When he got the call, Mick wasn’t surprised. Concerned maybe, but it was in Beth’s nature to be extremely inquisitive to the point of endangerment. But she liked it that way. It was exciting, or something like that.

Josef had called him sometime around 11pm that night to tell him he had spotted Beth at an underground club in a vampy part of town. Josef had approached her and she had said something about doing research on a new drug circulating in clubs in the area.

“I think that was her story,” Josef said, “I mean it was hard to focus on the words when all I wanted to do was bite her right there, those eyes, those lips….”

Mick groaned, and asked Josef to keep an eye on her; he was coming to the club to make sure Beth was OK.

 “Well if you don’t hurry up I may have more than my eye on her tonight,” Josef said under his breath.

“Just watch her!” Mick yelled and hung up.

*

*

*

 Mick arrived at the club and smelled the air. He could tell immediately the ratio of vamps to humans and how much blood was flowing. He walked in the entrance past two vampire body guards and into the foyer. It was dark and the music pulsed against his body. There were crowds of people but this specific venue had been built with many dark alcoves to hide from unwanted eyes. Most behavior was acceptable and Mick could see that the night had been in full swing for quite some time. Waitresses sashayed among the customers with platters of vials containing god knows what. They weren’t the usual jell-o shots, that’s for sure.

Mick searched for Beth with his eyes first, hoping to spot her comforting blond hair. It wasn’t hard as most of the humans were dressed in goth. He could smell her everywhere but soon spotted her against a side wall talking with someone.

“Beth!” Mick yelled as he got closer to her and he saw her standing with Josef.

He let out a breath of relief that his friend had actually come through for him.

Beth finished her sentence and turned to Mick with a slightly glassy smile and glittery eyes. She looked amazing with smoky eyes, red lipstick and blond curls, but something was off. He took her in for a second and then noticed one of those vials in her hand.

“Beth what is that?” he asked suspiciously. He didn’t think she was stupid enough to try drugs just to get a story together but he wanted to know how she got whatever was in that vial.

“Well hello Mick,” she forced out with a smile, “Fancy meeting you here.” She glared at Josef as she said it, knowing full well he had called Mick.

“Beth?” he questioned again, as she was avoiding the question.

“It’s nothing.” She replied, trying to act innocent.

He knew it was bad news now.

“Beth give it to me.”

She stared at him incredulously, at him giving her orders.

After a stare down he tried to grab it from her hand but she was exceptionally quick.

“No!”  Beth whirled around and faced the wall, opened the vial, swallowed the remaining contents and turned back with a defiant look in Mick’s direction.

“Beth!” Mick exclaimed with a look of disbelief.  “What the hell is wrong with you!? What is that!?”

She looked almost hurt at his words but turned up the corners of her mouth in a sly smile and shoved the empty vial into his chest as she walked past him to the bar.

He grabbed her arm and twisted her around, careful not to hurt her. “I need you come with me.” Mick stated.

“No I will not come with you.” She stated, plainly. She was not going to be bossed around tonight, not when she felt so damn good.

“Hey, do you want to come with me?” 

Beth looked around Mick at Josef whose question, so intentionally dirty, amused her. She gave him an intriguing smile and replied “Josef, I might be offended if you weren’t so charming. And if I won’t come with Mick I don’t think he would let me come with you.”

She flashed them a smile and quickly made an escape for the bar.

Mick turned to watch her settle herself at the bar and then turned back to Josef who had a somewhat guilty look on his face. Mick opened the vial and sniffed it.

“Is this vampire blood!?” he asked Josef, who didn’t respond. “And you let her have it!?”

It took Josef a moment to respond but he then replied that “You only told me to watch her. So I watched her do research. She asked me what it was and I told her and she thought of it all on her own to drink it. I didn’t make her do it!…Although now that’s it done, you can thank me later,” and with a wink he was gone round the corner, leaving Mick to deal with Beth.

Mick leaned up against the wall to watch Beth. She didn’t seem different. She was chatting up some guy at the bar, a human, so no real danger there. Mick was bored with the situation but he thought he would hang around until Beth wanted to go home. Another woman came over to Beth and loser guy and started in on him for chatting up another woman. Must have been his girlfriend, Mick mused. The woman grabbed the guy’s arm and dragged him off leaving Beth alone at the bar.

Mick made to move in but Beth quickly turned and came in his direction. She moved with the gracefulness of a feline predator with one intention. Mick stopped in his tracks and offered Beth a warm smile, hoping to distract or confuse her. She cocked her head a little and smiled back as she walked up to him.

“Hi stranger. Getting’ a good view back there?” she questioned brazenly.

She danced with the music for a minute, giving him a show. Mick was mesmerized as she moved and swayed to the pulsing beat. She moved closer and kissed him, pushing him back out of the main room and into the darker areas of the club. She was strong, her strength, and obviously her lust had increased dramatically.

“Be…Beth!” Mick tried to manage but she wouldn’t stop kissing him. He grabbed her upper arms and tried to hold her at arms length.

Beth sighed as if Mick were trying to stop her from indulging in the passion she so obviously needed.

