The multi-colored creams of the sky soon gave way to darkness, erasing the endless cascade of pinks, oranges and soft blue hues with which the twilight hours had gifted onlookers. The spatterings were fast being replaced with a black canvas, soon to be decorated by a sprinkling of stars. A typical, beautiful evening when your location is out in the middle of no where, and surrounded by the gentle sound of the sea before high tide. The tropical climate dimmed down to a tolerable warmth, unlike the intense heat and humidity of the daytime hours, with the coming of the night. From one end of the house to the other sable palms and tall, sky scraping full leaf palms rustled and shimmied on the warm blowing air, each gust bringing with it a subtle taste of salt from the crashing waves of the Atlantic.

The programmed alarms on the house caught the attention of the four women for a brief moment. The sound was a loud click and beeping as the UV shields, carefully placed over each bedroom window on the second story, were deactivated and the top notch security features were temporarily turned off. The shut down left all doors and exits unlocked, and at the same time brought up the lighting that fanned life onto the abundant property. No blinding whites, but instead a variety of soft pastel colored brights that brought out the already natural beauty of the rare tropical flower gardens and intricately placed fountains among them.

“You know we live like a bunch of vampires when we‘re out here,” Jaime said with a roll of eyes and snickering laugh. “The house is dead and closed up during the day, but soon as the dark hits it springs to life.”

The other three women laughed good heartedly at the joke and the obscene truth there was behind it. “Sure like you’re objecting to the house guests that pop up here every now again.” Sandy chimed in.

“I never said that, and I‘m certainly not saying it about the one we’re expecting now.” Jaime replied.

As if on cue a signal horn sounded in the distance, followed by the flashing of lights located atop the floating transport. A mini yacht, the only way the island Eden could be reached by human or vampire. The exclusiveness of the vessel chosen with care to provide luxury accommodations to the special visitors that once in a while came to the secluded hide away. For the VIP guest list it was a private vacation paradise, to the dozens of women who lived there it was headquarters, an out of the way quiet environment for the behind the scenes staff at Club Atlantis, affectionately called the Femme Fatales.

A lining row of tiki torches instantaneously came to life, each one sparking bright embers of fire that lit the way from the extended docks up to the private conference area where the last book club night had been held. A staff of hand picked workers quickly descended down the wooden pier and off the docking transport, some carrying elaborate luggage that was ordered to be taken to the upstairs suites for VIP guests, while others regrettably passed lingering gazes over a sensuously beautiful woman standing on the front deck while enjoying the view. The workers scrambled as quickly as they had gathered to get a look at her, chased away by a tall, dark and extremely snarly male who could be mistaken as none other than Gideon Green, Mistress Anwyn’s new servant.

A smile curved Terry’s lips. “Daegan brought them both with him.”

“God damn that man is hot,” Sandy said, with heavy emphasis on the final word, she and her companions all taking a quick moment to straighten their sexily revealing beachwear, casually beautiful choices fit for the tropical setting and temperatures.

“No doubt he’s hot, but that right there takes the taco AND the cake,” Kat said, with a steady gaze on Daegan Rei as he stepped off the boat with a casual grace that could bring any woman to her knees.

* * * * *

Daegan, welcome! We are so glad to have you with us. We know you're currently traveling a lot so thank you so much for taking a weekend to visit us and do this interview.

Daegan, wearing a white Armani split neck crew T-shirt with a dark eagle printed across the chest and a pair of fitted dark jeans, sits with an arm casually stretched over the back of a metal sculpted bench and one ankle crossed over the opposite knee. "It’s my deep pleasure, ladies. Thank you for offering us such a relaxing weekend getaway. Given our schedule lately, it is a very kind offer. Anwyn is currently enjoying the yacht and exploring the beach." Glances left at Gideon, slouched like a lazy panther in a chair, boots crossed, which makes the most of the fit of his stressed jeans over his groin and lean thighs. His thumbs are hooked under his arm pits, arms crossed over his broad chest, clothed in a plain black T-shirt. "I also thank you for allowing this cretin to come with us. I can’t promise that he will mind his manners."

