I twisted my hand so I could hold his tightly, and he continued. “I got sad, then angry. I’d thought we had something, and you apparently didn’t feel that way.” Don’t cry. For god’s sake, don’t cry. “Then I saw the way you were looking at me, and eventually I realized that you had been trying to move on. You were trying to find a way to be happy without me, not because you didn’t care, because you cared too much. I know you well enough to know you made a rash decision out of sadness and regretted it later. Am I wrong?”
I shook my head.
“I was mad for about ten minutes, and when that first meeting was over, I understood you. I wanted you back so badly, I ached for you. Then you told me that you felt you didn’t deserve forgiveness for what you did, so I forgave you, but I did it to make you happy. I don’t want to forgive you, because there is nothing to forgive. You tried to continue living a life you felt was meaningless without me, and there is no shame in that. And I know you don’t see it that way, so I will forgive you every day for the rest of our existence, gladly.”
He let go of my hand to hold the ring out again. “Clara gave me this at the airport. She said it belonged to her mother, the Countess, and she wanted me to give it to you as a wedding ring, if you were okay with wearing one. Only, vampires don’t get married. You bond, and it’s deeper than marriage. Your bonding is forever, and there are no take-backsies. If I died, you could never be bonded again, not ever. So, I figure it’s only fair if I take the same oath. If you agree to become bonded to me, I will never take another woman, no matter how many years I live, or if you are gone from my side. I love you, Lisbeth Bathory. I want you. Forever.”
He slipped the signet ring on my ring finger and my heart burst into a thousand pieces. I pulled him up from where he knelt and hugged him, wet tux and all.
“Knight,” I whispered with a sob. “I could live a thousand years and never say anything that beautiful. When I first met you, I… thought you tasted like venison.” He laughed out loud at me. “I wish I could say I’d thought you were attractive, but I was blinded by the fact that you were a wolf. Even so, something inside me made me want to be around you, and it wasn’t the fact that your scent masked mine when the Hunters came. It was you. I liked you. Your grumpy attitude, and your stupid jokes. I enjoyed your company. I would’ve never said I thought you were attractive, but your smell was doing all kinds of things to me. I kept thinking you would leave me, and you didn’t. You stayed long after anyone else would’ve left. No one had ever been there for me like that. I needed you, and you wanted me to need you. Love isn’t something vampires do on a whim. We have to really feel as if we will not survive without someone. I felt like that for you long before I realized. Long before either of us realized.” I ran my fingers through his long black hair. “I have known only three men in my life, and you will be the last.”
“Awwww,” he cooed. “And you said you’d never hear a more beautiful than my speech.” We drew apart to stare in each other’s eyes.
“I love you,” I said, and I leaned in to kiss him. “Get that tux off.”
“Yes ma’am!” He removed the jacket and started on the buttons. After ten seconds of them slipping out of his fingers, I stopped his hands and held up a claw. “Aww. This is a nice suit.”
“I’ll buy you a new one,” I promised, and I tore the shirt open with one swipe. We both pulled it the rest of the way off, stopping to slice his cuffs, and then his pants.
“Now you.” My dress hit the floor faster than he’d jumped out of the tub, and he picked me up to bring me to the bed.
Our kisses were fevered and had more passion than we’d ever had before. I needed him now, no waiting, no anticipation. My legs drew him in from around his waist. When he entered me this time, I felt as if I would explode right then and there.
Every push, every movement, made me wonder if one could ever feel so much pleasure and survive. Your touch is my harbor, pulling me in until I can bear it no longer. I need you now, I need you always.
The pleasure burst from me in heavy gasps and Knight’s lips were there to steady me, his own breath ragged and harsh. He kept going this time, and my overly-sensitive body responded slowly, but the sensations built until I was overflowing again and everything became a blur except for my body pulsing and Knight holding me closely.
Everything was laid bare in my head now, as I lay in Knight’s arms completely relaxed. I’d been worrying for nothing. We killed the turned. We destroyed them. We could live in peace now. There was no reason why we couldn’t. Maybe we could find the other turned and give them the sunlight immunity in exchange for their promise to never attack us.
“Stop thinking, or I will punish you,” Knight murmured.
“Make me,” I challenged. I grazed his ear with my teeth and nibbled on it, slowly. He swore under his breath, gripping my hair so tightly he was pulling it. It only made me more determined to make him breathless all night.
Twenty-Five
Two days later was the bonding ceremony of Olivier and Renard. Bestie, and bestie hubby. In the midst of everything, we’d pulled it together, with everyone chipping in to help. The human women from the Lycan families helped us with food, the Lycans brought in chairs and benches for people to sit on, and the Born vampires gathered flowers to decorate everything with. Most of our newly turned had taken their money and left, but those that stayed were interested in learning our ways and were helping out where they could.
This was what the alliance had created. Not an army. A community. We were brothers again with the Lycans. I hoped that part would stay now that we were safe again. Watching the vampires chatting with Lycans, and the Lycan mates laughing over something a vampire said, the Lycan children playing with the newly turned and the sunlight beaming over our head. It was magic.
