He frowned at her as he folded his arms firmly over his chest. “What I went through was nothing compared to what you went through. I would do everything in my power to take away what you just experienced.”
“It was worth it.” He remained doubtful looking as his eyes scanned over her. “I would do it again for this result Braith. Don’t ever doubt that. The memories of the pain will fade, the millions of memories we’ll make together will last forever. Life is so fragile and delicate all the time, we have to seize every moment we have together, have to cherish every gift that has been given to us, and this is one such gift Braith. We can be together, forever.”
She didn’t realize she was crying until he leaned across the counter and wiped the tears away with the pads of his thumbs. “I do cherish it,” he whispered against her lips as he rested his forehead against her. “And you. I look forward to every one of those memories.”
“Good. Now, can you stop watching me as if you’re afraid I’m going to go toe up again at any moment?”
He laughed quietly as he kissed her. “Ok.”
She reluctantly pulled away from him and wiped the steam from the mirror. She stared at her reflection, surprised by the sight of the woman staring back at her. It was her still. She was tired, drained, and beaten looking, but it was still her. Relief filled her. Despite what Braith had said about her being the same, she’d still been terrified she’d be confronted by a half crazed monster with red eyes and fangs, or a shadow of the person she’d once been. Instead, it was simply a girl with dark auburn hair made darker by the water, brilliant blue eyes, and a face that had thinned out from grief, staring back at her.
Braith rested his hands on her shoulders. “Are you ok?”
“It’s still me,” she breathed.
“It is.” Her fingers slid over the mirror as she traced her features. “Let me.” She didn’t argue when he took the brush from her hand and began to work it through her hair. “Were you expecting someone else?”
“I didn’t know what to expect,” she admitted. “I half feared I’d be a monster.”
He met her gaze in the mirror, holding it for a poignant moment. “You could never be a monster Arianna.”
She smiled shakily at him, acutely aware of the fact that when it came to him she very well could be a monster in order to ensure he survived. She closed her eyes and relished in the comforting feel of him pulling the brush through her hair. She was also becoming aware of a new scent and a new discomfort growing within her belly. She didn’t understand what it was though, and as she hesitatingly scented the air she couldn’t place the delicious aroma.
Braith placed the brush down and led her into the bedroom. She slumped onto the bed, tired and still a little sore. That growing twinge in her stomach was starting to spread outward. It was actually becoming uncomfortable as she shifted on the bed in an attempt to ease some of the discomfort growing within her.
Braith’s eyes narrowed. “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know,” she admitted. Her hand fluttered up to her chest, she swallowed heavily as a rush of saliva filled her mouth. “But I don’t feel right. There’s something, it’s here, it’s aching.” She pressed her hands to her stomach and her chest. She couldn’t find the words to describe the growing distress of her body.
“Ah,” he said with dawning realization. “You’re hungry.”
She frowned fiercely at him as she shook her head. “No, I’m surprisingly not hungry.”
His smile was sad and understanding. “Yes Aria, you’re just not hungry for mortal food, not anymore.”
She felt like an idiot as her mouth parted. “Oh,” she breathed as understanding filled her. “I see.” Her gaze strayed to his neck, the solid muscles that corded it, and the vein she saw running just beneath the surface. She tore her gaze away from his dampened skin as the discomfort bloomed into a scorching fire. “Is this what you experience all the time?”
“Not all the time.”
“Since you met me?”
He brushed the hair back from her face. “Not all the time.”
She shuddered, she ached for the torment he had gone through, the torment she hadn’t been able to understand until now. “It’s an awful feeling, how did you deal with it?”
“Years of experience, and you. Just being with you made it all worth it.” Her discomfort was forgotten as love streamed through her. She kept thinking it wasn’t possible to love him more, but he always managed to prove her wrong. “I’ll teach you how to control it but if you feed well, and often, it will be easy to control. You won’t have to feel this way again Aria, I’ll make sure of that.”
Her gaze drifted back to his vein. She shuddered as desire tore through her and left her shaken. It was not his body she hungered for right now though, but something more and it frightened her. She’d fed from him once, but she didn’t recall it and didn’t know how she’d done it, or if she’d even done it right. “Braith,” she gasped.
“It’s ok.” His hands were on her waist; he lifted her and eased her into his lap. “It’s ok Aria.”
His hand wrapped around the back of her head. She remained unyielding in his grasp as uncertainty, dread, and a coil of disgust warred incessantly within her. “What if I hurt you?”
“You won’t.” She licked her lips, starting in surprise as she felt the harsh prick of her teeth. A whimper involuntarily escaped her. He turned his wrist over, revealing the marks to her. “This didn’t hurt.”
“I was completely out of it; I didn’t know what I was doing.”
“You knew what you were doing then, and you’ll know what you’re doing now. Just let your instincts take over; they’ll guide you through this.”
He guided her head to the hollow of his neck and rested it there. She could smell the sweet scent of his blood as it wafted out of him. It was delicious, enticing as it ensnared her within its scent of spices and earth, and her. She pressed her lips against his warm skin; he tasted of soap and something more, something masculine and dark and powerful. Something that she craved with a driving frenzy that frightened her, but that wouldn’t be denied.
