Chapter 14
Dorian
“Where are you going, Edie?” I mutter, my fingers tapping a restless rhythm on the steering wheel as I watch her stride down her garden path toward a waiting car.
It’s just past eight, and I had every intention of knocking on Edie’s door and asking her out to dinner.
I guess she had other plans. Well, now so do I.
She glances at her phone, checks the license plate, then flashes the driver a quick smile before sliding into the car.
I trail the car into the heart of town until it stops on a quiet backstreet, just five minutes from my hotel.
For a moment, I wonder if Edie is planning a surprise visit, but when she steps out of the car and disappears down a dark alley between two tall buildings, I know I’m not the reason she’s here.
Parking across the street, I cut the engine and slip after her.
By the time I catch up, she’s already greeting Henrietta, and together they vanish inside the Unlit Lounge, its name pulsing in purple neon above the door.
I’ve heard stories about this bar where a small number of guests wander through rooms that grow darker and darker until finally they’re swallowed by total darkness in a blackout room and must trust every sense but sight to find their way out.
Without a second thought, I enter.
“Good evening, Sir, are you here for the singles’ night?” the receptionist asks, a flush creeping up her cheeks as I snap my attention to her.
My brows lift. “This is a singles’ night?”
“Yes, once a week we host a singles night. It’s a fun way to meet new people. Would you like a ticket? The next group is about to enter the first room.”
“Interesting,” I mutter, another thread of jealousy winding its way through my body. It’s just as well that I followed Edie tonight. She needs to be reminded that I do not fucking share.
“And when they reach the blackout room. How do you prevent something untoward happening?”
“Everyone is vetted before they arrive. We have strict rules about expected behaviour. We also have a member of staff waiting on the other side of the exit. He can intervene if necessary.”
“Is there another entrance to the blackout room?”
She frowns, and I feel the back of my neck prickling as my glamour reaches out towards her. It takes mere seconds to creep into her mind, and her frown eases as a soft smile spreads across her face, her will giving way with a gentle push.
“Yes. There’s the hidden staff entrance. We use it in case someone has a panic attack and wants to leave the room before the allotted time is up.”
“How long are they in the room for?”
“About ten minutes.”
“And do you have a key to the staff entrance?”
“Yes, right here,” she says, reaching beneath her desk.
“And I’m assuming this access point is equally as dark so as not to disturb the experience of others in the room?”
“That’s correct. There’s an anteroom on the other side. Once they pass through that, it is well lit.”
“Good. You will give me the key and tell no one about this conversation.”
She nods, dropping the key into my hand.
“Thank you. Now you’re going to show me directly to the anteroom. Then you will return to your station. When I pass back through this way, you will acknowledge me, but not question me, and then you will forget we have ever met. Understand?”
She nods. “Of course. Please, follow me.”
Stepping out from behind her desk, the receptionist motions for me to follow her. She guides me through a series of corridors until she pushes open a door that leads into the anteroom. “Here we are.”
“Thank you. Please ensure no one comes here until I leave.”
She nods once, then leaves, returning the way she came.
The door clicks shut, plunging me into darkness.
Not that it bothers me. One of the advantages of being a vampire is my keen eyesight.
Much like infrared binoculars, my eyes detect the heat signature of humans.
It’s not something I’ve had to rely on since the early days when streetlamps weren’t in existence, but the reminder of the hunt sends a wicked thrill through me.
Leaning my back against the wall, I cross my arms and wait.
Eventually, laughter trickles through the door, but I let a couple of minutes pass before unlocking the door and slipping inside.
Instantly, ten glowing figures bloom before me, their warmth painting the darkness in shimmering red, orange and white.
I keep to the wall, scanning the room, until a familiar laugh rises above the rest and pulls my focus to Henrietta.
“This is terrifying,” she mutters.
“You’re fine,” Edie whispers, though I hear a tremor in her voice. She’s scared, and given I’m in this room stalking her, she probably should be.
A body bumps into Henrietta, drawing a startled squeal that melts into laughter as a man apologises. Edie, lost in the confusion, veers away from them and collides with another stranger. Her muttered curse drifts to me as she calls for Henrietta, unknowingly moving further away from her.
Before Henrietta can fumble her way back to Edie, I intercept, my hand closing around her arm. I lean in, lips brushing her ear, letting my compulsion unfurl and coil around her mind. She surrenders at once, just as the receptionist did.
