For our first official date Darius took me out on his yacht. I must be crazy to spend three days with him alone. Especially when he’d use every opportunity he could to feed on me. I’d spent enough time with him to know this was his thing. I’m almost positive he’s done the same with Aria, like it’s foreplay for him.
We had a full staff, but aside from that, it was just the two of us. He showed me the many controls for the yacht and taught me how to steer it. This trip was both an apology for feeding on me the other night, because he knows how much I hate it, and for handling me the way he did. As a show of good faith, he was granting my request for us to date.
Nervous didn’t even begin to cover what I felt, being alone with Darius. My mind kept drifting to those dreams. The things he did to me in those dreams. What he did to me with his fingers.
Stop thinking about that…God, my hormones must be going crazy...
“What comes next?” I glanced over at Darius. He sat next to me overlooking the water. “For us I mean. What’s next for us?”
“We keep up appearances, get married in August and after brokering peace between our people, my legacy will grow.”
“Don’t you mean our legacy? As your wife, wouldn’t I be entitled to a piece of your legacy?”
“Being my wife entitles you to have my children, share my bed and carry my name. The women of our culture have no rights or positions of power in our society.”
I reeled back, “So as your wife I’d still be invisible,” I realized.
“Not to me.”
Those three little words and the look in his eyes was enough to make me blush. My lips curled into a smile and I said, “I guess I’ll just have to change that.”
Darius laughed, “You’ll have to contend with some very grumpy, very old men. They come from a time where women were nothing more than decoration and a means to secure an heir. I hope you’re ready for that.”
“I am. Especially with you supporting me.”
A smile tugged at his lips, “I never said I would support your cause.”
“And I don’t take no for an answer.”
Again Darius roared with laughter. Taking in his exquisite features, I realized there was so much about him that I had yet to uncover. He seemed to be your average, wealthy, playboy bachelor, but there was ferocity to him. I’d never known a man to be elegant, but if I had to describe him, elegant would be in that description.
Even his posture screamed power. And not the kind money could afford. A simple glance from him would give you a glimpse of the power he knew he had. The advantage he knew he had over you. There’s more to him than meets the eye, I realize, and if I’m being forced to marry him, not that I mind, then I at least wanted to get to know what kind of man he is.
Casting an inquisitive glance in his direction I asked, “What’s your story? What kinds of things do you like? Who are you Darius…deep down inside?”
“I am my father’s son. I am lord of the Eastern America’s. I’m a soldier and the face of my father’s political agenda. I am everyone.”
“I know all of those things. Dig deeper. Do you have a favorite color, song, or food? What was it like for you growing up?” I asked.
“If I had a favorite color I’d say it is blood red. But then again, we are all drawn to shades of red because of the thirst. Classical music is what I listen to. It provides me with clarity and insight. We can barely stomach human food so I don’t particularly care for it. But blood…blood I will kill for.”
“And your childhood?”
Darius paused, gazing into nothing for a long while before his eyes met mine. He examined me for a good long while, assessing and analyzing. Whatever he’d been through, he certainly didn’t trust anyone. He motioned for me to follow him into our cabin, away from listening ears and closed the door behind us.
“My great grandfather Vladimir had six children, Esme, Emit, Daniel, Aden, Shan, and Lizbet. Together they ruled an entire continent killing any and everyone who stepped foot on it and saw their beautiful faces. If they allowed anyone to leave, they were more than likely to return with ships and men in the hopes of capturing my great grandfather and his people. So they made a choice…death to all.”
“Why not give them a chance to live beside them?” I asked.
“Because if history is any indication, your kind doesn’t simply know how to live beside what they don’t understand. What they fear. Anyway, they came upon a group who sailed to the island, only they weren’t human either. They were like us, only stronger. Where we were secluded to an island with only the animals to eat, they lived on the nearest continent feeding on humans. It turns out the Gods had a sense of humor. After making my great grandfather what he was, they quickly realized that kind of power could go unchecked. So they created more of him as sort of a checks and balance system. One for every continent.”
“Wait a minute. How were any of them able to have children? Wouldn’t they need a woman for that?”
“The Gods had a sense of humor in that aspect as well. Vladimir was cursed to roam the earth forever. Only forever is a long time when you are alone, so he tried to kill himself. The Gods intervened and he begged them to let him die. The loneliness had taken its toll on him. Unable to part with one of their greatest creations, they granted him the gift of a mate, Lucinda. She was like him in every way that mattered and he quickly fell in love. Even the Gods hadn’t considered what that love would create. More life.”
I tried wrapping my head around his words. If his grandfather is a Dorchaidhe, then how did he become a Draven? Confused I asked, “But your last name is Draven? Shouldn’t it be Dorchaidhe?”
“My mother is Esme Dorchaidhe, and that group who sailed to the Island was my father Viktor and his brothers. My father and Vladimir fought that night, but Vladimir being the first of our kind, he was inherently stronger. The Gods new better than to afford my father the same strengths they afforded Vladimir.”
“Why was your father there? If he had his own continent, why leave?”
