Desired as his Vampire Duchess

2: Jump

Valentina

"It was so humiliating, Chrissy!" I wailed, huddled on the floor in her living room. I broke down as soon as I was out of sight of my apartment, and ended up waiting on a bench down the street for Chrissy to pick me up. Twenty minutes later I was at her place with nothing but my work bag in hand. I hiccupped, struggling to speak. "She was—all over him—and he—cheated on meeeeeee!"

"What's that b***h's name? I'll go rough her up on my way to cut off Barrett's balls," Chrissy growled, rubbing my back soothingly, in stark contrast to her harsh words. "I can't believe he turned out to be such a douche. You need to lawyer up and take him for all he's worth!"

I swiped at my eyes, spreading hot wet tears across my face. "I'm only going to do that if he doesn't let me get my stuff back and get out of the apartment lease," I sniffled a few times, then continued, "It's a good thing my inheritance is set up so he can't access it on his own."

"I don't know. If he was capable of cheating and trying to extort you for money, I wouldn't count on him making it easy for you," Chrissy said, shaking her head. "It's a huge relief you haven't put the money down on the gallery yet. You dodged a bullet."

I laughed hollowly. "Yeah. I'm such a lucky girl."

Chrissy hummed in sympathy and put her arm around my shoulder. I could tell she was truly torn between staying and comforting me or hunting Barrett down to administer bodily harm. "Just try to focus on what you have going for you," she urged. "You have your new job to look forward to. And don't worry about where you're going to live, because the answer is here, for as long as you need."

I leaned my head on my best friend's shoulder. "You're the best, you know that?"

"Well duh, that's obvious."

I laughed again, more genuinely this time. "Let's talk about something else. I don't want to waste another breath on that jerk."

"Sounds like we're ready for frozen margaritas!" Chrissy cried, leaping up. "I'll get the blender!"

"Normally I'd help, but I feel like being a useless lump on the floor for a little while longer," I replied. Now that my body was calming down a little, I was starting to crash.

"No problem girl. I got it covered," Chrissy said, waving me off as she padded to the kitchen. While she scooped ice out of the freezer, I picked up my phone and pressed the power button. I had turned it off after Chrissy picked me up, not wanting to deal with Barrett's texts and calls that were coming in rapid succession. But I knew I should stay on top of it. I didn't want him to decide to throw all my belongings away or anything.

My phone screen lit up, then started going crazy with text and missed call notifications. I sighed. I needed to block Barrett's number, especially if he was going to keep contacting me. The thing I asked him explicitly not to do. While the blender noisily ground up the ice, I scrolled through the long list of texts. They went from pleading to blaming me for not being enough to threatening and back again.

Just then, my phone buzzed again with another incoming text message. Barrett again. You're going to regret this. You'll see.

"I think not," I muttered bitterly. If he wanted to keep sending me evidence in writing to use against him, I wasn't going to point out his stupidity.

Chrissy walked back into the living room holding a full pitcher of booze and two huge glasses. "Bottom's up!" she announced, setting the glasses on the coffee table and filling them to the brim.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're trying to get me drunk," I said, looking apprehensively at the glass. A small blob of blended ice dripped down the side and plopped on the coaster.

"Just this once," she said cheerily. "C'mon, it's a celebration! To your new job! To freedom! To womanhood!"

"You started the party in the kitchen, didn't you," I teased. She did look a little rosy-cheeked.

"If you're implying that I took a few swigs directly from the fifth to finish off the bottle, you would be correct," she said. "I didn't want it to go to waste! Now clink glasses, woman! It's bad luck not to do it after a toast!"

I rolled my eyes and smiled. Chrissy always knew how to make me feel better. And, even though I was heartbroken, I knew she was right that I was lucky to get out of my relationship with Barrett before I got in too deep. Really, he'd shown me his true colors in the nick of time.

"To awesome best friends," I said, lifting my glass.

Chrissy banged her glass against mine, nearly spilling both of them. "Cheers!" she shouted, taking a big gulp. She closed her eyes and shuddered. "Brain freeze!"

I took a sip, feeling the subtle burn of the tequila slide down my throat. "Cheers," I echoed with a sad smile.

---

"Just trush your beeth in the morning," Chrissy grumbled. Then she laughed drunkenly. "Ha ha, I said trush your beeth. It's trush your beeth. No, it's brush your teeth! Ha ha!"

"I would, but my teeth feel positively furry," I said. I felt slightly warm from the alcohol, but I was nowhere near as plastered as my friend was. "I'm just going to the convenience store on the corner. I need some more essentials anyway."

"Whatch mine ish yours!" Chrissy slurred, her grand hand gesture comically at odds with her haphazard pose on her bed.

"Not your toothbrush," I said firmly. "I'll be back in five, okay?"

"Waaaaaait, I'll come with you," she said, struggling to get up.

"You're in no shape to go anywhere, woman," I said, gently nudging her back down on the bed. "Just stay here."

"Okaaaaaaaay," Chrissy yawned, already half asleep. I patted her shoulder and slipped out of the room, grabbing my bag along the way. It may have been high maintenance of me to require my own toothbrush, but after being in and out of several foster homes where I didn't always have the luxury of adequate toiletries, I couldn't help it.

I took the spare key Chrissy gave me and locked up on my way out. It was late, but the streetlights were on, and the convenience store wasn't far away. Still, I hurried along, desperately wanting to go to sleep for the night. Preferably a dreamless sleep.

At the corner store, I quickly picked out a toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, and a hairbrush. After a small internal debate, I also grabbed some shampoo and body wash. I wasn't sure when I'd be able to get the rest of my stuff from the apartment, and I didn't want to put Chrissy out any more than I already was.

I paid and left, the bell on the door tinkling in that flat depressing way commonly associated with retail establishments. The moon had gone behind the clouds, making it clear that the streetlights really weren't up to the task by themselves. Ahead, a light flickered and then went out, creating a pool of darkness. I crossed my arms and walked faster, anxious now to get back to Chrissy's apartment. Usually I wasn't bothered by the night, but the hairs prickling along the back of my neck were telling a different story.

I was under the cover of the broken streetlight when something wrapped around my neck, following quickly covering my mouth. My scream was muffled as I was pulled off the sidewalk and into the dirty alley.

I was released and thrown into a chain-link fence at the back of the alley, hard enough to make it rattle and creak. I hunched over, the wind temporarily knocked out of me. Adrenaline was rushing through my body.

"Look what we have here," said the thug that had just released me. "A pretty one this time." He was muscled, with greasy hair and a greasier smile. Flanking him were two similarly built men, all looking at me with lewd grins.

He stalked towards me and ran his finger down my cheek. "I think we'll enjoy this one, boys. We don't always get so lucky on the job."

I tried to cringe away, and he quickly responded by grabbing my shirt collar and yanking, ripping it along the upper seam. I scrambled to hold the fabric up and cover myself. But something about his choice of words was odd. "What job is that?" I asked through gritted teeth, trying to make my voice calm. If these guys were going to jump me, I needed to try to avoid making it worse.

"Oh, you know, the usual. We get to have our way with you, and make a little s*x tape." He laughed cruelly, and the others moved to my sides and grabbed my arms before I could react. My shirt fluttered down, revealing my black lacy bra underneath.

"What kind of sicko do you work for?" I panted, clenching my fists. I had to stay calm for now and wait for my moment to escape.

The thug's leader bent down, his lips curled up like a cat with a mouse. "You're a feisty one, aren't you? I like 'em that way. I think I'll go first." He leaned back and started unbuttoning his pants. "Oh, by the way..."

"What?" I rasped, glancing around at my surroundings.

"Barrett says hi."