Chapter 14 - Alone

Chevalier came back from a long day out in his study and found Emily’s bed empty. He glanced at the clock and saw that it was only 3am. Kyle was away on a two-week long mission and Emily hadn’t let Chevalier replace him so her ante-chamber was also empty. He caught her emotions and she was upset and worried, which made the need to find her more pressing. He smelled for her, but her scent was faint, she hadn’t been in the ante-chamber in hours.

“Find Emily,” he ordered into the air, and the sound of scrambling feet echoed through the castle.

It was only five minutes before he heard a voice on the wind whisper, “Barn.”

He appeared in the barn seconds later and walked around to Patra’s stall. Patra was lying on the clean straw, panting, and Emily was at her side rubbing the mare’s tummy. He suddenly understood.

“How is she doing?” he asked from outside the stall.

Emily looked up at him with tired eyes, “It’s taking a long time.”

“Is there anything I can do?”

She shook her head and went back to rubbing the mare’s belly. Chevalier appeared at her back and began to rub her tight, knotted shoulders.

“Mmmm,” she moaned, and leaned her head forward.

He grinned and continued to rub the knots out of her shoulders, “Kyle will be sad he missed this, he’s been waiting to see her foal for 11 months.”

Emily just nodded. She was clearly worried about the time it was taking Patra to deliver.

Patra raised her head and whinnied loudly as her stomach contracted violently, “Come on girl, push,” Emily encouraged her.

After a few minutes, the mare laid her head back on the straw, panting heavily and Emily sighed.

The hours passed and the more Emily worried about Patra, the more Chevalier worried about Emily. Her shoulders grew into hard knots and he knew her head was aching from the stress.

The light of dawn filled the barn and the mare had just begun to push again, when Emily stood up, walked to the rear of the horse, and sunk her arm, shoulder deep into the mare.

Chevalier watched, shocked, not exactly sure what Emily was doing until she was using her entire body to pull. She groaned, her teeth grinding as she tried to pull the foal free. She panted and again pulled with all of her strength when she suddenly flew back and landed hard against the ground.

“Gah, slippery bugger!” she screamed, and sunk her hand back into the mare.

Emily was sweating now, her shirt was stained, and her hair was plastered to her head. She pulled again and again and Chevalier considered putting an end to it, but wasn’t ready to face her wrath. Emily gave one last scream and pulled two long thin legs out just as Patra gave what Chevalier could only describe as a bellow. A loud, sloshing sound accompanied the rest of the foal emerging and Emily quickly began to clear its mouth.

Patra raised her head and craned her neck to begin licking the foal, which was already fighting to stand. The colt stood up on shaky legs and nuzzled toward his mother and began to nurse. Emily laid back on the straw, trying to catch her breath. She was soaked with sweat and covered in blood, but she was smiling.

Chevalier stood and walked over to her, then looked down and smiled, “It’s a boy.”

Emily nodded, completely exhausted.

He reached a hand out to her, “Come on, get some sleep.”

She shook her head, “I can’t. I need to keep an eye on him for a while,” she said, and then sat up with considerable effort.

“Can’t I get someone to do that?” he asked, even though he already knew the answer.

“No, he’s my responsibility.” She sat back against the wall of the stall and watched the colt eat.

He sighed, “I have a meeting.”

“I’m ok, go. When I get done here, I’m just going to shower and go to bed.” She looked down at her clothes.

Chevalier grinned, “Good, you stink.”

She threw a handful of straw at him and he left.

Emily shut her eyes for a moment and relaxed as the colt nursed. She opened them to yell at Chevalier, but noticed the noise had come from Peanut, “Heya, Nut.”

Peanut crawled into her lap and began to purr as she pet him, “Look what we did… we made a colt.” She was smiling.

It was only a few hours later that Emily was finally convinced the horses would be ok. The colt was up walking around on unsteady legs and Patra was standing up eating. She kissed the top of Peanut’s head and went inside to take a shower.

She heard odd hisses as she walked past the heku servants and she looked down at her bloodstained shirt. She couldn’t blame them for being antsy.

The shower felt incredible and she let it run longer than usual. When she was too tired to stand any longer, she pulled on her t-shirt and laid down on top of the covers of the bed, and fell fast asleep.

Emily was only partially aware when Chevalier came in and moved her under the covers. The warmth was perfect and she snuggled deeper into the bed and fell back asleep as Chevalier joined her under the covers and wrapped his arms around her.

