30 Nights

5

LILY

I think I must have fallen asleep because I jolt when I hear it. A high pitched scream. Only for a few seconds and then it is gone.

When he walks back in he seems different. Calmer, more relaxed. He even smiles at me. But there's something in his eyes. Something there has not changed.

"What's your name?" He says.

"Lily."

"A perfect name for you," he says and I look up to see him staring intently at me.

"Who are you?" I whisper.

"My name is Edric. But like I said, I think you should be asking 'what I am' first."

"Are you going to let me go now?" I say.

"No," he says, staring at me. His eyes look different now. Less amber, maybe darker. But there is something strange still about how he looks. He stares at me without blinking, almost like he is hypnotised. And hungry. Yes, he looks like he wants to devour me.

"Why?" I force myself to speak. I can't stay down here, I have to get out of here. "Are you going to lock me down here?"

"I'm not going to leave you here. You're going to come back to my apartment and we're going to talk. And then I'm afraid you'll have a difficult decision to make. Here, take my hand," he says, holding out his hand to me. I stay firmly stuck to my chair by the fire.

"Are you going to rape me?" I don't know where those words come from, they just fall out of my mouth. He just laughs at this.

"Do you want to have sex with me, Lily?"

"No," I say, more confidently than I feel. But I feel my cheeks getting warmer.

"Really? Are you sure about that? Why is your heart beating faster?" He says, raising an eyebrow at me. How on earth can he hear my heart? "Well, I will promise that we will not have sex until you ask me too," he says. "And after what you've just said, you'll have to do more than ask me. You'll have to beg."

"I'd never do that, not for anyone."

"It's time to go, Lily," he says, smiling again as he picks me up in his arms.

We move so fast that at times I'm not sure if we are moving or are still. I feel like a gust of wind, moving in one fluid breath until we come to a sudden stop in an apartment.

For a few moments, I can't work out if we are inside or outside. We're in a really high building and must be in the penthouse flat. There is floor to ceiling windows all around us. It's absolutely boiling hot in here like I've stepped into a rainforest or a greenhouse in the peak of summer. There are indoor plants, trees and flowers everywhere, it's an indoor tropical paradise. I hear a tweet and see a small bird fly over my head.

"It's so hot," I say, slipping my coat off and feeling the back of my neck getting sticky.

"I'm not warm very often but I like the heat. But it will be too hot for you wearing all of that. Take your clothes off," he says, leading me to a small area that has a couple of sofas and chairs. They look a little out of place against all these plants. He takes a seat and looks up at me. I stay rooted to the spot, not moving, sweating and not removing any more clothing.

"I mean it, Lily. I said that we won't have sex unless you beg me but I will rip your clothes off if I have to. So take everything off. You'll feel more comfortable and I want to see you naked."

I just stare back at him. I'm boiling and sticky but I can't get naked in front of a total stranger. I've never been naked with a man before, never had sex before and if I wasn't an albino I'm certain my cheeks would be crimson.