Vampire Food 08: He Smelled Like Peach Pie (14 page)

The admission stunned him. He hadn’t known that it was so horrible for her. “Did you feel this way when Vidar took you?”

“Yes, but I was able to manage it better. I knew that I had tasks to perform and that if I didn’t do what I needed to do, we would all die.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

Em shrugged, her eyes glazing over with tears. “I don’t know. I guess that I had no desire to do that either. Part of me was content to wallow in nothingness and simply fade away. It felt as if it would take too much energy to do anything about it.”

He dragged her over onto his chest, wrapping her tightly in his arms. “I had no idea that it was that bad. I wish that you had tried to explain. It would have been a simple matter of getting Salt and Russell to come back. You felt better once we were all together again, didn’t you?”

“Yes. All the odd feelings faded and my hunger returned with vengeance. I wanted sex, and I wanted
life
again. That can’t happen now, Rory. I have no illusions that things will be that simple.”

She was unfortunately, right. Things would not be as simple as him and Salt returning to her side. What would happen as he and Salt denied themselves her company, would they become lonely and reclusive as she had? If they didn’t allow themselves to have sex, would their urges grow with the lack of contact? Rory figured it probably wouldn’t be as dramatic as long as they kept themselves occupied, but given the right amount of time, they would both become just as Em had. She was as imprinted on their minds as they were upon hers.

“Exactly, Rory. That is why I want you with Mia. You will give her comfort and she will give the two of you sanity. You already love her, not in a sexual way, but it is something. You find her attractive and so does Salt. I’m not asking you to do something that you wouldn’t do naturally under different circumstances.”

It was the first time that Em had heard his thoughts in a dream. Usually it was only spoken conversation that passed between their sleeping minds. Her reasoning also made sense. It was a simple desire to remain monogamous that was stopping him. Mia was amazingly attractive and about as close to a replica of Em that would ever exist. “Okay. We have a practical bargain and if Mia is willing, Salt and I will devote our time to her. I only fear that we will create a new beast and imprint on Mia.”

“You are already a part of Mia. I’m sure if things ever return to normal that she can find two other men to spend her nights with. Rory, I honestly don’t want this, any of it. I would walk away from Shanagar this moment if I thought I had a choice. You understand that, don’t you?”

“Of course I do. Do you want to keep meeting in dreams? At the very least, I want to know how you are doing.”

“That would be wonderful.”

“Go rest your mind. If you have an urge to share your body with Shanagar and Russell, then do it with a clear heart. Try not to fall in love with him.”

Em giggled. “I will try, but you know how well that has gone in the past.”

“You have a huge heart.”

“I thought that I no longer had a heart. For that matter, why do I still have a brain? Why doesn’t it dissolve with the rest of our organs?”

“The brain is muscle that simply fills with life fluid. It is unlike your other organs that are destroyed by vampire blood because they are no longer needed. You technically don’t have a heart, but it wasn’t the organ that caused the emotion, it was your brain, and that is an amazing thing.
You
are an amazing woman, my love.”

“So are you, Rory. Well…An amazing man. Wanna fuck before we rest?”

He crinkled his nose, his eyes tearing up. “I would love to, but the moment I considered the act…” Rory gagged. “I can’t, Em. I’m so sorry.”

* * * *

He was gone from her dream and Em was left with the emptiness of his disappearance. A shiver ran through her flesh and she opened her eyes, lifting her head. She was lying upon Shanagar, his arms tightly around her body. His eyes were opened and he stared at her. “Are you okay?”

Her tears fell unbidden upon his chest, and she swiped at them angrily. “I don’t know.”

“I owe you an apology. What I just did was wrong, but I had to know the truth.”

“What did you do?”

“I listened from a distance. Rory isn’t the only one proficient in dream connections.”

He was so amazingly warm. She wanted Russell to shift and climb his furry body up onto her back to make her warm. The dream had chilled her to the core.

Shanagar reached over and gave Russell a shake. He was instantly awake. “What’s wrong?”

“Turn into a beast and sleep on Em. She wants to feel our heat.”

He shrugged, gazing at her. “Are you okay?”

“I just woke up from a dream with Rory. He can smell me even in dreams.”

