by T. S. Ryder
"Looking for. To do what?"
"To bear me a child."
Maribel gasped. She sprang to her feet and backed away from the alluring vampire king. "You want to get me pregnant?"
"Yes."
"And… and then what?"
Sheridan's smile seemed more business-like now than it had been a few moments ago. "That depends. I will, of course, give you a higher compensation than if it was just drinking your blood and sex. After the child is born, I would prefer for you to continue living in the palace, and be his or her mother. But you will be free to go wherever you wish, and still receive a monthly stipend. I will raise the child, however, and you will not be permitted custody if you leave the vampire walls."
Maribel wasn't quite sure how to take what he was saying. He was so straightforward about it, as though there weren't a million emotions that could mess this up. She sat back down, trying to wrap her head around it. Being asked to have his baby was a far cry from what she had signed up for.
"Why do you want a child?"
"I have wanted to be a father for as long as I can remember. Once I became a vampire I didn't think it was possible, but recent technological developments have convinced me it is." Sheridan tilted his head, studying her for a moment. "I can see that this is overwhelming for you. I will give you time to consider the offer. I do wish you to know that I won't feed on you for several months, as there will need to be fertility treatments for you to become pregnant. I am told that during those treatments it would be best to refrain from sexual activity as well."
The king scowled at that, and Maribel couldn't help but echo the sentiment. She had always thought she would be married before she gave up her virginity, but when she decided to come to the vampire city, she had given up on that line of thinking. And now that she was here with the vampire king, she was all too willing to follow him to bed right now if that was what he wanted.
Heck, that was what she wanted.
A frown crossed her face. Was saving herself for marriage really something she had to give up on, though? She looked the vampire king in the eye and took a deep breath.
"I don't need time to think. But if I'm going to have your baby, you have to give me something I want first."
"What is it?"
Maribel held the vampire king's gaze steadily as her thoughts danced around in her head. She couldn’t help but wonder if this plan was completely insane, but she pushed her doubts aside. "Marry me."
Sheridan's brows rose, but he didn't hesitate before he nodded. "Tomorrow?"
"Yes. I can do that."
"Good." The king stood. "I will go arrange it. Make yourself comfortable… you never told me your name."
"Oh!" Maribel shook her head. "Maribel. Maribel Arnaz."
Sheridan took her hand and pressed it to his lips. "Pleased to meet you, Maribel Arnaz. I can't wait to get to know you better."
Chapter Two – Sheridan
Sheridan absently ran his thumb over Maribel's knuckles, breathing in her heady scent as they waited. Her bones felt so breakable. He wasn't used to being delayed in what he wanted, but these things couldn't be rushed. The fertility doctors he had hired to come artificially inseminate Maribel had to take tests and wait for results before they decided whether she was ready for the procedure or not.
It wasn't the only way for her to become pregnant with his child, but it was certainly the quickest, more reliable way. And of course, it was less risky than if they tried to create a baby the normal way.
"So. This is nice." Maribel looked around the small room. It was decorated in soothing neutral colors, nothing that might distress a sick individual. Magazines, books and a TV were all available for entertainment.
"Thank you. I try to keep up with medical advancements," Sheridan said.
Maribel nodded, her honey-brown eyes widening slightly. Her beautiful cherry-red lips beckoned him for a kiss, but he was determined not to give into temptation.
It was torture to be in the same room as this beautiful woman with her supple golden-olive skin, long, luscious black hair, and body made for love. But he had to get used to being close to her without being able to touch her, let alone worship her body or feed on her. It would be too easy to lose control.
"May I ask you a question?" Maribel's gaze never left his face.
He squeezed her hand gently. "Of course. We're married, so you can ask me anything."
Married. As soon as she said that was what she wanted, he had known he would give it to her. Since then his mind had been reeling–was that really the wisest choice? He hadn't even taken the time to check how his subjects would react. Well, if any of them objected they would have to deal with it. He was the king.
But still. It had been an impulsive decision.
After Sofia left him two hundred years ago, he never thought he would marry again. Certainly not somebody he just met. For all he knew, she could be after the divorce settlement that she'd get should they separate.
But no matter. He had had the foresight to have a prenuptial drawn in the twenty-four hours before their wedding. He would get the child if she left him. That's all he cared about. He wanted a child, and if he had to marry someone he didn't know to get it… well, it couldn't be any more loveless than his marriage to Sofia had been.
"When are you going to drink from me?"
"Drinking from you will change your body's chemistry and hormone production," he said, not looking at her. "It may discourage you becoming pregnant."
"Oh."
It wasn't likely to discourage pregnancy, but it might and so it wasn't technically a lie.
"And when will we… consummate our marriage?"
"If I slept with you, I would want to drink from you. We will have to give it some time and slowly get closer." For some reason, he had the urge to apologize to her for making her wait. "Why did you decide to come be a blood donor?"
Maribel turned her face away. He could feel her pulse increase in her fingers and frowned. Why would a simple question put her in such a state?
"I don't want to answer that right now. You'll have to wait until we're closer."
The echoing of his words made him frown. "Why is that? Are you holding out your story until I sleep with you?"
