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His storowled, and Katrina&039;s eyes darted to hienuine amusement It was the second time in less than twenty-four hours that his stoether

"Co to eat," she offered with a sreed to let hi experience, and she reveled in how rin, which briefly reflected the child he once was

Caleb took them to a steak house across town he particularly enjoyed They were both pleasantly surprised when a table in an uncrowded area was available Norht would have involved a wait, but fortunately a for room had just opened

The at froroups of friends The roohted, and the tables were covered with si drinks, Caleb perused the ht with her back turned to most of the other patrons and watched hilanced at her and casually asked, "Are you hungry?" Realizing his htly

One side of her mouth upturned slyly "Yes, actually"

"Really? Well, what sounds good for dinner?" he pressed

"You," she replied al to her, and the ever-present desire for blood was there It was a universal desire a with hirinned nevertheless "Oh, really?" he prompted with a hint of playfulness as he looked deeply into her green eyes

Katrina&039;s eyes held his gaze, but with only a hint of aainst his soft neck and partake of him She didn&039;t want to kill him, but she definitely craved a taste

The waiter delivered their drinks and promised to return for their entree orders soon

After another silent an to fade, and he sed a sip of his drink with a single hard gulp as her eyes held his in a near trance He had the feeling she was looking at hiry ould stare at a rabbit An uncontrolled shiver ran up his spine, and she broke the trance by looking down at thefroested sreed frankly

"For now," she added allanced back down to hisin her comment Caleb was so used to the playful banter of a conventional courtship that it shook him to realize just how seriously she took the whole blood topic

"I&039; up at her "I wasn&039;t ht of your needs"

Her hand darted across the sht hand The sudden action startled hihtly as his eyes rushed up to meet hers Fortunately, her expression had softened

"I didn&039;t mean to be harsh, but there are an "I&039; you realize how dangerous our mutual interest in one another could beco for fresh blood, but even when mastered, the desire for it is always present Our recent inti in me, and I&039;ll need to be careful"

He nodded and one corner of his nore the fact she was more than the human she appeared to be before hih hiswith her

"You seem in such control at all times, so measured in your actions," he ventured "Particularly after last night, it seeerous to ently "I&039;ve atteretted the?"

His shoulder muscles tensed as the uncomfortable fact resurfaced She killed them all in the end, except one who co her how positive a relationship could be, even for a vampire But I wonder how many of her previous partners started with the sahtly, fully itation While it wasn&039;t her intent to inti the seriousness of their pairing

By the ti additional questions, the waiter appeared, and they both seearden salad with no dressing, and he ordered a well done steak with twice-baked potatoes and a side salad

"Do you still enjoy eating regular food?" he inquired curiously once the waiter departed

"Sometimes," she reflected "Some dessert items, like chocolate, still hold a certain satisfaction for me, and I&039;ve learned to appreciate a few other foods in small quantities Butto appear est food without any problems?" he asked

Katrina considered his question briefly before responding "Sort of I don&039;t get any nutritional value from it like you do It&039;s rass or leaves froenerally fine, e quantities of human food very well," she explained

"I findcooked meat," she continued with a wrinkled nose "In fact, most of us don&039;t like the smell or taste of cooked rains are h preferably in very s the inforistered on hione out As a matter of fact, on all those occasions, he suddenly couldn&039;t recall a ti with cooked meat in it either He had a small epiphany about the steak he had just ordered

"Myout to the small wicker basket for a roll

She smiled appreciatively "I&039;ll endure on your behalf Just don&039;t ask me to try it"

He smiled back as the waiter briefly reappeared to refill their tea and water glasses and update thehts composed an entire series of additional questions She noticed the brightened look in his eyes and anticipated as coned, yet a her countenance

"Proceed," she replied while gracefully folding her porcelain-like hands on the table before her

"What year were you born?"

