Drawn.

Sookie introduces Eric to Dahlia, a practiced telepath whose wit and looks have captivated Eric from the moment he met her. But Dahlia has a hidden secret and a dangerous past that is catching up. Can they let each other in? Is it enough to save her life?

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A/N: Upon conversion of this story into a first person perspective, I discovered that there were some parts of the original text that couldn't be converted into Dahlia's perspective and, in my opinion, were too good to just get rid of completely. It's mostly stuff according to Eric, but told from a third-person omniscient POV. Those moments in later chapters (up to a twist in the plot/character interactions) will be surrounded by lines and labeled 'Omni POV'. I discovered that I like writing for Eric, but most of this story is about Dahlia's internal and external conflicts, so I thought it would be more fitting as a first-person from Dahlia's POV. After the twist I'm not sure if I'll continue adding the Omni POV parts, mostly because around chapter 7 or 8, I started writing with the potential of converting it to first-person.

The biggest example of use of third-person omniscient storytelling is…the entire first chapter, which serves as an intro of the situations in the story. Most of the exchange occurs between Eric and Sookie, so it made no sense to convert it to Dahlia's first-person yet. So chapter two will be the start of Dahlia's first-person account.

Enjoy!

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Chapter One: Proposition

Eric turned to face the door when he heard the latch click. He heard the distinctive sound of her heels on the granite tile before he saw her. Sookie Stackhouse emerged around the corner wearing a simple blue dress that highlighted her tan skin.

Well this is a pleasant surprise, Eric thought to himself as he watched the blonde approach him. As equally pleasant was the fact that Sookie appeared to be alone. He waited, half expecting to see Bill or Pam walk into the room after her. A few moments passed and Eric silently confirmed her aloneness. A little bit thrown off by Sookie's surprise appearance, Eric almost failed to pick up on the determined look on her pretty face. He half-heartedly accepted the fact that she was most likely here on business rather than pleasure and waited for her to speak.

"Hello, Eric," Sookie broke the silence between them. She flashed Eric what seemed to be a disinterested smile.

Great, he thought, not only is she definitely here on business, she looks like she wants nothing to do with me period. Like this visit was only out of necessity. He frowned inwardly and continued to make eye contact with her.

"I have something I need to discuss with you," she continued. Eric braced himself for whatever news she was going to give him, for he knew his day couldn't get much worse. "I don't really know how to start this," she paused a moment, thinking, "so I guess I'll just show you instead." She walked toward the door and then disappeared around the corner.

Eric was now thoroughly confused. So much for my 'she's alone' theory. Even though he had no clue what was about to come back through that door with Sookie, he had a feeling it wasn't going to be anything good.

Boy, was he wrong.

A few moments later, he heard the door latch click again. Sookie reappeared around the corner followed by someone. That someone was undoubtedly female, and a rather good-looking one at that, Eric noted.

From what he could see, she had a similar body type to Sookie's. Different from Sookie, however, was that this girl was a bit bustier. She was currently clothed in a retro polka dot dress, just tight enough to be sexy rather than slutty. Also different than Sookie, this girl was a redhead. Her hair was done in soft curls which were pulled up on one side and fastened with a jewel clip. Eric then followed the line of her legs down to her black heels, which were still clicking toward him.

By the time his silent appraisal of the new woman was complete, the two women hadn't even completed their journey across the room. After a few more seconds, normal time, Sookie and the new girl stopped in front of him. Eric raised a well-groomed blonde eyebrow and waited for Sookie to explain herself.

"Eric, this is Dahlia," Sookie looked at Eric. He looked back at her as if to say, 'Yes…and?' Sookie nodded and continued, "She is another telepath." Eric paused a moment and let her last sentence sink in.

"Are you looking to relinquish your…position here?" Eric surprised himself with the professional tone of his first sentence of the conversation. Apart from the sentence currently under review, he was actually at a loss for words. He used the present silence to wrack his brain for more words. Thoughts even. Sookie then stepped up to fill the void.

"Well, no. It's just that I thought she could be useful for…erm, the business?" said Sookie, in an attempt to keep up with his professional metaphor. Truthfully, she didn't know what to call what she did for Eric. The only thing she could think of was 'telepathic prostituting', but she was sure that a) that wasn't the right choice of words, and b) it would most likely scare Dahlia away. She then took a moment to look at Dahlia, who currently looked like the poster-child for 'cool, calm, and collective'. Which surprised her, because when she first came to Fangtasia with Bill, she was scared shitless.

From the few things that Amelia had told Sookie about Dahlia, she knew that Dahlia had worked as a bartender in New Orleans and that she had a bit of a past with vampires as well. We actually aren't that different, Sookie mused. She also knew that she had relocated to Bon Temps after visiting Amelia, her college roommate, where Sookie discovered she was a telepath. She was currently living with Sookie and Amelia at Sookie's house. She really knew nothing else about her, seeing as, unlike Sookie, Dahlia had basically perfected shielding her thoughts from those around her. She thought it would be a good idea to introduce her to Eric. Mostly because she thought it would get his mind off of her, since Bill was now back in her life. However, she sincerely thought that Dahlia's ability would be beneficial to Eric. Ok, so that part was kind of selfish too, considering that with Dahlia around, some of her workload for Eric would be reduced. Sookie was pulled from her own thoughts by Eric's voice.

"Sure. Why not?" He thought he could use a little amusement today. Besides, this girl wasn't all that bad looking, and he'd always had a soft spot for redheads. Sookie was momentarily caught off guard by his acceptance.

"Well…ok, um…Dahlia is living with Amelia and I at my place, so…you can find her there if you need her." Sookie wasn't really sure what else to say, so she left it at that. She watched for Eric's nod before glancing toward Dahlia, who took her cue and started towards the door. Just because he accepted Dahlia, doesn't mean I'm done with him yet, Sookie thought while she waited for the sound that signaled Dahlia's departure. With auditory assurance of her exit, Sookie crossed the rest of the room, closing the awkward distance between her and Eric. "Before I go, we need to discuss something," she stated flatly.

"It's Bill, isn't it." Eric studied her features.

Sometimes I'd swear it's you that can read my mind. "Yeah. We're kind of…back together."

"Is that why you brought Dahlia here?" He smirked.

"No. Well, maybe…a little bit," she looked away from him. "I really do think that she could help you like I do, but I will admit that I thought she might…distract you?"

"That's a low blow, Sookie. Don't think that just because you prance a pretty girl in front of me, I'll be so easily distracted. Especially from you." He maintained eye contact with her, never flinching. What he said was true, despite the fact that he couldn't deny the attraction he was feeling for Dahlia.

"But you did say she was pretty," Sookie teased. She smiled when Eric broke their eye contact, looking a little bit…embarrassed? Sookie had indeed noticed the way that Eric watched Dahlia, even though he'd never admit it.

"Fine, yes. She is very attractive." Or would he? Sookie smiled bigger and then turned to leave.

"Told you she'd distract you," she said as she rounded the corner and left the room.

I'm sure she will, Eric mused.

I know that this was kind of a slow start, but I kind of wanted to put this out there to gauge a response. So please review, it will be greatly appreciated. Plus, I have a whole bunch of chapters waiting to go, and I keep writing pretty much everyday.

Thanks,

Sydney