Blake
Trudging through the halls of the mansion in which I lived, I let my eyes wander over the walls of the hallway, taking in the paintings of my ancestors, of my mother and father, of my older sister. All of them posing for the painting. Dressed elegantly. Looking regal.
My family.
All of them.
They loved me.
And they deserved to know what I was going through.
I sighed as I dragged my tired feet along the wooden floor, the floorboards creaking ominously under my weight, almost as if the boards were struggling to hold me.
It wasn't like I was a big guy. I wasn't really. I was tall, but not too muscular. My muscles were well-defined ... something that I found women seemed to enjoy drooling over. I just looked after my physique. I had to. I was going to be in this body for a long time.
I stopped by one of the windows on the side of the hallway, the long curtains draped across it. Reaching out, I tugged on the heavy material until I could see a gap.
Sunlight streamed through the tiny space.
I hissed at the sight and let the curtain fall back quickly, inspecting my hand for any sun damage.
So that was why the windows were covered today.
If it was a cloudy day, a rainy day, a foggy day, the curtains would be opened to let in some daylight. But because we were in the middle of a heatwave, the sun seemed relentless, burning everyone during the day and leaving lingering heat behind at night.
I never opened the curtains in my own bedroom after being burned by the sun many times in the past, so I never really knew what the weather was doing outside.
Satisfied that the sun hadn't burned my skin this time, I carried on walking down the long hallway towards my dad's office at the end.
The mansion was home to everyone in the Hemlock clan. There weren't many of us here at the moment, only around sixty or so. Quite often, someone would move to another clan or want to live on their own, but still be under the protection of our clan. Sometimes, we'd have other vampires want to join us for a bit, if only for a change of scenery.
Because we lived for so long, it was common for vampires to move around, country to country, clan to clan. I'd lived with a distant cousin and her clan in Italy for a few years a while ago and I'd just spoken with a friend about living with his clan in Bulgaria for a bit, even though I'd not long come back from a stint in Norway.
Not sure if I would go to Bulgaria now.
Not now that I'd met ... him.
A shudder worked its way up my spine as I remembered how good I'd felt at fantasising about him last night. How intense my orgasm had been, despite it being Amaya on her knees.
Shit.
I was so confused. Sure, I could appreciate a good looking guy when I saw one. I'd even nibbled on a few in the past. But to find a man so desperately attractive ... one that had me begging for him to take me ...
Did this mean I was gay?
I couldn't get off when Amaya touched me. And she was fucking hot. My body had only seemed to react when I thought about him. And my hand ... went straight to my ass. Almost like an automatic response. As if that was what I craved. I'd never done anything like that to myself before ... but that was all my body had wanted.
And it was all because of ...
Him.
Shaking my head, I lifted my eyes to scan the paintings once again, feeling their eyes bore into me, watching me knowingly, as if they knew what was going on in my life, the thoughts moving across my mind.
I had been alive for years. I'd never questioned myself as much as I had in the last few hours. I'd always just been ... me. Lived the life of a normal vampire. Tried to be a good son. Brother. Friend.
I never forced myself on anyone. Never had to.
Even when I came across a human who didn't fall for my charm, I would shrug it off and find another willing victim. It was never long before someone else came along, gave me their neck to nibble on, their blood to taste.
Reaching the door at the end of the hallway, I ran a hand through my hair and knocked once on the solid wood.
"Come in." My father's voice was deep and echoed through the door.
I twisted the brass door knob and pushed open the door. Stepping inside and pulling the door shut behind me, I let my eyes wander around the large room. No matter how many times I'd been in here, it still left me in awe.
Two walls were covered in floor to ceiling bookcases, filled with books about our kind, about other supernaturals, describing age-old treaties and long-forgotten wars. These books were quite political in nature. The books I enjoyed reading the most were housed in the huge library near the front of the mansion. In that room, there were tales of our ancestors, of how we came to be, of our sometimes confusing relationship with humans. Those books described our history, our friends and enemies, our way of living. There was even a story or two of love between vampires and humans.
I shivered.
A large fireplace sat against one wall of Dad's office, with a decorative mantelpiece surrounding it, different patterns etched into the marble, swirling and circling.
A set of heavy curtains were drawn across the large window directly across the room and right in front of that window was a wide solid oak desk.
And sitting at that desk was the head of our clan, my father, Thornton Hemlock.
He looked up and smiled when he saw me, his perfect fangs illuminated by the soft glow of the lamp on his desk.
"Blake." He stood up and started to walk towards me. "How are you, son?"
Well, where should I start?
My father enveloped me in a hug, then pulled back and smiled again, eliciting a smile from me. I look a lot like my father - tall, jet black hair, straight nose and icy blue eyes. He was many years older than I was, but because he was slow to age, like all vampires, he looked more like my older brother than my father.
He pulled me further into his office and directed me to a comfy chair next to the fire. He plopped himself down on the chair opposite mine and breathed out a sigh, pulling at the neck of his blue t-shirt.
"How long will this summer last?" He grumbled, while rubbing a hand across the back of his neck. "It's too hot."
I shrugged. "Maybe we should move to a colder climate for a bit."
My father raised his eyebrows. "We only came back from Norway a couple of years ago. But, I admit that I'm missing the cold weather already. Shall we move back there for a few years?"
I scrunched up my nose. The colder weather was more pleasant to a vampire, but humans tended to bare more skin in warmer countries. Besides, we'd already spent a few years living with some of the clan in another house my family owned near Lakselv in Norway. I wanted a change of scenery for a bit, so that was why we came back to live here.