She regarded him with a steely expression and countered darkly, "It&039;s not polite for a htly, and he quickly explained, "Sorry, it&039;s the historian in me, you understand Just the idea of how er theupon when you became a vampire"

She raised a suspicious eyebrow and ventured, "Perhaps Still"

He sed once and offered, "I respect your reluctance, and I uess?"

One corner of her lip upturned as she considered his suggestion She could understand his seely innocent curiosity and conceded, "Very well, but you only get one guess per day, and I won&039;t tell you if you&039;re close or by how lint in his eyes

"No," she stated in a superior tone "No hints"

He thought for a moment as he casually munched on the piece of bread he&039;d just buttered She had mentioned that she had previous ht have been with her Months? Years? Maybe I should shoot for the moon and see what happens Somehow, he could easily envision her outfitted in a nineteenth century dress

"1896," he ventured hopefully

"No," she stated with a neutral expression before pro: "Next topic"

He rolled his eyes and insisted, "Coht century or not"

She adopted a smirk and replied, "Wellno Next topic"

He shook his head andher "Okay then, out of all the people in this world you could just as easily have chosen, ere you interested in ly That&039;s a question she hadn&039;t expected from him

"I knew you were special the moment I met you," she stated simply Never mind that you were only a child at the time

He watched her with a dubious expression

"Youinnocence about you Your heart is in the right place, and you&039;re capable of extraordinary decisions and actions under unusual circumstances," she explained

"But how could you know all that?" he pressed

She smiled slyly and assured him, "Trust me I know"

Caleb considered her response as he absently buttered another roll She watched hiued by the delicate movements of his hands An artist&039;s touch, she observed

"What do you likeyou?" he asked in a subdued voice as a waiter passed by a little too closely for comfort

Katrina&039;s eyes darted to the waiter for a split second before returning her gaze to Caleb

"The best part is the heightened senses that I have now," she explained "I see, hear, smell, taste, and appreciate so much more of the world from a vampire&039;s perspective It&039;s as if the finer details are easier to pick out and focus on"

"And the least," he pro sunrise It used to fill me with a sense of hopefulness, as if life could start fresh again if yesterday weren&039;t so pleasant"

He nodded, realizing that he hadn&039;t given such things ht Perhaps many of the wonders of life are wasted on humans

Hehiaze "What&039;s your favorite holiday?" he asked out of the blue

"I don&039;tto remember the last time that she actually celebrated a holiday and found herself lost in the recounting

"Mine is Thanksgiving," he offered with a sarded hi?" she asked

He s conundrurinned and rolled her eyes at hiuessed," she considered out loud "A man&039;s answer, for certain"

"Which re?" he queried with a smile "It&039;s next week, you know"

She was at a loss for words, having forgotten about the need to celebrate holidays now that she had a hu you want, as long as you&039;re not expecting me to cook some oversized, dead bird for you," she insisted darkly

Caleb couldn&039;t help but laugh out loud "How about a small, dead bird, which I&039;ll be certain to have catered with so the house?" he clarified hopefully

She smirked despite herself and nodded It&039;s hard to refuse him a happy holiday, after all "Okay, but we eat at your place," she insisted "That way you won&039;t stink up reed with a grin "Okay, I&039;ve got another question"

"Oh no, now it&039;s rinned and inclined his head in acquiescence

"Do you want children?" she asked plainly with slightly upraised eyebrows

He was surprised by the topic and it registered in his expression

"Well, sure Sohtfully

"I&039;m barren now that I&039;m a vampire," she stated

"Oh," he replied sympathetically "Well, that&039;s okay"

"Today it is But what about a year from now, or five years from now?" she prompted patiently

"Well, we could adopt," he ventured hopefully

Katrina rolled her eyes "Oh, I can&039;t wait to see the expression on the state adoption inspector&039;s face during the daytiht It would take mere seconds for sunshine to risly vision made Caleb shudder, and he quickly forced it fro to do," he replied evenly "Next question," he challenged

She s his resolve "Okay Won&039;t your friends and coworkers find it strange when I can&039;t attend daytime social functions with you?"

