Three years ago…

August, 2006, London…

Christina smiled at him. Thoughts that she should let him know about. They are more than thoughts though.
Would he laugh at her when she told him?
Would he run off screaming and shouting?
Michael Simmons, Detective Inspector, thirty four years old.
What are you going to do?
“Can I tell you something.” Christina said.
Mike put his mug down, looking at her and a smile,
“Is there something you want to tell me?”
“I feel as though I have to.”
Mike nodded, ah, here we go, she’s going to say she’s married and she’s about to leave him and go back to her husband because she really does love him after all.
“Christina, maybe you should just say it.” He said.
She took his hand and again, she felt a little cold. She looked a little pasty as well, but okay, there must be something she wants to say.
“It’s a couple of things actually.”
Right, okay, don’t panic just yet, he thought.
“The first is that I’m…”
Mike waits, he doesn’t want to say anything, he’d rather she just told him.
“Michael, what I need to say is that I’m older than I look.”
Okay, so what? A few years between them, no harm, no foul.
“Okay,” He said, “is it a lot or a few?”
Christina smiled, “A lot.” She said.
Oh shit! Now it isn’t as rosy as he’d hoped. He’s not going to regret this, is he?
“I’m nearly five hundred years old.” She said.
That’s a lot of years, he thought, did she just pluck this number out of the air?
“Are you serious? Five hundred years old?” Mike said.
She nodded, “Yes and there’s something else.”
“I’ve come this far, so why don’t you just spit it out.”
“I’m a vampire.” She said.
Mike nearly coughed up his lungs. With his eyes all watery and she sits there so calm and says that?
“A vampire? Are you taking the piss?”
“No. I am a vampire and I am nearly five hundred years old. Why would I make that up?”
“You ever heard of stupid questions?” He asked her.
“Yes, why?”
“I haven’t got any. You a vampire? You must think I’ve got something missing?”
“I’m not going to lie to you.” She said.
“That’s fucking big of you.”
Shit! She’s a real life, excuse the pun, a vampire? Where does he get them from?
“Michael please believe me. I am what I said I am.”
I need more than a coffee, Mike thought, a lot more.
The woman I want to have sex with is a vampire?
Mike picked up his mug, waiting for Christina to start laughing. It’s not April fools day again, is it?
A small drink. A tempting thought to run off out to the pub and get absolutely hammered. Christina Marriott, the woman I like is a vampire?
Fuck the age thing for the minute, I can get around that, but this?
“I’m Michael Simmons. Pleased to meet you and you are?”
Christina took his hand and shook it, “I’m Christina Marriott. I’m nearly five hundred years old and I’m a vampire.”
“Well thank fuck for that! I thought you were going to say you were married!”
“I have a girlfriend.” Christina said.
Whoa! Hold on now, a what?
“A girlfriend? As in girlfriend, girlfriend?” He asked.
“Yes. Liz Gaines. She works at the British Museum. I’ve known her for more than ten years.”
“She knows all about you?”
“Yes. We are quite intimate.”
Oh shit! She shouldn’t say stuff like that.
“You mean you’re bisexual?”
“Yes and a vampire.” Christina said and she laughed.
“Fuck me.” Mike said.
Christina sat holding his hand, she could feel him trembling. Not saying much more and not looking at her either.
Mike slowly pulled his hand away.
“So, I er, hmm, I think I need a drink.” He said.
“I had to tell you. I’m sorry but you had to know.”
“Yeah, well I didn’t exactly ask now did I?”
“No. You didn’t.”
Mike looked at her. She looked gorgeous and for five hundred years old, just beautiful. Okay, the vampire thing is a little off putting, but shit, it could be worse.
How the hell could it be worse? He thought.
Christina is looking at the table. Looking quite upset.
“I suppose this is where you’ll leave and I’ll never see you again.” Christina said.
Mike looked at her, “Are you kidding? Leave? Me? No, why the hell should I?”
“After what I just told you, I thought this is what you’d do.”
“No. I’m not. But I wouldn’t tell anyone else though.”
Mike smiled at her. No, he’s not leaving her. There is something about her and that’s more than the fact that she’s a vampire and more than the fact that she’s nearly the age she said and that she has a girlfriend. He likes her. Yeah, he does. Three weeks he’s known her and he likes her.
As for this Liz Gaines, so what? Just so what?
“I think that you and me should have a really long talk.” Mike said.
Christina nodded, “You won’t leave?”
“No. I said I wouldn’t. So just talk and then I might need a really big drink.”
Christina sat forward on the couch, “Would you like to go to bed?” She asked him.
Mike nearly broke the mug, “I’d like to, but after?”
“Why not now?”
Mike smiled, okay, he thought, why not now?
Christina held out her hand and Mike took hold of it. Christina pulled him up, leading him to her bedroom.

Pushing him onto her bed, Christina kicked her shoes off.
“I must warn you,” She said, slipping her jeans off, “I haven’t fed for four days and as my blood lust grows, so does my other.”
“Am I supposed to be scared?” He quickly asked.
Christina laughed again, “No, I don’t bite that much.” She said.
So as they made love, Mike found out that she really is a vampire and that she is true to her word, she didn’t bite much.
That helped, it really did.


