Page 5 of Pity the Living, Not the Dead

His pheromones called to me like no others ever had. I did my best to tamp the desire, to keep the beast within from emerging. The longer I was around Liam, the harder it became. I wanted to protect and fuck him at the same time, which was an anomaly for me. Here I was, the predator, the one he needed to be protected from, yet I wanted to shield him from the cruel world, from his family. When he flew into my arms and held on tight, I was stunned and almost did not respond. As my arms wrapped around him, I felt a possessiveness. Like Liam belonged to me when I knew he did not. My mind and body, however, disagreed.

“Liam, would it be too forward of me to ask for your number?”

“I was hoping you would,” he shyly replied, and I was…ecstatic?The errant emotions flooding me had my brain spinning in a tornadic upheaval.

“Hand me your phone, and I’ll put my number in.” He did, and I texted myself from his so he could hear mine chime. I did not want him to think I was yet another person in his life who would fail him.Where is this coming from? I need to go, need to put some space between us and get my head sorted out.

We stopped at the entrance to the old sawmill. “Well, this is me,” Liam said, sliding out of my jacket and handing it back to me.

“You never said you lived in the old sawmill.” I winked teasingly.

“Nope.” He fidgeted, bouncing on his heels. “Our house is down the road a bit.”

“You are wise not to tell a stranger where you live,” I told him, even though I already knew which house he lived in. I could now pick up his scent from miles away. “May I have another of your warm hugs?” That appeared to have been the right thing to ask for. Had my lungs been filled with air, he would have winded me with how willingly he bounded into my arms, the full force of his weight behind it. Breathing in his scent, I tucked it away, storing it to memory. Now all things vanilla would forever remind me of Liam.Sweet, sweet. Oh, hell’s bells. I cupped the sides of Liam’s face and, before he could protest, covered his lips with mine. When we parted, the sappy look he had was adorable and far too much to ignore. I swiped another quick kiss then backed away, slowly so as to not startle him. The hunger within was shredding any moral compass I may have possessed.

“Until we meet again, sweet Liam,” I whispered as he turned. As soon as he was out of sight, I slid into my jacket. His scent had embedded itself in the leather, surrounding me in a cloud of Liam.

The hunger broke forth as I made a break for the wharf, where I knew the fishermen would be loading their vessels before heading out onto the open water to catch their daily limits. The sun would soon rise, and I needed to feed nearly as badly as I needed to come, before returning home.

I happened upon a lone man standing in an alleyway near the docks, finishing his smoke break. He released the last plume, stubbing the butt out beneath his boot. I moved in behind him and sank my fangs deeply into the main artery in his neck. He released a shriek, which was muffled as quickly as it came. With no others nearby, it likely went unheard. Feeding reawakened my erection from the earlier kiss I shared with Liam, and it throbbed, painfully. The release I sought would not be held back, no matter how hard I tried. As I drank, the elixir of life pulsed through my veins. Each beat of the man’s slowing heart pulled my sac tighter.Focus, Elijah, or you will kill him.Do not drain his last drop.I released him, propping his limp body against the building. His hand came down, accidentally grazing my cock before falling to his side. In the current state I was in, that was more than I could bear. With one last painful throb, release came as I howled into the night sky. More times than I could count, I had reached climax, buried inside a lover while feeding. It was my preferred method to finish, the best of both worlds. Never once had I come while sating my appetite by only thinking of another, with no sexual activity whatsoever taking place. Nor had I ever come in my pants.

My reckless howl would surely alert the humans nearby, though. In a mad dash, I took off at unfathomable speeds, chasing the sunrise home. Tucked away inside my dark chamber, a cavernous tomb built into the wall of the mountain my home butted up against, my last thought as slumber took me was of Liam’s lips pressed to mine.

“Damn it!” I cursed aloud, waking in the same state of arousal as I had been when I last fed. Hard as a fucking rock and my brain overflowing with images of Liam’s angelic face and flaming red hair. Hair I’d love to have wrapped tightly round my fingers. I bet he’d be fun to rile up.

Get it together, Elijah.

I rose, tossing my come-crusted clothing into the laundry bin before darting into the shower, something I wish I’d allowed myself more time to do the night before. As it was, I had just tucked in as the sun had already begun to rise. A dangerous thing to have happen, even in a room devoid of the sun’s harmful rays.

I had always been a loner, never needing or wanting anyone for more than a fix, and I preferred it that way. No repeats or broken promises. My bed was mine, my money the same. Vampires are strong-willed, hardwired as such, and love amongst us is rare. Sure, from time to time, I had hooked up with others of my kind. Then we would part ways with no mentions of meeting again. This unfamiliar yearning, wondering when I would next see Liam, was uncharted territory that I feared venturing into.

Time is irrelevant to vampires. We sleep when the sun rises and wake as soon it fully sets, as even a single tendril of its light is deadly to us. No need for alarm clocks, we have internal ones. We are at our most vulnerable while we sleep, literally at the mercy of those who would hunt us if they knew of our existence. That is why it is of the utmost importance to not only tightly secure our residences, but to employ those we trust one hundred percent. Trust is earned, not given, and over the years I have often had to dispose of those who attempted to double-cross me. I have never made any enemies that I am aware of, but vampires are catty, territorial creatures who were not to be trusted.

Says he who is vying for the trust of a certain human.

Brain – shut it!

In typical Elijah fashion, I checked my emails and phone messages first thing, surprised to see a text from Liam.

Liam:Is it too soon to text? Sorry, I’m new to this and don’t know what the rules are.

His simple words brought my dour mood to an end. I literally pictured him nervously chewing a nail while awaiting my response.

Me:No rules, Liam. Just you and me.

Almost immediately, he replied.

Liam:If I wanted to see you again, how would I go about that?

Me:All you need to do is ask.

Liam:This is me asking…

Me:Same place in an hour?

Liam:I’m already here.

And that was my cue to get my ass in gear. I showered and headed out the door in record time.

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