We all ate the grilled feast and laughed over stories of times long past. Every table was a mix of pale and tan, with blonde hair next to black hair next to red hair. Kitty sat strapped to Balthazar’s chest and strained to look at everything going on. Her purple blue eyes were happy and bright.
After our bellies were full, the ceremony began. Olivier emerged wearing a red silk dress fitted to perfection on her rocking body. She joined her mate in front of us. In our ceremonies, there is no chaplain, and no paper to symbolize the union.
Two goblets sat next to a knife on a table behind the couple. Renard sliced his wrist and filled one goblet, while Olivier did the same. They exchanged goblets, and drank of each other’s blood. With the wounds still open, they pressed their wrists together, their hands tight on each other’s arms, and they stepped around in a circle. Then they speak the words:
I pledge my life to you. I will spend every moment hereafter with you. You are my family, my hearth. And though the seasons change and the world renews, within your embrace is where I will stay. I will never take another, even should there be a day when you are not by my side. Our love will never fade. Eternal and unchanging we shall be. Together.
I sobbed like a baby in my rose pink lace dress. Knight patted me and kissed my hair consolingly. After their vows were made, they came together for a tender kiss and we clapped and hollered for their new happiness.
Our ceremony might’ve been different from humans, but we still liked to dance afterwards so that was one thing the Lycans and their mates could understand. First, the couple danced together to a sweet long song. Then we were off onto the dance floor teaching the younger generations dances long forgotten. Everyone was laughing and having a good time.
The sun started to go down, and our dancing turned to couples in each other’s arms by the light of a bonfire. I danced slowly with my mate, enjoying the feel of his hands and how long his hair was getting. I ran my fingers through it as I studied his face.
“I’m moon free tonight,” he said gladly, totally making it sound like a period. “No wolf to interrupt the party.”
Arthur sat alone after over an hour of dancing. No one had asked him, he didn’t seem like he
wanted to ask anyone. He just stared at the fire like it was a television.
“I’m going to talk to Arthur,” I told Knight. He raised his eyebrows but didn’t comment. “If I haven’t convinced you by now how much I love you, I don’t know what else I can do. Especially,” I trailed a finger up his buttons, “after what I did last night.”
“That’s sexy face. You know I can’t say no to sexy face. Playing dirty with me, woman, and I love every second.” He kissed my forehead. “Go, talk to your boyfriend. I’ll be here, reminding you how attractive I am. I might even dance with your baby daddy. Who knows?”
I squinted at his teasing and left. Arthur looked surprised when I approached him.
“May I?” I asked him, motioning to the seat next to him. He shrugged, so I sat. We didn’t look at each other, and that made it more awkward. “I’m going to ask you-”
“Yes, I’m in love with you.”
Direct as always. I blinked a few times to get my bearings. “Okay. Well. That kind of ruined my speech. I had it all planned out.”
“I don’t need a speech,” he insisted, in a tone I could call grumpy.
“Fair enough. I just had to ask you something.” His silence prompted me to continue. “Are you following me because you love me, or are you following me because you believe I deserve to be followed?”
“I’m surprised you need to ask that.”
“Well, I do. So tell me.”
“The second one, the one where I’m not emotional all the time. If it was the first one, I’d have left a long time ago.”
Good. That was the answer I wanted.
Another woman would’ve told him, ‘I’ll never love you’ but he knew that. That’s why he’d never said anything to me. And we didn’t need to say that to each other. We understood.
“Want to dance?” I offered.
“No,” he answered, and I laughed to myself. “Go back and dance with him.” We watched Knight holding Kitty as Balthazar simpered at her being taken away. “If he betrays you, I’ll kill him.” Other people joked when they said that. Arthur was not joking.
“I’d rather you didn’t.”
“Just go dance and let me enjoy my ex-lover’s bonding ceremony in peace.” Oh yeah, I’d forgotten he used to have a thing Olivier, a thing that they were both so over that they never talked about it and if you didn’t know about it you would’ve never known. He glanced over at me, but I didn’t budge. “You’re not going to leave, are you.”
“Nope. Not without a dance.” I stood and held out my hand to him. He stared at it like it was a grenade.
“I don’t want to touch you.” A man that loved me who didn’t want to touch me. Paradox city up in here.
“Fine. I’m sure I’m being unfair just talking to you like this. I just didn’t want you to be by yourself at a party.”
“I’m always by myself.”
I bent to stare into his icy blue eyes. “No you’re not. I may not love you, but I’m here with you. I’m not saying we’ll go get perms and French manicures. It’s just a dance.” He hesitated, and took my hand. I led him to the dance floor and put my hand around his waist.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m leading. You don’t have to touch me very much, just my shoulder and my hand.” We moved side to side awkwardly, but smoothly.
“I feel stupid,” he complained.
“And you are. Stupid. Stop talking.”
Being that close to him, with our hands together and his hand on my shoulder, I felt… nothing. No warmth. No love. It was only our friendship and bond that drew me to him. The knowledge comforted me and I started smiling.
“Oh god, you’re smiling. You’re a terrifying woman.”
