No matter what she told herself, she somehow still found herself back in her little city sanctuary at quarter to eight. Despite having a twenty minute train ride each way, then a ten minute walk from the station each way. Additionally, she totally hadn’t fretted at all about what to wear, since she was going to stay home tonight. What kind of dinner did he have in mind, anyway? Casual? Fancy? Fast food? It didn’t matter, since she wasn’t going.

Then somehow she found herself in her park, dressed in a light sundress and sandals, sitting at their bench.

No, her bench. This was not their bench, because they were not a thing. They would not be a thing. She had a fiance.

She sat down, then stood up, then sat down again, smoothing her dress over her legs. What am I doing? she chastised internally, embarrassed at her current activities. What was she doing, acting like a virgin on a first date? For a stranger. Struggling with her emotions, she stood up, ready to leave again, shifting her purse across her body.

“Good evening, my lady,” Godwin said, seeming to appear out of nowhere. Startled, her heart climbed up into her throat and stayed there for a few seconds. “My apologies,” he said with a slight bow, “It was not my intention to startle you.”

“You didn’t,” she lied automatically. “I was just…”

He smiled and she relaxed despite herself. “Of course not,” he accepted her lie just as easily. “It is a beautiful night, and you are stunning in your element.”

She blushed hard, looking away. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she replied quickly.

The park really was beautiful at night. She had never been here after hours, not really having any reason to stick around this neighborhood after work. Small lighted posts she had never noticed in the daylight framed the walkway. Tiny white lights were strung through the lower branches of the trees and reminded her of fireflies. A pleasantly warm breeze moved through the park, keeping it cool despite the lingering heat radiating from their urban surroundings.

It was like a movie and Seneca absolutely loved it. Her favorite spot, her sanctuary from work, was a paradise both day and night.

“I never knew…” she whispered.

At some point, Godwin had moved closer to her. He stood less than an arm’s length away from her now, looking out over her semi-secret garden. “What did you never know?” he asked her softly.

She turned away from the garden to look at him. The soft lights caught his eyes in just a way that they seemed to glow ephemerally. “I never knew this garden was so beautiful at night. I absolutely love it, I really do. This place…it’s special to me.”

She turned away from him, surveying her garden again. They were the only people here, despite the beauty and the earliness of the evening. She felt at peace here. This was where she belonged, and now this park at night was just perfection. Taking a moment, she tried to memorize how it looked, how it smelled, how it felt in this moment, so that later she could make a replica in her head. She had found her happy place, as corny as it sounded.

“I know,” he said gently, keeping his distance. She both wanted him closer and appreciated his respectful gap. They stood together in the garden for a time, just being in the moment in the place where they were.

Eventually she turned away, having imprinted the moment in time into her mind for future reference. “Thank you, Godwin. This,” she motioned around the park, “I needed this.”

His smile was radiant and she could instantly tell he had planned this. He had been nervous about her response, she could see it now. Perhaps her response, or lack thereof, would have altered the outcome of the evening in some negative way. But it hadn’t, she hadn’t disappointed him. It made her happy to have truly pleased him.  

“You are welcome,” he replied, bowing a little and she laughed. He was so old fashioned. She didn’t know how to handle it.

Seneca smiled warmly, thinking that his suit, a different one from earlier, looked amazing on him. This suit was pale, a light color that was indistinguishable in the dim lighting, and it clung to his body in all the right ways. He wore a fedora again, this one again the same shade as his suit. It seemed that he was leaning more heavily upon his cane than he had been earlier, his left hand wrapped around it firmly. She couldn’t help her gaze as it lingered on the three scars that furrowed the back of his hand. They were less visible under the dim lighting, but her eyes seemed to pick them out regardless.

He shifted uncomfortably, following her gaze. “These?” he asked, looking down at his hand. He ran his fingers over the scars. “You did ask before. I received these as a warning. They are why I fled my homeland. They remind me of what I have lost, and what I have yet to gain.”

