Prologue
Diary Entry of Stephanie O'Rourke:
Dear Diary:
Well, it's just you and me again. I am frustrated and need to vent. It seems nobody wants to acknowledge the fact that I have grown up and am indeed an adult. Okay, admittedly, I am still young, but come on, haven't I proven myself already? I have been there for my dad's vampire police team, the VCTF, on multiple occasions.
I asked him yet again last night if I could become a full-time member.
His answer: not yet. My response: why not?
"Stephanie," he stated in a condescending tone as he pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath, "I just can't put you out there in the thick of things on a full-time basis. You are still very young and half-human. If you were ever to become injured, I would never forgive myself, and I know damn well your mother would kill me!"
"Dad," I replied in an equally patronizing tone, "I am an adult, and I think I can take care of myself. Besides, most of the time, the force is teamed up anyhow, so someone would always have my back."
Dad sat back in his seat and glared at me for a moment, arms crossed in front of him. "I’ll think about it, but don’t push it.” Then, uncrossing his arms, he sat up in his seat and gently placed his hand on my arm. “I love you, baby; you are the one and only child your mother and I will ever have. I just can’t stand the thought of something happening to you.”
I softened up too and quit arguing with him for the time being. Besides, he said he would think about it. Maybe I can get Marshall and Aunt Julietta to help me convince dad.
I think the reality of the situation is this. Because I am only half-human, I have grown up rather quickly. My twenty-first birthday is a week away, which I have managed to achieve in seven years. Yea, I know, it’s weird. Half-vamp children age three years to one human year, so that by the seventh year of a half vamp’s life, they are a full-grown adult. Generally speaking, we continue growing and aging for about another year, and then the adult vampire blood seems to kick into gear and slows everything down. The fact that my birthday is coming up soon has rattled my parents.
Looking at this situation from my parent’s point of view, they have had to watch their one and only child grow up in just a few short years. Add to that the fact that I have some unique and exciting abilities; they have had their hands full raising me. My telekinesis, telepathy, and astral projection abilities were all discovered early on while I was still very young, and I certainly didn’t make it easy on my parents. They quickly brought in a close circle of family and trusted friends to help teach me how to control my unusual powers.
I owe my Grandfather Charles for my education. It didn’t take him very long to discover that I can hear or read something, and it sticks in my head like glue. He introduced me to music, the arts, science, history, mathematics, English, foreign languages, politics, and computer technology. With his office set up, computer technology was a blast! Grandpa always has the latest and most fantastic toys and gadgets before they even hit the market.
I owe my self-assurance and compassion to my mother. She is known to be the quiet but steady one; she’s always there to pick me up when I fall, always there with words and actions of kindness and love that give me the strength to pick myself back up and try again. She also has an office set up similar to grandpa, although she isn’t as enthusiastic over new technology as he is.
I also owe my aunt Julietta for my self-discipline, although if you were to ask her, she would tell you her work is far from finished. She is a vampire but is also a ninja warrior. It is in her blood, and she started working with me when I was still a toddler, teaching me how to control my powers, using them only for good. She teamed up with my Pop Atkins, who not only taught me enough world history I could write an encyclopedia (he is well over eight hundred years old, after all!), but he also trained me for the VCTF team. While Aunt Julietta taught me ninja fighting techniques and skills, Pop Atkins taught me combat techniques.
And then we have Marshall. Marshall is indeed my very best friend and has been ever since I can remember. When I think back to when I was a small child, it was he who I remember sitting and rocking me to sleep. It is he who I remember holding my hair out of the way when I got sick with the flu one year. And it is he who I remember letting me soak his shirt with my tears because I thought my world was falling apart. We can sit and talk for hours and never grow tired of one another.
So, imagine my surprise when I leaned in to give him a small peck on the cheek several weeks ago and realized his scent had changed, or maybe just my reaction to it. His scent was suddenly making me want to take a nice bite out of him. That is when I realized that my best friend was also my mate.
Ever since that night, all I can do is dream about what his lips would feel like pressed against mine. And that is where the problem is. Because I realized he was my mate, he should have acknowledged the same thing. Since he is a full-blooded vampire, surely he has already recognized this but has chosen to ignore it. And that hurts. We have always been the very best of friends, so why would he choose to ignore the mating call? Does he feel the same things I do? My heart skips a beat every time he is near me. Surely fate would not be so cruel as to give the mating call to only one of us, would she?
