Dead Certain (Eve Benson: Vampire Book 3) (40 page)

Eve nodded.

“Yeah. That was actually decently
smooth. Vampire rules however, so, you know, if you want to nail Barb or Ginger
you have to ask my permission first. Well, technically you don’t really, since
they outrank me, but, you know, you
do
. Otherwise I’ll have to fight
them each time, to protect you. Not that you can’t do them, if you want. I
don’t really have a sex drive, so I’m good with the idea of you getting that
taken care of where you want. You still have to spend holidays with me.
Valentines, and all that crap. Christmas with the parents, and all that.”

It made sense to her, but he made
a face. It was strange enough she nearly took it back, but he explained.

“Um… I’m Jewish. I don’t really
do Christmas.”

“Cool. I do, and am kind of
Catholic, but don’t really believe it. So, Passover with the parents? Is there
Kosher blood? That’s a thing, right?”

That got a laugh, even though she
was being the worst kind of girl on a date, ever. Now she just needed to start
talking babies and getting married in June and she’d nail the whole thing.

“I suppose I should be all good
with you doing other guys too? Especially if it doesn’t do anything for you. Of
course that means all those books I read will go to waste, as far as keeping you,
won’t it? A shame really, since I’m great in bed. Ask anyone. I hardly ever
fall out anymore, for instance, and I haven’t wet the thing in… Oh, weeks now.”

She nodded.

“I don’t sleep. I don’t eat
either, but, on the good side, I’m willing to have sex pretty much whenever you
want. Not while you drive, since I don’t want to crash, and have you die, but
otherwise, I’m good that way.” It was the fourth time she’d turned things back
to sex, she thought. Or the third. It made sense to her, since she didn’t know
what else she had to offer him.

It really meant that it wouldn’t
work, didn’t it?

“Um, I like science-fiction?” She
did, actually, though she hadn’t seen any in a long time.

“Me too. Original Trek or Next
Gen?”

“Deep Space Nine, with a soft
spot for Voyager? How about you? Jar-jar, or Ewoks?”

There was a soft grumble then,
“as
what
, my favorite movie tie-in toy franchise?”

“Of course.” What had he thought
she meant? They were both blatant cash grabs. Still, if you couldn’t admit to
liking at least one of them, you were probably dead inside.

“Ewoks then, but I could have
done without the teddy bears and talking lizard rabbits. That’s what the
cartoons are for.”

“Agreed. Good to know.”

Then they managed a nice
conversation about super-hero movies. There was even one playing, and Ben paid
for it, without asking. She offered to get the popcorn, but he looked down at
his gut, which was a bit plush, and then glanced over at her.

“Diet. A sudden one that just
came on, about ten minutes ago. I’m sure I’ll shake it, in a few days.”

She knew that one, from back when
she’d been alive, before starting her training to be undead.

“Come on then? Where do you want
to sit? The front is too close and the back is kind of there for making out,
and handjobs. Which can be cool, but we aren’t sixteen, and should leave the
space for them, since we can actually find a bed, if we want, so…”

They ended up in the middle of
the large rows of seats, and held hands, off and on, while the show played. It
was nice. Comfortable.

After that there wasn’t a real
plan for the night, so she got him to park under a railroad bridge, and sucked
him off. She formed a link to him, or started to, after swallowing, but didn’t
have room for another at the moment, and didn’t want to feed off her boyfriend.
The thought set her back a little bit, so she smiled.

He looked a bit sheepish, and
started to get his clothing back in place.

“So, um, what do we do now?”

“Normally? Well, I don’t know. In
my life you’d say you were going to call me, then not talk to me for three
weeks, and then you’d call up for a booty call. Since we’re dating, I think you
have to do something a bit more… Um, active? I guess we get together soon, and
do something? We could watch television, or go to a concert? That, and sex is
about what I have idea wise. Unless we can get Zack to take us someplace for a
vacation. That seems a bit fast though, doesn’t it?”

Ben cleared his throat, and held
his fingers just a little bit apart.

“Maybe a tiny fraction of a bit
too fast? I’ll think of a plan. Would Tuesday work for you? I have that night
off.”

She leaned in and kissed him,
which was returned, even if she had just put his dick in her mouth. That was a
good sign. She always felt so dirty when she did a guy and he wouldn’t even let
her mouth touch his after. Like she was tainted. Ben didn’t have that kind of
issue. The beard did tickle, but it wasn’t unpleasant, so she just did that for
a while, then climbed out.

“I need to get back to work. Next
time, we can do more? I brought lube for this, and didn’t need it.” She opened
her knap-sack, and changed her shoes while standing. The running shoes made her
feel shorter and more stable at the same time.

“I could give you a ride? It
isn’t out of my way.”

“And have me get all lazy? Bey
would be disappointed if I did that. Call me? For real? No need to wait three
days to seem like you don’t care. I won’t hold it against you.”

“Okay. I’ll do that.”

Then, because she’d done the
overbearing part of the night pretty well, she leaned in and kissed him a few
more times, and then took off so fast she’d seemed to vanish.

That got her back to work
directly, only to find that Barb was still there, smirking at her when she went
to the back to change into some more practical clothing.

“There she is. Date end early? It’s
barely one. Tell me the truth, is he a minute man?”

“Nope. It went well, and he’s
fine that way. Better than average really. Then he gets to have sex whenever he
wants, so I imagine he isn’t that nervous about it all. I told him he could
bone you too, if he wants, so you should carry some lube with you from now on,
just in case.”

“Oh? I didn’t know I was yours to
give away.” She was playing, and only a bit tense over it.