"I can’t promise I won’t put my foot up your ass, either," Gideon responds, flashing a feral smile at interviewers. "He likes to think he’s way more than he is. Don’t put up with his shit for a second. I’m going to go get a beer and check on Anwyn." As he rises, Daegan gives him a glance, the men suddenly serious, but Gideon shakes his head, murmurs, “She’s fine, just wanting company. Do your thing here.” Daegan nods, settles back.

“He snarls like a caged beast being poked in the ass with barbed wire,” Kat noted with an intrigued look after the vampire hunter, checking out the stretch of muscle playing becomingly beneath the t-shirt pulled nice and tight across his back. Rising from her seat with a hand-off of the folders and clipped pages to Jamie and-.

“Sit down!” Jaime corrected, taking Kat’s arm and pulling her back to a seat in the chair. “Don’t even think about it. I’ve replaced two tables and a settee out here and had to have blood washed out of the Persian rug inside thanks to you. Damn sadist. I don’t even want to know what it would look like if you poked that one too hard,” she said with a gesture of her head to Gideon as he retrieved a beer from the bar mini fridge off to the side.

“Daegan, tell us, how are things going? The last we left you, you had to leave Gideon and your beloved Anwyn behind for council business. How have you and they been faring in your absence?”

Daegan grimaces and turns to make sure Gideon is truly out of range. "Leaving them was very difficult, given Anwyn’s current precarious condition with the seizures and bloodlust, but Lord Brian, as a favor to Lady Lyssa, came and stayed during my absence to help. Gideon has handled himself well. His main problem..." A smile touches his lips but not his eyes. "Is that he is sometimes too soft-hearted. He has to remember she is a fledgling vampire now, often unstable, and he must always put her safety over her feelings. It is difficult for him, because she is his Mistress, in ways he has yet to admit to himself. But given what they’ve both been through, they have held up with amazing resilience. As for me..." His mouth tightens. "I serve her better right now as her Council champion. She feels out of control of everything, so cannot trust me right now the way she can trust him. But she will always be mine to protect, no matter what." He gives a wry smile. "I’m not sure I answered your question directly. To use Gideon’s succinct vernacular--it sucks, but we’re managing."

“We have some questions here from our group members for you as well,” Terry said with a glance at the notes in her hands. “Was Mistress Anwyn your first "human" Domme and do you prefer the challenge of one over a willing submissive?”

Daegan: "Yes and yes. Anwyn was...well..." He shifts and glances out toward the ocean. "I’ve never had a woman like Anwyn in my life. Over the years I often sought out strong-willed submissives, but they were a way to pass the time, to relieve that sexual craving that goes along with being a vampire. They provided temporary companionship. I’ve never been...emotionally engaged. I’ve been alone a great deal of my life because of my status among vampire kind. The moment I saw her, I knew she was mine. I looked across a club crowded with people, noise, music and fog, and I could feel the shiver that went through her body when our eyes met. It brought something to life in me, something that heated my blood and still does, every time I think of her. I had never considered a Domme for my needs, so she was a new experience for me."

“So she not only met your needs as a vampire, but she tapped into and met emotional needs that you didn’t even know you wanted tapped,” Sandy stated to him rather then asked as a question.

Daegan gives Sandy a considering look. "Yes, I think that would be accurate. As I said, I’ve spent a great many of my years alone, but there is much to see and do in this world. I’ve never felt that my life is lacking. It’s ironic, but I’m not certain I realized what loneliness was until I met her. I’d never seen it as such in myself, but she made me realize it’s impossible to live a truly full life until you’ve given yourself utterly to another, pledged yourself to her wellbeing over everything. Even my life or my heart." He shrugs. "Gideon has been an additional surprise. Finding that there is a place for both of them in my life, and discovering that I now consider both of them"--he considers his words carefully, mulling--"well, mine, though in ways neither one may yet find comfortable. I’ve not called it that way directly yet, though Anwyn, exceptional woman that she is, has sensed it. Regardless, it’s challenging. But everything worthwhile is.

