Blueblood 2: The World - 10. Romance in London

We got up after a good sleep. Now we faced some new challenges. How do we catch a wild vampire? I thought about how we could keep one and what sort of containment we would need. A cage? That would be the best way. Keeping one in back of a van would be dangerous and it would try repeatedly to escape. We were protected to a degree against the vampires, but Shelly and Chuck didn’t need the risk it could bite even accidentally in the vampire’s attempt to get away. The Disflavor didn’t make them incapable of being turned. Colin, George, Burke, Alex, Willie and I thought we should catch it. Gabriella objected to being left out, but Alex absolutely refused to even consider that. I had never seen him so determined and unbending. Even, and I’m quoting him. “I don’t give a damn that you can or can’t do it. I’m not saying it’s because you’re a woman. You’re someone I love more than life. Leave me, if you want to, but you are not coming!” Gabriella smiled at him and let the issue drop. Equal rights weren’t the issue here. Love was. We were two teams in different parts of the same town. We finally decided that Gabriella could drive the vehicle with a cage in the back. She could drive to a location but stay in the truck with the door locked. And she was to stay…in…the…truck. The way he said to do that, I would stay in the truck. I saw Colin smile at what he saw and heard from Alex. Edwin told us there was a cellar in the barn where the horses we kept. It was used for storage. Doing a quick study, we found it could be sealed to shield any sun from getting it. We weren’t having a guest come and stay. This was going to be an animal. We had Edward call around to several places. He was very creative. I guess working for Edwin had made him get creative. Making up stories for Edwin must be an ongoing thing. We finally got one of those cages of re-enforced steel. A rhinoceros couldn’t break through. It was big enough. Edward said something about big game hunting in an area of Africa he had gotten permission to hunt. Edward promised he would be bringing the “animal” by airplane here and would have to prove he could bring it back. The cage was available and we would send someone there to pick it up.

We continued to have vampires come in daily to start the serum.

Matt saw me a few days later and made a request. He sat wringing his hands as he began. “I want to do the serum, but…”

I waited for the but…then after a while. I smiled at him. “Tell me,” I said softly.

“I want you to do it,” Matt said finally. It was so quiet, I almost missed it.

“It will still hurt, Matt,” I said hoping he didn’t think I could do anything about that.

Matt nodded. “I know. Sarah told me it was like giving birth again.” He chuckled. “Like I can relate to that.” He looked at me. “I’m not really scared about being hurt, but…” he looked sheepish, “…I trust you.”

I smiled. “Say it. It will hurt.”

Matt looked frightened, and his voice even cracked when he said it. “It will hurt.”

I nodded. “We can do it tonight,” I said. “We’ll do it right in this room.” I touched his arm. “I’m good with injections…but I’d like George to give you the first injection. It’s in the heart and I prefer he does that. I’ll be right there.” I had seen it happen, so I addressed it immediately. “Things with a person being taken care of…become confused. Doctors or nurses giving care often become the focus of a patient’s attention. I want Colin there with me.”

“Okay.”

“It’s to enforce the fact that I’m committed to someone else,” I said smiling. “You might get attached. It’s call transference. It happens. What I need you to know and see, is I’m married…happily…to Colin.”

Matt smiled. “I won’t hit on you. I swear.”

I smiled. “The key thing to do here is talk about it.”

Matt chuckled. “And you say you’re not a shrink.”

“I’m not,” I said. “I was a medic in the Air Force. It happens…even with the straight ones.” I smiled. “We can be friends. We can become good friends, but I believe in being honest. I’m just stating what is expected and what will happen.” I smiled. “Okay?”

Matt nodded. “Okay.”

I told Colin.

“You want me to what?” Colin asked trying to understand.

“I need you there with me when I give the serum,” I said. “Well, George will give the first injection, but I want you there afterward.” I nodded at the expression he was giving as he tried to understand. “He doesn’t trust anyone. He does trust me. I’ve been totally honest with him. Feelings happen with a caregiver. I told him we were married and that these feelings can happen. I’ve seen it before.”

“Okay.” Colin nodded. “I’ll be there.”

I nodded. “Perhaps the two of you can become friends,” I suggested. “He can use another friend.”

