by Emily Bex
“My plans? Oh, well, I guess my plans are spoiled, because I had planned to keep you busy in bed, but if you must get up, then I guess I’ll finish up in the nursery.”
He threw back his head laughing. “Keeping me in bed, si? Now you know,” smacking her ass lightly. “I would rather cancel what I have to do and stick to your plan, but I have things to attend to. But show me the nursery, please? I want to see what you have done.”
She climbed out of bed and slipped back into her clothes. “Lover, I guess this means...for the next several months, it’s Luca you will seek out to feed from? I know why it has to be. But maybe you could have a schedule, so I don't have to be here.”
Lowering his head, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I have no choice, mi amore, I need blood. My alternative is a feeder, and I will not do that. It will have to be Luca. I push out my feedings as long as possible, and I will be discreet. I know you don’t want details, but you must know, because I want you to understand. This is not something I wish to do, but I would be lost without Luca. He offered, it was not a command. I had not actually thought of it, but without him, you would have a female feeder living with us throughout, to feed me at my command.”
“Shade, no. I’m not judging. I understand your need, and I appreciate Luca's offer because, quite frankly, if your only option was to have a female feeder, there’d be no babies. I can't even bear the thought of it. I chose Luca, you know I chose Luca. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy when I can hear the sounds of pleasure from both of you, sharing something so intimate that was meant for us. There will be no female feeders in this house. Not now, not ever! And those are my rules.”
Getting down on one knee, he lowered his head in honor to her. “My queen has spoken, and I shall abide by her ruling. But as a subject of my lady, may I have one small request?”
She bit her lip to keep from smiling. “You know, my loyal subject, your queen can deny you nothing, unless it's for a feeder, in which case, you better get off your knees and start running.”
He threw back his head. “Damn, you are a little firecracker when you get jealous, and I like it, si!” Reaching up, he pulled her onto his knee, and got serious. “Mi amore, please do not judge, nor take this out on Luca. Treat him no different, he will feel bad enough. Be kind to him, he does us both a great service. I love you. No other. Luca has been raised as was I, to be in a brotherhood, to take care of our own. In our culture, this arrangement is not odd or unusual, but creates a stronger bond between us. He adores you, do not ruin that by looking at him any differently, I ask this of you please.”
“I don't judge him at all. I appreciate his willingness to do this. I wouldn’t dream of treating him differently. His decision to offer himself to you has spared me the agony of you being with a feeder. And for that, I’ll be forever grateful. Because...” She shook her head. “If a feeder ever walked into this house, my reaction to her would put your beast to shame, and that's a promise.”
He kissed her cheek and smiled. “What did I ever do to deserve such a beautiful heart? Now get your ass up and show me this nursery. I have things to do, woman!”
“Come with me then. The room isn’t finished, but I’ve done a lot with Luca's help. You’ll get the general idea. I‘m thinking, since you said Theresa was also trained as a nanny, I’d make a place for her to sleep in that room as well, at least while he’s still a baby.”
She led him to the room, decorated in red and white checks, and a nanny’s bed in an alcove. He admired the work she’d done, as he took her by the hand. There was more she needed to know now, about when the baby is born.
“Kate. Sit here beside me.” He took a seat on the nanny’s bed and held his hand out to her. “There are things to discuss about this bambino.”
She sat beside him. His tone was serious and she looked at him with a creased brow. “Is everything all right?”
“Si, everything is as it should be. Had you been immortal when our baby was born, I would understand clearly our baby’s needs. But this baby, half-mortal, half-vampire. There are things I do not know. An immortal pregnancy is only six months. I don’t know if that still holds true for you. The specialist will know. He will drink blood. But like Cory, he will consume human food. We may not know the answers to all the questions until he is here. But as part vampire, he will need blood. Initially, he feeds from you, but his body grows fast, si? Like all babies, and his needs are great. I feed from you as well, and your body will not sustain both of us. Infant vampires feed from their nannies. So, there will come a point, very quickly, that Theresa will feed our child.”
