It slowly dawned on me that perhaps she had felt what I did; perhaps she too was shocked by the force of it. I squeezed her hand and gasped at the tingles which roared back into my bloodstream, as though a heavy heal had lifted off a spurting hose.

She smiled, and resettled her black leather jacket on her shoulders. "Come on in. I'll show you a few tricks. Alicia won't mind sharing." Her lip curled wryly as she spoke of the girl, visible through the gauze curtains, dipping and twirling Goth-style to the music she'd turned on. She was beautiful and arrogant. Plump b.r.e.a.s.t.s spilled over her velvet top, her dyed black hair fell to her narrow waist, and her eyes didn't need the heavy swipe of makeup to be large and glowing, nor her lips the blood-red gloss to be plump and inviting. She was a fresh and ripe as a Georgia peach, though colored aubergine.

We walked in, and Alicia tumbled herself into Toby's arms, one black eye peeking out with the air of a precocious three-year-old playing shy from Mommy's arms.

"Alicia, darling, we have a guest." Toby spoke in a voice somehow colder and sweeter than the straightforward tone she'd used with me. Alicia twisted within Toby's arms to face me, and held out her hand with a girlish simper. I brought her hand to my lips, and was rewarded with a giggle. Toby's ironic gaze locked on mine as Alicia flounced in her arms.

"Playtime, pet," Toby said, lightly pushing Alicia toward the open bas.e.m.e.nt door. "Oh, and my good friend here will be joining us." Alicia glanced back at me, looked me up and down, and seemed to decide that I'd do. She slunk down the stairs, trailing cheap polyester velvet and rose perfume. Did femmes practice that walk, or did it come from a femme gene I was born without? However she came by it, it was effective. With Toby's blood and Toby's kiss, all my sickness had disappeared, and now I was flying high with the mother of all endorphin rushes. Alicia wasn't my type, but with my newly acute vision, I could see the faint beat of her pulse throb in her neck, and my mouth and c.u.n.t watered.

Toby scanned my face, blue eyes dark with concern. When she saw the euphoria that must have been plastered there, she grinned and slapped me on the shoulder, gently easing me toward the stairs. I paused at the bottom, and let out an appreciative whistle.

Toby's bas.e.m.e.nt could have been the subject of "Debbie Travis Does Dungeons." I was impressed. Rather than the conventional red walls and black wood fixtures, Toby's walls were painted a soft, textured peach, flattering to all skin tones. All the wood, from the floor to the bondage stations to the four-poster bed, was finished in a rich cherrywood stain. A burgundy and beige carpet warmed the floor, complementing the old gold, scarlet, and black Indian fabrics draping the bed. Small spotlights lit up the various stations and an impressive rack of antique swords on the far wall, bathing the room in a soft, warm glow.

Under the flattering lighting, Alicia's poorly caked-on Goth makeup disappeared and she glowed with the perfection of a Hollywood G.o.ddess. Even Toby's pallor warmed to the tawny gold hue she must have had before she became a vampire. I caught her eye and nodded. Judging from her blush, she understood the compliment. "Well, when you're up all night, there's not a lot on TV, so I watch a lot of home improvement shows," she muttered to me, bashful but pleased. I gripped her sinewy forearm, smiled, and we both turned to Alicia, now pouting at being ignored.

Toby straightened and her sisterly concern for me fell away. Every line of her body read "Master." Alicia dropped her eyes and sank to her knees, perfectly on cue. Toby let her kiss her shiny black boots, then pulled her up by the large D-ring on her collar. Toby unzipped her dress, unhooked her bra, and shredded the wisp of lace that pa.s.sed as underwear, leaving Alicia in nothing but knee-high boots and an intricate monarch b.u.t.terfly tattooed on her b.u.t.t. Toby pushed her back toward the St. Andrew's cross, then bound her face forward, arms and legs spread, and buckled a broad leather strap around the cross behind Alicia's head so she could rest her neck.

Such a gentleman.

