The Vampire Keeper Read Free Page B

drink more tea than anyone I have ever met,” letting out a giggle.
    “That electric tea kettle was the loveliest Christmas present I have ever received,” Wyler confessed, before grabbing Ana around the waist to pull her closer. He kissed her so passionately that Jezalyn turned her head so they would not see her blush.
    At the end of the kiss, Ana glanced over and saw Jezalyn. “Hey! Did I tell you that we had to add a counter top sink to the storage room so that he could make hot tea all day?”
    Before Jezalyn could answer Ana’s question, Wyler asked her, “Do you like tea?”
    Jezalyn did not know why she felt so nervous, but she did, so she promptly gave an answer to each question. Turning to Ana first, she said, “No, I didn’t see the sink,” And afterwards to Wyler, “yes, I love tea; Lady Gray is my favorite.”
    Excitement twinkled in Wyler’s eye at the very thought of a cup of hot tea. After listening to her response, Wyler’s eyes widened as he said, “Come with me.” Following him into the stockroom, Jezalyn noticed over to the right, partially hidden behind several stacks of books, sat a small sink in the middle of a bar like counter. Pointing toward the sink, Wyler’s eye’s twinkled as they always had whenever he thought about a nice cup of hot tea. “There it is!” he announced. “If you ever feel like having a cup of tea, don’t be shy. Help yourself!”
    Jezalyn observed a microwave on the right and on the left were teacups next to an electric kettle. She said, “Thank you!” and with a grin held out a couple packs of sugar toward Wyler. “I found these in my bag while I was upstairs searching for my wallet.”
    Wyler, overly excited, took the packets and thanked her. Now with the prospect of having sooner than later a cup in his hand, Wyler turned to his wife and said, “Maybe we do only need one bag of sugar. Get whatever you think is best.”
    Liberated from her husband’s previous demand, Ana politely responded, “How nice. Now you won’t have to wait on me to return. Well, let’s get on the road so that I can make it back in time for work.”
    He pressed her hand, “Okay, Bunny. Drive safely.” Ana smiled, motioned for Jezalyn, and proceeded toward the same door they had just entered. She had left her husband standing happily next to his little sink.
    Once Wyler made his tea, he locked the shop door and went down to his underground dwelling. From behind the kitchen table, all Wyler could see of his friend’s six-foot frame was the bottom of his jeans and his brown casual shoes. He moved over to Larkin, who lay on the floor in his usual resting spot with his legs propped up on the couch staring at the ceiling. Peering down at Larkin’s dark brown hair and stark white skin, Wyler said, “Hey, the new tenant brought down some sugar, so I was able to make a cup of tea.” Wyler watched as his friend got up, bit his wrist, and meandered over to him.
    Larkin had no expression on his face or in his soft, baby blue eyes as he placed his wrist over the teacup and let the blood drizzle into Wyler’s tea.
    “What day is it?” asked Larkin without taking note of how much blood entered the cup.
    “It’s Tuesday. Do you want something to eat?”
    As Larkin removed his wrist from over Wyler’s cup he said, “No, not yet,” before sitting down on the couch. Wyler said nothing as he roamed over to the refrigerator, pulled out a bag of blood, opened it, and squeezed the blood into Larkin’s favorite cup. It was not so much a cup as it was a square shaped ceramic mug that tiered out at the bottom. Although the outside of the mug was black, the inside was dark red making it impossible for anyone, even Larkin, to notice blood stains; it was for this reason alone that this mug was Larkin’s favorite. Wyler warmed the blood before bring it over to him, “Here, drink this.” Larkin extended his arm, took the mug, and brought it to his lips. Wyler took a seat next to him and sipped