Russell reached over and stroked her cheek. “I’m so sorry.”

“We can talk, but the moment the dream turned sexual, the smell came out in full force.”

“I guess that answers that question. So what was the verdict?”

“We came to a mutual agreement. For now, Rory and Salt are going to make Mia’s dreams come true and you and Shanagar are going to keep me from losing my desire to live again. Well…if that’s okay with the two of you.”

“Anything for you,” replied Russell.

She turned to look at Shanagar. “I would really enjoy that. Can we go back to sleep now?”

“Sure. But please get out of my mind, I don’t like it much.” Em closed her eyes, laying her head down on his chest. She felt Russell crawl softly up onto her back, his warmth sealing her tighter to Shanagar’s chest. Em felt safe and content, but as with many things in life, it was but a momentary illusion.

Salt opened one eye, staring at Rory. Rory had pulled a chair up to the side of the bed. His feet were on the edge of the mattress and he was leaning upon his bent knees with his elbows. It always amazed Salt that such a large, muscular man could be so flexible. “What’s wrong?”

“Em, what else. I just left her dream. I had to because the scent was unbearable.”

“You smelled her in a dream?”

“Everything was okay while we were chatting, and then she mentioned sex, and the odor hit me like a brick. It was so bad.”

Salt sighed. “I’m sorry. What did she say?”

Rory relayed the information to Salt and then sat back waiting for a reaction. Mia sat up quickly, shimmying up on the bed to sit on her pillow with her legs crossed. “Do I have a say in this?”

Salt chuckled. “I forgot that you could move that fast. I guess you weren’t asleep.”

“I was. I don’t sleep sound enough to remain asleep while you two are chatting.”

Rory grimaced. “I’m sorry. I was upset about what happened. I usually talk to Em. When she isn’t around, I talk to Salt or Russell. I couldn’t go back to sleep.”

Mia sighed and leaned forward, stroking his leg. “I guess that I could be a bit more sympathetic. I can’t imagine how hard it must be for the two of you to know that you can’t be with Em. I know how much you love her. As far as myself, I would be interested in being with the two of you. You will have to be gentle with me. As you know, I’ve only been with Salt and that was only once. Can I ask a question?”

Salt sat up, feeling weird to be the only one who was lying down. “Ask it, Mia.”

“Which one of you is bigger?”

He resisted an urge to chuckle and could see that Rory was doing to same. “Rory is. Why do you ask?”

“I was just thinking that the first time with my ass should be with the one who is smaller. Is that a valid concern?”

“I suppose. Anything that happens will be with your consent, Mia. We would never force anything on you.”

“I know that, Salt. It’s just a bit intimidating to be considering this. Are you sure Em is okay with this? I didn’t invite you in here with the intention of having sex with you…Well, maybe the thought crossed my mind, but it wasn’t my main intention.”

“Yes, Em is a realistic woman and she is okay with this.”

“Are you sure, Rory? I mean…I don’t know. I feel bad for her. This really sucks. I want this with the two of you. It is the ultimate dream, but…”

Rory held out his hand and Mia took it. He gave it a soft squeeze. “Mia, you will actually be helping us out. Salt and I are creatures of imprint also, and we are used to having sex with Em. We will both suffer without the soft touch of a woman. Em will suffer without more than one man in her bed. For us to be with you, frees her to be with Shanagar without feeling guilty. It goes both ways.”

“I didn’t think of that. So you are using me as a balance point?”

“I guess you could say that. Of course that point would be moot if we weren’t interested in you in the first place. Salt and I are particular in who we would choose. Don’t think we are asking just to make Em feel better.”

Mia flashed him a smile. “That thought did cross my mind. Am I allowed to bite you?”

Rory obviously hadn’t anticipated that question, of course, neither had Salt. “Why would you want to bite me, Mia?”

“Because I was unconscious when I was changed and I have wondered what vampire blood tastes like. Is it different than human blood?”

“Yes. It doesn’t taste nearly as good.”

“Does Em’s blood taste good?”

Rory shrugged. “I bite Em to harass her, not to feed from her. I guess it tastes okay. If anything it is kind of bitter.”