“Was it an accident?” she asked. She was having a hard time following his discourse. She took a step forward and her hand seemed to move on its own towards his, resting on the cane. As she approached he closed his good hand over the scarred one, protecting it from her.

“No, it was no accident,” he growled out. She could hear the anger in her voice, and perhaps with anyone else she would have backed off. But…she knew she was safe with him. It was weird, but she knew that he would never harm her. It was ridiculous, she knew it was, but it didn’t matter. I’m so stupid, she thought to herself. So stupid.

She moved his hand, the one covering the scarred one, and he let her. She realized this was the first time she had intentionally touched him. His skin was warm under her fingers, like hot desert sand, pleasant and smooth. She could feel his quicksilver eyes on her, watching her as she inspected his scars.

The scars ran in parallel tracks across the back of his hand. She had been wrong earlier in the day when she had thought there were only three. She now saw there were four, running from his thumb to the other side of the back of his hand. He shuddered slightly as she traced them with her fingers, but he didn’t pull away. His gaze on her set her heart racing.

“Who did this to you?” she asked, running her fingers down the raised scar tissue again. The skin was thick and ridged and he shivered as she ran her fingers up and down the long healed wounds. He shivered slightly under her touch.

“An enemy. One I once considered a friend. It matters not, Seneca Mahon. We are not here to talk of the past. I wish to sup with you, if it pleases you, so that we may begin to know one another.” His voice was soft but firm. He did not want to talk about it.

She thought about rebuking him, reminding him that if he wanted to get to know one another that talking about the past was exactly what they would be doing. She let it drop, though, feeling his tension beneath her fingers. She realized she was still running her fingers over his hand and pulled away quickly, clasping her hands together behind her back, where they would make no more trouble.

“Where did you have in mind?” she asked, changing the subject back to dinner.

He was still looking at his hand, lost in a memory.

“Godwin?” she asked him gently, trying to get his attention again.

He shook his head as if he were waking from a dream. “My apologies. The memories from this scar are not pleasant. You referred to our meal, did you not? I thought,” he paused to look up at her, “perhaps we could have a picnic here. If you did not think that would be too…awkward?”

“That sounds perfect!” she responded excitedly. It really did sound great. Something about this park, something about tonight, everything just felt so incredibly real, absolutely perfect.

He gestured to their bench, and then she noticed the grassy spot just behind it. There was a deep red colored blanket laid out with a small tray in the middle. On the tray were two small white boxes, a bottle of red wine and two wine glasses.

“Did I say it sounded perfect? Godwin, this is perfect!” Seneca couldn’t help the happy butterflies dancing in her stomach. She nearly jumped over the bench as she headed towards the blanket.

His smile made her feel even happier and brightened up the night a bit more. “I am glad you find it acceptable. I-”

She cut him off enthusiastically, turning back to him. She reached across the bench and grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the picnic he had set up for them. “Acceptable? Not even close! This is…this is the best, Godwin. No one has ever, never, ever, ever, ever, done anything like this. No one has ever done anything this nice for me,” she said emotionally.

She forced the tears of joy and past disappointment down, placing them in that blackness deep inside of her. She wasn’t weak. She wouldn’t cry in front of him, not even in joy.  

He motioned for her to sit, waiting until she was sitting to settle down himself across from her upon the ground. She could tell his left leg was stiff and wondered if his injury was from the same time as the scars on his hand. She wouldn’t ruin the evening by asking, though. She didn’t want to drag up bad memories.

“Why do you do that, Seneca?” he asked her as he passed a box over to her, then took one for himself.

She took the box and opened it. Inside was a wrap sealed in plastic, either chicken or turkey with large, leafy lettuce and a bright red tomato. Underneath that was a bag of chips and a pear. She pulled the sandwich out, suddenly very hungry. “Do what?” she asked as she unwrapped her meal.

“You repress your emotions. Your face, you are very expressive, but when you realize you are feeling something, it seems as if you hide it,” he explained, opening his own meal. He took a bite of an identical wrap and chewed it slowly, his mercury eyes looking inside of her.