“You’re having fun. You’re not going to worry about Edie. When you leave this room, you’re going to wait for Edie at the main bar. You won’t question what happened to her in this room.”
“Yes,” she replies, then steps away from me, and I give her a gentle shove towards the man she was talking to, her giggle making him laugh.
Seizing the moment, I glide across the room to Edie and place my hand on her back. She jolts in surprise. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t see you there,” she stammers.
Laughter swells around us, the room buzzing as conversations spark to life.
“That’s because this is a blackout room,” I reply, my hand hooking over her hip.
“Dorian?” she whispers. “What are you doing here?”
“I think that’s a question I should be asking you, no?” I ask, pulling her against my chest.
“Well, I—”
I guide her back until she meets the wall, my body pressing close. “I went to your place tonight, hoping to take you out to dinner, only to watch you slip into a cab.”
“So you followed me?” she retorts.
“Yes.”
“That’s not creepy.”
“I told you I’m extremely possessive, and I don’t fucking share,” I add, my lips grazing her cheek. Her shiver against me draws a slow, satisfied smile from my lips.
“And neither do I. I’m not here to meet anyone. I’m just here as Henrietta’s friend. That’s all.”
“Good,” I say, stepping back just enough to slip my arm around her waist. “Come with me.”
“Where?”
“To somewhere more private.”
“What about Henrietta?”
Henrietta’s laughter rings out, joined by the man’s easy chuckle. Edie can’t see them, but it’s obvious Henrietta is happily distracted. “She’ll be fine. I won’t keep you from her for long.”
Leading her to the staff door, I open it, and we slip inside. Then I lock it, sealing us away.
“Where am I?” Edie demands. Her body heat spikes, a noticeable flush blooming between her thighs, fear sharp in her voice.
I smirk. “Alone, in a pitch-black room that only I have the key to.”
“Dorian…” she whispers, voice trembling as she presses against the wall, her arms reaching out beside her as she edges along it.
I have her all to myself.
Alone.
Vulnerable.
At my mercy.
My fangs descend, drawn by the pulse of her heat and the winding rivers of her veins.
Despite preparing for this moment and feeding until I was full, hunger still claws at me.
No other blood has ever tasted like hers.
Everything else is dull, flavourless, like drinking water.
I tongue my fangs, the sharp points reminding me of the rapture they can bring, and the damage they can cause.
My chest heaves as I curl my fingers into fists, battling against instinct.
And yet my darkness still moves restlessly within me, a fiend trying its best to pick at my resolve.
I’m stronger than this. I’m stronger than the lure of her blood.
“Dorian?” Edie repeats, her voice quivering in the dark, a warm puff of air releasing from her mouth in a cloud of orange.
“Don’t be afraid, Edie,” I say, retracting my fangs, refusing to succumb.
“I’m not afraid,” she argues, still edging further away from me.
I can’t have that.
Lunging for her, I grab her hips, twist her in my arms, and press her against the wall. She lets out a startled breath as I sweep her hair over her shoulder and run my tongue up the curve of her neck, feeling the tiny hairs lift beneath my lips. “Well, maybe you should be. Just a little.”
“Dorian, I… This is…” she stutters.
She’s conflicted, her fear wrapped up in lust. It’s a heady combination, one that plucks at my resolve to stay strong. I press my lips against the curve of her neck, kissing her gently, reverently, and some of the tension releases from her body.
This is about her pleasure. I can give her that. I will give her that. Nothing more.
“Shhh, I won’t hurt you,” I say, between open-mouthed kisses against her skin.
It’s a promise I’ve vowed to keep. A promise I’ve only uttered once before.
And it’s a reminder that promises can be broken.
I force that thought away.
“What are you going to do?” she asks, her breath hitching as I reach for the hem of her skirt, my fingers skating over her bare skin as I slip my hands beneath it.
“I think you know,” I reply, scraping my teeth against her neck as I cup her pussy possessively.
She gasps as I slip my foot between hers, kicking her legs apart. It’s a display of dominance that I have no will to suppress. She’ll have her moment to dominate me, but not here, not now.
Slipping her knickers to the side, my fingers find the soft curls of her pussy, then slide lower, two fingers sliding through her plump folds. She’s so fucking wet. So slick with want, her body already giving itself over to me as I reacquaint myself with her delectable pussy.