She pulled out a fur-lined blindfold and slipped it over Alicia's eyes. "Goodnight, darling," she whispered, kissing her neck.

Toby turned and walked over to a beautiful inlaid cabinet beside the cross, gesturing me to follow. Inside the cabinet, a wide variety of knives gleamed like stars against the dark wood. Some were wrapped in plastic autoclave bags, justifying Toby's reputation of being both extremely safe and extremely dangerous. She picked up one dagger, light glinting propane-flame blue along its blade. She brushed aside my shirt, and just stroked the edge under my collarbone. It was so sharp, it took a few seconds for blood to flow. She bent to lap at it, the sensation sending a spasm of joy across my abdomen. I closed my hand over the back of her neck, and she teased me, lightly flicking her tongue over the hollow in my throat, which had suddenly developed an electrical connection with my c.l.i.t. My fingers dug for purchase in her too-short hair, but she twisted aside easily and laughed at me.

She leaned into my ear and whispered, "We really don't need that much blood. It's actually the energy that we feed on. We'll pet her and tease her, and by the time we cut her, we'll be able to take what we need without her even noticing." She dropped her eyes and grinned ruefully at my expression. "Of course, it helps if they're not too bright. She thinks 'vampires' is a s.e.xy game we play." A rattle from the cross caused her to break off.

We walked over to Alicia and each grabbed a breast. I nuzzled her neck, inhaled the rich fragrance that rose from her veins, and admired the beauty of the purple lines pulsing under her skin. Alicia moaned softly, and Toby leaned in to take possession of her mouth. She barely brushed her lips, then gradually increased the pressure, backing off as much as she pressed forward, teasing and tormenting until she was deeply probing Alicia's mouth, her fingers dancing over her breast in rhythm with her tongue. Toby opened her eyes, staring straight at me, and my knees buckled. I clutched Alicia's hips to stay upright. My hands were inches from her c.u.n.t, and she began to twist, clearly urging me onward. Pulling myself together, I turned my attention to Alicia's lush curves. I slipped a hand behind her, grazing the ticklish skin at the small of her back. I teased her with the lightest possible touch on her back and a.s.s, while with the other hand I drew fine lines with a fingernail, first down one thigh, then the other, staying always a few centimeters from her eager c.u.n.t.

Toby was still kissing her, hands on both b.r.e.a.s.t.s now, pressing her bulging crotch into Alicia's hip. I began to trail my tongue over the tender skin of Alicia's inner arms, feeling her muscles flex as she strained against her restraints. I worked my way toward her collarbone and up her neck, relishing the moans that seeped out around Toby's kisses. I had just seized Alicia's earlobe in my teeth when I felt Toby's wet lips graze my cheek.

I turned, and our lips met. We kissed, deep and hard, falling into a state beyond consciousness, a world where reality extended no farther that the heat of her skin. She cupped the side of my jaw, I pulled her hips toward me by her belt, and our arms twined behind the forgotten Alicia. We kissed and kissed, until we became aware of Alicia writhing against us. Toby pulled us both away from her. We stood back, panting, enjoying the disappointed moan she let out as we left her. She shivered in the sudden chill, sending every curve quivering just so. Toby glanced at me and headed for her toy table with a particularly evil grin.

You can't hit a woman's chest and stomach with anything hard, but Toby had solved this problem with a silk floss flogger and one made of trailing strands of black marabou. She held one in either hand and began lashing at Alicia's b.r.e.a.s.t.s. She started moaning, giggling and gasping. I surveyed the available toys and picked up a metal-toothed comb. It was icy cold. I followed the trailing fronds of marabou with the comb, dragging it just hard enough to leave faint white marks. Toby and I b.u.mped against each other as we moved, and she slipped an arm around me to coordinate our movements. Her body was what I'd always wanted mine to be, absolutely solid and dense with muscle.

