A New York Night: Part 4

Summery: The conclusion to Mick and Beth’s night in New York.

Disclaimer: For the last time, I own nothing.

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The snow had stopped falling and the moon was shining brightly as they made their way out of the little café. Outside, everything, from the trees to the cars parked on the roadsides, was covered in a layer of pure, sparkling, white snow. Beth linked her arm with Mick’s and leaned into him as they made their way down the street.

She glanced up at him. “So, where are we going to stay?”

“Don’t worry about that, I know a good place a few blocks away.” He made a move to step off the sidewalk and hail a cab, but Beth stopped him. “We don’t need a cab; I think I can walk a couple blocks.”

“You sure? Aren’t you tired? You ice skated for a long time tonight.”

She nodded, “Positive. And besides, how often do you get the chance to see New York blanketed with fresh snow like this? It’s quite a beautiful sight.”

Mick had to admit that the snow covered city was rather beautiful, but it was nothing compared to the woman walking next to him. Beth’s cheeks had roses in them from the cold, night air, but her body was warm as she leaned against him. Though the wound had stopped bleeding almost immediately, he could still smell her blood from where she had pricked her finger earlier, and that only added to her already enticing fragrance.

The wind picked up and Beth tucked herself deeper into the shelter of Mick’s body. He wrapped one arm around her and drew her close, sharing his warmth.

“Are you sure you wouldn’t rather take a cab?” He questioned, worried that she would get cold before they reached their destination.

She shook her head and hugged him closer to her, “And give up this moment? Never.”

They continued walking down the snow layered sidewalk, enjoying the lights, the snow, and each others company. They were so preoccupied by their surroundings that neither of them noticed the sound of snow muffled footsteps behind them. Without warning, someone slammed into Mick, tearing him forcefully away from Beth. Mick and the mysterious attacker fell into the shadows of a nearby alley. Beth looked around frantically, but couldn’t spot a single person she could call to for help. With an unladylike swear, she quickly dug a can of mace out of her purse and rushed into the alley to help Mick.

She arrived just in time to see the assailant plunge a stake deep into Mick chest. Then, with one arm, he flung Mick into a nearby wall. He hit the wall with such force that the bricks cracked. Mick now lay between Beth and the unknown enemy. She rushed to his side, all the while keeping an eye on the silent foe. The last time she'd seen Mick staked he had still been able to speak, although barely. This time though, he was fully paralyzed.

Before she could pull the stake out, the man that had done this to Mick stepped closer and Beth had to focus all her attention on him. “Stay back!” she yelled, brandishing the can of mace. He paid her no heed, and stepped closer still, until Beth could clearly see his eyes, eyes that were icy blue, eyes that belonged to a vampire. She sucked in a quick breath, fully aware that mace or no mace, she was no match for a vampire, especially one that had bested Mick.

Mick could only watch helplessly as the vampire that had staked him approached Beth. He could hear everything that was going on but for the unlife of him he couldn’t move even a fraction. The stake had gone all the way through his heart and come out his back. This vampire was clearly very old and powerful.

But the vampire did something that surprised both of them. He held out his hand and said in a soft voice, “It’s ok now, he can’t hurt you anymore.”

Beth was leaning protectively over Mick, being very careful not to touch the stake and cause him more pain. “Go away,” she said through gritted teeth. “Mick would never hurt me.”

“Of course he hurts you, he’s a vampire. It’s his nature to hurt people. Come now, I’m offering you a chance to get away. You don’t have to be a freshie any longer.” He sounded like he’d had this same conversation many times before.

“I am not a freshie!” She denied. Slowly, as so the vampire hopefully wouldn’t notice, she moved her hand closer to the stake that was paralyzing Mick. “And what? You just expect me to go with you? You’d probably drain me without a second thought.”

“I’m here to help you. And don’t lie to me; I can smell your blood. It’s a fresh wound; he must have fed from you not long ago.”