"Well, I&039;ll tell theations, or you&039;re out of town," he stated, proud for having thought so quickly on the fly

She arched one eyebrow

"There are plenty of evening events you can attend," he added sly Nicely done, she conceded "What do you say as you and your friends get older, ?" she asked slyly

That was so expression formed on his face as he htly as she noted his thoughts deepening on the enes?" he ventured with a se of irritability rolled over her "No, not acceptable, Caleb," she aded "Okay, so you have uess we&039;ll just have to address that later"

"The here and now is always easier for people to indulge in carelessly But I have to consider the future at all times prior to my actions The future is always just around the corner for me," she explained "The concept of eternity de at er is in Japan, and a strong wind blows in China?" he ventured with a raised brow

His analogy intrigued her "Well, not alith that impact, but the idea resonates in hed and conceded, "Okay So I don&039;t have all the answers But is that a good reason to just walk away and forget the whole thing altogether?"

"Yes," she replied simply "It is, actually"

He just stared at her and snorted derisively as he shook his head Why is she being so obstinate about this? "I already assured you that I&039; to make sacrifices," he retorted defensively

"And abandon all those you care about or that are an important part of your life?" Katrina pressed evenly

His expression grew more subdued, and a pained look was visible in his eyes "There aren&039;t riarded hi to ask him, she admonished herself I know better than anyone what he&039;s lost in his life She found herself wishing she could take back her previous question

"I seeative, don&039;t I?" she asked "But I&039; to be"

He looked at her with aso serious and contrary all of the sudden?

Katrina looked at hiry, Caleb I&039;ht now you&039;re feeling euphoric It&039;s the infatuation phase of our relationship, after all Right now everything feels new, exciting, and hopeful It&039;s hard for you to wrap your head around the negative or the challenging"

"Wait, so you&039;re not feeling infatuated about us or ht now?" he asked with a note of concern

She s he still was, how inexperienced in the ways of the world, even as an adult hu the cradle more and more as time passes, she mused sardonically The fact that she had known hiain, I&039;ve seen a lot more of the world than he, she silently conceded,to hi quite infatuated with you,shape before you Eventually, your feelings of infatuation are going to pass, and you&039;ll be facing the very real and substantive issues we&039;ll be forced to confront as a hu exclusively in the moment These issues are serious and complex," she explained "Time isn&039;t an enemy to me as it is to you, which is why I must be careful today to consider the prospects of tomorrow"

He nodded belatedly and blurted, "But if I were like you -"

Katrina&039;s eyes angrily flashed in brilliant green, and her eyes narrowed to slits as she gestured with her right index finger upraised "Stop there," she issued with more force than she had intended

His mouth snapped shut, and his eyes widened with surprise Some curious diners nearby raised their faces and stared at them from across the room Katrina quickly lowered her hand and settled back in her chair Her eyes returned to their norreen hue, but she continued to stare at hile, which she anticipated by watching his expression

"Don&039;t," she ordered "Remember rule number six You must never ask to becoh and nodded in resignation Oh yeah, rule number six, he considered sullenly This is a little harder than I thought back at the apartarding the topic, and her disposition returned to its previously relaxed state while he chewed on his lower lip and reached out absently to grasp his tea glass

"You&039;re pouting," she ad time to sip and s his tea and replied, "Hardly I&039; to myself, that&039;s all" He resented her choice of words in describing his mood and was too proud to admit how correct she actually was

Katrina, however, was becoe, and she knew better Instead, she glared at hily sensitive egos sometimes, she fumed

Moments later, the server delivered their entrees and quickly departed Caleb ate his food in silence, while Katrina picked at her salad just for show, eating very little in the process She had become quite an accomplished actress over the years and could blend into a roo suspicion

She fell into a dark ly wondered if their declaration of commitment to each other was a hasty mistake She considered an alternate reality where she hadn&039;t reached out to Caleb and instead watched briefly fro on to some other part of the world

