Frailty: The Darkshine (12 page)

“Where is he?” His voice was no more than a deep growl.

“Who, my lord?”

Gaijryc looked over at Gradeall, who stood by the wall, his posture that of relaxation and uncaring. “Ryce.”

“He didn’t show for practice today.”

Gaijryc looked around at the males in front of him and stripped out of his shirt. He left his jeans on as he made his way to the center of the room, the males breaking away like water from oil. He didn’t need to speak for them to know he needed to fight. He needed to work out this energy that was causing an inferno inside of him. One by one they approached him, ready to fight their prince. One by one they fell to the ground, crawling away as blood dripped from their wounds.

By the end, he was the only one standing, his fists bloody and raw, his body coated with sweat. The rage was still there, though, and he knew until he could get his hands on Ryce, it would continue to fester like a piece of meat rotting in the sun.

He headed upstairs to his room where he planned on taking a quick shower, grabbing food and heading back to Helina. Even though Ryce had been disrespectful and had been in Helina’s presence without him, he knew the male wouldn’t harm her, wouldn’t dare to.

Just as he was about to head out the front door he heard the screeching sound of his mother’s voice calling him to the ballroom. He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his fists as he hurried to the room to get whatever she had to say over with. It didn’t surprise him to see Iena right behind her, her barley-there dress nothing more than a scrap of fabric that covered her tits and ass.

“I have picked out your ceremonial outfit for the ball, Gaijryc.”

He didn’t care about the ball, nor did he want it to even happen.

“Hello, my lord. How are you this fine day?”

He looked over at the small female voice that had spoken. Lucie looked up at him with her strawberry blond hair and her almond-shaped brown eyes.

“Hello, Lucie. I’m fine, and you?” His attention went back to the preparations in front of him and he gritted his teeth in frustration. He looked back at the small servant who hadn’t yet answered him. “Are you doing well, Lucie?”

“Oh yes, my lord. Thank you for asking.” Lucie smiled shyly and turned to leave.

He thought about Helina once again. He needed to bring her to the mansion before the ball, although his family, his kind, would not welcome him mating a human. He couldn’t be banished, couldn’t be punished, there was nothing they could do to the first born DarkShine prince. As he thought about how they couldn’t touch him, he thought about how they could hurt Helina. He might be safe, but the fact that she was a fragile human had him on edge.

Even though anyone who dared touch her, who even looked at her in the wrong way, would meet their end by his hands, he couldn’t guarantee that she would be fully safe. The ball was in a couple of weeks and he only had a short while before his mother started pushing the females on him. He knew that she was the one he had to be worried about. She was the one that would try and hurt him by taking what he held most dear to his heart… Helina.

A week had
already passed, the time flying by like the wind through the trees. Gaijryc saw her every day, bringing her little trinkets every time he came by. Many times he never left her side, staying with her day and night.

She hadn’t seen Ryce since that one time and was thankful for it. She had thought back to seeing the woman in the trees, but after a while, she pushed it away to an overactive imagination, something her mind conjured up from all the stress in her life.

Tonight Helina planned on making Gaijryc a special dinner that hopefully led to a special night. She felt herself grow wet and became embarrassed by how strongly she wanted sex. The build-up was becoming unbearable.

She stood in front of the stove, the apron wrapped around her waist and covered with spaghetti sauce. Her mind started to cloud as she stared at the thick red liquid. She could picture Lizzie, both of them in the kitchen with their mother. She had only been about seven, Lizzie ten. Their mother had showed them how to make her special “gravy”, as she had called it. Helina had been standing on a chair stirring the sauce while Lizzie had been chopping the herbs. She remembered Lizzie screaming and clutching her hand as their mother ran around frantically looking for a towel. Blood oozed from between her sister’s fingers, dripping on the floor and mixing with the fresh herbs.

Helina stared at the spaghetti sauce, the thick red liquid looking just like Lizzie’s blood when she’d cut herself, just like the blood that had been around her body when she’d found her dead on her bedroom floor. Her appetite instantly vanished and tears started to slip down her cheeks. She was completely alone in this world, the only surviving member of her family. The vampires had come and taken over everything, had taken everyone she knew and loved and kept it for themselves.

Helina wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. Even though she wanted to hate the vampires, she knew that if there were some like Gaijryc, she wouldn’t be able to. Bracing her hands on the sink, she looked out the small kitchen window. She couldn’t see the stars or the moon and decided to go outside and sit on the porch. The sauce was almost done, and the fresh air would clear her head. Placing a hand over her stomach, she looked at the sauce and thought about Lizzie again.

It seemed like forever before the nausea went away, but as Helina made her way outside, she was thankful for the fresh air and the little help it provided. Sitting on the wooden swing that hung from the roof of the porch, she looked at the stars through an opening in the trees. The night was clear, and the moon was bright. Slowly rocking back and forth, she rested her head on the back of the swing and enjoyed the sounds of the night. Her skin started to prickle, the hairs standing on end. She lifted her head and slowly looked around.

All she could see were tall trees and shadows lurking between them. Although she should have been alone, she felt as if someone were watching her, as if there were eyes looking straight into her face. Of course it was probably nothing, but she couldn’t help the sense of awareness. A twig snapped and her heart rate picked up. Her hand went to her chest, as if that would slow the rate down. She stared at the inky blackness and watched as a huge figure stepped out from the woods, the shadows covering them completely. She was about to run, to scream, to do something, when she heard Gaijryc’s deep voice.

