Contract Lover

A/N: All right, first off, this is my first step into the world of more mature fiction and only my third step into fiction as a whole. Previously, I have written two Hellsing stories that were long on ridiculously pulse-pounding action and short on plot and originality, as my reviewers could tell you (those bastards. . . just kidding. :) ) In this fic I\'m aiming for more plots and more character development. Of course, as my friends all know, I\'m a horrible shot . . . the point I\'m trying to get across here is, please be gentle. This fic will have bloody, incredibly brutal action (*evil cackle*) as well as what is hopefully tasteful and well-done sex. Now that you know what you¡¦re getting into, let us be off! *crosses fingers and gulps.*

Chapter 1: First Meeting.

Dawn Sherman sighed in boredom as she leaned against the bar. It was the middle of the night, and the small greasy spoon diner she worked at was empty. She often wondered why that that fat blob of an owner even kept this place open on graveyard shift. God knew it wasn\'t for the money. The diner (called, wittily and imaginatively, Al\'s Diner,) got at most five customers in the hours between eleven o\' clock and five o\' clock, which was the shift she worked. Dawn had a sneaking suspicion that he kept it open simply to take sadistic pleasure at the destruction of the social life she might once have had.

The young woman sighed again and settled more comfortably against the bar. Since she\'d taken this job three months ago, she hadn\'t been on a single date or even met anyone interesting. It was driving her nuts. When she\'d been a waitress at the Pavilion, a swanky five-star smack in the middle of Snob Hill, her social life had been flourishing like a mutant strain of dandelions. Being the most expensive and high-class place in town, the Pavilion got the most expensive and high-class men in town. It had also seemed that it got the handsomest. Dawn had been out on a date nearly every off night, living it up in style with the most eligible bachelors in town.

She ground her teeth in frustration. She\'d been loving life! Things had been going so well! Then she had to go and ruin it. One of the state\'s most powerful men, a US senator and millionaire that all the smart money were betting on for the next President, had taken a shine to her and expressed himself in the most vulgar way possible. To make a long story short, he ended up with a concussion and a swollen nut sac, and she ended up unemployed. Now, here she was, in the town\'s cheapest diner, waiting on married working men who were twice her age. Not that these men were bad folks to be around. On the contrary, the collection of cops, dockworkers, and other blue-collars who came in were friendly to and protective of her. They often jokingly referred to their meals in the diner as their \"Dawn appointments,\" which she found charming and funny. Still, a twenty five year old woman needed a man she could seriously flirt with and be attracted to. Or at least, Dawn did.

A slight smile crossed her face as she thought that at least it wasn\'t her looks that were the problem. Dawn looked absolutely stunning and she knew it, though her one mission in life since she discovered her beauty was not to let it go to her head. Still, she was aware of it. Dawn stood about five two, a fact that she had long hated and then accepted when she realized how many men liked short women. She had a heart shaped face, a slightly upturned button nose, and huge, deep green eyes, inherited from her huge Irish father. More than one man had said he could drown in those eyes. Her dark brown hair was slightly wavy, a gift from her gorgeous Mexican mother. Her figure was a further gift from her mom. She had a rich hourglass shape, with large, full breasts and perfectly shaped hips. Constant running, a favorite hobby of hers, kept her firm and flexible and her legs toned and sexy. Her skin was a lovely shade of light brown. No, she reflected, it wasn\'t her looks that kept her from having a life. It was the damn hours she worked.

Dawn was so preoccupied with her musings that she didn\'t hear the bell over the door tinkle. Nor did she hear the footsteps of the newest customer. He tapped the bar and scared her half to death. She jumped about a foot in the air and fell in a heap behind the bar. The short waitress skirt rode up, giving anyone who cared to look a view of her pink panties. Her face burning with embarrassment and rage, she pulled her skirt down and looked up to see who had put her here, fully prepared to chew his ass over it.

Her shouts died on her lips when she saw the newcomer. This latest customer was, in a word, huge. He had to have stood six foot five, maybe more, and judging from the size of the muscles moving under his black leather jacket, must have weighed about two hundred and fifty pounds. The man\'s upper body was simply massive, with shoulders like bowling balls and arms that strained the seams of his coat. A gigantic chest tapered down to a surprisingly slim waist and hips. Dawn looked up at his face, which wore an expression that was 95% amused, 5% concerned.

\"Im sorry,\" he said, in a deep, quiet voice. \"Did I startle you?\"

You sure as hell did, thought Dawn, but not that way. No, what startled her was how strikingly handsome this giant was. His features were extremely strong and rugged, with a broad, powerful jaw and a wide nose. It was his eyes that really got her, however. They were a shade of grey akin to flint, and she found them mesmerizing. His black hair was cut short, military style, and had just the slightest sprinkling of grey, but she still thought he was one of the best looking guys she\'d ever seen.

