After coffee, the men returned to the living room to talk.
Damon said to Adam, "How about this? Me sleeping in the same room and in the same bed with Mimi; I know Bran already sees us as mates, so this could be a start and get the lady to trust me."
Adam thought for a moment. He was quite apprehensive as he felt Mimi's need for safety. It was something that he could sense.
Bran said, "That's a good idea, isn't it, Adam?"
Adam thought for a moment and said, " It could work. I'm now seeing how the young lady actually demands certain things, and after that Spike and Drusilla thing, I'd almost have to sleep with her all night so that you can try it. I can then help if it just doesn't work, but let's see how difficult this is for the young lady. I can feel her need for security. It is something I sense."
I was pretty full and sluggish and thought I'd retire to my room. I could read for a while, then go for an enjoyable long bath, and then read some more before Adam came to put me to bed.
Adam said a little louder before I could go upstairs, "Just a few more things, Mimi, come here. Some new winds are blowing here, so you'd better prepare."
I wondered what else. The coffee had gone rather well; I'd had enough cake, and the men had liked it, although Adam had insisted on a recipe so he could make it sometime. I went into the living room. I sat down on an armchair.
Adam said: "Now that Damon has joined the pack, he will stay with us. He's your new 'bodyguard' to keep you safe. He will also share your room. You'll sleep in the same bed. He's also your mate, so get used to it, and his wolf, Smoke, is Mimosa's mate, so no arguments."
My jaw dropped open. In the same bed. Really?! I hadn't recovered from the trauma of Spike and Drusilla enough to sleep terribly easily, and now this. Well, I don't have to sleep then; I just have to pretend to sleep, I guess.
Adam said firmly. "No arguments, Mimi."
I tried to say something to him. I wasn't ready to share my bed. " But couldn't he sleep in a different bed or even in the room next door?"
Adam looked at me and said in a voice he rarely used, and at that point, I knew I had to obey now. "You have an enormous bed.you have the biggest bedroom too. In the same bed, and you both sleep great in it. He always puts you to sleep and makes sure you don't have nightmares. And no more arguments. Not a word."
I was silent. Infuriated. How could I trust this man? He's practically a stranger. That he repaired my body or treated my wounds means nothing. I didn't feel safe. Without saying a word, I turned around and left. I won't sleep. I can pretend, and the truth will come out. We'll see what happens.
Adam said. "Damon will be bringing his stuff up soon. Make sure there's room for his clothes, too. And be good. He'll be your protector from now on."
I nodded and walked upstairs like a robot. I could behave but oh my god I was upset of this in my mind.
I neatly packed my clothes on a couple of shelves and put my clothes tighter in the dresser to ensure there were a couple of drawers for the gentleman. I tried to figure out how I was going to fit in.
So far, very little had been required of me; now that the actual situation presented itself, it was hard to comply. This was such an impossible demand; I mean, it felt like a fucking forced marriage, almost. Damon was good-looking, but he wasn't secure, and I felt insecure once again, but I decided to be brave and hide my insecurity. Not to show it to anyone.
But I did what was required, anyway. I also cleared out space in the bathroom and thought, "Okay, I'll learn to share. It's okay. Somewhere in between, when I get myself in shape, I'll get some money somewhere, save up, and buy my own house where no one will dictate who I sleep with!" I was still quite upset, and as this was my nest, my room, and now I would have to share it.
Footsteps sounded from the stairs, and soon the door opened. Damon was carrying three sports bags. I was sitting in windowsill, looking out. Perched here, seeking safety.
He came into the room and put them on the floor, looked around, and said, "Look at all the shades of pink and rose. Great, baby, let's see how we can make this room ours together. We could bring in some other shades and change those curtains. I'm not really a fan of pink ruffle curtains; I want something more dramatic, like dark velvet curtains, more grown-up."
I didn't answer anything. He picked up one bag at a time from the bed and put the clothes in the closet. I tried not to stare, but he put the t-shirts and socks on the dresser. He didn't have any underwear. Soon, he had unpacked all three bags and pushed them, bundled, to the back of the closet.
