by T. S. Ryder
Where was Alastair? What was she supposed to do with herself? She could guess why he had brought her here. She knew that he had enjoyed drinking from her that first night. Maybe that’s all he wanted from her—food.
She paced around the room. She touched the marble mantelpiece and smelled the fresh flowers in a vase. She ran her hands over the rich tapestries on the walls and the heavy curtains that ran around the large bed. The bed intimidated her. Would she be brought to it? Would she fight him if she was?
Finally, the door opened and she fell to her knees. There was a nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach. He was dangerous, powerful and handsome and she still hadn’t sorted out the feelings she had for him. She was his captive, she should have hated him, but she felt exactly the opposite, she was excited to see him again.
She looked up hopefully, but instead of seeing the strong, chiseled jaw of Alastair Thorne, she saw a haughty woman. She was tall and thin, pale with long blond hair twisted into spirals that cascaded around her shoulders. She was wearing the most beautiful dress Avery had ever seen. It was black and fit her slim form perfectly. Her face wore an unpleasant expression, as if she had just smelled something foul.
“Do you know who I am, peasant?” the woman demanded. She spoke in a short clipped voice, her arms were crossed over her chest as she looked down at Avery in disgust.
“No, My Lady,” Avery said with a shake of her head. What was happening? Was she not going to be with Alastair? Was she instead going to be a gift to this horrible woman? The thought made her ill.
“I am the Crown Princess of Varlyn, wife of Alastair Thorne,” she proceeded to rattle off her long list of titles, but Avery had stopped listening after the word wife. Of course the Crown Prince had a wife. Avery knew that, everyone knew that. She had just allowed herself to forget. Avery knew nothing of Myrcel besides her name. Rumor had it she didn’t leave the palace that often.
“Why were you not with the rest of the parade? Why were you brought here?” the Princess asked. She had not given Avery permission to stand and so she remained on her knees.
“I do not know, My Lady,” Avery said.
The woman reached down and grabbed Avery’s hair roughly, pushing her head aside to reveal the two small red dots on her neck. It was the only thing that remained of Alastair’s touch. The woman traced her hands over the wounds and then roughly pulled Avery to her feet.
The Princess was tall and she towered over Avery, looking at Avery in disgust, she glared at her full breasts and thick thighs.
“Why would a fat thing like you be brought to the palace in secret?” she asked. Avery could guess this was a question she wasn’t expected to answer.
The Princess shook her head and then pulled Avery close. “Humans like you disgust me,” she hissed. “You are weak and soft, built to feed us and nothing more. Were it up to me we would keep the humans in cages like you keep cows. You would be our food. Born to breed and be devoured, nothing more.”
She tightened her grip on Avery’s hair and jerked her head back exposing Avery’s pale throat. She licked her lips and Avery, understanding what was about to happen, struggled to free herself. It was too late. Myrcel descended on her, biting savagely into her neck, reopening the old wounds.
Avery fought against it as hard as she could, but the venom entered her system and made her slow and sluggish. She pushed weakly against the Vampire Princess, and let out a weak cry, but this just made the woman bite down harder.
Almost immediately she went weak as again her blood was pulled from her body. The Princess was rough as her fangs dug into her flesh, cutting and scarring her as she greedily gulped Avery’s essence.
Everything was fuzzy and far away. There was a roaring in her ears and her heartbeat was slowing, she felt terribly cold. She was aware that she was dying and the Vampire Princess showed no interest in stopping. Suddenly, the door slammed open and with a roar she was pulled away from Myrcel. Stunned, confused and weak, Avery fell back onto the soft carpet, landing on her back. She struggled for breath as blood trickled down her neck.
“What are you doing?” It was the voice of Alastair. Through her half-closed eyes, she could see his tall, strong form. His fangs were bared and he positioned himself between his wife and his conquest. His hands were balled into fists and he seemed to be on the verge of launching himself at his wife.