"Anyhow, returning to your question about Anwyn. She is a truly different entity, because though she’s an incredible strong psychological Mistress, there is a current running through her, a single violin strand that has a unique note to it, one that responds to a Master. It requires precisely the right touch to reveal it. But I will say it resonates a matching note in me, because I’d never had a Master’s craving to absolutely possess his slave, until I saw her. Over the past five years, before this happened, it never ebbed, that feeling between us, no matter the small handful of subs she chose to dominate within the walls of her club. Of course, Gideon is a different animal for us, one she and I anticipate the pleasure of exploring more thoroughly together, if we can get past some of what we are facing now."

"It must be difficult being away from them, Gideon and Anwyn, for such lengthy periods of time. When you're not hunting the bad vampires what do you do to kill the long hours?"

Gideon, returning, responds before Daegan can. "He jerks off to Bela Lugosi films and puts bleach strips on his fangs so they’ll be pearly white." The hunter offers Daegan a beer and sets a JD and coke next to Terry, pleasantly surprising her, leaving out the fact the bartender had been asked what her favorite combination was, but the vampire hunter didn’t miss a beat of the becoming blush that flushed her cheeks.

Daegan gives Gideon a dismissive look and takes the beer he’s offered. "How do I kill the long hours? I think of ways to teach this one some manners when I get home." He shoves at Gideon’s feet to get them off the table. Gideon absorbs the blow but ignores him, taking a swig of the beer. "There’s not a great deal of free time when I’m away from them. If there were"--Daegan's eyes gleam--"I would come home and make the most of those hours. When I am away, I am tracking and researching my quarry, and preparing for that confrontation. It fills the hours, which is good, because it gives me less time to miss Anwyn so acutely." He glances at Gideon as if he was going to add another name to that list, but decided against it. Gideon meets his eyes, then looks away, causing a knowing smile to tug at Daegan’s mouth. "I have to make sure I plan for every possibility when doing my job for Council. Things can always go wrong, and I have made an oath to Anwyn to always return to her. She will be very angry if I get myself killed."

Gideon snorted. "Hell, it has nothing to do that. He just can’t stand the idea that she might not miss him at all. Not with me around. And admit it, you do some other stuff. You went to that kids’ museum when you were in Atlanta , because it had the animatronic dinosaurs and you couldn’t resist."

Daegan lifts a shoulder. "I had a spare hour."

All four women resist the urge to sputter their drinks in laughter, Sandy being the first to regain her composure and continue. “How did you first become the council bad vamp assassin?”

"It was that or become the Wal-mart greeter, and he felt being an assassin would be less stressful," Gideon quipped, then glanced at Daegan. "But you could have gotten those white strips for less if you took the Wal-mart job. And discounts on those Slim Jim Beef Jerky snacks for me. I love those things."

"I’ll keep that in mind." Daegan tosses the hunter a warning look, but continues. "My mother served on the Council. After the Territory Wars there was a need for the occasional dispatch of a problem vampire to maintain peace within the Regions. My mother proposed me for the job and I took it, as a personal favor to her, with the understanding that the final call on each kill is mine."

"Because maintaining peace among vamps is more important than protecting human life," Gideon muttered, suddenly far less amicable. "Picking and choosing murderers to kill. Still sounds like you’re Council’s yard dog to me."

Daegan's tone changes almost as abruptly, becoming cold. "No one has ever put a collar on me, Gideon Green. Nor have I had the desire for someone to do so. Can you say the same?" As he holds the man’s blue gaze a long moment, a sudden tension descends between them. "Of the two of us, you more closely resemble a pit bull."

Gideon rises to his feet, that tension continuing to intensify. "You’re pushing it."

"So are you." The vampire’s tone remains even, but his body has gone still in a way that makes it clear he will not hesitate to back up his words with a physical challenge, despite his audience.

Gideon glances at the ladies, gives a short nod, just barely civil. "Fine, then. I’ll go spend time with Anwyn. Since she needs me more anyhow."