I want so very badly to talk about this with someone. I have a variety of family members with who I am very close with. My father has three sisters, and all three have been good role models as I have grown up. My Aunt Jennifer is known as the shopping queen in the family. If ever I want to go to the mall, I know who to call, although she is busy planning her upcoming wedding. She is marrying Joshua McMillan, who works with my father for the Vampire Crime Task Force, aka VCTF. The family likes to tease Joshua about it taking so long to ask Jennifer out. During a sting operation, a rogue vampire got the best of Joshua and pumped him full of drugs. Dr. Carlson ended up having to do a blood transfusion on Joshua and pump his stomach out. Somewhere along the line, Jennifer ran into Joshua while he was under the influence of the drugs. He ended up saying some pretty crude things to her. Even though she knew it was the drug talking, Joshua was so embarrassed by his behavior that it took him another year before he got his nerve up to start talking to Jennifer again. Then, once they started dating, he waited another two years before asking her to marry him. Dad likes to tease Jennifer that it took Joshua that long because he had to save up enough money for her shopping sprees. Her response: “Damn straight!”
My Aunt Kate is the director of our underground elderly facility. She has been the director ever since it opened over seven years ago. Mom played a significant role in getting the underground retirement village going and helping to push retail shopping down there.
I asked Kate not too long ago if she ever planned on getting married. Her reply, “If the good Lord wants to throw someone in my lap, then I’ll think about it. Otherwise, I am just too busy to go out and try to find a husband. Besides,” she continued with a grin, “who needs a man?”
Aunt Elizabeth is the youngest of my father’s three sisters. She was only fifteen years old when she was changed into a vampire. So although Aunt Elizabeth is actually in her fifties, she still looks like a fifteen-year-old girl. She dated Alec Storm, who is also a member of the VCTF, for several years until they finally tied the knot and married about two years ago. These days, her time is divided between running the “Meals on Wheels” program for our elderly or needy vamps and taking care of their adopted daughter. Elizabeth is in charge of supplying blood and checking on our elderly to see if they need any assistance. I sometimes help her with her job; I love going and spending time with the elderly vampires; they always tell such good stories, and I learn so much more about history just listening to them than I ever would reading a book. But it is her little girl who I especially enjoy spending time with. About a year ago, during one of his missions, Alec found a tiny abandoned half-vamp baby. Knowing his wife loved children but could never become pregnant because she is a full vampire, Alec scooped the small, scared girl up and took her home with him. Grandpa Charles helped them with the legal paperwork to adopt her. Jessica is just over a year old, which puts her at the maturity of a human three-year-old and thriving under the love of her new parents.
And rounding out my extended family tree is Aunt Jordan and Uncle Davidrick. Aunt Jordan works as our cleaner; it is her job to clean up any situation involving vampires that the humans would not understand. Although she and Uncle Davidrick are of no blood relationship to me, they are close family friends, and I think of them as family. Aunt Jordan is loud, tends to speak her mind, and doesn’t put up with anything from anybody. That is my Aunt Jordan. Then we have Uncle Davidrick. He works at the local hospital and is in charge of the morgue. I know, not a pretty job, but someone has to do it. Besides, working at the hospital gives him full access to the blood bank. That comes in very useful to our community.
Now, back to my frustration; I am frustrated over two different matters. The first is my father doesn’t seem to acknowledge that his little girl has grown up and wants to use her “super cool” abilities to kick ass on the bad guys; second, my feelings towards Marshall. Or maybe I should say I am frustrated over his lack of feelings toward me. With the extended family listed above, you would assume I would have my choice of ears to vent to. Unfortunately, this is not the case. My family has made sure that I received a well-rounded education, but someone forgot to teach me one little lesson, love. Oh, and someone forgot to teach me about sex also, but I have read enough books and the internet that I think I have that one figured out.
I could vent my frustrations about my career, or if my father gets his way, lack of employment, but I just don’t feel comfortable talking about my feelings toward Marshall. Everyone in my family is linked to the VCTF somehow, and since Marshall is second in command, I don’t want any chance of word getting back to him.