“Well, actually, what I said was
that he had to ask first, if he wanted to do it, but that I’d say yes. We’re
buds after all. Not that you’d try to steal him, since, you know, that would
give me good nickname fodder. I did go over the whole not having a sex drive
thing. Really I’m almost certain I said way too much, but hey, he didn’t run
off, so unless he never calls again, it might have worked. I give it a
twenty-eighty split? Eighty that he never talks to me again.” She meant it, but
Barb smiled, and shook her head.

“Nah. You’re pretty hot, and from
what I can see as low maintenance as they come. Sure he gets Alede all the
time, but you can’t have a real relationship with one of them, can you? Not
long term. With you, he can. Um… I was thinking of making a play for Troy.
We’ve kind of been seeing each other for a while. It isn’t exactly inside the
rules, but he’s been talking about becoming one of us, so… What do you think?’

She stared for a bit, not knowing
what the other woman was asking, really.

“You mean, as for sneaking him
into the training program? Or are you asking if I’d be cool with that, since we
kind of had a thing for a while?’

Barb blinked several times.

“I meant the second one, but
that’s a good point. Can we do that? Also, he’s… Kind of tied to a Greater
Demon. We’d have to do it quick, right? To break the link, or his master might
take him away. It… Isn’t going to work, is it?” She seemed legitimately sad
about it. Like she’d cry if it were physically possible.

That was good to know. She was,
bad nicknames and moodiness aside, a good person. So was Troy. It could work.

“Well, technically, I traded with
the Greater Demon Finias, The Mind Taker, earlier today, helping him out of a
maze for one Troy Lopez. Which you were here for, even if you didn’t get what
that meant at the time. So, yes, he can become one of us, if he can get through
the training program, and
wants
to. Also, I’m willing to let him in on
the training, if he can start in a few days? He knows enough to not be behind
the others as far as knowledge goes. Actually, we might have to let him teach
some classes. It isn’t like he hasn’t been around us for years, is it?”

Barb clapped.

“Really? That’s wonderful! I’ll
call him right now.” She ran off to do that, going to the back, while Eve
grabbed a clean rag, and started wiping the entire room down. She didn’t
listen, not on purpose. Since it was Troy’s choice.

If he didn’t want to be one of
them, she’d accept that and go on. They were friends, but not much more than
that. If Barb wanted to try really dating him, Eve could let that go.
Edom
might have a problem with it, but then, maybe not. His objection wouldn’t have
been anti-Troy anyway, just being about not wanting to lose the valuable
daytime portion of his abilities, being a Human.

They could get around that, if
they worked on it, she didn’t doubt.

Barb ended up going to the club,
but seemed really happy, so Eve just waved at her, and kept working. It wasn’t
hard, and while no Greater Demons came in, plenty of Vampires did, mainly to
get blood, though three of them wanted different permissions for things. One
woman wanted to get her friend into the training program, having promised to
bring her over, before the Council had basically forbidden that. Luckily the
girl that came with her was both of age, and willing to fight for a place in
the program.

Literally
, but Eve winked at her when the
thin, and just past average looking woman with glasses said that part.

“Not needed. I’ll tell you about
it, and if you seem sane, and want to do it, you’re in. It will be
hard
,
and miserable, which is the point, so don’t think I’m overselling how difficult
it will be. The purpose is to make it harder for you than being a Vampire will
be, in some ways, so you can learn the needed self-control now, as a Human, where
you can build up to it. Or back off and take a short break if it’s needed.” She
outlined the whole thing, including the starvation, the temptations put in her
path, and having to meditate daily.

The girl was willing to start
right then, at that very moment, her face shining a bit.

“Not yet. It will really start in
a few days. You can drop out at any time, or not show up, and no one will say
anything. You just won’t get to be a Vampire. You get that? It isn’t a trick or
anything, but if you can’t put the effort in, then we can’t use you as one of
us.”

Her Vampire friend, who looked to
have been in her mid-thirties when she died, seemed annoyed by the whole thing,
but she didn’t say that, trying to be a good example, hopefully.

When they left, a few hours
later, actually, a dead man came in for some paperwork, since he was having a
dispute with another Vampire in the area and wanted to kill the jerk. It might
be allowed, she knew, but they had to send the papers into the Council first,
and would need to call and check into the situation. If it could be resolved
peacefully, then it would be.

Then, just as daylight started to
come, there was a rush on the place. It was a real one, with ten Vampires she
didn’t recognize trying to rob them. For blood.

It had happened before, once, but
those
Vampires had been mind controlled into doing it, by a group of
Mages. This group, who all seemed new and freshly made, tried to menace her
with sticks and knives.

Holding her forehead, she spoke,
as gently as possible. It was just so hard not to snicker at them.

“Holy fuck, people. Do we really
have to do this? I don’t want to spend all day burying you. I have things to
do
,
you know. So, how about you all leave, right now, before you die? It’s a better
chance than most people get, so you might want to take it.” Eve waited, but, to
the misfortune of the ten walking corpses, several others came to the door just
then. Ed, Lenore, Ginger and Bey, to be exact.

That made things worse, since the
agitated men and women, who all smelled a little bit, seemed to understand who
at least some of the others were.

“The ambassador and his minions!
Run!”

The problem there was that
running toward Edom, and he was who they meant, it was obvious, was right out,
so they headed into the back.

Eve waved as they tried for the
door, several of them moving like they were about to die for the day. Right
where they stood, barely able to keep their feet. Which made coming in right then
a bad plan, since everyone at the embassy, no matter who they were, would be up
all day now.

Smiling, Eve shook her head.

“Come on, guys. Really… If you
want to live, I suggest you start begging, or the small girl there is going to
have to kill you all. You
really
don’t want to mess with the Vampire
Ginger. So, drop your weapons, put your hands up, and pray she lets you live?”
She was trying to sound cute, but it came out a bit commanding, like she was
deadly serious about it all.