Once Bitten, No Longer Shy by Julie Steimle (chrome ebook reader txt) 📕

sight of him, though they smiled at Nicole.

Bobo laughed, shaking his head. Then Troy spotted Jandra among the crowd. That was a good sign.

“No,” Rick said, grinning as he approached Troy. “I sort of crashed their Green Club meeting.”

“We’re planning our next campout,” Jandra announced bravely. Troy could see she was making an effort not to be intimidated by his vampiric looks. He started to wonder again about Nicole’s roommate. Maybe she was the type that read vampire romances.

Troy nodded to her, rolling his eyes. “And Rick loves his campouts.”

“Campout?” Nicole looked interested. “Like sleeping under the stars in the same sleeping bag?”

“In the dirt,” Troy added, reminding her easily that they (meaning him and her) were city folk.

Nicole laughed, patting his arm.

Rick walked up and extended his hand, smiling. “I’m Rick Deacon. And you must be the famous Nicole.”

Troy did not like the way he said that, wondering what she was famous for in his mind. Yet Rick did not linger on her long as he turned toward Troy, “Care to show me around your walk-in closet?”

He wanted to go through the Lazlo Holyfield entrance. Troy knew it.

“Do you mind?” Troy said to Nicole. “I think he wants to talk privately.”

She shrugged then walked over to Bobo. “What are you cooking up for dinner tonight?”

“Ah! This one is a surprise,” Bobo said as Jandra gazed on him and Nicole a little jealously. “A famous Cajun dish, though. You’ll like it.”

“Gumbo?” Nicole guessed, throwing her flirt everywhere as always.

Rick led Troy to the closet. As they went in and closed the door, Rick whispered, “Did you tell your girlfriend about me at all?”

“Only that we’re friends,” Troy said.

When the door to the lab opened up, Rick stepping in, he said, “Are we friends?”

Troy groaned, following him inside. He let the secret door close behind him.

“I know you resent me,” Rick said. He lowered his head. “It’s not entirely obvious, but… I’m not stupid.”

“I never said you were,” Troy snapped back.

“I’m not trying to control you,” Rick interjected quickly. “But I know what it’s like….”

Troy did not respond. What could he say?

“You really like her?” Rick asked.

Troy shrugged. “What’s not to like?”

Moaning, Rick walked to the wall and almost hit his head against it, doing it gently in his aggravation. “No. Not what I meant. I mean, if you removed all the great sex, do you have a relationship at all?”

That struck Troy hard. He hadn’t really thought about it. But then he had always felt like an empty shell, just waiting for something to fill the hollow sensation and have life make have more reason. His life never really had much of a purpose except to avoid vampires and to take an occasional vacation from stress.

Seeing his lack of answer, Rick stared at him. “Are you serious? Come on. Troy, what is it that you really want to have out of life?”

Troy shrugged. “To survive.”

Moaning, Rick shook his head. “You’ve gotta be kidding me. You need more than that.”

“Like what?” Troy moaned, crossing the room to get away from him. Rick’s intensity made him uncomfortable. It always had. The boy had always been was like a rolling furry thing of passion. It overwhelmed him.

“Your vampire research is not a bad thing. It’s a great thing. But you need more than that,” Rick said. “Is there anything else you believe in?”

Troy stared at him, stumped. But then he said, “What about you? Preaching at me. What do you believe in besides surviving the next full moon?”

He could see Rick almost laugh. The guy’s steel-gray eyes again asked if he was serious. Yet, taking the challenge, Rick replied, squaring his shoulders with an upright neck, “Alright. I work hard to be ready to take up the reins of Deacon Enterprises, which I can’t escape even if I want to. Secondly, I am working to get my family out of France.”

Troy stared. “You have family in France?”

Rick nodded. “Yeah. Big secret, which I am trusting you with now, though Matt and Tom both found out a while back. Dad screwed up big time when he was a young wolf taking up the company just after grandpa got killed. I’m the youngest of the lot—but I am still the heir. I thought you had heard. I think Randon was there. They found out back when you met Audry.”

This blew Troy’s mind. The dirty old wolf had messed around, and Rick had kept it a secret. What a scandal! And why in the world had Randon not told him when he found out?

“How long have you known?” Troy asked, amazed at it.

“Since after my junior year of high school,” Rick said, still surprised Troy had not known. “Believe me. It was a shock. But anyway, I’ve been working to get them away from the French wolves—the Loup Garou—where they are stuck. I already freed three of my sisters.”

Rick had three sisters. That blew Troy’s mind. And apparently he had more. How horny had his father been?

“And I am also working on getting hemp decriminalized,” Rick’s voice cut into Troy’s thoughts. “Did you know that growing hemp plants can end deforestation, replacing trees for sources of paper products? It would be a new and useful industry, which I’d like to lead, if possible. There are even researchers who have also figured out how to make a biodegradable plastic out of hemp.” Rick nodded in earnest. “And there’s this man in Michigan whom I found had invented a cheap way to use bio-waste from farming and grasslands to create alternative energy. You know, the weeds.”

“What?” Troy was stunned by that entire oration. What was hemp? Why was a werewolf concerned about using bio-matter for alternative energy? Why was he concerned about alternative energy at all? He was rich.

Such a dry look settled on Rick’s face. “I have things I care about.”

