Page 24 of Fated to the Vampire Prince
“I’ll bathe on the other side of the pool,” he said finally, his breath ghosting my skin. “And if, when I’m done, you still wish it—if youstill wantme—I will feed.”
His pledge did nothing to ease the tension inside me. If anything, it made it worse. When he released me, I nearly stumbled from the sudden absence of his touch. His long strides carried him to the shadows at the far end of the pool. The candles caught him in pieces—shoulder, hair, the long line of his back—before darkness swallowed him again.
As much as I was loath to enter this water, I needed to be quick about it. I fumbled with the knot he tied, but it held fast. After another failed attempt to get the knot loose, I whispered into the darkness. “Your Grace?”
A breath later, he was standing in front of me. I knew how fast he could move, but still, I gasped.
His shirt was already off, and, oh, Diana, his body was just as perfect as I imagined. Thick muscles. Strong arms. Broad shoulders. His smooth skin was marred with ropey pink scars, but it didn’t make him look any less attractive. Instead, it added to his allure. This was a warrior. A man battle-tested. He’d taken lives and left the battlefield with only cuts. My eyes caught on the gold chain at his neck, and the bright red crystal pulsing like a second heartbeat. It was impossible to look away from the glow. I could feel it in my own chest, answering the wild thrum of my pulse.
“Did you need something?”
The question barely registered.Yes. I needed something.My gaze dragged back up to his face, my lips parting on a breath I couldn’t seem to draw fully.
I smoothed a trembling hand down the front of my robe, remembering the knot. “I-I can’t untie this.”
He rolled his lips together. “Do you want me to…”
“Please,” I answered quickly.
He lowered to one knee, putting his face level with my stomach. A duke, a predator, kneeling before me; the sight knocked the breath from my lungs. How many times had heever been on his knees for anyone? I’d wager not many. I drew in small sips of air through my nose to calm my heart, but it wasn’t working. It was racing, throbbing against my ribs like it wanted to leap into his waiting mouth.
Wordlessly, his fingers brushed against my belly as he made quick work of the knot. I watched in rapture as he twirled the loose satin sash around his finger before letting it unravel to the ground.
“Done,” he whispered.
I shifted, and the folds of my robe opened, exposing the thin cotton sleeping shift beneath. My nipples pinched despite how warm it was and sweat prickled down my back. Every inch of me very aware of him. His attention had my lip quivering, and I fisted sections of the robe to steady my hands, but it was no use.
“Do you need help with anything else?” he asked, still on one knee, looking up at me through impossibly thick lashes.
The soft place between my thighs ached for him in ways I didn’t know it could. I wanted his help relieving the ache, and somehow, I knew his deft fingers could handle the task. I could only imagine what it would be like to feel his palms glide up my legs as he lifted my shift. Until… I closed my eyes and tried to push the image out of my brain.
The vampire might not be able to read minds, but I was aware of his ability to sense my desire. He’d told me as much the night of his Sanguination Ball. He knew exactly what I was feeling, so why was he still on his knees looking at me like that?
Did he… desire me? Did he want to touch me…there? As soon as the thought entered my head, I chastised myself. I shouldn’t be thinking like that. He was a monster. I was disgusting for even imagining such a thing. “No, Your Grace. That was all.”
He hesitated for a moment before he stood, then he said, “Very well. Enjoy your bath, Miss Donadieu.”
My name lingered in the hot, sticky air between us before it was the only thing there. Like a shadow, he was gone. Absorbed into the darkness of the bathhouse, somewhere just out of my sight. But I knew he hadn’t left. No. He was still here. And, perhaps, still looking at me.
My breath stuttered, and I quickly removed the robe, setting it beside the pool, then toed off my damp slippers. The only thing left was the shift. I squeezed my eyes shut and told myself he wouldn’t look when I undressed. He was a duke with some amount of decency. But what if he did? What would he think of my body? Maybe he’d think I was just as imperfect as I felt. Or maybe—just maybe—he’d have a different opinion.
Again, I shoved the thought away and pulled the nightdress over my head. I’d never felt more exposed in my life than standing in the near dark with a vampire across the room, completely naked. But I didn’t let it stop me. I lowered myself in, step by step, until the warm water covered my breasts. As much as I hated to admit it, it felt good. I glanced in the direction of the vampire, but it was so hard to see little more than shadows in the dark. The little splashes of water coming from across the pool my only indication that he had also gotten in. Images of water beading down his bare chest infiltrated my thoughts. Clearly, the sleeping draught had done more than induce sleepiness.
Frustrated, I chose a bar of soap that smelled of lavender and a black washcloth, then set to work cleansing my body and face. Dragging the cloth carefully down my neck and chest. The rough cotton was teasing as it slid across my nipples, and I tilted my head back, dipping my hair into the water. Every move felt like pouring honey from a cold jar. My limbs wereheavy. My eyelids drooped. It was getting harder and harder to fight sleep in the warm water.
I suppressed a yawn as I set the cloth aside and grabbed the jar of shampoo—working some between my palms before massaging it into my lilac hair. I leaned back into the water to rinse it out, and as I did, I stared up at the black ceiling. I was so tired, and the water was so warm. Maybe I could close my eyes for a second. Just long enough to rest. No. I forced them back open. I had to stay awake. I had to fight. Bastien would be done soon, and then he’d feed, and I’d take the telareyon root. But I was so incredibly exhausted. I’d barely slept on the ride here, and all I wanted to do was rest.
My blinks grew longer. Candlelight danced across the glassy black ceiling tiles in a mesmerizing pattern. On my next blink, my eyes stayed shut. My tired brain conjured the image of Bastien on the night of his Sanguination Ball. Of the way I felt in his strong arms. Of the way his tongue dragged up my neck. And then, how everything around me dulled when he’d opened the connection between us and spoke inside my head. I remembered feeling like I was underwater. Like I’d jumped in, head first, and he was the only thing I wanted to swim toward.
Except this time, I didn’t swim.
I simply let the warmth cradle me until I drifted off to sleep. As I did, I dreamed I saw a man wreathed in fire and a woman bathed in brilliant white light calling me home.
Chapter 13
Choisir
BASTIEN
