Vampire Princess of New York (Arnhem Knights of New York)

by Susan Hanniford Crowley

  Donovan moved as David sat on the bed and gathered his sister in his arms. “Blessie, you know I love you. You’re a target of some psycho ancient. Just right now, please, be the princess. You can be the Arnhem Knight again later.”

  She smiled. Donovan went to get a warm wet towel to wipe her face. “You haven’t called me Blessie for years.”

  Donovan returned and wiped away the blood.

  “I stopped calling you Blessie when in training you threw me through a wall and said you didn’t like it.”

  She laughed.

  I can feel the weariness in her, can you? Donovan asked David.

  Yes.

  David lifted his sister off the bed, into his arms. “Father ordered this finished before he and Evie came back from their honeymoon. He was thinking it would help ease her transition to our world.” Cradling his sister against him, David went over to the back of the room near the armoire and pressed on a spot almost unseen in the wall. Donovan stood nearby watching.

  The wall opened into a smaller version of the healing room. Thousands of carefully placed stars were painted across the dark blue to black ceiling. Noblesse smiled up at the many constellations and planets and the moon. Dark marble columns supported this artificial night sky. The floor was a dark blue marble like a still ocean. Unlike the healing room for the Arnhem Society as a whole, which had round beds that would fit only one vampire, this one had a large round dark blue bed in the middle.

  “I don’t think I have to remind you that this room is not for sex.”

  “We wouldn’t think of it,” Donovan said.

  David lay Noblesse carefully on the bed. “Donovan, you lay behind her and hold her. If you need help with anything, call me. There are several emergency exits from this room. They are marked with double stars at eye level. A hard round flat glass bead on the floor is another escape door. No one can come in once the room is occupied, without the occupants allowing it.”

  David left the room. Donovan heard the lock click into place. Then his son-in-law spoke to his mind. Donovan, please, be considerate of my sister. Noblesse told Laura that she loves you.

  Please, tell Laura that I love Noble very much.

  Donovan felt David walk away. He hugged Noblesse and gazed up at the very realistically painted sky.

  She whispered, “Did you just tell my brother that you love me?”

  Donovan grimaced. He would have to reinforce his mind blocks later, so she would not hear what he said to David.

  She turned smiling up at him. “Well, mon cher?”

  “I love you, Noble.” He kissed her tenderly at first and then with wild abandon, he cherished her lips and every part of her face and neck.

  Then he stopped. Noblesse gasped. “Why did you stop?”

  “No sex in this room, remember?”

  “Then let’s get out of this room right now.”

  “Ma chérie, you and I have been through a traumatic experience. We will sleep for a while and see what we feel when we wake.”

  “Argggh. Mon Dieu, have mercy on our craziness.” Noblesse tossed up her hands in frustration. He held her, and she closed her eyes.

  Donovan, are you asleep?

  Not with you talking in my head, Sha.

  Doesn’t this bed feel particularly wonderful?

  It does. I wonder if it’s the fabric or the stuffing.

  It’s the dirt.

  What? Donovan leapt off the bed.

  Noblesse reached for him, and he reluctantly returned to her arms, but eyed the bed with suspicion.

  It won’t hurt you. The dirt is enclosed in the bottom of the wood frame, which is made from southern red cypress. It is bug and rot resistant.

  What kind of dirt is it?

  Max searched the world for the purest soil uncontaminated by humans. He shipped in dirt from Iceland, Greenland, Norway, Sweden, and from many of the volcanoes. He brought in dirt from the wilds of Ireland and Scotland, though that’s becoming harder to find. It’s mixed with soil from Australia and New Zealand and even Antarctica. The intent is to create a pure and energizing soil bed.

  For the vampire, the night sky and the pure soil bed below restores us. In the old days, vampires would go to ground for the same reason we are on this bed now.

  Would they actually dig down and bury themselves?

  Mais oui, cher. And if they had a lifemate, they would embrace each other before covering the dirt over them.