How had he ever been able to control this kind of consuming thirst around her?
She tried not to think, tried to shut her brain down as she let the instincts he spoke of take over. Her lips pulled back, her teeth, no they weren’t just teeth anymore, they were razor sharp fangs, and right now they were aching to be buried in his tender skin. A small shudder of anticipation rocked him as she pressed her fangs against his skin. She hesitated, kissing him for a long moment before she bit down. His hands clenched upon her back, a low groan escaped him as she pulled his blood from him. Pleasure swamped her; she pressed closer as the sweet flow of his blood filled her mouth. She didn’t feel repulsed; she wasn’t sickened by the flavor and heat of it within her mouth. It was the most delicious thing she’d ever tasted as she felt their minds surging forth to mingle together.
Her fingers dug into his back as his joy mixed with hers. She’d experienced it as a human, but now, as a vampire, it was even deeper and more open. There weren’t any barriers between them. He was completely bared to her; she felt the ebb and flow of the darkness within him. Felt the lengths and depths of brutality he would go to for her, and the others he sought to protect. He revealed to her the true depth of his fear for her, the extent of his instability within The Barrens, and when she had been taken by Caleb.
It shook her, humbled her and brought her to tears. She’d always known he was powerful, always known that it had been stressful for him when it came to her, but he hadn’t revealed the true depth of that strain until now. He hadn’t revealed the true depths of his dislike, and lack of pleasure and satisfaction he experienced with anyone else’s blood.
Aria pressed closer, unable to get enough of this glimpse into him, of this complete baring of the soul of the man she loved so desperately. She simply couldn’t get close enough as she exposed everything she had to him, and revealed all of her
love and concerns to him as he did to her.
She was enmeshed in his pleasure, caught up in his love as she nestled closer. The soreness in her body eased, her muscles loosened further the more that she consumed. She bit deeper into his neck, relishing in the blood and energy that infused her.
A low groan escaped him; the headboard crashed off the wall as he slammed his hand against it in an attempt to curve the burgeoning desire she felt swirling up through his body and into hers. She whimpered as he released the headboard and buried his hand within her hair. His mouth pressed hotly against her shoulder, his fangs nipped at her skin before biting. If she’d had any doubt that he wouldn’t find her blood as appealing, it was quickly squashed by his intense delight as it engulfed her.
She wrapped her legs around his waist as he shifted her in his lap. Aria was consumed with love as she lost herself to the touch and feel of him. The pleasure he took from her engulfed her, she couldn’t separate her own ecstasy from his as she was consumed by his infinite wonder and fulfillment.
The rest of the world faded away as for the first time she gave herself to him with no fear of what the future held. For the first time she knew complete safety and security. She knew there was nothing that could ever tear them apart again.
CHAPTER 23
Aria fiddled anxiously with the sleeves of her shirt. Braith quirked an eyebrow as he grabbed hold of her hands and held them within his own. “It will be fine.”
She gulped and managed a small nod as Braith opened the door to his newly fixed and refurnished apartment. The furniture was a deep forest green now and the carpet had been replaced with a gleaming wood floor. The apartment had been beautiful before, but more masculine. It was more feminine now and she suspected that Melinda had had a big hand in picking out the furniture and the colors.
“I thought you would like to pick out the paintings,” Braith told her.
She nodded as she glanced around the bare walls. She hadn’t put much thought into what the apartment would look like, or how it should be decorated. She’d been too consumed by her grief and uncertainty. As she glanced at the walls now though she itched to cover them with some of the beautiful paintings and artwork that Daniel had created since moving into the palace.
Braith pulled the drawing of the two of them free of his coat. Tears burned her eyes but she kept them suppressed as she took it from him. It would be the first thing she put on the wall. A subtle knock on the door reminded her of what she’d been so nervous about just moments ago. She rolled the drawing back up and placed it on the desk.
Braith opened the door to William, Daniel, and Max. If she still had a heartbeat she knew it would be thumping riotously in her chest. The stillness was a little unnerving, but nowhere near as unnerving as facing the three of them. Braith grabbed her hand as she started to fiddle again.
She was concerned they’d be mad at her, not because she was a vampire now, but because she hadn’t told them she was going to do it. She worried that Max would resent her. He’d been doing so much better, but she still didn’t know how he was going to react to this news.
William, finally free of his crutches, grinned at her as he swooped into the room, lifted her into the air and gave her a crushing hug. He dropped her down and seized hold of her hand, seemingly oblivious to the fact that she wasn’t human anymore. “Nice ring.”
“I’m glad you approve,” Braith commented dryly.
Aria smiled shyly at William as he grinned at Braith and twisted her hand within his. Max and Daniel came forward to hug her and offer their congratulations. She went to fiddle with her hands again but thought better of it as Braith shot her a look. She didn’t know how to tell them, did she just blurt out, ‘oh by the way I died?’ Or perhaps the, ‘I’m not a human anymore’ approach would work better.
“I uh…I’m…” the words died in her throat, she couldn’t stop her gaze from going to Max.
His forehead furrowed as he stared at her questioningly. Then his forehead cleared as realization dawned in his eyes. “A vampire.”