She turned away from him, taking a bite of her wrap to avoid having to answer him. “Why did you ask me to dinner?” she changed the subject after she chewed and swallowed.

“Does a man need an excuse to ask a beautiful woman to dinner?” he countered.

Snorting, she rolled her eyes along with her head in a circle, stretching her neck muscles. “Beautiful? Whatever, Godwin. And, yes, most people don’t ask out someone they met only five minutes before. It is definitely weird.”

“And yet,” he replied casually, “here you sit, on a date with man you met only today. It seems we are both a bit unconventional.”

“This isn’t a date,” she reminded him. “This is just two people, getting to know each other. Not a date.”

It was most definitely a date. It was the most romantic date she had ever been on, to make matters even worse. Guilt rose up like bile in her stomach at the thought of being on this fantastic, wonderful date with Godwin when she had Chip. Even if she didn’t want him. Lucky her, she was now tied to him until death do them part.

Godwin scratched his chin as he bit the inside of his cheek. “Let us imagine that this was a date.”

“It is not a date,” she insisted. “I can’t go on a date with you, Godwin. I’m engaged. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to mislead you. I…” She struggled to find the words. Her volatile guilt was acrid, and she regretted being here with Godwin under false pretenses. She had a fiance. What was she doing? She couldn’t help herself, though. She wanted to be around this stunning, curious man.

“He isn’t your fiance,” Godwin remarked casually, taking a bite of his pear. He reached over and poured a glass of wine for each of them, the bottle already open and waiting.

“He is. Chip proposed to me the other day and…we were engaged,” she said miserably, accepting the glass of wine from him.

She sipped it and it coated her mouth with a thick, heady flavor, full bodied yet slightly sweet. The taste reminded her of blood, just a little with its thickness and sweet aftertaste. She sipped it appreciatively, swirling it around in her glass and watching it trail down the sides.

“You are not engaged to Chester Gibson,” he said with causal certainty.

“Chester? You mean Chip? How do you know his name? And, I am, unfortunately. I was there, so I would know. It was the worst, too, just saying,” she argued, resting the wine glass between her knees as she ripped open the bag of chips.

He shifted, obviously enjoying getting a rise out of her. “Ironically, I was there, three nights hence. At Bellissimo’s, correct? Chester Gibson stood up and asked for your hand in marriage. But you are not engaged.” His tone was so confident, so sure of himself. It made her angry.

“Yeah?” she snapped at him. “Why do you say that?”

The smile he gave her. That one. The one she either wanted to slap or kiss. Or to slap, then to kiss. It made her shiver with anger. That mouth, she wanted to…

“You didn’t say yes,” he said, breaking her distraction. The wind shifted and his vanilla scent teased her, mixing well with her wine. She wondered what his mouth would taste like after he had drank some, too. She just wondered what his mouth tasted like.

No, she didn’t. She couldn’t. She was engaged. What was she doing here, with Godwin? She was such an idiot.

“I’m sorry, Godwin. I’m so stupid. I shouldn’t be here,” she said, trying to hand him back the wine glass, still half full of the delicious red. She had to leave, what was she doing?

“Seneca, be calm,” he replied, refusing her wine. He closed his hand over hers on the glass and her heart pitter-pattered in her chest. “If there is anywhere you should be right now, it is here. Personally, I am ecstatic you chose to attend me tonight. The night is perfect for a picnic under the stars, and I am fortunate to have found an delightful companion to share it with. Please, Seneca.”

“But…I’m engaged. This is cheating!” she whined, her guilt finding a foothold.

“You are not,” he said firmly. “Did you say yes?”

“Not…exactly…” she hedged.

He narrowed his stunning eyes at her. “Did you say yes, Seneca?”

She squirmed, not wanting to answer him, seeing where this line of questioning was headed.

“I, ah…”

“Seneca,” he purred insistently.

“No! I didn’t! I didn’t agree!” she snapped with annoyance.

He smiled warmly and her traitorous heart sang. “You did not,” he agreed genially. “You did not accept, he pushed his expectations upon you. You are not engaged, even if he believes it is so.”

