Tormented Mistress ( Book One )

Chapter 23

Amber spotted Joel roaming the halls with a book in hand.  He was multi-tasking by reading it and walking at the same time.

Amber ran up to him and shoved the book down from his face and grinned up at him. He chuckled at her and ruffled her hair. "Aye, Squirt."

Amber released his book and crooked her eyebrow. "What did you just call me?"

Joel only laughed and shut his book. "What you been up to?"

What had she been up to? Tons of things. So much had happened since the last time they'd spoken. "Oh, not much," is what came out instead of the list of things that had actually happened. She did not tell Joel because of not wanting to get in trouble with Luna, as well as finding most those topics to possibly be awkward to speak with Joel. Like what had gone over with Eva...

Amber shook her head. "You?"

"Ooh, that is not what I hear," Joel said with a slight snicker as he ignored Amber's question.

Amber felt herself already blushing. "Uh...what?"

"May tells me you've been biting people," he told her as he gently flicked her nose.

Amber flinched but then laughed. "Well, yes. But besides that...life is pretty boring. And who's May?"

"Dude! That's a big deal. What was it like?"

Amber scoffed. "Don't you know?"

Joel looked taken aback but then smiled. "'Course. And May works here. She's our maid and apparently she heard some things from inside Luna's room."

"Wow! I despise eavesdroppers."

Joel grinned as he swung his arm around Amber's shoulder. "And who you taking to the dance, sunshine?"

Amber looked up at him as the two of them walked to no place in particular together. "I dunno..." She lied. She wanted to ask if he'd be okay with her asking Eva, but did she really need his permission? It might just cause awkwardness since she knew he'd pester her about what was going on between them.

"Oh, I know you do. C'mon, spill."

Amber blushed lightly and scrunched her nose. "Why don't you tell me who you're taking instead?"

"I'm not exactly the romantic type," he told her bluntly.

"Wha? So you're not even going?"

Joel moved his gaze to straight ahead. "Of course I'm going, silly. I'm just...dateless?"

Amber felt her lips tug into a small frown, and she decided to change the topic after noticing that Joel was feeling uncomfortable.

Before she could think of what to change it to, though, the two of them became distracted by a male voice.

"Hey, um. Joel?"

As they both turned, Joel skillfully kept his arm wrapped around Amber's shoulders as she gaped at the man before them.

He stood tall with amazing posture; almost as if a soldier ready for battle. He held a square suitcase in hand and had dark brown hair which was quite similar in color to Amber's. The most noticeable feature of all, though, were his eyes. One was a rich grey, proving he was a vampire, as the other was a rigid, light purple. His right eye, or the purple one, appeared to be almost broken. It had clear sharp lines inside of his eyeball and tiny streaks of blood swooning around his pupil. It was horrifyingly beautiful to Amber.

Joel proved a sign of instant recognition as he called out what Amber assumed was the man's name. "Oh, Samuel!"

Amber watched as Joel removed his arm from around her and wrapped it around the man instead as the two entered a hug.

"How was your trip? I know Luna has missed the fuck out of you," Joel remarked.

Luna? Who was this man?

Samuel nodded. "That would make it a mutual feeling, then."

Joel smiled cheekily at him before dramatically motioning to a staircase nearby. "Well, go see her! Don't waste your time with me."

Samuel nervously smiled and shoved his free hand in one of his pockets. "Yeah, uh. Since I haven't been home for quite some time, I'm afraid I forget the way to her room."

Amber was tempted to laugh. He must have a terrible sense of direction. He made it seem like he'd lived here for a bit, and Amber, who had only been here a month, had figured out her way around.

She looked at Joel to find him to appear just as puzzled as her.

In seeing his face, Amber accidentally burst into laughter so quickly, she snorted... Loudly.

Her laugh was immediately shut off, though, when she realized the two men were staring blankly at her. As she made eye contact with Joel, he let out a soft chuckle and she was once more gone; laughing like a complete maniac. It was not her fault- she could not handle awkwardness!

"Well, if Amber ever regains self-control, maybe she could show you the way. I, unfortunately have something to get to. See yah!" With that, he quickly sprinted away.

Amber snapped out of her laughing trance as soon as she was left alone with the stranger who was still busy staring at her.

She coughed and gestured towards the closest staircase. "This way...uh, sir."

She waited as Samuel retrieved his bag she had not noticed from his other side and proceeded to follow Amber's direction.

She followed close behind him, wondering who he was to Luna and what he was up to as she gave him directions to her mistress' room.

Once there, she politely opened the door for him and heard a loud squeal from inside the room. It came from Luna, who soon became visible to Amber as she ran to the doorway and plowed into Samuel's arms.

Samuel grinned widely as he set his luggage down to catch Luna.

Amber thought she'd have to bend down and pick her mouth up off the floor when the two of them started kissing; their lips firmly pressed against the other's.