EPOV
“Shhh, Sookie. I`m just comforting you. Go to sleep. I`ll look after you.” I pulled her down in our previous position and kissed her neck.
I could feel that she was still in turmoil, but I refrained from pushing any emotions on her. One day I would explain the full meaning of the blood bond, but not just yet. I could feel the pull of the sun.
“Sookie. I need to go into vampire sleep now. That`s a very deep sleep, as you might know, but if you need me, you can wake me up. I`ll be groggy, but I can be woken up.”
I pulled her closer to me. I could feel that she was very much awake and that her thoughts were spinning. I wished I had her ability to read thoughts, just for a few minutes, but I would just have to trust that she ended up being comfortable with everything – and with the bond to me.
I could feel sleep starting to wash over me.
“I hope to wake up with you here in bed, Sookie.” I pulled her even closer. The last thing I felt was her turning around and giving me a kiss. I couldn`t have gone to sleep happier.
SPOV
I could feel the exact moment he fell asleep because that was the moment I stopped having so many emotions running through me.
I was wide awake. I usually sleep like a log, but now I couldn`t close my eyes. What was happening to me? Could he control my emotions now that we were bonded? Was it some kind of glamor?
It was with good intentions, I knew that. Erik had only wanted to help me when he sent me the calming emotions, but I still disliked it. I had always welcomed the fact that I could not be glamored because even if glamoring was not allowed in this country, it still happened. Murder was also not allowed, but people still killed each other.
Now a vampire could control my emotions? Or maybe any vampire? I shuddered at the thought. What if just any vampire could decide how I should feel? I could never live with that. But could I live with it if it was only Erik that could push his emotions into me?
My brain was spinning. I`m not who you would call a philosophical person. I usually know how I feel about things right away and act on it. This was harder. I liked Erik and had acted on it, but now something happened between us that I didn`t trust and I was not really sure what to do.
My instincts told me to gather my things and run as fast as I could. I felt like one of those cartoons that has a devil on one shoulder and an angel on the other – both telling the character what to do. My devil was telling me that I didn`t really know Erik and that I couldn`t trust him.
I was waiting for the angel on my other shoulder to have a say, but she never turned up.
I went out of bed, pulled the bed-spread around me and went to sit on the couch. I lay down and stared on the ceiling. It had lime paintings of Vikings being taken by valkyries and brought to Valhalla.
That made me think of Erik`s life as a human and how he must have felt about being turned. How he must have felt about living for over a 1000 years and having to adjust to everything new. To watch people being born and die.
He had turned a few women into vampires, but they had all died. It must have been terrible. I had lost Sam and it had almost killed me. Erik had lost so much. And now he had bonded for the very first time in his existence, knowing that I would most likely die before him.
I shook my head. As I said, I`m not a philosophical person and I figured I would rather take a hot shower and try to get some sleep instead of thinking about problems I couldn`t solve.
On my way to the bath, I checked what Erik had brought me. Some jeans and a blouse, both were the kind I might have bought for myself and a very beautiful light blue dress. I needed a dress?
He had also brought me some underwear. Some white and comfortable and some very sexy light blue underwear. I checked the sizes. They were perfect. The jokes about men not knowing their wives` bra sizes did not take Erik into consideration. Of course I wasn`t his wife.
He had also brought me a vanity bag. It was apparently for a much vainer person than me because it was huge. I looked it over. It had a variety of shampoos, hair products, make-up and crèmes.
It also had a razor and some shaving foam. I suddenly remembered how long ago it had been since I had shaven. Shaving was not at the top of my priorities, but I figured I should shave my legs and armpits for appearances. After all someone was actually seeing my skin these days.
The shower was perfect. I probably used up all the hot water in central Copenhagen, but it also cleared my mind. Instead of running, as I wanted to do, I would stay here, get some sleep and hopefully have Erik explain how he could suddenly control my emotions.
EPOV
Before I even woke up, I could smell her lovely smell. She had apparently taken a shower or a bath because she smelled of soap and shampoo. She also smelled of something more chemical. I lifted her arm and shook my head.
“You don`t have to do that for me, you know.” I whispered to her.
She opened her eyes and looked at me. “Don`t have to do what?”
“Shave. I liked the little downs on your body.”
“Ok.” She said slowly, rolling her eyes. “I don`t think that would be what most men would tell me.”
I laughed out loud. I loved to be allowed to say just the sentence I was going to say now: “I`m not `most men`, Sookie.”
She stretched her body, letting one of her breasts escape the warmth of the duvet. I took that as my cue and bent down and kissed it. Surprisingly she took the duvet and covered her breast, leaving my poor mouth with nothing to kiss. Well, there was always her sweet mouth, but when I turned to kiss it, she stopped me.
“No, Erik.” She said. I was puzzled as I could feel a very strong wave of lust coming from her. She was apparently restraining herself.
She turned over on her side, lifted her head up and looked me scrutinizingly in the eyes.
“Are you controlling my emotions somehow, Erik?”
I did not see that one coming, and for a flicker of a second, I may have looked guilty. I pushed everything I had of innocence into my face. It was not a look I sported often so I wasn`t really sure I managed to pull it off.
“Something happened after the bonding. I suddenly felt so much more lust and I think some of it may have come from you. And last night you didn`t just comfort me with your sweet lullaby. I felt soothing emotions coming from you.”
She was accusing me of soothing her and making her horny?? I rolled my eyes.
“Sookie, it`s all for your protection.” I slipped my hand around her waist. “The bond does make it easier for the vampire to protect the human.”
