by Lexi C. Foss
What was there not to like about a damn sandwich?
“Do you need mayonnaise or something?” I asked her.
“Mayonnaise?” she repeated. “I don’t know. What is it?”
I waited for the punch line, yet it didn’t come. Because she was one hundred percent serious.
Wow. I knew Lilith was a bitch, but this took it to a whole new level.
“You’re probably not familiar with chocolate either, are you?”
Her blank stare gave me the answer before she whispered, “No.”
I shook my head and focused on my sandwich. She did the same, the two of us falling into a comfortable silence with her on the stool and me standing across from her. Having company was a little weird, but not entirely deplorable. Although, we definitely had to work on her exposure to old-world things.
No mayonnaise.
No bread.
No carbs.
“This is exactly why I wanted nothing to do with the new world order,” I told her conversationally. “While some part of it makes sense from a regulation standpoint, it’s a bit overstated and, frankly, boring as fuck. There’s no chase anymore. No excitement.” I sighed and set my empty plate in the sink just as my watch buzzed.
Frowning, I glanced down at the notification, then went to the monitor hooked into the wall beside my fridge to pull up the display.
Screen number one fourteen showed me the reason for the alert.
Damien.
He gave me a wave, knowing I’d see him on the camera, then he jogged up the walkway to my front door. I hit a button on the panel next to my screen, unlocking it for him.
When I turned toward Willow again, I found her gaping at my security system. “You should see the one in my office,” I told her. “This is just the baby version.” I had one of these in every room of the house for easy access.
Most vampires invested in a security team.
I preferred technology.
“Now that you’re aware of my penchant for security, you’ll hopefully adhere to my suggestion that you not venture anywhere without my permission. Those cameras are just the tip of the iceberg, little pet. You don’t want to know what I have rigged outside.”
Damien stepped into the kitchen as I finished the last sentence, his golden-brown eyes immediately going to the blonde beauty at my counter and her half-eaten sandwich. “She cleaned up nicely,” he mused.
“She did,” I agreed, not bothering to introduce them. He knew where I found her. Until I decided what I wanted to do with her, there was no point in providing additional details. “I assume you have news for me?”
I phrased it as a question because there really was no other reason for Damien to stop by again so soon after our last meeting. And we’d just chatted on the phone yesterday when I informed him of his new Sovereign title.
“Yes.” His attention remained on Willow, his pupils flaring with interest as he took in her nude state. “It seems there are those who are not taking your candidacy seriously. I’ve received word from Silvano City of several potentials stepping forward to take over in the interim.”
“Oh?”
He hummed a confirmation before adding, “I think a show of force may be required.”
“Did Jolkin not accept your newly appointed title?” I questioned.
“He did not,” my best friend confirmed. “I considered killing him to make a point but thought you might want to do the honors.”
I considered the old sovereign of former-day Houston. “You have, what, five, six hundred years on him?”
“Seven, actually,” Damien drawled, finally taking his gaze away from my pet and shifting his focus to me. “But the pup still fancies himself king.”
I grunted. “King of Houston.” What an unfortunate title. “Do you want to remain in Houston as sovereign or take another area?” Offering a switch was the least I could do for Damien. He was the only being I trusted in this world.
Well, that wasn’t true.
I trusted one other person, but I hadn’t spoken to her in over a hundred years. Most considered her to be dead. However, she was very much alive. Just hiding and biding her time.
Similar to me.
Only I chose to hide alone.
“I would like to accompany you to Silvano City,” Damien said. “That’s where all the fireworks are going to occur, and you know how much I enjoy a good show.”
My lips twitched. “You’re just as sadistic as I am.”
“Perhaps slightly less,” he replied, moving to stand right beside Willow. “Have you tasted her yet?” He reached for her hair, pulling the strands back to expose her throat.
I approached her opposite side, repeating the action to arrange all of her blonde hair at her back.
She didn’t move.
She barely even breathed.
But I caught the flicker of fire in her gaze, even while her body openly submitted.
I leaned in to inhale her scent, my nose grazing the pulse point of her neck. “Not yet,” I admitted softly against her tender skin. “She’s still recovering.”
She swallowed, her nerves spiking just enough to tell me we were making her uncomfortable. Yet she remained obediently still, ever the trained human.
I sighed against her throat. “She needs some work.” Because I didn’t really care for subservience.
“Seems pretty perfect to me,” Damien countered.
“Because you’re into the mind manipulation Lilith has orchestrated.” Which I couldn’t fathom at all. It was a fucking travesty that defied nature.
Damien brushed his knuckles over her erect nipple. “Nothing wrong with teaching humans their place.”
I couldn’t fault the logic; I just felt there had to be a better way to go about it.
“What do you plan to do with her?” he asked.
Pulling away from her neck, I stared at her profile. “I don’t know yet.” I drew my finger down her arm, then refocused on him. “I need you to make me a list.”
“Of ideas?”
I snorted. “No. I have plenty of those. I need a list of who needs to be brought to heel in Silvano Region.”
“Hmm.” He shifted his attention away from her tits to meet my gaze. “I can do that.”
