The Vampire Prince’s Bride

by T. S. Ryder

  “May I come in?” he asked, careful to pose his body in such a way as to communicate that he was not a threat, though he was not sure it would work on a human.

  But, apparently, it did, because Bianca opened the door wider and stepped back to let him in. For her sake, he moved slowly and sat on the bed. Bianca leaned against the door, her eyes firmly on him. She was nervous and quiet, looking so fragile in a soft cotton shift with her hair loose, wavy tresses reaching just a few inches below her shoulders. He knew she needed to process this in her own way and at her own pace, and was willing to give her any help she needed to deal with everything she’d seen tonight.

  “What are you?” she asked, her voice strained and weak.

  “You know what I am,” he replied softly.

  She took a breath and nodded. “I do... but I can’t bring myself to say it.”

  “That’s okay,” he told her, nodding. “You don’t have to.” She nodded, and the room felt silent again. “Do you want to talk about it?” Eric asked, letting her know he was there if she needed it.

  Bianca looked uncertain. “I want to know what happened in the garage,” she told him. “I want to know where I am... what’ll happen next,” she said, and the tremble in her voice spoke volumes about how much she feared the answers to those questions.

  “I am the Alpha of my Pack,” he told her openly, seeing no need to mince words. “And it would seem my brother Jason is trying to take my place. I won’t go into details, but the gist of it is that he tried to frame Hector for embezzlement, hoping we’d jump at each other’s throats over it, which would eliminate one or both of us for him. But he underestimated how much we trusted each other, and when he heard we’d be hiring an outside firm to investigate, he panicked and attacked. You and Janet just... got caught in the middle of it.”

  She nodded along as she listened, and he did his best to remain calm and collected and fight the urge to scoop her into his arms and never let her go.

  “We’re near War Pound Ridge now,” he continued. “We’re registered as a housing estate, and it’s where most of the Pack members live. This house belongs to me as the current Alpha, and if you need anything at all, just find a staff member and ask for it. They’re all instructed to give you anything you need.” He paused, and cautiously added, “Except let you go – but only until this thing with Jason is dealt with. It’s not safe for you to be out there alone right now, but I promise you that, as soon as it is, you’re free to go.”

  She did not look convinced.

  “Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell the authorities about you?” she asked skeptically.

  Eric shook his head. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but... who’d believe you? Werewolves belong in fiction, don’t they?”

  She lowered her head, but she scoffed a little, and Eric smiled. She was shocked and hurt and afraid, but she was strong, so strong. A lesser person would be banging on the nuthouse door by now, but not his Bianca.

  “Do you know when all this’ll be over?” she asked him.

  “A day or two,” he replied. “My men are already out looking for Jason, and as soon as they find him, he’ll be dealt with.”

  Bianca raised her head again. “Are you going to kill him?” she asked, and Eric nodded, grim. “Good,” she said, squaring her shoulders. “I know he’s your brother, but I want to see him dead.” Eric chuckled. Oh, yeah. Definitely Mate-material.

  But that was something he would discuss with her later. Even if she didn’t turn out to be his fated one, he still intended to pursue a relationship with her, if she wanted him. Because there was no denying he wanted her. In his bed, in his life... forever.

  He stood up, slowly, and walked to the door.

  “I’m gonna go now and let you rest,” he told her, “I just came by to see if you’re okay.”

  He reached for the doorknob, expecting her to move away so he could leave... but she didn’t. Instead, she slowly raised a hand and put it over his. “And if I asked you to stay... would you?” she asked, her voice but a whisper.

  Eric felt his entire body respond to that touch, desire rousing in the pit of his stomach. “I would do anything you asked me to,” he murmured, lowering his head to hers, laying a kiss on the top of her head. Her hair smelled like the same shampoo he used. Every bathroom in the house was stocked with the same brand, and it made him feel ridiculously happy, as though she had chosen to mark herself as his.

  Her hand traveled up his arm, up his shoulder and neck, until she cupped his chin and whispered, “Then stay.”

