The Vampire King’s Captive

MARIA

They set back on course, her captor-since he still wouldn’t tell her his name-cutting at twigs for them pass. She noticed one time that even when the space had been enough for him to fit through, he’d still cleared it a bit before passing.

She suspected he did it for her.

“Shit.” He cursed all of a sudden, shoving the tip of his sword into the ground and resting on it.

“You’re tired.” She observed.

He didn’t answer her. He didn’t need to. It was glaringly obvious.

“You need to rest.”

“I don’t.” He forced out through gritted teeth. His breaths wheezed in and out through his teeth and his beautiful face was scrunched up in pain.

When she looked down, she saw that the blood stain on his trousers had spread wider. He was bleeding more, and if she had to guess, it was because he was stressing the leg. He was supposed to keep the leg resting horizontally for as long as it took for an immortal’s bones to mend. For one as old as him, it would happen quicker, and that was what she’d been trying to tell him.

“You need to rest, vampire.” Her voice came out hardened with anger-both because she was stuck with him and also because he was being such a stubborn man. “Your leg’s already worse. If it gets any worse than that, you’re not going to be able to walk at all.”

His head whipped towards her at that, anger and frustration written all over his face. He probably hated that she was seeing him when he was so weak. “I’m the fucking vampire king in case you haven’t noticed-”

“Well, you don’t look a lot like one right now.” She shot back.

Maria didn’t know why but she wasn’t scared of him. Maybe it was because if he actually wanted something to happen to her, then he would have left her in that cave to the mercy of the incubi, or maybe it was because she, too, had saved his life and something had changed between them. But it could also equally be the fact that he was injured and weak now. And harming her would be the last thing on his mind.

He narrowed his eyes at her, his green eyes alive with fire, but there was also pain in them, and surprising her, he said, “We can rest for some minutes more.”

“Minutes?” She cocked a brow in disbelief, scoffing. “I’m talking about a whole day.”

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“You need it.” She tried to reason with him. “You might need longer to heal-”

“If you think I’m going to spend a whole day doing nothing, which would mean prolonging our time in this godforsaken forest, then you’re out of your damn mind.”

She paused, taken aback by his outburst. Her eyes darted. “Okay then. How about half a day?”

He straightened to his full height, glaring down at her. “No.”

Gods, the heat from his piercing gaze was enough to make her breaths quicken and her panties dampen. She didn’t know how it was possible that he turned her on with one single gaze that wasn’t even meant to be sexual even when he was pissing her the fuck off.

It was like the man had a special access to her on switch, and almost everything he did turned her on.

“Okay,” She tried again. “How about this?” He cocked a brow at her, waiting for her to speak and even that simple action made her thighs clench. She ignored how she was feeling inside and pushed on. “We look for another cave to spend the night and start back up tomorrow?” Before he could object, she hurried to say, “I mean, it’s already late, and there’s nothing wrong with retiring early.”

When he simply stared at her, she asked. “What do you think?”

“We’ll make up for the lost time tomorrow.”

He obviously meant that they were going to cover more ground tomorrow, but her brain had decided to interpret his words as something else and now, she was picturing them making up for lost time. On a bed.

Screw the bed. As long as he looked at her that way, and put those firm, plump lips on her, she would be okay.

But he wouldn’t. Because the damn man had everything but his anger reined in tighter than a corset.

In no time, they found a cave far smaller than the one they’d been at the previous night. Its small size meant that it didn’t have much space for creatures to hide and Maria was relieved about that.

“Stay there.” Her captor told her when they reached the edge of the cave. She nodded, catching him as he limped inside, his gaze sharp and alert as he searched the cave for any dangerous creature.

Since it was still a bit bright, she could see a little of the cave and from what she could see, it didn’t look like there was anything lurking in there. Which was why she jumped out of the way and screeched when a stone-like creature ran past her and out into the forest.

“What was that?” She cried, pressing her hand against her chest as she tried to calm her breathing.

“A gargoyle,” Her captor appeared back at the edge of the cave where she was standing. “All clear.”

Maria followed him into the cave, sitting with her back to the wall, her eyes searching the corners every now and then. Her captor had assured her that there was nothing in the caves, but once bitten, twice shy. She was not going to take her chances.

“I’ll be back.”

She looked up when he spoke. “Where are you going?”

“To fetch some wood.” He said without inflection, blazing green eyes levelled on hers.

She made to stand up. “I’ll come with you.”

“Stay.” Then he turned around and limped out, his sword in hand.

She distracted herself with thoughts of pretty things until he came back. Her heart leapt in excitement when she saw him, and she was so surprised by the reaction, that she almost didn’t notice when he made the fire.

The cave instantly got brighter, because during the small time he’d gone away, it had gotten darker, and he against the opposite wall. He placed his sword beside him, then tore a hole in his trousers, right around the spot of the injury.

Maria watched as he examined it with clenched jaws and a scowl, then he looked directly at her, as if he’d somehow felt her watching him. And maybe he had.

Unable to fight off the feeling any longer, Maria got up and walked around the fire towards him. His eyes lit up with an emotion when he saw her coming, but other than that, he didn’t show any reaction. That was, until she was kneeling in front of him.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“Can I see?” She asked, wanting his permission to look at the place where he was injured and hoping that he wouldn’t deny her. “Your injury.”

He pursed his lips, peering hard into her soul for long minutes. It was starting to get uncomfortable with him sitting there with his legs sprawled and her kneeling between his legs, while they simply stared at each other.

Maria couldn’t rememberer the last time she’d knelt in front of anyone and now, she understood why she had never and why she probably would never do it again after today. It made one feel like they were giving power to the other person. Like they were willingly making themselves vulnerable.

She didn’t like it.

She was just about to stand up and walk away with her tail tucked between her thighs when he nodded sharply.

Her eyes dropped and she almost had to cover her mouth with her hand to keep from screaming.

His leg was injured bad, and even though she couldn’t see the bones, she could see a hole in his leg. From the way the skin looked tight around the edges, she could tell that it was already regenerating. He was already healing.

Relief coursed through her body, so profound-or maybe it was the hunger finally getting to her-that she swayed forward and at the last minute, she had to catch herself from butt-heading him by holding onto his shoulders.

His body locked with tension when she held him, his muscles like granite under her palm. He was a vampire, yet he felt warm under her palm. Automatically, her fingers squeezed and his big body shuddered.

Her eyes jumped to his in surprise and there, she saw it. She saw the lust he was always trying so hard to hide. It darkened his eyes and his body was strung tight with it.

His lips parted and her eyes followed the movement. She swiped her tongue along her own lips and she almost came right there from the sound of the groan that tore out of his throat.

What would it be like to kiss him?

Dazedly, she lowered her head, closing the distance between them, her hands holding onto his shoulders to pin him down.

Like she was predator, and he was prey.

Her eyes slid shut as she drew closer to him-

He shoved her away from him, grabbing her hands from his shoulders and pushing them off as he stood. She was so caught off guard that she stumbled and landed on her ass, staring after him with a hurt look that he didn’t even see because he was already walking away from her.

“You should sleep.” He finally said when he was halfway across the cave. “We have a long day tomorrow.”

That night, they slept on opposite sides of the fire with their backs to each other and the wood burning in the fire, was the only sound that filled the otherwise silent cave.