  If the lifemate were human, wouldn’t he suffocate to death?

  Not if he was in the process of changing.

  Donovan was quiet for several minutes.

  Of course, a vampire could take her human lifemate to a cave. The dirt in a cave that has not been inhabited by humans would have the same affect.

  Donovan breathed a sigh of relief. “Go back to sleep,” he whispered in her ear.

  “Are you worried about something?”

  “Does becoming a vampire hurt?”

  “Yes. That’s what I’ve been told. I was dying so I don’t remember. Why are you asking?”

  Just thinking. He nibbled her ear. Go to sleep, Noble. Then he closed his eyes.

  In his dreams, he built walls around himself. He didn’t want Noble to know what he was thinking. Laura walked into his dream. “Papa, what’s wrong?”

  “I love Noble, but I can’t have her.” A tear fell down his cheek.

  “Being in the healing chamber is supposed to heal you.” She walked up to him and hugged him. She felt cold to him. Donovan reminded himself that vampires felt cold.

  “What’s wrong, Papa?”

  “The idea of not being with her is too painful. I can’t bear it anymore.” Donovan closed off the agony, all the past sadness in his life, and fell into a deep sleep.

  It felt wonderful to stretch across the cool sheets. Something was missing. His warm Noble. Where are you? He reached out further and didn’t touch her. His eyes snapped open.

  The door to the healing chamber was open. He flew off bed.

  “Noble?”

  Donovan walked through the door to the master bedroom to the bathroom. Noblesse was singing “I love Paris,” in the shower. He smiled as he stood just outside.

  She called out. “Donovan, do you need something?”

  He could think of several things he needed, in particular. “I was just looking for you, Sha.”

  “Come in and wash my back.”

  He walked into the bathroom, which was nothing like the one off of Max’s office, but a chamber meant for play. Delicate curtains of white encircled a gold tub. Five points of a silver star above them showered rain over the tub.

  “Donovan, you can’t wash my back from out there.”

  Losing his boxers, he took a loofa off the wall and pushing the curtain back a bit, he stepped inside. What he saw made every part of him ache. Water rolled down her pale skin in tiny lickable steams, caressing every curve of his raven-haired beauty. With her back to him, he was struck silent by the rivulets washing over that perfect derriere. Grinning he rubbed the loofa back and forth between her legs.

  She jumped and in a blur turned, faced him and took the loofa away.

  “You’re being bad, Donovan. That’s not how to use a loofa.”

  He chuckled. “Maybe this is.” He took it back and loofahed between her luscious breasts with their excited rosy peaks. Donovan loofahed each curve caressing her hips. He loofahed her belly button until she giggled like a little girl, a sound he’d never heard her make before.

  Then sporting his evil grin, he loofahed between her legs with purpose. Her eyebrows rose with her heat. He didn’t have to touch her to feel it.

  “Donovan, you’re being very bad again.” She put her hand out for the loofa.

 
“No.” He grinned and loofahed faster between her legs. Noblesse trembled, her lower lip quivered. “Noble, I’ve never been this bad in my entire life. Let me be bad to you.”

  “Here?” she gasped.

  “No, in bed. I want to be “bad” thoroughly.” He stepped out and turned off the water as he went. Donovan held out his hand to her. She took it, stepped out, and slipped. He caught her.

  Pulling a black jacquard bath towel off the rack, he wrapped her in it and lifted her into his arms. Donovan tossed the loofah aside.

  “I thought we’d be using that.”

  “Oh, Sha, I have something much better.” He carried her to the bed and eased back the covers.

  “What are you going to do with me? I thought you said we couldn’t have sex.”

  He tossed her on the bed. Pulling the towel off, he leapt on the bed like the wild cat he had finally freed inside himself. “I may only have this one chance in my life, this single moment, to be with you. I’m going to take it.”

