Choosing Eternity

by Bridget Essex

  And I would love her forever.

  And as she gazed down at me, her own bright blue eyes soft and profoundly gentle, I felt that love reflected back at me.

  And I knew that, as I thought, she thought, too. As I felt, she felt, too.

  She would love me as I loved her.

  For always.

  “The rings?” asked Bran, and Kane reached up into the breast pocket of her suit jacket and held out a little cloth bag to Bran. Bran took the bag and upended its contents into her palm.

  The two golden rings sparkled there in the soft light, the golden knots entwining together as she held them up.

  “These rings represent the covenant you make here and now. They are a physical reflection of your love and your commitment to one another. These Celtic knots are bound together, entwining forever, to symbolize love eternal. So I ask you, Kane—do you take Rose for always?”

  “Yes,” murmured Kane.

  “Will you love her through the darkness and the light?”

  “Yes.”

  “Will you be her sanctuary and her protector, her champion and her beloved, from now until the end of eternity?”

  “Yes. Always,” said Kane, squeezing my hands.

  “Then place this ring upon her finger, sealing your promise,” said Bran, handing the smaller of the two rings to Kane. Kane took it, and with sure fingers, slipped it on, nestling it home against my skin as I sighed happily, gazing down at the gold glinting in the light, at her fingers, resting on mine.

  I looked back up into her face, searched it as Bran turned to me now.

  “May I…may I say my vows?” I whispered to her. Bran’s eyes widened, and she nodded happily, gesturing to me.

  I lifted my chin as I gazed at Kane. “I am choosing my destiny today,” I whispered to her. “You, Kane. You are that destiny.” My voice shook as I said these words, the raw emotion that surged through me making my voice tremble, but I did not falter—I kept speaking: “I will love you for always, I will cherish you in the dark times and in the light. I will be your sanctuary. I will protect you. I will be your champion and beloved until the end of time. I will love you, always, and that is my eternal vow.”

  A single tear slid down Kane’s pale cheek as Bran handed me the other ring. “Place this ring upon her finger,” said Bran gently, kindly, “sealing your promise.”

  I slid the ring home, and as Bran said, “before your family, old and new, you may now kiss each other as wife and wife,” Kane wrapped her arms about me, I wrapped my own about her, and we embraced one another tightly, wholeheartedly.

  Her mouth found my own, and her lips trembled against me as she drank of me with a tender sweetness that I’d never really experienced in any of my other kisses with her.

  This one, we both knew, was different.

  This was the kiss we thought we’d never have. This was the moment we thought we’d never experience.

  This was what had been stolen from us.

  And, in that profound, perfect moment…we took it back.

  We were married, something that was over a century in the making. And as Kane kissed me, her mouth growing bolder, stronger as the realization of what we’d just accomplished together moved through her, I, too, tilted my chin up, wrapping my arms tighter, bringing her down to me so that we would merge utterly.

  And so we did.

  -- Part Three: Eternal Choice --

  “Congratulations, Rose, Kane.”

  I took Bran’s hand in my own, and then drew the taller woman into a tight embrace, Kane looking and smiling warmly, pure happiness radiating off of her like moonlight.

  All of the Sullivans had left right after the ceremony, after they’d congratulated each of us, every one of them smiling and warm…even the usually grumpy Jane. Not Tommie, though—she faded away into the corridor and was gone quickly, without a formal goodbye. But she’d given me a blessing, of a kind…and that was enough.

  “Thank you, Bran,” I told her, hugging her tightly. I sighed out and murmured into her ear: “thank you for everything.”

  “It was my absolute pleasure, truly. You’re my sister now—and don’t you forget it,” said Bran, holding me out at arm’s length before embracing me one last time for good measure, her smile warm and bright.

  “Bran, how much time do we have?” asked Kane then, glancing out of the open French doors and toward the rolling ocean. The sun had set completely by this point, and the sky had lost almost all its color, the deepest hues of blue turning slowly into blackness, the stars a riot of splendor across the sky.