My hands itched to cup her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, to feel their texture. The way Toby brushed against me wasn't helping. I was glad of her arm around my waist. Otherwise I might have slid to the floor. Toby dropped her hand to my a.s.s, gently exploring. I automatically widened my stance, then blushed at what I'd done. Toby snickered, and I leaned in to kiss her to show her that I, too, had skills. I kissed her with everything I had, and was rewarded with a faint sound that might have been a moan. I made it my goal in life to make her howl.

Alicia whined, forgotten again. Toby broke away from me and picked up two white candles. Lighting both, she handed one to me. We began dripping wax all over Alicia. Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, thighs, stomach and arms were soon coated in little white drops. The tension drained from her as she relaxed under the soothing warmth. Until Toby brought the candle close to her skin and poured a river of wax across her chests. That woke her up. We became crueler with the hot drops, until Alicia's skin was flushed red. Toby blew out her candle, and grabbed two b.u.t.ter knives. We began to sc.r.a.pe off the drops of wax.

Alicia jumped and moaned at the cool knives sc.r.a.ped her heated skin. When all the wax had been sc.r.a.ped away, Toby stripped the autoclave bag from a wicked hunting knife and just brushed the dull edge against Alicia's neck. She sensed the change and froze. I backed off, admiring. Toby settled in to work on Alicia's b.r.e.a.s.t.s, alternating teasing strokes of the knife with punishing nips from her strong fingers. Alicia's stiff nipples grew larger. I realized what Toby was doing. Alicia was so excited now, she wouldn't feel two tiny nicks, and the cuts would seal themselves up as the swelling went down. Even if she did notice, she would dismiss the cuts as accidents.

As I realized this, my mouth watered, and my blood l.u.s.t mounted. Finally, Toby looked back at me, and made a tiny cut, first on one nipple, then the other. We both bent our heads to drink. The already intoxicating act of sucking a luscious breast was intensified almost unbearably by the sweet trickle of blood.

Toby's hand closed on the back of my neck, set to pull me away if I lost control. Despite my unprecedented excitement, though, I was in no danger of losing control. Alicia was sweet, and I sipped and lapped as at the finest brandy. Toby stopped drinking, but she didn't pull me away. I felt her arm slip between Alicia's legs. Her soft cries built into half-strangled screams as Toby's whole hand disappeared into her waiting nest. I sucked with more intensity as her cries built, culminating in a long moment of choked silence as every muscle in her body tensed, bucked, then relaxed in a climax that left her sagging against her restraints.

I released her nipple, gently kissing the side of her breast, and Toby freed her from her restraints and carried her over to the bed, where she curled up and sank into sleep with as much casual unconcern as the most callous boy. Toby carefully drew the covers over Alicia, and stood looking down at her for a long moment before she squared her shoulders and turned to face me. Our eyes met, and I willed her to be the one to cross the room to me. She took a step and I broke, meeting her in the middle of the room. We looked deep into each other's eyes, then embraced, straining to get as close to each other as possible.

We sank to the floor, the antique carpet silky under us. We both shed our clothes, desperate to feel skin on skin. The strap-on she wore was huge, far larger than I could normally accommodate without a good warm-up, but I needed her so badly I guided it in with one smooth thrust. Toby covered me, and I struggled to move my hips against her, but I was held by her strength. "Shhh," she whispered, fingertips smoothing my cheek. "There's no rush. Just feel." Her words calmed me, and I relaxed, becoming aware of the pulse of energy between our two joined bodies. "We've got an eternity to explore each other."

I looked at her, warmth spreading through my chest at her words. I stared deeply into her blue eyes and was carried away into the limitless s.p.a.ce of the only sunny sky I would need from now on.

The Heiress Rakelle Valencia The girl fought like a she-cat in heat, scratching and yowling on the damp earth as the venom overtook her human body.

She had been of no consequence to them. She wasn't a meal, a blood necessity. Sport-in a now-ravaged land. The beautiful raven-haired girl was their mark to be left behind for those that might follow, questioning why such wondrous hills, forests, cottages, and castle appeared all but suddenly abandoned.