I did break down and try speaking to Aunt Jordan about the situation. I knew she and Marshall were not the very best of friends, but her response still stunned me. As soon as I mentioned my feelings toward Marshall, Aunt Jordan stuck her fingers in her ears, stated she was not listening, all the while chanting “la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la” while I continued to try and speak with her. I really don’t understand why she won’t let me share my feelings with her. When she finally unplugged her ears, she stated, “Stephanie, this is a family matter that you need to speak to your parents about.”
Why in the world would the fact that I am starting to have romantic feelings for my best friend be a “family matter”? Is it because he and my mom and dad work together? Or does it have something to do with the fact that he is a full vampire and much older than I? Still, if age is the problem, then why is it just now rearing its ugly head? We’ve been best friends all of my life. This entire situation isn’t making any sense, and I know I probably should sit down with mom and talk to her about this, but I’m scared of what might happen.
I suppose part of the problem of me working for the VCTF is even though I have all of these super cool abilities at my disposal, my vampire strength has not hit me. Since it generally hits around the age of ten to fourteen years old, and I am well past that, I don’t think it will. I overheard my dad tell my mother it is likely due to me having so many other gifts; the strength was passed over. I guess the thought of sending out his half-human daughter, who doesn’t have any vampire strength, to fight a rogue vampire, is enough to send my father over the edge.
The problem is that I have already helped the VCTF on more than one occasion. I have helped them locate missing children, find criminals on the run, and I even helped stop a full-blown war on our entire society several years ago. Unfortunately, that just whetted my appetite, and it is what I want to do all the time. Although Aunt Julietta and her husband Uncle Scott sympathize with me when dad or Marshall stand in my way of helping the team out, since they both also work for the VCTF, aka, dad, they will not go against him.
No, upon thinking this one through, I don’t exactly feel comfortable speaking with anyone I know about my frustrations. And so I go on, letting my emotions eat a hole in me and not sure whom I can talk this situation over with. At least I have you, dear diary.
Chapter One
Kevin leaned up against the headboard and gently tugged his wife so she was against the side of his body, her head resting on his shoulder. He softly rubbed her upper arm with his hand. “She hit me up again.”
Erica knew exactly what her husband was talking about. “I know; I heard the entire conversation.” She lifted her head off his shoulder to look him in the eye. “And, Kevin O’Rourke, if you have a problem with our daughter working for the VCTF, then man up and tell her. But don’t blame it on me.” Giving her best impression of her husband, she quoted him. “And I know if you were injured, your mother would damn well never forgive me.” Erica playfully slapped Kevin on the shoulder. “Throwing that guilt card on her was rotten, and you know it.”
“Yes, well, I am going to end up giving in. Maybe I’ll present her with the official VCTF ring for her birthday.”
“Honey, she is good. You know it as well as I do. The fact she can astral project is a huge help. If she is in projected form, as far as we know, her body can’t be injured.” Erica tried to soothe her husband.
“Yes, I know,” Kevin grumbled. He didn’t like it but knew he would cave in. Erica was right; Stephanie would be a tremendous asset to the team. But God help anyone who tried to hurt his daughter.
***
Stephanie threw herself across her bed. She had cleaned her bedroom from top to bottom and still had almost an hour before she planned on leaving for a visit to the retirement village. She flipped through a magazine but quickly lost interest. It was full of the latest fashion and new makeup, none of which interested her. Stephanie slipped on her shoes and walked out of her bedroom to head downstairs. Maybe, just maybe, if she walked slow enough, she could pass enough time until she was due underground. Oh, who was she kidding? It was Friday, and she was happy that, for once, she had plans. They were not the most incredible arrangements, but still, she had something to do on a Friday night.
Stephanie had invited her friend Mary to spend the night. When the girls made plans, Stephanie thought they would paint each other’s nails and maybe catch a movie. At the time, she had thought it would be a good way of getting her mind off of things. Now, Stephanie wasn’t so sure about her plans. Mary lived with her family in the underground society. She happened to be one of the few gal pals Stephanie had that was close to her age. Stephanie tended to be closer to animals than vampires; and had even less in common with humans. Her parents kept her from total human contact when she was little; they were afraid that her unique abilities and gifts would raise questions about their society. That would be a big no-no. Stephanie went from birth to adulthood in seven years, and humans were not designed to comprehend things like this.
