Blood Ties

12. Perchance to Dream

Adam was silent for a few minutes before blinking his surprise. He was actually astonished, if truth be told, but glad just the same. If she was being true to her word about starting over again, this was a huge step for them.

Quinn’s head drooped when he didn’t say anything, and she mumbled something else that Adam could barely hear.

“I mean, if you don’t want to, that’s fine. I can ju—”

He stepped toward her quickly, covering the distance between them in a millisecond and tipping her chin up so their eyes could meet. “Nonsense. It would be my pleasure to stay with you tonight. Platonically or more, it is a great honor for me to sleep in the same bed and share our thoughts.”

Adam was so formal sometimes, it was odd. She wanted to stand up and start getting ready for bed, but she couldn’t move her gaze from his. It was like she was trapped inside his eyes, and she had to physically make herself blink to break the connection.

“Okay. I’m going to get ready for bed then.” He stepped back slowly from her, his hand dropping to his side. “I’ll just…” Her voice faded as she looked over to the dresser where she knew some pajamas were waiting for her.

All was quiet as she slid open the mahogany drawer and rooted through the top layers. Underneath a couple of silky numbers, she found what she was looking for, a cotton set of sleep pants and camisole in a pale green color. Once removed, she pushed the drawer back in and started toward the door to change in the hallway bathroom.

“You can do that in my room, if you want.” She looked back at Adam, who was watching her expectantly. “Or, we could sleep in my bedroom, which has its own en suite. It’s up to you.”

She looked around the room. It was very functional, but not altogether homey. It was nothing like what her own bedroom looked like at home or the apartment in New York City. She craved something familiar and warm, and she slowly began to nod her head because she knew what Adam’s room looked like. It was lived-in but neat, much like her old bedroom in Virginia but with nicer furniture and double in size.

“Okay.” Her voice was quiet, but it was like she had shouted it with zeal. The responding smile on Adam’s face was one so joyful, she had to smile back at him.

The house was quiet, and they waited to talk more when they got to the other bedroom. Adam opened the door for her before following her inside and closing it behind them, his ample size taking up much of the entryway.

“Bathroom is just through there.” He pointed to a corner on the left side of the room. “I have extra toothbrushes in the linen cupboard inside. It seems strange since our bones are basically like titanium in this form, but we do keep our teeth clean.”

She looked over at him, a question quirking her lips. “May I ask why?”

He shrugged. “Cleanliness. Blood can stain bone, so we do it so we don’t look like we’re walking around after sucking a human dry—which we would never do, of course.”

She almost shivered, but he said it in such an offhanded manner, she couldn’t seem to find it in herself to feel afraid of him—or any of them. These people, if you could truly call them that, were nice—even normal.

For bloodsuckers.

She sighed and walked over to the corner to open the bathroom door. When she turned the light on, she was amazed at how big it was. The bathroom in her apartment in New York was probably a quarter of the size, and she soon realized why. It had a jacuzzi tub in the back, gleaming like porcelain and sunk deep into the ground. She was damn near desperate to go over and touch it, but she was starting to get tired and decided to brush her teeth before getting dressed.

After spitting the last of the toothpaste out and using Adam’s mouthwash, she got undressed and brushed her hair back before plaiting into a long braid.

Washing her face, she added a bit of moisturizer she found and wondered why on earth Adam would need it. If it had been bought with her in mind, what was it doing in Adam’s bathroom?

Shooing the endless stream of questions away, she went back into the bedroom to see that Adam was already changed into a pair of sleeping pants in dark blue and was pulling off his shirt before dropping it into the hamper that was placed halfway between the door and the bathroom.

“Uhm, should I?” She lifted her hand to show her bundle of clothing, and Adam reached out to grab it, snatching it from her before she could respond.

“I got it, love.” He dropped her clothing into the same bin and dropped the cover back over it before looking up at her.

The awkward moment stretched on before Adam clasped his hands together, the muscles in his shoulders and arms tight. Quinn, for her part, couldn’t stop staring. She didn’t want to ogle the man, so she looked at his face, which was open and caring.

“Tired?” he asked before she nodded her head gently.

“A bit.” And it was very obvious she was. The yawn started almost as soon as she was done speaking, and she walked quietly over to the bed before pulling back the covers and looking up him. “Is this okay?” She gestured to the bed, and Adam’s mouth crested in a warm grin.

“Of course. Make yourself at home. We can chat once you get settled before you fall asleep. Unless you want to just skip it. It’s not like we don’t have ample time tomorrow.” He moved to the other side of the bed, mirroring Quinn as he pulled the covers down and started to climb on. She followed suit and shivered. It was always so cold when she first got under the covers, and she hurried to pull the blanket up under her chin to spread the warmth of her body everywhere. Rolling into a fetal position, she turned to him onto her side and watched as he did the same.

