Blood and Mint Chocolates Page 3

  A date? With Kalia? She grinned, dizzy with happiness. Another chance to be with Kalia, and oh Blood, did she ask her out on a date? Had she read the note right? Her original wish was for a single evening of sex, and Merideth wasn’t certain if she felt brave enough to try to meet her again. What if she wound up making an ass out of herself? This was Kalia, after all—a magistra, for Blood’s sake! True, Merideth was an Inner Circle initiate in the Order of the Dragon and the Rose—a Fifth Degree, even—but she certainly wasn’t the head of a Clan!

  But she knew she’d regret it forever if she didn’t take up the opportunity, and so she grabbed a dress from the closet, threw it on the bed, and ran into the bathroom to shower. As she scrubbed her body with bath gel, Babalon’s words to her sprang to mind: The only wrong wish, Merideth, is the one you do not act upon out of fear.

  Sound advice. But oh, so much easier said than done!

  Her hands shook as she put on the dress. I think I’ll need the amethyst ring tonight. She didn’t want to get too drunk, but maybe a drink would take the edge off of her nervousness.

  The gorgeous but cozy little restaurant Kalia met her at overlooked the beach and the water. The magistra insisted upon a table outdoors, which met Merideth’s heartfelt approval. The ocean waves lapped at the shore, the gentle sounds hypnotizing her into a calm state. The sultry air smelled of sea salt. She was glad that the wind didn’t blow too hard that evening—the outside temperature combined with the air met her skin in just the right way.

  Everything is just right. Stunning would maybe describe Kalia even on a bad night; tonight she looked absolutely divine. A tight black dress trimmed with silver sequins and matching black and silver pumps hugged her curves. Her short black hair blew away from her face, tousled from the light breeze, but it only added to her beauty. Merideth stared at her for a long moment, unable to speak. What in the world was the magistra doing out having dinner with her?

  Kalia reached over and lightly squeezed her hand. The touch sent pleasant shivers down her spine. “I’m so glad you came.”

  She heard her strong Southern drawl rather well tonight, which made Merideth speculate as to whether or not the magistra felt equally anxious about their date.

  With a quick but shy smile she replied, “Me too.” She frowned a little and inquired, “So, you eat sometimes?”

  Kalia grinned. “Always,” she stated. “I always thought that vampiric purity thing was a load of crap. Just don’t tell Janius,” she added. “But he probably knows how I feel about that.”

  “I sometimes eat mint chocolates,” Merideth confessed. After a pause, she reflected, “I’ve never seen the point of enjoying eternity without a little bit of chocolate.”

  The magistra laughed long and hard. “And that’s why I like you, Meri. Funny how you stay so cooped up in that library of yours all of the time, though. I’m actually almost surprised you took me up on dinner.”

  Merideth blinked. “Well, I um, well…”

  “Don’t get all shy now. I enjoy fucking you, but I like you too. Otherwise I wouldn’t have bothered to ask you out.”

  While Merideth’s eyes widened in surprise, the waiter chose that inopportune time to arrive at their table. Kalia ordered shrimp scampi and pinot grigio, and Merideth found some difficulty in stammering out her own order: grilled salmon and a glass of chardonnay.

  After the waiter left, she blurted out the question burning in her brain once he was out of earshot, “So, um, Kalia… you never do anything involving the vampire purity thing? What do you think of the alchemy involved?”

  The magistra shrugged. “While we continue to feed on the,” she lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, “‘liquid of life’, I’ve never seen us as much better than the humans.”

  “Not even being immortal?”

  “What’s immortality?” she questioned, her tone almost impatient. “We can’t go out in the sun. Well, not without a ton of spells, and most of them don’t work half the time. We can still be killed. Our lives are constantly at peril from crazy religious nuts who want us dead.”

  “True, but—”

  “I just don’t see how we’re any better. We still fuck, need nourishment, and sleep. We just require a different form of nourishment and have longer lifespans on the average. That is, if the sun doesn’t kill us first.”

  Merideth nodded. Interesting. “I see,” she remarked after a long silence.

  The waiter arrived with their glasses of wine, and she thought it best to just have a sip before commenting further. She wasn’t certain if she completely agreed with Kalia or not. Wasn’t some form of moderation needed?