“I think it tastes sour, like biting into a lemon.” Salt shrugged. “Although, if she has recently fed, it is more salty.”

Rory chuckled. “I don’t remember what salt tastes like.”

Mia giggled. “Are you in a habit of tasting him?”

Salt now had his chance to release his laughter. Rory looked appalled.

“No, I’m not. I don’t think that I have ever had the pleasure,” Rory replied with a chagrined smile.

It was Salt’s turn to be appalled. He didn’t want Mia to think that there was anything sexual going on between him and Rory. There were many vampires in the caves that had same sex relations, but he wasn’t one of them.

“That is an interesting tidbit. Although…” She stroked Salt’s leg. “I already know that Em’s men only have sex with Em, not one another.”

“That is fact, Mia,” confirmed Rory. “I’ve never really been attracted to men.”

“Are you attracted to me?”

He nodded, and Mia smiled. She turned to Salt. “This is good with you, too?”

“Yeah. I hadn’t planned on sleeping with you again, but now that the opportunity has presented itself, I would love to take advantage of it.”

* * * *

Mia wanted it also. The only problem was that she had a premonition about how to help Em. It wasn’t a complete image, but Mia knew that they needed to travel far to the east and then south, maybe to Florida. Now she wasn’t sure if she wanted that to happen. She wanted to know what it would be like to be with Rory and Salt. She wanted to try anal sex and dual sex. This was her dream, and if she told them what needed to be done, then her dream would slip away.

Mia wasn’t sure if the premonition would cure Em and take away the scent, but she thought it might. Of course, then she would be robbing Em of a chance to be with Shanagar. The feeling that she had wasn’t impending as if it had to happen as soon as possible. Couldn’t they both have what they wanted for a while? Mia knew that her choice to delay the announcement of her premonition was probably slightly dishonest, but fate had just placed her biggest fantasy in front of her, and she wasn’t willing to let it go just yet.

“So when can we start?”

Russell was licking the back of her ear and it tickled. Em squirmed, giggling as he stood on her back, walking on her in a repetitious way that felt like a furry massage. She had no idea what animal had such large, soft feet, but it felt wonderful.

Shanagar opened his eyes, laughing heartily as he looked upward. “What the hell are you supposed to be?”

It was a rhetorical question because until Russell changed back to a man, he couldn’t answer. Em snuggled down into Shanagar’s chest. It felt so wonderful to be lying on top of him. She could feel the subtle ripples in his body beneath her and every tiny shift he made caused the muscles to bulge and contract noticeably. Russell walked on her back in the most glorious way, his overly large paws were like soft pads as he rocked back and forth over her flesh. She was completely relaxed, Shanagar softly stroking her hair. Em moaned in delight, the radiant bliss of their heat warming her greatly.

Russell stepped off her, shifting back into a man and then leaning and nipping her ass. Em had gone to bed with a nightgown on that she had found in a drawer. She had no idea who the bedroom belonged to, but either they were dead or they simply hadn’t returned to it the night before. It was possible that they were human or some other breed that would want to sleep during the night. She rolled from Shanagar’s chest and pranced over to lock the door. She had the feeling that she was being ogled and swirled gracefully before sauntering back to the bed. “So! How are we proceeding?”

Russell grinned. “I think that you should remove that stupid nightgown and let us see your delicious body.”

Obviously, Russell had a change of heart during sleep. He had seemed slightly reluctant to engage her in sex, and now he was encouraging it. Em wondered what had altered his thinking. She gestured to him with her finger and when he got up, Em walked across to the opposite side of the room. In the softest possible whisper, she asked, “You sure?”

“Positive. I want to share the woman I love with the man I have idolized all my life. I realized last night that this is a dream come true. I kept wondering what it would feel like to have a warm dick inside you with my own. I’ve gotten so used to Rory and Salt that I imagine it will feel like an inferno.”

Em hadn’t even considered that. It was an intriguing idea. “So you’re okay with this?”

“Are you?”

“Yeah,” she replied reluctantly.

“Don’t look so mortified. The three of us would rather have you happy in bed with Shanagar than depressed with just me. I have no qualms about the fact that little old me is not good enough.”