by Anna Santos
I know I screamed out, panicked, even if it all happened so fast that my brain didn’t register the events. As my body fell back, I was sure that I was going to break every bone in my body.
I tightly shut my eyes, bracing myself for the impact, only to be caught by strong arms that held me bridal style. Someone had caught me and prevented my death. Maybe Eric had heard my scream and had come to my rescue.
I breathed deeply before opening my eyes.
“So, who are you?” The same ill-tempered voice asked above me.
I felt his breath as I opened my eyes and blinked. Someone had saved me, but it wasn’t Eric. It was the owner of the scary male voice who was treating me like a trespasser.
I blinked again, unsure if I was seeing correctly. It was a tall, well-built man with blue eyes, blond wavy hair, and a white beard. He was older than me, maybe forty, he had some wrinkles around his eyes and on his forehead. He had a really handsome and pleasant face, and I felt myself blushing as he looked at me. His pristine white shirt had a cape style follow up which covered the front and back shoulders. It also had a lace ruffle in front, taking me back to the medieval times. In fact, he looked a lot like a Romeo! An intimidating yet sexy Romeo. Did I mention that he had fascinating lips and smelled nice, too? He did. Who was he? My mind was processing information and details really quickly, and I was out of breath.
“Are you unable to speak?” he asked, losing his patience and putting me on the floor after making sure I was stable on my own. I didn't answer his rude question. He looked really bothered by my presence, and I had no clue why. “Answer me, girl!” he ordered, making me shiver and gasp. Maybe he was right and I was unable to speak because I opened my mouth, but words did not come out. I put a hand on my throat and tried to speak again. This was getting embarrassing.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I’m Jessica.” I offered my hand to greet him in a formal way.
He raised an eyebrow and kept his arms folded across his chest. He was strong, with a wide chest and perfect muscles under his white cotton shirt. I blushed again, aware that I was checking him out.
“What are you doing here? This is a private residence. Explain yourself, now!” He barked his order with an authoritative tone, and I immediately felt my eyes roll thoroughly annoyed. Who did he think he was? Dressing like that and acting as if he were the king of this land. I suddenly choked on my breath gazing at him from head to toe. This could be Anna’s grandpa and Eric’s father. Talk about starting off badly with someone.
“I’m Anna’s friend,” I explained so he wouldn’t think I was trespassing and call his guards. “Eric said I could wait for him here.”
He was still looking at me as though I were an alien. I waited for him to acknowledge my explanation and stop staring at me as if I was an uninvited guest. However, there was something about him that made me completely flustered. I was blushing like an innocent girl in front of a dreamy good-looking guy. That was really unusual for me. Eric was hot and I didn’t react like an infatuated teen around him, so why was I reacting like that to someone whom I assumed was his dad? Damn! Why did he have to have an extremely attractive father? But then again, the good-looking features of his family must have come from somewhere. The dazzling blue eyes and blond hair that Eric had were all his father’s doing. The king had amazing deep blue eyes. But he was not pleased to see me there, nor was he falling for my friendly smile.
“Hmm,” he said and turned his back on me as if I were no longer important.
“Hey!” I called, offended by the lack of manners and consideration. He may have been hot, but he was not polite at all. “You could at least introduce yourself.”
“Are you so dumb that you don’t know who I am?” he asked with his back to me.
His question infuriated me. What the hell? He didn’t just call me dumb, did he?
“Look here, you huge and—whatever vampire.” That got his attention. He turned to face me and grabbed the finger I’d pointed at him in an accusing way, but I didn’t shut up. “You almost got me killed. What idiot screams in a library at a person who is eight feet up on a ladder?”
“The owner of the library. That type of idiot,” he answered nearing my face, and I stepped back. He had just invaded my personal space to intimidate me with his scary big, blue eyes. The jerk! Did he think that his title gave him the right to treat people like that? He was so wrong if he thought I was going to bow down to him and his royal title. He could be a god for all I cared. I was not going to let his bad manners slide so easily. I was going to express my displeasure when he spoke again. “Besides, I saved you from falling on the floor. You should be thanking me.”
“I wouldn’t have fallen in the first place if it hadn’t been for you,” I retorted and crossed my arms.
“You should not be going after a book that is almost as heavy as you.”
“I wanted to look at it.”
“Next time, ask for help,” he remarked as if annoyed by my careless attitude. I could feel my glare intensify. I wasn’t a helpless human girl. I could take care of myself. My magical powers were still weak but I could handle a ladder.
“I was going to do that when you scared me to death!” I wanted to growl at him like a wild beast, as though I was a wolf. But, clearly, I was not, so I just had to settle for my annoyed face and furious glare.
He sighed deeply and placed a hand on his forehead as if I was giving him a migraine.
“Why were you snooping around the bookcases anyway? Don’t you know these books are too old to be handled without gloves?”
“Eric gave me permission to be here, but if you don’t want me here, then I’ll just go and leave you alone,” I informed him. I marched my way to the exit only to be stopped by his hand around my arm. He didn’t clasp hard but it made me cringe and moan in pain.
