The Dark Rising by Lacey Weatherford Page B

“I didn’t mean to distract you.”
    “That’s exactly what you were trying to do, and you know it,” I replied, not truly upset at him.
    “Was it working?” he questioned me, his arms finding their way around my waist once more.
    “Doesn’t it always?” I said, with a smile.
    He paused, and I knew he was ruffling through my memories again.
    “I guess it does,” he replied, and he placed a kiss at my neck.
    I elbowed him in the ribs and he laughed at me.
    “Go get us some plates,” I ordered him.
    He did as I requested carrying them over to set them next to the stove before he leaned up against the counter to gaze at me.
    “What?” I asked, when he continued to stare at me.
    “Does it bother you?”
    “Does what bother me?” I replied, not following.
    “Me biting you and drinking your blood,” he said straight to the point.
    “Yeah.”  I could see this appeared to hurt him a little from the look of regret that passed over his face.
    “It’s only painful for you?” he asked with what seemed like real concern.
    “Pretty much,” I replied.  “Except for when we were together last night.  Something was different then.  I’m not sure why, but it was almost … enjoyable.”  My skin flushed in a heated blush.
    He pondered for a moment.  “That’s interesting,” he commented, before following me to the table to sit down.
    “I want you to keep doing it,” I said joining him, and jumping right into the conversation we needed to have.
    He glanced at me with a bit of surprise on his face.  “Why would you if it hurts so much?”
    “Because, I think you’ll be able to control your urges better if you feed often.  I don’t want you to freak out and go off the deep end like some new demons do.”  I watched for his reaction.  “I mean look at you right now.  You’re sitting here getting ready to eat breakfast with me like a civilized human being.  That’s a good thing.”
    He didn’t reply so I continued.
    “I talked to Krista about this.  She said this is the reason your grandparents were able to be so methodical with the way they handled things.  They were always feeding in small amounts.  The bloodlust was never allowed to completely overtake them.”
    I spooned some eggs over onto his plate.
    “It feels good when the bloodlust is in control,” he stated, glancing down at his food.
    “I’m sure it does,” I replied, reaching out to place one of my hands over his.  “But you turn into a jerk.”
    He looked up at me with a raised eyebrow.
    “I’m being nice when I call you a jerk,” I added, to make my point clear to him.
    He nodded in understanding after a moment, before placing a forkful of eggs into his mouth.
    “What if I really am just a jerk?” he questioned after he swallowed.
    “You’ve never been that way before,” I said shaking my head in denial not willing to believe it.
    He sighed heavily.
    “Portia, I keep telling you I’m not that person anymore,” he replied, this time almost viciously stabbing his eggs.
    I felt his anger rising.  His face flushed red and a hint of his demon appearance made a sudden flash over his features briefly.
    I took my fork and stabbed it into my hand, crying out at the pain.
    “What the heck, Portia?” he exclaimed at my reaction. 
    I pulled the fork out and let a few drops of my blood fall onto his food before the holes closed themselves up again.
    He watched me closely before he took another bite of his food, his features instantly relaxing as soon as he tasted it.
    “I prove my point,” I said nodding toward the blood on his plate.  “You’re better when you are feeding.”
    His shoulders relaxed a little.  “I understand.  You want to be able to reason with me.”
    “Yes,” I replied with a smile.  “Reasoning is a good thing.  Plus if you can keep the bloodlust under control, you have a better chance of not freaking out against some other innocent witch or warlock you might happen across.  Drinking