KISSES FROM HELL. Alyson Noel

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      Dennis looked unhappy about this, like usual, but reluctantly nodded in acceptance as she left. Eric followed in her wake, thoughtful and quiet, but suddenly burst out at her the second they stepped back into the hall.

      “Are you crazy?” he asked.

      Startled, she stopped so quickly that he bumped into her. They both froze at that contact, and then he hastily stepped back.

      “What are you talking about?” she asked.

      Eric pointed at the door. “That. That guy’s out of his mind.”

      “He’s a feeder,” she replied. “They’re all kind of that way.”

      “No. He’s different. He’s obsessed with you.”

      “He just knows me, that’s all. I told you—he’s from my school. I’ve been talking to him and feeding from him for the last couple of years.”

      “That’s the problem.”

      “What, feeding?”

      Eric shook his head. “No. Talking to him. You should just get your blood and go.”

      Rhea couldn’t believe she’d almost been reconsidering her first impression of Eric. “Oh, of course. Feeders aren’t people to you, right? Not worthy of your notice unless they’re part of your royal world?”

      “No! I just think you’re encouraging him to … I don’t know. The way he looked at you. He doesn’t seem … safe.”

      “He’s fine,” she argued. “He’s a feeder. He’s not going anywhere.”

      “I still don’t think it’s a good idea,” Eric grumbled.

      “Yeah? Well, I don’t think you have any right to tell me what to do!” she exclaimed, trying to keep her voice down. “You don’t even know me. And you made your feelings about me clear earlier.”

      A sudden panicked look crossed his face. A moment later, he smoothed his features back to pseudocalmness. “What are you talking about?”

      “Back on the yacht. It’s obvious you don’t think I have any right being with Stephen since my bloodline’s not as pure.”

      “I—what?” Eric looked truly startled. “No! No, that’s not it at all. I didn’t even know about that when we met.”

      “Sure,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. “Then why were you so surprised about our engagement?”

      “Because … I mean, because you’re so different. You saw him out there in the pool. You just don’t seem like that type.”

      “What type? The fun type? Are you saying I’m boring?”

      “No!” Eric wore the desperate look of someone trying to dig himself out of a hole, only to see the sides cave in. “You’re so quiet and … serious. He’s not.”

      “He has his moments. And I was out having fun too, you know. I had a drink. I danced.” Her words came out in more of a defensive tone than she intended, probably because Stephen was also always telling her she didn’t live it up enough. She really had been out there in the thick of the party, trying to share in his wild side just as he sometimes attempted her more decorous behavior. Stephen certainly excelled at making a spectacle of himself, but he did have a quieter side. “Just because I didn’t make an idiot of myself doesn’t mean I’m some kind of recluse.”

      “That’s not what I—damn it!” Eric took a step toward her, frustration all over him. He raked a hand through his platinum hair. “This wasn’t how I wanted this to be at all.”

      Her fury dimmed for a moment, turning to confusion. “What was it you wanted?”

      “I—nothing, nothing. Forget it. Just be careful with Dennis. Go use a different feeder next time.”

      “Thanks for the advice I didn’t ask for.”

      He sighed and seemed to be working hard to control his temper. “I’m just looking out for you, that’s all.”

      His eyes suddenly lifted to something beyond her. Turning around, Rhea saw the brown-haired girl he’d been with earlier standing farther down the hall, watching them. Like Eric, she was dripping water everywhere. Her expression was hard to identify exactly, but Rhea felt pretty confident it wasn’t happy.

      “Hi, Emma,” he said, looking like he wanted to be anywhere but in that hall right now.

      “Hey,” Emma replied stiffly. “I tried to find you, and someone said they saw you down here. Weren’t you going to change clothes?”

      “Yeah … I just ran into Rhea, and we started talking about Stephen’s amazing dive.”

      Rhea arched an eyebrow and toyed with the idea of contradicting him. But the more she studied Emma, the more Rhea could now see that the other girl’s expression was obvious jealousy. It was nothing Rhea wanted to get involved in, so she allowed him his lie.

      Eric put on a big smile, catching Rhea by surprise. In their brief acquaintance, his few smiles had always been small or melancholy. But this … this smile went a long way to win Emma over, and even Rhea felt her breath catch a little.

      “See you around,” he told Rhea breezily. He walked past her and put an arm around Emma, leaning his face close to hers. “Now that you’re here, maybe you can help me change after all.”

      Rhea repressed a grimace, but his remark erased the last signs of jealousy on Emma’s face. She cuddled up against Eric and made some vague good-bye to Rhea. Rhea watched the two of them stroll off, whispering and laughing, and was surprised to feel a pang of sadness inside her chest.

      Immediately she shook it off and decided she’d just go to bed. Why should she care what this Eric guy said or did? She’d barely exchanged a dozen words with him. Resolved, she started to head upstairs toward her room. A moment later, she reconsidered and decided to tell Stephen good night.

      Unsurprisingly, he was still outside, in the center of the party. He was soaked to the bone, and she wondered how many times he’d been in the lagoon. Vampires liked Chile in the winter because of the shorter sunlight, but the night was growing increasingly chilly. Liquor could only warm you up so much. Stephen didn’t seem to notice the temperature and was telling some story about the time he and some friends had broken into their math teacher’s office. The story involved vodka and ferrets.

      Rhea smiled in spite of herself and waved at him as she emerged from the house. Catching sight of her, he gave her a big grin and put his story on hold.

      “Hey, babe,” he said, coming over to her. He reached out for a dripping hug.

      She laughed. “No way.”

      He gave her an exaggerated sad face and then settled for a brief kiss on her lips, making sure to lean in far enough so she wouldn’t get wet.

      “Acceptable?” he asked triumphantly.

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