  “Not much, I’m afraid,” said Bran, her mouth downturning. She adjusted the bow tie at her neck with a sigh. “I can stall, of course, And the party won’t get truly started until the hostess arrives, so I wouldn’t worry too much... You have, perhaps, two hours until the vampire ball.”

  “Kane lifted her eyes heavenward and sighed. “That’s…not much. But all right. Thank you. We’ll be down as quickly as we can.”

  “But not too quickly, yeah?” said Bran stepping forward and taking Kane’s arm in her hand and giving her a quick wink. They each gripped the other’s forearm in an affectionate gesture, their shoulders bumping together. “Make sure it’s done,” Bran murmured, brow furrowed. “Make sure she’s…no longer human.”

  Gwen stood next to Bran and was nervously folding and unfolding her hands in front of her. She’d stayed back to say goodbye last. Soon, Bran had folded herself out of the room, and that’s when Gwen came forward at last, grasping my shoulders before drawing me in for such a tight hug that I actually squeaked a little, my dress’s front skirt collapsing since there was so little space between us.

  “This is the last time I’m going to hug you as a human,” murmured Gwen into my ear and sighed. “That’s…just so, so, so, so weird.”

  “I know,” I told her, holding her out at arm’s length again. Tears pricked the corners of my eyes as I gazed at my best friend. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you, Gwen—” I began, but—tearily—she waved away whatever I’d been about to say.

  “We’ve always been there for each other, yeah? It’s certainly not going to stop now, just because your teeth are going to become a little pointier.” She smiled at me through the tears threatening to spill. She turned, letting me go, and then Gwen held her arms open to Kane. “Welcome to the family,” said Gwen, and then Gwen actually embraced her.

  For her part, Kane was definitely surprised at Gwen’s overture of affection. Kane was—apart from me—not at all the hugging sort. But she relaxed a little, into the embrace, and even hugged back, though it was adorably awkward as she patted Gwen on the shoulder in the universal gesture of “we’re done here.” She even gave Gwen a small smile in return as they backed away from each other.

  “Gwen,” said Kane then, clearing her throat, “I’m sorry to do this, but I must ask you something…personal.”

  Gwen’s eyes grew wider, and she glanced at me uncertainly. “Sure?” she managed.

  Kane stood a little straighter, a look of apology gracing her features. “May I bring Rose to your room…after? But before the dance? She…if you’re comfortable with it…she will need to feed.”

  We both stared at her, our mouths open.

  A very long, very silent, very uncomfortable moment passed.

  “Say what?” croaked Gwen then.

  “Kane,” I murmured, immediately shaking my head. “Wait a second. Bran said that vampires do not need blood—”

  “We don’t truly need blood, ever,” said Kane, raising a brow. “Except for one time…when we’re first ‘reborn’ as vampires. If we don’t get blood within a small timeframe after changing, we will grow too weak, and…die.” She turned to gaze at Gwen, her bright blue eyes piercing, leaning back into the soles of her shoes. “I’m truly sorry to ask, Gwen—it’s just that you’re really the only human who knows what we are, and—”

  “Don’t even worry about it,” said Gwen, lifting a hand and turning to me, her
face incredibly pale but also set in her most stubborn of expressions. “That’s…fine. Sure. Just…tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.”

  “Oh, Gwen, I couldn’t—” I began, but she snorted a little, uncomfortably shrugging.

  “Hey, what’s a little blood guzzling between friends?” she quipped. Then blew air out of her mouth, her cheeks puffing up, her eyes wide. “Any-who, I’m just gonna…get out of here, leave you two lovebirds to…do whatever it is you need to do to make a baby vampire!” She saluted me, and then gave me a warm smile before opening the door to Bran’s living quarters.

  She shut it behind her, and then we were alone, Kane and I.

  Bran had thought it best for us to simply remain in her quarters until I was transformed. There really was no guarantee of safety if I left here without becoming one of them…so Kane and I had agreed to it.

  And it made a sort of poetic sense…these used to be my rooms, after all.

  So Kane and I gazed at each other now, across the little space between us. And we drew together, because that is what we always must do. We were, Kane and I, always heading toward one another.