Her father had an elevator installed just off her mother’s office, leading directly down to the underground society years ago. It was like going to the next town over. Stephanie had heard the stories a thousand times how her mom had played a significant role in getting the retirement village up and running before she was even turned into a vampire. Since then, it has expanded tremendously, with full shopping facilities, a bowling alley, a large park, a community center where large parties and the annual charity ball were held. They also had the school for the half-vamp children—although Stephanie had never attended—a medical center, the judicial system, and several other businesses all calling the underground development home.
About a third of the vampires currently residing in the society were also living underground. Most wanted the freedom to be and act like vampires in the privacy of their own home and not have to keep up the pretense of acting human twenty-four hours a day. In choosing to live underground, they found the freedom to be who they were. The humans remained clueless that anything even existed beneath their feet.
Stephanie had free reign to go underground whenever she pleased and tended to spend a good deal of her free time visiting with the elderly living down there. Usually, she would stop off at her friend Mary’s house on the way home, and the two girls would sit on Mary’s front porch and talk.
Stephanie had skipped visiting the elderly center today and had gone straight to Mary’s house instead. She could see Mary waiting on her porch from two blocks away.
“Hey, Stephanie!” Mary called out as she waved to her friend.
Stephanie waved back but did not return the greeting. She wasn’t in the mood for company this afternoon, and that didn’t bode well for their sleepover. She felt miserable and now wondered why in the world she had invited Mary to begin with.
For Mary’s benefit, Stephanie plastered what she hoped was a convincing smile on her face as she walked up the steps to the front porch.
“Are you ready to go?” she winced at the gruffness in her voice.
“Sure, I’ve got my overnight bag right here; I was just waiting for you!” Mary replied in her usual bubbly mood.
Mary hopped down off the porch steps, and the two girls proceeded to the elevator that would take them up and into Stephanie’s house. As they stepped off, Stephanie heard her mother call from her office, “Hey girls! Mary, how are your parents doing?”
Mary spun around to find Stephanie’s mother, sitting in her office with the door wide open. “They are fine, thank you, Mrs. O’Rourke,” she replied respectfully.
Erica O’Rourke smiled at her daughter’s friend and then told the girls to have fun as she went back to her work. The girls continued up the stairs and into Stephanie’s room, where Mary dumped her bag on the end of the bed.
“Stephanie, are you okay? You seem distracted or a bit distant.” Mary inquired.
Stephanie stared at her friend for a moment, uncertain. She was well aware Mary was a bit on the ‘boy crazy’ side, but who else did she have to talk to? Besides, isn’t that what girlfriends are for? Sighing deeply, she made up her mind. “Drop your mental shields. I don’t want to take the chance of someone overhearing us,” she whispered to her friend.
Stephanie immediately started pouring her problems on her friend through a telepathic link, which she had immediately opened when Mary dropped her shields. “I know I have told you all about my friend, Marshall?”
“Yes, he is your friend that you grew up with, right?”
“Yes, we have always been friends. Up until recently, I viewed him as only a very close friend.”
“Okkaaay, what has recently happened that has changed your feelings?” The thought had barely finished forming when the light bulb went off, and Mary suddenly knew what was bothering her friend.
“You have feelings for him, don’t you?”
“You must promise me not to say a word to anyone. I mean it, Mary. He works with my dad; he is my dad’s second-in-command. I mean, if I noticed the mating bond, surely he did too, right? Obviously, he doesn’t want to complete it.”
Mary’s eyes grew huge. “Mating bond! Do you think you and Marshall are mates? Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God! I can’t believe you are falling for an older man, Steph! And wow! A mate? Do you know how hard that is to come by?"
Yeah, well, since it is obvious he doesn’t want to complete the bond; remember what I said, not a word to ANYONE!”
“I know, I know,” Mary replied with a roll of her eyes. “But back up to the beginning. I want to know everything!”
About an hour later, the girls went downstairs to see if there was anything in the house to munch on. Mary had walked ahead of Stephanie and was leading the way down the stairs. Halfway down, she stopped abruptly. Unfortunately, Stephanie wasn’t watching where she was going and collided with her friend, nearly sending both girls tumbling down the remaining stairs. Stephanie glanced down to the bottom of the stairs and realized why Mary had stopped mid-way. Marshall stood at the bottom of the stairs, just barely holding back the laughter threatening to escape. Stephanie quickly glanced over to Mary and noticed that she was staring at Marshall as if she had never seen a male vampire before. Great, just freaking great. And I had to go and open my big mouth and share with her that he is my mate.
