Afraid to trip over any of his furniture she stayed in one place.
"Welcome to my little world," Gavriel said.
Seconds later tiny lights appeared on the ceiling and walls. Stars, galaxies, whole solar systems swirled around his suite. She gasped and spun around trying to take it all in.
"Vampires are one of the oldest races. There are few secrets of this world that we don't know. But the stars? The stars are still a great mystery. No matter how old I become, I look up and feel like a little boy again when I think about their magnificence," Gavriel said, appearing behind her. He slid his arms around her waist and pulled her against his body.
"Do you think it's the mating pull that makes this feel so right?" she asked laying her head back on his chest. She felt him shake his head.
"I think the mating pull is there for those who fight their mating. I have seen many couples who have rejected their mates be brought together by the mating pull. It brings them together, but doesn't ensure happiness. What you feel, what I feel, is when two souls who are destined to be one, come together. I was born for you. My incomplete soul rejoices at finding it's other half, and even though it may be jagged and broken, I hope that someday it will be worthy of being the other half of yours."
Elizabeth felt tears well up in her eyes. She turned in his embrace, wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed him tight.
"What is this, my mate?" he asked rubbing her back.
"You're just too perfect. You keep saying the most beautiful things and I feel like I will never be good enough to hear them. I know you're old Gavriel, I don't know how old, but I know you're older than my uncle. Living in Noctem Falls I've picked up this weird survival sixth sense where I can gauge the age of a vampire and you're pegging off the charts. In all that time you must have dreamed of your mate. How can I hope to compare to thousands of years' worth of dreams?" she buried her face in his chest.
He pulled back and in the light of thousands of twinkling stars she saw the raw emotion in his eyes. The same emotion he tried to keep hidden from others. He spun her around and held her from behind.
"Every year I added a new star to my story. Every year I prayed to whoever would listen to send me my mate." His arm lifted and he pointed to a small bluish light.
"That year, I had to kill my best friend who had turned feral after his mate was murdered by humans. I wept as I added that star as a remembrance to my friend and wished for a soft voice to tell me that it would be okay." He turned their bodies. He pointed to a yellow star blazing bright.
"The year I added that star I became godfather to the most beautiful baby boy I had ever seen. He was murdered not two months later; he was only been six months old. All I wished for was to have a hand to hold."
When he went to spin them again she shook her head, weeping. How could something so beautiful contain so much pain? He walked around to stand in front of her.
"I didn't tell you this to make you sad. The memories are painful. But what would be even more horrendous would be if I forgot them completely. Each year I memorized a new star, so I wouldn't forget. And every year I made the same plea. 'Please send me my mate. I just want someone to hold'. That's all I wanted. So even though I have lived thousands upon thousands of years, you fulfill every dream I have ever had for a mate, just by being here. Your compassion, and your blossoming love is more than I have ever wanted." He reached down and held her face between his two large hands. She had never wanted someone more in her whole life. She wanted to erase every moment of pain and replace it with one of pure pleasure.
She reached up and pulled him down by the collar of his button down shirt. She feasted on his mouth, sucking his lower lip until he groaned. Seconds later he took control. He forced her mouth open and laid his claim. He dipped and teased. He traced her lips and dominated her completely. Shaken by his urgency she felt her knees give way and he simply held her to him.
When he pulled back he was breathing hard.
"I have to stop now, or I won't be able to stop at all," he admitted. She stepped back and he let her. Smiling she pulled her shirt over her head and his eyes widened.
"Then don't stop," she whispered. She turned to walk to the bed and in an effort to be sexy tripped over her own feet and landed hard.
"Beth!" He was by her side in an instant helping her sit up.
"Just ignore me. I'll sleep in the bathtub," she mumbled, too embarrassed to look up. She licked her lip and tasted copper. She had busted her own lip open. Perfect.
"My walking disaster," he said and using his hand lifted her chin so that she was looking up at him. The second the scent of her blood hit him she saw his jaw tighten.
