3.5 The Innocence of White by Christin Lovell

THE INNOCENCE OF WHITE
A Vamp Chronicles Short
Gabi and Jack’s Story
    PREFACE
Gabi
    I’ve never understood love. Why does it grab your heart tight and never let go? Why does it suffocate you, leaving you no choice but to surrender, regardless of who it’s to?
    Love is blind, blind to everything the other person has done in the past. Love is stupid, stupid to reason and common sense. Love is deaf, deaf to words that are yelled in anger. Love is infuriating; it’s frustrating to know you have no control over who your heart desir es. Love exists without limitations, without stipulations on discriminatory items. Love is overwhelming; it rules your world with an iron fist.
    When you’re in love, it dominates your life. You’re no longer in control; your world revolves around the person who owns your heart. It’s an imprisoning situation, yet it’s the most exhilarating jail hop one could ever experience.
    I thought I’d known true love in the past. I thought my heart had been claimed a time or two, yet Kai and Rafi could never compete with the pitter-patter dance my dead heart does for Jack. Vampires pride themselves on being an emotionless species, yet we’re not immune to the power of love. And this is one vampire who is in love.
    Love captures you, enraptures you on a whirlwind carpet ride, just like every Disney fairytale depicts. What it doesn’t do is brace you for the reality of who you will fall in love with. Not everyone marries a prince, and not everyone lives a happily ever after.
    I’d been with Rafi for a lifetime. We met at a vampire soiree. I’d dressed in my best gown: a bright red, figure-hugging number that emphasized my female curves yet diminished all the excess stuffing around those curves. I’d worn a pair of black high heels that showed off my matching red pedicure. For a full-figured vampire who had more bad body days than good, this was one of my best days.
    Our eyes connected across the room. He held a wine glass filled halfway with blood. His dark hair was slicked back, his tan, muscular body masked in a classic black suit. His black lashes fell to half mask as he watched me danced around the room wi th my ex-fiancé Kai’s brother , Kalel. Kalel was being polite, but I didn’t want polite that night. I wanted to be embraced for the beautiful woman I was. I wanted a vampire who could hold my attention, not offer me his attention out of pity.
    “Would you like an introduction?” Kalel asked, pulling me from my reverie.
    I cocked my head. “You know him?”
    “Rafique DeSantos. He’s one of our top guards at the lake house compound.”
    “Why haven’t I met him before?” I frowned. I’d always pushed for a company meet and mingle; yet I’d never been granted one. I thought i t would be nice to know who was working for me and with me .
    “He’s new. Just out of a ten year contract with the vamp army.”
    I chuckled. “I take it he had issues with them too?”
    “As do many.”
    Lost in conversation over the man himself, I was surprised by his presence.
    He politely placed a hand on Kalel’s shoulder, but it was still a brave move considering our cutthroat reputation. “May I cut in?” His voice was de ep, his baritone rolled over me; it was his Spanish accent though that sen t a shiver down my spine.
    “Watch your hands.” Kalel stepped back, passing me over to the intriguing vamp.
    He firmly gripped one of my hands, his other arm wrapped around my waist. “If I may be so bold, you’re stunning.” His dark eyes sparkled as he drank me in. He never missed a step, never lost his timing with the music despite his immediate focus .
    “You may be bold whenever you’d like.” I was caught up in the scent of him, all male, all vampire. He made my mouth water.
    His lips twisted up in the corners, his eyes revealing a devilish gleam. He slowly licked his lips. Had I still owned a beatin g heart, it would have pounded i n my chest cavity. My breathing became unsteady as he