Vampires Need Pedicures Too (A Paranormal Romance) (5 page)

“What happened?”

“Now that
,
I don’t want to talk about, it wasn’t bad, just deeply personal, I can’t explain it.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude.”

“You didn’t, its fine,” he said toying with his napkin
with his free hand
.

“What about after?”

“Think about it, I watched the birth of a nation and of a people.  I watched history happen.  The things
you read about in books, I
lived -
I saw General Washington speak,
Lincoln
too.

“I fought in the Civil War and The Great War, sat out the second one.  I watched Gone with the Wind on opening night in
Atlanta
.”

Holly
gasped, “I love that movie, this is
all
breathtaking
,
and
to think
you saw it all
, lived it all
.”

“
Well, a lot of it anyway. 
Some of it was hard, but overall it was incredible.  Riding a horse and then switching to automobiles.  Watching the moon landings a
nd now we have cell phones and
the internet.  I wish I could share it with you
somehow.
”

“
This is overwhelming. 
Did you travel, I always wanted to, but never got a chance on my salary.”

“Library
not doing
it for you
, huh?  Travel?  I’ve been everywhere, every continent
, h
unted lions
and rhinos
in
Africa
, with a rifle and without. 
It’s b
een lonely some of the time, fun
at other times.”

“Did you, do you have a girlfriend or whatever you call them?”

“When I was turned I did, but she couldn’t understand
or accept me, so
I had to flee the city for a while.  I wasn’t sure how to defend myself
and couldn’t bring myself to hurt anyone - nearly starved to death, well not death exactly, but you get the idea.
”

“What about the one who made you a vampire?  Didn’t they help you?
  Or were you attacke
d
?  I’m sorry, you said…
”

“
No, nothing like that, its okay. 
Circumstances,
just circumstances -
wasn’t her fault, but no
,
I was alone for a while there.”

“And after?”
Holly
nudged.

“Two.  One human
,
the other a vampire, both long gone now.  I can tell you one
unpleasant
thing about being a vampire, emotions run deeper than in humans, way deeper.  You never quite get over the loss, that’s why most of us bury those feelings and don’t have relationships like that.”
  He pulled at his jacket to remind her of his costume, the clown
,
and then
reached for the napkin again
.

“I’m sorry,”
Holly
reached over
taking both of Tim’s hands in her own, “
doesn’t time help, the years?”

The napkin forgotten, he didn’t pull away, he squeezed lightly back. 

“Not really, I remember it all as if it
were this morning; can still fee
l their heartbeats, their warmth.  I’m sorry,” he said looking down at their entwined hands, she had beautiful hands
, compassion even in her fingertips.

He hadn’t talked about these emotions and experiences in a very long time.  He had never told anyone about Evette, his human wife
or his vampire partner, Shoma. 
Even though he was scarcely telling
Holly
anything of true substance, the emotions were still there, raw
and fresh again
.  Talking about it was both unsettling and comforting.  It felt good to have someone who cared and
Holly
genuinely cared
,
true empathy and
without
compulsion. 
And that made what was coming next all the more difficult, but he already knew what he was going to do, for better or worse.

“May I ask you a question?”

She nodded.

“Why are you dressed like that?”

She glanced down at her outfit
and then back with a tiny scowl, “My friend made me.”

“Don’t get me wrong, you look sexy
as hell
, incredible really
- beautiful
.”

Her eyes smiled and sparkled
again catching the candle light
,
“But?”

“But, I see you leaning more towards sweaters with goofy embroidery, like kittens or something.”

Holly
just couldn’t keep
the grin from returning,
“Sometimes.”

Tim smiled.

“You were just saying?” she asked.

“J
ust saying.  Talk to me, tell me about you.”

“Like what?  Not much to tell really,” she said, her turn to study the napkins.

“Everyone has a story, college?”

She nodded, “
I left when I was eighteen, received a degree in Library Sciences, came home and went to work at the local library.”

“Dates?  Boyfriends?”

She kept her head down as she answered, “No, well, some dates - here and there, but no real boyfriend.”

“No heartbreaks?”

She looked up and laughed softly, “No, not really, crushes don’t count I wouldn’t think.”

“Interesting
,
” he paused and grinned at her, “
I think you are holding back
.
  Everyone has a heartbreak, at least one.
”

“
No, not me -
I’m old fashioned; I don’t mix well with boys my age.”