Daegan's face tightens briefly at the barb, but then his body eases and he makes a regretful gesture. "I deeply apologize, ladies. As I said, I cannot vouch for his manners. He is a strong and courageous man, but he has a tendency to test the boundaries with me. While I don’t like making you uncomfortable, I can’t let a challenge like that from him pass. Please proceed."

“My turn,” Kat said before the next word could be spoken, a mischievous glint in her very green eyes.

“Oh god, here we go,” Jaime muttered under her breath with a shake of her head. “She’s pretty damn out-spoken, Daegan, so if you have to kill her, then do it outside so the furniture and the rest of the interior will be spared.”

Kat ignored the comment from one of her 3 partners, and friends, and the instruction behind it.“Before there was Anwyn and Gideon, you had other submissives of course. What’s your favorite flavor (blood type) and do you prefer the package to come equipped with curves and a lot going on on the backside to catch your eye?”

Daegan: Yes, having traveled as much as I do, I’ve had the opportunity to experience a wide variety of submissives. Their orientation is still my preferred blood type." At the curious expressions, he spreads out his long fingered hands in illustration. "Let me explain that more precisely. To a vampire, blood type means little in the scheme of things. Those of a submissive nature share a common flavor, yet that is seasoned with the unique flavor of their life energy, their hearts and souls. For instance, there is a different taste to someone who is open to the world, to all the joys and pleasures it has to offer. The flavor also varies for deeply spiritual people, or the quietly yearning... Depending on my mood, I will seek them accordingly, the same way you might scent the difference between fine wines." His dark eyes intensify. "The sexually adventurous have a kick to their blood, like an exotic spice. If I take their blood while they sleep in their beds, unaware that I have quietly entered their homes, they are even more responsive, all inhibitions gone. Their bodies rise up toward me, a plea on their lips, encouraging me to push them into full surrender. A woman who thinks she is caught in her dreams will put her hands between her legs, teasing herself to wetness or cup her breasts, bringing herself to full pleasure at my command. The orgasm flavors the blood taking, like a slice of fresh lime adds the perfect flavor to a good tequila." He taps a finger on his knee, once, twice, a slow, methodical pulse, remembering.

"I can tell you, Mistress Kat," his gaze returns to her, then passes over each woman, lingering on rounded curves of various sizes, as well as the array of attractive legs and nervously curled or relaxed hands. His long, deliberately penetrating stare causes each woman to shift in her seat in heated response, the subtle scent of lust perfuming the warm air. "Each of you emanates a wealth of tempting possibilities in that regard, if I was in need of a blood source. I like a generous backside and full breasts, as much as I like a slim willow. A woman who surrenders, regardless of shape, will always draw the dominant nature of a vampire toward her. I may not sample what I see directly, but I willthoroughlyappreciate it."

“If the council gave you the option of say… a personal harem at your disposal, how many women would it take to appease your appetite?”

Daegan laughs outright at the blatant invitation in the question. "Kat, I believe Anwyn could use you on the staff of Atlantis. A vampire is pretty much insatiable. That’s why, to satisfy us, it often takes a third mark servant." He tosses a look over his shoulder toward the bar and then pauses a moment as he sees Gideon sitting on a stool now next to Anwyn. She’s wearing a scant white bikini, a white gauze scarf wrapped over her hips, and is stroking Gideon’s temple. Tugging his hair, she’s obviously teasing him about something. "Hmm. Or another vampire. Of course..." He turns back and props one heel on the seat, resting his forearm casually on his knee, hand dangling loosely. "I did have the pleasure of spending an afternoon in a harem, centuries ago. Twenty-four women, the concubines of a prince, an old man who had collected them more for prestige and wealth than the pleasure of their company."

He considers the memory. "I’d been wounded in an unrelated matter, and stumbled into their enclave. They graciously gave me sanctuary, as well as blood. In return I gave them three days. They were very adventurous, and almost as insatiable as vampires themselves. The most skillful mouths and hands I’ve ever had the pleasure of experiencing, and I hope I gave as good as I received." He winces, gives another chuckle. "Anwyn isn’t terribly appreciative of my memory. Perhaps we better move on from that. Especially since Gideon will demand I filter video through her mind if I can recall it in detail, and then we shall both be in trouble." Daegan smiles lightly. "It appears, however, he has pulled the stick from his ass, which is good. Though there are times I think he behaves better when... Never mind. Next question?"