  She squeezed my hands gently, searched my face. “I’m sorry—perhaps I should have told you about needing the blood sooner—”

  “I mean, I don’t know if that would have made any difference. You’re right, Gwen knows about you…I just feel wretched about it,” I sighed, shaking my head.

  “Gwen is a good friend. You’ll make it up to her.”

  I raised a brow and smiled a little. “Really? I don’t think a girls’ night out is going to equate to the fact that she’s literally giving me her blood.”

  Kane chuckled at that, wrapping her arms about my waist. “We’ll think of something.”

  I turned my head and leaned against her, pillowing my ear over her heart. I closed my eyes, twining my arms about her neck, and I remained there for a long moment, simply listening to the lovely, slow music of her heartbeat.

  “Well…” Kane rumbled above me. My eyes squeezed a little tighter and I sighed before glancing up at her.

  “I know,” I murmured. “…No time like the present.”

  We gazed at one another for a very long moment. I think we both knew that this moment was precious. It was one of the very last that I would stand before her as human. It was the first few moments of our marriage…

  Everything felt heavy, weighty…important.

  Kane sighed, then fixed me with a particularly devastating smile. “Shall we move things to the bedroom?” she inquired, voice low.

  I cocked my head. “What?” I couldn’t help but return her smile. “We have to get to the dance, and we don’t have time for—”

  “Well, we do have time. See…” Kane pulled me toward her and tilted my chin up with a cool fingertip, leaning down and brushing her beautiful, full lips against the throbbing vein in my throat. I shuddered against her, against the intensity of that sweet, chaste kiss. “It’s much better to be deeply aroused when the process begins,” she rumbled against my skin. “It…‘takes’ better if you’re as aroused as possible.”

  “So, the tropes of vampires being all sexy…you’re telling me that’s actually based on fact?” I managed, laughing a little, even as I gasped as her teeth found the skin of my neck, gently—oh, so gently—raking over it.

  “Yes,” she growled against me.

  “Okay, well…then…” I swallowed and gasped again as her fingertips brushed over the bare skin of my chest, above the pretty black lace of my gown. “Let’s go.”

  I’d gotten prepared for our wedding in the bedroom such a short time ago…but it seemed that everything had changed as Kane flicked on the low lights in the room, as she led me inside and shut the door behind us.

  We moved slowly, irrevocably toward one another. Kane prowled around to my back and began to undo the millions of tiny black buttons down the spine of my dress.

  I stood there, head bent forward, and I felt her cool fingers trace a curve along my bare shoulder blades, lingering against me. I exhaled, closed my eyes, as I felt her forefinger dip just beneath the collar of the dress, finding my skin there. I could feel her gaze on me, could feel the weight of it, and desire was already unfurling in my belly as she leaned forward, bent her head, and pressed a kiss to my shoulder. Her mouth opened against me, and I gasped out as her tongue laved me there, her fangs gently—oh, so gently—caressing over my skin and making me shudder against her.

  The buttons were vanquished and Kane pulled the sleeves of the dress down my arms, the bodice of that dress falling away from my front now. The gown pooled into a very large cupcake of red at my feet and Kane took my hand, helped me step out of it. She spun me around, slowly, in front of her, her hands tight on my hips to turn me before she reached up to the corset ribbons in the back.

  There was the soft shush of the ribbons being pulled through the grommets, and, gradually, I felt the corset loosen around me. It was immensely gratifying when I found that I was able to take nice, truly deep breaths again. I moaned in release as the corset, too, fell away at my feet, and then the undergarments followed suit. I stepped out of the bloomers, and then I was completely nude before Kane, who considered me, her head to the side, her bright blue eyes flashing with unabashed desire.

  I stood before her, my hands at my sides, my chin lifted, challenging her as I smiled. Want raced, just under my skin, between my legs…my nipples peaked beneath her gaze, hardening from the spark in her eyes, from her parted lips, from the way she put her head to the side, as if she was considering which part of me to touch first. My chest began to rise and fall much quicker as she only looked at me, and my voice was thick with that desire as I murmured: “Do you remember…when you stood before me to be painted that very first time?”