“What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” The king turned me around to face him as he put his hands on my shoulders.
I blinked several times before being able to look at his face. “Old wound, odd…” I shut up before I finished that sentence. I wasn’t going to tell him that I felt an inexplicable jolt of energy numbing my arm. Everything was already awkward enough between the two of us.
“Where is Eric?” He questioned with a serious face.
“He went to get me something to eat.” I stepped back and brushed his hands off of me. “I guess no one told you that I was coming here today,” I mumbled while I straightened my shirt.
“How long have you known my son?” He crossed his arms over his chest.
I frowned and gaze up at him. “Do you even know who I am?”
“Yes, you’re his mate,” he said matter-of-factly.
“What?” I asked, uncertain if I should laugh or shake my head in disbelief. “Eric is not my mate. I’m Jessica, Anna’s best friend! Didn’t she talk about me?”
Despite my efforts, the king didn’t seem to be paying attention to what I was saying.
“You smell like…He’s not?” he asked, his eyes widening and his eyebrows arching.
He quickly lost his arrogant expression replacing it with a puzzled stare as if my statement had caught him off guard. Why the hell would he think I was Eric’s mate in the first place?
“Of course I’m not. And I smell like what? Are you telling me that I smell bad?”
“No,” he whispered and uncrossed his arms. He had an odd look on his face, and I felt analyzed because he was obviously looking me up and down.
I stepped back, intimidated.
“Do I have something on my face?” I stammered.
“I think I... might be experiencing some kind of... weird symptom,” he whispered. I was even more confused by his words. “Maybe I just slept too long this time.”
“Do you want me to call someone to help you?” I asked, concerned by his words. Anna said that her grandfather was old and was getting weak. He didn’t look that old or weak. He looked well-preserved. In fact, he looked nothing like I had expected. “Do you need h
elp to sit down?”
“No, I just want to be left alone,” he grumbled, waving his hand in dismissal.
“Are you sure you don’t need my help?”
The king turned his back on me and stared at the painting on the wall. “Just leave already! If I need anything I’ll call the servants.”
His new barked orders made me clench my teeth. I needed to come to terms with the fact that he was simply rude, and I shouldn’t be there trying to please him. So I swallowed my pride. “As you wish.”
I left, ignoring him. I was hungry, I was tired, and I didn’t want to deal with an anti-social vampire.
My guess is that Eric’s nice manners came from his mother. His dad was not the least bit polite. He’d looked at me as if I was some sort of an alien. I felt unwelcome. I was strongly considering not setting foot inside that palace again, especially not the library which seemed to be the room he preferred. I had clearly trespassed and was unwelcome there.
“Where are you going?” Eric asked I met him climbing the stairs when I had reached the end of the long corridor.
“You father is in the library. I don’t think he liked me being in there.”
“Why do you say that?” he asked, frowning. He carried a tray of food that immediately caught my attention.
“A wild hunch,” I replied, not wanting to go into details. “I’m starving. Let me eat and then you can take me home.”
“Okay.” I followed him to the kitchen where we talked a bit more as I ate. Eric could teach his father a thing or two about manners.
Chapter Six—The King
ERIC
The moon was high in the dark sky when Eric exited to the front gardens. He had looked for his father all over the palace, finally finding him outside in the garden with his hands clasped behind his back, staring at the empty fountain that once poured fresh water.
The garden did not appear to be cared for, it didn’t have its former beauty. It was the exact replica of Isobel’s garden back in the Netherlands, the marble, rocks, and the statues had come along with the palace. The plants and the bushes had all been planted new. These days, however, there was no one to care for it with love, as his mother used to do. It had been all but abandoned and forgotten except for an occasional weeding or pruning. His father rarely went out there.
“Dad,” Eric called, trying to get his father to acknowledge that he was there. He had expected to find him in the library so they could talk about the recent events. It took him by surprise when he found him there, staring at nothing in particular.
“Yes?” he asked, turning to face Eric as the moon peeked behind him.
It saddened Eric to see the look of loneliness on his father’s face. He seemed to appear a bit older than he had previously. Eric wondered if he had given up completely on the thought of living.
“We need to talk.”
“About what? Your new friend?”
“Yes. You were impolite to her in the library.”
“I was not expecting to find someone there. That is all. And I wasn’t impolite. I was just upset, because she shouldn’t have been touching that book.”
“What book?” Eric asked.
“Never mind. I overreacted,” he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Why did you tell her that you thought I was her mate? I should know if Jessie were my mate or not. Shouldn’t I? Jessie is gorgeous and fun to talk to, but she is not my mate.”
“Jessie? The girl’s name is Jessie?”
“Yes, her name is Jessica. Jessie for short. So, why did you believe she was my mate?”
“She smelled familiar,” the king said. “I heard the maids say you had brought a beautiful girl home and looked really happy when you were talking with her. They were all excited by that, so I assumed that you had found your mate.”
“Hmm,” was all Eric said then stood quietly for a while lost in his own thoughts.
“I didn’t mean to be rude to her,” his father added. “She was touching Isobel’s book.”