  Eric sighed at the touch, the skin her palm covered starting a strong, slow burn. “Bianca...” he pleaded, not caring about his pride, but all she did in reply was peel herself away from the door and step into him. His heart pumped faster, threatening to burst out of his chest when she slid her other hand across his torso before reaching up and snaking it to the back of his head. “Stay,” she murmured, looking into his eyes, and he could see it – the longing, the hunger and all the fear and sadness she was trying to fight off. She was looking for comfort and protection, and he... he really wanted to be the one she received it from.

  Slowly, Eric lowered his lips to hers and kissed her, more gently than he thought he was capable of at this point. Bianca sighed, melting into him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. He pulled her into an embrace, tight and warm, and deepened the kiss.

  Chapter Seven

  Bianca knew that what she was doing – what she was feeling – made no sense at all. Eric (because, after tonight, he could never be just Mr. McKenna) was right; she should rest. But laying alone in a strange bed, a strange house, strange... everything just didn’t seem like the right thing to do.

  She had nearly died tonight and had found out about an entirely new world that existed parallel to hers, a dangerous world that she could now never discount as fantasy again. She could no longer stay on the sidelines of her own life, a life that she only now realized could be taken away from her so easily, by man and monster alike. Tonight, she would go for what she craved because Heavens only knew whether she’d ever get a chance again.

  She did not expect Eric to react the way he did. She was afraid of rejection just as much as always, if not more, but she was no longer afraid to try. So what if he turned her down? It made perfect sense that he would, and she was ready for it – but what if, for once, she was lucky, she wondered... and found out just that.

  She moaned as his tongue slipped into her mouth, coaxing hers to come out and play, and replied with all the eagerness of the desire that had permeated her since the moment she laid eyes on him. He held her so close that she could feel the beating of his heart against her chest and the hardness of him under that terrycloth robe. It was such a clear proof of his lust that it made her shiver with joy. Moving a little, he pressed them both against the door, his hands beginning to move over her skin. They were surprisingly smooth hands that made her tremble at his touch, her entire body swaying to lean against his. She was aching to touch more of him, and he was happy to give her what she wanted.

  When Janet and one of the maids working in the house had brought her to this room, they had given her a cotton shift to wear and taken her clothes to be cleaned and pressed for tomorrow, so that scrap of fabric that barely reached her knees was the only thing she was wearing. It had thin straps and buttons in the front, but it was big enough that she could take it off without undoing them.

  But Eric fully intended to do so, popping a few buttons open when his hands finally reached her breasts. Gasping for air, Bianca broke the kiss, leaning her head against the door as she tried to catch her breath, but Eric didn’t seem to mind. He simply moved down to her neck, traveling down the column of it in wet, hot kisses, while he slipped his left arm around her waist and his right hand underneath the shift, reaching for her breast.

  Bianca moaned, feeling herself rise on tiptoes, her entire body taut as a guitar string. She looked down and could see Eric’s hand as he squeezed her breast, the sup
ple flesh overflowing his palm. He had her nipple between the knuckles off the middle and index finger, and every time he kneaded her they pinched the sensitive nub, sending shivers of pleasure down her spine.

  With one hand, she tried to reach for the light switch to her right, but Eric caught her hand by the wrist with his left hand and pinned it above her head. “No,” he murmured, the voice almost a growl, and when he raised his head to meet her eyes, she could see his had turned into the glittering gold of his werewolf self. “I... I’m not very attractive naked,” she mumbled, suddenly feeling awkward. What she should’ve said was that she wasn’t very attractive at all, but she decided not to mope too much.

  Eric smiled. “I don’t know what you see when you look into the mirror, Bianca,” he cooed to her, “But when I look at you, I see the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met, the woman I’ve been fantasizing about having since the moment I saw her. Every time you came into my office today, I wanted to pull you into my lap and put my hand up your panties to make you come so hard the entire building would shake, before sprawling you on my desk to take you good and hard. And that wasn’t even the only thing I wanted to do to you today. I’ve had more fantasies about you in the one day I’ve known you than all the other women I’ve ever daydreamed of put together.”

