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The delivery man was young, no older than twenty. Lanky with messy hair. The whole world ahead of him, yet blissfully unaware of what secrets lurked in the shadows.

Hugo covered his mouth with his left hand.Shit! He saw them. Now what?

“No. No. My teeth are naturally pointy,” Hugo responded. He peered down at the pad and finished signing his name.

“You could have fooled me.”

“Don’t worry. I get it all the time,” Hugo said. “But when I bite my lip . . .”

“It must suck,” he said. “No pun intended.”

Hugo glared at him. “What if I was a vampire, though?”

A solemn expression fell over the delivery man’s face, rendering him silent.

“But I couldn’t be, right? I mean, the sun’s still up. I would burn and turn to ash.”

“Right,” the delivery man said.

Hugo smiled at him. “Besides, there’s no such things as vampires.”

They laughed.

Hugo said, “But still . . . what if there were, and you never knew it?”

The delivery man gulped. Hugo could hear the young man’s heart pumping. He smelled the blood coursing faster throughhis veins. Even though the bloodlust had subsided after drinking from the spell once again, he still had the abilities of a vampire.

He could enthrall and partake in the bloodlust once more. What would be the harm? The delivery man would never know. Or Hugo could leave him with the memory of a vampire attacking. Who would believe him? He was only a kid.

No, he wasn’t quick to given in to his urges. Hugo couldn’t enthrall the poor kid. Besides, if he ever wanted to satiate his blood fix, they still had bags of blood in their fridge from when Ez dropped them off following his transformation. A quick and easy snack.

“I’m messing with you. Here you go,” Hugo said as he handed the pad back to the delivery man.

The delivery man presented Hugo with a cardboard box, about a foot tall. He took it and cradled it under one arm. The delivery man turned and proceeded back to his truck.

“Thank you and Merry Christmas,” Hugo shouted.

Hugo waited until the delivery truck took off. He withdrew a key from his pocket, unlocked the door, and entered. He was immediately attacked by the waiting party inside. Max jumped up to investigate what he held in his hands, curious as if it was for her.

“Get back,” Hugo said. “It’s for Alice.”

Hugo kicked the door shut and went to the basement entrance. He opened it and entered the darkness, shutting the door behind him. The steps creaked and moaned as he descended. The soft glow of a hanging bulb provided enough light for Hugo to make his way through the basement. Empty grape boxes scattered the floor. The door to Alice’s wine cellar was open. The soft glow of flickering candles spilled into the basement from within. Hugo entered, carrying the gift for Alice.

She stood at her work bench, meticulously placing items in their proper positions. Alice picked up her newly acquiredingredients and studied them, turning them over and over. After a few moments, she placed them in their dedicated slots in the apothecary box. She rearranged her other items, including the few surviving mortars and pestles.

Hugo paused for a moment, admiring his wife’s beauty. Alice’s wavy, purple hair. Her beaming smile. The small twitch in her nose as she smelled the ingredients. The curves of her hips. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He was a lucky man. Far too lucky to have yet another wonderful woman choose to love him.

She tilted her head, and her emerald greens found his icy blues. She batted her eyes a few times, and her smile grew. “Are you going to stand there all night?”

“If it meant I could stand here captivated by you, and bask in your beautiful glory, then yes. I’m going to stand here all night.”

She turned, leaning back against the workbench. She raised her hand and curled her finger, summoning him closer. “Come here.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Hugo rushed over to the workbench and placed the box on the table.

He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling Alice’s body closer. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, urging him to kiss her. Their eyes locked. A fiery, passionate desire hid behind Alice’s emerald green eyes. The flickering light of the candles from the wall sconces bathed her in a soft yellow glow.

Anticipation was thick in the cool air of the stone wine cellar. Hugo bent in, their lips reunited, a union of two souls coming together as one. Soft kisses. Gentle touches. They began their dance of fire and passion smoldering below the surface. An intoxicating swirl of lust, desire, and love. Two souls intertwined and made for each other.