Page 64 of Royal Bite
“Well, according to the princess, it would take more than a lycan bite to take her out,” Stormey said.
Cici smiled faintly, her shoulders dropping.
“That sounds like our princess,” Cici murmured.
Stormey spun around and moved over to the bed. As promised, Cici had laid out thick leggings, an oversized sweatshirt, and warm socks. She quickly got dressed and headed back over to the dining table. Val had outdone himself, but Stormey wasn’t going to be able to eat everything he had sent up. She made her plate and began eating.
“When I’m done, I want to go visit the princess,” Stormey announced. She took a sip of the wine Val had paired with her meal. She hadn’t really drunk wine before coming to Black Hollows, but Val had her try this one, and she had fallen in love with it. “Do you think we can cancel my lesson tonight with Miss Lavana?”
“Yes, mistress.” Cici nodded and tidied up the bedroom. She glanced back over at Stormey, looking as if she wanted to ask a question.
“Did you need something?” Stormey asked.
“You saw the battle with the lycans?” Cici asked. She made her way back to the table and took a seat in the chair across from her.
Stormey paused, not wanting to relive the memories, but it was hard to try to push them away. The sight of the lycan clamping down on Hegna’s shoulder would probably give her nightmares.
“I did. Hegna and the warriors are very brave. I didn’t know what to expect. I was so scared for them,” Stormey admitted. Even though Hegna continued to push her away, she was drawn to her. It didn’t help that Stormey had fantasized about the vampire before they’d been matched. She had in her head what she thought Hegna would be like, and she had been completely off. There was no warm welcome, no immediate feelings of love and mating. The lust and animal attraction were certainly there.
She couldn’t help but feel something for Hegna. Stormey figured she may be one of the few humans who felt the bond between the two of them. Maybe it was because she had opened her heart and mind to the idea of fate. But Hegna was proving to be much different than how she presented herself. The way she’d been with Maisie had Stormey falling for the princess. She may try to appear tough and lethal, but she had a heart. Who knew the hardened heir to the vampire throne had a thing for children?
Stormey wasn’t going to give up on Hegna. She was going to make her want her. There was no doubt the sexual tension between them was through the roof. The looks Hegna gave her always held heat, passion, and possessiveness.
But Stormey wanted more, and she was going to demand it.
She wasn’t going to be pushed away any longer.
She had done what Hegna had wanted her to do. Shower, eat, and she would rest next to Hegna. She was tired of sleeping alone, knowing the vampire she belonged to was in an entirely different wing in the castle.
Stormey was going to put her foot down and make Hegna claim her.
“They are, and I’m so thankful. Everyone is talking about the lycan’s broadcast.” Cici visibly shuddered.
Since Stormey had arrived at the castle, she had grown close to Cici. She considered her a friend and was thankful for meeting her. Cici took such good care of her and was patient explaining things to her. She’d helped Stormey get to know the staff and ensured she knew how to get around this monstrous castle.
“It was scary when we revealed ourselves. We had hoped we didn’t have to go to war. We wanted to live amongst humans as we had done before, only not hiding that we were different.”
Stormey paused, staring at her. She hadn’t really considered how the war impacted vampires who wanted to just live their lives. What would it have been like to hide who she was?
“What did you do before the war?” Stormey asked. It felt funny asking this question.
Cici looked as if they were the same age, but she was quite older. Vampires lived long lives and still appeared so young. Apparently, they aged much slower than humans did. Cici was a pure vampire. She’d shared that her parents were fated mates and she was the product of their union.
Through her lessons, Stormey had learned more about vampires then she had doing her own research. She had known that as the mate of the vampire princess she was going to rule at Hegna’s side, yet she hadn’t really understood what it all meant. Vampires would come to her and Hegna with issues and problems that they would solve. It was hard to believe vampires would be accepting of her sitting on the throne beside Hegna.
Of course, there were those vampires who were against humans and vampires mating, so they would have to deal with that. She was interested in reaching out to the women who Hegna’s sisters were mated with. They were human like her, and she would love to hear advice from them. From what she’d heard, they had been successful in maintaining their territories with their mates. But Stormey would prove to be different. Her mate would one day sit on the throne and rule vampires. Would those who protested humans come out of the woodwork the day it was time for her to sit as queen consort with her mate?
Would it cause a divide amongst vampires?
There was so much to worry about. Thankfully, she had Miss Lavana to help ensure she understood vampire society. Miss Lavana was educating Stormey about the coven’s politics and how they loved to host parties and social networking events. Miss Lavana had a hard time meeting her gaze when asked about what went on at the parties. Stormey’s curiosity was now officially piqued. According to Miss Lavana, there would be a party in honor of her and Hegna’s mating once it occurred. These soirees were also a way for vampires to mingle and would be fun.
“Before the war, I was here, but before I came to work for the princess, I worked as a housekeeper and a nanny for a wealthy vampire family. I was there for about forty years. Before that, I had gone back to school so I could become a nanny because I thought children would be my calling. But my most interesting job was working in a glove factory back in the nineteen thirties.” Cici giggled.
“A glove factory?” Stormey smiled.
It was interesting to hear Cici share some of her most fond memories of the past. The vampire acted as if the nineteen thirties were just yesterday. It was a hundred years ago. She thought it was amazing how the vampires were able to live long lives and move through time experiencing different periods. Once Hegna claimed her and sealed the mating bond, then Stormey would be able to live alongside Hegna through the future. She couldn’t wait to see what the future held for them.
The part she didn’t look forward to was watching people she knew begin to pass away from old age while she remained youthful and aged slowly.
