Bridget

I go the stairs, still holding the picture of the woman that looks exactly like me.

The photo was taken in 1973, so it is definitely not me.

“Oh...Lucien...” I say, even though I’m not exactly sure if he can even hear me or not.

“I don’t know what to think of you anymore,” I say, then flop down in the chair. “I can’t believe that there was someone in this world that looks exactly like me, but what’s more interesting is the fact that you know that there was someone in this world that looked like me. That...oh, I don’t know...maybe she meant something to you? And perhaps now that she’s gone you think you can replace her with me? I’m sorry, but news flash, that can’t happen.”

I toss the picture on his nightstand and stare at his even breathing.

“But I told Karmen that I would try to bring you back to consciousness, and even though I’d rather that you stay like that so you can’t hurt me anymore, I respect Karmen,” I pick at my chipped blue nail polish.

I bite the inside of my cheek, wondering if I could say anything to maybe anger him back to life? No, that won’t do...

But if he can hear me, I’d rather him know my true feelings while he’s not able to react than when he’s awake.

This discovery is making it hard for me though. If Lucien actually thinks that he can replace that woman with me just because she looks like me, he’s wrong. If I actually come to a point where I might want him, I want him to want me for who I am. Not who that woman was.

I think for a very long time, wondering...just wondering...

Does Karmen maybe know anything about her?

I head out of the bedroom and down the stairs to the office front door.

“Carson,” I say, and Carson immediately opens the door. “No, Lucien’s not awake, but can you bring Karmen here?”

“Yes,” Carson says, then leaves the area. I stand by the door and wait on Karmen.

He comes quite quickly.

“Hey,” he says, and we both enter the office. I take him back up to the bedroom. I shut the door quietly.

“I need to ask you something,” I say, then walk over to the nightstand. I grab it up and hand it to Karmen. “Who is that?”

Karmen stares at the picture for the longest time.

“Elaine Harper,” he says, then looks up at me. “She looks just like you, doesn’t she? Everyone noticed that about you when you came here. We all thought for sure you’d be a vampire, but you clearly aren’t. Do you know if you have any relatives with the last name of Harper?”

“No,” I say, shaking my head. “I don’t know who my biological parents are. I never got to meet them.”

“Interesting,” Karmen says. “Elaine was of Lucien’s only loves. He deeply loved her, even though the rest of us thought Elaine was extremely toxic for him. She tried to suffocate him in his sleep to gain control of his entire mafia and coven, because he’s supposed to be considered a king, but he became a mafia guy, so Don is the proper title. Elaine wanted that for herself, and was even willing to kill her love for that. But with Elaine, it was never certain if she actually even loved Lucien. If you want my opinion, I think she never loved him. She just thought she looked good with him because he was handsome. I think she verbally abused Lucien. He hates it when someone rejects him as you already know, but he wasn’t like that until after Elaine.”

I stare at him for the longest time. “Maybe I’ve been getting the wrong idea of Lucien.”

“Maybe so,” Karmen says, then gives me back the picture. “But just play it safe, Bridget. Do you need anything else?”

“No,” I say, then look over at Lucien as an idea forms in my head. “Can you leave now?”

Karmen gives one last look to Lucien before nodding to me and leaving the room.

I sit down on the chair again.

I think perhaps singing with to him will work...

I take a deep breath, then begin.

"When did the scars over your heart, become your hiding place? When did the stars become so dark you couldn’t find your way? The light inside your eyes is fading out, but I’m not gonna give up on ya now. Don’t be afraid. I know you think you’re on you’re own, but you’ll be okay. You don’t have to go through it alone. Fall into my arms. Fall into my arms."

I take another breath and notice him stirring a little bit. I can’t believe this is working. “My Arms” by Jen Ledger has always been one of my favorites, but I never imagined singing it to someone else. In all honesty, I wasn’t even thinking of this one. It just came out.

And it just keeps coming out...

"So let me see the hurt underneath, I’m not a stranger to pain. Cause I believe in what you can be, I’ll never turn away. The light inside your eyes is fading out, but I’m not gonna give up on ya now. Don’t be afraid. I know you think you’re own your own, but you’ll be okay. You don’t have to go through it alone. Fall into my arms. Fall into my arms."

“Your voice is so beautiful,” his voice croaks out and my eyes fly open. “But you’re also one nosy girl.”

Bridget

While Lucien is absent from life, I’m digging through some of his drawers, trying to find anything on the guy.