“What is your most favorite sexual position?”

"Ah. Anything that involves Anwyn is favored, but there are several I particularly like. I admit to being basically a male animal when my bloodlust is high. Then there is no finesse. I simply want her on her elbows and knees, taking her from behind, a hand on her neck, reminding her of her full submission to me as I thrust hard and deep into her until she is begging for release, calling me Master..." His other hand, resting on the divan back, curls as if imagining Anwyn’s slim nape beneath it, fingers twitching as if they’re curved into her loosened hair. "But my favorite position, though it may diminish your exotic opinion of me, is face to face, with her beneath me. Her legs wrapped around my hips, her arms around my shoulders, so I may watch every shift in her emotions, nothing hidden between us, her body fully pressed to mine." He lifts a shoulder. "In essence, the position where I can see her heart into her eyes is always my favorite."

“What would you say is the most romantic thing you have ever done for a woman or lover? Anwyn or any other you have had in your past?”

Anwyn comes up behind him then, her hand resting in the crook of Gideon’s elbow. Speaks quietly, but with great conviction, answering the question. "He refuses to take no for an answer."

As Daegan looks back at them both, he takes her hand, drawing her closer, eyes lingering on all the bared skin. When his gaze shifts to Gideon, the interviewers can tell that things are smoother there as he predicted. The hunter, gives him a ‘hell, fuck it all’ shrug and helps her slide in next to Daegan before he takes the chair on the other side of them.

"Yeah, she scratched my belly and rubbed my ears and let me tear apart a small mammal with my powerhouse jaws. So I feel less cranky. Don’t be smug."

Kat sets her eyes on the hunter for a moment, distracted away from Daegan based on the nearly cute remark from a not-so-cutie man. Gorgeous, hot, sexy -- those words could describe Gideon Green. Cute? Never. “Sounds to me like the only thing that’s missing is getting someone to powder your cute little behind and then slap it till changes colors.”

Her eyes go to Anwyn, meeting her gaze with enough caution to assure to vampire mistress that her next words were meant to get a rise out of her over-zealously intriguing servant. "I could shackle him to my wall upstairs and set up a wine tasting for you while I “prepare” him." Her eyes gleam like emerald beacons.

Gideon’s gaze snaps to the green-eyed Mistress, his brow rising. "Anytime you feel lucky, sweetheart. You might have to wrestle me to get me there, though." His gaze lingers on her full breasts with obvious appreciation, though it’s obvious he’s deliberately taunting her, rather than disrespecting his devotion to his current Mistress. "I might let you win. Then again, I might not."

Anwyn curls her hand in his T-shirt, drawing his gaze back to her as she speaks softly, a sensual threat. "Start behaving, or I’ll shackle you there myself. And we’ll taste those wines on your striped flesh after I give the Mistress a chance to test her considerable whip skills on you." She glances back at Daegan. "Did you have a different answer to the question, or do you agree with mine, as you should?"

Daegan smiles, bending his head to kiss Anwyn’s fingers, teasing the knuckles with his tongue as she shivers and threads a hand through his hair. "Far be it from me to argue with this beautiful Mistress, but I think my refusal to accept a no from her is entirely involuntary." He cocks a brow. "I did give personal hygiene tips to Gideon, like brushing his teeth at least once a week, which I think should count as a romantic gesture."

Gideon: "Blow me."

Jaime ran a hand through her dark, shoulder-length hair, boldly highlighted in red streaks. Clearing her throat in preparation of asking the next question, before raising warm chocolate eyes to meet Daegan's gaze. “Tell us, Daegan. Have you had any issues with women fawning all over you, or being the object of jealousy for many men?”

Daegan gives Gideon an arch look as the hunter snorts, loudly. "Yeah, in his dreams."

Anwyn laughs and rises. "I’m going to take Gideon away and go flirt with the bartender. Ladies, don’t inflate his ego too much." Gideon gives a suitably deprecating hand gesture, saunters off after Anwyn.

