Page 7

I glared between Kroven and the rest of the sangamar that were staring at us in the waiting room, unsure of what to do or say. I needed to think fast. As much as I had wanted to talk to Kroven about what was happening between us, I sure as hell didn’t expect for him to show up here and cause a scene in order to do so. Assuming that was why he was even here. I cleared my throat, trying to ignore the looks from the other sangamar and squared my sights on Kroven.

“What's going on?" I questioned, taking in the current Kroven, who looked less like a patient and more like a forlorn lover. “You haven’t been by in a while and as I'm sure you know, we can't skip people who already have a scheduled appointment." I said the last part with a decided bite, because I was hoping that he understood that bringing our drama to my workplace like this wasn't the best move. Even though our drama started at the workplace, so I guess I was a hypocrite.

“Bas.” The longing in Kroven's voice made my belly burn with want.

I turned toward one of my co-workers that had gathered from just behind the still ajar double doors when I had been chastising the sangamar in front of me. “I’ll take care of it. I'm sure you've got an appointment. I've got this.”

His eyes kept asking me if I was sure, and I nodded. Assuming I was about to get clarification from Kroven as to what was going on.

“Okay,” The guy nodded with apprehension. “I’ll, uh, see you later.”

Kroven stepped forward, but didn't breach the double doors I stood between. “I know you're working and I know I don't have an appointment.” Kroven looked around, seeing the annoyed stares from his fellow sangamar before locking his eyes back on me. He lowered his voice so only I could hear. “So when you want to talk about the other night, meet me at 606 West Pincer Street.”

“Kroven—”

“That's my house,” Kroven nodded. “We can talk there privately. Just think about it, Bas. I'd really appreciate it.”

Spinning on his heels, Kroven strode toward the door of the blood center and left me stunned, unable to agree or disagree to his terms.

I took the bus to 606 West Pincer Street immediately after work. The sun was yawning across the sky, threatening to dip beyond the horizon for a good night's rest. Nerves were roaming throughout my entire body, and my chest was wracked with the knowledge that I had arrived at Kroven’s place.

It was a cute little cottage, surprising me. Kroven struck me as more of an ancient castle type. But the cottage looked fairly big for that label, so maybe it was just an actual house. The cobblestone exterior looked well maintained and rough, with windows adorned with red shutters. A bright red door the same shade as the shutters was smack dab in the middle. It was like out of a children’s book, looking more fitting for the witch that had captured Hansel & Gretel than for a blood-dependent being from a long rumored non-human realm. It made me smile that Kroven would have preferred a place like this as I approached the door, making sure to eye the well groomed lawn. It felt warm here, inviting. Kroven had chosen this place, and it helped to calm my still gnawing nerves that he would cling to something like this.

I knocked on the door lazily, hoping that Kroven didn’t think I was too eager coming straight here after work. The last thing I wanted was for Kroven to see me as some needy human that was obsessed with him. I rolled my eyes at myself, realizing that at the very least, the second half of that was totally true.

As the door revealed Kroven, I realized that Kroven’s eyes had gone hazy and grey again, unlike they’d been when he had ambushed me at the center. The amount of time that drinking the blood had given him his sight must have come and gone.

“Bas,” He still said with a smile, clearly knowing that it was me, though I had no idea how. My eyes widened and I sniffed my arm pit to make sure he didn’t know it was me because I smelled. “You made it.”

I straightened up. “I did. I love your house.”

“You are very kind.” His smile showed me those too red lips and I just melted as they curved. God, I was down bad. “Please, come in.”

I stepped over the threshold, and my eyes were met with more surprise. The interior of Kroven’s house was simple. White paint over what looked like wood paneling, the original brown of the wood outlining the interior of the windows and the doorways. A granite countertop split the living room and the kitchen, barstools sitting comfortably on either side of the bar. His furniture looked brand new and barely worn, a white couch with red accent pillows, white wood coffee table and end tables. And a huge argyle style rug that had different shades of red woven inside and out in beautiful diamond patterns. I noticed he didn’t have a TV in the living room, but rather bookcases where one would have been in a human home, filled with copious amounts of books. A beautiful cobblestone accent area surrounded the grand fireplace, an arrowhead shaped stone in the direct center above the hand carved mantle. I saw a hallway that led to more of the house, but turned around to meet Kroven’s face as he closed the front door.

“Wow, Kroven, this place is beautiful.”

He ambled past me with a smile, walking into the kitchen swiftly. “Thank you. I am quite proud of what I’ve been able to accomplish in this space. It had such good bones when I acquired it.”

I didn’t prod at the way he had put that because it almost sounded like he had…come into owning the house in less than desirable means, so I was perfectly fine with leaving that conversation alone.

Kroven gestured toward me. “Make yourself at home. I’m just going to take a quick drink before we talk.”

I nodded, but I was feeling way too nervous to let there be too much silence between us. As I sat down on the couch, still able to see Kroven from the kitchen, I said, “That must get really annoying. Always having to keep drinking if you want to keep seeing.”

“Ahh, it’s not so bad letting my vision lapse.” Kroven explained, pulling a pint sized jar out of his refrigerator, taking a generous gulp from it, and putting it back inside the cooling contraption.