Emily stirred and saw the sun was rising. She jumped up and hurried to put on her jeans.

“Slow down… where are you going?” Chevalier asked, wrapping his arms around her waist.

“I need to go check on the colt,” she said, buttoning her pants and looking around for a clean shirt.

“He’ll be ok, Em.” He smelled her neck and gently ran his tongue along the throbbing vein. Emily shivered, but pulled away from him.

“Stop, Chev, I need to go check.” She found the shirt she was looking for and pulled off the nightshirt, but before she could replace it, Chevalier was holding her closely.

He was kissing her neck again.

She pulled away yet again and grinned.

Emily put on the other shirt and headed out the door to check on the colt. The barn was awake and hungry as she entered and walked past the other horses and into Patra’s stall. She let the mare and her colt out into the corral and watched as the foal played in the grass, running and bucking. Leaning against the fence watching them was electric, this new life now able to think and feel and play. She smiled as she watched them and Peanut wound himself around her legs.

When the colt began to nurse again, Emily let the buckskin mare and Chevalier’s crabby Arabian out into the corral too, where they grazed happily.

Sighing, Emily went back into the barn and loaded a bale of hay onto the back of the ATV and set out. She wanted to get in a decent nap when she was done, she still felt tired from the previous night. The hay seemed heavier today and the nap looked better and better. She finished later than usual and headed back into the castle.

Emily heard hisses in the hallway as she passed. By the third hiss, she spun in the direction of it, “Excuse me?” she snapped at the shadows.

The noise stopped, but it still made her uncomfortable. Her bed was inviting as she stripped and pulled on a nightgown, then fell into the soft bed.

She woke slowly and rolled over, looking at the clock. It was only 5pm but she was starving. Emily made her way down to the kitchen and again heard a hiss from the shadows. She ignored it and opened up the kitchen. Gordon looked up at her and smiled.

“I wondered when you would eat today, Child. What would you like?” He started grabbing some pots and pans.

“Do you have any pork chops?”

His face lit up, “Of course, coming up.”

Emily watched Gordon cook. She was astonished at the speed in which he prepared food and the joy he got from it. He was proud when he sat down a plate with pork chops and steaming au gratin potatoes.

She smiled and dug in. The flavors were amazing and she finished it, which pleased Gordon immensely.

“Can I ask you something privately?” she asked Gordon as he cleaned up the kitchen.

“Sure, Child.” He didn’t even look at her.

She thought carefully before asking, “Is there something weird going on around the castle today? I mean… some reason I would keep getting hissed at?”

She smiled as he handed her a glass of cold milk, but then he turned and looked at her.

“Hissing? Someone was hissing at you?” he asked, shocked.

“It’s nothing big and remember, just between us... but yeah, I seem to be getting hissed at a lot today.” She sipped the cold milk.

“No reason I can think of. You should tell the Chief Enforcer, he wouldn’t stand for that.” Gordon turned away from her and started cleaning again.

“That’s exactly why I don’t tell him, Gordon.” She saw him tense up, “Oh no you don’t, you said this was private!”

“I’m required to tell him,” Gordon said softly, still wiping down the already clean stove top.

“Please, Gordon, I’m begging you.” Her voice was pleading.

His hands shook on the counter as he cleaned, “It’s not that easy.”

“He’ll find out you didn’t tell him won’t he?” She watched him.

Gordon nodded, his hands still shaking as he wiped down the counter.

“I guess it’s not so bad. I won’t tell him where I was when it happened and you don’t know, so there’s not a lot he can do about it.” She watched as he relaxed. When Gordon didn’t turn back around to visit, she left and headed out to let the horses back into the barn.

Chevalier met her back up in her room, and she could see the anger in his eyes.

“The colt is doing great, he’s going to look like a paint,” she said, slipping off her jacket.

“Where were you, Emily?” She knew from his tone he wasn’t curious about her previous location, he wanted to know more about the hisses.

She turned to look at him, “Around.”

“Hissing is a sign of aggression with heku, a sign they are about to attack,” he snapped. “Where were you?”

She sighed, “It was just a hiss, Chev, and once I yelled at them they stopped.” She added a mental mostly.

Chevalier stood up and took her shoulders in his hands, “Tell me… now!”

She tried to pull away but he held tightly, “No.”

“I told you to stop messing with my affairs, and this is definitely my area,” he growled.