He shook her hands gently and she looked up, “I’m old fashioned
and definitely not your age
.
  Perhaps you’ll share what you’re holding back with me, someday?
”

She smiled and her eyes twinkled again.

“I’m guessing a big family, Dad works with words or something?”

Holly’s eyes opened slightly in surprise again, “Yes, another good guess?  Big family, and my father works at the local paper.  He’s an editor.
  Are you psychic after all?
”

“
Nope,
I hope they like me.”

“What did you say?” she asked, unsure.

“Nothing, nothing,” he responded
, releasing one of her hands and waving the comment away.

T
im sighed, looked around at the other speed daters
who were sitting still, the empty chatter quiet
now
and then back at
their joined hands. 
He
began to fiddle with his napkin again
,
“
Our time is about over here and
there is one thing
you should know about us,
about me, about where the lore gets it
right.”

“
Already?
”

“Yeah, rules.”

Holly
was unsettled by this news; they
didn’t seem to be done at all,
“
Speed dating r
ules?
  Speed dating has unbreakable rules?  Are we going to be sent to speed dating jail?
”

He stared at her earnestly.

“Okay,
what
does the lore have right
exactly?”

Tim took an uncomfortable breath,
“
We do have this neat
little
telepathy thing
. 
We can control
-
lesser minds,
sometimes
even at a distance
if you’re good
and I’m
,” he paused, “I’m
wicked good
.”

Holly
took a mental step back,
“
Are you saying that you can control minds?
 
You’re saying
I
-
am a lesser mind?”

She pulled her hand free and sat back straight in her chair.

Tim nodded ever so slightly
, missing that warm delicate hand
immediately.

“
Have y
ou
been controlling my mind this whole time?” she asked, slightly put off, but not really believing it either.

“Some
,
”
he said looking down
again
, avoiding
those deep golden brown
eyes.

“Som
e, like what?
”
Holly
asked,
her voice rising in
irritat
ion
, “
D
id you make me do something that I don’t remember?
  Did you beguile me to have sex with you in the bathroom, something like that?”

“No, no, no, nothing like that
,
”
he said defensively.  The
sliver had sprouted into a tangle of
old memories
,
emotions and urges
pushing forward now, demanding his attention
,
“Just a little at first.”

“At first?” she responded angrily.
  She leveled a withering glare at Tim.

He felt like he had been slapped, “Trust me.”

“Trust you?”

Holly
had found her self hoping for more than just a lunch date, many more dates
in fact.  She wanted to know more about this other Tim
, the hidden Tim
.  But, n
ow she felt betrayed by those feelings.  And
if this was all in her mind, what did it mean?  She didn’t feel like she was
being
control
led
.

She still thought Tim was dressed rather silly,
clown
armor or
not,
he despera
tely needed some fashion advice and
that hat had to
disappear
never
to be seen again
. 
He was just this average guy. 
But at the same time, she was completely accepting and believing that Tim was an actual vampire.  That didn’t make sense, vampires weren’t real. 
She was confused and she didn’t like it.  She pushed back from the table slightly and folded her arms across her chest defensively.

“I have to do something else
you might
not like
Holly
, more
rules.”

Holly
didn’t like what she was hearing, eve
n if his tone was conciliatory. 
She glanced over at Deb.  Deb
looked at her with
uncharacteristically bright shining
eyes and
said no
thing; she
just
flashed
Holly
a broad smile
, wide enough to show fangs at the corners of her
ruby red lips.

“You are
beautiful beyond words
Holly
Wheeton
, inside and out
,
you know?
  I can taste you in ways you
’ve never
imagined, you’re incredible and you have no idea. 
And I’m not just saying.”

Holly
suddenly became afraid, very afraid.  She grabbed the table to push herself away
, looking a
round and noticing for the first time the hush that had fallen over the room, everyone staring at her
;
and
then she
made the mistake of glancing at Tim
one last time
before she ran.

She stopped,
responding to those controlling eyes again,
relax
ing
and
then
settled back into her
chair, palms resting placidly i
n her lap.

“I’m almost sorry about this,” Tim said, “almost.
  Please forgive me.
”

Tim focused his eyes into
Holly
’s
, a dull
haze fell across her countenance.  S
he leaned
across the table, raising one hand to pull her blo
nde curls
back over one shoulder, exposing her neck.  She glanced up at the ceiling
, serene.