  Donovan leaned over her, touching and caressing, licking the little droplets of water off her skin. His plan was to kiss and nibble every part of her body, starting at those lips that he never wanted to stop kissing.

  Possessing her mouth was heaven. Her lips parted eagerly for him, and he brushed his tongue against a fang. Touching it tentatively at first but then caressing with abandon.

  “Yiiiie, Donovan.” She panted hard. “Do you know what you’re doing?”

  “I do.” He did. That single act poured unrelenting heat straight through her. Her eyes peered at him entranced.

  He kissed her again, but every time he tasted her and felt her swoon against him, moan into his mouth, he wanted to give her more.

  Donovan kissed her face and pulled himself away to wander. Each time his lips touched her tender flesh, she squirmed. He closed his eyes and felt her passion radiating through him.

  “Donovan, you’re not giving me a chance at you?”

  His deliciously wicked laugh rumbled through her. “So? Non, ma chérie, I’m giving you pleasure, so you will always remember me.”

  He tongued her belly button, and she jumped then moaned. “Donovan, why do you say that?”

  Kissing tenderly, working downward, he parted her legs and kissed her most tender spots before sucking it into his mouth.

  “Aaaaaaaaeeeee,” Noblesse gasped. “Donovan.” She could barely say his name.

  “Yes, Sha.” He looked up over the wonderful scenery of her form. Then he knelt between her knees. Donovan grabbed a pillow and lifting her up, placed it under that beautiful derriere.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Heaven on Earth.” Then he lunged over her like a jungle cat, his shaft plunging into that hot wet sheath of hers, moving and rubbing and going deeper.

  Vampires don’t need to breathe. Noblesse had to keep reminding herself of that, but she caught herself fighting for air, floating, lunging up at him. She fought to maintain a semblance of self.

  Then the moment she closed her eyes the intensity of Donovan’s fire poured through her like hot lava, melding them together, forging a bond that would never be broken. She would not be able to forget him if she tried. Waves of pleasure in the form of heat alternating with cool wetness washed over her. She could move only slightly. When he pulled her up and into him even deeper, Noblesse kissed him. Her tongue pushed into his mouth caressing him.

  He chuckled. “You think to distract me with your vampiress’s ways. Keep doing it.”

  The light behind her eyes went white. He plunged into her over and over, a storm of power building and growing in fierceness and frenzy. Faster and faster. Then he stopped and flipped her over. Again, he drove into her, unrelenting. His strength and power over her growing every second. She let him. She loved him. Every part of her tingled and shivered.

  She screamed her release, and he held her, shaking himself. They collapsed, still joined. Never in her long life had she known love like that.

  Noblesse giggled.

  “Why are you laughing?”

  “I just had to prevent half the Arnhem Knights from bursting in here to rescue me, especially David.”

  “What did you tell them?”

  “Just having sex with Donovan. Go about your business please.”

  Donovan laughed, then it hit him. “Oh, wow. My daughter heard that.”

  “Laura’s a big girl now.”

  He smiled. “I know that, Noble. It’s what will happened when she passes this on to Evie.”

  “Oh, wow. Then Max will know. What will Father think?”

  “He’s got to figure someone is going to love you sooner or later.”

  Noblesse smiled hesitantly. “Father thinks I’ve had dalliances in the past. I’ve never been in love before, Donovan. I have no idea what he’ll think.”

  Donovan’s eyes went wide. “Wait a minute! You didn’t have dalliances? Not even when you went to college in the sixties? You mean you’ve never had sex until just now? Oh my God, Sha, I just went full passion at you. Are you all right? Did I hurt you?”

  Noble smiled and pulled him into a kiss. “You are my one and only. I was so lost in your passion, I felt nothing but the intensity of love, yours and mine. I love you, Donovan.”

  The phone on the nightstand buzzed.

  Noble moved away from him and the phone.

  “Aren’t you going to answer that?”

  “I already know that it’s Father.”

  Donovan shook his head and picked up the phone. “Hi, Max. How is the honeymoon going with you and Evie?”