“Excellent.” I pressed my palm to Willow’s lower back. “Do you have anything else to report on, Damien?”
“No.” He glanced at my proprietary touch and took a step away from my pet. “I’ll work on a list for you.”
“Good.” I drew my thumb along Willow’s spine and admired the goose bumps pebbling down her arms. “Also, evaluate the sovereign territories. Let me know which one you fancy, and I’ll make the appropriate arrangements. After we’re done with Silvano City, I mean.” Because I wouldn’t turn down his offer of help. I’d need his alliance.
Vampires valued loyalty.
Alas, I’d turned my back on this new society, opting to live within the borderlines of two conflicting regions. No one fucked with me because I kept to myself. However, claiming temporary royalty had changed that.
I wasn’t naive. I knew I would have enemies as a result of my decision. And I welcomed those assholes to step forward and try to dance with me.
Lilith accepted my self-nomination for a reason.
I just needed to make sure everyone else in Silvano Region understood that.
Damien nodded. “I’ll let you know which territory I desire, but I’ll focus first on your list of contenders. It’s going to be long.”
“I know.” My kind adored hierarchy and respected age. All they required was a stern reminder of why they should bow to me. I’d use Damien’s list as a starting point, publicly put those opposing me in their place, and go from there. “Are you done with your sandwich, pet?”
I ran my thumb up and down Willow’s spine once more and listened as her pulse sped up.
“Yes, My Prince,” she said, addressing me formally.
I glanced at Damien. “Is that a thing I should get used to?”
>
“Yes, My Prince,” he repeated, his lips hiking upward in a taunting grin. “You’re a royal now.”
“Indeed, I am,” I replied. “In a society I don’t fully comprehend.” I’d witnessed enough to grasp the ins and outs, but I wasn’t as well versed in the human norms and rules.
Which actually gave me an idea.
I grabbed Willow’s hip and spun her on the stool, forcing her to face me and give Damien her back. “I now have a use for you.”
She didn’t meet my gaze, her submission resolute.
It irritated the shit out of me.
“Look at me when I talk to you, Willow,” I demanded.
“She’s trained not to,” Damien put in.
I muttered a curse. “When in private or around just me and Damien, I want you always to look at us. Fuck the rules.” I caught her chin between my thumb and forefinger to draw her gaze upward in demonstration. “All right?”
“Yes, My Prince.”
“Yeah, cut that shit out, too. Call me Ryder.”
“Another thing she’s taught not to call you,” Damien unhelpfully informed me. Well, technically, it was helpful. I just didn’t care for the inane edict.
“You can go now, Damien,” I told him.
He lifted a shoulder. “I have work to do anyway.”
“Yes, you do.”
“I’ll see myself out, then.” He flashed me a shit-eating grin before leaving. I waited until I heard the alarm engage again—something Damien did by pressing a button for me outside at the gate—before I locked gazes with Willow once more.
“You’re going to help me learn more about society’s current rules for humans,” I advised her. “I assume you’ve also taken classes in the current political structure?”
She blinked at me. “I… yes.”
“You know the names of all the royals and clan alphas?” I pressed. Most of them I knew as well. This was more valuable in terms of her being able to keep up with me when required.
“Yes. At least those who were in leadership roles while I was in university.”
“You’re year one hundred and what again?”
“Seventeen.”
“Which is the current year,” I said. “So you were only in the camps for a few months since the Blood Day ceremony wasn’t too long ago.” Something I only knew because of my recent stay with the Clemente Clan. The new alpha’s male playmate had been a recent addition to his territory from the Immortal Cup.
Her eyes flashed. “Only a few months?”
“Yes, pet. Maybe one or two. I’m not sure because I’ve never attended.”
“But you’re a royal,” she protested. “All royals attend.”
“Which, I suppose, means I’ll be at the next one. How fortunate for me,” I deadpanned.
Her lips parted, but no words escaped, as if I’d stolen her ability to reply. Good. This wasn’t the point of our discussion.
“You will teach me more about current customs,” I said. Not because I intended to adhere to any of the ridiculous ordinances, but because I just wanted to be aware of them. “And in private, you will always address me as Ryder. You will also look at me when I speak to you. Actually, none of the rules apply when we’re together. I’d rather you be whoever you are, not some mindless puppet.”
Now her mouth reminded me of a fish, her eyes wide with confusion.
“That’s not an attractive look, Willow,” I told her. “You’re supposed to be intriguing me, remember? Or did you lose your will to survive when Damien appeared?”
Her nostrils flared in response, but she said nothing.
“Wrong answer, pet.” I curled my fingers around her hip and yanked her into me, my opposite hand going to her throat.
Flames flourished in her blue depths. “What do you want me to say?”
“Words.”
“Words,” she repeated.
I narrowed my gaze. “Creative words.”
“Creative words.”
I started to squeeze, just enough to inform her that this little game of hers was not working for me. “Careful, Willow. Your disobedience will lead us to a place you might not enjoy.”
“But isn’t my disobedience exactly what you want from me?” she countered.
