“I…I killed people, Lucius.” I whispered into his chest as I felt the tears get too heavy and fall, soaking his dark T shirt. I felt the crook of his finger under my chin and as he raised my face up, I found him looking down at me tenderly. Then he wiped my tears away and said,
“You only did what you had to do, sweetheart.”
“I know but…” At this he placed a finger over my lips and said more sternly this time,
“There is no buts with that one, Amelia, there is only death and suffering to those that try to take you away from me and for doing so without hesitation on your part, is what makes me proud…you did so well, sweetheart…so well,” he told me, whispering this last part over my lips after tipping my face up even more, so he could seal his words with a soft and gentle kiss.
“So, you’re not mad at me?” I asked in what I knew was a shy voice.
“No, I’m not mad at you, I am angry at myself for not being there, for not protecting you the way I should have.”
“Lucius that’s not…” I tried but he cut me off.
“But that changes from this moment on, do you understand, for you will always be by my side from now on, where you will remain,” he told me making me visibly gulp before needing to clear my voice.
“But Lucius that’s not…”
“No, Amelia! There will be no fighting me on this and that is final,” he vowed and I knew in that moment it was useless even trying to get him to see sense. But the reality was clear…he felt responsible.
So, I just released a heavy sigh and remained silent, that way I wasn’t disagreeing or agreeing to anything. But instead, I looked up at him and said the only thing in that moment that was needed, for both of us.
“Kiss me.”
And thankfully…I didn’t need to ask twice.
A little time later and we were back in the car heading towards Königssee. I had to say, the moment we left the city behind I had wished it had been daylight outside, as I just knew the views would have been incredible. You could almost see it, the vast fields, woodlands, and lakes in the distance only lit by the soft touch of the moon. And to say that after Lucius’ vow to never let me leave his side, well then, I needed the solitude in that moment to try and sort out exactly what that meant in his mind.
I would have asked, but to be honest, I was actually too afraid to. Because I was rapidly losing the life I had built around me until I could barely remember what it had been like. And in my rant I had conveyed as much. Because once upon a time my life had been simple. It had been the same as most people. The route of life that consisted of getting up in the morning and going into work, whilst juggling at the time what felt like a million things.
Things that only ever mattered in that safe normal life. Things like if I had enough clean panties to last me the rest of the week? Would the rest of the milk last out just one more bowl of cereal before I have to buy another? How many toilet rolls were there in the cupboard under the sink and did I remember to pay my internet bill that month before Netflix was cut off?
These were the extent of my worries, even with who my parents were and with the knowledge of the hidden world around me. This had been my world. And now, in such a short space of time, my life had been turned upside down and shaken a few times at that just for good measure. Oh, and then add a couple of bad guys, a few fights to the death, guns, and psych ex and a ridiculously hot Vampire King who just happened to become my new boyfriend and all that safe, normal, ‘the milk might have gone sour’ life had unravelled the second I stepped inside Transfusion.
“That looks like a lot of heavy thoughts there, sweetheart,” Lucius said breaking through the silence as he had obviously been giving me this time to sort my head out. But I didn’t exactly think now was the best time to get into it.
“I am just tired,” I lied, something he actually laughed at.
“What?”
“Gods, but you’re a shit liar,” he said calling my bluff…annoyingly so.
“I don’t think I have done too badly, after all your stupid ex bought it.”
“Yes, and emphasis on the word stupid,” he remarked in a knowing tone.
“You bought it,” I argued making him shrug his shoulders and say,
“Under the circumstances, then yes you’re right but now, well I know when you are lying to me, so stop trying to change the subject and tell me, what is on your mind, Amelia.” I released another heavy sigh and decided to be honest, telling him,
“I just don’t know how any of this is going to work.”
“Ah, this again,” he commented. However, his tone was empathetic and none judging.
“I take it this has to do with what I said earlier?” he asked making me nod.
“Alright, sweetheart, we still have over an hour to go, so let’s talk.” Um, me and Lucius talking about the future of our relationship, well this should be fun, as in not at all. Because even though I had pretty much won the love lottery with finally getting to be with the man I had been obsessed with since I was sixteen, it still didn’t mean I was ready to throw my entire, independent life away for a guy.
“I think this is the part where you start talking,” Lucius said trying to prompt this awkward conversation into gear. Which is precisely why I stalled it by saying,
“I don’t know where to start.”
“Well, what are your biggest fears?” he asked and again, I went for the easy answer this time,
“That I wake up one morning and find out that sci fi never existed and Star Wars was just the name of some lame reality tv show, where famous people try to kill each other,” I said making him shake his head, but at least I got out a few deep chuckles from him.
“Let’s try and focus on reality right now.”
“But that’s just my point!” I suddenly shouted.
“Your point, sweetheart, you haven’t made a point yet, that is my point,” he said, making me shake my head a little and ask,
“Wait, I am confused, whose point are we focusing on?”
