Chapter 8 Taking Care
Taking Care
Rowen
My fingers drummed on the countertop as relief threaded through me. “I really appreciate it.”
“Looking forward to it!” the young man chirped.
“See you tomorrow, Bastion,” I said, ending the call with a rough exhale.
Bastion worked at the bakery in the summers, and now he was taking a gap year from college. The timing was perfect, because I couldn’t keep spending all day at the bakery helping customers and still be at my best for Sadie with two hours of sleep. Energy spells only got you so far.
She wasn’t the only one struggling. And frankly, if I swooned when she fed from me, she’d probably refuse to ever bite me again. I couldn’t take the risk. I needed more rest and some solid meals.
That was why after I finished my call, I headed out to the diner to eat a solid meal—meat-lovers’ breakfast, followed by drinking half a gallon of water.
By early afternoon, I couldn’t take it any longer. Heading into the bakery, I worked through as many tasks as possible so there wouldn’t be much for Sadie and I to do that evening. I wanted the extra time to talk with her. Feed her. Make sure she was okay.
Even as I lost myself in the familiar movements of kneading, mixing, measuring, and shaping, my brain wouldn’t stop returning to Sadie. It should have scared me how much I fixated on her, but I didn’t care. Once I decided I wanted something, like running my grandmother’s bakery, I was all in.
And when she said she was going out to feed off someone else a few days ago, I lost my mind. That was when I knew I needed her to be mine and mine alone.
Now, I just had to be patient and let my relationship with Sadie grow naturally—let her develop feelings for me too, hopefully. She was interested. I could tell from her lingering glances and the way her breathing changed when I drew close to her.
It filled me with yearning to feel her skin warm under my hands as she leaned into my touch. And tonight, she would drink from me again. Her lips would be on my skin, I could pull her close, brush my fingers through her hair.
A timer beeped, and I jolted in place. It was time to remove the quick breads from the oven. Typically, I turned the timers off right before they sounded, because I knew the timing of all of my bakes by heart, but I had been so wrapped up in Sadie, I missed it.
Shaking my head, I grabbed my oven mitt and yanked open the oven, letting the scent of caramelized sugar wash over me. Maybe I would come up with a new cherry recipe for Sadie.
Imagining her tasting a recipe I made just for her, I pulled the trays from the oven with a goofy grin on my face.
“Man, you’re really happy with that bread,” a soft, sensual voice said from the archway that led to the front of the bakery.
Turning, I drank her in. A berry-red dress hugged her curves and flared over her hips.
Her hair was curled and her lips matched her dress perfectly.
More importantly, a healthy flush filled her cheeks and neck.
She looked so much better than she had before she drank from me.
A primal satisfaction twisted in my gut. I’d done that.
Before I could think better of it, I shucked off my mitt, and crossed the room to stand in front of her. My instinct was to sweep her up and kiss her senseless, but I settled for tying her apron at the nape of her neck like always.
“You look beautiful,” I murmured.
She smiled at me over her shoulder. “I feel much better. I really appreciate what you did for me.”
“Look, Sadie,” I began, the words jumbling together in my mouth. “I did a lot of our baking already today, so after you feed, we can work on items for the Pumpkin Festival. It's only a few days away now.”
“The festival that was my deadline for learning to bake,” she said, nibbling at her bottom lip as she watched me warily.
Reaching out, I brushed my palms over the sides of her arms. “You’re safe. No longer conditional employment. And I’ll write you a paycheck on Friday, okay?”
“Great, thanks. Okay, we should get to work.”
“Blood first,” I said.
She opened her mouth, and I knew she would argue that she didn’t need it. Reaching out, I brushed my palms over the sides of her arms.
“I need to know you’re fed. You already agreed daily for the time being.”
Crossing her arms, she let her breath out in a long sigh. “Fine. Where do you want me to bite you? Wrist again?”
She held out her open hand, crooking two fingers to draw me closer. A wave of heat rolled through me, and I had to steady myself.
Her luscious mouth curved into a smirk. She thought she knew the effect she had on me, but she had no idea how profound it was.
Slowly, I closed the distance between us. Instead of offering my wrist, I gripped her hips and pulled her with me as I eased myself against the nearest counter. Legs wide, I rested my lower back against the cabinet, bringing me down closer to Sadie’s height.
Her smirk widened into a devastating smile, displaying those beautiful fangs. “So, not the wrist?”
