Free Vampire Books: Vampire Bite – Chapter 13

Alfie raises his hand and strokes my cheek lightly with his fingertips – it feels warm and slightly rough, and makes my skin feel like it’s glowing where he’s touching me.  Then he cups the back of my neck with his hand and his lips are getting closer, three centimetres away … two centimetres … one centimetre … and then they press against mine.  I can hardly breathe.  His lips feel smooth and soft and it feels very right to be this close to him.  He breaks away and then kisses the side of my mouth gently, then moves back and looks into my eyes.  I smile at him giddily.  And lean forwards to kiss him again.  He kisses me back, but then pulls away.

“We shouldn’t be doing this now…” he says.

I feel puzzled, and not sure how to respond, and my heart is contracting with fear.  “Everything alright?” I manage.

“Umm, yeah, I want to kiss you again, Ava – and hope I will.  But so much has happened the last couple of days … I think we should wait and see if you still like me after the sense of danger and urgency has passed.”

Relief sweeps over me.  “That’s very sensible of you,” I tease.

“I know I might seem reckless sometimes, but I care for you, Ava.  I don’t want to wreck this.”

“I care about you too,” I say.

He puts his arm around me and pulls me against his side.  I look back at the ripples on the surface of the water and lean my head on his shoulder again.

“I know you do,” he says, and it sounds like he’s smiling, although he still sounds sad – which is understandable after what happened to his friend.

I yawn again.

“Come on, let’s get you home,” Alfie says, getting to his feet and extending his hand to me.

I take it and let him pull me to my feet, and he holds my hand a little longer than a friend would, before letting me go.

At my door I say, “You staying over?”

He shakes his head.  “Not tonight, Ava,” he says, and this time it’s him grinning bashfully.  “If I come in I’m not going to manage to stick to what I said.  I want to kiss you again.”

I feel my cheeks heat.  “You could kiss me goodbye,” I suggest quietly.

He grins.  “Maybe I could.”

He steps closer and tilts my head back then leans down and kisses my lips briefly, then kisses me again on my cheek.  “See you tonight,” he whispers, and then turns and leaves, waving and grinning at me before he goes out of sight.

I grin to myself.  I kissed him!  He kissed me!  I want to kiss him again, really, really badly.  I want to curl up next to him and have his arms around me and stay awake with him, kissing him again and again.

Reluctantly I turn my back to the day and go back into my flat.  I make myself a herbal tea and have a bowl of cereal before closing the curtains and getting ready for bed.  Once I’m lying in the dark I’m so tired and yet I can’t drift off; I’m still grinning about Alfie, and I feel all warm and fuzzy.

I can’t believe I’m feeling like this now, when only a couple of days ago I was longing for Casper.  I must have been under some trance.  It dawns on me now that my feelings have been growing for Alfie ever since I met him.  I really liked him immediately, of course – but not desperately, or passionately.  But the more time I’ve spent with him, the closer I feel, and the more time I want to spend with him, and when he’s not about it feels like something is missing.  Kissing him felt really good!  I want to kiss him for longer … maybe do more than just kiss him.

But Casper … the way I felt about him was completely different.  My desire for him was intense right from the beginning, but that was it.  It wasn’t based on anything but his looks and chemistry, maybe vampire chemistry – tricking my body into thinking he was the best thing ever.  Thinking about being with him – it still brings back a feeling of longing, but it’s tainted by despair.  When I think of Alfie I feel rosy and my heart is glowing.  When I think of Casper I feel betrayed and angry.  Disgusted.  How could he have killed that girl?  How many people has he killed?  It makes me feel sick.

I fall into a restless dream where Alfie and Casper are fighting, and Alfie is in danger, before succumbing to a deep sleep.  I sleep for so long I barely manage a couple of hours of work before getting ready to hunt again.

We hunt through the night as part of the same group, but again we don’t even see a vampire.  There’s a sense of tension within the group, as if everyone believes something is wrong, but no-one knows what it is.  Alfie takes me home alone again at the end of the night.

At my door he stops and looks up at the grey sky.  He looks back into my eyes and says, “The full moon is approaching.  Would you like to camp out with me again?”

“Yes, I would love that,” I say, ideas of getting to kiss Alfie for longer entering my head.  And seeing him as a wolf again, of course.  “But what about your pack?  Will they let you be out at night without the rest of the team?”

