3. Grace

Chapter 3

Grace

T he starlight lounge was empty now. A few staff members worked to clean up, but everyone left us alone. And I was trying to digest what Sebastian had been explaining to me for the last hour.

Supernaturals were real.

I was a supernatural, a siren.

Or, to the best of Sebastian's knowledge, part siren.

I shook my head. "But I'm not predatory, Sebastian. I've never hurt anyone, let alone lured them to their doom." Sensing my distress, Kazi, sensing my distress, was curled up, partly on my lap, rumbling up a storm with his purr-growl. I ran my fingers through his fur, feeling like I was going to cry.

Why, someone might ask, did I believe Sebastian so readily? A man I'd just met?

Because it felt right.

Not the part about me being a siren; that felt like a joke waiting for the punch line. But the part about supernaturals being real, and the part about me being some kind of other. I knew there was something wrong with me. I'd labeled it a curse. It turned out I might have preferred the curse.

Sebastian had long since taken his jacket off, his shirtsleeves rolled up, his forearms making me shiver. What was it about a man's forearms that were so sexy? And why was I thinking about his forearms at a time like this? If I could have discreetly facepalmed myself without giving away my splintering thoughts, I would have.

Get it together, Gracie.

Sebastian shook his head. "You're not predatory. There's a distinct difference between the ability to be predatory and the will to be predatory. There are plenty of humans that have the ability to prey on those weaker than they are, but don't."

"And there are those that do."

He nodded, conceding my point. "There will always be those kinds of people. Even in the supernatural world. But you are not one of them."

I gulped my water. "And I won't suddenly become like that?"

His smile was gentle. "Do you have the sudden burning desire to lure men to their doom? To lure ships upon the rocks?"

I fidgeted with my glass. "No, I mean, some people probably deserve it, but no. And the only desire I have for this vessel is that it stays afloat." Please let this ship not sink. I could readily imagine a ship going down on my very first vacation.

He sat back, relaxing deeper into his seat. "I have not yet told you what I am."

I shook my head. "You don't have to. I already know what you are." I mean, it was obvious. Maybe it was my line of work, or possibly my overactive imagination, but now that I knew he was a supernatural too, it was easy to see that he was a vampire. I hadn't figured out the sun thing yet, because he clearly got around the ship during the day, but, yeah, he was a vampire for sure. An older one, if I wasn't mistaken.

He looked intrigued. "What do you think I am?"

"An older vampire."

His expression turned flummoxed, and I giggled. Kazi made a sound like he was choking on a walnut, or laughing at the flummoxed vampire, which made me giggle even more.

Sebastian eyed him grumpily. "I see that you've turned traitor," he told the big cat.

Kazi snorted.

I hid my wide smile behind my hand. These two were a whole comedy show together. The more I was around them, the more relaxed and at home I felt.

"It's my job. I write paranormal romance for a living. I can easily envision you in the role of the MMC suave vampire."

He laughed. "I'm not sure if I should thank you or not for that assessment, but my reason for bringing this up in the first place is because my kind were also known in the past as predatory. There are still some in our current age that abuse this, but they are few. I myself haven't drunk from a human in over four hundred years. We have blood delivery services that serve most our population well. Sharing blood nowadays is more for couples."

I stilled in shock. "Four-hundred years?" And then I shook my head. That wasn't the question I most wanted to ask. "What do you mean, sharing blood is mostly for couples now?" I was fascinated, utterly fascinated by all of this. And besides, it was excellent research for my books.

He nodded, a sudden gleam in his half-lidded eyes. He may not be predatory, but he certainly looked predatory at the moment. But in a good way. I nearly facepalmed myself again. My brain was going in too many directions, and at least half of them were centered on the attraction I felt toward Sebastian. I had to keep reining myself in and reminding myself that finding out I was a supernatural was enough for the moment. I didn't need more complications for a while. Even complications as sexy as Sebastian.

It didn't matter that I was lonely. Over the course of this dinner, my objectives had shifted. I still wanted a family and a loving husband—that would never change. But I felt like I needed to give myself some time to adjust to all of this new information. It was a lot for me to take in. And even though I might be handling it better than most because of my vocation, I still needed some time to digest.

Sebastian got the attention of one of the waitstaff and held up a finger. The blonde server nodded and went to the back, then brought him out a drink in what looked like a glass Coke bottle. I pretended he was drinking a V-8 and had no problems. I was actually kind of proud of myself for how smoothly I was handling everything this evening. I'd sang in front of an audience, I'd kissed Sebastian, and I'd found out that I was a supernatural and there were millions more besides me. I was killing it on the go-with-the-flow vibes tonight.