Beth realized that the blood the vampire smelled was from the small prick on her finger. Even though she knew it probably wasn’t a smart move, she tore off her glove and held up her injured finger for the vampire’s inspection. “Does that look like a bite mark to you?” she yelled, but continued before the vampire could respond. “No, it does not. And I’ll tell you why that is. I did that to myself. I offered my blood to him freely. He had nothing to do with it. So don’t you dare ever say that he would hurt me.”

The vampire looked taken aback at her angry, defensive tone. “Why?” he questioned, his voice confused.

For the first time since the strange vampire had approached her, Beth took her eyes off him and focused her gaze on Mick. She gently stroked his face before looking back up at her would be rescuer. “Because I love him,” she said simply.

The vampire was looking her in the eye when she said it and could tell it was the truth. Then he noticed her protective posture as she hovered over Mick. He saw her hand slowly reaching for the stake he had shoved though his body. “Stop,” he said, and Beth’s hand stilled, waiting. “You’ll never be able to pull that out yourself.” He took a step forward until he was only a foot away from her and Mick. “Don’t mace me,” he said as he crouched down next to them. “Move,” he told Beth. She didn’t budge an inch, still eyeing him warily. “I’m just going to pull the stake out,” he told her in a low voice. Beth thought about it for a moment before slowly moving back, allowing the stranger access to Mick. She looked him straight in the eye. “If you do anything to him, I swear I will hunt you down with a flamethrower.” He nodded in acknowledgement before gripping the long stake and pulling it out of Mick’s chest. Mick gasped out in pain, clutching at his heart and rolling towards Beth.

The vampire stood. “Here,” he said, tossing two bags of blood to Beth. “He’s going to need those.” And with that the mysterious vampire was gone.

Beth wasted no time opening one of the bags and feeding it to Mick. The deep wound in his chest slowly healed as he hastily swallowed the red liquid. The first bag was quickly empty, but by that time he was strong enough to hold the other one by himself, so Beth handed it to him and then rocked back on her heels.

She looked at the hole through his coat. “The place you buy your jackets from must really love you. You’ve gone through four or five just in the time I’ve known you.”

Mick couldn’t help but chuckle, “My jackets’ life spans seem to have shortened dramatically since I met you.” His voice was still a bit rough.

“Yeah sure, blame it all on me,” Beth replied teasingly before her voice got serious. “Do you know who that vampire was that attacked who?”

Mick shook his head, “I have no idea. He had to be over 500 years old though, he was extremely strong.”

“He must have been to have bested you.” Mick had finished the second bag and seemed back to full strength, so Beth stood and offered him her hand. He took it and pulled himself up. He brushed off what snow he could but had to admit that he probably looked like crap. Getting staked will do that to you. He looked at Beth and realized she was shivering. He suspected that most of it was from the cold, but he was sure some was from the shock she had just gone through. He could smell the lingering hint of fear on her. Without thinking, he pulled her close to him, so proud of her for how she had stood up to the vampire and protected him, even when she had been terrified.

“Come on, the hotel is not far,” he whispered into her hair. He felt her nod against his chest.

They hurried out of the alley and down the street. A minute later, Mick stopped abruptly in front a building. Beth gasped when she saw the name. “The Ritz-Carlton?” Mick nodded as he led her towards the hotel. As they neared, a doorman suddenly appeared and held the door open for them. Inside it was warm and luxurious. Christmas decorations on the walls were subtle but breathtaking.

They approached the front desk and the clerk gave them a strange look, first at their rather messy clothes, and second at their lack of luggage. Still, she smiled at them. “May I help you?” she asked.

“We need a couple rooms for the night,” Mick told her, pulling out his wallet. The clerk tapped a few keys on the keyboard in front of her. “I am sorry sir, but we only have one room available.” Mick glanced at Beth and saw her nod. “That will be fine,” he told the clerk.