Then he flopped into bed.
He looked at me lazily and asked, "Which side do I go on, baby? Which side are you on? I can sniff which side smells more like strawberries."
I pointed to the left side of the bed, where I mainly had slept. Damon rolled over to the right side and patted the bed.
"Come on baby, come try sleeping with me."
I decided at that point to be a big girl and then take the medicine without it having to wrap itself around me. He was not something I would see safe. On the contrary. He was danger personified.
He looked at me for a moment and added. " By the way, Baby, I will sleep naked then."
Thankfully, I didn't take a deep breath. I was glad that the bed had its own blankets. This was getting quite impossible; all the time, Damon seemed to be getting, or at least trying to get me off balance. I had thought he would be polite, distant, and reserved when he was put to sleep with his patient/protégé, but no.
I got my voice back when I said. "You sleep. We both have our own blankets. You can be under your blanket however you want."
He laughed mirthfully. "We'll see what our first night together is like. And by the way, Baby, it was all my idea to come and live in the same room with you. Bran showed me this room the moment I arrived. I was already looking it over."
Oh, good fuck, I thought. Somehow, the thought of Damon going through my clothes was disturbing, but I tried to be cool and not get too distracted. His idea. Oh, my fucking god.
I said, "I'm going to take a shower. Excuse me."
I slipped into the bathroom and pulled the door shut. There was no lock on the door, so I hoped he would at least let me shower alone. Not take a long luxurious bath like I had planned.
I took off my clothes and threw them in the laundry hamper. The house also had a basement with a sauna, a swimming pool, and a laundry room. I headed for the shower. I washed myself with hot water and rose-scented shower soap. The hot water brought out my natural strawberry scent better.
I wrapped myself in a bathrobe and wrapped a towel around my hair, which would soon need to be cut and bleached again. I came out of the bathroom and went to sit on the bed to dry myself. I took the towel off my hair and dried it some more. I was in a lazy mood and let it dry naturally. I didn't want to brush or blow dry it anymore.
I had reserved a nightgown for myself. I had put on an oversized shirt and a dressing gown for when I went for my evening meal. My original plan was to read Anatomy after my shower and then have a late evening snack, but now I didn't know how I would do it.
I opened the bathrobe, slipped my hands through the sleeves, and tried to get dressed under the cover of the bathrobe.
An amused voice behind me said. "Baby, I treated you for three weeks in the medical bay. I know every square inch of your body. I've seen it all."
It wasn't part of it. I just didn't want to show myself at all. I got my shirt on, got up, and returned my towel and robe to the bathroom to dry off.
When I came out, Damon took me by the shoulders and directed me to sit at the dressing table. He took a brush and started to brush my hair. Gently, caringly.
I said casually. "It could do with another trim and bleach."
Damon was silent momentarily, then said: "Long hair suits you. These are in good shape, though I don't know about bleaching. Red hair could be your thing."
I said, "Actually, I've had red hair before, and pink, blue, I don't know, I've learned over time to go blonde."
Damon said. "I'll take you to the hairdresser one day and get this hair fixed. Good blood-red hair brings drama to the game, and change is always good. I'll give you a good makeover."
Then he finally braided my hair tight.
"Well, that's better," he said with satisfaction.
I said, " Thank you. It's been a while since anyone has done my hair. It's one of the luxuries I've learned to enjoy."
Damon said: "I can always do your hair, baby. It's time you learned how to please me and how I want you to be. "
Oh, I was about to make a pretty damn snappy comment about that, but I restrained myself and didn't fall into such an obvious trap. I have sharp tongue and not much restraints of using it from time to time.
I got up from my chair and decided to be brave and go read. I grabbed a book from the nightstand, opened my bed, and snuck under the covers to read. I tried just to act normal, to make this something normal. I didn't look very disturbed that a literally strange man would come to share my room.
