Louise Ch. 07

The throbbing and tingling in her breast and between her legs came back with a force so strong, she gasped. Nathan's nostrils flared and his groin reacted as he recognized the scent of her arousal. Louise froze when she felt his hard cock pressed against her soft bottom.

"It's alright." Nathan soothed, "It's just our bodies recognizing each other. From now on, I will always know where you are just as you will always know where I am."

"What about the other part of it?" Louise asked shyly.

"Not now." Nathan replied. "You need to sleep. I'll be next door."

For the third time that day, Louise surprised him.

"You... you can stay if you don't mind watching the food channel." she said shyly.

Nathan would have agreed to watch soap operas to have been able to stay with her and that had been a concern. He hadn't been sure that he could have stayed away from her once she accepted him.

"I would like that." he said, "I'll go change and meet you here."

He went to his room, took a quick shower and threw on a pair of lounge pants and a tee shirt. The worst of it was over; the issue was now getting Louise comfortable with her own body and with his.

"I love a challenge." he quipped as he brushed his wet hair and tied it back with a blue band.

Louise sat in the sitting room for several minutes after Nathan left to change clothes. Now that she had for all practical purposes agreed to marry Nathan, she was still nervous but not as much as she thought she would be. She knew that she had taken several major steps and had actually felt a sense of relief. It helped that the physical part of it could wait even though she knew that it was inevitable. She also knew how difficult waiting was for him but she felt relieved when he told her that it could wait. Once again, she realized that he was following her lead; the next step was up to her.

Nathan tapped on the door and walked in carrying his laptop.

"I know that you hand write the recipes so I thought that I could type them in for you."

"You can type that fast?" Louise asked. "I usually have to record the show and play it back."

"That's one way to do it but I happen to have a photographic memory and excellent recall... unless you prefer to do it the way that you've done it in the past." he replied.

Louise could tell that he really wanted to do this for her and accepted his offer.

"Ok but I'll probably still write in my notebook." she replied.

While Nathan sat up the laptop, Louise turned on the television and sat on the bed.

A few minutes later, they were watching TV in bed like an old married couple. Louise stopped taking notes to watch Nathan as his eyes were glued to the television screen and his fingers flew over the keyboard of the laptop. At the end of the first program, he showed her what he had.

"Did I get it all?" he asked as he scrolled down the page showing her the recipes.

"It looks like it but how.... Never mind." she said answering her own question.

Nathan kept typing long after Louise had fallen asleep with her notebook in her lap. During a commercial break, he covered her up and kept typing.

********

Barb was up early with the headache from hell. "No more Champaign for me" she thought as she climbed unsteadily out of bed and made her way to the bathroom. Once there, she looked in the mirror, winced and continued on her way to the shower where she turned on the cold water first and stepped in.

"Shit!" she exclaimed as the cold water hit her warm body. Gradually, she added hot water until the shower was at the temperature she liked. As the cobwebs in her head were washed away, she began to plan the rest of her day. The first thing that she would do after ordering something to eat was to call Juliet to find out when she was going to ship her things. After that, she would call her realtor and then Kevyn to find out if she had called her landlord yet.

She felt much better after her shower and knew that she would feel even better after some food and her phone calls. Juliet answered on the first ring.

"Jeez!" Juliet exclaimed, "You just called me last night! Give me a chance will you?"

"I was just wondering when you were going to go." Barb replied.

"Some of us do have to work." Juliet retorted. "I'm going tomorrow and I'll ship it on Monday, does that meet your approval?"

"Fine." Barb replied, "What's with you this morning?"

"Nothing, I'll talk to you later."

Barb looked at the phone and ended the call. Whatever Juliet's problem was wasn't her concern unless it interfered with her doing what needed to be done. The realtor's response was almost the same as Juliet's but was much more polite.

"Yes Barb, I know and I haven't had a chance to call the Jones' yet. What do you mean why not? I do have small children and other clients. I'll call you as soon as I've talked to them."

"Yes Barb." Kevyn said when Barb called her. It was obvious that she was still in bed and that she had been woken up out of a sound sleep."