Grinning, he joined me back in the living room, sitting in the seat next to me. Curving my body, I shifted until I was facing him on the couch, and he mimicked me so that he was turned to me as well. For a few seconds, we just stared at each other, his grey eyes already swirling to life with the red irises I’d come to know. It was a comfortable silence, one I didn’t necessarily want to puncture. When we started speaking, things could change. And if Kroven told me how much he couldn’t handle doing anything of the sort with me like I had initiated back at the club, I’d wished I had waited longer to speak. Fuck , I thought. I didn’t fully prepare myself for the outcome in which Kroven told me we couldn’t see anymore of each other. I was so hoping it’d end in us kissing again, that I hadn’t dared to imagine the opposition.

Leaning forward a bit, I knew that Kroven was about to break our silence. I closed my eyes, holding them closed for a second longer than I needed to, and braced myself for whatever was going to happen.

“Bas,” I opened them again to meet his when he said my name, his newly red eyes sparking with intensity. They were so beautiful when he first drank, the red of his irises swirling together to fill up the usually vacant space there, gorgeous crimson tendrils clashing together and radiating that beautiful red hue. “I’m sorry again for showing up at the center as I did, I just…knew that we needed to talk about what transpired at Gossamer the other night.”

I nodded, gulping the growing lump in my throat. Okay, this was it. Either Kroven was going to push me away or pull me in. I wanted so bad for him to just skip all the talking and push me back on the couch, kissing me to submission. I shook myself mentally. Getting ahead of myself wouldn’t eliminate the unknown between us.

“Yeah, I know.” I fidgeted with my hands, clasping them together. “I just…after what you told me at Gossamer, about the reason you stopped coming to the center…”

Kroven sighed, readjusting his position on the couch. “Bas, please understand, I never meant to hurt your feelings when I left the blood center and started going somewhere else. I just thought it would be better for everyone involved if I removed myself from the situation before things got...messy. ”

I sighed. “And then I made it messy by kissing you at the club.”

Chuckling, Kroven couldn't stop smiling. That eased my fears just a sliver, but I felt like shit. I understood that Kroven was trying to avoid this exact interaction.

“You certainly didn't make things easy.”

“Kroven, I'm sorry.” I reached out and grabbed his hand without even thinking, needing to feel him, his skin against mine, if this was potentially the last time I was able to be close to him. “I just...I don't understand it either. I've never been attracted to an Orb before,” I inwardly winced, having said the human-made moniker for non-human beings without knowing how he felt about it, but he didn't make any outward indication that it had bothered him. So I kept going. “I haven't been attracted to anyone in a really long time. Far too long. At least, not for longer than one night. So I guess when we were having a nice time chatting during your appointments and then you suddenly left, I know it sounds stupid, but I guess I really was a little hurt by it.”

“It doesn't sound stupid at all,” Kroven squeezed my hand back, our fingers curling together. “This has happened to me before. Humans tell me that they're attracted to me and then once we...start something, they realize that it's all too much.”

My heart lurched. I'd never given it any thought that Kroven might have been protecting himself from letting something crash and burn all over again. I needed Kroven to know that I wasn't like the humans before.

“I’m so sorry, Kroven.” I held onto his hand with renewed vigor. “If you don't want to explore anything like that with a human again, I totally understand.”

“But is that what you want?”

His intense eyes ran over mine, making my breath catch in the back of my throat. With our eyes locked and our fingers intertwined, I didn't even hesitate on giving my answer .

“No.” I said quickly. “I enjoyed our talks, and I'd love to get to know you more and,” I could feel my cheeks getting hot with the truth, but I needed to get it out so that he knew it without any misconception. “I’m think you're really handsome.”

He grunted. “Are you sure it's not the danger you're attracted to?”

“Have you met me?” I laughed. “Dangerous isn't exactly something I'd use to describe my life.”

“But don't you care that I'm not human?” Kroven unfurled our fingers and stood up abruptly, catching me off guard. He started pacing across the argyle rug. “Humans always say they don't care until they do. They always care. It's something I've noticed over the years. Humans care way too much, even when they claim to have convinced themselves that they don’t.”

I really didn't care. Just because I hadn’t had any sort of a history with Orbs didn't mean that I openly hated them. Humans had done terrible things, were still doing horrible things, and we didn't condemn all of humanity for the actions of a fair few. Why would Orbs be any different?

“I don't care whether your human, sangamar, or an as of yet undiscovered Martian,” I smiled big, feeling at ease when he smiled back at me. “I like spending time with you. Not because you're an Orb, or because you're a sangamar. Just because you're you.”

Softening, I saw Kroven's features settle into a quiet sadness. I closed the space between us, reaching for his hand again. He squeezed my hand, turning away from me.

“What if you change your mind?”

I tilted his head toward me with my hand, making sure he saw the conviction in my eyes as I shook my head. “I won’t.”

“And the blood.” Kroven eased his fingers between mine again, his other hand finding a home on my hip. “It doesn't bother you that I'll forever be forced to drink it?”

“No.” I said sternly. “It really doesn’t. ”

Both of us were so close now that our chests were touching, and our eyes were scanning over each other's faces, searching for an ounce of unease or something that would tell the other that all of this was too much. But it wasn't enough for me. I craved him, wanted him so bad that I desperately wanted to throw him down on one of the couches and prove to him just how fucking hot he was to me.

Kroven made a deep sound his throat, groaning as his hand on my hip pushed into my skin from over the shirt I had changed into after leaving the center. His voice was deeper than normal when he spoke.

“Prove it.”