  He let go of her for a moment, then, to slip out of his robe, letting her enjoy the sight of his masculine beauty: golden skin taut over hard, lean muscle dusted with fine, sandy gold hair. Then he pressed his hips against her, letting her feel the full, thick length of him as he lowered his lips to her ear. “I’m making love to you tonight... and I want to see every inch of you as I do so,” he whispered, and nibbled lightly on her earlobe, making her moan aloud. No one had ever spoken to her in this way. No one had ever told her they wanted her so badly, or said so in such graphic detail. She knew she should just take whatever he was giving her, whether it be true desire or temporary insanity, but she couldn’t help herself. She had to address the elephant in the room.

  Namely, her.

  “I’m fat,” she mewled meekly.

  Eric put his hands on the sides of her face and gently tilted her head so she would look at him. “Yes, you are overweight. That doesn’t mean you aren’t beautiful,” he said, and he sounded, of all things, honest. “One does not exclude the other,” he told her. “And if you need proof, just let me keep the lights on.” His hands traveled down, his touch so light she barely felt his fingertips flutter across her skin, reaching for the buttons of the shift again, undoing them all this time, slowly, while his eyes feasted on the sight of her.

  He looked like a man surveying his greatest treasure, pure hunger in his eyes as they lingered lovingly over her heavy breasts, rounded stomach and full hips with the small, triangular tuft of short, curly chestnut hair in the middle. It made her so hot to watch him as he watched her, and she could feel herself growing so wet for him that he could probably take her right there, right then.

  But Eric seemed to be in the mood to savor his pleasures, so he gently pushed the unbuttoned sides of the shift away, revealing all of her to his eager eyes. He ran his hands from her shoulders down, over the full expanse of her breasts, down the sides of her waist and to her hips, where his right hand continued to travel between her thighs and his left moved up to her back until his palm reached her shoulder blades. Holding her close, he kissed her again, a long, probing kiss that let her enjoy the taste of him while he sunk his fingers between the hot, wet folds of her. Bianca moaned and bit his lower lip, making a rough rumble vibrate in his chest, somewhere between a growl and a purr. Her body responded to it with just as much gusto as it did to the ministrations of his hand between her legs.

  Still kissing her, Eric found the nub of her clit and began rubbing his thumb against it, gentle and slow at first, but pressing harder as her sighs became louder. Her breasts rose and fell with every shaky breath, every moan and gasp, and her hips moved of their own volition, bucking into his hand, demanding more. He gave it to her with pleasure, pushing two fingers deep inside of her.

  She broke the kiss again, grabbing on to him tightly, her nails digging into his skin as she cried out loudly, too desperate for Eric to give a damn if anyone heard them or not. She’d thought of this moment, of coming apart in his arms, all day, but always scoffed at herself that it could never happen... and now that it was, it was so much better, so much more carnal than she could ever have imagined.

  And they’d only just began.

  His fingers worked her until she rode the orgasm out completely, and he gave her time to settle before he scooped her up into his arms and carried her to bed.

  Chapter Eight

  Eric laid Bianca on the bed, enjoying the sight of her flush from the orgasm he’d just given her. She was still breathing heavily, still pliant, resplendent in her voluptuous beauty, and he loved knowing that he was the one who had turned her into this creature of lust before him, completely his to do with as he pleased.

  And it pleased him to please her. He kissed her again, but soon moved from her lips to her neck and clavicle, then down to her breasts. Large and full, they spilled in their bountiful glory, and he had his fill of them, kissing and nipping at the fair flesh, teasing the hardened pink nubs of her nipples with his tongue before playfully nipping at them, loving every sound of pleasure that came from her. She had her hands on him, traveling over his arms, chest, shoulders, and back, sometimes gentle, and sometimes with the sting of her nails, and with each touch, he only wanted her more.