"No I haven't talked to him yet but I will just keep your panties on."

Barb started talking and wondered if she dropped the call when Patrick's voice came on the line.

"Can you call back later? She fell back to sleep."

"I guess, but maybe you know the answer to my question," Barb said, "Do you know if she talked to her landlord yet?"

"No but she's planning to do it later today." Patrick replied. "Barb, I may not care for you but neither do I want anything to happen to you. I know that Kevyn warned you and I want to reiterate that warning. Please be careful and let someone know where you're going and with whom."

"I'm a big girl." Barb retorted, "I can take care of myself."

"I'm sure that you can." Patrick replied. "I'm only urging you to be careful in your pursuits. This is an entirely different setting than what you're used to."

"Why the sudden concern?" Barb asked.

"I would show the same concern for any woman." Patrick replied. "But you are Kevyn and Louise's sister and that makes you a part of my family. I just want you to be safe."

"Thanks for the concern." Barb said. "Tell Kevyn to call me after she talks to the landlord."

She didn't give Patrick a chance to reply before she hung up on him cursing.

"Just who in the hell does he think he is?" she muttered to herself as she began to plan her day.

The problem was transportation. Ollie was out of the question and it would be a cold day in hell before she'd ask Hans to take her anywhere. That left three options; she stayed in, rented a car or took a cab. Public transportation was out of the question. The next question was where she would go even if she had a vehicle. After thinking about it, she decided to take a cab, it would be cheaper than renting a car and besides, and she had no idea of where anything was.

She opened up her laptop, did a search for local entertainment, and found that there were several nightclubs not too far away from the hotel. She wondered who she could ask about them as she wasn't about to walk into some strange place without knowing anything about it. The one that caught her eye was named 'The Emerald'. She liked the name mostly because emeralds were her favorite gem. She did a brief internet search on each club before deciding on 'The Emerald', it had a lucky feel to it.

She looked through her closet and though about going shopping but didn't want to spend the money. The cover charge for the club was on the steep side and she had yet to wear that little black dress. It was much too early to think about going out so she surfed the web looking at the upscale dating sights to pass the time.

Kevyn called her several hours later with news.

"I talked to Mr. Graff and he says that it's alright for you to stay there and to take over the apartment once my lease is up."

"Thanks... Maybe I won't need it for the entire time." Barb replied.

Kevyn hesitated. She knew that Patrick had tried to warn Barb and that Barb had blown him off but she had to try again.

"Barb, I don't know what you're up to but please be careful..."

"I'm fine and yes I'll call if I need help! Better now?" she snipped.

Kevyn mentally threw up her hands. She had done all that she could do and changed the subject.

"I'll bring the keys by later tonight; we can go out for dinner too."

"Thanks but I'm going out tonight. I think that it's about time I get to know my new surroundings don't you?"

"Yes... where are you going?" Kevyn asked.

Barb wasn't going to tell her and felt slightly insulted that she had been asked but she told Kevyn where she was going.

"A place called 'The Emerald' it's not too far from here."

"The Emerald?" Kevyn asked. "Hold on, let me ask Patrick if he knows it."

Kevyn came back a few minutes later.

"He says that you should choose another club...."

"Why? Barb interjected, "It looks very elegant and upscale."

"Barb...."

"Thanks for the heads up, maybe you can bring the keys tomorrow."

Barb hung up, went to the bathroom, turned on the tub and added several drops of the expensive bath oil to the water. As the tub filled, she laid her under things on the bed and took the dress and her shoes out of the closet. She had just gone into full rich man hunting mode.

*********

Hans couldn't concentrate on his work. He kept replaying the conversation with the fate repeatedly in his mind. He had to make a decision and soon.

"Why am I agonizing over this?" he asked himself.

Theirs wouldn't be the first pairing that was less than optimal and those couples had managed to make it work. Some of them had even come to love each other but he and Barb were at the opposite ends of the spectrum and if a mating between them was going to work....

"Shit!" he cursed as he realized that he was actually considering it. He cursed again when he realized that he really had no choice in the matter, he was stuck with her whether he claimed her or not. Then there was the fact that he would die when she did and dying wasn't a part of his plan. He would also be the first in his line not to claim his mate if he didn't claim her.

