Page 58 of The Vampire's Bride

As per our bargain, he drinks from me every three days. Each time he does, it leaves my heart pounding and my entire body aching for a closeness we have yet to explore. It’s the most intimate thing I’ve ever experienced, and it ignites a desire within for something more… something deeper.

I want so much to tell him all of this, but every time I try, the words get stuck in my throat. I’m falling in love with my husband, and I’m so afraid that he doesn’t feel the same. I long to reach for him and voice my desires, but I’m not sure if I’m willing to risk losing what we have if he rejects me.

So I bite my tongue and the unspoken questions linger between us as the sun’s final rays slip beneath the horizon, giving way to the darkness of night.

As we sit on the bench, I lean against him, staring up at the night sky. “Do you see that one?” I point to the guiding star of the north. “I used to make a wish on that star almost every night when I was a child.”

“What did you wish for?”

“Lots of things.” I grin. “For a while, I used to wish that I could see a unicorn, until my mother told me there weren’t any left.”

“There are,” he says, and I blink at him, stunned. “It is a lie to protect them from being hunted by men.”

“Have you seen one?”

He shakes his head. “Damar has. Most of them live in Anlara—the Fae Kingdom.”

“I also wanted to see a Dragon,” I tell him. “But then I met a Dwarf who told me what fearsome beings they are. and I changed my mind.” I smile at him. “That’s also when I started wishing that I could see a real-life pixie.”

Valaric’s expression softens and his lips quirk at the edges in a smile. “Perhaps we can find a way to make that come true.”

Heat rises in my cheeks as he looks at me. He’s so handsome sometimes it hurts to look at him. “What about you?” I ask, turning my head slightly to hide my blush. “Did you ever stargaze?”

He nods. “My grandmother taught us all the constellations. She would tell us the stories for each one.” A faint smile curls his mouth. “Of course, me and my brother loved the tale of the “Great Warrior,” but my sister”—his voice thickens with emotion—“she was fascinated with the story of the “Goddess of Spring.”

Gently, I squeeze his hand, my heart breaking for all that he’s lost.

“I wish you could have met them,” he says softly. “I think they would have liked you.”

“I feel the same about my father.”

“He wouldn’t have cared that I’m a Vampire?” Valaric arches a brow. “Worried that his daughter was placed under a thrall.”

I laugh. “All right, maybe he would have been concerned at first,” I admit with a grin. “But he would have eventually come around.”

The winter landscape stretches around us, a serene blanket of snow covering every surface. The cold air bites at my skin, but I don’t mind. Valaric’s nearness and his hand in mine is enough to keep me warm.

Our conversation is interrupted by the sound of footsteps crunching through the snow. Eben appears, a wide grin on his face, a bow in one hand and a quiver of arrows slung over hisshoulder. “Good evening.” He looks at me. “I thought we might start our training.”

Valaric tenses, his crimson eyes locked onto the wolf shifter. “What training?”

To anyone else, my husband might appear composed, but I notice the tic of the muscles along his jaw and the slight narrowing of his eyes.

Eben flashes a sly grin. “I thought I’d give your lovely wife a few archery lessons.”

Until now, Valaric has been my only instructor, and we’ve been practicing with wooden staffs instead of actual weapons. Eben is constantly teasing Valaric that he is going to steal me away from him. It’s all in good jest, but Elsie said Vampires are like wolf shifters—extremely possessive of their mates.

And as darkness begins to bleed in around the edges of Valaric’s blood red eyes, it seems Eben may have taken his joking a bit too far lately.

Valaric rises with a fluid grace, his movements deceptively calm. He strides over to Eben, snatching the bow and quiver from his friend’s grasp. “As I am more proficient with the bow and arrow, yourlessons”—he emphasizes the word—“will not be necessary.Iwill teach Juliet.”

Eben chuckles, raising his hands in surrender. “All right, all right,” he says, backing away with a playful smirk. “Just trying to help, Val. Don’t get your fangs in a twist.” He winks at me, and Valaric growls low in his throat. “I’ll leave you both to it then.”

Valaric watches Eben retreat, leveling a dark glare in his direction until he disappears from view. Then he turns to me, his expression softening. “Shall we begin?”

After he sets up a target, Valaric stands behind me. My back is pressed against his solid, muscular chest, and my pulse quickens as his powerful form covers mine. I nearly drop thebow as his strong arms encircle me, his hands resting over my own, and his masculine scent flooding my senses.

“Like this,” he murmurs, the smell of warm mint skating over my cheek as his lips brush the shell of my ear.

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