“Aww, you say the sweetest things.” I waved to Knight and he gave me a thumbs up. My eyes moved up to look at the sunset when I saw something. I pulled away from Arthur to look closer. “What is that?” He saw what I was seeing and his earlier statement about not touching me was over. He grabbed me to him to protect me, but it was a useless gesture, as the objects in the sky were not aimed at us.
They were missiles. And they were aimed at the castle.
CHAPTER 25
Two days later was the bonding ceremony of Olivier and Renard. Bestie, and bestie hubby. In the midst of everything, we’d pulled it together, with everyone chipping in to help. The human women from the Lycan families helped us with food, the Lycans brought in chairs and benches for people to sit on, and the Born vampires gathered flowers to decorate everything with. Most of our newly turned had taken their money and left, but those that stayed were interested in learning our ways and were helping out where they could.
This was what the alliance had created. Not an army. A community. We were brothers again with the Lycans. I hoped that part would stay now that we were safe again. Watching the vampires chatting with Lycans, and the Lycan mates laughing over something a vampire said, the Lycan children playing with the newly turned and the sunlight beaming over our head. It was magic.
We all ate the grilled feast and laughed over stories of times long past. Every table was a mix of pale and tan, with blonde hair next to black hair next to red hair. Kitty sat strapped to Balthazar’s chest and strained to look at everything going on. Her purple blue eyes were happy and bright.
After our bellies were full, the ceremony began. Olivier emerged wearing a red silk dress fitted to perfection on her rocking body. She joined her mate in front of us. In our ceremonies, there is no chaplain, and no paper to symbolize the union.
Two goblets sat next to a knife on a table behind the couple. Renard sliced his wrist and filled one goblet, while Olivier did the same. They exchanged goblets, and drank of each other’s blood. With the wounds still open, they pressed their wrists together, their hands tight on each other’s arms, and they stepped around in a circle. Then they speak the words:
I pledge my life to you. I will spend every moment hereafter with you. You are my family, my hearth. And though the seasons change and the world renews, within your embrace is where I will stay. I will never take another, even should there be a day when you are not by my side. Our love will never fade. Eternal and unchanging we shall be. Together.
I sobbed like a baby in my rose pink lace dress. Knight patted me and kissed my hair consolingly. After their vows were made, they came together for a tender kiss and we clapped and hollered for their new happiness.
Our ceremony might’ve been different from humans, but we still liked to dance afterwards so that was one thing the Lycans and their mates could understand. First, the couple danced together to a sweet long song. Then we were off onto the dance floor teaching the younger generations dances long forgotten. Everyone was laughing and having a good time.
The sun started to go down, and our dancing turned to couples in each other’s arms by the light of a bonfire. I danced slowly with my mate, enjoying the feel of his hands and how long his hair was getting. I ran my fingers through it as I studied his face.
“I’m moon free tonight,” he said gladly, totally making it sound like a period. “No wolf to interrupt the party.”
Arthur sat alone after over an hour of dancing. No one had asked him, he didn’t seem like he wanted to ask anyone. He just stared at the fire like it was a television.
“I’m going to talk to Arthur,” I told Knight. He raised his eyebrows but didn’t comment. “If I haven’t convinced you by now how much I love you, I don’t know what else I can do. Especially,” I trailed a finger up his buttons, “after what I did last night.”
“That’s sexy face. You know I can’t say no to sexy face. Playing dirty with me, woman, and I love every second.” He kissed my forehead. “Go, talk to your boyfriend. I’ll be here, reminding you how attractive I am. I might even dance with your baby daddy. Who knows?”
I squinted at his teasing and left. Arthur looked surprised when I approached him.
“May I?” I asked him, motioning to the seat next to him. He shrugged, so I sat.
We didn’t look at each other, and that made it more awkward. “I’m going to ask you-”
“Yes, I’m in love with you.”
Direct as always. I blinked a few times to get my bearings. “Okay. Well. That kind of ruined my speech. I had it all planned out.”
“I don’t need a speech,” he insisted, in a tone I could call grumpy.
“Fair enough. I just had to ask you something.” His silence prompted me to continue. “Are you following me because you love me, or are you following me because you believe I deserve to be followed?”
“I’m surprised you need to ask that.”
“Well, I do. So tell me.”
“The second one, the one where I’m not emotional all the time. If it was the first one, I’d have left a long time ago.”
Good. That was the answer I wanted.
Another woman would’ve told him, ‘I’ll never love you’ but he knew that. That’s why he’d never said anything to me. And we didn’t need to say that to each other. We understood.
“Want to dance?” I offered.
“No,” he answered, and I laughed to myself. “Go back and dance with him.” We watched Knight holding Kitty as Balthazar simpered at her being taken away. “If he betrays you, I’ll kill him.” Other people joked when they said that. Arthur was not joking.
“I’d rather you didn’t.”
“Just go dance and let me enjoy my ex-lover’s bonding ceremony in peace.” Oh yeah, I’d forgotten he used to have a thing Olivier, a thing that they were both so over that they never talked about it and if you didn’t know about it you would’ve never known. He glanced over at me, but I didn’t budge. “You’re not going to leave, are you.”
“Nope. Not without a dance.” I stood and held out my hand to him. He stared at it like it was a grenade.
War of the Chosen Page 17