"Beth, go! Aiden's suite is down the hall on the left." Breathing hard he scooted away.
"Not a snowball's chance in hell. You're going to bite me again whether you like it or not. Don't think I've forgotten the pleasure you gave me earlier. That is happening again, mister." Not only was she aching for the pleasure only he could give her, she also needed to feed him. She had noticed how much better he had appeared after he fed from her that morning.
She flipped over on her back and tried to shimmy out of her jeans. When they wouldn't go down any further she began cussing as it dawned on her that she had forgotten to take her boots off. She tried to pull her jeans down over her boots but they got stuck. She tried to pull her jeans back up but they were wrapped around the rubber soles of her boots. In a growing sense of horror she realized how ridiculous she must look.
When she glanced up she watched as Gavriel's red eyes shifted back to grey. He stared at her with a shocked expression on his face. Feeling completely humiliated she covered her face with both hands.
"Don't look!" she cried.
The sound of ripping fabric had her looking down. Gavriel had simply shredded her jeans. Two seconds later he looked up, a savage expression on his face. He reached forward and her body jerked as he ripped her panties from her body. In an effort to save her favorite bra she reached around behind her before his extended claw cut away the fabric between her breasts.
"What were you saying?" he asked, crawling forward on his hands and knees.
"I don't honestly remember," she admitted.
His strong hands easily unzipped her boots and it wasn't long before he had removed both and her socks as well. Sitting in front of him on his floor as naked as the day she was born, she had never felt sexier. His eyes were flickering between the color of molten mercury and deep burgundy.
"Mine!" he growled. He placed both hands on the inside of her thighs and spread her wide. She opened her mouth to protest but nearly swallowed her tongue instead. He lowered his head and began to make love to her with his mouth. He mimicked what he had just done to her in their kiss. When two fingers speared her deeply, she cried out.
"Do that again!" she demanded.
A masculine chuckle responded. He took her clit between his teeth and curled his fingers deep inside her.
"Gods! Yes! More!" She bucked her hips. He sat up and in a blur of motion began removing his own clothing. When he knelt, his body looming over her she had a moment to look her fill. The promise of his broad shoulders under his button down shirt had been fulfilled. His entire body shifted under his skin as his muscles flexed. She wanted to lean forward and trace each muscle with her tongue but he moved with a sense of purpose.
When he was poised between her legs she thought that he would plunge deep and give them both what they were desperate for. Instead he kissed the inside of each thigh.
"Elizabeth Monroe, Fate may have chosen you for me but I ask that you choose me for yourself. Will you tie your breath, your heart, mind and soul to mine? Will you place yourself into my keeping for all eternity?"
There was no hesitation in her heart. "Yes. I want you for all time," she whispered.
"Yes!" he hissed and eased himself forward. Inch by inch he claimed her. Stretching her completely, he slowly slid past every nerve ending bringing her closer and closer
to what she wanted.
Without warning he pulled back and slammed forward. Again and again he sunk himself deep, making sure that he pleased her with each thrust.
"You're mine! I'm never letting you go!" He rose up over her and struck quickly, sinking his fangs deep into her neck. Her body reacted instantly throwing her into a whirlpool of pleasure. From the most hidden recesses of her soul she felt herself lift up. She felt Gavriel's soul answer in response. It wrapped around her own protectively; even in its most primal state it sought to keep her safe. She experienced the most pure moment of her existence when for one perfect heartbeat they were completely one. A second later they were wrenched apart as their souls unwound and made their way back to their bodies, each carrying a piece of the other with it. Once back in her own body, wave after wave crashed through her. His fangs claimed her from the top down and his cock from the bottom up. He owned every inch of her. Screaming out her pleasure she rode her orgasm until she had no strength left. She let it take her over. She hung on long enough to hear his roar as he found his pleasure and to feel the warm stream of cum as it filled her. She heard the pounding at the door and didn't even care. Sighing happily, she let the darkness take her.