Kate stood up and paced the room. She loved Theresa, and she had no reservations about Theresa feeding her child. But she envisioned feeding her own children. She understood what he was saying, that he must feed from her as well. She comprehended the logic of it. She was just wrestling with the emotions of it.
He watched her response, and gauged when he could tell her the rest. “You understand, mi amore?”
“I understand, lover.”
“Si. There is more.” He took both of her hands and held them firmly. “Theresa can only sustain him for so long. The bambino will feed for a lifetime. Unlike an adult vampire, the bambino will not feel a sexual bond to his feeder. That does not happen until the bambino grows to be a young man or woman, around eighteen to twenty years. Until then, the feeding is just feeding, you understand, si?”
Kate was trying to pull her hands free, but he held her in a firm grip.
“You must listen, Kate. Listen with an open heart. There are feeders that are bred for this purpose and this purpose alone. They are assigned to an infant at birth and remain until the vampire reaches his or her puberty at eighteen or twenty. They are pure of blood and serve that one bambino only. They are young themselves, virginal, and remain so through the duration of their service. They are called wet-feeders, like a wet-nurse in your mortal world. Once their ward reaches puberty, they can choose to remain as a wet-feeder, or they can be freed from this servitude and pursue another station in life. Each child will have their own wet-feeder. Kate, hear me please, if we have more than one child, you could not feed them all, Theresa could not feed them all, do you understand? It also helps the vampire to develop independence. To be able to survive should something happen to either of us. It insures the survival of our species.”
She broke the hold of his hands gripping hers and pulled away from him. She needed to process, she felt betrayed, angry.
“Kate, you have only one experience of feeding. I ask that you talk to Theresa. She has fed bambinos before. She can explain to you, from a woman’s perspective, the difference. Do not judge the wet-feeders yet. Talk to Theresa. And your bambinos, they will still come to you. Even with their own wet-feeder, they will still seek you out, seek out your blood. They will need to reaffirm their bond to you, feel their connection to you. They will do that until they reach puberty and become adult vampires. Bel, tell me you understand. Tell me you can do this.”
She stood with her back to him, looking out the window at the rolling hills, the vineyards in the distance. Oddly enough, she did understand. But it still broke her heart. She knew how much Shade fed from her. She knew she couldn’t sustain feeding both of them. And if they had more children, and they all fed until they were twenty...Welcome to the world of vampires, Kate.
“I can do this, lover.”
64
Heading down to the bunker, Shade saw Luca was already busy. Closing and locking the door behind him, Luca looked up to see the confused look on his face.
“I wasn’t expecting to see you here, master. Is something wrong with my lady?”
Shade frowned at him. “No, why would anything be wrong with bel? I just needed to come down and clean up some, uh, weapons I used the other night. Everything is fine.”
Luca watched him, and he wasn’t fooled. Everything may be fine between them, but something was still bothering Shade, or he wouldn’t be down here with him
when he could be with her.
“The feeding, she understands I only wanted to help the situation, right?”
“Luca, what you did last night was good. Sometimes, mortals get this image inside their heads, when they don’t know the facts, or how things operate in our world. Bel is worse, I think.” He smiled and gave Luca a slap on the back.
“I know I’m still new here, master, and this is new to her. I know no other life, no other reality, so it’s hard to understand a mortal’s jealousy, but I try to see it through her eyes.”
Shade grabbed the knife sharpener and started sharpening his blades. As he rolled things over in his head, he got lost in his thoughts and kept grinding away at the blade.
Luca kept watching him work. He definitely had his mind on something and he could only assume it was my lady and the baby. He didn’t appear angry, but damn, he’d have no blade left if he kept up this pace.
“Master, you expect to have any blade left on that knife? At this pace, it will be useless.”
Shade paused and looked down at the knife and sighed. “I have a lot on my mind, Luca. Something I want to ask you.”
Luca stopped cleaning the weapon in his hand and gave Shade his full attention. “I’m all ears, master. I’ll do what I can to answer.”
“That is good Luca, because I need to talk to another warrior. When you were in the training camp, did you ever hear of an immortal impregnating a mortal female? Knew of anyone at any time?”