  Chuckling, the magistra shook her finger at her. “You’ve been hanging out with Janius too much. I love him like a brother, but wow… he needs to get laid.”

  Merideth almost snorted her wine out of her nose. Oh, Blood, Janius. Janius getting laid. As if.

  “I’d offer to help him out, but he’s too inhibited for my tastes. I might scare him.” She gave Merideth a wolfish grin. The vampire downed more of her wine in a hasty gulp at the look in Kalia’s eyes.

  If this evening gets any more interesting, more wine may be required.

  With a mischievous glint in her eye, Kalia grabbed Merideth’s free hand and quickly bit and licked her wrist. She yelped with surprise, but grew wet to the point of needing a napkin both on and under her lap.

  WE SHOULD GO EAT AFTER THIS.

  Merideth managed to reply, UM… WHAT?

  FEED. YOU KNOW. I BET THERE’S SOME GREAT DANCE CLUB NEARBY WHERE WE CAN GRAB SOMEONE, SEDUCE THEM, AND GET A LITTLE BLOOD ‘N’ ACTION. WHAT DO YOU SAY?

  I… UM… MERI, stop stammering like that, she scolded herself.

  WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU FED?

  Blinking, she replied, “I-I haven’t had time since I got here… I mean, there was last night with you, but… “Oh, Blood, I sound like a mere Apprentice. Some deity please save me before I embarrass myself any further.

  Kalia laughed. “I can fix that. C’mon, we can eat this lovely food and go play afterwards.”

  She forced a nervous smile back. If Merideth were not undead, her heart would’ve beaten itself out of her chest. “Sure, why not?”

  Chapter Seven

  Tangerine Tango

  Not far from the beach restaurant resided a little music club called Tangerine Tango. Kalia insisted that they head there for the best drinks, the best food, and the best “drink.” The last part she stated with a wink and a grin.

  The activities at the club filled the air with music, sounds of people chatting, and smells of food and alcohol. Tiki torches lit the area as people danced outside amongst palm trees and warm, humid tropical breezes.

  Such a gorgeous night. Merideth glanced up at the sky. So many more stars were visible here than back at the Sanctuary in New York. Minus the pollution and the billions of city lights, nature revealed itself. Suddenly she thought of Babalon’s eyes, and her head spun. Blood, is any of this real?

  Kalia laughed and grabbed her hand. It was a gentle, affectionate gesture. She gave Merideth’s hand a light squeeze and pulled her in the direction of the club.

  “C’mon, no time for stargazing—let’s go,” she urged. “Drinks are on me. And if you like,” she added in a conspiratorial tone, “they can be literally on me.” At great speed, Kalia’s lips crushed Merideth’s before she had time to react to the thought of licking alcohol off of Kalia’s most delectable body. Kalia’s tongue and lips did wondrous things to Merideth’s mouth which made her head spin all the faster.

  “At this rate,” she gasped once Kalia let go of her, “we’ll never get to the club.”

  Kalia giggled. “Yes, more hungers to satisfy.”

  Hand in hand, they arrived at the bar in the club. Kalia ordered martinis for each of them—coconut for her, and mint chocolate for Merideth. It seemed quite appropriate to enjoy such a treat during her date with the magistra.

  The two vampires chose a nearby table and,
now seated, they surveyed the crowd, attempting to be subtle with their gazes as they observed everyone around them. The people surrounding them were dressed anywhere from jeans to semi-formal attire. The two vampires watched as they danced, drank, and smoked outdoors to the sounds of techno music. Merideth drank them all in with her eyes. Such colorful, bright people. The scent of their sweat, the sounds of their laughter and conversation combined with such wide variations of attire intoxicated her almost as much as her delicious—sinfully so!—mint chocolate martini. When Kalia’s fingers interlaced with her own, the casual but significant touch crowned the moment for her. Merideth embraced the evening and hoped it would stretch for as long as she willed it.

  Naturally, the evening made other plans—as usual without consulting her.

  The back of her head hummed, and the hair on her arms stood on end. Merideth’s forehead creased with concentration. With an eyebrow raised, she glanced over at Kalia, who gave her a small nod.

  Someone in the area was using magick.

