Blood and Mint Chocolates by Adrianne Brennan (summer books .TXT) 📗

Chapter Six

"What's immortality?"

Merideth awoke the next evening and stretched luxuriously on her hotel bed. She could still smell Kalia's scent on her skin and wished she had the courage to take Kalia's offer to spend the day in her hotel room with her. But her clothing and various other essentials were still back in her own room, and so she had gone back there that evening.

Slowly, she got up from the bed and put on her robe, debating whether or not to prepare for a similar offer later this evening. Would she be so fortunate, or had what transpired between her and Kalia the night before been just a one night fling?

The discovery of a package delivered that morning to her room answered Merideth's question. It contained a single, long-stemmed, dark blood-red rose along with a bottle of absinthe. The items came with a note: "I had a wonderful time last night. Here is Green Fairy for my little green fairy. Meet me at the Beach Front Restaurant tonight at 8?"

A date? With Kalia? She grinned, dizzy with happiness. Another chance to be with Kalia, and oh Blood, did she ask her out on a date? Had she read the note right? Her original wish was for a single evening of sex, and Merideth wasn't certain if she felt brave enough to try to meet her again. What if she wound up making an ass out of herself? This was Kalia, after all--a magistra, for Blood's sake! True, Merideth was an Inner Circle initiate in the Order of the Dragon and the Rose--a Fifth Degree, even--but she certainly wasn't the head of a Clan!

But she knew she'd regret it forever if she didn't take up the opportunity, and so she grabbed a dress from the closet, threw it on the bed, and ran into the bathroom to shower. As she scrubbed her body with bath gel, Babalon's words to her sprang to mind: The only wrong wish, Merideth, is the one you do not act upon out of fear.

Sound advice. But oh, so much easier said than done!

Her hands shook as she put on the dress. I think I'll need the amethyst ring tonight. She didn't want to get too drunk, but maybe a drink would take the edge off of her nervousness.

The gorgeous but cozy little restaurant Kalia met her at overlooked the beach and the water. The magistra insisted upon a table outdoors, which met Merideth's heartfelt approval. The ocean waves lapped at the shore, the gentle sounds hypnotizing her into a calm state. The sultry air smelled of sea salt. She was glad that the wind didn't blow too hard that evening--the outside temperature combined with the air met her skin in just the right way.

Everything is just right. Stunning would maybe describe Kalia even on a bad night; tonight she looked absolutely divine. A tight black dress trimmed with silver sequins and matching black and silver pumps hugged her curves. Her short black hair blew away from her face, tousled from the light breeze, but it only added to her beauty. Merideth stared at her for a long moment, unable to speak. What in the world was the magistra doing out having dinner with her?

Kalia reached over and lightly squeezed her hand. The touch sent pleasant shivers down her spine. "I'm so glad you came."

She heard her strong Southern drawl rather well tonight, which made Merideth speculate as to whether or not the magistra felt equally anxious about their date.

With a quick but shy smile she replied, "Me too." She frowned a little and inquired, "So, you eat sometimes?"

Kalia grinned. "Always," she stated. "I always thought that vampiric purity thing was a load of crap. Just don't tell Janius," she added. "But he probably knows how I feel about that."

"I sometimes eat mint chocolates," Merideth confessed. After a pause, she reflected, "I've never seen the point of enjoying eternity without a little bit of chocolate."

The magistra laughed long and hard. "And that's why I like you, Meri. Funny how you stay so cooped up in that library of yours all of the time, though. I'm actually almost surprised you took me up on dinner."

Merideth blinked. "Well, I um, well...."

"Don't get all shy now. I enjoy fucking you, but I like you too. Otherwise I wouldn't have bothered to ask you out."

While Merideth's eyes widened in surprise, the waiter chose that inopportune time to arrive at their table. Kalia ordered shrimp scampi and pinot grigio, and Merideth found some difficulty in stammering out her own order: grilled salmon and a glass of chardonnay.

After the waiter left, she blurted out the question burning in her brain once he was out of earshot, "So, um, Kalia ... you never do anything involving the vampire purity thing? What do you think of the alchemy involved?"

The magistra shrugged. "While we continue to feed on the," she lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, "'liquid of life', I've never seen us as much better than the humans."

"Not even being immortal?"

"What's immortality?" she questioned, her tone almost impatient. "We can't go out in the sun. Well, not without a ton of spells, and most of them don't work half the time. We can still be killed. Our lives are constantly at peril from crazy religious nuts who want us dead."

"True, but--"

"I just don't see how we're any better. We still fuck, need nourishment, and sleep. We just require a different form of nourishment and have longer lifespans on the average. That is, if the sun doesn't kill us first."

Merideth nodded. Interesting. "I see," she remarked after a long silence.

The waiter arrived with their glasses of wine, and she thought it best to just have a sip before commenting further. She wasn't certain if she completely agreed with Kalia or not. Wasn't some form of moderation needed?

Chuckling, the magistra shook her finger at her. "You've been hanging out with Janius too much. I love him like a brother, but