“It all happened so fast. Wait, why were you there?” she demanded, trying to still her beating heart.

He chuckled, looking out over the park while he thought. She nibbled chips, watching him, waiting for him to respond. “Perhaps it is time to get down to business.”

“Business?” she parroted. “What business? I thought you asked me here on a date. Do you have some ulterior motives?” She narrowed her eyes at him, trying to give him her best ‘don’t mess with me’ look.

His gaze fell back onto her. “Oh, so now it is a date?” he said slyly. “Ulterior motives? I suppose so, although not as sinister as you may believe. I propose a…mutually beneficial arrangement.” He cocked his head, perhaps considering his next statement.

“You are so weird, Godwin. I don’t understand you at all. The way you speak, it’s so formal. And your suits…they look good on you but you stand out so much. Why don’t we talk about you for a while, before we broach your ‘mutually beneficial proposal’, eh?” she blurted out.

That smile again, the kissable, slappable smile. “Of course, little puppy.”

“Puppy?!” she exclaimed excitedly. “Who’s a puppy?”

He snorted playfully. “You. You wear your emotions on your sleeve until they displease or oppose others. You endeavor to hide any personal desires, so sure that if you just push your sentiments away they will no longer offend. You, little puppy, are so eager to please everyone else that it matters not what you desire for yourself. Even now you repress your emotions when you should never hide them from me. I can accept you for who you are. I long to accept who you are. I find I…hunger for your to give in to your desires. And, I believe you would be silky and soft, if I were to pet you in just the right way…” he said the last part with a playful twinkle of his eye.

“Pet me?! What! And….well…that’s not…I’m not like that…” she balked, feeling the truth in his words even while she denied them. His last statement had her blazing with embarrassment.

“You are, little pup,” he insisted. “But…it is part of what intrigues me. You deny your very nature, fighting against it at every turn,” he continued.

Her heart leapt into her throat. “What do you mean,” she asked cautiously, narrowing her eyes suspiciously at him. She took a deep swig of wine, his words bothering her instantly, though she didn’t know why.

“By your very nature you are a creature who feeds on emotions. I recognize kin of Lilin, even if we have never met before. Why do you deny who you are?” he asked her seriously, leaning in across the table.

She leaned back, fear blooming in her chest, constricting her lungs. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, but you’re scaring me.”

He smiled gently, his eyes weighing her down even as she longed to stand up and run from him. All she had to do was stand up, she could run and he wouldn’t follow her. She knew he wouldn’t, could tell somehow, though she didn’t know how she knew. But his eyes on her, they were so heavy and intense, so demanding, she stayed put.

“Please, be at ease. We are the same, you and I, both kin of Lilin,” he said placatingly.

She recognized something, tickling at the back of her brain like a feather. “What does kin of Lilin mean?” she asked him, afraid to hear the answer, worried that it would open a door she couldn’t close.

“Kin of Lilin, puppy. You and I both fall under the domain of Lilin, though your kind are Daeva no longer. Vampires have long since moved away from the rest of Lilin’s kin,” he explained softly.

“Vampire!” she squeaked, startled. How did he know? When did she mess up? What was he talking about? She had to leave. She should go, she should never have come. God, she was stupid.

“Shh, Seneca, calm, be calm. All is well. We are both kin. I knew you were vampire from the first moment you saw me, earlier today,” he soothed. He placed his hands in his lap, leaning away from her, giving her space. His eyes continued to appraise her heavily.

“I’m not-” she tried to deny her vampiric nature.

He tisked, the sound tickling her core. “Do not lie to me, Seneca, and I will avoid my half truths with you. Daeva cannot lie, but we can bend truth to our will. You are vampire, I feel it.”

She had to go. He knew. He knew! She went to take another swig of her wine but it was gone. Where had it gone? She couldn’t remember. She looked up at him and the look of concern on his face had her stomach dropping.

“I’m sorry!” she said reflexively. “Sorry!” She turned away from him, embarrassed and feeling the need to flee. She squirmed under the weight of his gaze.