  A small tap on her arm, and Merideth turned to see to where Kalia pointed. A vibrant young man stood in front of a woman with fists clenched. They were dressed for the average goth club, and Merideth assessed their attire carefully, attempting to make out what she could of their personalities. His black mesh tank top revealed his lean but muscular chest. His black jeans, though baggy, weren’t unflattering. Merideth tried not to stare too hard at his ass and forced her attention upon the young woman. Her black corset amplified her slim but curvy figure, and Merideth’s gaze drifted towards her pale but delicious, perky breasts. Her black lace skirt came above her knees, while her matching boots came just below. It surprised her that the knees showing were not clad in fishnets.

  She must be warm in those boots. During her evaluation of the woman’s attire, she concluded without a doubt that she found the woman very attractive. Her alabaster skin and black hair reminded her of Kalia’s, and her black eyeliner enhanced the contrast between her dark eyes and skin. Skin so pale the woman could’ve passed for a vampire had Merideth’s senses not been so attuned.

  STOP STARING AT THE HOT GOTH CHICK AND PAY ATTENTION TO THAT GUY. HE’S THE ONE TRYING TO ZAP HER.

  Merideth blinked at Kalia. “Huh?” Then she honed in on their conversation.

  “I don’t see what the problem is,” the man stated, his low voice almost hissing in anger.

  “I said, stop it,” the woman replied, her tone firm. Her dark eyes shone under the tiki lights, and Merideth saw the anger in them. “I don’t want to do this.”

  “Look, you know why we came here. We have a job to do and we need to do it.”

  The woman began to walk away as she protested, “I said no—” But he caught her wrist and halted her in mid-sentence.

  Kalia and Merideth gave each other looks. They didn’t know what transpired between these two individuals, but if they weren’t stopped, a fight would break out.

  WHAT KIND OF MAGICK IS HE USING? Merideth timidly asked.

  COERCION. HE’S TRYING TO BEND HER WILL. AND IT’S CLEARLY NOT WORKING. THEY’RE BOTH MAGICIANS, OBVIOUSLY BOTH VERY STRONG-WILLED, AND NOT PLAYING NICELY TOGETHER.

  SHOULD WE DO SOMETHING?

  Kalia nodded. I have a bad feeling about this.

  BUT SHOULDN’T WE STAY OUT OF THE WAY? WHAT IF THEY SEE US—

  With a smooth abruptness, Kalia walked over to where the two people stood arguing. The magistra put on her brightest smile and spoke to them in a slow, Southern drawl. “Hey, y’all. How’s it going?”

  “We’re busy,” the man snarled, shaking his fist in front of her face. Standing in front of him, the woman’s face appeared composed, but Merideth saw the sudden flash of fear in her eyes.

  “You don’t appear to be all that busy to me,” replied Kalia, her voice light and cheerful.

  Merideth cringed. What was Kalia doing? Her thoughts raced. Watch him whip out a gun and try to shoot Kalia in the middle of a crowd like this, the crowd panicking when they see the bullet hole close…

  “I’m Erin,” offered the female goth. “And you are?”

  The magistra answered with great ease, “Kalia. Vacationing here from N’awlins. Where you from?”

  DAMMIT, KALIA! WHAT THE HELL? Merideth shrieked. WHY THE HELL DID YOU JUST GAVE HER YOUR ORDER NAME!

  SHH, PATIENCE, MERI. I HAVE THIS UNDER CONTROL.

  Merideth groaned. No one within the Order of the Dragon and the Rose gave their Order name to outsiders, let alone to humans. It was not only frowned upon, but forbidden without question. Either the magistra must’ve been more intoxicated than she let on, or she had some sort of ingenious plan—with any luck one that involved wiping or altering their memories afterwards.

  “We’re from New York.”

  Oh, good. A chance to jump in and save Kalia’s skin. “Oh, um, that’s where I’m from,” offered Merideth, who, with caution, walked over to where Kalia stood. She tried not to look right at the man, who stared at her hard. Something about him made her feel anxious despite his attractiveness, but she at least liked the woman.

  Erin perked up. “Really? Whereabouts?”

  “Um, West Village. Near Washington Square.” Merideth felt Kalia’s eyes on her and knew she had already said too much. Before she could stop herself, she began to ramble. “We, um, went to college together and that’s how we, um, know each other. I work in the city. It’s a really great place. And there’s this lovely restaurant nearby, and—”

  “Oh, I know who you are.”