CHAPTER THREE
"Beth, darling, please open your eyes," she heard her mate beg.
"No, don't wanna," she pouted. The bed under her was plush and she wanted to sink down and go back to sleep.
"I need to make sure you're okay. I promised Aiden that if you didn't wake after an hour, I would take you to the clinic." She felt a warm finger tap her cheek.
"Aiden? When was he here?" she asked struggling to open her eyes. When she managed to pry them open, she had to blink a few times before he came into focus.
"Umm, right at the end. You're a screamer, my mate." Gavriel tapped her lips.
"Oh. My. Gods. Please tell me he didn't see anything."
"No, I wouldn't let any other male see my mate's beautiful body. I covered you with a blanket and then answered the door. I almost killed that silly cub." Gavriel shook his head. "Though I am grateful at his concern for your wellbeing."
"Cub? I guess he would be a cub to you. Why do you take orders from him anyway? In fact, why aren't you an Elder?" she asked, pulling a blanket up around her chest as she sat up in bed. He propped his head up on his hand. Her eyes traveled down the long length of his body. He wasn't overly hairy, just enough in all the right places. His waist wasn't thin like the pubescent boys that were currently all the rage in advertising in the human world. He had a trim waist, but was solidly built. His well-defined abs made her want to drizzle honey on each crease and make a meal out of him. Even though she was slightly sore from his claiming, she felt herself tighten at the thought of licking every inch of her mate.
"Whatever you're thinking, I like it," Gavriel said, his voice sounding deeper.
"Can you see my thoughts?" she squeaked.
"No, but based on your reaction I'm sad that I cannot. We'll be able to feel some emotion and over the centuries certain projected thoughts, but that is all," he explained.
"Not all vampires can do that."
"You're right."
"How old are you?" she asked.
He sighed and rolled over onto his back, effectively putting his gorgeous cock on display.
"Stop teasing me." She popped him in the face with his pillow.
Smiling he pulled the blanket around his waist to cover up and used the pillow to lay next to her. She scooted down until they were eye to eye. He took her hand and simply held it.
"I will be honest with you. I don't know how old I am. I wasn't lying when I told you I use the stars to remember. Before the invention of the projector I have, I would memorize the position of each star and affix a memory to it. I have forgotten so much, my age is just one of the many things lost to time. To answer your question, I take orders from Aiden because he is our commander. He's strong, fair and good at being the Unit Commander. I swore an oath to him when he was barely a man, to serve him because I saw the potential in him. He hasn't let me down yet," he paused, then frowned before continuing. "As for being an Elder, I don't want that title. If the other elders realized how old I am they would come to me constantly for answers. The way we rule now works. No one family or person is in charge for very long and it keeps new ideas coming in and prevents any one faction from creating a dictatorship. I like my life how it is now. That's why I have been hiding my transition, if they discovered my age it could destroy the precarious balance we have finally attained in our world."
"What you must have seen and done," she said in wonder. "Did you get to see Elvis?" she asked suddenly.
His mouth dropped. "I watched entire empires emerge and fall. Gods rule and disappear. The undocumented miracles of magic and science, kings, queens, wars and you ask about Elvis?" he asked incredulously.
She smirked. "You totally saw him in concert." She tickled his calves with her toes.
He scowled at her. "Twice," he murmured.
"Ha! I knew it!" she giggled.
"The man was pure genius. His live performances had an element that was never captured by any recording device. I was truly sad when he passed on," he admitted.
"What else?" she prompted then yawned.
"The first time I heard a full orchestra I wept. There were so many beautiful sounds that it overwhelmed me," his eyes softened at the memory. "Tell me something about you," he prompted.
Elizabeth snuggled closer, her eyelids getting heavy. "Much to my family's delight I refused to date vampires growing up." She grinned at his expression.
"Why?"