Even with that knowledge, Hans fought what he knew would eventually happen. He turned his attention back to his work. A huge pharmaceutical convention was coming in two weeks and he had to make sure that all was ready. Usually work calmed him but not this time. After several minutes of looking at the inventory sheets on his computer, he gave up and went to the front desk.

**********

Louise woke up in desperate need of the bathroom. For just a moment, she had forgotten that Nathan was in bed with her and let out a yelp of surprise.

"Good evening," he said softly, "Did you sleep well?"

"Ummm yes... you stayed all night?" she asked.

"That's what mates do." Nathan said and then watched her reaction and knew that she didn't understand that from the moment she said yes that they were mated even though they had yet to make love.

"I knew that, I was just surprised." she replied.

"When you come out of the bathroom, we need to talk." Nathan said gently.

Louise washed her face and hands and brushed her teeth before going back out to the bedroom. A cart containing juice, tea and muffins sat at the foot of the bed.

"I thought that you might be hungry." Nathan said as he filled two large glasses with orange juice.

They ate in silence with Nathan finally speaking first.

"This morning you accepted me as your mate but I don't think that you quite understand what that means." Nathan said kindly. "It means that even though we haven't made love yet, we don't sleep apart. It means that you are never alone and neither am I."

Louise was quiet as she thought about what he said.

"I think that I knew that." She replied, "It's going to take some getting used to."

"I understand... Louise, I want us to become physically closer. I know that you've never been with anyone before and I can only imagine how nervous that must make you but we'll go slowly."

Her mouth was dry, her heart pounded but she was excited at the same time. She realized that all of the thoughts that she had kept at bay for years could be turned loose. It was that realization that frightened her more than the actual physical act of making love.

Nathan watched her and knew that he had been right about her. His sweet, shy mate was a very passionate woman even though she wasn't aware of it and didn't show it. He would keep his word and not push at least not too much but it was time to start preparing her for the physical part of their relationship.

"We start by touching in public and in private." he told her. "When I say that I'm not talking about pawing each other or anything like that. I mean, we hold hands; I kiss your temple, all of the things that tell women like your sister Barb that we belong to each other. How do you feel about that?" he asked.

"Okay I guess but I won't sit in your lap in public. I know that Kev is ok with it but I'm not sure that I am." She replied.

Nathan smiled at her pleased that she felt comfortable enough to tell him what she was comfortable with and what she wasn't. He wondered if she was aware of the ways that she was changing since her arrival and decided that she probably wasn't, at least not consciously.

"Agreed." he said, "as long as you sit in my lap in private." he added.

Louise blushed but didn't respond one way or another; she simply didn't know how she felt about that. Instead of pushing the subject, Nathan let it drop and changed the subject.

"I think that it would be a good idea to begin teaching you how to control your gifts. Once you know the trick it isn't hard and after awhile you'll be doing it without thinking about it."

Louise sat down on the bed and waited for Nathan to begin. It didn't take him long to realize that she had an innate ability to control her gifts but the problem came when she was upset or stressed. He led her through a series of mental exercises and taught her how to step back from a stressful situation.

"What if I forget and just react?" She asked.

"I'm sure that you will but I'll be there to so no worries." Nathan assured her. "But the safest thing to do right now is to keep your shields up. It'll take conscious effort for awhile but then it will become second nature."

Nathan proved to be a gentle and thoughtful teacher urging her to relax when she became too tense. He wanted to stop when she got a headache but she refused.

"I'm alright." she insisted.

Nathan put his foot down when her eyes began to water from the pain of the headache.

"Enough. Tomorrow is another day." he said as he kissed her forehead. "You did well."

"My headache is gone." She remarked.

"Yes and if we continue it will come back so no more work tonight. How about we try one of the recipes from the show?" Nathan asked knowing that cooking would relax her.

"Which one?" Louise asked excitedly, the headache forgotten.

"How about the roasted chicken with new potatoes and glazed baby carrots? We'll have to go to the store and get a few things but it's not too far from here."