Instead of answering, I tipped my head to the side, baring my neck. She licked her lips, and it sent sparks down my spine. My body tensed as she stepped between my legs and rested a hand flat on my chest.
“Are you sure about this?” she murmured.
Scowling, I locked eyes with her. “Sadie, I want you to bite me. Take all the blood you can drink. I want to know that you’re full and healthy.”
“Fine, fine. You just like being bitten,” she said, grinning at me. With a nervous little giggle, she leaned against me, her breasts brushing my torso as she lowered her lips to my neck.
Her breath ghosted over my skin as she hesitated. My hands squeezed her hips, encouraging her.
The first brush of her lips on my skin was electric.
Even though this was our third time, the feeling was still a shock.
It wasn’t the venom. It was Sadie. And I knew in my bones that if she wasn’t a vampire, just a human or a witch or anything really, I would still want her. We would still have this connection.
Her lips pressed firmer, and then a pair of fangs pierced my skin.
The small prick was replaced with a rush of chemicals through my blood.
A warm, fuzzy feeling enveloped me, like all my good memories distilled into a feeling of joy and belonging that was injected right into my veins.
My muscles relaxed, and my hands moved without conscious thought, trailing from her hips up to her waist, pulling her against me so our bodies were flush.
Her hand cupped the other side of my neck, while the other gripped my shoulder hard enough her nails pricked my skin. She took a long draw of my blood, her lips suctioning over the bite. I could imagine her lips closing over a very different part of me, and I groaned.
At the sound, her nails dug into my skin, and I barely repressed another groan. She felt so perfect against me.
“Goddess, I want to kiss you so bad.”
She didn’t answer, her mouth occupied with drinking my blood. I needed to stop talking, but I couldn't help myself.
“You’re the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever seen,” I slurred. Maybe the venom was having a bigger effect than I realized.
Sadie shifted her weight, grinding against me without meaning to. Or maybe she meant to. Either way, it felt fucking amazing.
“I need you, darling,” I confessed.
She stiffened under my hands, and I cursed myself for letting my mouth spew out my thoughts without any regard for the consequences.
Her tongue brushed over the punctures, cleaning them up. Releasing me, she leaned back, blinking at me. Her magenta eyes roamed over my face.
“Rowen, I know the venom makes you—”
“I’m sorry,” I cut her off. “I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“Don’t worry about it,” she said, smiling sheepishly as she stepped back. One manicured finger wiped over her lip, checking for blood. She was perfect, of course.
Coughing, I straightened. “Alright, prepping for the Pumpkin Festival. It’s still too early to bake everything, but some items we can get started on.”
It was like trying to walk through frosting, gathering up my thoughts and trying to function after having her body against mine and her mouth on my skin.
“I’d like to try baking something all on my own,” Sadie said, rubbing her lips together nervously.
“Okay.”
“Just give me the recipe. Maybe something on the easier side, but I’m confident I can do it.”
“I think you can too,” I agreed, unable to help the twitch of my lips.
Her confidence in the kitchen was growing.
“Most items we can’t bake yet. We’re still four days out.
But the quick breads freeze beautifully, so we can make those now.
How about you start the pumpkin bread, and I’ll work on the pumpkin caramel sauce we will need for basically everything. ”
“Perfect!”
Bouncing on her heels, Sadie riffled through the recipes until she found the pumpkin bread.
I dragged my focus away from Sadie, forcing myself to stare instead at the stovetop as I set the thick pot in place.
Cast iron held magic better, and I was spelling the sauce, but the stainless steel was much easier to clean.
Yes, keep thinking about crockery and not the way Sadie’s lips would look—Fuck!
“Rowen? Does this—” she started to say, but stopped herself. “Never mind. I know what I’m doing, for real this time, I swear.”
Her laughter rang out in the bakery, and I couldn’t help the small smile curving my lips.
For the next thirty minutes, she mixed and then baked a batch of pumpkin bread. I finished my caramel sauce and was setting the last of it into containers to cool when Sadie let out a shriek.
“It’s ready!”
Exhaling, I pivoted to face her, fighting the instinct to scold her for scaring me. With a flourish, she opened the oven door and pulled out three trays of pumpkin bread. Each little loaf was perfectly domed. At first glance, I saw absolutely nothing wrong with them.
“I think I did it!” she said, grinning at me. “I can’t wait to check one.”