William and Daniel’s heads snapped toward her, their eyes perused her. Braith took hold of her hand and enfolded it within both of his. “You did it?” William asked.
Aria winced at the upset in his voice. “I didn’t know I was going to,” she told him. “And then I found the drawing that dad left behind for me.”
“What do you mean?” Daniel’s blue eyes narrowed on her.
She filled him in on what she’d discovered in the banquet tree. “I really didn’t go out there with the intention of this happening,” she told him.
She shifted uneasily beneath their intense scrutiny. “You’re ok though?” William worried.
It was a little disconcerting but she heard the difference in William’s heartbeat as he circled around her. His pulse sped up; there was a faint knock in it as adrenaline spurted through him. It didn’t entice her, but she was unsettled by the fact that she could even hear it to begin with. It was going to take her awhile to get used to all the new sights, sounds, and sensations her new status offered her.
Braith slid his arm around her waist and pulled her against his side as he seemed to sense her discomfort. “I’m ok,” she assured William.
“So I guess this means we do have some vampire DNA in us.”
“I would assume so,” Braith confirmed.
“Max?” Aria inquired nervously.
His gaze focused on the window behind her. Her fingers clenched on Braith’s back as tears burned her eyes. Please, she pleaded silently. Please don’t hate me again. He finally looked at her, and though it was sad, he offered her a small smile. “I’m glad you survived. I’m happy for you,” he assured her.
A low sob escaped her as she released Braith and stepped forward to hug Max and her brother’s again. Another knock on the door drew her apart from them. Melinda poked her head in; she scented the air before she broke into a brilliant grin. She flung the door open and bounded across the floor to them. Free of the cloak of her father’s oppression, and her separation from Ashby, Melinda had turned into a lively, exuberant woman.
William shot her a disgruntled look as Melinda elbowed him out of the way, seized hold of Aria’s hand and jerked it toward her. Aria’s eyes widened as Melinda released a joyous squeal. Ashby had entered behind her and now stood beside Braith, grinning in amusement as Melinda began to prattle on. “We have so many plans to make! So much to do! It’s going to be amazing!”
“I’d actually like a small ceremony,” Aria told her.
“A queen’s wedding can never be small!” Melinda retorted.
Aria cast Braith a pleading look as his sister began to propel her toward the sofa. He jumped forward, smiling pleasantly at Melinda as he extricated Aria’s arm from Melinda’s death grip. “We can do both,” Braith placated.
She knew that arguing would be pointless, Melinda was right, and if she still got to have the ceremony she wanted she didn’t see what difference it made as long as she got to marry Braith.
CHAPTER 24
Over the next few days Melinda kept her occupied with endless details, most of which she never would have thought of. It was overwhelming on top of trying to adjust to her new vampire abilities. She’d accidentally ripped the handle off the door in the library, and broken a saddle when she’d forgotten that she was stronger now. She kept trying to breathe, missed the beat of her heart, and was still trying to adjust to the unfamiliar sensations of her over sensitized skin.
Even though she felt overwhelmed, she’d also never felt this secure and happy. She fell asleep in Braith’s arms every night and woke to find him beside her every morning. When Melinda wasn’t demanding her time, she would go out with Max, Xavier, Jack and William to help in rebuilding the town. Daniel and Braith were still entrenched in the intricacies of establishing the new government, and dealing with the problems that arose from the people and vampires that were still struggling to assimilate to the changes.
Melinda had told her t
hat the building wasn’t something a future queen should be doing, but Aria didn’t care. She didn’t want to be involved in the running of the household, and planning a wedding was beyond tedious. Besides, with her newfound strength she was far better at building, and faster at it than she ever would have been in the past.
Maybe it wasn’t what the other queens had done, but it was what she was going to do, and there was nothing that was going to change that. She was willing not to be in the woods every day, to wear the silly undergarments and dresses when they were required. She would tend to the things that she had to once she was queen, but she was not going to be trapped within that palace, and she was not going to be relegated to running the household. Melinda enjoyed doing it and Aria preferred to be with all the people and vampires in the town.
She listened to the problems they were having, what they needed, and she did her best to resolve the issues that arose either herself, or by bringing it to Braith and The Council’s attention. She enjoyed working side by side with them toward a common goal as they all tried to assimilate to their new lives. It also helped to ease the grief, helped take her mind off of the empty hole in her life. She knew her father would have been thrilled to see all the changes that were taking place, and his children helping to make those changes.
Aria stepped back as she handed the last of the boards up to William and studied him with a heavy heart. He’d told her this morning that he planned to go with Jack, when the rebuilding was done here, to help build up the towns in the outlying areas. They planned to expand the territory, search for water, and create a burgeoning world of prosperity and hope where now there was none.
She’d assumed William would stay with Daniel and learn more about the way things were going to be run, but he’d been showing less interest in it every day, and had asked Max to step in to take over for him completely yesterday. She knew it was because of their father’s death, but she also knew that he wouldn’t talk about it. Maybe when he came back from his journey, but not now. She understood his urge to run away, but it was still tearing her up inside and she prayed that he found whatever it was he was looking for and came back to her soon.