I had been the hostler's daughter, stolen one day to return five days later with my clothes and body scratched and torn, my skin having lost all l.u.s.ter, that no man wanted to claim me for a match any longer, though I had had many suitors previous to the abduction. "Spoiled goods" was what I had heard. But my pa and maman were not to put me out. With their love for me, my maman cut long, wavy, brunette locks from my head each morning as she cried, and pa dressed me as a young lad, then taught me the business of horses.

I toiled in the stables beneath the shadow of the castle with the imported blooded Trakehners for years, though I had never changed while my parents grew frail. And I fawned over the raven-haired heiress come of age, in my dreams, as any young working-cla.s.s man might.

Then the coven had come. They were a ragged bunch of degenerates moving through Europe with only destruction on their minds. Pa, having long ago guessed at what had become of my stolen week, sent me fleeing into the dangerously steep rocky terrain to hide out in a small cave we had once found while illegally hunting the forest. He knew I was no match for any of these monsters and he bade me to wait for him before coming home.

I had waited-sensing with all of my new being the destruction and havoc wrought on my beloved home. I cried, but there were no tears, except faint, watery trails of blood marking my flawless porcelain skin. I clawed at my ears, face, and cheeks to keep from feeling that my parents would not survive the carnage. My face remained unmarred as Italian marble. My fists pounded the crags of rock within my hovel, crumbling chunks to the scat-ridden floor, widening the s.p.a.ce of my sanctuary, doing no true damage.

After a week, I sensed nothing. The land seemed to lay in silent remorse. Still, pa never fetched me.

Reaching out with vampiric hypersensitivity, I knew only that my world had grown quiet. It was time to leave my hiding.

That's when I saw her, the heiress, writhing on the forest floor of soft ferns and moss like some unnatural being. I guessed then that she was the only one left behind, undead. I watched for moments of awed curiosity until she settled into a fetal position, mewling like a sick kitten.

At least when I had been stolen, then left alone to wander home, a live bound deer lay beside me, its heart thumping, its blood calling to me. As a wild beast, I had pounced upon it and drank until it ran dry. Stumbling through the forest, I had gained strength with each animal caught, until my thirst was quenched, the smell of fresh blood no longer enticed me, and the noise of it whooshing through veins, did not call to me with its promised thrill.

Using great strength, I threw a stunned fawn to land beside the quivering heiress. She looked about, bewildered, before lightly brushing her fingertips across the soft, speckled coat. At once, she must have felt the surge of blood call to her, because she dug her nails into its flesh and dragged its neck to her mouth.

Her eyes grew wild with the bitter metallic taste. She sat up on her haunches and looked rabidly around, her hair disheveled and full of leaf and fern. I tossed another offering. She devoured it. And again we played this game. Four carca.s.ses laid strewn and sucked dry before the heiress calmed and turned her attention to preening the forest from her hair.

When I carefully approached, she had been crying, sniffling, and attempting to sing a children's lullaby while picking through her raven tresses.

Shucking my long woolen coat, I draped it about her gown's ruined bodice, not for warmth but as a familiar gesture of caring. She responded and my arms enfolded her, plucking her from the damp, northern European forest floor. And as she wrapped her thin arms around my neck with her head falling to beneath my chin, I dashed at lightning speed toward the castle, where I deposited her in her own voluptuous bed, a light kiss upon her already rock-solid forehead.

Though it was night, she slept.

I stalked the destroyed township. With my maddened, broken heart, each dead and drained body I found I flung with amazing strength into the yet unfrozen river to be carried swiftly from my sight. Working through the night, I thirsted only once when I came upon a downed cow. Her blood gave me the strength to continue until all evidence of the coven's misdeed had been carried away on a swift current.

It entered my parents' home last. Their brittle, broken bodies lay at impossible angles. I wept. They had known, yet never wavered in their love for me. As the sun began to rise and weariness was settling in, I closed all of the curtains and dug a deep hole in the middle of the common room, where I laid their entwined bodies, then rested upon them until the sun descended again.

