Kevyn reread Melissa's email and wondered what it meant. She didn't know Melissa's mother and didn't want to know anyone who would teach their child that it was alright to use their body and looks to get money. Kevyn had the feeling that wherever Melissa was, she wasn't with her mother and hoped that she had learned her lesson which brought up Patrick....again.
She looked at the time and wondered if he would still be up, she reread his email and checked the time stamp, two hours ago. Before she could change her mind, she dialed his number.
*****
Patrick paced, he wasn't sure if he should call Kevyn or not. She had been pretty shaken up at the restaurant and when he took her home, so shaken that she left her bat in the back seat of the car. He was also filled with uncertainty, what if he was wrong about her claiming him? What if the potential to rape was still there? He had been wrong before and he could be wrong again.
"I'm not wrong damn it!" He said as he walked back from the window of his room to the bed, "I can't be wrong this time." he whispered. He forced himself to sit down, immediately stood up and began to pace again. The soft ding of his laptop was the only thing that stopped him from continuing his pacing.
Thinking that it might be from Kevyn he opened his school email and frowned.
"Shit!" he cursed when he saw it was from Melissa.
His anger became confusion when he read the email warning him about her mother, he immediately sent a response back but it bounced right back to him. He reread the email and wondered what Melissa was talking about. Her mother was still married or he assumed she was and even if she wasn't there was no way that he'd go within a mile of her. He tucked the information away for the moment, when he was finished on the email site he would look Linda Hunter up again.
The next thing he was curious about was the instructor taking his place. There had been several new hires at the college and the science department was one of them advertising the need for a part time instructor. "Stuart Brinkman" Patrick mused and then read the bio. Immediately he didn't like the man and it had nothing to do with the jibe about office hours, he was also sure that it had nothing to do with the fact that he was a male.
On a whim, he used the same program that he had used to get information on Linda and Melissa. Patrick paused, he had thought about Melissa several times in the past few minutes and he felt nothing. There wasn't even a flicker of anger. Although he knew that he was potentially playing with fire, Patrick said Melissa's name six times each time conjuring her face in his mind and.... Nothing. He tried it again this time recalling the events of that night and while he felt guilt there was no anger except the anger at himself for allowing Melissa to push his buttons.
The dragon really was asleep.
Patrick took a minute to relish the thought; he was free of the curse as he had come to think of it and then continued his search.
"Stuart Brinkman- 36 year's old born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, graduated from..... And had moved to the area about a month ago"
Patrick read the entire bio and found nothing that would explain his instant dislike of someone that he had never met. In the end he chalked it up to what he decided to call the new mate syndrome; he would probably see every unattached male as a potential rival for Kevyn until he adjusted to being a mate.
Next he pulled up Linda Hunter, nothing new was added to the bio and he decided to look for a picture, he wanted to know her when he saw her. It took him several minutes but he found her and gasped, Melissa was the spitting image of her mother, in twenty years this was what Melissa would look like. Patrick could see how the woman was able to get men to marry her and then allow her to take their money, she was breathtakingly beautiful. Once again he paused, he felt absolutely nothing. Tears prickled his eyes as he realized what was happening, he would be able to tell Kevyn that he could and would never rape again.
He logged off; part of the nightmare was over.
His phone chirped and he answered it right away, he already knew who it was.
"Kev....."
"What happened between you and that girl?"
"I told you what happened."
"No, you told me part of what happened and I want to know the rest of it."
"Kevyn now isn't the time....."
"I got an email from Melissa warning me about her mother, why would she do that if nothing really happened?" Kevyn demanded.
"I don't know. I got an email from her telling me the same thing." Patrick replied, I tried to email her back but it bounced."
Patrick could hear Kevyn breathing on the other end of the line but waited for her.
"Do you think that her mother is going to try to do the same thing?" Kevyn asked her voice softer and calmer.
"I really don't know but Kevyn, when I told you that I would tell you everything, I meant it and a lot of it is pretty ugly."
"What did you do?" Kevyn asked almost to herself.
"I.... I can't and won't do this over the phone." Patrick said making up his mind, "can I come over tonight?"
"Is it that bad?" Kevyn asked not knowing what to think.
"Yes sweetheart, it's bad."
He waited for her response with his fingers crossed; it seemed like an eternity before she replied.
"Ok but not here."
"I know that you're a little or maybe very scared and confused but I could and would never hurt you and what I have to tell you needs to be told in private."
"You're scaring me." Kevyn said.