“Let’s just say this isn’t the first time your kind has hunted us. My father and his brothers were outnumbered back then and afraid for their immortal lives. Thousands of your kind invaded my father’s home killing his parents. He lost his territory and sailed to this island in the hopes of finding his family a new home. Admiring their courage, Vladimir refused to kill my father and his siblings. Instead, he took them under his wing and taught them. He molded my father into a brilliant mind and an exceptional soldier. He let them fight it out for my mother’s hand and conceded Esme’s hand to my father when he found out she was with child.”
“He wasn’t angry she’d conceived before she was married?”
“Our kind, we are not a religious kind. Religion is for man. For us, the walking Demi-Gods of the world, our tradition is our religion. We do not marry in the sense that humans marry unless we’re trying to keep up appearances and blend in. We do not ask for atonement for the wicked things we do, for it is our purpose to be inherently wicked.”
“Then who do you answer to?”
Darius tilted his head slightly with an amused smile on his face, gazing at me incredulously. Laughing and shaking his head he said, “Why is it that you humans demand an answer to power? Better yet, why is it that you do not demand an answer to your God’s power as well?”
He had me there. I’d always been taught never to question God’s power. That to do so would be blasphemy. That it’s damning to question God’s power.
Cold gripped every bone in my body and I realized I couldn’t move. Frozen. I’m frozen. Darius. He now circled me like a vulture circling its prey. His eyes flicked to the vein in my neck every few moments.
Inside I began to panic. Darius stopped in front of me and my breath caught in my throat. Predator. He stood before me a lethal, alluring, deadly predator. I noticed the fangs before I noticed his close proximity. I tried clawing at myself to get my limbs to move to no avail.
“I plan to drain you of your blood, within an inch of your life,” Darius grazed my lips with his thumb, “While you’re incapacitated I want you to beg your God to save you.”
“W-what?” I gasped, horrified, “Don’t. Darius stop this.”
“Don’t beg me, beg God. And when he does not answer you, you will understand why your faith is frivolous,” he explained, “There is no God. There is only mercy. My mercy. God will not answer you because he does not exist.”
The sound of his fangs piercing my flesh was drowned out by a bloodcurdling scream, my scream. Darius hadn’t bothered to be gentle and I realized he had only done so before as a courtesy. He was killing me and I was powerless to stop him. The pain was so unbearable that praying to God was the furthest thing from my mind. My body grew limp and I would have sunk to the floor if he hadn’t been holding me up.
Within an inch of my life…that’s what he said he would do to me…drain me within an inch of my life…
Darius released his hold on me and I clung to him to keep from falling. When I could no longer control my body, he pulled away and lay me down on the bed inside the cabin. I couldn’t move. I could only stare at him with a horrified expression as he knelt down beside the bed, his fangs mere inches from my neck.
“I could’ve killed you if I wanted to, but I choose to let you live. Not your God,” he whispered to me.
Blinking was an effort. I had to gather whatever strength I had left just to blink. And whatever injection his father gave me started wearing off the moment I’d surpassed the threshold of acceptable blood loss. I was slowly being surrounded by darkness.
“Drink,” Darius demanded, his skin brushing my lips.
Afraid, I obeyed. The bitter metallic taste of blood coated my tongue, but I kept swallowing it by the mouthfuls. My sight returned, I gained control of my limbs, and more energy than I ever felt before coursed through me.
The moment I was able to, I backed away from Darius as quickly as I could. Dangerous. He’s very dangerous. My eyes searched for a weapon, but nothing in this cabin could hurt him, except for maybe a wooden stake.
“Actually, that wouldn’t work either,” He responded to my thought.
What? How did he…?
I clasped my hand to my chest and realized the necklace I’d worn was gone. Frantically I searched for it, but couldn’t find it. Darius chuckled then said, “Are you looking for this?”
He dangled my necklace in front of me and my eyes went wide with shock. How and when did he get it off of me? He shouldn’t be able to touch it. “Only the purest of silver can have the desired affect you were hoping for. But this pendant…where did you get it?” he asked, “Are you working for someone? If so, who?”
I shook my head and forced myself not to think of who I’d gotten the necklace from. “Have you turned on me? Are you a part of the resistance?” Darius continued to question me.
My heart pounded in my chest, “No. Darius I’m not working for anyone. I just got tired of you being able to read my thoughts all the time.”
“And it’s maker? Who is it?”
My throat bobbed, “Why do you want to know? What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to kill him,” he replied nonchalantly as if he was describing how to make a meal, “And if you do not give me this persons name, I will pull it from your mind. Either way I will get their name from you, so the way I see it, you have two choices. Give me the name and I will not hold it against you, but if you should refuse, I will consider you my enemy, marriage or not. And I will make the rest of our lives together such a living hell that you will want to take your own life.”
Become his enemy or betray a man who meant no harm. God help me, “James Crumby,” I breathed and instantly regretted it. I bolted for the bathroom and emptied the contents of my belly into the toilet.
Icy cold fingers pulled my hair back away from my face and I flinched, backing away from him. He held his hands up and brandished the necklace James had given me. Darius turned over my hand and placed it into my palm. “You should get cleaned up. I believe you wet yourself.”
