Page 16 of The Vampire's Receptionist
“Understand what?” he barked, throwing his hands in the air. For a second, he forgot he was holding his coffee. If it hadn’t been a to-go cup with a lid, he would have drenched himself.
Dorian rubbed his neck awkwardly, his expression embarrassed. “Forgive me. I’m struggling to find the words. I’ve never… fed from anyone with fae blood before. I’m not sure if my reactions to you are unusual or not. I thought perhaps you might be able to give greater insight.”
That made him pause. He knew he reacted weirdly to the blood donation, but he didn't think Dorian did. He never gave any hint that he was as into it as Kian had been.
“I’m not sure it’s appropriate to talk about sex in the office.”
Startled, Dorian’s gaze jerked to his. “What? I’m not– That is–” He looked flustered, and Kian realized their reactions definitely weren’t the same if he was that surprised by his comment. He fought back a grin. Was it wrong that he kind of enjoyed putting that look on the guy’s face?
“Sorry. Ignore that. What were you saying?”
Clearing his throat, Dorian drew in a breath to center himself. Kian fought harder against a laugh. It wasn’t funny. He shouldn’t laugh at the guy for being flustered with his line of questioning.
“You said earlier that you’ve given blood donations before. Has there been any reaction to that from others?”
Well, that was purposely vague. Dorian seemed to be avoiding telling him exactly what was happening to him. Kian chose to answer his questions first. He wasn’t going to force the man to speak up.
“From my end? None. A mild sense of euphoria, which is normal. It doesn’t last long, and I’m healed after a good night’s sleep.”
“And from the vampire?” he asked, more insistent this time.
“Not that I’m aware of.” He waited, but besides the disappointed expression, Dorian wasn’t giving anything away. “You know, it’d help me if you’d explain what you’re going through. I was a paramedic, and I spent the last fifty years bouncing around the medical field. I might be able to help with more information.”
Surprised, Dorian raised his eyebrows. “That long? But you’re so young.”
He snorted, shaking his head. “You of all people should know better than to guess a supernatural’s age based on looks. I’m a lot older than I appear. My age isn’t important right now, though. I’ve got the experience to help you. Let me.”
Indecision flickered over Dorian’s face for a moment before he relented. “Alright. To answer your earlier question, I did see my feeder last night. We’ve been contracted together for five years now without issue. However, last night I found myself feeling a little sick to my stomach beforehand. I couldn’t finish feeding like I normally would.” He looked hopefully at Kian. “Has anyone else reacted like that to you before?”
Kian wished he’d have a better answer for the man. He hated telling him no. But aside from his reaction to Dorian, all his blood donations had been incredibly normal. No one had ever contacted him about it, at least.
“Um… Not as far as I know, but as a paramedic, I don't really get to follow through on how patients are doing later on. I can maybe ask around?”
With a resigned sigh, Dorian nodded. “I’d appreciate it. I’ll meet with my feeder again tonight. Perhaps it was a fluke.”
“You’re under a lot of stress. Stress does strange things to supernaturals,” he pointed out. “I’ll ask around, see if I can find anything out, but I’m not sure it’s got anything to do with my fae side. I’m not the only fae who’s given blood donations. It’s rare, but it’s happened before. I’ve never heard of adverse reactions after drinking fae blood.”
Dorian nodded again, though he didn’t look like he fully believed it had anything to do with stress. It honestly worried Kian a little. He’d never heard of vampires having adverse reactions to blood, especially not after feeding from him. He hoped it didn’t have anything to do with him. He’d been trying to help, not make things worse.
With nothing left to discuss, Kian went back to his desk, doing his best to focus on answering phone calls and checking in with his temps. So far, only Morgan had had any unpleasant experiences. He was one of the few humans on staff, though, and a little quicker to feel intimidated in certain situations. When he had a free moment, he called the man to check in, hoping to catch him on his lunch break.
“Moonfall Pack Security, this is Morgan speaking. How can I direct your call?”
“Hey, Morgan. It’s Kian.”
The customer service tone fell away and Morgan’s voice brightened on the line. “Kian! How are you? I was worried about you yesterday. Did everything turn out okay?”
It was nice that the man cared about his well being, so he took a minute to reassure him. “Everything is fine. I was never in any danger. Honestly, I don’t think you were either. When Ireleased the spell, he stopped himself from even touching me. He would have done the same for you.”
“Oh, well, that’s a relief. That really freaked me out.” He went quiet for a second before speaking again. “I’m sorry for telling Morana. I tried to keep it vague, but she saw right through me. I’m not a great liar.”
Kian huffed, shaking his head. “Well, I guess that’s not a terrible quality to have. Next time, I’m making you swear a vow when I need you to keep a secret, though.”
“That’s fair. So why are you calling? Don’t tell me you need me to come back,” he pleaded.
“No, no,” Kian reassured him quickly. “I was just calling to check in with you. Yesterday was kind of rough, and I didn’t get a chance to check on you after I portaled you out. How are you?”
He heard Morgan let out a breath of relief, and after meeting the asshole werewolf, he understood. The guy gave him a creepy vibe, too.
