An Annoyance

Lawrence spends the whole 2 hours (I counted) that Cam was gone effectively annoying the ever living hell out of me. I spend the two hours doing my best to ignore him. After he asked that unfortunate question, I simply walked away and hid in one of the many rooms.

The one I wandered into must have been the room Cam set aside for my books, because it was lined with beautiful white built-in shelves. He at some point had already stacked my precious babies on the shelves neatly. Wanting to explore my new paradise uninterrupted, I lock the door behind me.

Of course, this doesn't seem to deter Mr. Crazy, following me around. He's standing at the door saying random things to try and get a reaction from me. Well too bad for him. I won't give in and give him the satisfaction.

As I walk around the room, which is the size of a small house, Lawrence starts asking random questions. "So, are you two going to do it soon?"

I run my hands along the spines of a few of my favorite books. Cam did a really good job organizing them. "Do you two think you'll want kids? Tiny vampire feet running around the house?" Ugh, he's getting more annoying. "Are you guys going to have a ceremony, or just screw and be done with it?"

Okay, that's the last straw! Right as I'm about to go out there and give him a piece of my mind, I hear Cam come through the front door.

"Ah, lover boy is home. Let's go, shall we sweetheart?" I hear Lawrence start to walk away. Damn, I just want to haul off and punch him! But for Cam's sake, I try to stay calm. Waiting until I don't hear Lawrence anymore, I unlock the door and peek my head out. No sign of him. He must've gone to the kitchen. Good. Cam needs to be around so that we have a buffer.

I walk out of what may as well be called the library and head in the direction of the kitchen. When I come around the corner, Lawrence is where he was before, sitting on the counter, swinging his legs. Cam was standing at an opposite counter peeling vegetables. If Lawrence didn't spew sh*t every time he opened his mouth, it would have been a nice scene.

But let's face it, Lawrence is one of those guys who will say stuff just to get under your skin. I highly doubt he can keep his mouth shut for long. I walk in and take a seat at the island, as far away from Lawrence as possible.

Cam looks up at me and smiles. "So, did you two get along while I was gone?"

Its an innocent question, but it makes me want to groan. Instead I give him a smirk and say "As much as you can expect." It's the only safe answer to give.

Lawrence chuckles. Cam looks at him sideways and he stops. "Thought so." Cam says. What did I just witness? I know they said they were close, but I didn't think Cam could shut him down so easily. I hate to say it, but I may have to just hide behind Cam for now.

A while later, Cam sets down a few plates of one of my favorite meals, looking very satisfied by the look of anticipation on my face. What can I say, I love good food. It has a way of bringing people together, and making you feel warm inside.

Cam sits next to me, and Lawrence on the other side of him. There isn't much talking as we start eating. This isn't so bad. Cam did an excellent job on the food, and Lawrence is behaving. Not bad at all.

Cam starts the conversation. "So, bud, how have things been at the office lately?"

Lawrence makes a face. "Not good, I can tell you that. They started the investigation into you-know-who, and its gotten hectic. The higher ups are calling for blood since there has only been one female this generation and she sitting over there." He points his fork at me. "Id keep my head low if I were you, pal." Lawrence claps Cam on the shoulder. It makes a loud noise, but Cam doesn't seem to notice.

"What does he mean, Cam?" I hope to get an answer. He promised no more secrets, and I'll hold him to it.

Cam looks at me with troubled eyes. "Well, when I found you, I of course had to fill out an incident report. Abandoning your fledgling is a big deal, especially when, like Lawrence said, it involves the only female vampire to be made this generation. After I submitted my report, they opened an investigation and are looking for the person who did it, so that he can be punished properly."

Wow. He actually told me everything. I don't feel like he's hiding anything. This means one step closer to us bonding. The thought makes me nervous, but excited. "Will I have to get involved?"

I asked Cam, but it's Lawrence who answers. "The council doesn't want to put stress on a new female, it could mess up your hormones and make you sick. So they'll keep you out of it as long as possible. At most, if they find a suspect, they may ask to draw your blood so that they can cross reference it. Other than that though, you can stay out of it."

Holy crap, that's the most he's said to me without being insulting. Cam and I both look at him, slightly shocked.

"What?" He asks defensively. "I'm not always an ass."

After we eat, Lawrence says goodbye and takes his leave. Feeling like I can finally breath again, I start to relax. Cam looks a bit more at ease too.

"Why do you put up with that guy, hun?"

A light blush creeps across his cheeks before he answers. "Well, I'll admit, he's a jerk at times, but his heart is always in the right place. Earlier, when he talked about us making things official, he said that because I can get in serious trouble if it goes on for too long."

I think I'm starting to see what he means. "If What goes on too long?"

Giving me a small smile, he says, "Our pending relationship status. When vampires mate, we can tell by the smell of their blood. You'll see what I mean when you develop more. But for us, I smell like you, but you don't smell like me. Meaning you've staked your claim, and I haven't. Men aren't allowed to keep a woman waiting too long, in case something happens."

This is becoming so surreal. A race made up of predominately men, revering women because they're uncommon? Its unlike most of the other races I've seen. I think about what Cam said though. The longer we wait, the harder for him it'll be. I'm the one who put in the stupid conditions, not thinking about how it effected him. Damn, I'm trash.

Making a quick decision, I grab Cam's hand and pull him towards the bedroom. He asks what's going on, but I'm too lost in thought to answer. The reason I wanted to go on a date was so that we could see what it was like being together in an unfamiliar setting. That's always a big indicator of how someone handles stress. But, I have an idea. I think I know a way to make things awkward without having to leave the house. Let's face it, if I cant go outside without getting dizzy, it'll be a while before our date.

Once we reach the bedroom, all I say is "I have an idea." Then head to the bathroom, having let go of his hand. He follows me anyway.

"What's your idea?"

I look up at him, into those beautiful green eyes and explain why I wanted a date. After going over that, I tell him my intentions. "if we take a bath together, it'll create similar emotions. If we can handle that well, then we can go ahead and bond."

Cam looks uncertain. "But darling, you said..."

"Yes, I know. I still want to go out and do something with you, but it'll be some time before my body can handle that."

He rubs the back of his neck. "True, I suppose. But are you sure a bath is a good idea? I may not be able to keep my hands off of you."

I shoot him a wink. "I'm counting on it." Then I lean over the tub and start the faucet, running steamy water into the basin. "Do you think you can handle the heat?"

His eyes had been pointedly looking at my butt while I was bent over, but I don't care. In fact, I'm flattered. With his cheeks flush, he looks back up at my face. With a grin, he says "Only if you can, my love."