“No, I’m not going to be a part of this.” She again tried to pull away but his grip tightened and her shoulders began to hurt, “Let go, you’re hurting me.”

He shook her twice and pulled her off the ground, “Tell me, now!” he yelled at her again, his face inches from hers.

“Chev, please, it hurts,” she whispered.

Chevalier dropped her the few inches to the ground and stepped away from her, his eyes still angry, “I’ll find out my own way then.”

His senses reached out to her and his heart fell, she truly feared him at that moment. He growled and disappeared from the room. Chevalier quickly headed to the mainland to feed, that would help calm his mind.

Emily sat down on the bed. Her shoulders ached and she had a headache from when he shook her. She’d done it again, fell in love with someone who hurt her. She didn’t count them as exactly the same, though. Keith hit her for fun, Chevalier was truly angry, but Emily wasn’t sure that mattered.

“Emily,” the voice was soft beside her.

Emily looked up at Anna, she couldn’t even talk.

“Are you hurt, Child?” Anna touched her arm lightly.

Emily shook her head and moved over as Anna sat down beside her on the bed, “If you don’t mind, I want to talk to you.”

Emily just watched the heku beside her, her head pounding.

“I’m sure the Chief Enforcer would be mad, because this is none of my concern, but I feel someone needs to try to smooth things over.” Anna handed Emily a few aspirin.

She chewed the aspirin, grimacing at the taste, and then leaned back against the headboard.

“Let him protect you, Child.” Anna’s voice was sincere.

Emily looked away from her, her eyes again filling with tears.

“It’s in his nature to protect those he loves. He’s good at what he does, and when you fight against his natural instincts, it’s hard for him.” Anna smiled softly at Emily, “He loves you, Child, we all know that, we can see it in his eyes. I’ve known Chevalier for almost 200 years and this is the first time I’ve seen him truly happy. Until tonight, that is.”

When Emily didn’t respond, Anna continued, “He was right about the hissing from the shadows, and we, as a part of this coven, have taken care of it to stop the tension between you two.”

Emily gasped, “What did you do?”

“We handled it.” Anna smiled, “We also feel protective of you. We all care about you and have grown to love you in our own way. Our people… the heku… we don’t take kindly to one of our own being targeted.”

Emily realized that Chevalier had been wrong. His staff knew she was bonded to him and not to Kyle.

“Let him be himself around you, let him protect you, it’s what makes him happy.” Anna smiled again and touched Emily’s arm, “You can’t fight nature, and if you are to stay among the immortal, it’s time you realize we are natural fighters, born predators, and it’s not within us to watch our loved ones be hurt.”

Anna stood up, “I’ll have Gordon bring something up for you.”

Before Emily could respond, Anna was gone and she was alone again in the dark room. A few minutes later, Gordon appeared with a mug of warm milk. It tasted funny, but he encouraged her to finish it and left only after it was gone. Warmth spread through her and she was soon fast asleep.

***

Chevalier growled when the knock on his door sounded so soon after returning from feeding, “Come!”

Anna entered the office, her face warm and comforting to him, “I’m stepping out of line, I will warn you, Sir.”

He glared at her, waiting.

“I’ve spoken to Lady Emily about things, and I hope it will help.” She watched for a reaction.

“You were just with her?” he asked.

Anna nodded, “Yes… and she isn’t hurt, Sir, not physically.”

Chevalier sighed.

“Well we…” She paused, “We took care of Benjamin, Sir.”

“Benjamin?”

“Yes, he followed the Child through the hallways, hissing. He was ready to attack and we couldn’t have that.” She waited for her punishment.

“You… you took care of him?” He was stunned.

“A group of us, yes. I do hope it will help.” She looked into his eyes and relaxed when she didn’t see anger.

He nodded toward her, unable to speak.

“Don’t worry about Emily, Gordon brought her some… shall we call it, ‘special’ milk and she is already asleep.” Anna bowed and left the room.

Chevalier reached out to Emily and found her peaceful and relaxed. His thoughts returned to the feeling of fear she held for him, and he hated himself for it. He’d never been adept at controlling his temper, but for thousands of years, he hadn’t needed to. Emily was fragile, unlike members of his coven, and he tried to wrap his mind around a way to keep her safe from his temper.

He soon gave up and joined her in bed. She didn’t stir when he walked into the room and her blood smelled of medicine. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close to him.

