What Secrets to Tell

I taste blood dripping down my throat. Mm, Cameron. I was still a little groggy, but I open my eyes and look up at him. As gorgeous as ever, except for the look on his face.

"What's wrong?"

With a sad smile he responds. "Hi there, you. I was just really worried about you. How do you feel?"

He's always so caring. I can't believe a man like him exists in this world. "I'm ok now, still a little lightheaded. Did you figure out what was wrong?"

His face turned sour. "I had a friend come take a look at you. He said that since you're not drinking the blood of your true master, its taking longer for you to develop. Basically think of it like malnutrition. To keep you from getting sick, you need to be blooded more often"

I mull that over. Nothing too complicated, just more time to spend close to Cam. I wonder if I could sneak another kiss. Oh yes, as out of it as I was, I can't forget that. His lips are like pure bliss. "Are YOU okay, Cam? You look tired."

He takes a deep breath. "I'm ok, you've just been out a while, so I've been giving you more blood than I can spare."

I shoot upright. I'm still dizzy but I don't care. "Cam, go drink blood, now! Then get your ass in here and lay the f*ck down. I don't want to hear any arguments!"

He looks at me, shocked. He quietly asks, "Are you sure you're..."

I quickly interrupt him. "Go. Now!"

With that, he scurries out of the room. He comes back a few minutes later, lugging a mini fridge. "What the hell is that?"

He sets it down in the corner of the room, then looks at me with a big smile on his face. "I thought this was a good solution" He plugs it in, opens it, and grabs a pack of blood. I can tell he's already had at least one, because he seems to have more spring in his step. I'm relieved. I don't want to be the cause of his pain.

After he drains the bag and tosses it in a small trash can, he slides off his shoes and lays down on the bed, on top of the blanket. "There, are you happy, Miss bossy pants?"

Yeah, he's feeling better. I chuckle at his little joke. "Yes, I'm happy now. You need rest just as much as I do. Do you mind if I lay next to you?"

He blushes a bit but nods. He definitely remembers the kiss too. Damn, I didn't think about how he'd feel about it. Oh well, too late now. I snuggle under the blanket close to him and lay my head on his shoulder. He's warm. This is nice.

Cam must be comfortable, because he quickly dozes off. Good. After he's asleep, I lean up and kiss him on the cheek. Now that I think about it, he's sacrificed so much to help me. I can tell he's a good person, but so much for just one girl? Well, it's too late now. He's stuck with me. You'd be crazy to think that I'd let him go now. But, I'll take it slow. Other than the occasional guilty pleasure, I'll let him make the first move. I'll let him decide what he wants.

Laying back on his shoulder, I start to doze off myself. So warm, so comfortable. I wish we could stay like this.

A bit later, I wake up to an alarm tone. Sitting up, I look at Cam and tap him on the shoulder. He stirs and must hear the alarm. He plus his phone out of his pocket and presses the screen.

"Sorry," He says, his voice husky with sleep. " Time to feed you."

"Food or blood?" My stomach tells me it wants food. I haven't eaten in a while.

"Both, of course. I'm not going to starve you"

Cam sits up, I can tell he's still half asleep. He opens his arms, inviting me in. Well this is new. I like it. Hmm... maybe I can have fun with this. Time to give him a good wake up call.

Crawling out from under the blankets, I straddle his lap. This wakes him up quickly.

"Terra..." Ignoring him, I quickly bite his neck, a bit more force than normal. He jumps, but I feel him harden almost immediately. Putting pressure on my hips, pressing up against him. As I drink, he braces his hands on my hips. I couldn't begin to tell you how wonderful it felt to be things close to him. When I'm done, I remove my teeth, but stay where I am.

In a deep, husky voice, he practically whispers. "Terra.." He gently pushes me away enough to look me in the eye. Placing a hand on my cheek and drawing me in, he places a short but wonderful kiss on my lips. Then pulling away, he continues. "I think we need to talk."

Giving him a small smile, I say "Want to talk over some food."

Cam returns my smile. "Sounds wonderful."