“Who is that?” Mary whispered as she stood like a granite statue mid-step on the stairs.
“That’s my Marshall,” Stephanie replied as she threw a smile down his way.
Mary immediately whipped around and raised an eyebrow. “That’s Marshall?” With her back to Marshall, she mouthed to Stephanie, “He’s hot!”
Stephanie, getting more embarrassed by the second over Mary’s behavior, grabbed her hand and pulled her friend down the stairs. “Come on; I’ll introduce you.” But if I catch you near him after today, I’ll make you regret ever having met him.
As soon as the girls started descending the stairs again, Marshall grinned up at Stephanie and said, “Hey Steph, how’s my girl today?”
Stephanie stopped on the last step, which put her a bit closer in height with Marshall than usual. He smiled down at her. She quickly introduced Mary to him, happy to see that Marshall was polite but reserved with her friend.
Marshall wrapped an arm around Stephanie’s waist and hoisted her up, depositing her on her feet next to him. He gave her a playful hug but kept their contact brief. Ever since her last birthday, it had been physically painful for Marshall to touch Stephanie. She was his mate, but because of her age, and the agreement Marshall had made with her father long ago, Stephanie was still off-limits to him for a bit longer. Her seventh birthday was right around the corner, though, which meant she would be an adult in human years, twenty-one years of age. Marshall couldn’t wait. He had spent the last almost seven years being her best friend, knowing all along their futures were tied together permanently. He just had to wait until she grew up. Marshall glanced over to Mary, who was just coming off the last step. “So, are you two girls having a girl’s night tonight?” he inquired.
Stephanie glanced over to her friend. She couldn’t help but roll her eyes as she watched Mary coyly smile and twirling a piece of her hair with a finger as she batted her eyelashes before replying to Marshall, “Yes, we are.” Stephanie was sure she had smoke coming out of her ears! You are going to be lucky to be left alive at the rate you are going! The nerve of her friend! Stephanie had just opened her heart up and told Mary she had feelings for this man, and here she goes flirting with HER Marshall!
“What brings you here?” Stephanie asked, turning her attention back to Marshall, trying to tap down the possessive and angry emotions flowing through her like lava. She took a deep breath, hoping it would help. Nope, try another one. After the fourth deep breath, she finally started feeling more like herself.
“Oh, nothing much; I needed to deliver some paperwork to your mom. Hey, are you doing anything tomorrow evening?” Marshall inquired, keeping direct eye contact with only his girl. His first impression of Stephanie’s friend was not a good one. He watched in disgust as the girl openly tried catching his eye. As if that was even possible! Not! Even though he was sure Stephanie didn’t know the depth of his feelings towards her, he still found it rude of Mary to openly flirt with him. Little did the girl know she didn’t stand a chance.
“I’ve got nothing on my agenda; why?” Stephanie responded a bit breathlessly. Marshall cocked his head, noticing her little heart was racing. Was that because she was mad at Mary, or could it be his little flower was finally blooming?
“Would you like to go check out the new underground movie plaza? It just opened this week; Joshua and Jennifer went last night and said it is really nice. Want to go check it out?”
“Sure, what time did you have in mind?” Stephanie responded with a smile. As far as she was concerned, Marshall was just asking to spend time together as friends, the same as he had done for many years now. As much as she might want things differently, nothing ever came of it; Marshall had her firmly in the ‘friends’ column.
“I’ll be over tomorrow afternoon. We can go from there,” Marshall calmly stated as he grinned at her. Good god, the man should come with a warning label. Why does my throat threaten to close up, and my stomach gets butterflies when he flashes that smile? As far as Stephanie was concerned, he was the most handsome guy on the face of the earth. Muscular build with a solid chest, dark hair, and a naturally dark complexion, he managed to get her heart fluttering any time he was near her. Add in his silky hair that came just to his shirt collar, and Stephanie just wanted to stare at him all day. He always looked at her as if she was the only girl in the world. Now that she thought about it, Stephanie had never seen Marshall look at another woman as long as she had known him. She didn’t think he had a girlfriend; he spent too much time at their house for him to give anyone else quality time. Stephanie glanced over to catch him staring at her, looking like he wanted to eat her up. It felt like he was looking into the depths of her very soul. If only he truly felt that way, she thought. She gave him a false smile and replied, “Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon, sometime.”