Now there were two vampires getting the serum. Matt had it done and would be staying on the cot. It was a nice cot. It was another, but a smaller bed. George was there preparing Matt and inserted the needle in Matt’s chest. The pain came. Both Colin and I stayed right by his side. After the first night, Matt woke up and sat up, rubbing his chest.

“That really hurt,” Matt said sadly.

I sat by him in a chair and took his hand. “I know,” I said with empathy. “We all do.” I waved at Colin. “Everyone of us that is a vampire know it will hurt, but don’t think about how much it hurt. Think about what you’ll get when you have the disc inserted. You’ll have freedom and the pain will stop.”

Colin smiled at me and then leaned in toward Matt. “We wouldn’t do this if it weren’t something we all believe in. You get a life back.”

I nodded. “Now, we need to pick a room.”

“A room?” Matt asked. He chuckled. “A room.” He smiled. “Almost like a real person.”

I nodded. “You are a real person. You always were. Now you have some choices.”

Matt’s eyes grew a little. “Wow.” He commented amazed. “There’s no hunger.”

Colin nodded. “Feel here.” He took Matt’s hand and put Matt’s fingers to his throat. “You have a pulse.”

Now Matt’s eyes grew even more.

Edwin’s house was filling up. Sarah was getting the disc inserted. She looked so much more human. Her eyes glistened and the humor was back. We found Matt a room…and I admit, we chose it on purpose. It was on the opposite wing. I worried about him becoming dependent on me. I wasn’t that important, but he might take it the wrong way. The first sunrise came and we stood with Matt as he saw it and had the same reaction everyone did.

The day he got the disc inserted Colin came to me. I was in the media room. Edwin had never had a television before, now Edwin had the big screen, DVD and a new library of videos. He was watching Doctor Who! We started with the original Doctor Who and was up to the 70s with Tom Baker.

“This is so fake.” Edwin groused eating some popcorn we popped to watch these shows.

“Of course it is,” I said. “This was the 197os! He was the fourth doctor. Wait until we get to the eleventh doctor…”

“How many doctors are there?”

I chuckled. “I’m not telling. You have to watch them yourself.”

Matt threw popcorn at us. “Be quiet! Some of us don’t care if it’s fake. It’s a good story!”

Colin came to me and tapped me on the shoulder. Looking at him, he did the finger asking me to come with him. Getting up I followed him into the hall.

“That’s therapy?” Colin asked smiling.

“It’s cultural!” I defended. “They will be out in the world now. If someone mentions the Tardis or any of the Doctors, they’ll know. I haven’t even started with the 007 movies. If someone mentions Q or M, they will know they are more than letters in the alphabet.”

Colin chuckled. “Okay, okay.” He waved me down. “I get it.”

“Don’t even get me started on credit cards and ATMs.” I smiled. “…and bank accounts.”

Colin brought me into a hug. “You’re doing some great things with them, Devon.” He said kissing me. “But, how about taking this weekend off?”

I could tell he was planning something. “I suppose I could.”

Colin nodded. “We’ve worked since we arrived.” He smiled. “This weekend, it will just be you and me.”

I bounced. “No vampires?”

Colin looked surprised. “We are vampires.”

“You know what I mean.”

“No vampires.” Colin chuckled. “You need to pack for a nice few days. We’ll leave Friday morning and return Sunday night.”

“That sounds interesting.” I smiled, kissing him. I walked back into the media room. “Who’s up for Sean Connery?” I asked them.

I packed a couple of nice suits along with my casual clothes. I told Matt and all the others there that Colin was taking me away for the weekend. Matt looked a little concerned but was resolved to getting along fine.

Colin and I loaded up an SUV, which I was glad not to be driving. Colin headed South. I wasn’t surprised we arrived in London, but when we pulled into a hotel. I had no idea where it was, but we checked in and when the bellman escorted us to this suite. I grinned to myself. The St. James was very…posh? It was a hotel of quiet elegance, not a party hotel. When we came in the lobby the piano music that played quietly told you to keep it down. We checked in and went to our suite with the terrace that you could see some of downtown. There was the living area in the suite with its nice furniture and bedroom, but the feature here was the terrace. A quiet area you could sit outside.