Buried, with the furniture set back to rights, I left my parents and my home of eighteen human years and then some to hike the cobblestone road to the castle.

The heiress was where I had left her, but sitting up, staring and unseeing. She didn't acknowledge my presence, and I hesitated to break the silence. Instead, I chose a gilded brush from her vanity, sat beside her, and struggled through her thick raven hair, removing bits of grime until it shone blue-black once again.

She leaned her head upon my chest and closed her eyes to what seemed her shock and confusion. It was time to speak. I kissed the top of her head, smelling the sweetness of her hair. "You are the heiress, Theresa VI." Given no response, I continued. "I am your hostler and your servant, if it pleases you."

Her arms wrapped about my waist with a strength that cautioned they might not let go. In the darkness, I kissed her head again, then tipped her chin to kiss her forehead, her nose, and her cold lips. "We are of a kind, you and I. We are the undead."

She began to weep again. Such a beautiful girl, even in her sadness. "They are all gone," she whispered.

"Yes." I didn't know whether she had meant her family and her people or if she had dared to hope the monsters grown real from little girls' fairy tales that had created all of the destruction were gone. I agreed, because there was essentially no one left-but us.

Theresa stopped weeping, released me, and climbed from her bed to peer out the open window. "Your jacket, sir," she said as she let it slide from her shoulders. I swiftly caught it as she also allowed her tattered dress to fall to the floor.

Moonlight played games on her pallid skin. The breeze tossed tendrils away from her neck. Her arms hung limp at her sides. Her back was toward me. She was more beautiful than my dreams had ever made her out to be.

She turned to climb back into bed. Before she swaddled in quilts and furs, I glimpsed full, pert b.r.e.a.s.t.s and plump pointing nipples, the likes to make my mouth water.

Thinking that she would sleep, I got up to leave.

"Stay, sir. I would be comforted," the heiress said. "If we are the only beings left in the kingdom, I would not be alone."

I tossed my long coat on the end of the bed and sat upon the side toward the middle.

"Nay, sir, I would have you here with me, though I don't need warmth. I would feel you against me."

Stretching lengthwise along her body, I wrapped my arm around her midsection, tucking the bedding snug to her body. Her naked body beneath the coverings was as enticing as a blood meal; however, these were different sensations she was creating within me. I buried my nose so deeply into her hair that my tongue escaped to flick upon her neck. Closing my eyes, I traced her swanlike aristocratic neck. The heiress moaned and flipped around to catch my tongue and my mouth with her own.

Without fully compromising any true virtues, the royalty was rumored to engage in harmless, yet l.u.s.tful, night games with each other. This is where the heiress had more experience than a shunned hostler's daughter. Even as a boy working the stables, I had found no time to dabble with any milkmaids, and so was at a loss except for the inherent needs that moved me forward in taking what I had always wanted. But were these needs only human? I did not want to accidentally kill the heiress with the needs of my more animalistic side-I was no longer human. I was of the undead.

Tongues entwined, I rolled to my back carrying the heiress with me, her bed coverings slipping from her naked body. Wrapping her tresses in one hand to still her unrest, I began to explore these unknown hills and valleys of cool flesh. Each caress brought with it a murmured "yes," an echoing touch, or guiding hand. In time, without pause, I felt the air begin to ease under my rough linen shirt as she deftly loosened the ties with each knowing pa.s.s of her schooled fingers. My trews also fell open and her knee slipped between mine pushing them to my calves. She began to wriggle, falling with me to the side. The soft down of her pressed against me in a place that had known no previous pleasure.

The oaf to her sylph, desire making me clumsy in wantonness, I thrust hard against her. Her gasp at the unnatural force kindled that other hunger. A mingled desire to fulfill thirsts, known and unknown, began to rise. She was not as strong as I, but I had no wish to become victim to her blood thirst.

