Naked Came the Vampire (Hypernaturals 1)

Stay in Your Place, Male

I pointed out "All the female Vampires in the world, and he wastes time with humans? No way they can keep up."

"Valuable in the porn industry, don't you think?" Jessica teased. "Most porn I have seen is about a guy that can last forever, and pound the living shit out of his sex partners, man or woman, various orifices."

"Maybe. I am not an expert on the subject. I prefer the older, more gentle stuff to the new, more violent offerings. I guess it's good there is at least one actor not infecting the actresses. Whatever. What about the Council? Any male's ever on the Council?"

"No." She said firmly.

"Anywhere in the world?"

"No." She repeated.

"Glass ceiling?" I quizzed.

"I suppose. Most men who are Vampires don't seem to care." She looked a little embarrassed.

"Really? Not that I want on the Council: my main ambition revolves around waiting for you to rest up enough to take pity on me and haul me back to bed. Most people have more ambition than I do. I am the least accomplished of my siblings."

"There are so few that perhaps it has never come up." Jessica paused. Considered something. "Just so we are clear, it's not pity I am taking on you. You know I am enjoying every moment of our time together. I could not hide that from you if I tried. You are a very intelligent, pleasant companion that reads graphic novels, as well as a pleasing boy-toy."

"I was hoping the sounds you were making were not of terror." I plowed on. "To the main point about my new lot in life: Any chance no council membership for the Vamp-dudes is because we would get absolutely nowhere?"

She looked helpless. I was sorry about pinning her down like this. Whatever Vamp-world is, she did not make it. "Maybe."

The one-word answers were telling.

"Males are not needed for reproduction." I mused. " 'Baby' Vampires come from humans. There are billions of those tasty morsels standing about waiting to be chomped, so even at the low reproduction rate we are talking about with Vampires, there are going to be plenty of new Vamps."

Jessica agreed "Correct. It is hard enough keeping the big secret as it is. There need only to be enough Vampires to place trusted people into power across society, but no more than are required. The more people in on a secret, the harder it is to keep. Recruiting is not something we do. I came over as an accident: a passionate moment gone awry. Same as you."

"Do you think that the regard for males is in any way affected by the fact that we are not really needed for anything?" I asked that pretty darkly.

"Maybe. Being a female Vampire is very empowering. It means being superior in every physical way. No longer fearing men. There is not a human or Vampire man that is a physical threat. Being a Vampire woman means being in control of the relationship. If I want sex, I can have it. I have to feed anyway so I might as well get laid too. It's all my choice. The who. The when. Not counting you. You were and are a gift. An exception so rare as to not be believed. Despite all that empowerment, being Vampire means hiding. Living in fear of discovery. One human is not a threat. As a species..."

"Males Vampires relative to female's is a rounding error on a spreadsheet. I get the feeling that human males are food. The longer you are a Vampire the more food-like the boys become."

Jessica did not like that idea. "You were not just food to me. Yes: I was hungry. Yes: I was horny. Talking to you, especially on the boat, you became so much more than food. Not unless you mean food for the soul."