***

Emily flipped to her back and floated on the still water. Her muscles ached from more than an hour of laps, but it felt good to her. She steadied her breathing and just floated, hearing nothing but the sound of the filters running. She could feel her hair flowing gently around her and she sighed.

“Happy Anniversary.” The voice came out of nowhere and she sunk quickly, gasping in a lungful of water. Swift hands pulled her to the surface and held her while she coughed.

“Sorry, Em,” Chevalier said, amused.

She slapped him on the shoulder, “Are you trying to kill me?”

“Oh I can think of much better ways of killing you,” he said as he gently ran his teeth along her neck and then laughed when she shivered.

“Happy Anniversary to you, too,” Emily said as she brushed her lips softly against his.

Chevalier chuckled, “Don’t even get me started. I came to take you away.” He carried her out of the water and set her down by the towels.

She looked at him, “Where are we going?”

“Absolutely nowhere.” He grinned and watched her dry her hair, “Hrm, I don’t like that swimsuit.”

Emily looked down and laughed, “It took hours to convince her that a one-piece was the way to go.”

He patiently watched her dry off.

“So what does one pack for going nowhere?” she asked, wrapping the towel around her.

“Silly mortal, you don’t pack to go nowhere.” He quickly re-dressed and then pulled out a black scarf and grinned, “Turn around.”

Emily frowned, “What if I don’t trust you?”

“Never trust a heku,” he told her, and then grinned.

She smiled but turned around anyway.

Chevalier tied the black scarf tightly over her eyes, “No peeking.”

He picked her up, cradled her gently in his arms, and walked. She could feel a change in the atmosphere when they left the castle, and she shivered slightly as the cool air hit her wet swimsuit. She felt him chuckle.

“Ready?” he asked at long last.

“I’m guessing I don’t have a choice,” Emily said as he set her down and her toes dug into the sand.

Chevalier removed the blindfold, and as Emily’s eyes adjusted to the bright sun, a glimmering boat came into view. The majestic ship was flawless as it bobbed with the waves. It was white with pink and magenta stripes, and emblazoned on the side in curly letters was the name of the ship, ‘Emily.’

Emily turned to smile at him, “You bought a boat?”

“No,” he said, and faked a frown. “I bought you a yacht.”

She turned back to the ship and marveled at how sleek and shiny it was. She headed up the plank to board it, followed by Chevalier. The front deck was lined with cushioned deck chairs and a hot tub was set into the floor. Emily went room to room looking at the designs and decorations of her new boat. The engine room was set high above the rest of the rooms and she ran her hand along the shiny helm and slipped on the Captain’s hat, which was too big and fell down to cover her eyes.

Chevalier pulled the hat off of her head, laughing, and placed it on his own head, “That’s mine.”

“I thought the boat was mine.”

“It is… but I’m your Captain, so I get the hat.” She tried to take it from him but he caught both of her wrists in one of his hands and turned on the engine.

She turned to look at the sea as he pulled out of port, “Wait! We’re leaving now?”

He nodded, “Did you have other plans?”

“I haven’t packed anything.” She noticed he wasn’t slowing down.

“Which way are we going, Em?” he asked her.

She turned to him, “I don’t know, you’re driving.”

“Point… we’ll go whichever way you point.” He slipped on some sunglasses.

Emily turned and looked at the vast ocean and pointed randomly, watching as the boat turned in the direction and sped off.

“So how many servants are on this thing?” she wondered, looking around.

“It’s just us.”

“Seriously? Just us two… not even one other heku?” She was surprised, Chevalier seemed to like his servants.

He grinned, “Just us, unless you want me to go back and get some.”

“No way, this is great!” She wrapped her arms around him from behind and kissed his back.

“Go relax out on the deck. I’m going to get us far from land and then I’ll join you.” She watched as he adjusted some knobs and returned to the helm. Emily was impressed that he knew how to sail.

The sun was even brighter out on the water. She could feel the warmth on her skin so she slipped off her towel and fell onto one of the deck chairs. It was soft and reclined and she found a table by it with a bowl full of fruit, a pair of sunglasses, and some sunscreen. Emily figured she might as well be good, slathered on the sunscreen, and then grabbed the sunglasses before lying back against the white cushions.

Emily was asleep when she felt hands gently run across her stomach. She smiled and shivered as she broke out in goose bumps.

“This is officially nowhere,” Chevalier said, and then smiled.

She nodded and patted the chair by her, “Lie down, soak up some vitamin D.”