“I was feeding, husband dear,” Myrcel said. There was blood on her lips and she licked it off with relish. “Were you not going to share your treat with me?”
“No,” Alastair said. “I did not intend for you to see her. After all, it has been years since you have set foot in my chambers,” disgust dripped from his voice.
“Why would I come in here when you permit it to be infected with this trash? She’s a human, Alastair. She should be fed upon and then left, not brought to your home. I know your disgusting tastes, I just thought you would have the decency to keep it out of our home,” Myrcel said. Her voice was low. She descended upon Alastair like a snake. Avery wanted to warn him to be careful, but she had lost her voice. She was far too weak and could barely lift her head off the floor.
“These desires of yours are shameful,” Myrcel continued, “I was getting rid of her. I was doing you a favor.”
“I know what comes from your favors,” Alastair said. He took his wife by the shoulders and pulled her close. “Do not involve yourself in my affairs. Do not ever come here again,” he warned and then he released Myrcel. With a final hiss in Avery’s direction, she stomped out of the room.
Chapter Five
He pulled her to her feet and helped her to the bed. He brushed her hair aside and then he licked the trail of blood off her neck. He licked and sucked every last drop that had stained her skin. She didn’t fight him. Instead, she turned her head to the side and a soft moan fell from her lips. Alastair struggled to control himself as he tasted her alabaster neck. He could feel the thump of her heart on his tongue, her blood made him salivate. He bared his fangs, but stopped short of piercing her skin.
“I’m so very confused,” Avery said weakly as her eyes grew heavy.
“I know,” Alastair answered, his hand took hers and he squeezed. “Sleep now. I will answer your questions in the morning.”
He drank blood from a chalice and watched her sleep. Her dress slipped, revealing her bare shoulder and he traced his hand along it, all the way to her neck. Her wonderful, soft neck. The sound of her breath was like music.
She woke the next day and was able to walk around. Sitting up in bed, she tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and looked at him sheepishly.
“Good morning,” he smiled. A plate of food had been set out for her and she dug into it with relish, biting into the eggs and tearing the bread with her teeth. Her every movement captivated him. He could have easily sat and watched her all day.
“Good morning, My Lord,” she replied.
He walked over to the edge of the bed and sat down next to her. “I apologize for the Princess’s actions the other day. I had intended to keep you a secret here for your protection, but you must be very careful in the palace. There are spies everywhere and Myrcel is not pleased. But I don’t want you to worry,” he said, cupping her cheek with his hand. “I am the Crown Prince and I will let no one harm you.”
She nodded and smiled up at him, before returning to her food. “What are you doing, My Lord?” she asked nodding towards his table covered in maps and scrolls.
“Working,” he said with a shrug. “Managing a kingdom is a heavy burden.”
With a blanket draped around her shoulders, she stood and walked over to the table. He wanted her to get back into bed. Her skin was still pale and there were bruises under her eyes. She swayed when she stood up, taking a moment to gather her balance.
She stood over the table and traced her delicate human finger over the roads through The Sands. The Sands were the southernmost part of the Kingdom. Most of it was desert, but there were valuable mines that had
added to his father’s wealth.
“Your map is out of date, My Lord,” she said tilting her head to the side. He stood up and walked to stand next to her. She was so close he could smell her sweet, human scent. He wanted to kiss her, to gather her up in her arms.
“What do you mean?” he asked as he stared down at the maps. “My father’s mapmaker was just there last season to update the maps. He personally travelled down each of these roads and made these reports.”
She gave him a knowing look and said, “Did he actually do it? Or did he just take the money and say he did it? The roads of The Sands are long and harsh. We travelled through them last summer. It was horrible. Just the desert as far as the eye could see. It was sweltering during the day and freezing at night. We did not have enough water to bathe or cook properly. It took us weeks to get through it,” Avery shuddered at the memory, pulling the blanket tighter around her shoulders.