“Mick, what!?” she exclaimed in an aggravated tone, looking him straight in the eye. Her stiletto heels made her almost as tall as him. Her blond curls cascaded over her soft pale skin. The blood was pulsing under her plump lips and her eyes were as deep as an ocean; the waves crashing against each other in a torrent of emotion.

“Beth I can’t do this, this isn’t you, it’s the drugs. It’s the vampire blood that’s making you do these things.”

“Mick,” she sighed in an exasperated tone, “this is what I want, I want you, I want to be with you.”

And he almost believed her. He let go of her, both of his hands going to her face drawing her in. He kissed her, and in the shadows, no one could see his weakness.

She kissed his neck, slowly and softly, as she knew it was a tender area for him. She licked and sucked as she unbuttoned his shirt. He ran his hands under her shirt, around the tight muscles of her back and the smooth skin of her stomach. He pulled her shirt up, exposing her breasts and pulled her closer. He made sure she was in a position where no one else could see her, because she was meant for him alone. As he ran his fingers over her nipples she dropped down out of his grasp to fiddle with his pants. And then reality hit him.  He couldn’t be doing this to her. He would rather die that have her live with the idea that he had taken advantage of her.

“Beth stop.” he said amid his heavy breathing. “Beth!” a little louder to get her attention.

“Mick please,” she purred, “I promise you’ll enjoy it.”

There is no doubt in my mind, he thought. “Beth you are under the influence of a very strong drug and I would be much more comfortable taking you home right now,” Mick struggled to say, even though his body was aching for her warmth.

She stopped moving and stood up. Looking him straight in the eye again she said defiantly, “No thank you, I’ll find my own way home.”

And then she was gone. Before he could stop her she had slipped into the main room again. Mick knew she hadn’t meant to hurt him, it was the drugs talking. He knew that it was going to be a long night keeping track of her if she was intent on feeding her desires. He realized that at this point Beth might only leave kicking and screaming, and he might need Josef’s help getting her out of here.

*

Beth had no intention of kicking but screaming sounded good right about now. Frustrated with waves of sexual tension pounding her body, she needed a release. The music was loud and it obstructed her thoughts. All she could think about was how Mick had turned her down. And she needed him. She was searching the sea of people for something but she didn’t know what exactly. Her eyes landed on Josef and a pretty brunette talking in a darkened booth along the back wall. She looks like a bimbo, Beth thought. I bet he would appreciate a piece of intelligent ass right about now.

Beth sauntered over to Josef who smelled her approaching. He glanced up and immediately dismissed the brunette with a wave of his hand.

“Darling,” purred Josef, as if he knew she would eventually find her way to him tonight.

Beth approached his table in the booth and perched her left thigh on it with her legs spread just enough for Josef to smell her need. He ran his hand up and down her left calf and his hand settled on her knee, pulling her closer.

“Are you lost dear? Or can I help you with something,” Josef smiled deliciously at her.

Beth slid herself onto Josef’s lap, straddling him, and swung her blond locks behind her shoulder. She kissed him with a passion unknown to her and he readily replied. While she was distracted he slid his right hand up her inner thigh and under her skirt to play with her panties. He rubbed the silky black thong for a moment to gauge her reaction, although he knew exactly what the vampire blood was doing to her.

Beth moaned appreciatively and threw her head back, exposing her throat. Josef deftly slid his fingers under the elastic in the crotch of her panties and sampled her wetness with two fingers. He rubbed her clit with his thumb as she groaned and crushed her hips into him.

“I want to bite you,” Josef whispered in her ear, his lips lingering for a moment making Beth weak in the knees.

“Do it,” she pleaded, her voice low and as she opened her eyes and looked at him, his face transformed. She closed her eyes again and Josef kissed her neck softly. He worked his way down to the tender flesh between her neck and her shoulder. He rubbed her clit faster and plunged his fingers into her as he suddenly bit down into her flesh, the blood in his mouth with a forceful rush.

Beth cried out and leaned over him for a moment, the pain dizzying her. She sat up and looked at him, sucking on her shoulder, and dropped her head. It was hard to focus, and she just wanted to enjoy the ride.

*

Mick had waited a moment to collect his thoughts and he went into the main room after Beth. He didn’t see her and wasn’t sure he could smell her out either, as her scent was all over him. He scanned the area and then decided to circle the perimeter. Making his way through the crowd he began to become concerned that she had left, but he realized that she may have sought out a familiar face in Josef. She wasn’t thinking clearly after all.

Then he saw her. Straddling Josef’s lap, writhing, moaning, twisting with pent up desire meant for him. He stopped about 10 feet away as if there were a barrier between him and her. He was mesmerized by the sight of her disheveled blond hair thrown over his friend’s shoulder, the sight of him suckling at her bare milky skin, and her obvious enjoyment of this situation.

He wondered if he should stop them or let her finish, but honestly Beth would be mortified in the morning either way. Maybe she wouldn’t remember. Maybe he was taking the easy way out, letting Beth get her kicks from someone who was willing, someone who didn’t have the moral capacity for regret or concern.

