Vampire in Atlantis

politics and politicians did to me. The power of leadership too often becomes tyranny. People are sacrificed to once-noble ideas of the greater good, and the individual rights become lost in all of that planning and scheming. I lost eleven thousand years of my life to it. Don’t you think I have the right to be a little bitter?”
    He laughed. “I think you have the right to be all kinds of bitter, Serai. I also think you’re right that we don’t have the time for it now. After this, though? We’re going to have a big old wallow.”
    She started laughing. “With cake? There definitely needs to be cake with our wallowing.”
    “And beer,” he added. “Cake and beer. Fried chicken, maybe.”
    “You’re making me hungry. Do we have more food in that pack of yours?”
    He stopped and set the backpack down on a rock and rummaged around and found granola bars and apples. He handed one of each to Serai, along with a bottle of water.
    “It’s no royal feast, that’s for sure,” he said. “All we’ve got for now, though. When this is over, and we’re wallowing, I’ll take you out to eat at the best restaurant we can find.”
    “Before or after the beer and cake?” She bit into her apple, and a blissful expression crossed her face, which immediately made him think of what else he could do to cause her to look like that, which made him desperately need another cold shower.
    He settled for leaning against the rock, putting the pack on his lap as camouflage, and biting into a granola bar.
    “This is delicious,” she said. “I missed fruit, perhaps even as much as cake.”
    “This granola bar is really freaking nasty,” he said, spitting it out.
    “Try the apple,” she advised, taking another bite of her own. “Do you need to drink my blood?”
    He was glad he’d already spit out the piece of granola bar, because otherwise he surely would have choked on it. “Do I what ?”
    She regarded him calmly. “It was a reasonable question, Nightwalker. Do you need to drink my blood? I see no other around to serve as donor, and I don’t want my only ally on this quest to be weakened by hunger when we find the Emperor.”
    “I—you—” He couldn’t find the words. Offering her blood to the monster. What next? Baring her neck? Did she have a death wish?
    “Or is it thirst?” She tilted her head, still staring at him as if he were a somewhat interesting scientific experiment. “Do you consider the need for blood to be hunger or thirst?”
    “I try not to consider it at all. The bloodlust is more powerful than either hunger or thirst. And, no, I don’t need to drink your blood. Don’t ever, ever offer to let me drink your blood again.” It took all of his willpower not to shout at her. What the hell was she thinking?
    “Fine. It’s not like I’m going to offer to let anyone else drink my blood,” she said, tossing her apple core into the bushes for an animal’s breakfast and neatly stowing her empty water bottle in a pocket of the backpack, which was still on his lap, which brought her too close to him for comfort, considering the bizarre conversation they were having.
    Far too close for comfort.
    The meaning behind her words caught up with him, and he scowled at her. “Damn straight you’re never going to let anyone else drink your blood. I’d kill anyone who tried.”
    He thought he saw a hint of a smile on her perfect lips, but it was gone so quickly he wasn’t sure.
    “Are you baiting me?” he asked, incredulous. “About drinking your blood?”
    “Baiting is such a harsh concept. A little gentle teasing, perhaps,” she said, brushing loose tendrils of hair away from her face. “Not about you drinking my blood, but about any others doing so. You seem to be quite possessive about my blood, after all, for someone who claims not to want it.”
    How had the conversation turned freaking sideways and upside down on him? He’d never been that great with women, and clearly he wasn’t getting any better.
    “I don’t—I’m not—Oh, screw it.” He slung the pack over his shoulder, no longer worried about her seeing his erection, since the conversation had been just as effective as that cold shower he’d wanted. “Let’s go.”
    He headed off in the direction they’d been walking before, and her peals of silvery laughter followed him.
    They hiked in silence for a while, but it wasn’t an uncomfortable silence. He was content simply to be near her, for as long as he could. Until she