“Perhaps I was too hasty in referring to you as a puppy. You are more like a frightened hansa, afraid of the world,” he said softly.

“Hansa? What’s a hansa?” she asked suspiciously.

He licked his lips in amusement. “It is a Daeva creature, soft and fuzzy and absolutely scared of everything. Delicious, too. I think you have something similar to it here. Oh, what type of creature…fluffy and adorable, long ears, twitchy nose…”

“I am not a bunny!” she exclaimed angrily.

He smiled warmly at her. “Ah, yes, a bunny,” he smiled his perfect smile and she both loved it and hated that she loved it. “That is what I like about you, Seneca. You have spunk. No! Do not apologize to me,” he exclaimed, possibly sensing her need to interject. “I want to feel when you do not hide your emotions away.”

“I’m not a bunny!” she reaffirmed weakly. His eyes were full of laughter and she squirmed more. “You said you knew I was vampire.” Admitting it outloud to Godwin felt weird, opening up a feeling that she was not entirely comfortable with. She forced herself to continue. “But…you don’t smell vampire, and you aren’t a Wren…”

He looked at her quizzically. “I am not vampire. What is a Wren?” he asked her, leaning forward again. Without meaning to, her body moved to mirror his.

“You don’t know what a Wren is? A Wren is a like…human mate for vampires…or something.” She waved her hand, dismissing the talk of Wrens. “How did you know I am vampire then?” she asked, disturbed by his comfortable position, by his calm demeanor. How had he known?  

“I am SynLilin. Lilin kin,” he said as if that explained everything.

It explained nothing. “What does that mean, Godwin? You are so frustrating! I don’t understand at all!”

Understanding dawned on his face. “My apologies, Seneca. I did not anticipate the possibility you would not know your lineage. Perhaps if I began introductions again,” he said humbly. “Seneca Mahon, I am Godwin Delange-Versi SynLilin, Daeva incubus serving under Lilin of Legion.” He bowed from his seated position.

None of the words out of his mouth meant anything to her, all except one. Incubus. She knew what that was, but they weren’t real, were they? Mythical creatures of sexual deviance, just fantasies. “I have no idea what Daeva incubus serving under Lilin of Legion means, but now I know you are messing with me. Incubus!” she retorted with an eyeroll. She eyed her empty glass, putting it down when it failed to refill itself. She brushed crumbs from her lap and moved to stand up.

A startled look crossed his face and her heart sank at his disappointment. She had disappointed him, and even though she chastised herself for caring, she did. “Seneca, please, wait,” he said, her name rolling from his mouth like music.

She paused, crouching before him. “Why?” she demanded, her heart sinking more as his face continued to fall. “I shouldn’t have come here.” She stood up, turning away from him. She had to leave, and she had to leave now. She should have just gone to Chip’s loft. She probably would have already fed by now, even if she did have to tolerate him humping her first.

“You belong here, Seneca, with me. I am incubus. Daeva is the word for the demon realm. You know of the realms?” he said from behind her. She paused again, her name on his lips like a siren’s call. The tingling feeling on the back of her neck was so strong suddenly that it felt like static climbing down her spine.

“That feeling,” she said accusingly, turning back to him, “it’s you! I thought something was wrong with me!”

He smiled that smile again and she couldn’t stop herself as she licked her lips. “Yes, it is. You feel me because of your lineage. You are kin to Lilin of Legion, Duchess of Hell. I serve her, or I did, until my…injury. A scarred incubus is of no value in the eternal wars.”

“Realms?” she muttered, turning back towards him. “I thought those were myths! You…you’re a demon? You don’t look like a demon. You look normal or something. I…I don’t understand,” she lamented, falling back down to her knees.

He reached across the small pedestal and poured her another glass of wine. “You did not know,” he muttered. “Oh, Seneca, what a shock all of this must be. I have gone about this all the wrong way, making assumptions of what I believed was common knowledge.” He handed the glass back to her and she took a long drink. It was beginning to make her head a bit light, but she drank it nonetheless.