Now the expression went more to the concerned side. \"Ma\'am? Are you all right?\" She realized with a start that she had been staring at him for about five seconds. Blushing brilliant red, she looked down. Definitely concerned now, the man came around the bar and offered her a hand up. She took it, marveling at how big it was. Hers seemed miniscule by comparison. His hand was warm and strong, his fingers long and powerful, but not as clumsy and ham-like as, say, her six foot four inch Irish father\'s had been. As he helped her to her feet, she started thinking about what those hands could do to her in bed and blushed deeper. What the hell was wrong with her? Maybe she needed a date worse than she thought.

\"N-no, I\'m all right,\" she said, letting go of his hand and straightening her uniform. \"I just didn\'t hear you come up, that\'s all.\" As she said that, she realized that it was odd that she hadn\'t heard him walk in. Most men she had met who were this big moved with all the stealth of rusting tank treads, but this guy had crossed the diner in absolute silence. As she watched him sit down, she realized he moved with an easy grace that she\'d seen before. It had been the time her parents had taken her to San Diego, and the thing she\'d seen moving with such grace was a six hundred pound Siberian tiger.

He nodded, satisfied that she was all right, and then ordered a small breakfast and some coffee. She took his order to the cook, the other poor soul who was sacrificing a life for a living, and then went back to the bar. Dawn was determined to engage this man in conversation. He was the first one she\'d seen in months that was even interesting, let alone handsome.

\"So,\" she said, as she brought him his coffee, \"What brings you out so late?\" It was about three.

He shrugged, the massive muscles in his shoulders straining the seams of his jacket. She found the sight delicious. \"Just got off the night shift, that\'s all. Thought I\'d grab some breakfast before I turned in. You probably know what that\'s like.\"

She nodded. \"Yep. Just enough time to wake up with the sun before going to sleep.\" He smiled and nodded. His smile made her feel warm, then incredibly angry at her self. What was WRONG with her? She was acting like a schoolgirl with the town hunk. \"So, where do you work?\"

His eyes narrowed, and for a split second they became so cold and frightening
that she involuntarily shrank from him. \"Why do you want to know?\"

She swallowed and said, \"Hey, just making conversation, you know? It gets boring as hell working here.\"

The chilling cold in those eyes evaporated so fast she thought she must have been imagining it. \"Yeah, I know what you mean. I work over there,\" he said, waving his arm toward the docks. \"Sometimes have trouble staying awake. Speaking of which, can I have more coffee?\" She nodded and took his mug, coming back with his plate. \"Here you go, sugar,\" she said.

He thanked her and ate slowly and methodically, seemingly focused on his food. Dawn took the time to study him. Those shoulders drew her attention again, as did the massive forearms that emerged from the jacket cuffs. This guy was built all right, but not like a weightlifter. Weightlifters didn\'t move with the grace of a stalking panther, nor did they make no sound. She wondered just what he did, \"over there.\"
\"So,\" she said, casting around for a subject, \"What\'s your name?\" She cringed a bit inwardly, half-expecting to see those horribly cold eyes again, but he just smiled at her.

\"John,\" he said, setting down his knife and fork. \"What about you?\"

She smiled at him as she brought him his check. \"Dawn, Dawn Sherman. Did you enjoy the meal?\"

\"Very much,\" he said, setting down a bill for a tip and standing. He was so much bigger than her that she suddenly felt intimidated, but weirdly she liked it. This was a guy who she would feel absolutely safe walking with. \"The meal,\" he zipped up his coat and looked her in the eye, \"And the company.\" Then he turned and walked out with his graceful strides, still making almost no sound.

Dawn smiled and watched the door for a moment, then went to clean up the table. She gasped when she saw that he had left a fifty dollar bill as a tip. Grabbing it, she opened the door to holler and tell him he left too much, but he was gone, vanished without a trace. Slowly, Dawn\"s expression went from shocked to touched. She smiled, slightly flushed, and kissed the bill before putting it in her pocket. Then, humming, she went back to her work. Whoever that guy was, she sure hoped he\'d be back.


A/N: Well, there you have it! Hope it didn\'t suck too bad, but I\'ll never know unless you tell me! Sorry about the lack of sex or violence, but I\'m desperately trying to keep both within a believable plot, so it may be a couple more chapters before they show up. Till then, read, review, don\'t send flames or I\'ll cry, and may your days be filled with joy! God bless you and good night!

-hukt on fonix werked fer meeee!