Bottled Debrek Special Reserve and blood bags did the job in a pinch but were never as satisfying. Katie always got a little thrill at the thought of feeding Alexis. It was something that meant so much to her. To be the one providing what Alexis needed fulfilled a need she didn’t know she had, plus it turned her on.

She approached Alexis’s door and shivered at the thought of Alexis’s teeth in her. Katie knocked at the door and Alexis soon opened it.

Katie smiled. “Hi.”

Alexis was tense. “Come in.”

At the beginning of the week, they were jumping on each other after being apart for the day, but now the old stiff Alexis was creeping back in. Whatever was causing this, Katie had to fix it.

She walked in and looked around Alexis’s old-fashioned room. They had been staying in Katie’s room, so this was her first time seeing Alexis’s space. It hadn’t been refurbished in years and was cold and unwelcoming with no family pictures or artwork.

“Okay, what’s wrong? You’ve gone from sweet, loving, and hot Alexis to worrisome and tense in days. What’s going on?”

Alexis sat on her bed and clasped her hands tensely. “I don’t know how to cope with this.”

Katie was starting to worry now. Alexis appeared overwhelmed with emotion. She wasn’t going to run away from their love, was she?

She kneeled in front of Alexis. “What can’t you cope with?”

“You, loving you and worrying about you is paralyzing me. I was distracted today when I should have been guarding Byron, and she noticed.”

Katie sighed and took Alexis’s hands. This again. How was she supposed to get Alexis over this fear of losing her, like she had done the first time love had claimed her heart?

“I was only going shopping, not going for a night out at The Sanctuary,” Katie said.

“But I need to know you’re safe all the time. The stress is overwhelming. For all I knew you could have been dead, lying in a ditch somewhere.”

“Oh, don’t be silly, Alex,” Katie said. “I went to a few shops, then back home.”

“I’m not silly,” Alexis said with frustration. She pointed out the bedroom door. “Not long ago I found you nearly dead on the landing out there. I was so frightened today that my team and the Principe noticed how distracted I was, worrying about you.”

“I’m sorry, but love is frightening in any circumstance. I promise to always take care and not take chances. You have to be brave to take the love that I’m offering you,” Katie said softly.

She was scared about what Alexis’s answer might be.