Her neck lay unguarded as she had no idea of how to respond in her new state. I bit first. My sharpened canines lengthened and sunk into her cold neck. Her memories and dreams flashed into existence for moments too fast. Then she fought with fear not lulled by my pressing will. I had meant to scare her. I didn't truly set out to drink of her, but the sweet droplets of blood from her pierced neck tantalized my senses until control was almost lost.

Roughly ripping away from her neck before it became too late, I held her tightly and whispered, "It's not like this. It doesn't have to be like this." The heiress softened in my arms. I rolled her from me and left the bed, pulling my clothes together and shrugging into my long coat.

"Get up." I went to her vast closets and chose a soft riding gown that afforded loose movement. Tossing the habit at the heiress, I motioned for her to dress. "Quickly now." I jumped from her castle room window ledge, surprised that she followed without question. We dashed hand in hand through the town's vacant streets more freely than she had ever been allowed and more swiftly than she could have ever imagined. Within minutes, we were in the Royal Forest, hunting.

From our perch high in a soft pine of full needles, we leapt upon the first warm-blooded animal that presented itself. It was an eight-point buck, certainly large enough to hold off the worst of our thirst but not enough to satiate either one of us.

For a dainty, well-bred la.s.s, her crude sucking sounds rivaled that of any cra.s.s tavern drinker. "Slowly," I encouraged, then sunk my own teeth into the other side of the beast's neck. Our noses filled with the sweet breath of each other while savoring the salty smell of the herbivore's blood.

I loosed the furry flesh to lick her upper lip. My hands filled themselves with her black, silky hair once again, and I had to have her. Her mouth, full of blood, came away from the animal to entwine our tongues and suckle each other until the flames of desire exploded.

This time, she ripped at my clothes, and I hers. We rolled on the damp forest floor, leaving shredded wool and linen in an uneven path. Our hands grabbed at marbled flesh, roaming hills of pert, young b.r.e.a.s.t.s to the flat of smooth bellies, then dove into each other's mounds of soft, crinkly hair.

If either of us had been mortal still, our frolic might have killed one or both of us. As it was, the marks left by trailing teeth and fingernails quickly turned to pale red lines of pa.s.sion. Fingers thumping in time inside one another as our pelvises thrusted and pounded ever-so-harder towards a promised euphoria, might have torn human flesh and fractured frail bone. But our immortal bodies could take and give to whatever heights of pleasure we sought and soared for in our l.u.s.tful rush.

Her tiny front teeth bit onto one of my nipples, pulling and twisting as her thumb found the blood-engorged b.u.t.ton in the hidden crease of my private pelt. I threw my head back and howled like a dog as waves upon waves of sweet ecstasy overtook my body. Incapacitating ripples stilled my being, stiffening in an arc from my grounded shoulders, up and over to the naked pads of my feet. My toes dug the damp earth, clinging to whatever they could while my howls turned to soft whimpering.

The heiress released me to fall flat against the earth. Her hand moved to guide my own. And she yanked my face to her bosom, where I lapped and bit tiny trails of torment until she allowed me to move downward, across her stomach and into the thatch of shiny, raven curls.

She threw me onto my back, her black eyes glittering in the faint moonlight that sneaked through the thick forest canopy, lips, teeth and tongue still wet and rouge with blood. The heiress mounted my face much like she mounted astride one of her beautiful Trakehners. Her knees sunk slightly into the mossy earth while her thighs gripped about my ears. Slowly, too slowly, she came down upon my hungry mouth.

My tongue reached for her first until she was fully settled on my face, where I had to grip her hips and lift her slightly so I could move my mouth in carnal ministrations. The sweetness of her forced a shiver the length of my body. I played in her slit with my lips and tongue, kissing her nether regions as I had kissed her mouth. The heiress moaned and rocked upon me in unladylike fashion.

Flushed with our recent kill, her hardened nodule protruded through the crease within her coa.r.s.e, short hair. I kissed it. It wasn't enough. I lipped and tongued it. It wasn't enough. I suckled. It still was not enough. I bit the small nub, and to my delight, the heiress screamed.