“This road here,” she said pointing to a narrow lane that wove around a tall mountain, “is impassable. There must have been a mudslide or something, as the road is blocked by giant boulders. It took us four hours to go around them.”
He watched her finger as it moved over the map. He leaned down over the map with her. Her face and neck only inches from his mouth. He could not stop himself, he brought his hand up and placed it on her lower back, letting it rest there.
“There’s another road here,” she said, pointing farther north. “It’s not on your map, but it’s controlled by bandits. They demanded seven gold pieces to let us pass. My father-” she stopped suddenly and pulled her hand away from the map, pulling herself in and holding the blanket tighter.
“Your father what?” Alastair asked. He did not want her to stop speaking. He wanted to know more about her. He wanted to know that she didn't hate him for killing her father.
She shook her head and took a deep shaky breath, “We were pooling our money together to pay them. Everyone was putting in an equal share. But my father didn’t want to, he resented it. He...he offered them me instead.”
Anger rose in his chest. It was a furious, righteous anger. If only he had known, he would have made the man suffer more. He hadn’t deserved such a quick end. He deserved pain and then even more pain until he finally broke.
“Thank the Gods the men had a harem at their camp,” she said, her voice catching in her throat as she struggled to keep from crying. “They weren’t interested in me. I paid my father’s share instead and we were allowed to pass.”
“I’m sorry,” Alastair said. He tightened his grip on her and slowly pulled her towards him until she was facing him. A tear slipped down her cheek and he brushed it away with his thumb. “You needn’t fear him anymore. He’s dead and you are safe with me.”
“Am I?” she asked, her grey eyes staring into his. “Why am I here?”
“Because I want you here,” he said.
She looked at him in confusion. Was it possible she had no idea how sublime she was? Did she not understand what she did to him? He wanted her at every moment of every day. The thought of living without her was impossible. He had only tasted her, but it hadn’t been enough.
He wanted to lie with her. He wanted to spoil her. His little nomad, he wanted to worship her body.
She looked at him and then understanding came to her face. Her grey eyes shone in the firelight. It was night. Outside the ocean was crashing against the shore. It all merged together into one glorious sensation.
Her eyes never left his. She let the blanket fall from her shoulders and his heart skipped a beat as he looked at her. Her hair was wrapped up in a bun and she released it, letting the soft dark curls fall around her shoulders. She was wearing a simple dress and he knew there was a thin shift underneath.
She licked her lips and then it was too much. He reached towards her wrapping her in his arms and pulling her in for a deep long kiss.
Chapter Six
His arms were strong and when they wrapped around Avery she melted into him. He held her tightly as his lips crashed against hers. His kiss was strong and fearsome, as if he worried she might disappear and he needed to make every moment count.
Avery closed her eyes as the world fell from beneath her feet. She didn’t know which way was up or down. All she knew were Alastair’s strong hands on her back. She grabbed his shoulders and pulled him even closer. She wanted him and he needed to know it.
Her tongue danced with his, occasionally grazing over his sharp fangs. They were like razors and at first she shied away from them, but then a wicked thought came to her. She kissed him deeply and then swiped her tongue across his fang. She stopped short when she felt the pain from the cut as her mouth filled with the tangy metallic taste of her own blood.
He grabbed her tightly by her shoulders, enraptured by the taste. Letting out a low growl he broke the kiss, but held her close looking deeply into her eyes.
He pulled her against his hips and she could feel his erection through his pants. He leaned in and kissed her again, his tongue grazing over hers tasting her blood. He clutched at her thin dress, taking handfuls of it and pulling at it, quickly lifting it over her head and dropping it to the floor.
“God, you're so beautiful,” he said, looking at her through her thin shift. Avery couldn’t look him in the eye. She felt her face go red and she stared at the floor, suddenly self-conscious.
“Do you have any idea what you do to me?” he asked moving closer. He pressed a cold finger to her cheek. “When you flush like this, I lose myself. I would give up my entire Kingdom for you.”
