“In comparison with the others, I’m practically celibate. I don’t engage in intercourse everytime I feed and my assignations are carefully chosen.” He watched her face to discern her reaction.
She gazed at him curiously. “You said once that you didn’t know how sex as a vampyre compared with what it was when you were human.”
William nodded, appearing uncomfortable.
“What did you mean?”
His jaw flexed. “I meant that as a human being I never engaged in sex.”
Raven’s mouth dropped open. “How old were you when you became a vampyre?”
William turned away to look out over the gardens. “The world was different then. I was different then. At the time of my transformation, I was a novice in the Dominican order.”
“You were a priest?” Raven practically shrieked.
He pinned her to the bed with his dark glare. “I was in formation to become a priest. Novices take the same vows.”
Raven murmured an oath.
“I haven’t spent a great deal of time thinking about it, but it’s clear the chains I wore in life still bind me. I enjoy sexual relations but intemperance repulses me.”
“I don’t see how a priest—I mean, a novice—could become a vampyre. Wouldn’t you have crosses and relics on you at all times?”
“We are alike, you and I. We both hate God. You hated him into atheism and I hated him into a cursed supernatural transformation.”
“I don’t understand.”
“If you continue to share my bed, it’s possible I will tell you how it came about. But not this morning.” William turned his back on her.
Raven realized she’d been dismissed.
Without a word, she swung her legs over the far side of the bed, facing the closet.
She wrapped the sheet around her naked body, fashioning it into a toga, and hobbled over to her overnight bag.
“What are you doing?”
She heard his voice but didn’t look up. “I’m getting dressed and having breakfast.”
“Why? It’s early yet.”
She withdrew underwear and a T-shirt from her bag. “You said ‘if ’ I continue to share your bed. I know regret when I hear it.”
He strode toward her. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about being content with what I have and not deluding myself into reaching for something more.”
“You aren’t making sense.”
“Actually, I’ve come to my senses.” She glanced at him without making eye contact. “If you give me the room, I’ll change and you won’t have to watch.”
William pulled the clothes from her hands. “Maybe I’d like to watch.”
“So you can make fun?”
“Of what?”
She gestured to herself. “Are you really going to make me say it? Look at me.”
His eyes bore into hers. “I am.”
His look was heated, full of desire.
Raven turned her gaze to her feet. “Thin is beautiful.”
He scoffed. “Thin is an indication of ill health and weakness.”
Raven gave him a quizzical look.
He stroked his chin absently. “I’d forgotten about this aspect of human culture. For the most part, I ignore the workings of your world, unless there’s something that particularly interests me. You, for example.”
He placed a hand to her hip. “When I was human, slender women had a low survival rate. They were considered sickly, infirm, and definitely not beautiful.”
“You don’t mind my weight?”
He brought his hand to the top of the sheet, where she’d twisted it under her arms.
“Let me look at you.”
“I’m naked.”
“Precisely.” His gaze darted to her breasts as he pulled the sheet from her body. He stood there, his eyes roaming her figure with undisguised appreciation. “You’re an attractive woman, Raven.”
She didn’t meet his eyes. She felt conspicuous, embarrassed. She bent to pick up the sheet but he took her hand, leading her over to his painting of Primavera.
He stood behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders.
“I can see you may need a little convincing. Take a moment and examine the painting, focusing on the female forms.”
“I know what they look like.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m an art restorer, remember?”
“You may have looked at them, but you haven’t seen them. Look again.”
Raven began at the left of the painting with the figure of Mercury and moved to look at the three Graces.
“They’re certainly healthy.”
“Look on the Graces before examining Venus. Remember, these are depictions of the ideal of feminine beauty.”