The Accidental Vampire(22)

that the friend wasn't like the troublemaker. He didn't really want to be bit; he just

didn't want to look like a sissy in front of his buddy. I brought him back here, told him

he didn't have to do it, and gave him a bandage for his neck so no one would know.

"I was sorry I'd been so nice about it when I overheard him bragging to his friends

about how ' hot' it had been." She rolled her eyes. "Of course, with that kind of press, a

couple weeks later another showed up for his 'Birthday Bite,' then another. It became

almost expected. Turning eighteen? Go to Bella's and have Elvi bite you," she said

wryly.

"They all come now, but half of them are only here because their friends push them

into it, while others want to but are more afraid than they are excited at the prospect.

Then some arrive high or bolstered up by liquid courage and I won't bite any of those.

But, they all come to my office and—bite or no bite—get a bandage so everyone thinks

they went through with it."

She ran her finger around the top of her glass. "I'd guess one in five actually gets

bitten, but they all get a cake now and a bandage."

"And bragging rights," Victor murmured.

Elvi shrugged. "Boys will be boys."

Victor was silent. This information did affect things. It might even save her beautiful

neck. He wasn't sure. There was some biting between immortals and their lovers who

were willing and that was mostly ignored by the council. But while all of these boys

were willing, they didn't classify as lovers and the sheer number of them would upset

the council. Then there was the fact that she wasn't living quietly and trying to avoid

detection. Everyone in this town seemed to know what she was.

A knock at the door had Elvi frowning and glancing toward it. She set her glass aside

and moved to answer the door, revealing tonight's birthday boy, Owen.

"Mabel said I should come back here," the boy said nervously, his eyes slipping from

Elvi to Victor, then away.

"Of course," Elvi murmured, ushering him inside. She then turned to peer at Victor

apologetically. "If you'll excuse us?"

Victor hesitated, then stood and left the room. He pulled the door closed, but rather

than return to the table, paused and stayed to listen through the door.

Elvi stared at the closed door with regret. She'd never met another vampire and had a

million questions she would have liked to ask. She feared she'd missed her

opportunity, however. He wasn't a local. Obviously he was just passing through town.

She had no idea why he'd stopped at the restaurant. Perhaps those men he'd been

with were mortals and had needed to stop for a late dinner. She supposed she'd never

know. The man would no doubt return to his friends and leave before she finished

with Owen and made her way back out to the dining area.

It was the first time in five years Elvi had met another of her kind and what had she

done? Chattered nervously about the Birthday Bite and its origins. It was true he'd

asked about it, but if she hadn't been so overset, she might have had the good sense

to ask at least one or two of the questions she had. Like what was she? Could she get

her soul back? How could she end her existence?

Instead she'd babbled about the biting.

It hadn't just been the fact that he was a vampire that had left her so unsettled. It was

the man himself. He was tall and gorgeous and smelled good and Elvi had found him

terribly attractive before she'd even found out he was a vampire. That in itself had

been disturbing. Elvi hadn't reacted to a man this strongly in years. In her whole life, if

she were to be honest with herself. Her husband had been her high school sweetheart.

She'd grown up with him and known him all her life. They'd had a comfortable, loving

relationship, but she didn't recall ever finding herself responding to his very presence

with every fiber of her being as she had to this man's nearness. She'd been so

disconcerted by just being near him she hadn't noticed her own reactions to the smell

of his blood until her teeth had started to shift, and then her only thought had been to

get away from him. While gaining a little distance from him had eased the blood

hunger, it hadn't eased her other reactions to him. Elvi had acted like a nervous

teenager on her first date, babbling like an idiot about nonsense instead of asking the

very important questions she had.

Now she was just feeling confused and torn. Part of her was glad she wouldn't meet

him again and be forced to deal with the reactions he caused in her. The other part of

her was upset. The idea of another five years passing before happening onto another

of her kind and getting the answers she wanted was terribly disheartening.

Sighing, Elvi turned to face Owen.