The OtherWorlders

Chapter 6

I blinked open my eyes to the soft light of dawn, laying still in the serenity that I rarely found in my life, and I imagined there would be even less of those moments now that I was here with Justin.  But as I tilted my head to look up at his still form curved against me from behind, his eyes shut and his arm flung carelessly over my side, I could hardly complain.  I twisted my mouth to the side, thinking—trying to decide if I was brave enough to attempt what I was considering.  I decided that I was, and taking a slow and deep breath so as not to disturb him, I thought the words harder than I may have normally, imagining pushing the thought towards him.

I didn't know that vampyres could sleep.

His full lips tilted up and his eyes opened slowly to focus on me, a panther waking from its nap, and I felt a tingle roll through my belly.

"Vampyres could conceivably do anything a human can, although most are not necessary for us to function.  I don't sleep in the sense that you would use the word, I allow my body to recharge and it helps to center my thoughts...I don't do it often."  He stretched and I rolled onto my stomach, propping myself up onto my forearms to admire him openly; he laid back on his bed and tucked his hands behind his head, watching me watch him.

"And you don't need to fling your thoughts at me, I can hear what you're thinking-clearer than I have with anyone else, actually."

Oh...oops.  "Humans, you mean?"

He shook his head.  "OtherWorlder or human, I've never felt anything like it.  It seems we have quite the connection."

He watched me calmly as my cheeks heated and of course I was the first to look away, I was pretty sure he not so secretly enjoyed making me squirm.  I sat up, stretching and folding my legs up beneath myself.

"So, what are we doing today?"

"I need to return to my headquarters and deal with the underage human, take her back to her family if they've chosen to not cooperate with my team.  You're welcome to accompany me, but I understand if you're not comfortable returning to the neighborhood you left and in that case you can stay at the house."

I chewed on my lip, barely noticing when he reached out a hand startlingly fast to tug it free.  Damn, I had forgotten about the human captives that Justin's people had somewhere in the security tower, and the guilt at how easily I had moved them from my thoughts gnawed in my gut.  Because she was underage, the girl would be brought back to her family with the humans on the outskirts of the city; her companion, an of age male, would be dealt with by Justin's people if he didn't cooperate with the information requested of him, and I didn't want to think of what that would entail.  I appreciated that Justin would allow me to not be put in the position of returning to what had been my home, but it felt like an act of cowardice to not go with him.

He stayed silent, allowing me to work through it for myself instead of using his gift.  Still, he didn't look surprised when I eventually answered that I would be coming with him.

"Alright then, we'll need to get you breakfast before we leave."

I untucked myself from the bed, walking across the large room to the closet and pulling myself out a pair of jeans and a long sleeved royal purple shirt with a deep v-neck.  After brushing my teeth and unraveling the braid in my hair to leave long curling waves down my back I emerged from the bathroom to find Justin waiting by the door in jeans and a simple black t-shirt.

He ran his fingers through my curls as I got to him, trailing his fingers down my spine.  "Remind me to continue braiding your hair after a nightly shower, you look breathtaking with curls."

"You've got to stop complimenting me like that, you're going to give me a big head."  Dammit, I just knew I was blushing.  Again.

He managed to keep any other compliments to himself as we took ourselves downstairs to the large kitchen with its massive carved wooden table to get me breakfast.  I smiled as Ms. Keller, Justin's human cook, hurried forward with a tray boasting a bowl of oatmeal with fresh berries and a glass of orange juice.  She looked startled by my attention but managed to smile timidly at me before hurrying to stand in her spot on the far side of the room.  Once finished I thanked Ms. Keller, to an exasperated shake of the head from Justin, and we took ourselves to the basement and the same sleek car as the day before.