The Vampire Playboy - Blood and Lust

Olivia's POV Sophie was going to meet me when I landed in Ireland. I'd packed as much as I could into my one large suitcase and backpack that I carried with me. I knew my parents wouldn't be happy when I said I didn't want to go to university right away, that I wanted to wait for a year and then decide. What I hadn't banked on was them kicking me out of the house. Our relationship has always been tumultuous. They had shipped me off to boarding school as soon as they could, but I'd built up some fantasy in my head that they would genuinely be happy to have me home and spend time with me while I worked and decided what I wanted to do with my life. Instead, they told me how much shame I would bring upon them, that, of course, all of their friends' children were going straight to prestigious universities and, once again, I was a disappointment to them. When it became clear that I wasn't changing my mind, they gave me the ultimatum, either I went to university or I wasn't welcome in their home anymore and they cut me off. Immediately, I called my best friend Sophie, panicked, and always the voice of calm, she told me to tell them to stuff their house, pack my things and come live with her and her dad in Ireland and that's exactly what I'd done. My parents told me not to come back and to consider myself an orphan. Sophie and I had met when we were 13 on holiday in the South of France. I lived in Glasgow in Scotland and she lived in a very small town in Ireland. Her mum had died when she was a baby and it was just her and her dad. I was an only child and delighted to have another girl around. We immediately bonded and then kept in touch by email and telephone, with her dad bringing her to Glasgow a few times so we could meet up. Her dad was the opposite of my parents, who were cold and void of any emotional instinct. He was warm and loving and such a devoted dad, so I was hardly surprised when he told me I was more than welcome to stay for as long as I needed to. And so I found myself, 18 years old, on a flight to Ireland with only a suitcase and a backpack filled with my possessions and a few thousand in savings. My stomach was in knots the whole flight, worrying I'd done the wrong thing, maybe I should have kept the peace and gone to university, even if it wasn't what I wanted, and then there was the fact I was a city girl, moving to a very small town in Ireland was a big change for me if you could even call it a town, the way Soph described it made it sound like a sleepy village in the middle of nowhere. But I wasn't exactly bursting with friends, I didn't fit in with the other girls at boarding school and had been pretty much a loner, and well, in terms of boys, I hadn't found much success there either. I'd had one boyfriend who promptly called it off after we'd had s*x, declaring me boring. No, my life up until this point had been dull and insular. Sophie was my only real friend and I was grateful to her. She helped me keep my sanity, we got on like sisters though we couldn't be more different. Her upbringing was full of love, and Sophie was the life and soul of parties. Everyone loved her as soon as they met her. She had a laugh that was so infectious that it matched her bubbly personality. She was tall and slender with dark brown hair which was always styled neatly into a shoulder-length bob. She was popular and had plenty of friends at school and plenty of boys interested by the sounds of it. I reminded myself one more time that my stomach was turning due to nerves because this was all new to me and, yes, it was scary, but it would be a fun adventure and I'd get to spend time with Sophie. I waited to collect my bag and then shuffled my way into the arrivals hall. I immediately spotted Sophie bouncing up and down waving her arms furiously at me. I made a beeline for her with a massive grin on my face and embraced her in a hug which she reciprocated. "I missed you, I can't believe you're here" she exclaimed. "Me too, it feels so surreal." I puffed. "Let's get to the car. Are you hungry? We can get something on the way. We've got a good 3 hours' drive ahead of us. Dad let me borrow his car. He's excited about you being here, he's even planning to take you to pick out paint for your room so that it feels like yours." I was suddenly choked up. My parents had never let me decorate my room, they insisted on just white, I wasn't even allowed posters on the walls, in fact, it was only my room during holidays home from boarding school. "He..he didn't have to do that but I really appreciate it" I said and I genuinely meant it. "Are you hungry? We can stop at a burger joint just outside of the airport. I'm afraid there's not much like that in the arse end of nowhere that we call home" I laughed and knew she was being serious, then wondered again what on earth I was doing moving from a city to the middle of nowhere. I wasn't a country girl. I mentally shook those thoughts out of my mind. Sophie and her dad had opened their home to me at a time when I had nobody else and I owed them, so I was determined to make the best of it. After we had