A few minutes later, we're in the kitchen. Me sitting at the island, Cam at the stove cooking, a blood bag hanging from his mouth. We don't say anything until he's done cooking. When he lays a plate of pancakes and vegetarian sausage links in front of me, and sits down himself, is when he starts talking. "The breakfast I promised you" He gives me a grin. Boy is that grin cute. Then his face becomes serious. "Now, I've been keeping something from you that you should know. It's about the neck biting" Damn, I hit the nail on the head. Is my intuition getting better? He continues. "You see, there are certain vampiric rules you should be aware of. First off though, female vampires are extremely rare." He pauses and takes a bite of food. I do the same. Not gonna let this good food go to waste. "When a woman is turned into a vampire, if she isn't a specific blood type, she will die." Whoa. That's a bomb shell.

"Okay.. So I got lucky"

He gives me a small chuckle. "Yes, extremely lucky. Because females are so rare, when it comes to mating, it's very regulated." Regulated? Okay. I let him continue. "A male can only have one mate. And in order to officially mate, a blood contract is made. Do you know how that's done?"

I shake my head. He sighs. I can tell he really doesn't want to say the next part. "A female has to bite the neck of her intended to extend the offer. If the male bites her, the contract is sealed with their exchange." He said the last part so quietly, I had to listen very closely. I almost missed it.

So what he's saying... is a bit more extreme than what I thought. But I was close at least. A contract, huh? I've technically signed my half, plenty of times. That begs the question though... "Why didn't you stop me, if it put you in a tough situation? "

He looked down at his plate. It took him a long time to answer. "For the sake of full disclosure, I... I liked it. I enjoy... being around you."

Did I hear right? Am I dead and this is heaven? Wait, is this okay? Oh no, the self doubt is sinking in. I'm not good enough for him, by far. I honestly don't know how I even got this far. Something isn't right. Oh jeez, anxiety attack. Great. Last f*cking thing I need.

"Hey, Cam?"

He looks up, hope in his eyes. "Yes?"

Oh I don't want him to come crashing down, but I need to calm down first. "I'm having a panic attack" Im starting to hyperventilate. Oh gods no. "Can you please go get me my emergency med?"

He bolts up, almost knocking the chair back. "Absolutely! I'll be right back."

As he rushes off, I set my head on the nice cold counter and breath. In for 4, hold for 7, out for 8. Over and over until Cam gets back. By the time he's returned, I've calmed down a bit. I take the pill bottle from him and go ahead and take one. Downing it with the class of OJ Cam made for me. Yes, made. This man made homemade orange juice. In hindsight, that should have been an indicator that something big was coming. Oh well.

Cam sits beside me, waiting patiently to see if I'm ok. I keep my head on the counter, not wanting him to see me so flustered. Should I just ask him why me? I've never been shy before. Best course of action to get the answers you want is to be blunt, right?

Keeping my head on the counter, I ask. "Why, Cam? We've only just met, and I'm nothing special. Why do you care about me?" Jeez, I sound like a moody teenager...

He answers without any hesitation. "I think you see the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. You're smart, and sarcastic, and funny. I genuinely enjoy spending time with you. Since you've been here, I don't mind being at home anymore. Before I met you...I worked so much that I hardly spent time at home. The house was just too empty. Since you've been here, it's like a whole new world for me...." His voice is filled with emotion. I can't see his face, but I swear, he's crying.

With the Goddess as my witness, that's the most... heartwarming thing I've ever heard. I... I just don't have words to respond. My mouth wont move. My brain wont produce words. Tears start slipping down my cheeks. A thought finally pops into my head, but I can't put it to words.

Standing, still crying, I embrace Cam. Hugging him as tightly as I can stand. He returns the gesture, squeezing me hard. Am I really about to do this? I look him in the eye, and before he can say anything, I kiss him, hard. One of those deep kisses that leaves you breathless. Cam's shocked at first, but quickly recovers and kisses me back. His mouth engulfs mine. He tenderly nips my lower lip, asking a silent question.

I open my mouth to his, and our tongues slide over each other in a passionate dance. When we finally pull apart to catch our breath, I lean my forehead against his.

"Cam, I want to be with you. It's... really hard for me to say this. I've never been in a position like this... Is us being together okay? With you serving the role as my caretaker for now?"

Its a while before he answers. "Honestly, it could get messy either way. But it'd be more trouble if we didn't. No matter what though, I know I want you by my side."

Nodding against his head, I close my eyes. "Then lets make it official. But I do have a few conditions."