Draven's Crossing: Tempestuous Crossings by Selena Illyria Read Free Book Online Page B

in question, and she stepped back. “Since it’s for my education, which can in turn help the campaign, please do come in.”
    For a moment, he toyed with the idea of making her repeat the invite, but decided against it. As he brushed past her, he took his time savoring the scent of her perfume, and arousal, as he went. He looked around and saw an open floor plan; the living room flowed into the dining area and kitchen, which was separated from the other spaces with a long island. The colors were a range of soft creams, neutral khakis, greens and warm reds and oranges. Remains of dinner, coffee and wine floated in the air to combine with her scent. Plush overstuffed chairs, couches and dark wood furniture were all arranged around a fireplace. A TV sat on a small rolling table in the corner playing something where two people were kissing. Gentle strains of the aria from Madam Butterfly floated from the speakers that were set in a dark wood entertainment center.
    Magazines and mail were strewn over a glass table with gold metal work. An empty wine glass stood alone near a corner. The place looked lived in and comfortable. Seeing her apartment told him a lot more about the woman than what he’d seen at dinner or the office.
    “As you can see, I’ve already eaten, but I’m sure I can make room for dessert.” She picked up her plate, the wine bottle, and bypassed him to head to the kitchen, where she took down a wine glass and placed her dishes in the sink. The wine she re-corked and put away. He decided to settle on the plush couch. Rose returned, setting down the glass on a side table and cleaned off the magazines and mail. “Sorry about that. Was catching up. So, you were going to tell me what other fables of the vampire are right and wrong?”
    She uncorked the wine he’d brought with him and let it breathe, while settling back in the chair opposite of him.
    “You’re so far away.” He tried to pout only to watch her laugh.
    “Don’t even try it. Besides, pouting on a man does not look good.” She held out her hand. For a moment, he was confused.
    “The pie. You can set up the rest of the food, if you want. How can you eat? I thought vampires couldn’t digest anything?”
    He handed her the various plates and let her arrange it however she wished.
    “Well, think of it this way; we drink blood and that gets our heart started, right? Gives us the look of being alive. Well, as alive as we can be. That spark, so to speak, must also animate other things. Only the older vampires can eat. Anything younger than a hundred years old would throw it up or get violently ill. Think of the ability to eat similar to that of a chameleon blending in with its surroundings. Hunters wouldn’t look twice at a pale person eating a burger, would they? We’ve learned tricks on how to look human. Eating and drinking is one of them, and yes, after we’ve consumed blood we can digest and do other things.” He let his voice drop to a husky tone.
    “Interesting, makes sense.” She seemed to brush off the intimation by moving the plates around. “And what are you guys allergic to?”
    “Well, the sunlight thing is true.” He held up his hand to stop her protests. “But again, only for newbies. Their bodies, similar to that eating problem, haven’t fully acclimated to being of the undead. As for stakes, I would assume everyone would be allergic to those. And I love Italian food too much to be allergic to garlic. Holy water will warm my skin, but not make me burn, and holy relics depends on the belief of the person. If they think I’m truly evil, then yeah, I’ll hurt.”
    She held out a glass of wine to him, which he accepted. “What about blood? Does it have to be a specific kind?”
    “You mean do we only feed on human blood? Yes, only human. Animal blood doesn’t jive with the way we digest things. Trust me, it’s been tried over and over again to avoid detection, and something always goes wrong. For some reason, the