After all, why should a chance childhood encounter that he doesn&039;t even reible between us? She felt a sense of sadness and loss at the prospect of his not being an active part of her life Theconnections to him caused her more internal conflict than she expected To her, the inificant, and she was all too aware of how much she cared for hilance at him with a dart of her eyes, and noted that he appeared to be as ?" she asked gently

He finished chewing, sed his mouthful of steak, and put his fork down "Why is rule nuh with a respectful tone

She considered hi one of es you You may not think you&039;re different afterwards, but you are," she explained "I like you the way you are now You bring a balance into entle, co Those are rare qualities, even rarer abeforetowards me," he countered quietly so as not to make a scene "And you&039;ve displayed a sense of coeht be as one of your kind?"

She glowered at hihtly cruel look to it "How I feel towards you, how I choose to treat you, that isn&039;t how I generally feel about the rest of hue to her voice "I&039;reat white shark that wants to tear into your flesh I sis for you specifically You&039;re the exception in my life, not the rule"

That was a dose of honesty he hadn&039;t been entirely prepared for, and he felt like he&039;d just been doused with cold water His eyes widened slightly with surprise at the vehe around town tearing out people&039;s throats," he countered in a lohisper

"What makes you think I don&039;t when you&039;re not around?" she asked levelly She had hoped to avoid such a harsh subject with him, but perhaps a dose of honesty was best She needed hi a vampire

Caleb was speechless as he stared at her His mind raced to process what she just said It isn&039;t as if I heard about people disappearing or turning up led and bloodless in Atlanta recently Is it?

"Do you re lot? You let him live I saw him flee, and he was alive," he insisted firmly

Her eyes flicked to his for awhat to say next "Why do you think I left you so quickly that night?" she asked coolly

He froze and deliberately gazed across the dining room at other patrons so that he didn&039;t have to look her in the eyes

"Caleb, look at me," she insisted in a whisper

He kept his eyes averted, so her hand darted to his and squeezed it abruptly to get his attention His eyes shifted to look at her with a start, and he gazed into her level stare Her green eyes appeared steely and cold to him all of a sudden and inti myself to anyone I kill whenever I deem it necessary I live as one of my kind, and I relish in it," she stated plainly "I&039;ve left a trail of blood reaching all the way back to my creation Blood is nourish of it thrills me, as it does all of my kind"

"It has to be ht, what I gave to you, was gentle, not vile"

"It&039;s true that the taking of blood can be part of an intied his hand in hers "It&039;s a higher for activity"

"And yet, you make yourself out to be some kind of evil serial killer," he admonished in a whisper "But you&039;re not that to me"

"Just you wait to see ould happen if my blood supply deliveries ever cease," she warned o to feed, one way or another"

"You don&039;t have to kill to feed," he countered "If that were true I&039;d already be dead"

Her facial arded him with a syently squeezed his hand in hers "I&039; you to hate me Just don&039;t confuse the facts of what I am with the eazed into her eyes affectionately "Then quit trying to scare , and you&039;ll only succeed in annoying me"

She smirked at him and rolled her eyes He&039;s persistent, at least, she considered

"Fair enough Just bear in mind a little caution is healthy in your life," she said with a note of finality "But you mustn&039;t be afraid of lasses and then departed quickly Katrina saw that he seeood tip tonight for being observant," she noted absently

They sat silently for a time Caleb finished hishi his individualeven the small nuances of behavior few people even realized they exhibited She found hi, so unlike thetio, she reflected Caleb&039;s professed devotion to her, even after knowing her dark and often violent nature, was so at odds with his reserved, gentle personality She certainly loved hi that he could feel the saenerally don&039;tHowever, Caleb matters, and I want to ensure that he remains happy and safe, she noted decisively

He flashed a sidelong reassuring smile at her, and she sether, his emotions hadthem to a ain simply happy to be with her and kissed her affectionately on the lips as they walked back to her car

She made certain not to belabor any further difficult topics with him for some tiarner a continued sense of closeness between them