Chapter 21: .•8.6•.

"Does it hurt?" She meekly questioned, trying to be as gentle as possible as she didn't want him to feel any more pain because of her. That hit he had taken for her was enough already.

"No, keep going," Nicholas responded with an audibly relaxed tone as he really couldn't feel a thing, excepting for her pleasantly delicate touch. He knew that that deep wound would completely heal in a matter of mere hours. He was a supernatural after all. A vampire. But he didn't care. He didn't give a damn in that specific moment. He was definitely enjoying the feel of her hands on his skin so he had absolutely no reason to tell her to stop. Quite the contrary, actually.

His lips curled up into a small smile as he watched her move to retrieve a larger band-aid from the medical kit, that barely visible blush in her cheeks and the way that she constantly avoided to directly look at him making her seem so alluring and all the more interesting in his eyes.

So fascinating...

His mind whispered as his dark eyes trailed over the length of her body, shamelessly admiring the way that her more than generous bust, thin waist, and slightly curvy hips formed such a sexy outline to her entire form, those tiny training shorts and tank top leaving so little to the imagination that he found himself uncomfortably trying to readjust his position over the stool as a certain part of him threatened to expose his current inner turmoil for everyone to see.

Fuck. It had definitely been way too long since his last encounter with a female counterpart. He was slowly turning into a goddamned teenage boy. He needed to get a fucking grip before he'd scared her away completely.

He almost failed to even notice that sudden tell-tale itchy feeling right where that wound on his back was supposed to be, lastly realizing that it had started to heal even faster.

Fuck.

Oh no. Oh fuck no.

And before Diana could even approach him with the band-aid he suddenly shot up from his stool as if it were on fire, leaving her standing there like a fool as he quickly stormed out of the room and straight back to his own.

.••.

Turning the key into ignition for the third time, she moaned in complaint as the engine still made the same choking sound before dying out yet again.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me!" She cried, letting out a whine before she got out of the car and went to pop up the hood.

This was bad. She only had twenty more minutes before her shift would start yet the damned old thing before her that was called a car wouldn't start for the sake of her.

She took a clueless look under the hood, noticing that indeed there was a thin wisp of smoke coming out from between the tangled mess of cables, little hoses and blocks of metal and plastic.

"No, no no please no!" She moaned yet again, starting to panic as she paced around, anxiously wracking through her brain for a viable solution. She didn't have enough time to get to the closest bus station or call a cab. She couldn't even call Dan to come and pick her up because then he would be late for work as well.

"Why, just why? Why now, of all times? Couldn't you just break down on our way back, like a normal car?" She started to scold the old piece of metal like it were a disobedient pet in her desperate attempt to somehow make things work, completely failing to even notice the one-person audience watching her from the front door steps for a few good minutes now.

"Is everything alright, Diana?"

She instantly startled in her spot at the unexpected sound of that masculine voice, immediately turning around to face the owner.

There he was, the male that occasionally haunted her dreams now standing just a few steps away, watching her like he hadn't ever ran away like he did just a few days ago and left her standing like a fool, wondering what she did wrong.

She only stood there and stared at him, speechless, her eyes unintentionally trailing over his flawless outfit; as always consisting in a pair of dark-colored dress pants, a stark white shirt that hugged his lean physique so perfectly and also showcased those beautiful tattoos of his.

Where did he appear from? Why was he here now?

Without saying another word, he advanced towards her and her old beat-up car, those dark eyes watching her so intensely as he gave her a side smirk.

"May I?"

She wordlessly stared between his captivating eyes, too stunned to form a coherent sentence. So she chose to simply nod instead, allowing him to take a look at the car.

Stepping closer, he leaned forward to take a closer look and expertly roam his fingers around since his sleeves were already rolled up to his elbows, the way  that his tattooed hands touched and prodded at her car's engine looking so incredibly...erotic. She watched as those muscles in his forearms lightly flexed whilst his fingers became dirtier and dirtier with that dark and greasy substance, thickly coating them...

She suppressed a tiny little mewl that suddenly bubbled up within her throat out of nowhere.

"Seems like the engine is flooded," She rapidly blinked, abruptly pulled back to reality as her eyes quickly darted back to his face.

My god. What is happening to me?

"Come, I will drive you to your workplace," He said right before pulling out a neat white handkerchief from the pocket of his vest, completely smearing it with the dark greasy substance as he wiped his fingers clean and left it over the side of her car.

"That's-" She was about to politely decline his offer as she didn't want to seem needy but the heart-stealing smile he gave her effectively made her swallow her words, staring at him like a damn fool as he gently placed his palm over the small of her back, coaxing her to walk with him.

Completely befuddled, she fell into step with him and allowed him to guide her down the side alley that led straight to the garage.

Taking the lead, he moved to open the spacious garage, going straight towards the sheet-covered outline of what seemed to be a sports car. And with a swift tug he revealed a classic bright red convertible Mustang Shelby, all shiny and in pristine condition.

Wow...

She breathed in awe, admiring its sleek and luscious curves, and all those silvery details.

"Shall we?" Nicholas smirked as he gazed at her awestruck expression, the girl's green eyes quickly shifting to him.

She only gave out a nod, and before she could reach the passenger door he was already there, holding the door open for her like the true gentleman he was.

"T-thank you," She stuttered, blushing a little bit as he once again gazed at her so intensely, the girl shyly averting her gaze as she hurried to get in and prepare herself for the ride.