  “Of course. It was unforgettable,” she answered, her hair sweeping back and over her shoulders as she reached forward, as she took my wrists gently in her hands.

  She tugged me toward the bed.

  “What is it like…standing naked, knowing my brush is painting your breasts, knowing I’m capturing your nakedness?” I asked her, breathless, as she sat down on the bed. She put her head to the side again as I stood before her, as if she was considering my question.

  “I don’t know if I can put it into words…what it feels like,” said Kane, tilting her chin up to regard me.

  There was no more spark or light in her eyes…

  There was only the darkness of desire.

  “But I can show you,” she growled.

  I gasped as her cold fingers found the curves of my hips again, as she gripped them and drew me toward her. My legs parted, and I stood over her, my legs on either side of her lap as her cool palms pressed down into my skin.

  She leaned forward, brushed her mouth over my belly.

  I groaned, tilting my head back as I wrapped my fingers in her long, silky hair, digging my nails into the skin at the back of her neck. The fingertips of her right hand traced over my hips, down my belly, down my thigh. I shivered from the path of arousal she was drawing on my skin, and I gasped out again as her thumb moved toward my center.

  When Kane brushed her fingers over my slit, they came away gleaming. I was desperately wet, desperately aching for her…

  And she did not make me wait any longer.

  She tilted her head up, just a little, and—smiling wickedly—she took my left nipple in her mouth, flicking her tongue across it as she pushed two fingers inside of me.

  “God…” I gasped again, breathless, pushing her mouth against my breast, rocking my hips against her hand. Her thumb remained hard and fast against my clit, and she moved it rhythmically, in time to the thrust of my own hips, in time to her rocking motion, moving her fingers in and out of me in the most perfect friction.

  The tension of my legs standing, straddling her lap, made her fingers feel…more, somehow. I was deeply aware of how she touched me, every atom of my body turning toward the sensation of her thumb against my clit, of
her cool fingers sliding inside of me. That awareness made me, impossibly, wetter, and as I moved against her, as I gasped over her, I could feel her smiling against my breast as she bit down gently, so gently, on my nipple, earning a hiss of want from me that filled the silent room.

  She began to press down harder against my clit with the pad of her thumb—the feeling was noticeably gradual, because the potency of the desire in my belly grew, unfurling, until desire was my entirety.

  Kane looked up, into my face, and though my head was thrown back from how good it felt, how good she felt inside of me, I looked down at her, my fingers caressing the back of her head, pulling gently on her hair as I looked down into the face of my wife.

  Kane’s eyes glittered with a carnal darkness, and she panted as she thrust her fingers inside of me.

  “Come for me,” she whispered, then growled it again, “please…I want to feel you come on my hand.”

  I gasped, a jolt of desire descending all the way to my center. Kane’s low voice, uttering those intoxicating words…it was too much. I’d already been deeply aroused, but her full mouth, wet from our kisses, uttering those words…it was too much. I came, my center pulsing around her fingers. I moaned in the darkness, my head falling back, my legs growing weaker as the orgasm moved through me. She reached up, put her other arm about my waist, and as the orgasm rolled through me, she pulled me down gently onto the bed.

  “God,” I whispered as I drifted on the waves of orgasm. They slowly dispersed, and in a haze of desire, I stared at Kane, lying full length beside me, her fingers still inside of me, a beautiful smile upon her face.

  “Come here,” I whispered to her, wrapping my arms about her shoulders, pulling her on top of me. She kept her hand exactly where it was, her fingers curling gently into me, and she rose over me, her long, white-blonde hair descending all around us, so that it seems we were the only two people in the world…

  Which may have been true, after all.

  For she was my world.

  And as she smiled down at me, as she moved her fingers in and out of me, pressing the heel of her hand now gently down onto my swollen, sensitive clit, I felt such potent love when I gazed up at her. I was dazzled by her beauty, dazzled by how—when I looked at her—it felt like my heart rose inside of me, ascending until it touched the sky. My entire being was love as I gazed at Kane, rising over me like a star, like a heavenly body that I wanted to pull down to my mouth to kiss…