Daegan shrugs with a touch of uncomfortable modesty. "You are very kind. It’s a fact of nature that vampires are very alluring to humans. Our friend, Lord Brian, says there’s a scientific reason for that. It’s a way to attract our prey." He flashes a hint of fang. "While that has made it easy for me to obtain female companionship when I desire it, there are times it has become awkward." He grimaces. "A few years back, I underestimated the cleverness of one of my targets. When I was chasing him, he ducked into a hotel where a large romance conference was in progress. It was so crowded, I couldn’t move swiftly enough to be undetected, not without taking the risk of hurting an innocent. As a result, I was waylaid by a number of the participants. While I didn’t wish to be rude, I was somewhat concerned that the vampire I was tracking might be distracted enough by all the... enthusiasm, to stay and take more than a taste.

"Fortunately, I was able to avert that, though afterward there were quite a few generous ladies willing to...replenish me, if I needed it. They seemed to think I was a cover model for a vampire series and several of them were very aggressive about wanting me to bite their necks, or wanting to touch my fangs." He clears his throat. "To tell the truth, it was somewhat frightening. But it did help prepare me for bookclub night last week.

"As far as the jealousy of men," he shakes his head, "when women notice me, there’s always a chance that the men they are with may take exception, but I try to disengage myself from those situations before it escalates into the male needing to prove his worth to her in some violent way." He glances back at Gideon. "His feelings are more personal. They are not jealousy, not exactly. It’s a conflict about his sense of worth he takes out upon me as resentment. But he is more than enough man for Anwyn. He worries about that needlessly." A surprising depth of emotion goes through his dark eyes. "Indeed, he is more than enough man for us both, if we can simply make him realize that. Too much pain, too much loss. We have to help his heart heal before he’ll realize his true value."

Jaime takes a swig of her vodka and tonic cocktail, and offers a mischievous grin*... “How do you feel about women who bite back?”

Before Daegan answers, Sandy kicks Jaime's chair and arches a brow. "There you go playing with fire again."

Jaime shrugs. "What? I want to know!" she said with an unsuccessful attempt at an innocent look, making Terry laugh light-heartedly.

Daegan: "It’s probably wise not to bite a vampire, cher. It is one of the most arousing things you can do to one, a challenge of sorts, so that the vampire will feel compelled to conquer and sexually subdue the one doing the biting."

Anwyn returns, carrying a tequila with lime for him. Leaning far over his shoulder, pressing her breasts into it and giving him a tempting view of her cleavage she sets the drink down on the table, then gives the ladies a devilish glance. "Allow me a small demonstration, hmm?"

Daegan closes his hand over her slim forearm, gives her a sidelong look out of his dark eyes. Whatever passes between them must qualify as assent, because she nuzzles his temple with her soft lips, then drops down to his jaw, a faint nibble, before her other hand slips up to caress his chin, guide his head away from her just enough that she can put her mouth to the large artery in his corded throat. She breathes on him first, then her fangs elongate just enough that she can prick him, let a drop of blood roll down the side, which she catches with her tongue in a teasing lick. His hand has tightened on her forearm, and his other hand comes up to cup her head before she can draw back. Turning, he captures her mouth, his tongue obviously sweeping in to taste that blood, taste her, before he lets her draw back, giving her a look out of eyes that are now sparking crimson.

The four women gaped at the demonstration. The potent interaction between the two lovers emits raw sexuality in the air, leaving the women speechless.

After a few seconds of awkward silence, Kat leans into Terry while leaving her eyes fixed on the vampire. “I think we need to turn on the air conditioning.”

Terry chuckles. “That might be a wonderful idea if we weren’t outside.” Then she turns to Jaime. “Do you have anything to add, Jaime?”

“Yes, I want one,” Jaime replies.

“Make that two,” Kat adds.

Terry reaches for the sheet of questions, taking the lead. “You three are hilarious. Had I known that a vampire or two would’ve left all of you so speechless, I would’ve requested that Mistress Anwyn send a few here a long time ago. I could’ve saved my sanity.”