"I know and I don't mean to but we can't talk about this is a public place....wait a minute, can I call you right back?" Patrick asked.
"Patrick...."
"Five minutes tops I promise."
"Okay, I'll be here." Kevyn said.
Patrick ran down the stairs and into what was Caesar's, Ethan's cook's quarters. He was about to knock on the door when it opened.
"Yes sir?"
"Caesar, I have a huge favor to ask. I know that this is short notice....."
"What is it that you need?" Caesar interrupted.
Patrick explained what he needed while Caesar listened without interrupting.
"It is much too late for anything elaborate." Caesar commented.
"I don't need anything elaborate, hell I don't care if its beans and franks but can you help me out?"
"It would be my pleasure, what time should I expect you and the young lady?"
Patrick hugged the old vampire who stiffened and then awkwardly patted him on the back. Patrick vanished from the cook's quarters back up to his room and grabbed his phone. Kevyn answered on the first ring.
"Hi, I have a place for us to go."
"Ok, where?"
Patrick explained about Caesar's restaurant.
"You mean he's opening up just for you?"
"Not just for me for us and before you ask, jeans are perfectly fine."
"I....don't...."
"Kevyn, please, you asked me what was going on and I want and need to tell you."
"What time?"
"Six, our reservations are for seven and if it helps, someone other than Caesar will be there; you just won't see them."
'I'll see you then." Kevyn said and hung up.
*******
"What in the hell is going on?" Kevyn asked out loud as she laid her phone down. Several possibilities ran through her mind with killer and rapist at the top of the list but he didn't seem the type-whatever that type was and she believed him when he said that he could and would never hurt her.
"Patrick, what did you do?" she whispered.
******
Patrick called Martin next.
"Hey are you busy tonight?"
"Nope, Rach and the boys are out of town for the week, what's up?"
"Ethan and Katrina are out for the night-some fundraising thing and Gretchen just got back home so I was wondering if you could chaperone me tonight."
"Absolutely! I want to see this woman, Ethan says she's gorgeous and she loves sports." Martin replied.
"Yes to both things, can you be here by quarter til six?"
"Sure, where are we going?"
"Caesar's, he agreed to a last minute opening.... Yes, see you then."
Patrick's stomach began to turn as he tried to imagine Kevyn's reaction, anger definitely but would she be afraid of him? He began to prepare himself for rejection.
*******
Linda looked though her closet for a gown to wear to the fundraiser, she wanted to buy a new one but Carl refused.
"What the fuck for? You've got a closet full of them and most of them still have the price tags on them."
"You went through my things?" Linda asked shocked.
"Damn straight I did!" Carl replied, "I wanted to see where two million dollars went."
"You can't....."
"Excuse me? The hell I can't and be ready by five, I want to get there early."
Linda watched as Carl walked away, swore under her breath and resisted the urge to throw something at him. Instead she went back to selecting a gown for the fundraiser. Since it was a black tie affair, she had four to choose from and chose one sure to turn heads, it never hurt to start looking she mused as she sat the dress aside.
******
Katrina hated the fundraisers or rather what was involved in getting ready to go to one. She sighed and looked at the dress that she would be wearing, "It's for the kids" she told herself several times.
"Katrina?" Ethan called from outside the door.
"I'll be right out." she called back as she gave the dress one more look and wished that she could go wearing a simple sundress and sandals. Actually, she could have and no one would have said a word simply because she was Ethan's wife but she wouldn't, she didn't want to draw any more attention to herself than she had to.
Ethan went to his office and left the door open so that she would know where he went and turned on the laptop to check on the status of one of his companies, he had been receiving disturbing reports that money was missing. It angered and disappointed him that one of his employees would steal from him; he had always been a generous employer with an open door/email policy and had helped more than one employee out of a financial bind.
He clicked off the screen when he heard Katrina come in.
"Hi, what's up?" she asked as he walked in.
"Patrick is going to talk to Kevyn tonight." Ethan said pulling her into his lap.
"Already?"
"He thinks that its time and maybe it is." Ethan replied.
"Because she claimed him," Katrina said, "do you think that he's right?"
"It doesn't matter what I think but I believe him and just because its never happened before doesn't mean that it can't."
"He's not going alone is he?" Katrina asked as she toyed with Ethan's pony tail.
"No, Martin is going since we have this fundraiser tonight and Eustace is spending time with Gretchen."
"Good but why do I sense that there's something more?" Katrina asked.
"I think that Patrick might ask you for a little help."
"Did he say that?"