“Yeah, it’s not a problem when I’m a wolf – I have the strength of four bloodsuckers combined.  And remember they stick to the city anyway – more victims there.”

“When is it?”

“Night after next.  Pick you up at two that day?”

I nod, smiling, and suddenly my heart is pounding again, wondering if he’ll kiss me goodbye.

“Come here,” he says, and hugs me against his chest, then leans down and kisses my forehead.  “I’ll see you tonight.”

When he’s gone I touch where he kissed me and smile.  Not on the lips, but still a kiss.  Goodnight, Alfie, I think, and blow a kiss in the direction he left, then go to bed looking forward to camping out with him and seeing him as a wolf again.

***

The time feels like it’s slowed down as I can’t wait, but it passes in the end and Alfie’s knocking on my door to take me out of the city.  I’ve packed a rucksack myself this time – so I have things like a toothbrush.  I buzz Alfie in and he’s up the stairs so fast, taking them three at a time.  He grins when he sees me.

“Hey, Ava,” he says, rushes towards me and picks me up in his arms, then spins me around.

“Hey, you’ll drop me,” I say, giggling.

“I could never drop you,” he says, then leans in and kisses me on the lips.

Ummm.

Then he pulls away and looks giddily into my eyes.  “It’s good to see you.”

“And you,” I say, looking from his eyes to his lips.

He laughs, and puts me down.  “I always feel psyched when the full moon’s approaching.”

“I can tell,” I say, straightening my clothes.  “I’m looking forward to seeing you as a wolf again.”

He grins.  “You ready?”

“Yep.”

I follow him out to his motorbike.  This time it’s loaded with gear strapped to the back, but there’s just about enough room for me to still sit behind him.  I wrap my arms around him, lean my head against his back and hold on very tightly as he accelerates up the hill.  It still takes my breath away to be on the back of his bike, but it feels so good to have my body pressed up against his like this.

“You alright back there, Ava?” Alfie shouts to me, as he zips around the traffic.

“Think so!” I call back, and hug him tighter.

I relax when we’re out on the country lanes and away from the city rush, and enjoy watching as we pass fields filled with grass-munching cows.

Alfie pulls into the same field as before and we cross the grass until he puts on the brakes and we carry our gear across to the camp fire area.

“I could manage without the tent – I don’t suppose I’ll get much sleep,” I say.

“Better put it up in case it rains,” Alfie says.  “Don’t want you to have to do it in the middle of the night,” he says, laughing at me.

“Hey!  I could do it!”

“I’m sure you could, but better I help you now, hey?”

I glare at him, and he laughs again, then I give in and smile.  “Ok then.”

We put up the tent together, and then I help him collect wood for the fire.  I sit back and let him light it though – I’m happy not to do everything myself, and anyway, I like watching him – and he seems to enjoy it.  When it’s crackling he comes and sits next to me on the log, and slides closer so that the side of his body is pressed against mine.  The whole side of my arm and leg feels tingly where he’s touching me – it feels quite delicious, and I lean my body into his.  I want to kiss him again, but I don’t know if he wants to … and I’m scared.…  We’re out here alone … if I kissed him, theoretically we wouldn’t have to stop … and I want to kiss him so badly … but I don’t know how far I’m ready to go.

And I don’t know if he wants to kiss me.  Instead I rest my head on his shoulder and close my eyes, breathing him in.

“How long is it until you’ll change?” I ask him, looking up at the darkening sky.  It is clear at the moment so it’s likely to be freezing, but at least I will see the moon above us which means I’ll get to see Alfie better.  I can see the first star glint faintly above us.

“Not long – half an hour-ish,” he murmurs, his lips brushing the top of my head.  “Shame you can’t change with me.”

“Hey, it’s great that you’re a wolf, but I’m quite happy being human – so don’t get any ideas about biting me.”

He chuckles.  “You’ve forgotten the basic werewolf rules – I can’t change you – that’s a myth.”

“Yeah, yeah, I remember – but we can make werewolf babies.  Not that I’m suggesting we do…” I quickly add.

This time he laughs louder.  He loops his arm around my waist – then starts to tickle me.

“Hey, I hate being tickled!” I say, but I giggle anyway, turning to face him.

He stops straightaway, but he keeps his hand on my waist.  We look into each other’s eyes, and I could swear his are glowing more than normal – they are beautiful with their amber lines.  His face is edging closer, and closer, still looking intently into my eyes.  I blink, and his lips are on mine – and they stay there – pressing firmly against my mouth. 