Chevalier laughed, “I don’t think I’m able to do that… besides… the sun and I don’t get along very well.”

She looked up at him and noticed he was in a jacket and between the Captain’s hat and sunglasses, his face was completely shaded.

“Mmmmm, your loss, it really feels good.”

“I… well I had other motives for being out here.” His voice was soft.

She grinned, “I’m sure you have many motives for being out here.”

“Mmhmmm, that too.” He gently ran his fingers along her inner thigh, “Later, though, come in out of the sun.”

Emily sighed and sat up. She grabbed the bowl of fruit and left her sunglasses on the table, then followed Chevalier down the stairs to the living quarters. They were spacious, actually bigger than her entire ranch house, and decorated in dark reds and blacks. The kitchen was small, but had what she needed and the end of the living space held a large wooden framed bed. Chevalier sat on the couch and patted beside him.

Emily ignored his hint and sat the bowl of fruit where he’d patted and then sat on his lap, curling up against his chest. She felt his arms wrap around her as he chuckled and kissed the top of her head.

“I love you, Em,” he said softly.

She looked up and kissed him gently, “I know.”

“So it’s time to get it all out in the open. We’ve noticed in the last year that neither of us has been completely honest with the other, so I figured some time away might help.” She kissed along his neck and nodded.

“It’ll be nice to get away from life on the island.” He groaned as she lightly bit his neck.

“Eeeh… what the hell.” Was all she heard before she felt the soft bed at her back.

***

“That wasn’t fair,” he said as she curled her naked body up against his.

“Oh, were we playing fair?” Emily asked.

Chevalier laughed, “Apparently not. Damn, you bite hard.”

Emily glanced at his shoulder and could see the faint outline of her teeth fading, “Sorry about that.”

“I didn’t say I didn’t like it.” He ran his fingers through her hair.

“You wanted to talk?” She pulled away from him and propped herself up on her elbow.

“Yes I did, before I was seduced.” He kissed her lightly.

Emily laughed, “It was pretty hard to do, too.”

Chevalier smiled, “Yeah well…”

“So… what about?”

“Everything we probably should have talked about before the bonding.” His eyes were serious.

“Like what?” She gasped, “Are you upset about the baby thing?”

He smiled, “No, that’s not important to me though I wish you had told me, just so we didn’t have secrets.”

Her eyes fell to his chest as her fingers outlined his chiseled muscles, “I’m sorry.”

Chevalier took her hand in his, “You’re distracting me, again,” he said, kissing her fingers.

“Hmm, you’re easily distracted.” She smiled up at him.

“Yes… well…”

“Ok so what else?” She was afraid to go further but knew there was no way around it.

“First, I’ll start… there were some unexpected byproducts of the bonding that I want you to know about. I honestly didn’t know about them. This is the first I’ve known of a mortal and an immortal going through the ceremony.” He was looking deep into her green eyes.

“Ugh, do I want to know?”

Chevalier smiled, “They aren’t bad… just… well… intrusive.”

“What? How?” Her eyes narrowed.

“I can feel your emotions from a distance. The stronger the emotions, the stronger I can feel them. Regular, normal emotions, I have to concentrate on… but I’m able to pick them up easier and easier it seems.”

She frowned, “Ok.”

“Lately… and it’s only been the last few days… I’m starting to see images of what you are thinking.”

She gasped, “You can see what I’m thinking?”

He shrugged, “Not always, it’s more like images pop into my head and I can’t figure out how they got there and then I realized that you were thinking them.”

“That’s not fair! I’m not getting any of that.” She frowned.

Chevalier kissed her nose, “I’m not trying to be intrusive. It’s all just sort of happening.”

“So nothing’s private for me anymore?” She didn’t like that and he noticed how she set her jaw.

“I’m finding I can tune it out to an extent, but there are times when you are practically screaming at me… like just now on the couch.” He smiled at the thought.

“This is awful!” She pulled the blankets up to cover herself.

“I’m not doing it on purpose! I’m going to see if I can find someone in our situation and see if it can be controlled.”

Suddenly, Emily was feeling exposed.

“I’d like it if I could control it enough to block your thoughts out when I don’t need to know them, and to reach out for you when I do… I’d also like to see if there’s a way you can use it to your advantage.”

“Like how?”

“Like calling for me if you are in trouble.”

“Anything else?” Her voice was irritated.