  Startled, Merideth turned to look at him. “Um, you do?” she inquired, doing her level best to sound stupid.

  He nodded, his eyes narrowing. “Yeah. You’re from that other order, aren’t ya? And you’re here to give us shit.”

  Merideth’s eyes widened. “Other… order?” Oh shit. Could he possibly know…?

  He spat on the ground. “You damned people. You hack our sites on the Internet, then you insult our lineage and spread lies about our order. And now you’re stalking us?”

  Kalia gave a loud belly laugh. “Oh, no. I don’t belong to any orders or whatever. I don’t even know what you’re talking about, and neither does my friend here.”

  He snorted. “What, you think I’m dumb? I can smell magicians when I see them and I’m looking at two right in front of me.”

  Oh good, he still doesn’t know we’re vampires. “Doesn’t mean we belong to any orders,” piped in a relieved but puzzled Merideth. She had no idea what this guy was talking about, nor why he believed that just because she came from the same city as he and practiced magick that meant she was there to spy on him from a rival order. “And besides, I don’t even know how to go on the Internet. I’m dumb as hell when it comes to computers.”

  The man looked at Merideth, his eyes not blinking once. “Oh, c’mon. Everyone goes online these days. Even my grandma uses AOL. And you even said—you’re from New York. Just drop the act already. You’re here to spy on us.”

  Kalia rolled her eyes. “Okay, fine, you caught us.” With discretion, Merideth poked at her, but the magistra pretended not to notice. “We were sent here to spy. But really, after meeting you two, we realize that the whole thing was wrong and we just want peace between us, honest. How about I buy you a drink or somethin’?”

  “So what, you can slip spells into the drink in order to psychically attack me? Just like you did two days ago?”

  Kalia sputtered. “Say what?”

  “Yes, I recognize you and your energy! You summoned images of Jason from those slasher flicks into my dream! I knew I recognized you the moment I saw you!”

  Oh boy, he’s a nutter. KALIA, WHAT DO WE DO NOW? HE’S… NOT ALL THERE. I THINK WE SHOULD LEAVE, BUT I’M AFRAID HE’S GOING TO FOLLOW US AND START TROUBLE.

  THEN WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT HE DOESN’T CAUSE TROUBLE, came back the calm reply.

  Oh shit.

  Kalia held her hands up in front of her. “Okay, you caught me yet again. Me and my bad sense of humor.�
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  Merideth groaned, and her hands flew to her face. This situation was getting out of hand, and she hoped with feverish desperation that Kalia had a plan—a very good plan. One that wouldn’t get them into trouble.

  “Please,” she continued, her voice dropping into a purr, “allow me to make it up to you.”

  To Merideth’s astonishment, Kalia crossed the space between her and the guy with lightning speed. Definitely using her vampire abilities, she noted with a disapproving frown. But what shocked Merideth the most was the magistra grabbing the man by the front of his mesh shirt and yanking him towards her for a passionate, open-mouthed kiss. He appeared to try to pull away, but succumbed within moments—once Kalia’s hand drifted down and gently squeezed the front of his jeans where a visible bulge became evident. His fists opened to grip Kalia’s delectable ass.

  Strangely enough, Merideth didn’t experience the slightest bit of jealousy. In fact, it rather… turned her on.

  Once the two came up for air, Kalia spoke first. “Am I forgiven?”

  The magistra’s low, sultry voice sent flutters into the pit of Merideth’s stomach. She glanced at Erin. Her parted lips shook, and in her dark, narrowed eyes she saw a very familiar emotion—lust. Clearly Erin was just as aroused as she had been.

  “Oh… fuck, yes,” he replied, his voice sounding breathless. “You are forgiven. Just… um… don’t do any of that again. Okay?”

  “Sure thing, sugar.” With a casual but sensual air, Kalia licked his neck, her eyes never leaving his face. “What was your name again?”

  “I’m—I’m Steve. But if you ever kiss me like that again, you can call me anything you want.”

  Kalia’s lips turned upwards into a wicked, mischievous grin. At that moment, Merideth had never found her so incredibly… fuckable.

  “Steve, sugar—would you like me to make it up to you some more?”

  DINNERTIME, Kalia declared.