"Let me get changed and I'll meet you downstairs." Louise said as she started to walk away.

"Just a moment." Nathan said grabbing her hand. "Mates never separate or meet without a kiss."

"But you're only going next door." Louise replied.

"Where I go doesn't matter." Nathan replied as he pulled her back toward him, "we don't part without a kiss even if it's on your temple... like this."

Nathan grazed his lips across her temple before kissing it. Louise leaned into him and relaxed. She finally understood the kiss on the temple thing. Nathan was staking his claim on her while Patrick's kiss on the cheek was telling anyone watching that she was under his protection.

Nathan released her and smiled down at her, "see you in a few minutes."

Louise watched him leave and tried to slow her rapidly beating heart as she finally acknowledged that she was in love with Nathan Sinclaire.

********

Barb made sure that every inch of her body was oiled taking special care with her elbows, knees and feet and inspecting her legs for any hair that she missed while shaving. As she applied her makeup, she sang whatever song that was in her mind convinced that tonight was going to be a very lucky night for her.

She stepped into the dress and pulled it up and over her hips shaking her ass to settle it in place. She sprayed her favorite perfume, 'White Diamonds' on her pulse points before letting her hair loose from its ponytail. She shook her head and ran her fingers through it.

"Damn you look good!" she said as she gave herself one last inspection before slipping on her heels that added another three inches to her five feet five inch height. She grabbed her bag, tossed her cell phone into it and headed to the hotel lobby where she hoped that the cab was waiting on her. She didn't call down to request to be called when the cab arrived, it wasn't anyone's business where and when she went anywhere.

Barb walked by the front desk without looking to see who was standing behind it.

Hans looked up just as Barb walked by. A feeling of dread hit him as she watched her get into the cab. In the week or two that he'd known her, he had never felt anything other than intense dislike for her. The feeling of dread turned into one of concern but by the time he had made up his mind to stop her, she was already in the cab and headed to who knew where.

He tapped his long fingers on the counter and debated as to what he should do. She was headed for trouble; he could feel it. He didn't stop to think about what it meant that he knew that or that he was suddenly concerned about her safety.

Not knowing what else to do, he called Patrick hoping that his mate would have some idea of where Barb was going. Kevyn answered the phone.

"Hello, this is Hans from the hotel; may I please speak with Mr. Sinclaire?"

"Han's this is Kevyn, what's wrong?"

"Nothing... yet." he replied, "your sister just left and I'm concerned... Do you happen to know where she's going?"

"Someplace called 'The Emerald' Patrick tried to warn her off from the place but she wouldn't listen." Kevyn replied.

Hans closed his eyes and opened them. He knew the place well and of all the places that she could have chosen, she had to pick that one.

"I'm going after her." Hans said. "I'll call you when she's safe." he added before hanging up.

He dialed another number and waited impatiently for someone to answer.

"Nolan, I need you up front... now." he said.

A few minutes later, he was on his way to the club.

*****

Barb looked at the line that was growing by the second. A feeling of disquiet gnawed at her as she took in the appearance of the club. For just a moment, she almost changed her mind but paid the cab driver and got out. She shook of the feeling of disquiet and attributed it to nerves although she had never experienced a case of nerves before and headed to the back of the line. The closer to the building she got, the more unease she felt but she refused to leave especially since she had spent the money on the cab.

She had the distinct feeling of being watched and looked around to see who the culprit might be. Seeing no one, she faced front but the feeling that she was being watched hadn't dissipated. If anything, it grew stronger. The word run echoed through her mind but she ignored it determined to stay.

*******

Thorne Blackwell looked out over the line of humans and vampires waiting to get into his club. Most of them were regulars, a few of the humans would come this once and never leave and some of them just wouldn't return. Then there was the one who stood alone nervously looking around. He recognized the signs of a gifted one and one who came to the club looking for a rich man. She was one of many. He could tell just by looking at her that she thought and knew that she was beautiful and that she thought that the world owed her. He could also tell that she believed that she was in control and that she thought to control whatever male she got her claws into. He chuckled quietly; she was in for a surprise.