Page 29 of Bitten By Mr. Darcy
“Apologies for coming,” he said when she met him in the garden outside of the house. “It is only that I could not stop thinking of you.”
She smiled at him. “I think of you often, too. I feel you, in fact.”
“Yes, I suppose I should explain that,” he said with a sigh. “I was hoping it was less noticeable for you than it is for me.” He gestured. “Let us walk.”
“You do not wish to come inside?” she said.
“No,” he said, “and do not invite me. I do not wish to take the chance that I shall come for you at night and lose control.”
“You cannot enter the house without an invitation?” she said. “This is because you are a vampire?”
“Yes, exactly right.”
“But both Louisa and Caroline have done so,” she said.
“No, they were invited by Jane,” said Mr. Darcy. “I think she must have done it when she dined at Netherfield. It was likely prompted by Caroline and Louisa. The invitation magic is rather strange, I think, for invitations can be cajoled or forced, so it is not a failsafe.”
“Magic,” said Elizabeth, shaking her head. “What else could it be, I suppose? How else do you live forever?”
“It might be fine,” said Mr. Darcy. “Now that we have this bond, I think it quite unlikely that I would harm you. But let us not chance it quite yet.”
Elizabeth let out a breath, laughing softly to herself. “Well, it is all very strange, and you will admit it, sir, that I am consenting to walk alone with you while we are having a conversation about how to keep myself safe from you.”
He nodded in chagrin. “I should stay away from you entirely.”
She sucked in a sharp breath, for she didn’t wish that, and she was happier now, in his presence, than she had been in some time.
He reached down and took her hand, and she made a little noise at his touch, and he made an answering noise.
Then, hand in hand, they walked off into the darkness together.
“Well,” she said eventually, “explain it, then.”
“Explain what?”
“Why it is I feel you all the time.”
“Ah, yes, it is a bond between us on account of your having drunk my blood. It may yet fade. We must wait and see. It may not fade at all, however. On account of your being my sirensong, I think it more likely that it does not, but that is not guaranteed either. I wish I could be sure what the future held, Elizabeth, but I am afraid I am not. So much is uncertain.”
“Am I turning into a vampire?”
“No, no,” he said. “For you to be a vampire, you would need to die with vampire blood in your system. Then the process is complete once you, after death, drink human blood. But no, Elizabeth, by now the danger is gone, anyway. My blood is gone from your system. The bond remains, but there is nothing else.”
She eyed him, thinking of what Mr. Wickham had said, that she could not trust him to tell the truth. “I suppose there’s no reason to think you’d wish me to be a vampire, anyway. I suppose you can’t drink other vampire’s blood.”
He coughed, seemingly embarrassed. “W-well, youcan.”
“Oh,” she said.
“It’s not the same,” he owned. “It’s, erm, it’s not done for sustenance, only for pleasure.”
“Oh,” she said again. “Is it just as pleasurable to drink from one of your own kind, though?”
He hesitated.
“I was only thinking you likely wish me to remain human and your sirensong, since you seem to enjoy drinking from me so much.”
“I don’t know,” he said. “Would I wish you changed? Of course not. It is not something I would wish on anyone, let alone a young and vibrant woman like yourself. You should not be made into a thing like me. You should live and marry and have children, have alife. But I suppose I can’t say I like having you as tempting as you are, for it drives me mad, practically out of myhead when I scent you.” He leaned over and ran his nose over her neck as if to prove his point.