Luca looked at him and almost laughed. “Master, we didn’t fool with mortals in camp, you would have sliced off our balls and fed them to us. But to be honest, I’ve heard of it before. I knew it must happen, but until I met Cory, I’d never met a half-breed. I’ve seen enough to know mortal women seem drawn to immortals. Is something wrong with my lady?”
“Not exactly. But Alec made hints that I should know what the outcome will be, that the bambino might not survive, and there is the possibility bel won’t survive.” Shade threw the knife across the room, watching it hit and stick in the wall straight and true. “I am worried. I cannot lose her. I cannot lose the bambino. Everything is out of my control. I have no idea what to do. I never thought this would happen. I want bambinos with bel. But Alec also reminded me that if the bambino survives, it will be a half-breed, not fully vampire, and not accepted in our community. The Council will never accept him, and he could never be a warrior. He could not be king.”
Luca watched his struggle. He knew this was going to be rough. If she lost the baby, she’d be devastated, and he’d lose his mind. And if he lost her, Luca couldn’t even process that thought.
“Master, do you not have someone special to help with this? I know the doctor was here. I know he is sending you elsewhere for help. That has to mean something?”
Shade looked at Luca and sighed. “I hope so, Luca. Perhaps the specialist that is coming will know something. Perhaps he will have answers. It is the only hope I can cling to at the moment. It tears me up inside.”
Luca stared at him and could see the worry in his eyes. Luca knew Shade would give his own life if he could save my lady and their child. He didn’t say anything. Shade wouldn’t have heard him anyway. His mind was in a twisted battle, trying to work it out. Standing up, Luca clapped him on the back and walked to the door. Turning to see him staring into space, Luca hoped this turned out okay for all of them. He’d have his hands full with both of them if anything should happen to this baby.
65
Rissa made use of her time before Alec got home by catching up on a few phone calls. She’d finally met with the feeder and she was perfect to destroy the happy little home of Kate and Shade. Rissa couldn’t wait to see this little show play out. Before she’d left the feeder compound, she’d asked the feeder to pose for her, and Rissa was thrilled with the picture. She wanted Alec to have a good look at the hot sex goddess she planned to land in Shade’s lap. Perhaps it would spark his interest and she could tease him as well. She was desperate for his attention.
She wanted Alec fucking her hard, taking her and giving her what she wanted. His teasing and holding out was driving her out of her mind. She printed out the photo of the feeder from her phone, and laid it near the bottle of Midnight and cigarette box. She knew he’d find it when he arrived home. Writing a small note, she laid it beside the photo.
My Wicked Vampire....
I think she will tempt your warrior and ruin a
mortal’s naive thoughts of happiness in our immortal
world.
Always,
Your Devious Darling
Grabbing her bag, she left for the gym with a swing in her hips and a wicked smile on her face.
***
Alec got home late, and headed for the family room to fix a drink. He saw a photo propped against the bottle of Midnight along with her note. He read the note then picked up the photograph. He had to chuckle in spite of himself. She was all tits and ass. Even her curves had curves as he looked at her breast spilling over the top of her dress. Her mass of red hair tumbled down around her shoulders. She looked tall, like all natural-born vampire females and equal to handling whatever the male beast could dish out.
Alec wanted to make sure she understood what he wanted her to do. Shade must be delirious by now if he hadn’t fed from that mortal since he learned she was pregnant. The very scent of a feeder's blood would push him over the edge. Alec wanted her to push him balls to the wall the minute she walked in the door. Alec summoned his manservant, Santos. He’d been with him for four hundred years, and they had an understanding. Alec didn’t want to see or hear him; however he was to make sure everything he wanted was where he wanted it when he wanted it and to show up only when he was summoned.
Santos appeared in the doorway. “Yes, master?"
Alec held up the picture of the feeder. “This feeder Rissa hired, find her and bring her here, now.”
Santos nodded. “Yes, master, I will take care of it."
