hair and threw some clothes on, stopping by my bedroom door for a second to listen to pots and pans clanking a little too loudly in the kitchen.

“Ara—don’t go in there.” Emily grabbed my arm as I passed the lounge.

“Why?”

“He’s really mad.”

“Who?”

“Mike.”

“Why?”

She folded her arms and looked past the entryway. “You know why as well as I do.”

“Is it—he’s mad because I had sex last night?”

“More like because you did it before you got married, and—”

“There is no ‘and’.” I folded my arms and stormed past Emily. He has no right to be mad. “Mike! What’s the deal?”

He slammed a pot into the sink and pointed at David, who appeared behind me, his face lit with a smile. “Shut up, David. It’s not funny.”

David laughed louder. “You can’t control her, Mike. She’s a grown woman now.”

“Yes—I saw that.” Mike shook his head and rested his palms on the edge of the sink.

“Mike, you can’t be mad because I slept with David.”

“You were supposed to wait, Ara.” He turned to me. “I can’t believe you did that, and worse, you let him bite you. After you promised me—”

“Hey!” I stepped forward, my hands on my hips. “I promised I wouldn’t let Eric bite me—not David.”

Mike turned away and started running the tap.

“Don’t do that.” I grabbed his arm and spun him around. “Don’t deflect. If you’ve got a problem—say it.” I flicked the tap off.

David laughed again, appearing across the room, behind Emily, when Mike shot him a death-glare.

“David, stop laughing at him,” I pleaded. “Can we get a moment here? Please, guys?”

Em and David evaporated.

“Why is David finding this so funny?” I looked at Mike, who stuffed his hands in his pockets, letting out a breath.

“Because.”

“Because why?”

“Because...when he asked me the other day how I’d feel when you guys make things...final, I told him I’d be fine.”

“You’re not fine?”

“No. Ara. I’m not.” Mike walked closer and looked down at me, a familiar friend so foreign to me now, but the look behind his eyes transparently concealing agony. “I’m really not. All this is just too sudden for me. I’d prepared myself to spend the rest of my life with you. Now, we’re talking eternity, and I don’t even get to be with you. I…” He pressed his lips in.

“Mike?” My voice glided slowly from my lips and I rubbed my temples.

“It’s okay, Ara, really. It’s not like I want you to break up with him, and it’s not like I wanna leave Emily. I just wasn’t prepared to see you—” He wiped his hand over his mouth, pinching his lip for a second.

“I’m sorry. You weren’t supposed to see that.”

“I just—David should’ve been more careful. He could’ve killed you last night.”

“Only if he drained me.”

“No, if he bit you, Ara—how can you not see this?”

“Because obviously his bite has no effect on me!” Like other things. I rubbed my palm across my neck—where my Mark should’ve been.

Mike studied me carefully. “Are you a vampire?”

“What?”

“Ara, answer me. Are you a vampire?”