Page 35 of Fated to the Vampire Prince
I rubbed my hand along the tender spot on my thigh where he’d fed from me hours ago, remembering the ecstasy he’d coaxed from me. Of the moan that had torn from my throat halfway through. Of the feeling of his lips kissing and sucking at my skin.
The problem with getting close to Bastien was that my body always wanted more than just his nearness. It wanted to be looked at and desired and touched. It wanted to experience things that filled my cheeks with heat and my head with lurid thoughts. I licked my dry lips and crossed my legs to relieve the growing ache between my thighs.
Was this the answer? Was giving my body what it so longed for the way to lull him into a false sense of trust? Perhaps so. Yet the thought made me equal parts excited and terrified. What if I was no good at wooing him, and I only pushed him away with my awkwardness?
Leaning my forehead against the cold window, I closed my eyes and expelled a long breath as images of me and Bastien entwined filled my head. It wasn’t wrong to think these things if it was for the right reason, was it?
Chapter 18
Fantasmer
BASTIEN
Despite Shreesa’s inn marking the halfway point between my château and Marius’s, the second leg of our journey up the mountain roads was slower. We’d spent the past two weeks inching along. The colder it got, the more we needed to stop and allow the horses and humans in our company time to rest.
The sun’s rays were dulled by heavy clouds, but traveling during the day depleted us. Each night, we made camp at dusk. And each night, after my nightly meeting with my council, I returned to my tent to greedily feed from Claire as she lay upon a bed of furs.
Truthfully, I didn’t need to eat every day, but I couldn’t stop myself. Not when my mate was right there, so warm and soft. If I was feeding, I could throw her trembling legs over my shoulder. I could kiss her thigh. I could twist our fingers together. I could wipe clean the wound and ensure she ate. I could keep her company and learn more about her before she drifted off to sleep.
Under the guise of feeding, I could be close to her. But touching her and holding her and stealing laughs late into the night wasn’t the only thing I wanted. I needed her. All of her. Needed to be inside her. Claiming her. Pleasuring her. Fucking her. Coaxing more than little whimpers from her lips, but screams that shook snow from the branches. Giving myself to her over and over. I needed to hear her say my name. Needed to feel those soft thighs around my waist as I came deep inside her.
And yet, I couldn’t. But it didn’t stop the temptation. The scent of Claire’s desire was nothing compared to seeing it soaked through her undergarments every single night when my face was between her legs. It was torture. If only my enemies had this information, they’d know exactly how to bring me to my knees. I’d give up blood for a month for a taste of her sweet pussy.
The slow smile that had spread across my face shrank, and I berated myself for being so weak-minded—for being so pathetic. The need to claim her was an instinct I had to ignore, but doing so was like holding a lid over a boiling pot. The pressure building inside of me.
At times of weakness, I considered showing her my bloodstone and confessing the truth. That we were meant to be, if only we wanted it. But Ididn’twant it.Couldn’t want it.There was too much on the line, and Tyson’s presence was a constant reminder of that fact. If I gave in and told her the truth, I’d lose it all.To him. And he was incapable of doing my job.
At the same time, she was all I could think about. Even now, as I sat in this very important meeting with people I cared about and respected, I was distracted. My vampiric senses focused on my tent—on her. I could feel her heart beating inside my bloodstone, yes, but I wanted to know what she wasdoing. If she was thinking of me. If she was touching herself. Satisfying that ache I knew she had. The same ache I had.
I gritted my teeth imagining the scene, wanting to relieve that ache for her. But it was impossible. I couldn’t deepen my feelings for Claire more than they already were. No, they weren’tfeelings. They were primal instincts. Urges put in my head by the gods that got the better of me each time I tried to keep them in check. Her blood in my veins making it all worse.
“Your Grace!” Natalia shouted, slamming her hand down on the table. “We need your thoughts on the matter.”
Every eye around the table was on me. Curious stares that portrayed confusion or disappointment. Tyson was reclining back in his chair, arms crossed, one leg kicked out like he was comfortable at my table.
I shook my head slightly, trying to bring my focus back to the meeting, and looking around for context clues. Another map had been rolled out in front of me, one that was of the south, specifically the land around Château Blanc. I didn’t know why the conversation had turned Nightfall.
I rubbed at my temples, realizing I hadn’t heard a word that was said for some time. I was distracted, which seemed to be my new normal.
Natalia sighed. “What do we tell the Duke of Nightfall? My father requests you attend his Sangination Ball in four months’ time. Will we be making the trip?”
I cleared my throat and turned my attention back to the map, trying to order my thoughts. My first inclination was to say no. The cold was setting in, but that didn’t mean the witches of the Lawless Lands went to ground. It was too risky.
However, Josse’s land also encompassed the Nightfall Convent, which meant I could take Claire to see her sister. The thought of her face when she saw her sister again made myheart swell. Besides, I’d like to inspect the convent myself. I suspected Claire wasn’t the only one who had been mistreated.
However, it wasn’t practical.
I lifted my gaze to my council and folded my hands. “No. We will not attend. Send our regrets. I’m sure my absence won’t surprise Josse in the least.”
Chuckles went around the table. Natalia made a note before calling for a page to send a raven to Nightfall. She was trying to hide her excitement. Ever since she’d been named unfit to be her father’s heir, she preferred to stay away.
Once the task was handled, I hoped all business had been finished so I could return to Claire, but, I could tell Natalia had more to say. I could tell by the way she tapped her quill against the page.
“Well?” I prompted, rubbing at my temples.
“What of Shreesa’s plea, Your Grace? How are we to handle allegations that the Prideaux coven is doubling down on their pursuit of demonic relics? She claims another has been taken. They’re worried.”
I made a tight fist. After all we sacrificed to seal the Blood Treaty, I grew weary of these continued hostilities. “We’ll make good on our promise to bring more from the Lawless Lands on our next trip. Send word to Chastity.”