***
Marshall knew something had his girl preoccupied for the past two weeks. It saddened him that she wouldn’t confide in him. He had quietly asked both Erica and Kevin if they knew what was bothering their daughter. Erica studied him for a second before replying, “No, I don’t know for sure. I do know something is eating at her, but you know Stephanie, until she is ready to talk, the best thing to do is just leave her alone to try to sort it out.” Erica paused for a moment before continuing, “Part of her problems may be hormonal, Marshall. You need to remember she is half-human, and I am sure her human half’s hormones are working overtime!”
Kevin informed Marshall that Stephanie wanted to work for the VCTF on a full-time basis. “I know I’ll give in eventually,” Kevin grumbled unhappily, “But I would rather postpone it as long as possible, and she is a bit impatient.”
So, with that news in hand, Marshall made it a point to stick close by Stephanie, offering what support he could. He hoped that she would confide in him as a friend. Marshall had been unaware of her plans Friday night with Mary, and when he arrived on the pretense that he needed to deliver some VCTF paperwork to Erica, Marshall was sure Erica saw right through his excuse. They chatted for a quick moment about Stephanie, and then he excused himself to find his girl. He had been a little surprised to see her friend Mary walking down the stairs, and he couldn’t help but find the humor in the situation when Mary came to a dead stop in the middle of the stairs, and- Stephanie colliding into her, almost sending both girls toppling forward. Mary, now that was one chic with some hormonal issues. He tried being polite to her, but he caught the irritation coming off Stephanie in waves when her friend tried flirting. That was one thing he loved about his girl. Even though Stephanie was beautiful and could have any guy she wanted, she was oblivious to her beauty. Oh, she was always polite with everyone, especially the elderly. Her family had done a fantastic job of instilling good manners and humbleness in her. But Marshall had yet to witness Stephanie even give another man a second look, let alone attempt any flirtation.
Marshall arrived home a short while later to a cold, empty apartment. It was pure agony each time he physically walked away from his mate. Marshall had lived with the O’Rourkes on/off again for many years. He even had his own bedroom set up in their house. But once Stephanie started to mature and develop, Marshall took a step back to put space between them. He wanted to give her a chance to grow up before he professed his undying love. And lord only knew how hard it had become over the last year to keep his hands off of her. As Marshall sat down on his couch, he couldn’t help but think of the scene on the stairs. He remembered the numerous times he had escorted Stephanie to socials and parties her parents had held or attended. Because her family was the founders of their society, Stephanie had met her share of eligible bachelors over the years. And while several of the young men were indeed interested in her, she seemed oblivious to their attention.
***
After Marshall left, the two girls went back upstairs, both forgetting what they had initially come down for in the first place. Mary wasted no time once in the bedroom with the door shut.
“Oh my God, you didn’t tell me how cute he is! That’s the same Marshall who works with your dad and has been your best friend all of your life?” Mary bounced down on the bed and quickly continued, “For some reason, I had a picture of a more boyish, almost childlike young man in my mind; but him……” Mary squeezed her fingers together as if squeezing his buns. Wow! Just wow!!!!”
“Shhhh….will you please keep it down?” Stephanie whispered frantically. The last thing Stephanie wanted was for her mother to overhear them.
Mary fell back on the bed and covered her eyes with her arm. “I swear, that is the best eye candy I’ve seen in a long time!” She sighed. Then, quickly sitting back up, she started in excitedly, “You know he just asked you out on a date tomorrow night, right? Oh, how lucky you are, girl! Do you know what outfit you’re wearing? Can we go through your closet and pick something out? You know I am great at accessorizing also,” Mary gushed.
Stephanie stared at her friend for a moment. Had the girl taken a breath at all? Letting out a sigh, she prayed for patience. “Okay, first of all, it’s not a date. We get together all the time and do stuff like this. So no, I don’t have a special outfit picked out; and no, I don’t need help putting one together. You know me, jeans and a shirt will do just nicely for any occasion, thank you very much.”