Either way, all of the conscious thoughts swirling around Mick’s brain were somewhat subdued by the vision in front of him. Beth suddenly let out a groan and she arched her back. She came with a violent rush of blood to her face, she bucked and rocked her hips against Josef’s hand and struggled with uneven breaths.

Time seemed to stand still for Mick. As she passed her climax her heart beat slowed and Josef removed his mouth from her intoxicating cocktail. He licked his fangs and leaned his head back against the wooden divider between the booths. Beth laid her head on his right shoulder looking past his left towards the crowd. Mick ran his tongue over his fangs unconsciously.

Beth’s eyes wandered to Mick, who was staring at them both. Her glossy blue eyes had a particular glaze over them and it was almost as if she was staring through Mick.

Her stare was unnerving. Mick wasn’t sure she even knew he was there, and if she did she certainly didn’t care.

Beth felt like time was moving slowly, like she was underwater. There was a dull ache somewhere behind her and she wondered if she was hurt. Her energy had been drained and she was slumped in this man’s lap but still felt as if she were meant to be somewhere else. As her breathing returned to normal her muddled thoughts slowly drifted through her mind, until she realized that the comforting image she was unknowingly fixated on was Mick, standing in front of her. She just stared at him for a moment or two, god he was gorgeous, she thought.

Suddenly Mick was holding out his hand to her. He had asked her something, but what was it? It took a minute for the words to filter into her hazy brain.

“Will you please come with me now?” he had said in an emotionless voice.

Oh yeah, she thought. He still wanted to protect me, how fucking noble.

She stared at him, possibly considering his words, and in one swift motion maneuvered herself off of Josef’s lap with a turn of her heel and into the space in front of Mick. She swayed with the sudden movement. Her eyes had an odd combination of lust, anger, and satisfaction swirling around all at once.

 “Whatever you want.” She replied in a familiar tone.

That was all she said as she breezed past him on her way to the bar. The blood still trickled from the wound in her shoulder and it glistened in the dim reddish light of the club.

He glanced back at Josef looking straight at him, showing no signs of remorse. He was lounging in the booth sucking at his fangs to get the last taste of Beth from them, and gave Mick a wide fangy smile as if he had won. He slowly licked the two fingers he had used on Beth while looking Mick dead in the eye.

Son of a bitch, Mick thought.

He followed Beth to the shadowy side of the bar as she ordered a shot of Crown on the rocks before he could stop her.

“You’re going to have one hell of a hangover tomorrow.” Mick stated as she gave him a sideways glance and downed the shot in one gulp. She had this gnawing out of control feeling she needed to drown.

She stood motionless for a second, giving the liquor time to burn all the way down to her stomach before she faced Mick with a question poised on her lips.

He didn’t know what to say to her at that point so he asked her to turn around to look at her shoulder. She complied with a sour look as she knew his avoidance techniques well.

He grabbed a roll of paper towels from the other side of the bar. It was all he could do to stop himself from licking her clean, but god only knows what Josef had put in his mouth today, and he didn’t want to catch anything.

He managed to clean her up with seltzer water, and with his hands on her biceps he carefully turned her around to face him. Her eyes had changed. The rage didn’t burn as bright, for which he was grateful, and the lust had waned.  She seemed almost placid, and she had a tinge of disappointment in the fine wrinkles that had formed on her forehead.

Her confusion was evident as well. She knew where she was and she knew who she was with but the meaning was lost. Her intentions and her sense were distorted and she wasn’t sure what to do next.

Mick grasped her predicament and gently ran his hands down her arms until he held her hands in his.

“What do you want to do?” He asked, expecting her to ask him to take her home or possibly to the hospital.

She swayed with thought, the vampire blood had lost its reigning force but the alcohol was still going strong.

“Will you take me for a drive?” she asked quietly. “I think I need some air.”

And what could he do but oblige? He walked her out to his convertible and opened her door. She tenuously positioned herself in the seat and curled up against the door when Mick started the car.

“Where would you like to go?’ Mick questioned, but after glancing across the seat at Beth, he realized the effort of thought was far too much for her.

Her head was fuzzy and all she could think of was “How ‘bout your place?”

With a knowing sigh of defeat he put his car into drive and obliged her wishes. He should have suggested taking her to her home, but he supposed this way he could at least keep an eye on her.

As the warm LA breeze brushed over Beth’s face, her last thought before drifting off to sleep was about Mick’s bed and how she wanted to curl up in it with him.

Did he have a bed, she wondered? She couldn’t remember.

*

*

*

Mick pulled up to his apartment and turned off the car. He looked over at his sleeping beauty and wondered if she would stir. He got out and went around and easily lifted her out of the car. He carried her up to his apartment and unlocked the door with one hand. Carefully laying her on the couch he hunted down a blanket and covered her up.

He sat on the coffee table and stared at her for a moment with those piercing blue eyes, as if to glean her thoughts from her head while she was asleep. She provided no clues, although she smelled as if she’d had a good night.

If she keeps this up I might have to get a real bed, he contemplated, remembering the other time he found her incapacitated.

He kissed her forehead. He left her side and relegated himself to the adjoining chair, just out of her, or his, reach.

Tomorrow should be interesting, he thought to himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~