“I’m sorry about the ring too, that I did know about, and I should have told you.”

“Yes, you should have.” She glanced down at the beautiful diamond and platinum ring, “Keep going.”

“That’s all for now, the big stuff.” He ran his hand under the blanket along her waist, “Now it’s your turn.”

She frowned, “What is it you want to know?”

“It’s time you told me about your nightmares.” He wasn’t surprised when her body tensed.

“They are just nightmares.” She avoided looking into his eyes.

“They are more than that. Nightmares don’t cause people to scream night after night,” he said softly. “Please, tell me.”

She watched him but didn’t answer.

“I’ll make it easier. Let’s start with the dreams about Keith.” He pulled her close to him as she squeezed her eyes shut.

She whispered against his chest, “He’s not dead.”

Chevalier kissed the top of her head, “He’s after you?”

She nodded.

“He’s after me too?” He guessed, and she nodded.

“When you scream for him to shut up… what is he saying?” Chevalier prompted.

“Warnings”

“About what?”

“You”

“That I’ll kill you?” he asked softly.

She shook her head, “No, that you’ll leave me when…”

“What, Em?”

“When you see me as he did.”

“I’m not sure that’s possible. He was more of a monster than I could ever be.” His voice was soft and reassuring.

“He made me… do things.” She hid her face against his chest.

“Yes, I would imagine he did. Can I tell you something about Keith?”

She nodded.

“He was controlling your every move. The more he could knock you down, the more control he had.”

She didn’t move in his arms.

“You’ve come a long way out of that control since he died and... he is dead. He wasn’t sure enough of himself to know you would stay with him unless he made you feel undesirable.”

Emily relaxed against him.

“As for coming after me… I wish he were alive and did come after me,” he said, and then grinned.

She frowned up at him, “Why?”

“I’d like to kill him again, slower this time. He got off easily because I was angry, and he didn’t feel enough pain.” She felt the strain in his voice and his arms tightened.

Emily actually laughed a little and Chevalier kissed her forehead.

“Enough about Keith… the other dreams where you scream for me to run?” He watched her but she didn’t tense up this time.

“It’s dark in those ones, and there are trees.” She frowned, “There are voices and they are going to get you, I can’t catch up to you to make you run.”

Chevalier grinned, “Why are you always trying to protect me in your dreams? I thought I was supposed to be protecting you.”

She shrugged, not finding it as funny as he did.

“Maybe.” He thought for a moment, “Getting the dreams out in the open will make them go away.”

Emily shrugged again.

Chevalier brushed his lips across hers, “We’ll talk more later. We have plenty of time. There’s something out in the water you’ll want to see. I’ll stay here.”

Emily hesitated and then stood up and pulled on a soft robe that hung by the bed. She shielded her eyes against the glare of the sun on the water and peered over the side of the boat. She smiled widely when she saw humpback whales less than 10 feet away.

She leaned on the railing and watched until they disappeared into the horizon. The water was so blue that she could see fish below the boat also, and it wasn’t until dusk that she moved back below. Chevalier was just pulling open a cupboard to reveal a large TV, DVD player, and a few hundred movies.

“I thought we’d watch a movie, if you’d like,” he said, smiling up at her.

“Sounds great! Let’s see what we have.” She sat down and started thumbing through the movies.

Emily giggled and held up Interview with a Vampire for Chevalier.

“Gah, we aren’t watching that are we?” he asked.

“No, I’ve already made Kyle sit through it, and he was thoroughly offended, I assure you.” She slipped the movie back into the slot.

“I bet he was… I’m starting to think Kyle really does need a raise.” He watched Emily on the floor. He couldn’t get enough of her, how she moved, how she talked, and the way she flinched in her sleep.

“Oooh can we watch a horror movie?” She sounded excited.

Chevalier laughed, “Isn’t your life a horror movie? You live on an island full of history’s vampires.”

Emily pulled out the movie and put it into the DVD player, and then disappeared into the bathroom. She emerged, blushing, wearing a sheer black babydoll nightgown, “Margaret strikes again.”

Chevalier’s eyes took her in as she came to sit by him, “I think she is reliving her youth through you… with my approval, of course.”

Emily pulled a blanket over her shoulders and curled up against Chevalier’s side to watch the movie. He thought it was utterly stupid, how could people be so afraid of a clown? He did like the way Emily pulled closer to him when the clown appeared, so he didn’t complain.

