Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

Reuben

F rom the moment the event began, Reuben was having a terrible time. However, he did his best to keep it from showing on his face. He mentally went over the tips given by his PR team and hoped that his use of just ‘Ben’ would somehow throw people off the trail of recognizing him as ‘Vampire Vito.’ It was a slim chance and he knew it, but it would be nice to just be a regular citizen for one night.

What really bothered him was the nagging fear that any one of these people could be hiding a small vial of death in their pocket. Yes, they’d all had background checks. Yes, security guards stood around the perimeter of the room. Even a few extra guards were seated amongst the attendees undercover. But how long did it really take to inject a dose of lethal poison?

Reuben physically shook these thoughts from his mind. That was why he was here. Supernaturals needed security, and he was going to provide it. So he glued the media-beloved smile to his mouth and greeted each new human politely. And inevitably, they always began with:

“So, you’re a vampire. Do you actually drink blood?”

He knew it was coming. The question came up in every conversation he ever had with a human. However, what they really wanted to know was if Reuben would drink their blood. He honestly should have gotten the answer tattooed on his forehead to save everyone some time.

But he instead stuck to the PR approved, scripted answer he’d always used. “Yes, I do drink blood and yes, it is human. HOME has set up ways for vampires to purchase soon-to-expire blood from blood banks, and the proceeds are then used to help fund human hospitals and treatments. There is also an option to register as a fatality blood donor when you register as an organ donor.”

While it always seemed to give him a positive pass on the conversation, it never seemed to actually gain him any favor with the human across the table. The event was already starting to look like a complete failure. Human after human had taken a seat in the chair across from him, but he didn’t feel any closer to finding a partner.

But then Amber appeared.

Reuben wasn't sure if he should be impressed by Amber’s dedication, or worried that his name would be written in the woman’s little death note. But what surprised him the most was the authenticity of the questions. He hadn’t been in the dating pool for many, many years. However, he was fairly certain that these were the usual types of questions. They were the things that normal people looked for in a partner, rather than the curiosity of a human faced with a supernatural.

The second thing that surprised him was how enthusiastic the stranger seemed to be about meeting a vampire. He could see those chocolate eyes sparkling, which made him worry about something different…that this random woman was hoping to be turned. Despite it being thoroughly illegal to turn anyone these days, occasionally some nutjob thought being a vampire or werewolf sounded ‘cool.’

The possibility kept Reuben’s guard up, but he did his best to go with the flow. He mirrored Amber, putting his folded hands on the table and leaning forward. “I enjoy reading, binge watching TV, and hiking. Not that I have much time for hobbies…it’s more like reading a few pages here, watching a few minutes there, and finding a quiet place like the bathroom to escape the chaos of my job for thirty seconds.”

Reuben gave Amber a toothy grin and leaned back in his chair, allowing himself to feel more comfortable for a moment. “I would love to visit somewhere with penguins. Preferably Argentina or New Zealand, not Antarctica.”

Amber began to laugh. “I don’t think you’ll find that many penguins in Argentina or New Zealand, but I suppose you could look!”

Reuben watched the woman’s curls bounce as she laughed. He shook his head, finding himself thinking how pretty they looked. He even started feeling relaxed, which was…unexpected. “I suppose you’re right. As for what I look for in a relationship, that’s a bit of a doozy. But I would have to say I find intelligent conversation and honesty flattering.”

He’d had no idea what would come out when he opened his mouth, but Reuben stuck the landing. If he was being honest, he did admire both of those in a friend, but he didn’t have time for a partner right now. Work sucked his life dry already. He wouldn’t be here if Stella hadn’t made it very clear this was required for work and not just a suggestion.

Sensing it was his turn to ask questions, Reuben paused for a moment. He needed to know if Amber wanted to become a vampire, or had any reason to ruin the political career that he’d had fought so hard for. But unlike with the rest of the humans he’d spoken to tonight, he couldn’t bring himself to ask such things directly.

So he set aside the pointed list of questions he’d memorized over the last week and went rogue. “What about you? What do you do for a living? Do you have a favorite place to wind down after a long day? And what is it you look for in a relationship?” Reuben asked the questions in the same rapid-fire manner, the corners of his lips twitching with amusement. “Oh, and what’s your favorite candy?”

“I’m a bit of a writer, though not that great of one.”