“Like bio-matter?” Troy stared at him. He then gestured to the door leading out where Green Club was convening. “Since when have you been an environmentalist?”

Rick blinked at him. “I’ve always been one.”

But Troy shook his head. “No. No. No. I don’t remember you joining any environmental clubs at school. We had one. Terra Franks, that half-elf was the president. You spent your free time playing basketball and goofing off with your comic books.”

He could see Rick’s expression change. Nodding, Rick chuckled, his cheeks coloring as he thought on it. “Ok. Ok. Admittedly, as a kid, I didn’t really think about anything beyond basketball, hiking… and preserving hunting land for wolves—as in for my dad and me. But I started to realize that I had the ability to change things and that I affected people.”

“When did that happen?” Troy asked, honestly amazed. In truth, he could see how grown up Rick had become. He was no longer that kid.

Shrugging, Rick’s cheeks were still a little pink. “I was introduced to the idea, inadvertently, by a young ambitious woman whom I had bumped into once before in Paris. She was part of Green Club at NYU.”

Troy wondered for a second who that was.

“But anyway,” Rick said, “You need something more to live for than just dealing with vampires. That said, I won’t criticize your relationship with Nicole if she really is what you want. It’s just I’ve had—” His face turned red again. He could barely meet Troy’s gaze. “Look. You know the problems I’ve had. I was in a relationship that was all…” His face went redder. “It wasn’t what I really wanted. I mean, I’ve wanted somebody I could grow with. Someone who challenged me. Daisy was nothing like that. Yeah, she was a wolf and understood that part of me—and it fulfilled something in me that I never knew I wanted. But she was all passion and no… no honesty. All manipulation. It wasn’t an equal relationship.”

“Nicole’s not like that,” Troy said.

He could hear Rick’s heartbeat thump a little harder. Rick doubted it.

“Why do you doubt it?” Troy asked.

Cringing, Rick looked away as he said, “Because Matthew told me she has a lot of money problems and tends to use—”

“She’s not using me,” Troy protested. “She knows I’m a poor research student. I’ve got no money to give her.”

Rick nodded. “I know that. But she is a nymphomaniac using you for sex. Right? And it appeals to the vampire in you, doesn’t it?”

Troy paled. He looked away.

“And she does need financial help, right?” Rick asked.

Looking to him, Troy cringed. How did Rick know? Had Matthew known? Come to think of it, Matthew had never told him everything Nicole had thought. He only warned him about her promiscuity and nymphomania.

“She’s not asking me for money,” Troy said.

Rick nodded. “No. But she might be asking others.”

Troy clenched his teeth. He felt like biting Rick. “What are you saying? I can’t be happy, because the girl I like has issues? Well, I’ve got issues. We’re both broken, you know.”

He could hear Rick’s heart make a jump. Rick took a breath and let it out again, thinking. Clearly he was biding his words.

“Just spit it out,” Troy said. “Say what you want to say.”

Rick looked to the ground. “Everybody has something broken about them, Troy. I don’t know one perfect, non-troubled soul out there. I think you are just making excuses.”

Troy stepped back. His skin shivered involuntarily. If he had been a wolf, his hackles would have raised. But Rick looked more like a wolf with a tail tucked. Clearly he did not want a fight.

Shaking his head, Rick closed his eyes. “This is not how I wanted this to go. Look, I’m sorry. I’m just worried for you. I’ve gone down a road like this and—”

“Not like this,” Troy said through his sharp teeth.

Rick paused thoughtfully, then said, “You’re right. I was stalked. I shouldn’t be judging your girl. She’s not a wolf. And after seeing her, I don’t even think she is a predator.”

He turned to go out, yet he paused at the door a moment. Troy hung back. Rick said, “Look, it’s going to look funny if I come out of this closet without you.”

Shaking his head, annoyed that Rick simply shook the conversation off as ‘done’, Troy joined him at the door, pressing his hand on the touch pad to open it. “It’s going to look weird anyway, us coming out of the closet together.”

Rick laughed painfully, shaking his head slower. “Yeah…”

Damn. It was annoying how cute Rick could be when he did that. Troy shook his head to get that thought out of his skull.

When they stepped out, Troy noticed the group was now gathered around the coffee table with their meal, planning while also watching a video of someone playing a hand pan—that new age-y metal instrument that looked like a spaceship. Nicole was sitting among them, chatting it up with one of the girls while Jandra, Troy noticed, was sitting with someone other than Bobo. But of course Bobo was the host, bringing out drinks. He had a number of paper cups and glasses.

“Did you save any for me?” Rick asked, walking up to find a seat in the group. It blew Troy away how easy Rick was among these strangers. How many of these Green Clubbers did the werewolf even know? Jandra grinned at Rick and beckoned him over, offering him a plate. That was one. Troy could see Bobo flinch a little. Clearly Bobo had not gotten back with her, which was a shame.

Nicole left her conversational companion and sauntered over to Troy. “I saved some food for you. No garlic.”

“Of course not,” Troy murmured, gesturing to Rick. “Bobo wouldn’t do that, and he’s not sneezing.”

Nicole gave him a funny look, but said nothing else. She pulled him to a seat and he happily sat down with her snug against him, due to the shortage of space—or so she played.

The group had already planned their location for their camping, which would include environmental cleanup in the area. And a number of them had prodded Rick for some financial support in