CHAPTER 2
I walk silently down the hall to our research suite, trying not to look at the man that I would be working with for the next several months. Rick Allstedt. Tall, dark hair, eyes that I swear to God looked like lavender, and lips that could make you forget your name. It’s going to be rough working in these conditions. Talk about a distraction. Not to mention the fact that I never surround myself with men who are prettier than me. It’s just insulting.
I walk into the suite and set my purse on the table. Rick walks silently in and stands a few feet to my side. I glance up and give him a brief smile. That is his invitation to talk, and he takes it.
“I’m Rick. As you heard from Mr. Caulfield. And you’re Emma?”
I nod, still not trusting myself to speak.
“Well, Emma. I think it would be good for us to get to know each other a bit before we dive into how we are going to approach this project. Especially since we’re going to be spending every evening for the next several months together. It might make things a little more comfortable. Tell you what, I’ll make us some coffee, and you think about what you would like to know.”
What I would like to know? The nerve! To just assume that I would want to sit and hear all about him. I don’t think I like this first impression. Either he’s going to piss me off or bore me to death, neither of which I find appealing.
Trying not to roll my eyes and fall into the angst-ridden prattle of a teenage brat, I sit at the table and open my notebook. Maybe if I look ready to begin brainstorming on possible hypotheses we could test, I won’t have to sit through the history of Mr. Wonderful.
Rick calls over to me, “Do you want any cream or sugar?”
“No, just black,” I respond.
Rick returns to the table with two steaming mugs of black coffee. Mmmmm. He scores a few points for this, but not enough to make me less cranky.
“So,” he says, “what would you like to know?”
I inhale deeply while biting the tip of my tongue. I swear I taste blood.
“Actually, I was hoping that we could start discussing any possible theories or angles that we can come up with and work into a testable hypothesis.”
Rick nods with a slightly amused look on his face. “Want to jump right in, eh? Don’t even want to know about my credentials or curious as to my interest in this project?”
I fold my hands on my notebook and look straight at him. “We are pretty much in a competition here with the prize being a lot of money. Maybe you don’t need the extra cash, but I would like not having to worry about paying off my student loan, much less my monthly bills. I think that the sooner we start and get ahead of the others, the better off we’ll be.”
Rick continues to look amused when he says, “You’re right, I don’t need the extra cash, and it’s not bills that I have to worry about. Just my life. Whether I’m here today and in hiding tomorrow. Or worse. Attacked in the street. Or rounded up into some refugee camp because I’m no longer safe around humans because some wing-nut bureaucrat thinks it’s in the public’s best interest.”
I suck in my breath, staring deeply into his eyes, pulling my arms closer to my chest as the reality of what he was saying sank in. He’s a vampire.
“Yes, I am. I am a vampire. I didn’t choose this. I was chosen. But now I’m making the best of it. And if I can use my talents to prevent going back to where I was eleven years ago, then do not be mistaken. I take that just as seriously as someone who needs extra cash to pay their bills.”
Ouch. I hug my abdomen as my stomach does somersaults. I feel like a complete fool. Again with the damn assumptions.
I sit up in my chair, hugging myself tightly, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean anything bad. I just really want to do well on this project. Not just because I need the money, although that’s really nice. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t agree with the reasons behind the project.”
Rick nods as a sad look mists over his eyes. Not a look meant to garner pity, but a look that says he had seen way too many bad things in his life…er, existence…and he doesn’t want to see any more.
“Okay,” he says, “Let’s start again. I’ll go first. My name is Rick Allstedt. I got my PhD in Genetics from Stanford where I specialized in studying viruses and bacteria. Before getting my PhD, I was in hiding like most other vampires. I got my undergraduate and graduate degrees while I was still alive, but thankfully with the recognition of vampires, my degrees were accepted so I could continue on with my doctorate.”
“How long…”. I start hesitantly.
“How long did it take me to finish?”
“No,” I continue, “How long since you…um, became a vampire?”
“Oh, approximately fifty-two years ago, give or take a few months.”
I don’t really know what to do with that information. It just seems like an important question to ask. I just look at him with what must have been the most stupid expression on my face.
Rick laughs softly, “I was twenty-five when I was turned.”
I can feel my face turning bright red. My radar is not as good as I thought. Yep, country bumpkin in the big city. Look at me, I have no sophistication nor do I know what I’m talking about. God, can we please just get to work?
“Why don’t we talk about you?” Rick says with a brief smile on his face. I can’t tell if his eyes looked kind or pitying. Either way, I don’t really feel in the mood to open my mouth again.
“Um, well,” I stumble over my words, “Um, let’s see. My name is Emma Burcham. I…uh, got my PhD in Environmental Science from, um, Drexel University,” I say while looking anywhere but at him, “I specialized in Environmental Engineering.”
I look at my notebook and wait.
He sits silently staring at me. At least I think he’s staring at me. I really wouldn’t know since I felt too uncomfortable to look up. How long are we going to sit here?
“Well, Emma Burcham. It’s very nice to meet you. I look forward to working with you and getting that fifty thousand dollar bonus.”