Reuben chuckled and waved a hand. “You know, you should give yourself some credit. I’m sure your writing is a lot better than you think.” That did explain the extensive scribbling of notes, though. For a moment Reuben had worried Amber was a reporter with the amount of pages she had filled tonight, but the real answer put him more at ease.

A ruddiness appeared in Amber’s ears. “It’s kind of you to compliment my writing without reading it; thank you. Sometimes I think it’s an author’s curse to never feel like their novels are as good as others think they are. And the ones who do are writing absolute trash. But I suppose it was good enough that my agent requested I write a second, so there is that.”

“I’m sure she’s correct. Do you use your own name or a pen name? I’d love to look up your work, if you’re okay with that. Or if not, that’s fine, too!”

“Oh, uh. I use a pen name. But I don’t like to let people link it to me,” she explained, her hands waving in front of her as if warding off invisible attacks.

Reuben heard her heart speed up and he raised his own hand comfortingly. “Hey, that’s understandable! That’s why people use pen names, right? Sounds normal to me.” Though it did make Reuben more curious what Amber wrote, if she didn’t want to be linked with it.

“Yeah. For sure. As for winding down...well, my favorite places in the world are the public library and my little apartment. There’s nothing like curling up in a quiet corner with a good book and some hot chocolate. Do you...drink hot chocolate? I must admit, I know far less about vampires than a human in the current climate should. But at the same time, I don’t know what questions are polite and what questions are likely to result in me looking like an ignorant asshat. So I remain woefully uninformed.”

Reuben lifted an open hand to again ease Amber back from her concerns. He’d had much worse, and Amber had provided the most fascinating conversation all night. “There’s no need to apologize. It’s not your fault! Information on vampires isn’t readily available or widely taught. Yet.”

He felt like he could ramble on and on about the amount of misinformation that terrified humans spread to cause more panic; however, this wasn’t the time or place to rant. He did, however, make a mental note that Amber didn’t know much about his kind. Perhaps she wasn’t a crazed woman who wished to be sired after all. Yet another concern removed from the list!

Feeling better and better, Reuben settled back in his chair and stretched out one leg. “I used to enjoy a cup of hot chocolate after coming inside on cold winter days. I used to love how the mini marshmallows would melt into them... I’m not sure if that’s a hot chocolate sin in your book, but I’ll have to try it again now that my diet has changed.”

“Marshmallows aren’t a sin. No, not at all! I love almost any kind of hot cocoa variation. Marshmallows, peppermint sticks, caramel, peanut butter...almost anything. I learned how to make brownies out of hot cocoa mix one time! I was out of plain cocoa powder so I figured I could try using hot cocoa mix. It’s basically just cocoa powder and sugar, right? It was awesome! And that opened up a whole world of mint brownies, pumpkin spice brownies, peanut butter cup brownies...You, uh...should try it some time.”

A small smile inched its way onto Reuben’s lips as Amber rambled. Despite the human’s obvious nerves, it was enjoyable having someone converse with him as a fellow person. “That sounds lovely. Must be a fantastic way to use cocoa. Brownies are probably too much for my system, but I can imagine how good they probably taste.”

“Ah, that’s too bad.” Amber offered a sheepish smile and glanced down for a moment to consider her answer to the third question. “In a relationship, I suppose I would look for similar things as you. Someone who can have an intelligent conversation rather than prattling on about inane politics and sports.”

Reuben flinched at the mention of politics, but Amber didn’t seem to notice. “And someone who can enjoy the quiet times would be nice too, without being too clingy. Not that I have much relationship experience to draw from...but I think those traits sound ideal. And my favorite candy is chocolate. The higher the quality, the better. I might be a little obsessed, if I’m being honest.”

He noticed Amber’s cheeks blush red yet again. Reuben couldn’t tell whether he was the reason behind Amber’s embarrassment, or if that was how she normally acted. For some reason, he hoped it was the latter.

Silence fell between the two for a moment, broken by Amber when she finally asked a vampire-related question. “So...when you became a vampire, did your interests or personality change much? I’m sorry if that’s an awkward question.”

Reuben reached over and placed his hand flat on the table, inches from Amber’s hands and notebook. He was stunned that a human would ask him a deep question like that and gave a small, toothless smile. “Amber, rest assured, it’s not awkward if it’s a great question. Can I answer yes and no? After I turned, it felt like I needed to relearn how to be myself. My interests didn’t necessarily change, but the rules for life had. It wasn’t an easy transition back then, so the experiences may have hardened my skin a little.