"I've actually asked Samuel about living with him and his family for a while," I stated, answering my father's question. "They've just moved to Bulgaria."
My father nodded his head. "Samuel? Ah yes, I know him. Tall, skinny, blonde hair ..." Dad scratched his chin, a far away look in his eyes. "How is he, anyway? I didn't think his family would ever leave Romania."
"Well, they've not really moved far at all. Romania is right next door to Bulgaria," I pointed out.
Dad shrugged. "Whatever makes them happy, I guess." He turned to face me and rested his hands on his knees. "So when are you thinking of leaving?"
I blew out a breath. Here goes ...
"I'm not. Well, I don't think I can any more, anyway."
Dad frowned. "Why not?"
I ran both hands through my hair and tugged on the ends, shifting my eyes to the floor. "Because I ... uh ... met my fated last night."
"Your what?" I could hear the confusion in Dad's voice.
I shrugged and dropped my hands to my knees, rubbed them up and down my jeans-covered thighs, while keeping my gaze on the rug in front of me, on the swirling silver pattern against the red of the pile. "You know ... my fated ... the other half of me ... my soulmate ... you know... my, uh ..."
I raised my eyes to find my father grinning from ear to ear, his whole set of perfect white teeth on show. His icy eyes were crinkling in the corners because he was smiling so much.
"You mean to tell me that you met your soulmate last night?" His voice was soft.
I nodded and rubbed my hands harder.
He laughed heartily. "Blake! My boy! That's great news!" He stood up and walked over to me, leaned over then clapped me on my back. "Great news!" He rubbed my shoulder once more, then walked over to his desk and opened a drawer, pulling out a bottle half full of dark red liquid. Raising the bottle into the air, he laughed again. "This calls for a celebration!"
He opened up another drawer, pulling out two glass tumblers before walking back over to me. He handed one glass to me, unscrewed the bottle and poured a little of the liquid into it.
"You know this is the blood of the ancient?" He nodded at the bottle and then winked. "Only the best for my boy."
He leaned back into the comfy chair across from me, his eyes watching the bottle as he poured himself a glass. "So, tell me. What is your soulmate like?"
"Uh ... well ..." My voice was just above a whisper. "He's a man." Saying it out loud was ... making it seem more real. Almost as if, once out there, I couldn't take it back.
Dad raised his head and cocked a brow. "A man?"
I nodded.
He shrugged. "So, he's a man." He set the bottle on the floor next to his chair. "What's his name? What clan is he from?"
"Well, he's ... uh..." I closed my eyes. "A human."
Silence.
I risked opening one eye. My father was looking at me, his head cocked to one side.
"A human?"
I nodded.
"Huh." Dad straightened his head and looked off to the side, resting his glass on his knee, while he scratched at the stubble on his chin. I watched his stoney face, trying to work out if he was angry, disappointed ... or both.
Although he'd always encouraged me and my sister to experience the world, travel, find our soulmates, he'd never given us any indication of how he would be if our soulmates were any other species. I think my dad assumed that they would be vampires. Like I did.
I watched as he ran a hand down his face and then turned his startling eyes on me. "You're sure he's your fated mate?"
I nodded. There was no questioning how I felt last night. How his face was all I saw when I closed my eyes. How his eyes haunted what little sleep I'd had.
"So, why are you not happy about it, then?"
Huh?
"You met your soulmate last night and you seem ..." He waved his hand around. "Conflicted. Why?"
I blinked, unsure of what to say.
Was it because my soulmate was a guy?
Dad reached over and grabbed my free hand, squeezing it. "Your soulmate is the other half of you. The other half of your soul. You should be happy. What is it about your soulmate that's upset you?"
"He's a man." The answer came out before I could stop it. I slammed my mouth shut and stared wide eyed at my dad.
"So?" My dad shrugged. "He's a man. He's still yours."
I ... didn't know what to say.
So, this guy ...
He was ... mine.
My soulmate.
My ... man?
Dad sighed and let go of my hand, leaning back in his chair. "You've been alive for many years, son. You've had a lot of experiences. You've travelled all over the world. Nothing should really surprise you now, Blake." He narrowed his eyes at me. "So what if he's a man? So what if he's human? You know I can turn him if he wants. I've done it before." He shrugged, took a sip of the thick liquid in his glass. "I don't know what it is about him that you don't like, but you can either accept him or reject him. Whichever you choose, you need to do it sooner rather than later."
Dad took another long sip and sighed, directing his gaze at me. "The longer you leave your decision, the worse it will become for you. You know this."
I frowned, racking my brain to see if I really did know the reason. Like he said, I'd been alive for many years. That meant many years of listening to Dad give advice, of listening to his wise words. It seemed as though he had wise words for everything in the world. So, had he really explained soulmates to me? What would happen if I accepted my fated? Rejected him?
Did I really know the reason?
He rested his arm on the armrest of his chair and levelled me with a stare. "Did you forget what I told you?"
Yes. I did.
I blinked and gripped the glass in my hand.
"If you don't decide what to do, if you delay your decision ... you will become weaker without your soulmate. You'll suffer if you're away from him for too long."
Ah, yes. Now I remember. I blew out a breath.
"The longer you are away from him, the weaker you will be. You need to either accept him or reject him." My dad leaned his head back. "And while you make up your mind, down your glass and I'll pour you another." He pointed to the glass in my hand.
I looked down at it, then lifted it to my lips and drank the lot.
It warmed my body as it went down, hitting my stomach.
Dad stood and grabbed the glass out of my hand to refill it, as he promised.
I just had to work out what I would do about my soulmate.
Shall I accept him?
Or reject him?