My annoyance melted marginally. “Are you being clever, little pet?”
“I don’t understand you,” she said as I wrapped an arm around her lower back, holding her to me while my opposite hand remained around her throat.
So delicate and pretty.
Fragile yet strong.
“Mmm, you really do interest me, pet,” I praised her, deciding to allow her earlier slip into her society programming. Because I could see the fighter beneath the demure exterior. I just had to work on coaxing her out to play. “This world is designed to break humans, which makes your resilience that much more alluring.”
“Are you applauding me for having a will to live?”
“I am.”
“Maybe I don’t,” she suggested, all signs of her submission disappearing beneath a wave of defiance.
“I think you do, Willow.” I slowly released her and took a step backward. “I think you haven’t survived this long just to give up now. Which is why you’re going to follow me upstairs like an obedient pet and let me show you to your new room.”
I could keep her in the basement, but I had a much more comfortable guest area attached to my suite. So long as she didn’t try to attack me with another hammer, I’d allow her to stay there.
“Are you done with this?” I asked, lifting her plate.
“Yes,” she replied, glancing at her half-eaten sandwich. “I’m… not used to large meals.”
Another issue with societal programming. Rather than comment on it, I discarded the rest of her food and set her plate in the sink. “Follow me.”
She didn’t argue.
She didn’t try to grab a knife from the block on my counter as we walked by it.
She merely trailed after me, up the stairs, down the long hall, and to the door at the end. I opened it to reveal a seating area that joined two bedrooms together. Pointing to the one on the left, I said, “That’s where I sleep. I don’t recommend entering it unless you want to fuck.” I led her to the other room, walked through the threshold, and added, “You’ll be staying in here.”
It had a queen bed, two dressers, a nightstand, a connected bathroom, and a walk-in closet. The room also opened to the wraparound balcony that spanned my entire suite. Her doors had sensors on them, though, so I would know if she stepped outside. Being on the second floor should deter her from trying to escape, but something told me this female might try it anyway.
If she did, I’d catch her.
Then I’d punish her.
My lips threatened to curl at the notion. I may actually enjoy that.
I flipped on a light to allow her to take it all in. She didn’t seem nearly as thrilled as I’d anticipated. If anything, she looked nervous with the way her eyes flicked around the space.
“Unless you prefer the basement?” I offered, turning toward her. “Personally, I think this is a little more convenient.”
“I, yes, this is… nice.” She didn’t sound very sure.
“Nice?”
“It’s…” She pinched her lips to the side as though searching for the words. I waited, giving her time to formulate whatever she wanted to say. But rather than speak, she wandered into the bathroom.
Curious, I followed.
The lights came on automatically with our movement, the switch by her door turning on the sensors in the room. She jumped and glanced upward, then searched for the source before spying the walk-in shower in the corner. It was a reasonable size meant for at least two people, with dual showerheads, a heated floor, and a few different water settings.
Just because I lived alone didn’t mean I skimped on life’s luxuries.
Willow nibbled her lip before turning toward me. “I… I don’t know how any of this works. The university had dor
ms. We shared showers. And I don’t… my memories…” She flinched, her gaze sliding to the ground.
I stepped toward. “What about your memories?”
“They’re fuzzy,” she admitted softly. “I’m having a hard time remembering the breeding camp and certain things about my past.”
“I see.” That usually happened when a human transitioned into a supernatural state. I could hardly recall my mortal days. Of course, I was fucking old. So that was to be expected. “It’s probably related to drinking my blood.”
Her eyes flashed up to mine. “It takes a human’s memories?”
I chuckled. “No, pet. It gives a human temporary immortality, which is why you were able to heal. But part of the immortal transition is to forget your mortal past.” I reached out to play with a light strand of her hair, the end curling near her breast. “It’ll pass. You just required a lot of my essence to heal.”
“Vampire blood gives humans immortality?”
“I’m guessing they didn’t teach you that at the university,” I murmured, smirking. “Wouldn’t want anyone to know such things, would we?”
This was exactly why Willow could be of use to me. As long as she continued to speak freely, I’d be able to use her knowledge and experience to craft my approach to this new world. As a twisted happenstance of fate, the young female knew more about society than I did. At least to an extent. Working as a team, we could put all the pieces together.
“Come on,” I said, tugging on her hair playfully before releasing the strand. “I’ll show you how to use the shower and the other amenities in the room. Then I’ll leave you to acclimate yourself.” I had some files to review that Damien sent over yesterday.
Playing the role of a royal vampire was going to be so much work.
Maybe I would end up serving a temporary term after all.
Only time would tell.
5
Willow
Acclimate yourself.
I wasn’t even sure what to do with that term. Nor was I sure how to handle him actually leaving me alone in the room.
He walked out.
Didn’t lock the door.
And just… left me by myself.
It took me nearly an hour before I forced myself to move around the room. I kept expecting him to appear, to tell me this was all some sort of cruel joke, but he never came back. Not even when I decided to shower. Not when I wrapped a towel around myself. Nor when I stepped outside onto the balcony to take in the scenery of his estate, bathed by the night sky.