Her unearthly response penetrated the deep forest before it was absorbed by the sodden earth and the fat pines. I heard the resident animals scamper in flight and confusion. But my mind was swiftly returned to the heiress perched around my head.

While my small front teeth let loose, my tongue worked to bathe and lap the rest of her crease, diving into the hole that my own fingers had invaded. Her pelvis slid, rocked and thrust. My nose hit her blood-thickened shaft in an inconsistent rhythm. Her thighs clamped my ears and might have crushed my skull had we not been evenly matched.

She bent over me, fingers lacing through my brunette hair to tangle in a mess. Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s swung above, and I ached to have my mouth on them also. I had to suffice by loosing her hips and filling my needy hands with those perfect orbs instead, thumbs strumming over flushed nipples.

The heiress collapsed on me with her full weight as she wailed like a creature of the night, borne of childhood nightmares. Her body shuddered. I squeezed her b.r.e.a.s.t.s together. Her o.r.g.a.s.m swept down onto my face, entrapping my tongue in her hole with a strength I didn't think she possessed as of yet. Her pelvis moved in little circles and had the tip of my nose coaxing a more intense o.r.g.a.s.m to spread in waves that rippled unseen throughout her eternal being.

Finally, we both lay heaped on the forest floor, naked, unfrightened in the dense wilderness, and satisfied.

Steak Tartare Jen Bluekissed Filling out the online form for the matchmaking service, I knew I was in trouble when I saw the third question. The age category only had two s.p.a.ces for numbers. I couldn't type in that I was one thousand and fourteen years old, nor could I shorten it and write that I was fourteen. If I hadn't already paid the exorbitant fee, I would have bailed out then and there. As it was, however, I didn't want to waste my money. I answered by typing "NA." At least it didn't give me an error message for typing letters instead of numbers. The form was more user-friendly than some job applications I had filled out in the past.

I wanted to be honest during the process. I wanted love rather than just a convenient neck to sip. After living for centuries alone, I longed for someone to love. The multiple-choice questions for the next hundred pages or so went something like this for answers: A) Answer that doesn't remotely fit. B) Answer that might have been applicable more than a thousand years ago, before I was bitten and hence made undead. C) Answer I was tempted to select so I would seem like a normal, human date seeker. D) Answer that only applied to straight people. E) None of the above.

I chose E almost exclusively. The fill-in-the-blank section of the form was more interesting. Finally, I neared the end of the process where there were a few freeform questions. Under the one that asked me to sum up in one sentence what a prospective date would want to know about me in advance, I wrote, "I'm a vampire," and "I'm ready to settle down." What body parts and types do you find most attractive? "Teeth, arteries, and flesh in general." What physical characteristic about yourself do you find most attractive? "My razor-sharp fangs."

I signed the electronic signature on the bottom of the form, convinced that the matchmaker wasn't going to find any living, female human willing to date me.

"Okay, so here's the deal," the skinny, bald man said while he stood next to our table. He made eye contact with me, then with my date. "We thought about refunding the fees you have both paid to us, but we spent it already. In fact, we're about ready to file for bankruptcy if all goes well." He took a sip from the third water gla.s.s the waiter had brought to our table. "But we also don't want to be sued by any of our other clients by setting up either of you with any of them." Sweat began running down his face as he returned eye contact with each of us again. Dabbing at his forehead with my napkin, he paused. "So what Guaranteed Match decided to do was to bring each of you lovely ladies here together on a date so we could honor our contract with each of you."

I looked across the table at Luna. She appeared human enough. There was no vamp in her; I could tell that much. Her skin was much darker than my own skin, and her nails weren't gla.s.s. I wondered what he meant. Why would she sue Guaranteed Match?