Unpacking, Colin and I didn’t go anywhere. He stretched out on the bed smiling at me, patting the empty space before him.

“This is just about you…” he said as I lay next to him and kissed me. “…and me.” He began kissing me a little deeper, gently becoming more intense and hungry. “I love you, Devon. You’re the most important person in my life.”

I knew that he made me feel that way every day, but hearing it said…so sincere…this was more than just foreplay. He meant it.

“I love you, Colin. We’ll never be parted.”

We made love often. We played sexual games, but this night was all about love. It was slow but just as intense as it could be. We were panting and trying to suck in air as we finished this session. Colin enjoyed our time afterward, touching and just caressing me as I did him.

We had reservations I was told, so we got up, dressed in nice suits and went downstairs to the restaurant. Again, this was a quiet venue. The diners here spoke in quiet tones to one another. No children. I didn’t mind children, but sometimes their behavior was a little rambunctious. The ambiance just made you calm. I had been taught manners by my mother and she showed me what utensils were used when. No one looked at us strangely as we sat. No one cared that we were a couple of two men. They were busy with whomever they were with.

The dinner was fabulous, but I wondered if Colin had enough.

He looked up at me and chuckled. “We’re not done.” He said simply knowing why I was looking at him concerned.

I nodded. “It’s Friday night.” I shrugged. “We have until Sunday. I know there’s more.”

After dinner, he and I began walking through the streets of London. We were near Buckingham Palace, but we headed in the other direction. No hurry, but I had a feeling I was being guided. We walked across the Thames and he then looked at the huge Ferris wheel. He grinned at me as his eyebrows wiggled. We walked up to the London Eye. That is what the Ferris wheel is called. He walked to a man that was confirming people on the London Eye.

“Wentworth,” Colin said to the man. “We have a private capsule reserved.”

I smiled. A private capsule? He had this planned!!

“Yes, sir. We have everything ready.” The man nodded and did what he needed. “You have priority.”

Entering this capsule…and that’s what it was! A capsule, round and very nice and a lot of windows. That’s what it was for, to see all of London! What I didn’t expect was the table in the middle. There was a bottle of Champagne chilling in an ice bucket, there were chocolates and Champagne Truffles. A man waited dressed in a red vest and white shirt and bow tie as he waved us in. He had the white folded towel over his arm. There was also a dish of something. I looked closer. “Caviar?” I asked Colin who was grinning even more.

“Beluga Caviar.” Colin corrected. “With sour cream.”

I laughed at what he’d done. It was…nice!

“I know I’m a third wheel.” The man with the red vest said. “Regulations and all that. I have to be, but I’ll look away.” He smiled as he covered his eyes.

“We won’t be having sex, I promise.” Colin chuckled.

The man chuckled. “You’d be surprised at the number of people who have!”

“We would want more than an hour if we did have sex,” Colin said.

“I prefer less of an audience,” I said as Colin wrapped his arm around me. “Are people allowed to have sex on this?”

The man looked at me with the…you have to ask that…look. “I got a card from a woman that claims she conceived on the Eye.” He smiled. “I promise to be as invisible as possible.”

“You don’t mind that we’re two men?” I asked.

He chuckled. “I’ve seen it all…the typical male and female, male and male, female and female and even those May/December romances. There's one sticks in my mind.”

“Why?” Colin asked.

“Well, she was the December and he was the May.” He said. “She was in her seventies, he was in his twenties.” He shrugged. “I say…whatever makes you happy.”

Colin nodded. “Then get off the capsule.”

“Except that.” The man pointed and smiled.

I shook my head. “You have caviar on hand?”

The man looked shocked. “Oh, hell no. This is a Cupid Capsule, but he made it better.” He pointed at Colin. “He promised good compensation if I signed for the caviar. Which I did.” He waved to the caviar. “You must be pretty special to him. If I had someone like him treat me this well, I’d marry him…and I’m not gay!” He chuckled.

We began to move.

“I’ll be…” the man pointed to the other side of the capsule, “…over here. Not looking….or listening…or whatever.” He grinned and turned away.

I smiled at Colin. “I do feel like I’m special with you.”