Daegan, still absorbed by the woman leaning over his shoulder, speaks in a low growl. "This interview will be ending soon, cher."

Anwyn gives him a feline look and turns to walk away, her hips swaying provocatively. "I’m counting on it. I’m taking Gideon to the beach. There are things I want to do to him in the water. Since he doesn’t have to breathe as much as a thirdmark, I’m curious about his lung capacity. He says he doesn’t have a swimsuit, as if that means anything to me." Her eyes crinkle at him before she starts to move away."

“Before you leave, Mistress,” Kat says before Anwyn could get too far away with her hunter bodyguard following close on her heels. “While I have no doubt you’ve brought your own provisions...” She pulls a small, silver key from the only pocket on her free flowing sheer white wrap. Extending her hand, she drops the key into Anwyn’s waiting palm. “I custom design most of my “toys” and keep them behind the black panel in the room adjoining your suite. Might I suggest the Gates of Hell for that one,” she said, casting a knowing glance at Gideon, who is waiting at the bar with a wary expression, watching the women interact. “Just be careful, the metal shards in that sheath could do permanent damage to his cock, the harder he gets.”

Sandyshook her head, laughing lightly under her breath. “Kat you are such a trouble maker.”

Anwyn gives them a just-between-us-Mistresses smile. "You’re too kind. I’ll let you know how he does."

Daegan rolls his eyes, then turns back to the women, though it’s clear he is no longer in a relaxed state, eyes still sparking crimson with the desire Anwyn stoked in him...and perhaps also with the visual that Kat’s words have conjured of the hunter, his cock bound and stiff with need. "Next question, ladies?" There’s a touch of impatience to him now, though it’s obvious he’s attempting to sound courteous. Terry recalls herself, fires off the next question.

"What is it that lights your passions the most?"

Daegan laughs. "I believe you just saw her. What ignites my passion is a continuing challenge. I have heard people say that when they admit their love and bond to another, that often passion and challenge slowly ebb away with familiarity. I suspect it will take a very long time for that to happen with these two in my life. Over the five years I knew Anwyn before she was turned, we played many games. Neither one willing to admit the hold the other one had over us. There was a great deal of challenge—sexual, emotional, on every level. There were times the games would spiral out of control, to the point I would take her beneath me like a savage beast, so determined to conquer, and she’d slash me with her nails, bite me with ferocity, and when we were done, spent inside one another, it would begin all over again. But this...though I am still filled with such anger when I think of how it happened, what was done to her, she has begun to trust me in a way she hadn’t before, and I her. Being challenged and teased by one who trusts you actually has a deeper, more addictive pleasure to it, one I want to keep experiencing.

"As for Gideon, that one will be a challenge until the day he..." A shadow crosses his features. "It’s a simple saying, but he’s brushed too close to that end, too many times. I won’t say it, and I won’t allow him to get there, anytime soon. But I will say he needs the fight, the struggle, and I respond to it. And however unconsciously at this point, he knows that. Just as he knows Anwyn responds to it as well. He needs that from us, craves it." He cocks his brow. "As much as we do."

“If someone approached you for the very first time, not knowing what you are, or who you are, what would be your initial reaction? If they were male? Female?”

"It depends on what they desire." Daegan shifts restlessly, but a smile comes into his eyes as he remembers something. "I once had an eighty-year-old woman ask me for directions in a mall. Actually, it was one of the times I was tracking Gideon, keeping tabs on his movements. That was before he met me. He was in an arcade, playing Star Wars. Doing quite well actually." He chuckles. "I typically stay to the shadows in a crowded place, because even wearing sunglasses, I am a little too noticeable in that kind of environment. But she came up to me, tugged on my sleeve, and thrust a map under my nose, asking me if I knew the area and could I tell her where the closest K&W cafeteria was? I was able to tell her, unfortunately because I’d staked a young vamp nearby only a few days before. She thanked me quite nicely, patted my arm, told me I was much too handsome for my own good, and rolled off on her walker. " He grins, a gesture that makes him look far less intimidating for a brief second. "I don’t often get treated that way. Mostly, I am never where I can be seen. In that case, I endeavored to look very harmless, but given what she told me, I’m not sure I was successful.