He opened a folder, handed each of us a stapled packet, and said, "I'm giving each of you the questionnaire filled out by the other woman. You each answered, 'None of the above' quite often. Also, next to the parts that inquired about physical attractiveness, there was a predominant theme of 'teeth' in both of your responses." He backed away from the table. "But I want both of you to promise me that if you don't like each other, you won't sink your pearly whites into me or anyone else from Guaranteed Match." He was still clutching my napkin.

I faced Luna, eyeing her for the first time. When she smiled at Mr. Bald Guy, she revealed the most amazing chops I had ever seen on a living person. Unlike anyone else I had dated, her incisors, bicuspids, molars, and every tooth in between were pointed. My mouth watered as I watched her. I couldn't tell if she possessed two or three rows of them, but they were delicious looking.

The man repeated his request that we not harm him. "Luna, do you agree?"

"Sure, why not?"

"Sangrina?"

I shook my head. "No, I won't bite you. If I recall, there was a release on the form I filled out. It didn't specifically address biting you, but I signed it in good faith that I wouldn't hold you liable or attempt to harm your company if she and I aren't compatible."

"Well, then," he said. "I'll leave you two ladies alone to get acquainted." He hustled out of the restaurant at a near run.

Luna opened her menu, blocking my view of her chest. "I think before we get into any deep conversation, we should decide what we want to order." She flipped through the pages quickly, as if she were looking for something in particular from the available choices.

"Okay," I said, "But I already know what I want."

She looked up, meeting my gaze as I stared at her mouth. "And let me guess what that is." Her tongue traced the outline of her pointed upper teeth. "I bet you're going to order the same thing I want for nearly the same reason I want it."

I smiled, showing her my fangs for the first time. Luna's long gray hair looked less gray as her eyes changed from blue to amber. I also traced my teeth with my tongue before I said, "Steak tartare."

"Sangrina, if this isn't the beginning of a beautiful f.u.c.king relationship, then a spade ain't black." She almost closed her menu, but then reopened it so it hid her b.r.e.a.s.t.s again. "So now that choosing the meal is out of the way, let's call a spade a spade. You're obviously a vampire. Anybody with eyes could see that once she looks at your fangs. You have exquisite incisors, by the way." She sipped some of her wine. "Do you know what I am?" She opened her mouth, this time widely.

"Other than those babies, you look human to me." I leaned in closer to get a better look. Luna's meaty neck and the scent of her as I got near her drove me wild. I inhaled slowly. "You smell of cedar." I sniffed again. "And walnuts." I closed my eyes as I drew in breath one last time. "Marrow. That's what it is. You smell like bone marrow. Either you work in a butcher shop, or you spend a lot of time with your nose in living flesh, in the forest perhaps. What are you, then?" I leaned back into my chair, away from her after I placed the scents.

She didn't need to lean close to me to pick up my scent. "You smell of ashes, incense, lipstick, and myrrh." Luna closed her menu. "I'm a misfit werewolf." A smile took over her face. "And you can stop staring at my b.r.e.a.s.t.s now that the menu is on the table. If you're good, I'll let you see them later. You're so obvious."

I raised my eyes to meet hers again. "Sorry." The waiter walked by. "Sir, can I have another napkin, please?" Finally comfortable that I was going to get into bed with Luna, even if it meant I bit her in the process, I removed my winter jacket. "A misfit werewolf. What the h.e.l.l does that mean?"

The waiter brought both the new napkin and the two raw steaks. We both devoured the meat before bothering to continue the conversation. I wondered if the meal would satisfy my bloodl.u.s.t long enough to be intimate with Luna. Her nipples protruded from the white blouse she wore. I could see not only their size and shape, but the darker pigmentation of her nipples. If only I could get the opportunity to graze my teeth against them. I wouldn't bite her; I would just tease myself with her body. My p.u.s.s.y was wet and ready even before I finished extracting the fluid from my steak.

Luna devoured her meat, then asked if she could eat my dry steak after I finished with it. I gladly gave it to her. The power in her jaws was ma.s.sive, like my own. I wondered who had the stronger bite in pounds per square inch. After she finished my steak tartare, she began to answer my question.