“That’s because you are,” Colin said. “I feel special when I’m with you.” He kissed me and walked us to the Champagne. He poured a glass and handed it to me and took one himself. He raised his glass. “To a long, long life where we both feel special because we’re together.” I clinked his glass against mine.

“I’ll drink to that.” I smiled.

We, of course, ate what Colin had done so much to have there. The Truffles, the chocolate and especially the caviar. We stood together as all of London was before us as lights seemed to cast a spell on us. Colin had his arms around me as looked over the city together. The other problems we had were going to have to be handled by someone else tonight. This was just for Colin and me.

We consumed chocolate and Truffles. We pretty well got all the caviar consumed. Colin did a lot of it, but he loved food and had a big appetite. We strolled back to the hotel, not caring if anyone else was around as we walked with arms around each other. There were even a few smiles I saw. Not the look, isn’t it funny? They’re gay smiles but isn’t that sweet smiles. London would be special to me from now on.

Once in our suite, I was backing him to the bed as I pulled his jacket off and loosening his tie. “Thank you, Colin.”

He smiled. “You had a good time?”

“The best night we’ve had in a while,” I said. “The guy on the capsule was right. I must be special.” I said unbuttoning his shirt. “Now, I’m going to make you know how special you make me feel,” I said running my hands up his chest. I kissed him in that consuming attempt to devour the man if I could and he gave back as much as I gave.

It was a glorious night!

The next morning I woke up and realized we didn’t have to be anywhere. I smiled to myself, loving the feel of Colin’s body pressed against me. All was right with the world! Colin’s arm was draped over me as usual. I never liked so much as a Teddy Bear in bed as a child, but I couldn’t imagine not having Colin with me.

“Good morning.” I heard behind me and felt him move.

I rolled over to face him. “It is a great morning.” I smiled kissing him. “What do you want to do today?”

Colin looked surprised. “You don’t have something you want to do?”

I chuckled. “Colin, you have to have something you want to do. This shouldn’t be all about what I want.”

Colin frowned. “Well, no…but I’m not the planner. I enjoy being with you. I don’t care what we do as long as we do it together.” He smiled. “I’ve been to London…”

“On business,” I said quickly. “There’s Buckingham Palace, The Tower of London…there are many parks! The leaves are changing, it’s beautiful!”

Colin smiled and roll over on top of me. “What I was going to say was, I’ve been to London, but I never saw London. I was so caught up in getting Wentworth Manor back and making the money to do that…” he waved at the outside. “It never occurred to me to get on that London Eye. I never even thought about going to Harrods’.” He smiled at me. “I love you, Devon. What I love the most is your enthusiasm about…everything!”

I smiled back. “It’s just my immaturity.”

Colin’s head backed up a little. “Are you nuts!? Honey, you wake up every morning with a smile! Because you wake up with a smile, I have a smile, too! You see everything so positively. We should all be so immature. You love me. I know that. But you love me so…completely. With every fiber in your being, you love me. I see it and feel it. I’ve been alive for hundreds of years, but until I met you I hadn’t lived! I can’t wait to see what you think up next. I mean what I say, you are the most important human being I know or even heard of. You’re kind and caring. I would have dismissed Matt, but not you. You not only made friends with him but got him to tell you things he told no one else.” Colin stressed. “And I don’t think it has a thing to do with any gifts you may have gotten because you’re a vampire, you were this way before. Most of the time, I forget you are a vampire! There are times I forget I am. That’s because of you!”

I looked at him like he was not seeing things correctly. “I haven’t done a thing. George came up with the formula, you came up with the funds…”

“No!” Colin said quickly raising his finger. “No, he and I were pretty much…dead inside. George would still be in Manhattan hiding from everyone. He would never accept the FBI and he never would have come here to England. I was afraid I was a monster, but you were never scared of me. Knowing what I was, you didn’t run away.” He propped on an elbow as he smiled looking at me. “I don’t care what we do as long as we do it together.” He sighed happily. “Even if that something…is nothing. Now, do you see how important you are to me?”

I looked at the emerald eyes. “I know what I want right now.”

All the lovemaking had been…very nice, but this time…I hope the room was soundproof. He and I were a little noisy. There were some loud grunts and occasional shouts. It was indeed a great morning.