“You don’t look like what I thought an incubus would look like,” she said eventually.

He smiled with a little laugh. “How did you imagine an incubus would appear?”

She squirmed more, unable to find a comfortable position. “I dunno, I guess more…naked? More demonic looking, like leathery wings and a tail with a little black heart or something at the end? Sharp, pointy teeth? Sexing up sleeping women or doing something in their dreams or something? And a really big…ah…I dunno.” She blushed at the end of the last part. For all she knew, he did have a really large, ah, yeah.

He laughed out loud. “One day, perhaps I’ll show you my wings and tail,” he said in good humor. He was making fun of her. It soured her stomach and she curled up around herself, trying to push all of her emotions away.

“Stop that!” he snapped. She cringed at his tone and he frowned. He continued more gently, though his tone was still firm, “stop hiding your emotions.” She pushed them further, trying to find her calm inner center. As she did, she felt his gaze on her again and cringed. “Seneca, please stop.”

She frowned at him as she closed the imaginary box where her unwanted emotions went. “Stop what?” she asked him, confused and afraid to upset him again.

“I have told you I am incubus. I understand now you know not what that means. As a vampire, you feed on sex and blood. As incubus, I feed on sex, yes, but also on emotions. Usually it is easy to absorb the emotions around me, but you lock yours up, denying my satisfaction. Your emotions are…they feel so intense and fulfilling, but you withhold them from me every time. I want to…I believe we are incredibly compatible. I…perhaps I need to show you as opposed to explain.”

  He leaned forward again and, as if hypnotized, she mimicked his movements. He reached his hand towards her and she found herself leaning into his fingers, brushing them against her cheek of her own volition.

The sensations sent shocks of pleasure straight to her core. She closed her eyes, leaning a little farther and he rewarded her with a brush of his fingers down her cheek to her lips. He pushed his fingers against her lips softly, encouraging her to open them for him. Without meaning to, her lips parted and his finger slipped into her mouth, hooking under her top teeth. His finger found her eye tooth and he stroked it. Her eyes pressed shut and she moaned around his finger despite herself. His touch felt good, so good, too good. He stroked it again and her fangs dropped, just like that, startling her so much that she accidentally bit down on his finger.

She reared back quickly as he hissed slightly at the unexpected puncture. Nothing like that had ever happened before, someone else coaxing her eyeteeth out intentionally. “Seneca, stop!” he exclaimed. “This is fine, everything is fine.”

His blood was hot in her mouth and unlike anything she had ever tasted. Just one drop, a smear of his blood, rich and heavy and tinged with the tiniest bit of vanilla, had her longing for more. She fell to her hands and knees before him, fighting her urges to taste him again. Fear and longing and desire unfurled more strongly than she had known before and she pushed them down, pushed them away. She panted with the effort, fighting her bloodlust and her emotions in concert.

His hands were on her cheeks and she wanted to push him away but she couldn’t or she would fall to the ground. “Seneca,” he murmured her name. It was like a guiding light, helping her focus on just him, pushing the emotions as hard as she could. They wouldn’t budge, though.

“Shh,” he cooed, looking up so that she met his eyes. “This is good, Seneca. You need to stop ignoring your feelings and boxing them away. Let me consume them for you.”

Her eyes were wide with panic and she didn’t fully understand what he was saying. She went to pull away from him but he held her firmly.

“Do not be calm. Do not push them away,” he insisted, forcing her to stare into his deep mercury colored eyes. She stopped trying to push her emotions away and let them fill her like he told her. But…they were too much. Too strong. She couldn’t stop herself as she began to panic. “May I consume these, little hansa?” he asked her, trailing his fingers over her cheeks. “Tell me that I may…”

She couldn’t form words. She nodded her head, willing to do anything for him as long as she could push the emotions away. She couldn’t seem to disobey him. She didn’t want to disobey him. She wanted to please him.

He leaned in and kissed her, at first just a brush of his lips over hers. She tried to pull back but he held her firmly. “I can’t!” she whined. “I have a fiance!”