“I didn’t mean to frighten you.”

Breathing a sigh of relief, she leaned back on the swing and stared at his large, dark figure come closer. He stood and stared at her as he leaned against the railing, the moon casting hints of light over his frame.

“You scared the shit out of me. Why were you in the trees?”

“I parked away from the house and made my way through the trees to try and pick up any unusual scents. I wanted to make sure no one has been coming near the cabin.”

“So everything is okay?” He nodded and she breathed out deeply.

“There’s something different about you.”

“Is there?” She looked down at herself and wondered what he was referring to. “I must look like a mess.”

“You look beautiful.” His bright white smile came through the darkness like a beacon of light. “It’s not on the outside, but on the inside. You seem different, but I can’t put my finger on it.” He watched her intently, as if he were trying to decipher his own words.

“I was just thinking about my mother and sister.” He sat next to her, the swing creaking in protest to his massive weight. His hand captured hers and placed it over his heart, the deep beat soothing her further.

“It pains me to see you sad.” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed them gently. He took his other hand and rubbed small circles on her cheek. “On another note, something smells delicious.”

Panicked, she jumped out of the swing. “Oh hell.” She cried out.

“What?” He was up in an instant, his eyes roaming over the land as if waiting for something to pounce.

“The sauce.” She took his hand and ran inside, charging toward the stove and stirring the sauce quickly. Splatters of sauce covered the counters as it bubbled and popped like it was alive. Letting out a relieved breath when she saw nothing was burned, she turned the stove off and leaned against the counter. She glanced up at Gaijryc, surprised to see him all but laughing.

His laughter died as his eyes roamed over her body. She looked down at herself and saw how much sauce covered her. Her cheeks heated and she quickly turned around, taking the apron off and washing her hands in the sink. His hands landed on her hips, his lips on the side of her neck. She had purposely worn her hair up, leaving her neck exposed in hopes that he would be enticed. The hard length of his erection pressed against her lower back and her body instantly came alive with desire. Her head fell to the side as he licked and sucked at her skin, his sharp fangs running up and down her pulse.

“I want you so bad.”

She shivered, his words vibrating against her throat. “Then take me.” He groaned loudly and turned her around until she faced him. He pushed his pelvis against her lower stomach and started to grind his erection into her.

“Is that what you want?”

Nodding, she braced her hands on the counter just as his mouth descended on hers. His tongue swept into her mouth, stroking the inner recesses and igniting her arousal further. He broke the kiss and stepped away from her. She slowly opened her eyes, frustrated that he could walk away from their kiss so easily.

As if he had read her mind he murmured, “That wasn’t easy for me to do.”

Her mouth opened and closed, but no sound escaped. She finally cleared her throat and went to check on the sauce. Her panties were soaked by that point, the cotton fabric rubbing against the lips of her pussy and causing her that much more frustration. “If it isn’t easy then why do it at all?” She couldn’t understand why he was denying both of them the pleasure that they could easily find with each other. Helina cared for him deeply and she wanted to show her feelings to him with more than just words.

“I don’t want to rush anything.”

She stared at him without conveying her emotions. He wanted to go slow, yet they had already been intimate. It made no sense to her. “I have been so insanely aroused since our first time. I don’t know what’s wrong with me lately.”

“It’s because of me.”

Crossing her arms across her chest, she stared at him in shock.

“As a DarkShine, we emit a potent aphrodisiac that aides in ensuring we procreate.”

“You’re kidding, right?”

He took a step toward her. “When I came in you, I marked you as mine, and because of that you will only crave me.” His voice had dropped to a sensual whisper. “That’s what a DarkShine male does when he finds his mate.”

“So, what? I’m like a tree you’re marking so that no one else can piss on your territory?” She was furious. “So the arousal that I’m feeling isn’t my own?”

“It is just a way that nature has ensured that once we mate, we mate for life.” They stared at each other before she closed her eyes and breathed out deeply. Every new revelation was starting to take its toll on her. Turning her back to him, she drained the spaghetti and thought over what he said. “What did you mean when you said once we mate I will only crave you?”

“When my kind finds their mate—the one being they want to be with for eternity—they connect with them on a very primal level. Other males will feel uneasy around you, will be able to sense that you are claimed. They can smell me inside of you and know that you are already taken.”

She turned around and crinkled her brow, raising her arm and smelling it. “I don’t smell anything. What do I smell like to them?”

“Like me.”

She remembered Gaijryc’s dark, delicious smell. “What does that all mean?” He had explained everything, but her mind was twisted, everything mixing together into a ball of confusion. She felt his arms land on her shoulders, and his lips kiss the back of her neck.

“It means I want you for as long as I breathe, for as long as my heart beats, and for as long as you’ll have me.”

Her heart skipped a beat at his words. Clearing her throat, she held back the tears that threatened to escape. “If we’re not going to do anything, then I suggest a no touching rule.”

“I just don’t want to move too fast with you.”

“A little late for that, don’t you think?” The way he kissed her neck was causing coils of ecstasy to travel through her. “I’d say we’re way past the point of moving too fast.” He chuckled against her neck as he gave it one last kiss before pulling away.

They sat across
from each other at the small marble-topped table. The time seemed to go so fast when she was with Gaijryc. She was pleased and surprised when Gaijryc polished off three helpings of the spaghetti.

They ended the evening lying in bed together, reading passages out of Romeo and Juliet before she finally drifted off to sleep, perfectly content, and utterly happy.