"No. I'm not telling you my story until I know whether I want you to know. How did you become a vampire?" She gave him a pointed look.
Sheridan shrugged. "I suppose I see your point."
There was a rapid knock on the door before it opened. Sheridan's frown increased when he saw his PA, a sweet little vampire named Billie. Her face was pinched, and there was clear anger in the way she held her shoulders. That couldn't be good.
"Sir, Romanoff is demanding an audience."
Romanoff. He was an old general who still thought humans mobbed vampires with torches and pitchforks.
Sheridan repressed a sigh. If he didn't go see Romanoff, the vampire would likely burst in here and frighten the human with his outdated opinions. And then the king would have to imprison him, which would only infuriate the old general even more. No, best to try to placate him.
He squeezed his wife's hand. "I'll be right back."
Billie led him out of the hospital wing, to the large parlor where he often had tea with human government officials. Romanoff, taller than most vampires with the build of a Viking warrior, paced the expensive Persian carpet.
"What is it?" Sheridan snapped at the other vampire.
"My lord." Romanoff bowed at his waist. "It's the human that you have… married."
"My wife, you mean? Your queen?" Sheridan kept his voice neutral.
"No human is my queen!" Romanoff's eyes blazed. His hands clenched at his sides. "You insult me by marrying one of them. How many vampire lives have been lost to the senseless hatred that humans harbor in their hearts? Using one for a child I can perhaps understand, but marrying one? Naming her our queen? You insult us all!"
Sheridan stepped towards Romanoff, not blinking. "I am your king and it is not your
place to challenge my decisions."
Romanoff opened his mouth, but Sheridan held up his hand. The other vampire fell silent at once.
The general had been against bringing humans into the city walls to feed the inhabitants of the palace, insisting that they should instead hunt like they had in the years before the advent of guns and bombs. And whenever low-born vampires tried to scale the walls and mingle with humans–which would no doubt end in human death and renew vampire persecution–he had the audacity to claim that it was madness driven by the dead blood that Sheridan bought for his subjects.
As if Sheridan hadn't been drinking that same dead blood.
The king was getting tired of it. It was his job to keep his people safe, and vampires like Romanoff could get them all destroyed with their actions.
"Maribel is mine. She belongs to me. No one, not you nor anyone else, will challenge my right to marry her. Do you understand?"
A muscle twitched in Romanoff's jaw.
"I asked you a question."
"Yes, my lord."
"Good. Now leave."
The vampire bowed and swept out of the room.
Sheridan glared at him as he went. "He'll continue to cause problems, won't he?"
"Probably," Billie agreed. "And he's not the only one. There is plenty of outrage in the lower ranks about their king marrying a human. Especially when the marriage happened so quickly."
"Is that a note of reproach I hear in your voice, Billie?"
"My lord, I would never reproach my king," Billie said, her voice just light enough to be teasing. "But as your personal assistant, I would have thought that I would be made aware of such things more than twenty-four hours in advance."
"And if I had known earlier, I would have told you. I need to get back to my wife now."
Billie hurried after him. "There is something else."
Sheridan sighed. There always was. "Vampire or human?"
"Human. The group of protesters at our gates is growing. They are angry that we won't let their human news crews come into the palace, and they are calling for their government to intervene in, I quote, 'the vampire prostitution of human women'. There are even a few that are claiming we have underage girls within the walls and are demanding that the identities of all our donors be released."
"And if their identities were released, our donors would never be given a moment's peace when they return to the human side of the walls. It's funny how these humans claim they want to protect our donors when the confidentiality was put in place to protect the donors from other humans after leaving."
Billie shrugged. "They also seem overly concerned with the women who come to us, but think nothing of the men."
Sheridan grunted. He tapped his foot for a moment, then shook his head. "Release a statement refuting those claims, along with a copy of the agreement that the donors sign. Ask a few of the women if they'd be willing to join a few social media sites to document their lives here. Instagram, Twitter, etc. Reinforce the privacy policies we have."
His PA jotted down notes on her smartphone and nodded. "That should help."
"Anything else?"
"No.
Sheridan turned on his heel and headed back towards the hospital wing. He hoped he wasn't too late to hold Maribel's hand while the procedure was carried out.
Chapter Three – Maribel
Maribel threw the latest pregnancy test away, resisting the urge to kick the garbage bin. Not pregnant. Again.
She didn't know why she was so disappointed. Sheridan had told her he'd be able to smell it when she was pregnant, far earlier than when the pregnancy tests would be able to indicate that she was. He had told her when she sent for the tests that she wasn't pregnant, but she wanted to be sure, hoping he was wrong.
Shaking her head, Maribel washed her hands and stepped back into the common room of the chambers she shared with Sheridan. He was at the window, phone to his ear. Just how busy the vampire king was surprised her the most of everything in the vampire city. It seemed like they rarely had a moment to themselves that wasn't interrupted by one minor emergency or another.
She sat down at the chess game that they had been in the middle of playing when he had gotten the call. His voice was low and he spoke rapidly, so she couldn’t hear what he was saying. She admired the cut of his white dress while she waited. He really was very good looking, her husband.