Alec passed the time returning phone calls and had moved on to checking a few things on his laptop when he heard Santos at the door. He looked up to see him standing there with the feeder. Her red hair hung in a mass of loose curls down to her shoulders, her full lips painted glossy red, her tits strained against the fabric of her barely there dress and bulged over the top of her low-cut neckline. She was all curves; tits, hips, and ass. Rissa had outdone herself.
“And your name is?”
“Desire, master. My name is Desire."
He laughed out loud. “Of course it is, and a well-deserved name, I'm sure. You can go now, Santos. And you, Desire...you need to come in and take a seat. We have much to discuss.” His body responded unbidden to the pheromones the feeder released, and he had to fight his own desire to take her where she stood, pushing back the beast.
She moved into the room with the gracefulness of a jungle cat, a slow walk that allowed her to roll her ample hips. She was wearing at least a 4" stiletto shoe that was all straps and accentuated the narrowness of her ankle and the curve of her calf, in a dress that stopped high on her thighs. She sat across from him and crossed her legs, making sure he noticed she wasn’t wearing panties.
With his eyes locked on the sensuous movements of the feeder crossing her legs, as if in slow motion, he felt his cock grow hard. “I assume Rissa has filled you in on your assignment?”
"I know a little, master,” she practically purred when she spoke in her soft, breathy voice. “I know I’ve been asked to service a vampire whose mate is pregnant."
“Yes, well, that is the case, but I want much more from you than that, Desire. This vamp is a warrior. He’s my best warrior, and much to my dismay, he has mated with a mortal. I find he’s much too distracted by all the drama this mortal has created in his life, and your assignment will be to break up that union. This mortal doesn’t understand the ways of our world. She won’t be happy to learn her newly found mate must spend the next four or five months feeding from another woman, and certainly won’t
be happy to learn her mate will be enjoying all the pleasures your ample body has to offer him while she lies alone in her bed, listening to the sounds of his pleasure you so expertly provide.”
"Of course, master, it’s what I was bred for."
“Yes, well, it may not be as easy as you may think. This warrior, he has some romantic idea that he can somehow get around his need to feed. I know he hasn’t fed from his mate since they learned she was pregnant, so from that perspective, he’ll be easy prey, but he may try to resist you. Your job is to make sure he can't.
“When Rissa takes you to their home, I want you to zero in on him immediately, lock eyes with him, go straight to him, touch him, rub up against him, make sure he picks up your scent. I want you to masturbate yourself in the car on the way over, take yourself to the brink of orgasm, but do not cum. I want you to smell like sex when you walk in the door and I want that scent to hit him like a cannonball fired at his chest, and I want your own need to be felt by him. I want you to radiate so much sex that any male vamp within a hundred yards of you that night will have an immediate erection. Are you up for the task, Desire?”
"This may be my most fun assignment yet, master, and I assure you, I’m up for the task."
He chuckled to himself, almost feeling sorry for the torment Shade was about to endure, but Shade would thank him later, after he sampled the delights of what was clearly the most delectable feeder Alec had ever seen.
“Desire, I’ll grant your wish for anything you want, and believe me, I have the means to provide it, if you can push him to the point where he takes you right there on the floor with that mousy mortal mate looking on.”
"Not a problem, master, ask and you shall receive. Now, what can I do for you?"
***
Rissa arrived home later than she planned and kicked off her gym shoes as soon as she came in the door. She’d seen Alec's car outside, so she knew he was home. She headed for the family room, sure she’d find him there having a drink and unwinding, and she was eager to find out what he thought of the feeder she’d selected. As she approached the hallway, she heard voices, and picked up the scent of another female. When she entered the family room, she saw Alec on the sofa, his suit jacket tossed to the side, his white dress shirt still on but unbuttoned, his tie hanging loosely from his neck. Both arms were spread across the back of the sofa, as his head was laid back, eyes closed, lips slightly parted. Her eyes traveled down his body and saw the mass of red curls bobbing between his legs, her body almost obstructed from Rissa’s view by the table that sat in front of the sofa. She paused briefly as she took in the scene and tried to process what she was seeing. As she did so, Alec raised his head and looked at her, smiled, and held out his hand to her, and said, "Come join us, darling."