“And for the vampire to control the human?” She asked.
“Yes, probably that too.”
We lay silent for a while.
“So now I have lost my free will? You`re telling me I might as well have let you turn me, except I will age and die?”
“No, Sookie. Your free will is what I enjoy about you. I like the fact that I can`t glamour you and I am not going to `control you`, as you say. You are still welcome to let me make you one of us, but that is one of the things you can use your free will to decide.” I smiled, proud of my little speech.
“But you could control me if you wanted to?”
“Yes, Sookie. I could control you if I wanted to. But I didn`t bond with you to control you, but to protect you. Now that you are my bonded, you don`t have to fear any other vampires trying to control you.” I raised my voice slightly on the word `my`.
“I am going to protect you, Sookie. In return I want your company, not your obedience. And it is a good thing that we can feel each other`s emotions. It means I can be by your side the minute I feel fear from you, for instance. Of course it is handy that I can feel your lust too. Like now.” I threw all innocence overboard. The look didn`t fit me anyway.
She jumped out of bed.
“Erik, I can`t have sex with you now.”
I was by her in vampire speed. “And why not?” I whispered in her ear.
“Because I can`t be sure if I want to have sex with you or if I`m just feeling your lust.” She looked away.
“Oh, you want to have sex with me.” I bent down and sniffed her. “I don`t need a fucking bond to know that.”
SPOV
I looked at him, not really sure of what I was going to do. Then I remembered something I should have done hours ago. I hadn`t called Amalie to ask her if she could look after the bar even longer.
My phone was in my purse and I went to retrieve it on the coffee table. I have no idea how my purse had ended up there. I pressed the button for Amalie`s number when Erik turned around and went for the bathroom.
“If you need me, I`ll be in the shower.” He said. Just when Amalie said “Hello?”, I heard the water being turned on. The sound of it turned me on too.
“Hi, Amalie.”
“Sookie!”
“Yeah, look I`m going to ask you a huge favor now and I`m really sorry. I`m kind of caught up in this whole Erik-business.” I sighed. “And I need your help at the bar. Could you look after it until I`m home? I`m not sure when I`ll be back, but it could be a little while.”
“Sookie. I took care of your bar for – what? – three or four months when Sam died, remember? A few days or weeks are no problem. Don`t worry. That`s what friends are for.”
“Oh, Amalie. Have I ever told you that you are the best friend I could ever have?” I was so relieved.
“Yes, you have. And I love you for it.” She paused. “Look, it`s dark out. Don`t you have some big, hot Viking you want to talk to instead of your old girlfriend?” She stressed the word `talk` to make sure I knew she wasn`t referring to any verbal conversation.
I sighed.
“Ok, Sooks, what`s up?”
“I don`t really want to talk about it.”
Amalie laughed. “What else is new? But you are OK?”
I had to think. Of course I was OK.
“Amalie, I`m just fine. It`s just that… I don`t know.”
“Sookie. Don`t worry. I`m here for you, you know. Call me when you want to talk or stop by and I`ll put the kettle on. You know I`m always here to listen.”
I was touched and I told her so. We said our goodbyes and I hung up. I noticed the water was still running. My body wanted to go out there, but my brain held onto the brakes.
I picked up the phone and dialed Jason`s number. It had been weeks since I had talked to him and I figured he needed to know I wasn`t home, just in case he tried to call me. Which he of course wouldn`t do. Jason only called me when he needed money. Since I had told him I wouldn`t give him any, he had stopped calling.
I got his answering machine. Perfect. He was probably out with some bimbo he had picked up.
No one would ever guess that Jason and I were siblings if they judged from the way we lived our lives. Well, at least the way I lived my life before I met the sexy vampire in my shower.
I listened to the water and knew what I had to do. I got up.
When I went through the bathroom door I was hit by a wave of lust. Erik was at full mast and apparently taking care of his “problem” himself.
“I didn`t think you would join me.” He smiled.
I went over to him in the shower and started going down on my knees. When I was halfway down, Erik stopped me and raised me up to my feet again.
“No, Sookie.”
What?!
EPOV
Sookie was just about to go down on me when I stopped her.
“As much as I love the sentiment, this is not what I want from you right now. I don`t want you on your knees when you are afraid of losing your free will and being submissive.”
I kissed her and let my hand wander down her stomach and between her thighs. She let out a moan and I felt her lust through the bond. I worked hard at keeping my lust to myself. Not very rewarding, but sometimes you have to think ahead. I was being wise – and maybe a little considerate.
My fingers worked their magic and I enjoyed the combination of Sookie`s little moans and the heavy lust she sent me. Fuck, I enjoyed the fact that she had come to the bathroom in the first place. I was afraid I would have to relieve my lust without her assistance. That would have been most unfortunate.
I bent down to suck on her breast. It could push me over the edge way too soon, but how could I leave her breasts alone? They were an open invitation especially with her chest going up and down from heavy breathing.
I rocked my hip against her thigh. Well, it wasn`t exactly my hip that touched her thigh, but something aching from being surrounded by her.
When she came, I almost came with her. I pulled her legs up around my waist and plunged into her, riding the last waves of her orgasm. It didn`t take me many strokes to come and I couldn`t help but open up my emotions through the bond. My control was gone.
The full push of my lust, happiness and the orgasm apparently did her in too. She tightened all her muscles and released them again some seconds later with a surprised yell. I loved her little trembles after an orgasm and I had some going in my own body too.
We kissed very gently. I was thrilled she was adjusting to the bond. Well, I hoped she was adjusting to the bond. It would make everything easier.