Beth nearly fainted when the she told them how much it was for just one night, but Mick simply pulled out his credit card and handed it to the desk clerk. She returned it to him a second later along with a key card. She gave them directions to their room and wished them both a Merry Christmas.

Beth was once again amazed at the lavish accommodations as they made their way to the elevator. Mick pressed the up button and they waited silently until it arrived. They stepped inside and Beth was surprised to see the room that the clerk had directed them to was on the very top floor. No wonder it had been so expensive.

The elevator dinged quietly and the doors slid open. The hallway was empty and it took them no time at all to find their room.

Inside, it was even more lavish than the lobby had been. The room was large but cozy, with expensive furniture and even its own fireplace. The bed was a queen size and covered in an ultra soft looking black and white comforter. Beth ran her hand over it experimentally. It felt even softer than it looked and she couldn’t wait to curl up under it.

Now that they were in the room, she was feeling very tired, the adrenalin from the attack had worn off and she stifled a yawn. She looked at Mick, idly wondering what the sleeping arrangements were going to be. He caught her gaze. “I’ll take the couch,” he assured her, ever the gentleman. She was going to have to do something about that, but not right at this moment.

Mick watched as Beth continued her tour of the room. She disappeared around a corner and he heard a small intake of breath and her calling his name. He smiled as he made his way to her to see what she wanted. He rounded the corner and his breath caught in the back of his throat. There she was, standing like an angel on the small balcony, moonlight bathing her in a silvery glow.

His feet must have moved on their own because suddenly he was standing only inches behind her, inhaling her delightful scent. “Look Mick, isn’t it beautiful?” she asked quietly. Mick reluctantly tore his eyes off her and looked out over the city. The room they were in had a wonderful view of Central park. The snow gilded all the trees with white lace, causing them to glitter under the light of the moon. It was truly an amazing sight, made all that much better by the woman standing with him.

Mick lowered his mouth so he could whisper softly in her ear. “Beth, did you really mean what you said before?” His warm breath next to her skin sent a rush of heat through her whole body. She turned to face him and noticed that he looked slightly nervous. “It’s been a long night, Mick. What part are you talking about?”

He looked down at his feet before meeting her eyes again. “You told the vampire that attacked me that you love me. Did you really mean that?”

Beth reached up and stroked his face, just like she’d done before when he'd been paralyzed. “Of course I meant it, Mick. I love you.”

Impulsively, he hugged her to him, burying his face next to her neck. “I love you too, Beth,” he murmured before placing a small, warm kiss on her bare skin.

They stayed like that for a short time before pulling apart and smiling at each other. “You need to get some sleep,” Mick informed her as he followed her back into the room. Beth laid her jacket over the back of a chair and made her way to the bed. She looked back at Mick, and held out her hand. “Please Mick,” she implored. “Sleep with me tonight.”

She looked so innocent, so tired, her face that of a sleepy angel. Mick groaned with reluctance even as he stepped towards her. He took her hand and brushed his lips over her knuckles. “Beth, we can’t.”

She looked up at him, her sky blue eyes sleepy but bright, “I know we can’t make love, Mick, but I want to have you close to me tonight. That’s all I want. Please.”

He couldn’t refute that he wanted to be close to her also, but his self-control was only so good. Still, when she looked at him like that, trusting, with love clear in her eyes, he could deny her nothing.

“Ok,” he agreed, pulling back the soft comforter to allow Beth to slide under it. He tugged off his shirt as he moved to the opposite side of the bed. The mattress dipped under his weight and he reached out to pull Beth into a warm embrace, her back nestled against his bare chest, his breath fanning over her sweet, tender neck. His large hand rested on her stomach, and she covered it with one of her own.

They fell asleep like that, in each others arms, both thinking that this had been the most wonderful night of their lives.

FIN

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A/N: I hope you all enjoyed my take on Mick and Beth's night in New York. I know I deeply enjoyed reading everyones comments. Thanks to everyone of you. Have a Merry Christmas!