Damon came in next to me. He took the bedspread from the bed and folded it neatly on the bench at the end of the bed. I had simply tossed the blanket aside. This would be interesting if he were wildly neat and orderly, and I'm not at all.
Then he took off his shirt. He was in fantastic shape and also completely hairless. This was a pleasure to watch, but I didn't show it. I just wasn't quite sure what I was reading. Hairless up to his armpits and arms. He turned over on his back and put his hands under his head.
I tried to concentrate on reading. I focused again on reading about various surgical procedures while wondering what it would be like to be a surgeon, to operate on people. I wondered if I could handle it if patients died. At least in TV shows and books, it seems to be a big deal, but since I'm not human anymore, not at all. I don't have a drop of human DNA left in me, so would it be easier for me?
I had no idea what kind of my mind was. I mean, I was killer. It was just one fact that I had to get to grips on and I had not thought of that too much as it brought so much terrible memories and I was trying to keeping my humanity. Not become beast they intend me to be.
I had about five minutes to read and ponder my own thoughts when Damon said, " Let's play a game like this: I'll share something about me, then you'll share something about you, and then I'll share something about me. The name of the game is trying to surprise me. I've read everything Samuel has written about you, so I know quite a bit. I'll only tell you about myself if you tell me something I didn't know before."
I glanced at Damon, sighed, put the book down, and started. Oh, this boy knew how to challenge me, and well. I hadn't told Samuel or even Adam nearly everything. There were sides to me, memories, and even habits I didn't share. Like my taste in music, my favorite book, and some delicacies I'd never mentioned, so fine. Let's learn something about each other then, even if I wasn't big on sharing.
"I'm a virgin."My voice was haughty.
Damon said: " Doesn't count. The fact is known. Try again, baby; I don't give anything away about myself that easily."
I looked back and whispered sweetly, "My zodiac sign. I'm not so simple that I can't understand the talk either. I know Samuel wrote it down, and there's been talk of my lust."
Damon's expression was something to behold. Gotcha, I thought triumphantly. I tried not to show my smugness too much, but then I let a little of it shine through.
Damon said: "My horoscope says I'm a Leo."
We continued to get to know each other for three hours.
I said, "I lived seven miles from the Russian border as a human being."
Damon grunted and said, "Fine. I was once living in Russia for about 30 years. "
I told him about my family and my home before I was kidnapped.
I said at one point, " I was the only one in my family who didn't have any family members left alive. All the other cousins, aunts, uncles, they had a family member alive, so even then I was an exception, a freak maybe almost."
Damon thought for a moment and said, "Well, I have a brother alive, but then again, my brother killed our parents after I had already left home. Stefan. He later brought Katrine into my life, and that led to problems. Katrine was perhaps the most destructive relationship I've ever had with a woman, a relationship where we both had feelings involved."
I had a lot of little details that no one knew about yet.
I said, "I like gardening, and when I was a kid, I used to have a tantrum or cry fit in the flower shop when I didn't get flowers. I didn't always want toys."
Damon looked at me for a moment and said, "You must have been a pretty cute kid. But now you're mine. Mimi.....Salvatore..."
He looked at me challengingly and waited for some reaction.
I just said calmly, " Springcove, no, Salvatore. We can share a room, but I'm not going to share your last name."
Damon came a little closer, reaching into my ear, and whispered, "Still.. there is time, and one-day, darlin, you will be Mimi Salvatore, my wife."
I was silent. I didn't react at all. This would be something new again, and the way Damon pronounced the word darlin, for some reason, sent shivers down my spine as if he had revealed a side of himself that was the really dangerous side.
I said, "I am killer, stone-cold killer. I have killed so many and I have no idea how many, ripped them apart with my own hands."
Damon looked at me, smiled and said, "Baby, you are nothing compared to me. My victim count, is probably tens of thousands as a vampire I did required blood and I am greedy so it was quite common my meal not to survive. Don't try to shock me. I am much older, crueler and experienced than you and I doubt that anything you do or experience could shock me."