And she was his wife. Hopefully, she would get pregnant soon. She was starting to go crazy with desire for him.
"Whose turn is it?" Maribel asked after Sheridan hung up his phone.
"Yours."
She moved a pawn, not really thinking about the game. "I'm sorry."
Sheridan's brow furrowed. "Sorry? For what?"
"I know that you're frustrated that I'm not pregnant yet."
Subtle changes had been happening over the past few weeks since she moved into the palace. Rosewater was spritzed everywhere, she was given raspberry tea to drink. Both were supposed to help a woman conceive. She was certain there were other folk remedies at play that she wasn't aware of.
"It'll take time," Sheridan said, moving a rook. "We have to be patient, Maribel. I'm sorry if I've been putting undue pressure on you."
"You haven’t, not really. I have never lived as well as the past few weeks."
It was a little unnerving, if she was honest with herself, to have so many servants at her beck and call. Everything she wanted was at her fingertips. Sheridan had already paid off all her debts and hadn't even asked how she incurred them. And she hadn’t told him.
"I'm glad." Sheridan frowned, looking at the chessboard. His phone dinged and he looked at it. His frown deepened. "I have to go, Maribel. The protestors outside the wall have attempted to accost the guards and I have to deal with it."
"Of course." Maribel pushed her chair away from the table. "We can finish this game another time. I'm going to lose, anyway."
Sheridan smiled and quickly kissed her cheek before he left. Her skin tingled where he had kissed her. She had to repress the urge to grab him and drag him to one of their rooms.
He had made it very clear that he wasn't going to drink from her or sleep with her until she was pregnant. Maribel wasn't sure how it would discourage pregnancy, but if a vampire was willing to forgo sex and blood, then it had to be important.
With a sigh, she grabbed a book and curled up on the couch. There was a human-only luncheon happening in the courtyard that day, but Maribel found she wanted to be alone most of the time. The other humans couldn’t stop openly asking her whether or not she was pregnant yet, which was getting on her nerves, bad.
Some time later she tossed the book aside, unable to immerse herself in it, and decided to go swimming instead. There was a large lap pool on the ground level, but Maribel preferred the smaller, cozier pool on the fifth floor. It was made from marble, and built up off the floor, with two statues of women pouring water at either end. It was just big enough to paddle around in and also usually empty.
Maribel had never felt comfortable wearing a swimsuit in public. Add to it the insanely gorgeous vampire women that always seemed to be in skimpy bikinis, and she suffered some serious body-image issues at the ground-level pool.
Soon she was relaxing in the waist-deep water of the small pool, idly paddling from one end to the other. The water smelled slightly of cucumber.
Everything about the vampire world was rich and lush. When Sheridan took her out around the vampire town, she hadn't seen one building in need of repair. Vampires, it seemed, took care of each other better than humans did. And they all seemed to be quite happy to see her, although Sheridan had told her there were some who weren't happy that he married a human.
"Hello."
Maribel jumped at the sound of the voice. She looked up to see a vampire peering over the lip of the pool, smiling down at her. He was as gorgeous as any other vampire she had seen, although not as good looking as Sheridan. Unlike any of the others she had seen, he was blond, althoug
h his eyes were black like the rest of them.
"Hello," Maribel replied uncertainly. She hadn't met this vampire before, and she usually didn't see anybody in the pool unless Sheridan was with her.
"Mind if I join you?"
"Um…" She didn't like the way he was looking at her. Even though her one-piece swimsuit was as modest as they come, the gleam in his eye as he stared at her made her feel like she might as well be naked. "Actually, I was just leaving."
She climbed out at the other side of the pool, but the vampire had circled it and was standing at the stairs with her towel outstretched before she made it to the top. His grin increased.
"I don't think we've met," she said, her heart starting to pound. "I'm—"
"I know who you are. The human the king married. But he hasn't marked you yet."
Maribel quickly made it to the floor, putting some distance between her and the vampire. "Marked me?"
"I don't see any scars from where he's drunken from you, or smell him on you." The vampire smiled as her eyes widened with horror.
"Don't look at me like that. He hasn't claimed you, which means you're free to give to whoever you want. And you smell so good. I don't usually go for your blood type, but you've got a special fragrance… What harm can one taste do?"
The roar from the other end of the room was the only warning they got that Sheridan had just entered the room.
Before Maribel could even process it, her king was there, standing between her and the other vampire. The muscles of his back strained as he picked up the blond by his throat. He threw the other vampire across the room. The wall cracked from the impact.
"She is mine!"
Sheridan wrapped his arms around Maribel's waist. She yelped as he picked her up, and then they were off. Her arms tightened around his neck, her heart hammering as the corridors rushed by. They were moving so quickly that it made her sick. When Sheridan finally put her down, she swayed on the spot and had to cling to him to keep herself upright.
"Did he touch you?" Sheridan's hands cupped her face. "Did he bite you?"
Maribel's stomach stopped spinning and she stepped away, glaring at the vampire king. "What was that all about? He was being a creep, yeah, but you didn't have to throw him across the room and then carry me away like I was a damsel in distress and you were my white knight!"