“You do not, and regardless, you can. This is different. This is feeding. Similar to drinking blood for vampires. It is a meal. Feed me, Seneca,” he whispered into her mouth. His lips brushed against hers again, yet she still hesitated. Guilt ate her from the inside out. “Please,” he begged softly, “let me have this. It would please me very much.”

She wanted to please him. If she could…it would make her feel better, she knew it and opened up to him. She didn’t kiss him, she couldn’t, the guilt wouldn’t let her, but she opened up to him and he seemed to sense it. His lips pressed against hers and his tongue pressed between them, pushing his way into her mouth. He moved forward, his hands moving to her arms, pushing her back onto her knees so she was sitting up as he moved closer to her. His hands were so warm against her skin, comforting and sensual.

As he kissed her, she felt her guilt and fear pooling, coalescing into a ball in her stomach, forming something different. Something new. He kissed her, his tongue in her mouth, over her fangs, so pleasant that she longed to give into him, longed to have the pleasure of his blood on her tongue, the feel of his skin under her hands. That ball of negative emotions seemed to come unraveled and he…

It was impossible. He pulled it from her, sucking it out of her mouth. All those bad emotions, they fled from her stomach, leaving contentment in their wake. He kissed her, his mouth growing more insistent, more needy as he continued to drink her in.

The ball of stress was gone, just like that. He shifted again, pressing her further back, laying her down, straddling her, kissing her. Her hands were running over his jacket on his shoulders and his strong biceps. She kissed him back, giving into his persistence and the indulgent decadence of his kiss. His flavor was even better than she imagined it would be.

Desire coiled in her core and she gushed, growing wet. She had to stop this. She wasn’t a cheater, though that was exactly what she was doing. Cheating on Chip. As quickly as the guilt formed in her stomach, Godwin seemed to pull it away.

She pushed him away despite her need to have him continue kissing her.

He allowed himself to be pushed away, but stayed seated over her hips. He licked his lips then wiped them with his cuff. His eyes were a tiny bit unfocused, then he blinked and they were back to normal.

“You are delicious, both in taste and emotion,” he said with satisfaction. “I knew you would be.”

The guilt she expected to feel was gone. Instead, she felt amazing. Light and free and good. Better than she had felt in a long, long time. His praise of her taste had her floating on cloud nine. It made her incredibly happy that she had pleased him. She closed her eyes, resting her head on the soft grass beneath her, content and calm.

He trailed a finger across her face. “You are so beautiful, Seneca. This is only part of what we could be together…”

She opened her eyes, a frown forming on her face. Her frown seemed to pull her down, back to earth, and she felt her guilt come back. It wasn’t as strong as it should have been, considering she had just been making out with a man, no, an incubus, she had just met today.

Godwin frowned, too, and her heart fell to her feet that she was the cause for his disappointment. “No, no, little hansa, do not go back. Do not fight your nature. Someone has hurt you, scarred you deeply. I did not intend to share my blood with you yet, I fear it will bind us before you wish it to happen, but what is done is done.”

She enjoyed his weight over her core. She was so wet. Her loins ached in a way she had never experienced before, needy and pleasant at the same time. “Godwin,” she said, ashamed of the neediness in her voice, squirming under him.

His hand caressed her cheek and she looked away. He slid off of her lap, moving to sit next to her while pulling her upright as well. “You taste better than I anticipated.”

She blushed, absolutely brimming with joy at having pleased him. She turned away to hide her embarrassment. Her nethers continued to throb and pulse and she could feel herself growing wetter by the moment. She had never been this wet before. It had to be something Godwin had done to her, something in his kiss.

His fingers hooked under her chin, forcing her to look at him. He caught her eyes with his, the silver glowing faintly, glinting with desire and approval. “Let me work with you. I will eat your negative emotions and teach you about yourself, your nature as a vampire. You have so much potential, all tied up behind your misconceptions and guilt.”

“I don’t need you to teach me how to be a vampire,” she tried to argue, but her heart wasn’t in it.