“Stephanie, I swear, a good-looking man could hit you with a brick, and you wouldn’t pay any attention to him,” Mary exclaimed in annoyance.
“Yes, I would,” Stephanie protested, “I’d kick his ass for hitting me!”
“And why in the world would you think that he was younger?” Stephanie asked, scowling at her friend. “You know he has been my father’s second in command long before I was even born! You do realize he is a full vampire, not half, don’t you?”
“Yes, I don’t know; I guess I wasn’t thinking. But Stephanie, he is gorgeous! And the way he was looking at you! And I don’t care what you say; that gorgeous hunk of a man just asked you out on a date tomorrow night!” Mary squealed.
“Oh, get a grip! Marshall and I have been good friends all my life. We always do things together. He isn’t asking me out on a date; it is just friends enjoying time together, dumbshit!”
Stephanie quickly changed the subject, knowing if she didn’t, she wouldn’t hear the end of it from Mary. To say that Mary was a little boy crazy was an understatement at best. It bothered Stephanie when Mary started in with all the boy talk. There had been many times when the two girls would be sitting on Mary’s front porch while Mary provided commentary on the male population currently walking down the street. Common phrases such as, “He’s cute; oh, he’s hot! Oh, no, that one isn’t so good looking,” were a permanent fixture to her vocabulary. Stephanie could only deal with Mary and her boy-craziness for a short time.
Unfortunately for Stephanie, Mary didn’t seem to get that Marshall was not up for debate and continued rattling on how good-looking he was. Stephanie soon tuned her friend out and went into her own thoughts. Maybe I’m just weird. After hearing Mary talk about boys all the time, Stephanie wondered why she hadn’t felt anything towards the opposite sex. Then, that fateful day a few weeks ago happened, and the answer was staring at her in the face! Marshall was the answer! She didn’t feel anything towards any other man because she was fated to be Marshall’s mate. Why hadn’t Stephanie realized this before now? Hmm, maybe fate had decided to wait until she was on the cusp of adulthood to show her hand. Now, as for Marshall, he should have realized he was her mate a long time ago. Was he embarrassed to have her as a mate? Maybe he thought she was still too young. Or maybe, since she had never seen him take an interest in women, he didn’t want a woman as a mate at all. If Marshall was interested in someone else, whether male or female, he had undoubtedly kept it far away from Stephanie. And now that Stephanie realized she was his mate, she was afraid of rejection. She was scared to find out why he had kept this information quiet for so long.
Marshall had always been her best friend, never doing or saying anything that would lead her to believe he felt any different. If he were holding back because of her age, she would need to find a way to show him she was no longer a child. But as thoughts began to take shape as to what she could do to convey this to him, she dismissed them. Stephanie was not going to throw herself at Marshall or any other man for that matter. That behavior was more Mary’s type. Besides, Stephanie couldn’t bear to think of the humiliation if Marshall rejected her.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Mary took the hint and stopped gushing over Marshall. The two girls did the typical Friday night girl stuff; paint each other’s toenails and nails, give each other facials, and swap information. Wildman, Stephanie’s very best animal friend, and cat lay across the bottom of her bed while the girls did their slumber party routine. As Stephanie glanced down at the cat sprawled across the bottom of the bed, she acknowledged it was more comfortable at times to confide in Wildman about her problems and sometimes get better solutions than to try talking to one of the adults in her life. Stephanie had found Wildman while still a tiny child and Wildman was a kitten, and they had instantly bonded. Now, almost seven years later, the cat was indeed her best friend. Stephanie’s parents often grumbled that the cat had difficulty remembering he didn’t rule the house and its inhabitants. Because Stephanie could communicate with animals, she knew the cat tended to think of her as if she were his charge; Wildman had made that abundantly clear more than once.
One of the more annoying traits her cat displayed was when she attempted to give him attention. Quite often, the cat would become so excited; he would drool and slobber all over Stephanie. She found this behavior rather disgusting. And while she could communicate with her cat on many levels, the subject of Marshall was strictly off-limits. Wildman barely tolerated Marshall. It wasn’t like Marshall had ever done anything to her cat. No, Wildman had seemed to take an instant dislike toward the man, and no matter how much time passed, the cat wasn’t going to change his opinion.
