Chapter 13 Healing #2
“Tempting,” I murmured, arching my neck to invite his mouth. Rowen didn’t deny me, his lips pressing to my skin in a gentle kiss. I’d almost forgotten about my injuries.
As he went back to the laundry, I held out my arm to inspect. The skin was almost normal.
“Your blood works fast,” I said. “I guess it’s your magic.”
“I may have cast a few healing spells too,” he admitted, smirking. “So are you going to tell me what happened?”
That was the last thing I wanted to do, but I owed Rowen the truth. He’d come to my rescue, after all.
The washer beeped as Rowen started the cycle. I nibbled at my bottom lip as we walked back into the living room. Ralph sat on the sofa, watching us.
Grinning, I plopped down beside him and scratched at the fur on his neck. His eyes closed and he stretched out, enjoying the attention.
Rowen sank down beside me, his arm looping around my waist and his hand resting on my hip. Reaching around me with his other arm, he stroked down Ralph’s back too.
“See, you do like him,” I said wryly. “Isn’t that right, Sprinkles?”
The opossum trilled.
“You should start calling him Sprinkles too. He likes it,” I said, scrunching up my nose.
“Ralph Sprinkles Sinclair,” Rowen answered with a roll of his eyes.
A sense of relief washed over me. He wasn’t pressuring me to tell him everything or rushing me through it. It made me feel safe.
Leaning my cheek against his shoulder, I closed my eyes and tried to summarize.
“I was staying outside of town.”
“At a motel, right?” he growled.
“Yes. Now shush.” Squeezing his arm, I let my nails press into his skin in a playful warning.
“Well I’d been there a couple of weeks, and I’d paid for part of the stay, but he’d agreed to let me pay more once I got my first paycheck.
But then I got back yesterday and there was a sign on my door that I was being kicked out. ”
My throat tightened, and I took a slow breath. I was safe in Rowen’s arms, in his UV-blocked apartment. It was still dark out.
“It was almost sunrise, but he wouldn’t budge. I gathered up my stuff as fast as I could, but the sun was rising. I rushed to my car, but I got sunburned. So I pulled over and got under the blanket to block as much as I could.”
“I’m so sorry that happened to you.” Rowen’s hands flexed. “There’s no forgiving what they did.”
“Don’t go out there. He’s human, and he has no idea the risk he put me in. And he’s an asshole. There’s no point.”
It was a long moment before Rowen said, “Fine.”
“So yeah, that’s how I almost died,” I said with a laugh.
Rowen stiffened against me.
“Too soon?”
“I don’t know what I would have done,” he said. His exhale hissed through his teeth. “Liz told me you’re newly turned. Is that true?”
Jerking back, I arched until I could see his face. “How’d she know?”
“Something about your eyes still changing colors.”
“Oh. Well, yeah. It happened about four or five months ago now.”
A coldness settled in my stomach, the dregs of a fight-or-flight response.
“I’d like to hear about it, if you’ll tell me.” Rowen’s gentle words held no expectation, no demand.
“Um, okay.” Settling back into his hold, I ran my fingers over Ralph’s back. The opossum snuggled against my thigh, comforting me.
“I was waitressing, living with a bunch of roommates. One of them brought over a boyfriend, and he had a friend. He was really good looking, long hair and dark eyes. Not my type, though.”
“What’s your type, then?”
“Tall, tattooed, red-purple hair, has a opossum,” I said, smirking. “Anyways, while my roommate was getting busy, this guy wanted to hang out with me. And I’m not one to randomly hook up. I’ve barely dated. I don’t know what it was.”
Rowen cleared his throat. “Vampires can sway humans easily. But human blood doesn’t keep them fed the way magical blood does, so most vampires don’t bother with humans.”
“Makes sense. The one magical friend I knew, she told me to come here. I wish she’d explained more. The vampire guy certainly didn’t.”
Bitterness tinged my words, sharpening them.
“Well next thing I knew, we were having sex and he bit me. It was messy. There was blood everywhere. I remember feeling weak and delirious, like I was on drugs or something.”
“And you woke up a vampire too?” Rowen surmised.
“Yeah. He was nowhere to be found. My roommate's boyfriend pretended he didn’t even know him. But I couldn’t stay there. Luckily that one friend found me and realized what had happened.”
Blinking back tears, I swallowed thickly. “And now I’m here, and things are better than I think they’ve ever been before in my life.”
“How old are you?” Rowen asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
“Twenty-six.”
He huffed a laugh. “I thought you were decades older than me. I’m such an idiot.”
“What do you mean?”
His thumb stroked over my skin. “I thought you were an older vampire. You dress all cute and vintage. And you’re so elegant.”
“Thank you, but I just like the vintage style.”
“I figured you had some vampire family supporting you, and you just wanted to travel. If I had realized you were trying to start your life over from scratch, I would have done more to help.”
Frowning, I squeezed his arm again. “No. I didn’t want that. I’m not thrilled about moving in with you because I want to support myself.”
“You can pay half the rent, okay?” he offered.
“And how much is that?”
“Zero,” he said, laughing as he nuzzled and kissed the side of my hair.
“You are such a stubborn witch.”
“Yes, and now I’m going to take you back to bed and make you rest. Maybe feed one more time. Your body is using up all that blood healing you.” He slid his arms under my legs and lifted me up, carrying me back to the bedroom.
Despite my protests, he tucked me in.
“The sun is rising. I’m going to go reset the festival stuff, but then I’ll come back and sleep with you,” he said.
“Sleep with me?”
“Sleep. And then if you’re better tonight, we can see about the rest.” Rowen arched one eyebrow, and I fought the urge to argue with him. He was hot when he was mad, but now wasn’t the time.
Fighting back a yawn, I crossed my arms. “Fine.”
“Good girl,” he murmured, bending to kiss my forehead.
I couldn't pretend to be mad. He was too good to me. Stretching out, I nestled into my pillow and let myself drift. Rowen closed the door softly, but not before Ralph scurried in and curled up on the bed beside my calves. Smiling, I squeezed my eyes shut.