He reached around and grabbed her ass, pulling her closer, pushing her against his erection and letting out a low moan.
Avery traced a line along his jaw and down his neck, touching his smooth chest where his jacket opened. “You’re wearing far too much clothing,” she said looking up into his eyes. She grabbed at the jacket, but her hands were clumsy and slow, so he took it and ripped it from his body.
Avery took a moment to look at him. He had a strong chest, with well-defined muscles scattered with scars. She frowned as she looked at them, touching a long painful looking mark that went diagonally down his body.
“Who gave you this?” she asked.
“A Mage from The Sands, he just missed my heart,” as he said the words he took her hand and held it over his chest. She could feel the steady drumbeat beneath his skin.
“I’ll kill him for it,” she said as she leaned down and kissed the old wound, stroking his skin with her tongue.
He held her head and gave out a shuddered sigh. “You need not worry. He did not survive the battle.”
“Good,” she said as she stood straight to face him. Her hands found his belt and she unbuckled it and let his pants fall to the floor. He stood up straight and she took him in her hand. Letting his head fall back he let out a low groan as she lightly grazed her hand over his length.
He broke away from her and with a tearing sound, he ripped her slip apart. He shredded it in his hands as Avery stood naked in front of him. Alastair gazed at her skin and then moved closer. He touched every part of her, her breasts, her hips, her thighs. He moved from place to place clutching and grabbing at her as he kissed her fiercely.
Their naked bodies were pressed together, rubbing up against each other. Avery gasped as he kissed her and grabbed her ass and massaged her breast. There was so much happening all at once. She was lost in a sea of touch and caresses. She moaned out the word yes.
Holding onto her, Alastair took a few steps back and then the back of his knees hit the bed and he sat down on the edge.
Avery stood in front of him. He growled as he caressed her hips and the back of her thighs and then he pulled her in close and took her breast in his mouth. She threw back her head. He was consuming her and she let him. He bit gently on her nipple, flicking the sensitive skin with his tongue. She gasped and grabbed his head, running her hands through his hair.
She felt his cool hand slip between her thighs. She was alrea
dy wet and he licked between her breasts as his fingers stroked long and slow inside of her. She strained for his touch, pushing herself towards him. He found the most sensitive place inside of her and when he touched it, it was like stroking a fire.
His touch was relentless. He was slowly grazing over her most sensitive areas, building up an uncontrollable ecstasy inside of her. Clinging to his shoulders her body writhed and twisted as he continued to kiss and bite her chest.
“Yes, Alastair, yes!” she cried out. Her thighs were quivering and a bolt of sudden pleasure rocked through her.
Then she was airborne, Alastair picked her up and threw her back on the bed. She landed on her back and bounced once. She missed his hand and she couldn’t help the desperate moan that escaped her throat. He had left her on the edge pulling his hand out just before she was engulfed with pleasure.
He moved between her legs, opening her up before him. Avery lay on her back, naked and exposed, but not afraid. She looked into his eyes as he traced a finger down her collarbone then down to her breast where he encircled her nipple. He gripped her thighs tightly. HIs engorged cock hovered in the air between them.
“I want you,” she whispered, her eyes never leaving his. “I want you inside of me.”
Her words pushed him over the edge and in a moment he was on her. He kissed and licked at her neck and Avery’s fingers grabbed the sheets as he entered her. It took her body a moment to adjust to his size. She let out a loud moan as he began to thrust in and out of her.
He pinned her arms to either side of her head with his strong hands holding her down. Avery moved her hips beneath him. Matching him thrust for thrust. He leaned down to kiss her and she eagerly devoured him. She wanted to touch every part of him, feel every inch.
“Yes, keep going,” she whispered.
But to her surprise, he slowed down.
“I want to drink from you,” he whispered in her ear. Avery shuddered. The need in his voice was palpable. It was a need for her and her alone. She was the only person that could give him what he wanted. “I want to bite into your neck as you come,” he hissed.