"My father has been likened to the Greek legend Adonis and my uncle to an avenging angel. The bar was set kinda high."
"Oh really? And how did I measure up?" He poked her side making her laugh.
"There is no comparison. You became everything I didn't even know I wanted."
"I think Fate knew you were meant for just one vampire." He kissed her gently.
She pulled back and yawned in his face, then frowned at her own tiredness. He chuckled lowly and pulled her close. He reached up and tapped the light above them sending them out amongst the stars again.
"Goodnight, my mate," he whispered.
"Goodnight, my vampire," she quipped back.
My vampire, the one who has completely stolen my heart.
*****
She woke up alone, Gavriel's side of the bed cool to the touch. He had to have gotten up at least an hour ago. At the foot of the bed he had set up her suitcases so she would see them. She tumbled out of bed and landed on the floor staring up at the ceiling. It looked so plain in the daylight. She frowned at the open curtains and raised blinds. She wanted to lower them to block the sun so she could see his stars again, but contented herself to wait for Gavriel.
Standing she turned to see she was in front of a full-length mirror. She leered at herself as her body reminded her of the previous night's pleasure. Picking up the small bag that held her toiletries she started looking for the bathroom. The first door she opened was a closet, the second a small study. When she opened the third one and discovered a library she was about to panic. Vampires peed. She knew they did, she had been raised with them. The fourth and final door led to an opulent bathroom. She looked around. Was she really allowed in here? Shrugging, she walked in and found the shower. The warm colored Italian stonework made the entire experience decadent.
Wrapped in a towel she padded over to the mirror and shook out her long blonde hair. She stuck out her tongue then crossed her eyes at herself. Surprisingly her mate had a wall mounted hair dryer. She smiled remembering his long dark hair. She supposed even vampires didn't like walking around with wet hair in the winter. She shook her head; the man was too gorgeous for her sanity. She dried her hair styling it so that it fell around her face and down her back in waves. She applied her normal moisturizer, make up, deodorant, lotion and perfume. She walked back out into the bedroom and knelt by her open suitcase. She caref
ully lifted out her favorite cream cashmere sweater and sighed happily. She loved quality clothing. It was a byproduct of being raised with tailor-made clothing. She dug out another pair of jeans, lace boy shorts with matching bra, and socks. She quickly got dressed and looked from her short slouch boots to her knee-high, brown leather riding boots. She chose the knee-high boots to complete her ensemble. She grabbed her wristlet that held her phone, money, ID and lipstick and walked out of the room.
She retraced their steps from the previous night until she found the main stairway. She headed down the stairs and made her way to the dining room. When she walked in the men quieted and stood. Aiden flushed red and Colton gave her a thumbs up sign. Rolling her eyes she walked over to her mate. He pulled out her seat and she sat down. He leaned down and kissed her cheek before taking his seat next to her. She placed her wristlet on the table.
"Please tell me that last night wasn't the first time you all heard someone having sex." She arched her eyebrow as Keelan began to choke on his waffle.
"Not true. We thought Aiden put Meryn's head through a wall one night." Colton spoke up.
"You heard that?" Aiden asked, practically shouting.
"Why are you being loud?" Meryn demanded. Aiden gulped and shoveled a huge forkful of bacon into his mouth.
"Please tell me there's coffee," Elizabeth looked around.
"It must be a female thing," Keelan whispered to Colton. Elizabeth turned to the young witch and stared. Both he and Colton turned their attention back to their breakfast.
Ryuu walked in from the kitchen. He set what looked like a second cup in front of Meryn before placing one in front of her. "I prepared a cappuccino since that is Meryn's favorite, but if you let me know what your morning preferences are I can make them for you."
Elizabeth took a sip and shuddered. "Oh Gods, yes!" she took another sip and sighed happily. Gavriel growled at Ryuu.
Aiden nodded waving a fork at his second in command. "Now you know how I feel. It's not right that another male can make our mates sound like that," he grumbled.