  He kissed her stomach next, lips and tongue teasing, tantalizing, placing light nibbles on the sides of her torso, priming her before he gently nudged her into turning over into the position he wanted her in – on her knees, legs spread, hips high, and resting her forearms on the pillow. He ran his fingers across her back, savoring the feel if her skin, and then moved down to her backside, making her moan when he squeezed her with full palms, leaving a pink handprint on each sweet, ample cheek before he entered her in one swift, hard motion.

  Bianca cried out, her head lifting back, and he groaned loudly, almost falling over her – that’s how good it felt! He held her from behind, her back tight against his chest, his arm circling her stomach, while they stayed there for a moment, joined to the fullest, enjoying the raw intensity of it. He could feel her muscles softening around him, adapting to his presence, his size, and the cream of her wetness coating him. Eric leaned down forward and put a soft, wet kiss on her shoulder before he finally rose again and began to move, his hands on her hips, pushing into her with long, slow strokes until he felt her fully relax.

  And then he gave himself over to desire completely, and began to drive into her, every stroke a little faster, a little harder, each followed by a low, rolling grunt as he gained his tempo, goaded by the wordless pleas Bianca uttered each time he hit the right spot.

  Desperate to jump over the edge with her, together, Eric slipped his hand under her and reached around to her clit again, pressing the lusciously sensitive pearl of flesh in time with his thrusts. Bianca responded to it beautifully, rising up to grab onto the pillow and bite into it. He moved the hand that held on to her to brace himself against the headboard as he lowered his body down without losing his beat. “Tell me how you want me, Bianca,” he purred into her ear. “Faster? Harder?”

  She looked over her shoulder to him, her eyes glazed over with smoldering desire, and pleaded, “Harder... yes... please!” with a desperate need that matched his own, and it was all he needed to hear.

  With raw passion, he pushed into Bianca’s heat, his fingers working her clit hard. When he felt her sweet, juicy flesh quivering around him and heard her ecstatic moans growing louder and louder until they melted into one final, shattering cry, that was all that he needed to come undone and climax with a howl of ferocious satisfaction.

  Chapter Nine

  Bianca dozed off in Eric’s arms, their limbs tangled, exhausted, warm and deliciously sore, but stirred awake again when she felt
him moving away. “Eric?” she called for him sleepily, and he turned around to give her a soft, slow kiss.

  “Shhh... sleep. I’ll be back in a few hours,” he told her.

  “Where are you going?” she asked, and he replied with a smile that was positively wolfish.

  “Listen,” he said. Out there in the distance, howls filled the silence of the night. “The moon is full and my Pack is calling,” he told her, smiling, and kissed her again. “Sleep,” he whispered, “I’ll be back before you know it and give you the best wake-up of your life.” Bianca couldn’t help but chuckle to that. She pulled him into her arms for another long, lingering kiss before she let him go.

  Eric went to open the window, an image of beauty and power as he stood bathed in the silver moonlight, and shifted right in front of her. It was a captivating sight, full of fluid elegance, as his body morphed from human to that macabre yet fascinating creature again. Bianca wondered how she could ever think of him as a monster.

  Sitting up, she reached for him, and Eric moved towards her on all fours until his massive, shaggy head was under her palm. “It’s so soft,” she whispered, amazed at how his fur felt on her skin, “I thought it’d be rough... like dog fur.” Eric let out a sound that reminded her of a scoffing laugh and let her pet him a little longer before he nipped at her fingers lightly, golden eyes shining in the dark, and jumped out of the window in one graceful leap. Bianca rushed to the window, and saw him land on his feet and break into a swift run, much faster than anything in nature could possibly move.

  God, what did she get herself into, she wondered, but not for too long. As sudden and profound as this new change to her life was, she loved the way Eric made her feel and wanted to see what this thing between them was and what it could develop into. With a happy little sigh, she closed the window and went back to bed. Sleep claimed her quickly, soothing and deep... so deep that she didn’t even notice someone was in the room until a hand pressed hard over her mouth, waking her up with a panicked start.