“And it wasn’t like I lost everything. I can’t spend the whole day on a beach without getting third degree burns, but have you ever gone away from the city and looked up at the night sky? I had to find the beauty of life in other places... if that makes any sense.”

Reuben regretted every word that came out of his mouth. It wasn’t one of the usual questions with a repetitive answer. He wasn’t used to letting anyone past his thick-crafted wall, or having to dig for an answer. What resulted was something more genuine than he’d expressed in a very long time. “Supernaturals like myself have to do the best we can with the world we’re given, you know? We face struggles at every turn, but really? We want to be treated like everyone else.”

“I see, I see. So if I had met you before, I’d generally be meeting the same person as now. This is all fascinating! I’m going to have to give Gabriella a lesson when I next speak to her. Unimaginative and unlikely my ass…”

Amber paused, seemingly lost in thought for a moment before returning to give Reuben context. “Sorry, Gabriella is my agent. She and I don’t exactly see eye to eye on vampires. But I won’t bother you with all that nonsense.”

Despite his curiosity, Reuben kept his thoughts to himself for now. Slowly, he leaned forward and cupped a hand near his mouth. He didn’t look intimidating in the least; in fact, it looked like he was about to share some juicy gossip and he wanted Amber to be included.

“You would have met the same me, yes,” he whispered, “and you don’t have to be so nervous. Just don’t ask if I’ll drink your blood or turn you, and I promise you won’t look like an asshat.” He smirked as he used Amber’s own words against her in a playful way. He placed his hands back down on the table, and reached out to fidget with the stem on his wine glass.

“Is...that a thing that humans ask for? Fascinating! No offense intended, but I cannot imagine willingly joining the supernaturals while also knowing how they’re treated. I know that humans can be...rude.” She again reddened as her eyes focused on the movement of Reuben’s fingers.

“It’s not for the glamor,” Reuben clarified. “It’s more for the special abilities that we possess. Living forever has a certain ring to it. Though I am curious about one thing now, and you don’t have to answer if it makes you uncomfortable...”

He looked up from his distraction, though his hand continued fiddling with the glass. “If you don’t know much about vampires, are you here to meet a different type of supernatural? Pardon me if that sounds rude. I’ve met an overwhelming number of closed-minded people. It’s not too often that I meet someone with such an open mind about these sorts of things.”

Amber reached toward Reuben’s hand out of reflex as the vampire’s demeanor fell. She gripped his cold fingers and shook her head. “Oh no, no no. I came to learn more about vampires and what a relationship with one is like.

“At the risk of sounding like a creep...Gabriella told me that I needed to write a supernatural-themed novel next, but I didn’t know enough about them, in her opinion. So she set me up to attend this thing. I wasn’t here to pick up a partner. Just to gather information on vampires. I know it might sound kind of shallow, but vampires are my favorite supernatural group. I’m sorry!”

A breath caught in Reuben’s throat while his eyes shot to their point of contact. The feeling of someone holding his hand for anything other than a formal handshake was…foreign. He couldn’t remember the last time someone wasn’t repulsed by his cold skin. But the warmth of Amber’s hand felt like drinking a cup of hot cocoa on a winter day.

She seemed to realize then that she’d grabbed the vampire’s hand and released her grip. Reuben didn’t want to admit it to himself, but he wanted to reach out and follow the source of warmth. However, he stayed still other than blinking twice to clear his thoughts. “Uh, no need to apologize. That’s a much better answer than I might have expected. Not creepy at all.”

Less creepy than what I’m here to do.

Amber gave Reuben a soft, timid smile and continued. “I have enjoyed talking to you more than I ever expected I would enjoy anything about this event, so I-” She was cut off by the bell signaling that it was time to change partners again. The author sighed and closed her notebook without finishing the sentence.

On a whim, she flipped the book back open and scribbled something, tore out the page, and folded it in half before extending it to Reuben. “I...um, if you didn’t find me totally weird and uncomfortable and you’re not mad that I wasn’t here to try to find a date, I’d love to talk to you some more. For research, you know.” She placed the sheet on the table.

Reuben picked it up and slid it into his vest pocket for safekeeping. He swiftly stood up and gave a soft, respectful bow to Amber. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Amber. You’ve given me much to think about.”

The human flushed and moved to the next person, though as the evening progressed, Reuben caught her glancing back at him whenever the person she was speaking with looked away.