My brows pursed together in confusion, but then I smelled it. I looked down and sure enough I’d soiled myself. That’s how scared I was. I didn’t know who I was angrier with…Darius for what he’d done, or myself for allowing him to scare me to death. I should have been stronger. I should have fought harder and allowed him to kill me because death was better than this. Death was better than betraying a friend and wetting myself in front of him.
I placed the necklace back around my neck and Darius held out a hand to help me up off the bed. Furious, I swatted his hand away, and stalked into the bathroom where I took a shower and changed my clothes.
I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and quickly looked away. My long dark hair was vibrant, my blue eyes sparkled and my face was beautiful, but I didn’t feel beautiful right now. In fact, I felt ashamed. Only a coward would wet their pants. How embarrassing. If he was attracted to me before, there was no way he was still attracted to me now. Not that it mattered. He toyed with my life to prove a point and took things a step too far.
Was this the norm for his kind? Did they all play deadly games like this?
I probably stared at that door for five minutes trying to work up the nerve to face him. Deep down, he knew I was afraid of him now. But eventually I’m going to have to come out of this bathroom. I can’t stay in here forever.
Swallowing my pride, I forced myself to hold my head up high as I exited the bathroom. Darius sat on the bed inside the cabin waiting for me.
“If you were hoping to sway me from believing in God with that little stunt you just pulled, you’ve failed miserably. If anything, you’ve proven the exact opposite,” I glared at him, “And while I may be afraid of you, you’re the true coward here. What sort of man picks on an eighteen year old girl who’s clearly outmatched as you so cleverly demonstrated? Is that what gets you off? Tormenting those you feel are weaker than you?”
A smile tugged at his lips. “Unbreakable. Good.” Darius rose, took my hand into his and kissed the back of my palm. I snatched my hand away, “Forgive me for testing you in this way, but as my wife you’ll be privileged to much knowledge about me. My enemies will want to break you to get to it.”
“Are you serious? This was all some big test?” I gaped at him.
“You’re marrying into the Draven family, and your humanity is a weakness. If my enemies were to get their hands on you they’d likely torture you to death to get the information. After you gave up James so easily I needed to be sure you could hold up to the things that mattered to you most.”
“What makes you think I’ll care what happens to you after what you just did?”
“Because you have feelings for me.”
I started to protest and choked on the words before they could ever make it out of my mouth. He’s right. I do have feelings for him, but I didn’t want him to know that. I didn’t want him to know he could get to me. “Don’t ever touch me like that again,” I grit my teeth, “Don’t feed on me, don’t play with my emotions and don’t threaten me.”
I poked him in the chest with my finger, and he grabbed my wrist, “My apologies. I know my methods were savage, but it was the only way to know.”
Darius entwined our fingers together, brought my hand up to his lips and took my finger into his mouth. He sucked on my finger as if it were a Popsicle. I stopped breathing. “You know, you’re not the only one whose feelings have betrayed them. By all accounts I despise humans. I despise pretty much all of them except you. I find myself wanting to be near you or thinking about you when I would normally care less. I’ve grown feelings for you too Giselle,” he slid my finger back into his mouth.
A prick to my finger jolted me back to reality. He bit my finger after I just told him not to feed on me. A wicked smile spread across his face.
“Did my words go through one ear and out the other?”
“I’m sorry, what?”
Narrowing my eyes at him, I pulled my finger from his grasp. He bit his own finger, drawing blood, and smoothed it over my wound. The wound vanished, but the blood remained. He sucked it off and quickly pressed his lips to mine, erasing all thoughts from my mind.
If his thirst for blood was as strong as my thirst for him, then it was no wonder he couldn’t stop biting me. I don’t know which one of us clawed at the other more. With trembling fingers I traced his strong arms and powerful shoulders, daring to embrace him. His lips devoured my neck and he marked it with his tongue. I fought hard to catch a decent breath with his hands all over me the way they were.
In such a small, confined cabin, Darius was a potent force. With every gaze his eyes begged me to submit to him, obey him, and let him have his way with me.
In the haze of his touch I forgot myself, getting lost in the ecstasy of it. My dress dropped to the floor around my feet and I jolted back to reality, backing away from him. I quickly picked my dress up off the floor and shrugged it back onto my shoulders.
“It should be a crime to seduce girls as well as you do,” I told him.
“Only if I don’t deliver,” he smirked.
Dangerous. So-so dangerous. I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding. And this was only our first day at sea. Something tells me this is going to be a long three days.
“Lord Darius, your meal is waiting,” One of the kitchen staff came to inform us.
Darius nodded and she left. He took me to the dining room and we ate in silence. I tried to push thoughts of Darius to the back of my mind. It was no use. He conquered every part of my mind. One minute he pushed me beyond my personal boundaries with his devilish nature, and the next he reeled me back in with his charm.
I should be running from him, but like a moth to a flame, I found myself beyond attracted to him. Or maybe it was the dreams that drove me mad with desire for him. God knows I’ve fought with myself not to give in to his ploys. He is still very much a puzzle to me and he’s still very off-limits. Darius only lets me in when he wants to, which isn’t often. I have to pry to learn what I can about him. And even then, he only gives me so much. He’s always so guarded.
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