Bite Shift

28

Walking up that staircase felt like walking into the principal's office when you know you are in trouble, and are praying he will buy your excuse. Each step up felt like I was walking through wet cement. I repeated the sentence over and over in my head. I will do it. I will do it. I will do it. That is all you have to say, Kate. Say "I will do it." Then, get out of there. You don't even need to walk into the room. Just tell him from the doorway and bolt.

I stood before the large door and gathered my strength. Not because I was scared of Sorin but because I worried my mouth would get me into trouble. With shaking hands, I smoothed down my skirt, like I could somehow make it longer, and regretted my choice of clothes. Was is too much? Was it not enough? At 5'8" I wasn't very tall for a woman but, in these heels, I was an inch shy of 6'. Suddenly, I wanted flats. I don't know why exactly but I wanted to seem smaller. My whole life, I had always felt too big. I had accepted that no guy was ever going to carry me up the stairs, like in the movies, but I still wished I was, I don't know, daintier. Maybe then Sorin wouldn't ask me to hunt a monster. Before I could slide further down the usual spiraling thought train of self-pity, I was interrupted.

"Come in, Kate."

He knew I was there. Of course, he does, dummy. If you have super hearing after two days, I'm sure he does, too, after however many years he's been around. This is why you're going to get killed.

It took only a tiny push for the door to slide away from the jam and expose the office. A fire crackled in the fire place and one of the burgundy chairs was moved to a space in front of the couch, facing Sorin. He sat in the center of the pine tree colored sofa and hunched over a scattering of papers on the coffee table. The dark hair fell to each side of his face. His gaze rolled over the words on one piece and he seemed puzzled or frustrated or... I don't know, it was hard to tell with him. A heat rolled around in the office and rode down my chest in into my stomach. I didn't think it was the fire. It was more like a sense; like when you just know your friend is upset but you aren't sure why. Only this sensation was turned up to 100. It was Sorin's power. Great. I have interrupted him when he is busy and he is already annoyed. Perfect.

"I am sorry to interrupt. I can come back."

That made him look up and the rolling power pulled away; dying down to a subtle push of warmth. "Don't be ridiculous. You came out here, let's have this talk now." Something unreadable slid over his face, like he was coming out of a fog. His eyes moved down the line of my body and back to my eyes. I was instantly self-conscience and fought the urge to turn and run. I wore a Walmart skirt to meet the most powerful vampire in the city.... smart.

That heat was back and pulling at my stomach. It was different, though; less like annoyance and more like, I don't know, a need for something. It had an edge of electricity to it. I looked down to the floor and tried to remember why I was there.

"I will do it."

Good job, Kate! You remembered your line. Now, get out of here.

"Kate." That one word floated to me, like a lovely scent, and wrapped around me. At one of my old houses, the neighbor had a lilac bush. In the spring, when the window was open, I could smell it. Every year, I looked forward to the smell of lilacs and the promise of spring. That's what that word felt like to me. A promise of something wonderful.

I looked up to meet his eyes as he ran his hands through that thick hair. He was smiling and, in that moment, he was beautiful. I could imagine artists begging him to pose for them, producers offering him fame, and models desperately fighting for his attention. He stood in a way that reminded me of ballerinas; graceful and fluid. He motioned for the spot next to him on the couch.

"Please join me. You didn't come all this way for one sentence. I would be a terrible host to not offer you some of my time." The electric heat rolled around me, moving further up my body with every word. It seemed to caress, softly, in places I had not been caressed in a long time. I knew it was a bad idea to come to him but, I also knew I did not have a choice. I was walking towards the couch without having consciously made the decision to do so. His grey eyes seemed to catch the fireplace and I could see the dancing flames reflected in his gaze. I gathered every ounce of strength I had and move to the wine colored arm chair, sitting across from him, instead of next to him.

He looked surprised. In that moment I worried I had offended him and held my breath. Only when he laughed, did I let that breath out. Normally, someone laughing at me would piss me off. This time I was relieved he found me funny and not rude.

"I don't know how to take you, Kate." He returned to his seat on the couch, in that same graceful way of moving, and rested back. Tonight, he wore a loose, white button up shirt and black pants. I couldn't tell what material those pants were but they looked an awful lot like leather. The decision to leave his shirt halfway unbuttoned, completed the straight-from-a-vampire-movie look. Anyone else wearing that combination would look out of place and silly but Sorin looked like living, breathing, walking sex. When he leaned back on the couch, his shirt opened to reveal a smooth chest. One millimeter further, and nipple would be exposed. Normally, I'd bet any money that he did a lot of pushups to get the swell of pec that I was staring at, but I don't think vampires have to work out. According to Rhys, whatever you looked like when you turned, was it for eternity, just prettier. Sorin must have been awfully pretty as a human to look like this now. Some people have all the genetic luck. I tore my gaze away from his chest and met his eyes. He was smiling. He had seen me staring at him.

Oh my god, Kate. Try to act cool. You're a freaking creature of the night, not some virgin school girl with a crush.

"Why are you fighting your urges, Kate? I see that you want me. I can feel your desire; taste it on my tongue. Yet, you sit away from me and spend so much energy resisting."

I wasn't sure how to answer. There is no point in lying. He would know.

"Doesn't mean I have to do it. I still have a brain, and it is telling me to stay away. You are the master. I don't need to do something wrong and get banished. Plus, I am sure you have more than enough women."

"I do," he sat back up, closing the gap in his shirt and giving me a second to regain my focus. "I have many women who would share a night with me. You are different, though. There is something about you that I want to know more about; something interesting. I have not been intrigued by a woman in a very long time, Kate. I was starting to think I would never be again. Then, I saw you in the woods."

I felt embarrassed and looked away. "I bet you say that to all the girls."

He laughed again and the energy that hit me was like a being tickled. I was too surprised to join in. Was he laughing at me?

"I do not, in fact, say that to all the girls. And, for your knowledge, I do not lie. I may keep some things close to me and hide information, when I can but, I do not lie. I can feel you are uncomfortable so I will change the subject." I heard him shift in the couch and looked back at him. He was leaning forward, looking at those pages on his table again. "I want to share this with you but am not sure how much to share. You make take the files with you. I have made copies. I think, however, it is up to you if you want the pictures. I warn you, they are upsetting."

Before I could ask for clarity, I looked at the papers myself. Once I cleared my head and stopped thinking about his nipples, I could start to register what was in front of him. Flashes of colors and black words on white paper came into sharp focus.

Crime scene photos. He is looking at crime scene photos.