Waking with her arm across him and Mike kissed her forehead. Thinking that she’d be sleeping like all good vampires did during the day, but when she woke up, she kind of took him by surprise.
“Hello.” she said, smiling at him.
“Hi there.” He replied.
Christina pulled herself closer to him. He liked the way she felt. She felt cool, but very soft.
“Are you supposed to be awake?” Mike asked.
“Yes, I can move around in daylight. I just have to be a little more careful.”
“Oh, I thought you’d be out cold for the rest of the day?”
“No, I can do this. But I have to feed more regularly and my powers don’t work either.” She said and sounded sad about it.
“Where’s the coffin?”
“I haven’t got one. Do you want one? They’re not very nice. Not much room to move around in and they’re for dead people.” She told him.
“Aren’t you dead?”
“Technically, yes. But I still don’t want one.”
Mike shrugged, “Fair enough.” He said.
Christina let her hand move under the sheet, touching him,
“Do you have to be anywhere?” She asked.
“No,” He said, feeling aroused by her touch on him, “I’ve got a few days off.”
“That’s lovely. Would you like to stay?”
Now she’s slowly stroking him and he found it hard to concentrate.
“Yes…” He gasped.
Christina began kissing his chest, then she looked up at him,
“Would you like to meet my Dad?”
“Now wouldn‘t be the time to ask.” Mike said.
“Why not?.”
“Are we having sex?”
“Yes.”
“Then leave your Dad out of it.” Mike replied.

They make love again and Christina is so careful when she bit him.
It’s when they shared a shower that Mike went looking for the puncture wounds. He’d felt her press against his wrists, but there were no marks or anything. She smiled at him, that’s not the only place she had bitten him.
Sitting in her kitchen, Mike having a much needed cup of coffee, Christina sat at the bar watching him.
“You know, I didn’t think that vampires went out in daylight.”
“You should stop reading comics or watch any more films.”
“Yeah but you can?”
Christina smiled at him, “That’s because I’m special.”
“Yeah, you can say that again.”
“Michael, please don‘t doubt me or what I am.”
“I’d prefer it if you called me Mike.”
“Yes Michael.” Christina said.

Mike finished his coffee, standing a little away from her, her deep eyes seemed to watch him with such intent.
He didn’t feel as though he’s being studied, but there’s something about the way her eyes followed him, almost as if she was waiting for something. He wanted to get dressed and go home.
He was wondering if she’d let him.
Christina got off the stool and walked toward him, taking the mug out of his hand and placed it in the dishwasher. She then turned and looked at him, a softer look and she took his hand, leading him back to her bedroom.
“What shall we do today?” She asked.
“We?”
“Yes, you and me. What would you like to do?”
Mike picked up his socks and played with them, “I’d go home and get a change of clothes.” He said.
Christina nodded, “Okay, I’ll go with you.”
“My place is nothing like this.”
“That’s okay, I’d still like to see it.”
Mike pulled on his T shirt then his shorts. Is she going to keep doing this? Go everywhere he goes?
This is something he’s never liked, he does like time to himself, just to be alone for awhile, now she wants to go to his place with him?
Jeans on and he wants to go. Walking passed her to the sitting room, his jacket is over the back of the couch.
She’s not going to come over all possessive now is she? He thought.
As he thought that Christina is near the door, black jeans and a dark blue T shirt and her hair is pushed back away from her face. She should let her hair hang free, she looks so damned sexy with her wavy dark brown hair loose. Like this, she looks a little too severe.
“I’m ready.” She said, smiling and waiting for him.
Mike nodded, putting his jacket on.

Out on the street and the weather is lovely. Christina held his hand as they walked toward his car.
Then he suddenly stopped.
There, stuck to the windscreen is a parking ticket. He took his hand away from her and tore this ticket from the screen. Mike then looked around and several cars away, he sees the traffic warden. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his wallet.
Christina waits by his car as he walks away.
“Hey!” He shouted out.
The traffic warden stopped and turned. A thin man, looking so proper in his uniform, it also looked like he had a moustache growing out of his forehead. Mike didn’t smile at him, he held up the ticket,
“You see this?” He asked.
Then Mike opened his wallet, showing the man his police identification,
“You ever put a ticket on my car you’ll be sorry.” Mike said.
Mike shoved the ticket into the man’s hand. The wallet disappeared back inside his jacket.
“This is restricted parking.” The man suddenly said.
Mike didn’t like the sound of that, ”So what? I’m police and that’s a police car. Now fuck off and do something a little less aggravating.”
Mike had started to walk back to where Christina is waiting.
“I’ll take this up with the manager.” The man said.
“If you don’t shut up, I’ll take that ticket and stick it up your arse!” Mike told him.
The man didn’t say anymore.
Mike smiled and carried on.
Christina had sat on the front wing of his car and waited. He was smiling as he approached her.
“Everything okay?” She asked.
“Oh, yeah. It is now.” He said and unlocked the car.