eaten, I pretty much slept the majority of the drive. I hadn't really slept in about two weeks, things had been tense with my parents since I told them I was leaving and I'd been filled with dread and worry and had felt unwelcome in the house and that translated to me having little to no sleep. It was dark when the car stopped and I woke up. Sophie's house looked exactly like she had described it, a modest brick house with three bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen and a living room. It was much smaller than what I'd called home but it immediately felt much more like a home than mine ever had. David, her dad, came outside to greet us, his arms wide open. He pulled me into a tight hug. "I'm so glad to see you, Olivia, you know you're welcome to stay here as long as you want and need. Did Sophie tell you that we're going to decorate your room?" "Dad! Leave her alone, she's been travelling all day, she's exhausted and probably just wants some peace and to go to sleep." "You're right Sophie, sorry Olivia, let's take you inside and give you the grand tour." David grabbed my suitcase and backpack and hauled them into the house. I knew both were heavy but he didn't comment on it. I knew that my father absolutely would have commented on it. After showing me around, I was shown my bedroom. It had cream walls with a double bed, a wardrobe, drawers and a vanity table. It was bigger than I had expected. "Thank you so much for this. I appreciate you both taking me in and being so kind. I don't know how I'll ever repay you. I promise I'll get a job as soon as possible and start paying you rent and helping towards food and bills." "You'll do no such thing. If you want to get a job, then you save up every single penny of that for yourself. I wouldn't take money from Sophie and I won't treat you any differently. In fact, the same rules as she has apply to you; there are no overnight male visitors and if you have a boy here, the bedroom door stays open." "Dad!" Sophie said whilst playfully pushing his shoulder. I laughed, "I don't think sticking to those rules will be a problem, boys usually run in the opposite direction from me." "Hmmm, I don't think it will be the same in this town," he said as he turned to leave the room. "I know it's late so I'll let you get some sleep. I've left some towels if you want a shower. I'm so happy you're here. I've got the day off tomorrow so I'll show you around then. I even think the bar in town might be looking for staff" "There's a bar? The way you talk, I thought this wouldn't even have a bar." I laughed. "O'Malley's is the bar in town, but there are a few pubs and bars, there's even a nightclub, but you need to be pretty drunk to go to the nightclub. It's nothing like you're used to in Glasgow but we get by. I'll give you the grand tour tomorrow and even take you to O'Malley's for lunch, my treat." She gave me a quick hug and left the room, closing it softly behind her. I felt gross from all the travel but was absolutely exhausted and decided that I just wanted to sleep. When I woke the next morning, it took me a few minutes to realise where I was and why I was there. I'd slept in late and it was nearly 11 am. My stomach lurched and I felt tears sting at the side of my eyes, but quietly gave myself a telling-off and headed into the shower. I could hear Sophie and David downstairs as I crept back into my room after my shower. I was sure they had heard me in the shower and both were being kind, letting me sleep later this morning. I couldn't remember the last time I'd slept that long. I'd felt exhausted and hadn't expected to sleep much at all given the circumstances. I felt nervous about what I'd agreed to and sick at the thought that this might not work out. I had to dismiss that intrusive thought. I had no option but to make this work. After I'd gotten dry, I didn't want to keep Sophie waiting long so I put on some tinted moisturiser, blush and mascara and pulled my wet mousy brown hair into a ballet bun on top of my head. The short wisps of hair at the front framed my face and I brushed them with my fingers, trying to somewhat style them. I pulled on a long pale blue casual dress with a pair of trainers and a denim jacket on top and then made my way downstairs. Sophie and David were sitting in the kitchen chatting over mugs of tea. I couldn't help but smile. This wasn't ever a scene I'd seen with my parents. Both turned to smile at me. "Afternoon", David said with a grin. I could feel myself blushing. "Sorry about that," I muttered. "Nonsense, you had a long day and by hell you've had a lot on your plate. You obviously needed sleep. Now I'd offer to make you some food but Sophie tells me she wants to buy you lunch at that O'Malley place, not as good as my home-cooked food, but she enjoys it." Sophie jumped up from the table and kissed her dad on the cheek. "The weather's nice today, so I thought we could walk into town, but dad's insisting we take his car, so let's get going." I made a mental note to figure out if I could afford to save for a car as well as have money to live on and possibly a deposit for somewhere to live.