Rafe raised a questioning eyebrow at him.
“I have held her in my arms. I’ve looked into her eyes. And do you know what I see?”
“Do enlighten me, oh ancient one.”
“I see passion. Passion for friends. Passion for art. Her work. The sea. Passion for life. And I’m certain she’s intrigued with me as well.”
“I guess we’ll find out, lover boy.”
“You best respect your elders. Trust me, when I say, I know what I know.”
“Goddammit.” Smoke billowed up into the air, the high-pitched scream of the fire alarm piercing his ears. He reached up to the ceiling, switching it off. “Jesus, that thing is loud.”
Viktor grasped the burnt toast with a pair of tongs and tossed it in the sink. He stared at the eggs he’d seen Rafe cook many times yet had never paid attention to his recipe. He should have arranged to have food delivered but for some ungodly reason he’d grown determined to make it himself. Big mistake.
As Viktor reached for his cell phone, he smiled, hearing soft footsteps behind him. Waverly. He turned slowly, his eyes set on hers as she drew closer.
“So…um…” Waverly glanced at the charred bread, then to the eggs still in their carton. “What are you doing?”
“Ah, well, you see I was trying to…” For the first time in a thousand years, he suffered from an unfamiliar loss of words. Dressed in nothing but a white t-shirt, she brushed a lock of her golden hair away from her eyes. A beam of sunlight teased across her throat.
“Are you cooking?” A corner of her lips tugged upward as she sniffed the smoky air.
“You must be starving. The Ritz Carlton delivers…I can order you something from there.”
“Why?” Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
“So I can order breakfast. You’re human. You need to eat food.” Viktor began his text. But as she boldly brushed by him and peered into the bowl, his attention fell to Waverly.
“I can make the eggs.” She opened the egg carton and shrugged.
“No. I’ll order you something. I should have done it to begin with.”
“Don’t waste your money. It only takes a few minutes.” She reached for a frying pan hanging overhead.
“No, you really don’t have to—"
“I said I’d make breakfast.” She pointed the pan at him. “Sit.”
“Bossy thing, aren’t you?” Viktor gave a small chuckle, amused that this feisty beauty challenged him.
“So I’ve been told.” Waverly switched on the gas.
“Are you okay? How do you feel?” Viktor asked and leaned against the counter.
“I feel like I’m living in another dimension. Like I just got shot at.” She glanced back at him. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I was worried about you,” he confessed, inwardly shocked that he meant it.
“You just met me.” She knifed off a pad of butter and tapped it into the pan.
“This is the third time we’ve met. Fourth if you consider last night. We better be careful. People will talk.” He smiled, enjoying the sight of her in his home.
“You like your eggs over easy? Over medium?”
“I don’t eat eggs.”
“You’re vegan? I could make something else.”
“I drink blood, my clever doctor.”
“So…you want scrambled eggs?” she asked, toying with the egg in her fingers.
“I eat humans. Not human food,” he replied flatly.
“Okay.” She blew out a breath. “But you used to eat eggs?”
“Yes, I suppose at one time I did.”
“So did you eat them over easy or over medium?” she pressed.
“I don’t know. It was many years ago.”
“You strike me as sharp. You must remember. Come on now.”
“I ate them however they were made. Food was food,” he recalled, not wishing to remember details.
“All right then. You get what you get.” She cracked an egg. It sizzled as it dropped into the frying pan. “Why don’t you eat? Is it a vampire thing? Are you broken inside? Pipes clogged?”
“Pipes clogged?” He laughed. “No.”
“What is it then?”
“It’s simple. I eat people.” Viktor watched as she continued cracking eggs.
“Food tastes good. Why would you ever give it up? Is there some kind of vampire rule that doesn’t let you have it?”
Viktor sighed, feeling woefully unprepared for this discussion with the human. Hours had passed since she’d fallen asleep in tears. Yet this morning her air of confidence had returned to her like a pair of comfortable slippers.
“No super-secret vampire rules, it’s just that, well…I was human a long time ago. And I felt like a human. Heard the birds sing like a human. Smelled, tasted food. All human.” Viktor’s expression fell flat as the somber memories weighed down his soul. “But then one day you die. You see the light of the Goddess. In those seconds of dying, there’s this most beautiful warm light. It’s more than acceptance, it’s almost as if it’s a conscious decision to let go. And in a snap of a whip, you’re sucked back to the earth.” Viktor cocked his head, his voice brightened. “That’s it really. But you’re no longer human. You wake with the most intense hunger you’ve ever had. For blood. Not food.”
Viktor detected her heart beat faster at the mention of blood. But as Waverly casually reached for the spatula and swiftly placed the eggs onto the plates, she turned to him, her face devoid of fear. He moved to the side as she set them on the table, noting how effectively she concealed her emotions.
“Sometimes when I wake up, I make a protein smoothie. It’s very nutritious,” she replied, facing him. “But I still eat eggs.”
“But you see, pet. There is nothing more I need. Blood is my only sustenance.”
“Blood? Your only need?” she challenged, taking a step toward him. “That’s not living. It’s existing. Why would you ever want to live life like that?”
Viktor closed the distance between them, coming within inches of her. Her pulse raced yet she refused to move, standing her ground. He leaned to whisper in her ear. “I can assure you that once I taste you, drink from you, you will learn to enjoy it as much as I do.”
She locked her eyes on his, her fingertips brushed his chest. “You can’t have mine, vampire.”
“Someday.” Viktor’s cock rushed with blood as his eyes fell to her full lips.
“You can’t have my blood,” she repeated, her voice soft. A hint of a teasing smile bloomed on her face. “But you can eat my eggs.”
Viktor restrained his urge to kiss her as she sheepishly averted her gaze. Waverly slowly backed away and slid into a chair. He glanced to the food, his own heart pounding. What was it about this mortal woman that enticed him like no other? He should just walk away from the table, leave her to eat.
“Please. Sit. It’s good for you,” she promised.
Her pleading smile warmed him, and he soon found himself complying to a human’s demands. He watched with fascination as she released a grateful breath and set her fork into her eggs. As she slid it into her mouth, she glanced to his plate and then to him.