Caroline let out a long, shaky breath as she pulled the steak out of the fridge, debating whether to start it or not. Roric’s shift ended in a few minutes, but he didn’t always leave right on time. Maybe she should wait till he got home. It wouldn’t take long to cook since he liked it rare. Bloody.
Roric’s suggestion that she move in with him had sounded like lust-fueled pillow talk to her at the time, but he hadn’t backed down, even though being with her was a huge risk. His sudden interest in her was unusual enough after years of refusing to take anyone’s vein, but the fact that he was involved with a newly-turned vampire when an anonymous source had recently accused VEA agents of turning humans looked even more suspicious.
If anyone ever found out that Roric had changed her by feeding her his blood after a rogue vamp infected her, he’d lose everything. His job at the Agency, his reputation, even his life was at risk since turning humans was a crime punishable by death.
She had to admit, the fact that Roric was willing to risk all of that just to be with her was the stuff of romance novels and chick flicks, not horror stories. From the moment she met him, Roric had turned her opinions about vampires upside down.
There was a knock on the door to Roric’s suite, and Ivy poked her head in. “Hey Care, are you in here?”
“Yeah, I’m in the kitchen. Come on in.” Caroline set down the steak and turned to smile at her as Ivy walked in.
Ivy’s eyes widened as she took in Caroline’s sexy, black dress, half covered with an apron, and the fancy table setting. She trailed her fingers along the edge of the little table separating the kitchen from the living room, eying the black tablecloth, the fine china Caroline had dug up from the main kitchen, and the tall, ivory candles flickering in silver candlesticks.
“What’s going on here? Is there something I should know about?” She smirked and propped a hand on her hip, tossing her long, black hair behind her shoulder.
“Roric has been asking me to move in with him, and I decided to say yes. I thought this would be a nice way to tell him.”
Ivy gave a terse smile and headed into the kitchen. “Very fancy. Smells good, too. What are you making?”
“Steak, baked potatoes, salad, and fresh bread. It’s the rolls you smell.”
Ivy’s mouth fell open. “Damn, girl. I didn’t know you knew how to cook.”
“I’m not that great at it, but I get by. This is all pretty simple stuff, actually.” Caroline was surprised that Ivy was so impressed. She’d been taking care of herself just as long as Caroline, since Ivy aged out of the foster care system at 18. She should know how to cook by now. But Ivy didn’t always have the same outlook on things that Caroline had.
“Really? Could you teach me? Maybe Taven would ask me to move in if I impressed him with a big steak.” Ivy grinned as she poked at the plastic-wrapped meat.
Caroline chuckled and sliced the package open. “Sure. First you want to season it.”
Ivy grabbed the salt and pepper shakers and started sprinkling the meat while Caroline turned on the stove and put a skillet on to heat up. “So you’re moving in, huh? I guess it’s serious between you two. Are you going to mate?”
Caroline bit her lip to hold in a chuckle as she turned towards Ivy. “If you mean have sex, we already did.”
Ivy smirked at her and rolled her eyes. “Duh, I know that. We can hear you, you know.”
Caroline’s cheeks flamed, thinking about the times she’d heard Ivy and Taven. Were she and Roric just as loud? But Ivy kept talking like it was no big deal.
“I’m talking about mating, not just sex. It’s kind of like the vampire version of marriage.”
Caroline grabbed some butter from the fridge and dropped a chunk in the steaming pan then started slicing an onion. “Like a ceremony, or something?”
“It’s more than that, although they might do that, too. It’s what happens when you drink from each other till your blood is so mixed you’re practically the same person. From then on, you’re like, bonded forever.” Ivy shook the salt shaker absentmindedly and stared off with a dreamy look on her face.
“Oh, wow. That sounds…”
“Incredible, right? Supposedly, the only thing that tastes better than human blood is the blood of your mate. And there’s no divorce like there is for humans. Vampires mate for life.”
“And you want that? With Taven?” Caroline had a hard time imagining either one of them making that big of a commitment.
Ivy put down the salt shaker and gawked at her. “Well, yeah, of course! Who wouldn’t want to have that kind of bond with someone?”
Caroline had never given much thought to marriage. Her parents had had a great marriage, but she’d been too busy trying to survive on her own to have a serious relationship. Did Roric want that? If he did, he hadn’t mentioned it. But they’d only been together for a short time. But then, so had Taven and Ivy.
She took the meat from Ivy and laid it in the pan. It sizzled and popped, perfuming the air. “Are you and Taven going to mate?”
