Chapter 10 : Stackhouse

I took a swallow of the blood and tried to clear my mind. I inhaled unnecessarily. It is time to make my move.

I am going to ask her to sit with me. I am going tell her that she will be granted the honor of being my special guest tonight. No... No ...that wasn't going to work. She would find that to be arrogant.

That would work with the fangbangers and she is definitely not a fangbanger.

I'll just invite her over and ask if she would like to keep me company. She has always liked conversation and sharing. That's what I'll do.

Before I make my move, I smooth down my shirt and smile. Sookie always loved to see me smile.

With a big smile plastered across my face, I stood to my full height. Several fangbangers assumed that I was smiling at them.

They aren't worth my time. I wouldn't smile at them. I wouldn't let them wipe the shit from my shoes. I don't want them. I want my wife.

When I turn my attentions to the bar, she is no longer there. I nonchalantly look around for her. She isn't on the dance floor. She isn't talking to Immanuel; he was talking to the other bar patrons.

She isn't talking to the vampires. Where is she? I tried to look inconspicuous but I failed. I began to panic. I felt almost frantic.

'Think Eric,' I said to myself. Then it dawned on me. I know exactly where she is.

The bathroom; she's in the bathroom. Human women have certain needs that they have to take care of in that particular room.

I'll just pretend that I am heading to my office and we'll just so happen to bump into each other. Plan B was now in play.

When I turn around, she is standing behind me; with her back to me. It is almost as if she is trying to work up her nerve to speak to me.

As I watch her, she exhaled and nodded her head. I heard her say"Okay, you can do this Sookie," in a small voice.

I couldn't help but to smile. She was just as nervous as I was.

"Thank him and leave. So what if he's handsome? You can go to him. Thank him and go home. That's what you're going to do."

She nodded her head after her little speech and inhaled once more and turned around.

"You don't have to leave."

I expected her to jump but she didn't. Instead she said, "Thank you." She closed her eyes tightly.

I laughed a genuine laugh for the first time in many years. "What are you thanking me for, my lo… what is your name?"

She looked at me curiously for a moment. "I'm Sookie Stackhouse." She offered me her hand. Her sweet southern drawl captivated me just as it did long ago. "Thank you for talking to me.

I mean for letting me come into your club." She rolled eyes and started mumbling. I heard her say the words nerd, dork, and shit. I did my best to hide my smile.

"I'm Eric Northman and you can come here anytime you want to. Your presence is always welcomed." I bowed to my queen. When I stood and looked into her eyes, her smile was there.

In return, she curtsied to me. "And again, thank you very much." When she released her dress, it fluttered delicately around her beautiful legs.

Motioning towards my personal booth, I ask her if she would care to sit with me. "I would love the company."

After thinking it over, she decided that it would be okay. "I'd love to."

With my hand on the small of her back, I lead her to my booth and offer her the seat across from mine.

She looked so delicate and small as she slid into her seat. It's the seat that hasn't been occupied since she left.

"Thank you," she said once she was seated. She tapped her fingers nervously on the table and looked around.

She then began to mindlessly rub her hands across the table. I have seen her do this many times when she's nervous.

When we were comfortably seated, Indira came over and asked, "Is there anything that you would like, Miss Stackhouse?"

She was looking into my eyes before she answered. I remembered the last time she looked at me like that.

"A sprite would be fine," she said as she smiled up at Indira. Just as Indira left, her eyes were on my face once again.

Her mouth was slightly open and I knew that there is something that she wanted to say but she decided against it.

A few seconds later, Indira returned with Sookie's soda and a fresh blood for me. She politely thanked the vampiress before Indira left.

Once she was gone, Sookie took a sip of her Sprite. She looked at me over the top of her glass.

When she set her glass down, she licked the remnants of the soft drink from her lips, she smiled. I had to make my fangs stay put but it was almost damned near impossible.

"Cold," she said.

"She can get you a drink with no ice." Before I was able to call for Indira, Sookie stopped me.

She smiled. "I apologize. I meant in here." She looked at her hands when she said that. "I'm cold."

"Do not apologize. We can make it warmer in here for you."

"You don't have to …"

"Nonsense," I interrupted. I then beckoned for Indira to come to me.

I told her to adjust the thermostat to a suitable temperature of seventy-five degrees. "Will that be okay for you, Miss. Stackhouse?"

She took another swallow of her drink. "That will be fine, thank you." After a few seconds of comfortable silence, she asked, "So, how long have you owned this bar?"

Does she remember me?

"How did you know that I owned the bar?"