“She will need that book. To help Kevin. She came here to help him. To find out what the symbol on his forearm means. You will have to share the library with her. And please, try to be nice. Jessica is part of our community now.”
The king narrowed his eyes at his son. “What do you mean?”
“She is Anna’s friend and a part of her crew. And she’s not just any girl, she’s a powerful witch.”
“A witch?” His dad asked even if apparently he was talking to himself. “There’s something different about her.”
Eric spoke again, hoping to grab his dad’s attention, “I need to know if you are going to act better the next time you meet. She’s Anna’s best friend, she’s in need of help and I may have promised her that we would protect her.”
“Protect her from what?” the king asked, taking his hands from behind his back and approaching Eric, who stepped back, surprised by his father’s sudden hard stare.
“Francesco tried to kill her. He sent his assassins to attack her. They trespassed on our land, and now we have a diplomatic problem to solve.”
“What did the witch do?”
“She may have inadvertently...tried to kill him.”
His father’s eyes widened in surprise. His voice was gruff when he spoke. “Why?”
“She suspects that he was the one who killed her coven. She is one of the last survivors of the Blue Moon Circle. She discovered that Francesco had her family’s grimoire with him and that some of her cousins had been taken and forced to serve as followers in the Black Dahlia Coven.”
“He was always obsessed with black magic and power. I wouldn't be surprised if he did actually do all that the witch accuses him of. However, his troops should not have trespassed on our lands. I don’t take trespassing lightly,” the king said angrily.
“I’ve already taken care of that. I just need to know if Jessica can stay here.”
“Here, where exactly?”
“Our lands, under our protection.”
Arching an eyebrow, the king questioned, “Haven’t you already promised her that?”
“Yes, I did.” Eric looked at the ground a bit apologetic that he hadn’t consulted his father first.
“You like her. Do you want her to be your mistress?” the king asked, and Eric looked up at him immediately, bothered by his words.
“Dad, this is not an infatuation. I like Jessie, but we are just recent friends. Besides, Anna made it clear that she would cut my head off if I hurt Jessica’s heart. And I’m...not attracted to her in that way.” He scratched his head and sighed with a happy smile. “She is strangely familiar. Actually, she reminds me of June. Jessica is always smiling and she speaks her mind.”
“I haven’t seen your sister June smile for a long time now,” the king said with sadness in his voice. “She has also forgotten about her old dad.” He sighed wistfully.
“We talk on the phone every month. She is busy with Samuel. She says that he is quite the handful.”
“Still, she could visit us more often. How old is he now?”
“Fourteen, I think…Dad, may Jessie use the library without you being mad?”
“What does she need the library for?”
“Research about Kevin’s tattoo and she’s also looking for dictionaries for the Brittonic languages. She’ll be careful and she won’t destroy anything precious. She’s a witch, she knows how precious all the ancient books we have are.”
“Tell the witch that she may use it during the day. However, when the night falls, I want her gone. I want my privacy.”
Eric nodded instantly.
The king resumed his speech, “I don’t understand all the commotion about Kevin’s tattoo. It doesn’t seem to be harming him. So why not just wait and see? He is immortal, sooner or later he will find out what the meaning of the tattoo is. Moreover, isn’t it a common belief that it’s a witch’s emblem?”
“That is the best case scenario, yes.”
“He is
my grandson and I want him to be happy. If the witch believes she can decipher the enigma of his tattoo, then she will be welcome here. She can use the library and my books as long as she treats them with the proper care.”
“Speak of the devil,” Eric said as he heard a car enter the far-off gates and speed toward the main building of the palace. “He’s just arrived from Sebastien’s lands. He has been spending all of his time with Sebastien’s pack.”
“Let him have his fun. At least one of us is still experiencing the enjoyments of life,” the king whispered and turned toward the west wing of the palace.
Eric followed close behind as the car parked and a happy Kevin exited with a female passenger.
“He brought another girl,” Eric whispered and sighed.
“I used to be like that before I found your mother,” the king shared.
The red-haired girl stared up at the palace, amazed, her voice echoing in the night. “You weren’t kidding when you said you lived in a palace. This is unbelievable, can I have a tour?”
“Yes, later, but first let’s tour my bedroom,” Kevin teased, putting an arm around her shoulders as she giggled and followed him inside.
“Oh,” Eric remembered as he watched Kevin and the girl enter the palace ahead of his father. “I’ve invited Jessica to stay here with us.”
“What?” the king growled, glaring back at his son in complete anger.
Eric was surprised by his reaction. “She is in danger. Anna and Shane will come here, too. I’m afraid Francesco will send more of his assassins even if he vowed not to. Plus, Shane’s house is not exactly in a safe place, they’re too far from the rest of the town.”
“Are you sure you don’t just want the girl closer to your bedroom?” the king asked with narrowed eyes.
Eric crossed his arms, annoyed. “I don’t need to bring mistresses to our home to sleep with them. And I’ve already told you, Jessica and I are just friends.”
“I’m not that thrilled to have...her living here.”
“Why?” Eric grew even more confused by his father's reaction.