They looked at each other for a moment, eyes blinking before she placed the back of her hand to her mouth to cover a tiny yawn.

“You were born in Los Angeles, right?”

He nodded. “35 years ago, yes.”

“And when did you stop…growing, I guess you could say? When did you look like you do now?”

He grinned, quick and easy. “I don’t know. Usually, a vampire stops aging and looks my age starting anywhere from 30 to 35 years of age. When my father got older and had to age himself in other ways, he stopped going into work for a while and stayed out of the limelight. He started avoiding people a little bit before me met my mom. After meeting her, he didn’t need to be seen as much because the magazines all said he was off the market. Mom and Dad never truly wed, but they did pay someone at City Hall to have a marriage certificate fabricated and license made. Money talks.” He shrugged one shoulder.

She nodded and thought of another question. “I see that you can be photographed, and I know that you can see yourselves in mirrors. Most of the vampire lore is utter bullshit, isn’t it?”

He laughed and snuggled a little closer to her until they were only a foot away from their foreheads touching. “Yes, 99.9 percent of what you read or see in movies is crap. We can eat, though we don’t need to. We sleep, though I don’t know why. We don’t sparkle or shrivel to dust in the sun, and I can eat as much garlic as I like, though my father isn’t a big fan of it. Most pungent smells are too much for our sensitive noses. We also have singular smells to our mates.”

“Wait—what?”

“Oh yes. You won’t be able to smell mine until—well, if we mate, but I smell yours clearly right now. Peaches. Fruity and light, not overwhelming at all. It’s nice. Like warm peach cobbler just out of the oven.” He shook his head. “I know that seems odd coming from someone who doesn’t need food to survive, but when you have as strong a sense of smell as we do, you know basically what everything smells like. Water, laundry detergent, soil, or perfume. Nothing is too subtle for our noses, but because there are so many and they blend together, you have to train yourself to differentiate between some of them. It takes careful practice.”

“And how to you train your nose?”

“Practical activities, of course. Or you can go into a room with very few objects in it and slowly accustom yourself to each object when it comes into the room. Say, for instance in here, it would be a bad idea because you would smell my laundry detergent and the sheets and the cologne I sometimes use. If we were to go into a room with nothing in it but the walls and ceiling and I introduced a bit of cloth or a piece of fruit to the room, your sense of smell and distinguishing where it was in the room if you were blindfolded would help. The more intense the training, the quicker you become accustomed to being able to sift between them.”

She settled deeper into the blanket, seeking out more heat and edging closer to Adam. “Hearing and eyesight are stronger too?” She wondered if he could see every flaw, every freckle on her skin, and blushed, wondering if he was like Superman and could see through things as well—all the way down to her skin.

“All our senses are heightened, yes. Even touch, though you would think a touch is just a touch. Even from this far away, though, I can almost feel your skin against mine. Your chin cradled beneath my fingertips, the flesh of your palms against mine. It’s almost otherworldly, which sounds strange coming from a being that isn’t supposed to even exist, according to humans. I can’t describe touch, because I don’t do it often to someone I wouldn’t think about.” He breathed in heavily and looked deeper into her eyes. “I’ve waited my whole life for you, Quinn. I don’t know if this is a good or bad thing, but I’ve never kissed anyone before you, except a family member, and I never felt the need to either.”

She was a bit shocked at that and gulped loudly. “You never wanted to, or just felt wrong about it?” She needed that differentiation.

“Both, I guess. Women can be alluring, but even so, I didn’t want them the way I want you. I’m sorry—so f*****g sorry for what I did, how I went about it. I hate myself for how I stole you from your home without your permission. If you only knew how intense the pull to be with you was, yo—”

“Don’t, Adam.” She reached out with one hand, touching his soft lips with her middle and forefinger. “We agreed to start over again, so let’s not talk about the past. Leave it where it is. I don’t know why I was so readily agreeable to that idea, but I can only think it was instinct. Like fight or flight, but different. I agreed without thinking because it felt right, nothing more and nothing less. I want to do that, but I don’t want to be reminded because of your sense of gratitude or worry. I really mean it when I agreed to start over. So, let’s just try not to bring it up again, okay?”

He breathed out, bringing his hand up to her face so he could touch her—in any way. His eyes closed slowly before opening, and his lips tipped upward in a small smile.

“I can agree to that. It’s hard because it’s a huge mistake of mine, but I can’t say I regret it now—not when you are so eager to start over.” He leaned forward and pecked her forehead. “Thank you, love.”