Stephanie initially thought the dislike stemmed from Marshall being a full vampire but quickly realized the cat accepted both her mom and dad. As time went by, the cat and Marshall just learned to steer clear of one another. Stephanie knew Marshall tolerated the cat for her benefit; she was smart enough to know that he could easily pick the cat up with one hand and land him into a wall, and that would be the end of her cat. But, Marshall would never do anything that would bring her pain or sorrow. So, he tolerated her little Wildman.
Wildman, on the other hand, occasionally enjoyed annoying Marshall. Most of the time, the cat would just stay up in Stephanie’s bedroom when Marshall came to visit; but once in a while, it seemed he had to live up to his name. Wildman would strut downstairs and let his presence be known. If Marshall and Stephanie were sitting on the sofa, watching TV, Wildman squeezed his body between them while licking Stephanie’s leg and purring. The cat would send shooting glares at Marshall the entire time. Having the ability to communicate with animals, Stephanie knew exactly what the cat was thinking, “She’s my girl, bud, back off!” At other times the cat would come downstairs and make his presence known, seeking Marshall out and wait for Marshall to sit down. Wildman would then go over and sit in his lap, acting as if he was the best lap cat anyone could have. Only Stephanie knew better due to her ability to read his thoughts. “I know you don’t like me, but you do like her, so I’m going to sit here and annoy the mess out of you, just because I know I can!” Wildman’s favorite thing was to walk up to Marshall and stretch up, sinking his front claws into Marshall’s thigh! It was a wonder the cat was still alive and walking after some of the stunts he had pulled on Marshall over the years!
***
Mary went home Saturday morning, and Stephanie quickly joined her mother in cleaning the house. Her mother always cleaned the house on Saturday morning. Although Stephanie had grumbled and griped once in a while over her mother being a clean freak, she was content. Stephanie never worried about being embarrassed over how the house looked if company stopped by.
“Marshall is stopping by sometime this afternoon,” Stephanie stated to her mother as they started dusting.
“I’m not surprised. If we were all humans, he would show up every night two minutes before me putting dinner on the dining room table and sit down to join us, uninvited or not.” Erica quipped a bit sarcastically.
Her comment took Stephanie by surprise. “I thought you liked Marshall.”
Erica glanced up from dusting and realized what she said didn’t come out very nicely. “I do, sweetie. I’m just joking. I do feel like he half lives here, though, or at least I did. He hasn’t been around as much this past year.” After studying her daughter for a second, Erica continued, “So, what do you two have on the agenda for today?”
“He asked me last night if I wanted to go check out the new movie plaza that just opened up underground.”
“Oh, that will be fun. I talked with Aunt Jennifer late last night; she and Joshua went a couple of nights ago. She said it was nice.”
Worried her mother was going to start asking questions Stephanie didn’t want to answer, Stephanie came up with a quick excuse to break away as she watched Wildman strut down the stairs, and head to the door, needing to go outside. The cat strode down the stairs and walked over to the door, obviously in need of going outside. “I’m going to take Wildman outside for a few minutes,” Stephanie called out over her shoulder as she noticed her mother walking into the kitchen. “Be back in shortly.”
Stephanie followed her cat into the backyard, knowing she didn’t fool her mother for a minute. Wildman had been going outside by himself ever since he was a kitten. He certainly didn’t need his paw held. Stephanie was hoping a few minutes of fresh air would clear her head and give her the answers she needed. Ten minutes later, she stomped in the door, berating herself for even thinking such a thing was possible.
Erica stopped cleaning when Stephanie returned. She watched her daughter for a moment before she spoke. “I know something is bothering you, dear. I’m not going to pry; just know that I am available to talk with you at any time.” Stephanie sighed deeply. She was not in the best of moods, and she certainly wasn’t ready to come clean with her mother yet, but that gave her no right to take out her bad mood on everyone around her.
She walked over to her mother and threw her arms around her, giving her a long hug. “Thanks, I’ll let you know. I love you, mom!”
If it were possible for a vampire to have tears in her eyes, Erica would have had them. “I love you too, sweetie, with all of my heart.” Her mother returned her hug, and the two stood embraced for a moment, allowing their emotions to get back under control.