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“That’s an understatement.”
“You can’t disrespect me in front of anyone, Kimberly. I mean it. I have a reputation to uphold, and the other vampires will expect me to keep you in line.”
“What does that even mean?” She whispered, shaking her head. “Keep me in line? I don’t need to be kept in line.”
“You say that now,” I pointed out. “But that’s not what others will think.”
“Since when did a big, bad vampire care what other people thought?”
“Since ignoring what people think is the fastest way to make sure nobody respects me anymore.”
“What do you mean?”
I sighed. Okay, this was going to be harder than I thought. If I was going to earn the trust of the little hunter, I was going to have to work harder than I could possibly imagine. She was turned, yes, but the work wasn’t finished.
Kimberly had spent her life hunting vampires. She’d studied our weaknesses and our strengths, but she hadn’t studied our culture. She didn’t know how things worked around the Grove, and I had a feeling that she didn’t want to know.
Well, that was too bad.
She was about to find out that life with us was going to be a little bit different than she thought it was.
She was about to find out that life among the vampires could be really wonderful, but it could also be really horrible.
“I’m the Vampire of Garnetia,” I said. “You know what that means.”
She nodded, but that wasn’t good enough.
“Tell me,” I said.
“It means you’re in charge,” she whispered. “You’re a Vampire Lord. There are vampires in cities all over the globe. In our city, the vampires all congregate in the Grove, which makes it its own little place.”
“That’s true,” I agreed, pleased with her assessment. “Although we do spend a lot of time in Ashbury, most of us have congregated in the old town. The Grove used to be part of Ashbury proper, but over the years, as new buildings came up, more and more people moved away. Now the Grove is ours.”
“You’re in charge,” she whispered.
“I’m in charge.”
“You said I’m your mate.”
“I said that,” I agreed.
“So, what you’re saying is that I need to show you respect in front of people.”
“Yes.”
“Because if I don’t, then people won’t respect you.”
“Close,” I said. “But try again.”
She sighed, licked her lips, and closed her eyes. I knew she was fighting this. She wasn’t ready to admit what she was now. She wasn’t ready to admit who she was now. She was a vampire. She wasn’t just any vampire, either. She was my vampire.
“You won’t be able to let disrespect go unpunished,” she whispered.
“There we go,” I cooed. “I knew you were a smart girl.”
“You’re saying that if I disrespect you in front of other people, you’re going to hurt me.”
“Yes,” I said. “And although the idea of spanking your sweet ass until it turns pink delights me, that’s not the kind of punishment we’re talking about.”