Chevalier wasn’t sure exactly when she fell asleep, he just noticed she suddenly quit jumping when things on the TV got tense. He gently carried her to bed and curled up next to her, watching the movement of her face as she slept.

Emily woke to the smell of bacon and she smiled, “Smells good.”

Chevalier turned and grinned, “I hope so.”

He loaded up a plate and set the tray on her lap when she sat up.

“Oooh breakfast in bed even.” She smiled and started to eat, “Wow, this is really good.”

Chevalier grinned, “One of my many talents.”

Emily thought for a second, and then decided to ask, “When do you eat?”

“When I’m thirsty.”

“That sounds like avoidance, thought we were being open.” She stabbed an egg and ate it.

“True… I eat about once every two or three weeks is all. We don’t need to eat as often as you do.” He pulled her foot out from under the covers and began to massage it.

“What do you eat?”

He raised an eyebrow, “What?”

She smiled, “I mean… who? Where do you get the blood?”

“I have voluntary donors.”

“Women?” She took a bite of bacon and avoided his eyes.

“Mostly, yes.” He knew where this was going.

“Do you sleep with them?”

“Not anymore.”

She stared down at her plate, no longer hungry.

“Emily?” He wanted to see her eyes.

Emily shrugged and pushed the food around the plate with her fork.

“I’m not going to lie and say I never used to sleep with the women I fed off of, but I promise you, I haven’t since we went to Colorado.”

“It still seems so… intimate.” She still didn’t look up.

“It can be, but not anymore. Now they are simply nourishment.”

She grimaced.

Chevalier sighed, there really was no way to lessen the blow for this, “When I used to find a donor attractive, I always went for the neck, so I could be closer to her.”

She inhaled sharply and turned away from him.

“Now though, I only use their wrists. You are the only one I want, Em, the only one I can see anymore.” He took her hand and kissed it softly.

She swallowed dryly, “Did you ever turn one... one that you liked?”

He shook his head, “No, I haven’t turned anyone in decades for myself, and then it was only if I saw something in them that would benefit the coven. It’s not something we as heku take lightly.”

“Just feed off of me then, you won’t have to have donors.” He saw the brief wince before she looked over at him.

“No, I won’t regularly feed off of you.”

“Why?”

“For one, I love you too much.” He stroked her cheek lightly, “For the other, it’s too dangerous. Your blood is so amazingly succulent that I find it harder and harder to stop. I won’t risk draining you.”

She grimaced visibly at that.

“Don’t worry about my feeding, Em. I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you.” He reached down and kissed her, “It’s just part of who I am.”

Though not hungry, Emily finished her breakfast in silence. When she was done, she got up and cleaned the kitchen as she felt Chevalier watching her.

***

The following week was a lot less stressful. They spent their days talking about nothing important and their nights together. Emily’s nightmares seemed less frequent out on the water and she felt better than she had in a long time, well rested and content. Chevalier was also pleased that Emily was becoming more comfortable around him and wasn’t hiding her body as much as before.

From his perch at the helm, Chevalier could see Emily down on the deck. She was lying face down on a deck chair, topless, her skin was bronzing with all of the time in the sun. He slipped on his sunglasses and jacket and went down to join her.

Her skin tingled as he ran his fingers lightly down her spine.

She turned her face to him, “Done playing Captain?”

He grinned, “For now. Are you about ready to go back?”

Emily sighed, “Do we have to?”

Chevalier laughed, “No.”

“Yeah… I guess it is time to head back. I’m sure Kyle will appreciate help with my animals.”

“It’ll take us a few days to get back, no rush,” Chevalier said, and inhaled deeply.

She glanced up at him, “Are you smelling me again? It’s making me self-conscious.”

“It’s so incredible, Em, I think the time on the boat has made it stronger and lately there’s a change. Maybe all of that vitamin D.”

Emily stifled a giggle.

“What?” He couldn’t help but smile at her.

“Nothing”

“Tell me what’s so funny.”

This time, Emily laughed for a bit before she was able to talk, “I was thinking that you have about as much control as that moody Arabian when my poor Patra is in heat.”

Chevalier grinned, “You’re comparing me to a horse?”

“Yes, I am. He doesn’t even notice her and then he’ll start sniffing around and the next thing I know, he’s fighting to get out of his stall.”

“Well if she smells this good, I can’t blame him,” Chevalier said as he flipped Emily over in her deck chair and kissed her passionately.