"However, if I am in a club, seeking female companionship—before Anwyn of course--" He dips his head, as if humorously acknowledging something Anwyn has said to him. "Then I will usually make myself noticeable once I’ve decided which woman, or women, I want. There were some nights my appetites ran to two or three women at once. I could draw from one woman’s throat, or from her thigh, while another serviced me and I could stroke the third to climax. And then once I fed, I could take my pleasure, and give it, in various ways to them, until near dawn. Of course they remember nothing of the bloodletting afterward, and my face is blurred in their memory." He looks back down into his drink. "That’s something I treasure about my times with Anwyn. I will never have to experience passing her on the street, and having her remember nothing of me. Not how she sobbed out my name, or curled in my arms, or begged me to allow her to come. Somehow, a powerful memory means far less if it can’t be shared."

He shrugs out of the momentary melancholy. "As far as men, they do not approach me. Again, because I take pains not to be noticed, and if there is an approach to be made, I approach them for what I’m seeking. Men often detect there is something dangerous about me, to the point that they watch me warily when I am near their loved ones, a wife or child, and I don’t want to cause them that type of concern. For other types of men, those who are not honorable, they know to fear and avoid me for the right reasons."

“How do you take the defiant submissive to heel and is it pleasurable?”

"It will vary with each submissive, because her (or his) defiance, comes from something very personal and unique. The Master’s art is to find that source, get past that locked door, and push them into a full surrender, everything vulnerable and offered to the Master. The harder the challenge, the greater that treasure is. And I admit I’m drawn to the exceptional situations. For instance, I don’t consider Anwyn a defiant submissive. She’s a proud Mistress, an entirely different creature, but I can use her as an example. For her, it is all psychological shielding, a woven tapestry, a maze that she delights putting me through to find her at the heart of it. That’s what told me she was a Mistress who uniquely submits to me, rather than a simple switch. A submissive isn’t actively plotting shields and strategies to challenge the Master. It comes up from their intuition, their fears, their needs. Dealing with Anwyn as a submissive is like knowing just the right moment to slide a hand into a darkened mist and close your hand on the adder’s neck before the creature can strike." He smiles nostalgically.

"Then there is a spirit like Gideon’s. A compelling need to serve, but not to submit. And violence is always part of his submission at this point. Always. Which is why Anwyn’s interactions with him concerned me at first, when she was human. He carries many bad things inside of him. But a Mistress or Master lets him fight it out, anticipates his angers, the ways he tries to protect himself. A Master must respect the spirit behind that. That’s key. Your intent is not to break their spirit, but to set their spirits free through submission, which only certain souls understand.

"As to whether it’s pleasurable...* he chuckles. "Well, as you can tell from my musings, I find it very pleasurable. The human BDSM world has provided us so many more tools for our natural inclinations." He nods his head to Kat, acknowledging her earlier offer. "While so much of Mastering is in the mind, stressing the body helps a Master reach the soul, so I enjoy exploring a variety of methods for that. Floggings, sensory deprivation, all forms of electronic stimulation...and rope bondage. One particularly pleasurable night, Anwyn wore a rope harness under her clothes that stimulated her as she walked, though no one but me knew she was wearing it. When she finished her evening at Club Atlantis, the aftermath was...memorable. Her surrender is a gift I never take for granted."

He rises then, quite abruptly. "And on that note, ladies"--he sketches an old-fashioned bow--"It’s been a delight, but Anwyn is currently taunting me with some quite provocative images from the beach. I think she’s gotten impatient for my company and it’s time I indulge her. Plus, Gideon is determined to believe that he doesn’t give a damn if I join them or not, and I can’t resist throwing a wrench in his misconceptions. I shall go on ahead, but if you would like to join us, we’d be delighted to have your company. We’ll see you there."

He kisses each hand in turn and smiles before he takes a step and is simply gone, obviously underscoring he didn’t want to delay being with the two most important people in his life for another moment.

The ladies exchange glances. “Last one to the beach...!”