“Mine, because you haven’t made one yet!” Lucius snapped making me giggle before pointing a finger at him and saying in a cheeky tone,
“Gotchya!” He gave me an exasperated look and then one of those ‘trying to find patience from the patience tree’ type of ways, he said my name…yet…again…
“Amelia, please, I am trying to have a conversation with you about this, which is increasingly difficult when two things are happening.”
“Them being?” I asked in earnest this time.
“You stalling, and you being cute when stalling.” At this I couldn’t help but smile this time, doing so like a cat licking the cream off her paws.
“You think I’m cute?” I asked in that knowing, cocky way that was now totally teasing him, I knew this when he rolled his eyes at me.
“You fucking know I do, so stop playing with me and just tell me…”
“I miss my Lego okay!” I blurted out, then quickly frowned at myself for starting with something so lame.
“Come again?”
“Well, not just Lego, I mean that was way down the list really but somehow just ended up at the top and should have even been under Crunchy Nut Chocolate Clusters.” Lucius shook his head as if trying to make sense of my craziness and his conclusion was,
“You miss playing with toys?”
“No! Okay, so for starters Lego is not a toy…I mean, well, yes it is if you’re a kid, but to an adult collector, it is so much more, like a puzzle you frame and put on your wall.”
“People do that?” he asked with a frown that said, ‘why the fuck?’ without the words.
“Yeah…wait you’ve never seen that?” I asked realising before he said anything my mistake in asking that question. Because really, a Vampire King and puzzles? He confirmed this blunder of mine when he said,
“When in the Gods long list of names, would I have ever seen that Amelia, do I look like the puzzle junkie to you?”
“See, now that is called
making a point,” I commented with another smirk, one that had him muttering,
“Gods give me…”
“I am pretty sure you’re strong enough there, honey and anyway, just because…”
“Wait, what did you just call me?” he asked me suddenly cutting me off again and I had to say that this conversation was thankfully off the rails. In fact, it was more like flying off the track and currently hurtling into space. Although now I was unsure as to whether this was a good thing or not, considering his reaction to being called honey. Which is why I tentatively said,
“Erm…honey? Or if you don’t like that, you could be a babe, sugar, sweetie, but then that’s too close to my own pet name and there will just be sweets all over the place and left, right, and centre… but then there are things like, hottie, sexy pants, or my personal favorite, Master of the Vampire Universe, although on reflection that might be a bit too long to shout in a supermarket when I can’t find you…like when people name their cats Miss snuggle mittens…I mean, who the hell wants to be shouting that at two in the morning when you need to get the damn cat in ‘cause its thundering…please by the Gods will you stop me already!” I ended up shouting at him even though it was clear he was enjoying himself far too much to do such a thing, seeing as this was when he threw his head back at laughed at me.
“Seriously, could you be any more fucking cute!” he said through his laughter, making it hard to hold back the smile, because well one, I loved being able to make him laugh and secondly, I seriously loved it when he called me cute. But then he started shaking his head as if something had just hit him, making me ask,
“What?”
“Well, sweetheart, you are a fucking enigma.” I frowned, all traces of happy ‘cute endearment’ glow gone.
“Why?”
“Because you can be fucking adorable and cute and fucking funny in one instance and then I think back to the four broken bodies I found in your apartment that you brutally took down, then I find myself still asking how you can be the same person?” I couldn’t help but start biting my fingertip at this, both embarrassed that he had pointed this all out but liking that he was proud all the same. Which was why I commented in what I knew was a shy way,
“Well, I couldn’t exactly see the Chosen One of a Vampire King being weak and scared…not like I had been when I first came to Transfusion.” At this he granted me a soft and tender look and before saying anything he took my hand from near my mouth and pulled it to his lips to kiss.
“You are right, I am blessed with both the funny and cute personality I adore and the bad ass warrior woman that I can’t wait to get back in my bed after first showing off her new home,” he told me and this time my smile wasn’t hidden behind my fingertips or suppressed by a roll of my lips.
“I am glad you think so,” I commented after he released my hand, after first biting the tips for himself of course.
“Besides, I am looking forward to getting you on my mats and seeing what you’ve got.”
“Erm…your mats?”
“In my training room,” he told me making me gulp at this and before I started panicking that he might mean what I really hoped he didn’t mean, I asked,
“And what would I be doing there?” At this Lucius granted me his own version of total bad ass, in the way of a bad boy grin, before saying,
“Isn’t it obvious…”
“You will be fighting me.”
Chapter 7
Money Fights
“You will be fighting me,” he said making me tense.
“Erm, yeah okay, that is so not happening!” I scoffed making him raise a brow at me.
“Oh, it’s happening sweetheart, make no mistake about it, for I will have my way.”
“Oh yeah and what makes you so sure…what exactly is in it for me?” I asked with a fold of my arms.
“Well, apart from learning all I can teach you and adding to what skills you already possess…”
“Yes, apart from that, what else?” I said quickly before he could make any more of those all-important ‘good points’ of his.
