16

Her surprised look gave him pause, as did the sudden blush on her cheeks. Maybe she didn’t feel threatened after all.
“I see that today is your birthday, and I’m sorry If I interrupted anything. I should be going now.”
She made a move to get up, but he stopped her. “You didn’t interrupt anything. Believe me, if there was something to interrupt, I wouldn’t have been at the bar today. There’s isn’t much for me to celebrate right now. And besides, you don’t have to go alone. I can take you home.”
Isabella made a feeble attempt at rejecting his offer. “That’s really not necessary. I can take a taxi.” she said.
“Please, allow me. It’s already late and it’s the least I can do after all I’ve put you through.”
She gave him a gorgeous smile. “Thank you. That’s very generous of you.”
“Tell me what happened out there.” He tilted his head toward the window, looking out into the darkness.
She swallowed hard. “That guy. I didn’t know he was following me after I left the bar. He came after me in an alley. I ran and slipped, and he grabbed me. And then I ran, and he followed me. He was so close behind me when you opened the door. I really thought he was going to get me. I was so scared.”
She breathed heavily, obviously reliving her ordeal as she spoke.
Samson felt his anger towards Jacob grow as she spoke. “You are sure that it was him?” he asked. He wanted to be sure Jacob wouldn’t give any excuses when he finally dealt with him. The man needed to be taught a lesson.
She nodded confidently. “Definitely. I saw his face”
A strand of damp hair caught on her cheek, and he had to use all his restraint not to reach forward to brush it out of her face. She wouldn’t appreciate any more physical advances from him, not even the tender touch he craved right now.
Tenderness wasn’t something for which any vampire was known, least of all Samson. Vampires mostly had those sort of feelings towards their mates and this human woman was definitely not his mate…. Not that he still had any hope of getting one.
He felt other things. Lust, passion-yes, but tenderness? He rather savored this rare feeling, what ever it was. He thought about the cut on her hand. It was the reason why Jacob had decided to stalk her, he was sure of that, and he had to do something about it. He had to heal her, but that would mean that she would have to know what he was. She’d probably see him as a monster.
Samson hated that fact, but he had to do what needed to be done. He would use his powers on her.
Vampires had special abilities. They could use mind control to place thoughts in their intended victims’ minds to allow them to approach and feed from them, and then later, to wipe their memories clear so they wouldn’t have any recollection of the events.
He could use his powers, he thought. He could heal her, then mind control her. Compel her to forget everything… To forget about him.
That would be the wise thing to do for her safety, but Samson didn’t want her to forget about him for some reason and he wasn’t even sure why, but still he had to do something about her hand.
They got up from their chairs, and Samson regretted that she had to leave. He had enjoyed the woman’s company and would have loved to enjoy her for a little bit longer. Enjoy her? What the hell was he thinking? It was better if she left now, before he did something really stupid. It had to end here and now.
“I’ll get my clothes. I left them in the bathroom.” Isabella said.
“Don’t worry, I’ll have them delivered to you tomorrow at the bar after they’ve been washed and pressed.” Samson replied. Keeping her clothes for a little while longer would allow him to once again inhale her scent.
“But, that’s not-” Isabella began.
“-necessary?” He completed, smiling at her. “Please allow me.”
It definitely wasn’t necessary, but his smile was so charming, Isabella couldn’t refuse him. It seemed he absolutely wanted to make it up to her. She was flattered. He wanted to make sure she was safe.
“Can I see your hand?” Samson asked suddenly and Isabella frowned at the weird question.
“My hand?” she repeated.
Samson nodded. “Yes,” he replied, “The one you injured this evening…. With the broken glass… Can I see it”
“Oh that” Isabella said, lifting her hand to his already open palm. She didn’t understand why he suddenly wanted to see her injury, but she just assumed that he was just being caring. Maybe a little too much. “It’s not that bad. I already covered it up with a band…”
She paused when he suddenly pulled her towards him. His touch wasn’t rough and he wasn’t hurting her, but his grip on her hand was firm.
“Please don’t scream” he said, looking deeply into her eyes, “Don’t move. I’m not going to Hurt you. Trust me, I’m just trying to help so don’t panic”
Isabella had no idea what was happening. She was scared. Afraid of the look in his eyes. Afraid of the sudden change in topic. But for some reason she couldn’t move. She couldn’t scream even when every bone in her body wanted to. She felt like she was rooted to the spot in which she stood.
He acknowledged her frightened look. “I’ll lick your wound. My saliva will seal it, and it’ll stop bleeding and heal completely. Trust me.”
Trust him? Was he kidding?
There was no way she would trust him now that he was being creepy again , but he held her hand in an iron grip, and she couldn’t free herself. Isabella didn’t believe in anything supernatural, but right now, she was sure he had done something to her. Maybe he put something in her drink.
Samson rarely fed on humans. He drank blood acquired through a blood bank and was content with it. It wasn’t quite the same as the warm, pulsating blood coming straight from a human’s vein, but it was sufficient to satisfy his hunger and nourish his body.