“I don’t know. I hope so, but Taven hasn’t asked me to. One minute, he acts like he’s in love with me, and the next he’s pushing me away. I can’t figure him out.”
Caroline swallowed a pained laugh as she tossed the onions in the pan with the meat. That sounded like how she acted towards Roric. Her reasons were obviously different, but the solution was the same. “You just need to give him more time. Mating sounds like a huge commitment. You hardly know each other.”
Ivy leaned against the counter, watching as Caroline stirred the onions, coating them with melted butter. “Yeah, you’re right. But Taven hasn’t asked me to move in with him, either.” She gave a jealous pout.
“He seems to want you here all the time, though.” Caroline shook a little salt on the onions.
Ivy crossed her arms and scowled. “Yeah, cuz he wants the benefits of a relationship without the commitment.”
“You don’t have to give it to him, you know.” Caroline shook her head, grinning.
Ivy rolled her eyes and threw her hands in the air. “Well, yeah, but then I’d just be punishing myself, too!”
They both laughed. Caroline could certainly understand that. Being with a vampire was the most erotic thing she’d ever experienced. Drinking from each other felt as good as having sex, and when you added that in, it was so intense it ought to be illegal. That was probably why so many humans were volunteering at the blood clinic, eager to be bitten or turned.
Taven interrupted them, giving a short knock before letting himself in. “Hey, what’s going on in here? What are you two cackling about?”
Ivy held a finger to her lips and bugged out her eyes at Caroline, and Caroline nodded and winked. Ivy turned to Taven to gave him a kiss. “Just girl talk. Roric asked Caroline to move in with him, and she’s making him a special dinner to show her appreciation. I asked her to teach me in case I ever want to do something like that.”
Taven forced a smile around gritted teeth. “That’s nice. But Roric might be a while. He was busy talking to a new agent when I left.”
Caroline frowned at the steak that was ready to be flipped, wishing she hadn’t put it on yet. She should’ve known better. He’d been working late more nights than not lately. Maybe if she pulled it off now she could finish it up later. “How long do you think he’ll be?”
Taven stared at the meat with a hungry gaze as she took it out of the pan and put it on a plate, dumping the onions beside it. “No clue. He didn’t text you?”
She shook her head, feeling a little irritated. Roric didn’t know she was doing this tonight, but she’d been over here most nights lately, so he should expect her. He could’ve at least texted her.
Taven shrugged and wrapped an arm around Ivy. “I’m sure he’ll be home soon, then. Ivy, I’m starving, you gonna make me a steak dinner?”
She gave him a teasing look. “It depends. Do we have something to celebrate?”
“We can celebrate the fact that you learned how to cook a steak. Come on, woman, let’s go back to my cave.” He chuckled and scooped her up, carrying her towards the door.
Ivy squealed and pounded his back with her fists, stopping to wave goodbye to Caroline before he hauled her out the door.
The timer on the oven dinged, so Caroline turned it off, taking out the rolls but leaving the potatoes in so they’d stay warm. Hopefully they wouldn’t dry out. She stuck the steak in the fridge, tossed her apron over a chair, then headed over to the living area and plopped down on the couch. There was nothing else to do until she knew when Roric was getting home.
An hour later, she blew out the half-melted candles and ate some of the wilting salad. An hour after that, she drank a blood bag. So much for her romantic evening. Frustrated, she tossed the limp salad, dried out potatoes, and half-cooked steak in the trash.
It was a silly idea, anyway, playing house like they were any other human couple. Did she really think she could ever have a normal life living with a vampire? It was 7 o’clock in the morning, and she was preparing a bloody steak for a man who’d spent the night chasing dangerous monsters. None of this was the least bit normal.
She thought Ivy was foolish for wanting to mate with Taven, but was moving in with Roric any less impetuous? It was way too soon for that. She barely knew him. He might like her, and he definitely enjoyed feeding from her, but the only reason he’d asked her to move in was because he felt responsible for her and didn’t want to risk her losing control.
No, she could spend time with him and get to know him, but neither one of them was ready to live together. It probably wasn’t even a good idea for them to be drinking from each other since it made her feel things that weren’t real. When they were feeding, it was easy to believe they were both madly in love with each other, but it was just the endorphins talking.
She quickly disassembled the fancy table setting, putting everything back the way it was before so Roric would never know what she’d planned, then she sent a text to Ivy and Taven asking them not to mention it to Roric. Ivy would probably give her the third degree about it, but hopefully she’d keep her mouth shut.
Grabbing her keys and a couple blood bags, she slipped out the door and headed home, wondering why Roric hadn’t even bothered to text her in hours. That wasn’t like him. Had there been another attack?