Sebastian drank straight from the bottle, chugging most of it in just a few gulps. I guessed he was thirsty. He rinsed out his mouth with my lemon water when I offered it, then he ordered another for me. Meanwhile, I was trying not to squirm in my seat. I was impatient for his answer. Blood shared only between couples sounded intriguing.

He sat back again with a sigh. There was a new flush to his face, and he appeared more at ease. The blood seemed to soothe him. Huh. Just like a burger and fries usually did for me. Good to know.

"Like I said, sharing blood in today's world is mostly between couples. Significantly, between one vampire and one other , whether that's a human or supernatural. There are a few supernaturals that don't taste good to vampire palates―shifters being one of those―but mostly any human or other supernatural will be a pleasant experience. It takes a significant amount of trust on both sides. Much more trust than a casual friendship or acquaintanceship would merit. It also bonds the couple closer together. The only caveat is that vampires cannot feed on other vampires. The physiology would not work.

"Vampires can secrete three substances through their fangs when the fangs drop." He flashed me a humorous, fang-filled smile, and then his fangs were suddenly gone again. "We call the first our calm-the-heck-down serum. It does exactly what it says. The second is our changing serum. Vampires are made, not born. Any children I have will have half of my genetics, but not my vampirism. So, our changing serum is to change another to be a vampire. The third is our anti-aging serum. This is usually only used on our mates and spouses, although, rarely, it can be used on friends. It has to be renewed at least once a week in order for the other person to stay as ageless as a vampire."

I nibbled on the brownie à la mode that I had yet to finish as I pondered this information. It all made sense, really. I'd used a few of those serums in my vampire romance novels. Most authors did, as a matter of fact. It made sense that at least some of the world's fantasies about the supernatural community were based on reality.

I wanted to keep talking and skip sleep, but I couldn't hold back a huge yawn, and neither could Kazi. I laughed because his yawn was so much more terrifying than mine, with his enormous mouth and needle-sharp teeth. He smacked his lips together, and eyed me with one eye open and the other closed, as if asking me If I was ready for bed yet.

I smiled down at him and rubbed his forehead, then looked up at Sebastian. There was one thing I really needed to say, and it had to be said now .

"I'm going to head to my room, but before I do... I wanted to thank you for taking the time to talk to me tonight, and for this wonderful date. It's truly been the best date I've ever had." I fidgeted, unsure how to say the next part.

"But?"

I sighed and looked at his deep green eyes with regret. "But I've just found out that I'm a siren and that supernaturals are real. As much as I enjoy your company, and as much fun as kissing you was," I gave a little laugh, "I would like to take some time to just settle into this." I peered up at him, but had a hard time reading his expression. "Can we... keep this as friends for right now?"

He sat back, gazing at my face for a long while before he spoke again. "Of course. If that's what you need."

I nodded. "That's what I need." I swallowed back my regret. Sebastian was kind of amazing, and I couldn't believe I was telling him I wanted to be friends instead of pursuing anything between us. I mean, was I crazy? But I was determined to give myself some time to adjust. I knew I would be grateful for that time in the long run.

He smiled a beautiful half-smile. "Well, our cruise is for thirty days."

"I'm probably going to need more time than thirty days."

He shrugged and helped me out of my seat.

He walked me to my door and bent down to kiss my cheek. I half-closed my eyes and breathed in deeply when I got a whiff of his cologne. It was really subtle, but the scent was sexy and spicy and made me want to kiss him again. Then he growled at Kazi for abandoning him immediately as soon as my suite door opened.

"It's okay. I promise," I reassured him. "If I have any problems, I'll use the walkie."

He agreed reluctantly, gave Kazi a be a gentleman look, at which Kazi snorted, and left me for his own suite.

I shut the door and leaned against it laughing, as Kazi was already making himself at home on my bed. Good thing it was the largest king-sized bed I'd ever seen, or else we were going to have problems.

I closed my eyes, marveling at my evening.

One, I was a siren. This was the reason people had always acted so strangely around me my entire life.

Two, there was a world of supernaturals out there that humans didn't even know existed.

And three, I was sleeping with a lion tonight.

I chuckled and went into the bathroom to get ready for bed. I just hoped Kazi wasn't a bed-hog.