“Well, then there is also the end of our training when I get to fuck you raw on those mats but just to add to the incentive, what about if I buy you all the fucking Lego sets you want…will that be enough for my arm breaking, little princess?” he asked making me burst out laughing before saying,
“Yep, that will do it!”
“Which part?” he enquired making me grin.
“Well, you will just have to wait and see, won’t you? Besides, I have always wanted the Hogwarts castle…it’s over six thousand pieces.”
“The what now?” he asked clearly clueless on yet another geek cult masterpiece. Reason why I muttered to myself,
“But of course, he hasn’t heard of Harry Potter.”
“I am taking this as yet another passion of yours?” he surmised making me wonder just how long it was going to take me to bring him up to speed on all the cult classics beloved the world over.
“Well, I do have many,” I said with a wink.
“Um, yes and I have a feeling one will take precedence over them all, starting from when I finally get you there.” I laughed at this knowing he was talking about sex and well, I had to agree with him on that one. I was getting horny just sat in this car for over an hour and well, let’s just say the leather pants weren’t helping much. Still, I felt the need to enquire,
“You seem very keen on getting me there and I have a feeling it’s not solely down to getting me into bed, seeing as if that were the case we would have just stopped at a nearby hotel for the night.” He granted me a look and again there was enough light from the dash to show me his features had turned serious.
“It is the safest place I can keep you.”
“Keep me? You make me sound like a diamond necklace,” I replied on a laugh but then he looked far too thoughtful in that moment that it compelled me to have to remind him,
“You do get that I am not a possession…right?”
“Well, you are mine,” was his blunt response and in a way that was as if he was pointing out the obvious and simply stating facts. Something that really started to worry me.
“Lucius!” was my own shocked reply.
“Alright, but you do get, that you were born for me, the Gods chose you to be mine, what do you think that means?” he asked with a raise of his brow.
“That you’re going to put me on a shelf and light me up so I look pretty?” I joked making him frown and groan.
“Oh, come on Lucius, you know what I mean,” I complained.
“No, it’s you that doesn’t understand, Amelia. You. Are. Mine. Which means this is it for you. Now, I understand this maybe a lot to take in but ask yourself, when your mother met your father, did her life stay the same?” Now this thought really had me frowning because I knew for a fact that it most certainly did not. Of course, she had been at college when she met my dad and started working for him as a waitress as a side gig. Which was when she caught his eye and after that, well destiny had already set a course for them, seeing as she was his Chosen One.
However, I also knew that because of my dad and all the things surrounding how they eventually got together, that it had taken her quite a while until she finished college. This was mainly because she got pregnant with me shortly after they were married, or at least, that’s the story they told. As I don’t know why, but I had a feeling that my dad had knocked up his Chosen One, that being my mum, before the church bells rang. And what gave it away was my dad’s face any time my mum ever told stories of the past. One time he even patted a desk in a suggestive way that totally grossed me out seeing as it was obviously to relay a secret message to my mum.
But that was my mum’s life, and this was mine we were talking about here, which was why I focused back on that.
“So, what exactly are you saying here, Lucius, that I have no choices anymore?” I couldn’t help but snap out the question.
“No, just that they are
limited,” was his tactful and pragmatic response. Needless to say, he was fooling no-one.
“And what is that supposed to mean!?”
“Exactly how it sounds, sweetheart,” he said still keeping his tone at an even level, unlike my own which was hitting highs only dogs could hear.
“Oh, don’t you sweetheart me! Exactly how it sounds isn’t my idea of how it should sound!”
“And how should it sound?” he asked, again keeping his tone calm and even, which infuriated me more.
“Like we are in a relationship, not like I am your bloody pet to be cared for and carried around like one of those poor handbag dogs that has no choice but find themselves in Louis Vuitton staring longingly out of a net window wishing they could just be free to just take a piss on the grass whenever they want!”
“What, by the Gods, are you talking about, woman!?” This was a bloody good question.
“Oh, I don’t fucking know, it’s not like I am saying pull over so I can squat on the grass here, Lucius! I am just saying that I want a say in my life and just because you are my boyfriend it doesn’t mean that I am handing over all of my important life making decisions to you.”
“Gods Amelia, but I am not your fucking boyfriend here.” Oh, now he snaps!
“Then what the hell are you!?” I asked unable to help sounding offended. He growled in frustration before snapping back,
“I am your soul mate, your eternal life partner, your King, your fucking Chosen One and who knows, maybe one day the word husband will make it in there too, but boyfriend, Gods Amelia, it sounds so…so…” Okay, so the marry me part of the night had just been confirmed as a definite joke then, although had to say…Not. Fucking. Funny.
Which was why I yelled,
“What?!”
“Juvenile,” he answered in frustration, raking a hand through his hair.
“Yeah, well it may sound juvenile to you, but that’s exactly what you are, because I am not going to start going around and introducing you as my ‘eternal life partner’ because for one, that sounds hippy and will just make me want to braid daisies in your hair, which I am pretty sure you would be opposed to?” At this he granted me a stern look and said,
Blood Of Kings (Transfusion Book 3) Page 8