I close my eyes and sink into the kiss, kissing him back, my lips parting with his.  He squeezes my waist, and touches my other side with his other hand, squeezing there too.  His lips move away by a centimetre and then come back to mine, kissing me again.  I raise my hands and touch his upper arms – they feel solid, holding me firmly, and I grip them, kissing him again. 

His tongue presses against mine and he shifts from the log, pushing my legs apart and kneeling between them on the ground in front of me, still kissing me, our bodies against each other now, my chest pressed against his.  Our tongues move against each other and I raise my hands to his head, moving my fingers between the short hair at the back, and then running my fingers down his spine.

“Ava…” he whispers against my mouth.

I kiss him again, tightening my grip on his torso, and he starts kissing my jaw, and my neck, and I melt against him, enveloped in a bubble of warmness.

“We’ve got to stop,” he whispers, “I’m going to change soon.”

I find his lips again and give him a final firm kiss, and then break away, grinning bashfully.  He pulls me back to him and holds me tightly against him, then gets up.  He picks up a blanket and wraps it around my shoulders, then stands tall and pulls his top over his head, exposing his chest.  He tosses it to the floor and looks back at me, his eyes really glowing now.  I’d forgotten about the whole needing to strip thing – it really doesn’t help me stop wanting his body closer to mine.

“You’ve got to stop looking at me like that, Ava, or I’ll be kissing you as I change.”

“I thought the point of me being here was to watch you.”

He chuckles.  “Too right.”

He turns away from me and looks towards the forest, taking off his jeans as he does and chucking them on the ground next to his top.  I look at him, silhouetted against the light from the fire, and admire how large and fit his body is.

“It’s about to happen,” he says, breathless, turning to face me.

He leaps forwards, closer to me, making me jump, and his back arches down and a second later he’s on all fours.  He’s so close to me I could touch him, but I just sit there mesmerised, my mouth open in awe, as he contorts, shifts, his fur grows, nose extends, ears sprout from the top of his head, his boxers rip, and then he’s a wolf again – right there in front of me.  My heart is hammering.  It’s thrilling and scary and amazing.  He is thrilling and scary and amazing. 

He is an enormous wolf, and he’s coming right up to me, his amber eyes glowing and to me it looks like they are glowing with affection.  It makes me feel warm and protected, but also breathless with anticipation.  I reach out my hand and stroke the soft fur to the left of his head, beneath his ear, and he nuzzles his wet nose against my cheek.  Then he turns, runs around our camp in a loop, and then runs off towards the forest and out of sight.

The tree line is black against the lightening sky as the edge of the moon appears on the horizon.  An owl hoots, and now I’m alone my sense of the sounds of the outside world around me increases; the trees are rustling in the light wind, and I can hear something moving around the nearest trees behind me.  I turn to look that way but I can’t see anything, even straining my eyes looking, but beyond where the firelight reaches it’s only darkness. 

I wrap the blanket tighter around me and walk to the tent to get supplies – I brought white wine to drink instead of beer, and right now it seems like a good idea to drink it – might make me a bit less paranoid about the sounds of the night.  I pour some into a plastic cup then go and sit on a blanket closer to the gorgeous warmth of the fire, sipping at my wine and eating a pain au chocolat for my dinner.  I wonder what Alfie is having for his dinner – a fox maybe, or a rabbit – I’m pleased I don’t have to share his meal.

I look into the flames and smile, thinking about kissing Alfie before he turned.  I feel a warm glow in my heart and long to kiss him again.  I can’t believe I wasn’t sure if I fancied him when we met; he’s so good-looking, and kind, and fun.  I want to cover him in kisses.

I hear soft padding footsteps and my heart leaps and Alfie the wolf is before me again, his glowing amber eyes meeting mine.  I put down my drink and open my arms.  He comes closer and I wrap my arms around him and nuzzle my face into the fur on his chest.  He’s like a giant fluffy hot water bottle, although quite an intimidating one.  He leans against me and sticks his wet nose into my hair, sniffing.  Suddenly he goes still and his head jerks upwards, looking towards the trees behind me.  I let go of him and his fur sticks up on end along his back, making him look even bigger – and I feel a wave of fear.  He leaps between me and the treeline, his teeth bared at something I can’t see.