“Little hansa, you have no idea who you are. We are both creatures of desire, yet your desire is hidden so deep inside you that you have never felt it. Let me awaken it. It would be a mutually beneficial partnership,” he said convincingly.

“Partnership?” she asked carefully. If it were a partnership, it wouldn’t be cheating. It would be…therapy. Godwin was just going to help her manage her emotions. She felt so good, so light without all of the guilt and fear in her stomach like a lead balloon. “Yeah, okay,” she agreed easily.

She lay back down in the grass. Godwin lay down beside her and she stared up at the moon, hidden by layers of night-black leaves. They both lay like that, contentedly watching the leaves rustle in the night. She couldn’t remember the last time she felt so relaxed.

She was almost asleep when Godwin turned towards her, running a finger over her arm. She shivered under his touch. “Tomorrow, when you are with Chester, I will be there also.”

She snorted, keeping her eyes closed, enjoying the night breeze on her skin. “Three’s a crowd, Godwin.”

“He will not be aware of my presence. As I have mentioned before, most are inclined not to notice me. That is, unless I wish them to see me. You, little hansa, are a satisfying exception.”

“You like it that I can see you when you’d rather not be seen? How come no one else can see you?” she mumbled sleepily without opening her eyes.

His finger continued to stroke her arm as he talked. “l enjoy your attention thoroughly. I am unsure why you can see me, perhaps because of our mutual relation to Lilin of Legion. If others saw me, it would prohibit me from easily absorbing their energy.”

She turned towards him, squinting to see him in the darkness. “You don’t need to kiss people to feed from them?” She felt the blush burn her cheeks even as she said it.

He chuckled and she felt that surge of joy shoot through her again as she pleased him. She tried to push it away but she felt too relaxed to put any effort into it. “Not if they wear their emotions openly, like your paramour. That is why I was in the restaurant that night, when he propositioned you. I followed him, feeding from him. Without physical contact, though, it is not as…filling. More a snack than a meal.”

“I felt you then!” she said. “There was this pins and needles feeling on the back of my neck. It was you!”

“It must have been,” he agreed.

“You followed me after that!” she accused.

“I did, just a little,” he agreed again. “You were a mystery to me. And then you found me, a coincidence I could not pass upon.”

“Mmm-hum,” she intoned. The conversation lulled again and she was half asleep when he sat up, waking her.

“You should go home,” he said softly, taking her hands in his. They were so warm against her night cooled skin. He pulled her so that she was sitting up again and she pouted in protest. “No, no, little hansa, none of that.”

“I was so comfy!” she protested weakly. He smiled gently at her, squeezing her hand comfortingly before releasing it.

He moved to clean up their camp, packing things quickly and efficiently. She joined him. “I know, but it is time to go. I believe you have another day of gainful employment tomorrow, though, and the proximity to your abode is lengthy.”

“Shit,” she swore under her breath, reality returning to her. “Tomorrow’s Friday…I do have to work. I have to go…”

“I know,” he chuckled again, his laughter smooth like molasses. It stirred her still tingly core and she pushed it away.

“Tomorrow…” she began, unsure of what she was going to say.

“Yes, little hansa, tomorrow. You should be off now. Do you wish for me to accompany you to the depot?” he asked her as he tucked everything into a small basket.

“No, I can get home…Godwin?” she asked, watching him work. He was so…he was sexy. His body moved fluidly and she enjoyed just watching him. She supposed he would have to be sexy if he was an incubus. Even with his bit of a limp, with the stiffness she could see in his leg, he was still comfortable in his body. A tiny bit of envy shot through her, though she wasn’t sure what she was envious of.

“Yes, Seneca?” he replied, turning back to her, a large bag in hand.

Her heart clenched in her chest. He was so beautiful, so sexy that she had to turn away from him. She still felt like this was cheating, because it was. “Nothing, nevermind. Good night, Godwin,” she blurted out as she nearly ran from him. She hated herself for giving into him, and she hated herself even more for leaving him.

The Game Chapter 2: One Mystery Solved                                                                                     The Game Chapter 4: Just a Touch