  “Fine.”

  “That’s good to hear.”

  “Donovan, what’s happening?”

  “What’s happening here? Oh, a small incident that almost killed Noble and me. Actually two small incidents, but David and the Knights are working on it. They have us guarded in your suite until it’s resolved.”

  “I know about that. What are you doing with my daughter?”

  Donovan stared at the phone for several minutes. Noble leaned on her elbow looking up at him, chewing her bottom lip. He smiled and caressed her cheek, and she stopped that nervous chewing. “Oh, you mean that. Well, I love Noble and she loves me. About that lifemate thing, we’ll just see how things wash out.”

  “Evie and I are coming home.”

  In the background, Donovan heard Evie say, “Max, please, I’ve always wanted to see Rome. Leave Bless and Papa alone to work it out. Unless David needs your help with the problem in New York . . .”

  “I don’t think you two have to come home. David will solve it.” Donovan stroked Noble’s cheek.

  “I’m not talking about that. May I speak to Bless?”

  Now Donovan chewed his bottom lip. He handed her the phone.

  “Hi, Father. Are you and Evie having fun?”

  “Yes, thank you, Bless. Do you love Donovan? Really love him?” The sound of her father’s voice so far away made her miss him.

  “Yes, I do. Anyway, let’s see how it all washes out like Donovan says. I’m willing to try for him.”

  “I trust your judgment, Bless.”

  Max hadn’t used that nickname for her in a long time. “Thank you, Father.”

  Then Max hung up.

  Noblesse lay back on the bed, resting in Donovan’s arms.

  “What did Max say?”

  “He’s going to trust my judgment.” She rolled to face Donovan and kissed him. “I think we should stay in here and you can do that to me as much as you like, as long as your energy holds out.”

  Donovan laughed. “I’m willing to do whatever is necessary to please my beautiful Noble.”

  She laughed and hugged him tight.

  “I was thinking that if your lifemat
e does not make his appearance by the end of this week, I would like you to change me into a vampire.”

  “What!” Noble sat up in shock.

  “You wouldn’t want me to be a vampire?”

  “No, it’s not that. The change is very dangerous. You have a fifty percent chance of staying dead and not changing at all.”

  “I’m willing to take that risk.”

  “If you really want to have this done, I couldn’t change you. I don’t know how.”

  “Hmm. Then I’ll have to ask David, though I did make him promise never to bite me again.”

  Noblesse grabbed him by the shoulders. “Donovan, you don’t have to do this. I love you whether you’re a man or a vampire. It doesn’t matter.”

  He pushed her gently down into the pillow. “Sha, it matters to me. I want to be with you as long as I can.”

  “What about the lifemate matter? Will you still just give me to him?”

  “Above all things, Noble, I want you to be happy. But I may change my mind and fight for you. A duel to the death. But right now, there is something else I’d rather be doing.”

  His hard shaft poked her leg, missing its target. His dark blue eyes smoldered with heat and his deliciously hot body slowly pressed against hers. He whispered, “You’re sure you don’t hurt anywhere?”

  “I feel wonderful.” She reached up and pulled him down. “How about doing it again?”

  Donovan chuckled, gazing down at her. “This time I will give you the gentle lover my virgin should have had.” He kissed her, coaxing her lips apart. At the same time, his hands lightly touched, barely brushing over her skin. Noble moaned and writhed beneath him. Donovan kissed her for a long time, deep breathless kisses, caressing her fangs until she squirmed. He was in low gear, slow, steady, and scorching hot. Rubbing a thumb over a nipple made Noble arch her back into his other hand. His every touch made hot liquid rush to all her parts. Her fingers and toes tingled. He sucked and kissed her breasts, and she whimpered. His path of kissing and nibbling down her body was an exquisite torment. She opened her legs, and he kissed that spot between them. First, he inserted a finger. She bucked in response. Then his tongue caressed her inside.