City of Blood

07

I stand awkwardly at the front door, bouncing between my heels and the balls of my feet. I hope Callum answers and not his aunt; it would be kind of weird for me since I'm showing up unannounced, and while I initially wanted to surprise Callum, I kind of wish that I had texted him.

The door opens and Callum appears before me. He seems surprised before he smirks and leans against the doorframe, looking smug.

"Seems like you couldn't stay away, huh?"

"You came to my house," I remind him. "And my dad knew you were there the whole time. He decided not to ground me or Ramsay anymore, since we'd find a way to break the rules and I already had, but he has some new rules for us."

Callum invites me in. "I'm glad to hear that," he says, closing the door behind me. "Now I can plan our first official date."

"You mean me throwing up on you and you sneaking into my room and hiding from my dad isn't your idea of an official date?"

"Those were... experiences. Get-to-know-you activities."

I roll my eyes as he guides me to his living room. I sit down on the couch and Callum lays down beside me, settling his head on my lap and smiling up at me. His eyes are so easy to get lost in, between the beautiful, deep red color and also because he's my mate and I'm drawn to him.

I reach down and begin to run my fingers through his dark hair, smiling as I do so. When I realized my mate was a vampire, I didn't think I'd have a chance at this kind of feeling or opportunity. Yet, a day later, I'm sitting in his house with his head in my lap.

Callum's eyes close, which I'm kind of happy about so I can stare at him without him commenting on it and making fun of me.

"My dad wants you to come to our house tonight for dinner."

His eyes open and he looks a little nervous. "Okay... am I going to be interrogated?"

"Probably by Ramsay, but my dad is usually pretty quiet. Joseph is friendly and Raina is usually going to events or doing things for her job so she doesn't hang around."

Callum hums as the front door opens and a woman walks in.

She has a tote bag with an embroidered flower bouquet on the front and she seems extremely relaxed for a vampire that runs a club called Vampieress' Dungeon. Her hair is long and copper colored, and it is tied back in an assortment of braids. She's wearing a mini skirt and a crop top, and I'm sure she's old, but she doesn't look a day over thirty. If I didn't know she was Callum's self-identified aunt, I'd assume they were friends or roommates.

Her eyes find myself and Callum and her mouth draws into a thin line. "Callum Adler, that had better be the boy you told me was your mate or I'll ground you for the next twenty years," she says, scowling. "You told me your mate was on some kind of lockdown."

Callum's cheeks are pink, which is kind of funny since I haven't really seen him blush yet. "He is my mate! I'm not a cheater!"

"Your human reputation says otherwise," she mumbles, approaching us and setting her tote bag on the coffee table. "You must be Lennox. I'm Helen."

I stand up and shake her hand. "It's nice to meet you and I'm sorry for the confusion. My dad has never undone a punishment before and I'm honestly pretty embarrassed to have been grounded as an eighteen year old."

Helen laughs. "Trust me, this fledgling has been grounded more times in the last year than I have been in my entire seven hundred years of existence."

Callum's cheeks are still covered in a blush. "Helen, I'm trying to impress him!"