He seems to have everything somewhere else though, because I can’t find a damn thing about him anywhere.

He’s a smart being.

I look over my shoulder at his unconscious body before sliding the drawer shut quietly.

I open the bedroom door, peek over my shoulder again before heading down the stairs.

I open the next door and look out, seeing if anyone is in the office. I know Lucien doesn’t keep cameras in his office or bedroom because he’s either in one place or the other, and he can hear if he’s in the bedroom and someone’s in the office, and he’d know if someone was in his bedroom if he was in his office.

I scour through bookshelves, more dressers, and his desk drawers before my eyes land on a safe that seems to be hidden in the shadows of the room in a closet. The door is opened slightly, letting me know that Lucien must have been in here before the whole training and almost dying thing. I look around once more before pulling the door open.

It squeaks and I immediately stop pulling on it, afraid that Carson is outside the door as usual.

I sigh when no movement is made, then slip inside the closet. I fumble around on the floor until I feel an object. I press a button and a light flickers on.

I peek out again, then carefully lift the lid on the safe.

And the first thing that I see makes me drop the flashlight and cover my mouth before I scream and alert the whole coven that I’m in the closet.

Lucien

My brain is conscious again. Whoopee damn do.

I can’t feel my limbs, nor can I move, so I guess I’m just going lay here like a useless sack, and maybe even listen out if I can to hear if anyone’s here.

Why did I take the limb and not let Bridget die?

I mean, I’ve only been trying to kill her for I don’t know how long, but I’m suddenly saving her life?

I don’t think I’d be able to live with myself if I let Bridget die. Besides, earlier that day, I had been going through my safe, and every picture I saw of Lucas let me know that there must have been some purpose for why he didn’t react.

Sebastian told me how it all went down when he interviewed Lyle, and I know very well that Lucas could have moved out of the way and let Bridget die.

But no.

And the other thing to note as well is that Lucas had an ability that most vampires do not, and that is being able to see into the future.

What I’m trying to say is that Lucas must have seen that Bridget was my mate, so he decided to spare me ultimate soul burning by stepping in front of Bridget to take that concrete spear.

But the thing I don’t understand is that he probably seen further than that and knew that I would be hurt, that I would blame Bridget for life, that I would be in pain from his loss.

But it’s like I just wanted to hear his voice telling me that it’s okay, he’s in a better place, he’s happy where he is and he’s okay. I want to know that desperately, and I never believed in all that visitation stuff until I got my own personal taste of it.

When I sank out of consciousness on top of Bridget, I saw him. He was standing there with that brown hair of his, the same silver eyes as me, that look in his eyes.

He was older than me by four years and I looked up to him as an older brother.

“Lucien,” when he spoke my name, I thought I was literally dead. “What the hell are you doing?”

“Lucas...”

“Don’t ‘Lucas’ me, Lucien,” he said, shaking his head. “You have a mate, for Fate’s sake. Why the hell are you messing it up?”

“She killed you...”

“No, she didn’t,” Lucas said. “I stepped in front of her to save her life and took the concrete to the chest. I must admit, Preston was a total idiot to not see the lithium laying in the sink. I saw it, but I knew what was going to happen, so I just let it be. You may not understand why things are the way they are now, or why Bridget is the way she is, but like everything else, there is a reason for why things are the way they are. You just need to accept that.”

And then he started fading away and I was not happy about that.

And now here I am, not able to move or even see.

I hear some scuffling downstairs and I wonder what’s going on. I take in a few deep breaths, smelling hints of Bridget’s scent. She’s in here? Where is she? Why isn’t she talking to me?

WHERE IS SHE?

I take in another sniff and suddenly her scent is very strong.

“Oh...Lucien...” I hear her voice.

“I don’t know what to think of you anymore.”

What the hell is that supposed to mean?

Bridget

Lucien has been unconscious for nearly a week, meaning that I’ve been here at this place for a little over a month now. He doesn’t respond to me at all, so I just sit here by his bed, then get up and stare out the window, accept food from Libby when she brings it, and update Carson occasionally when he asks what’s going on.

I don’t know what the heck to do with myself.

I pace the bedroom floor, trying to seek some answer. I then walk over to his bed and stare at his unconscious figure, his eyes shut and his lips parted slightly from trying to speak to me.

A part of the tree limb had speared his side, and vampires become weak whenever they’re stabbed with wood.

I don’t know what to do...and for some reason, it’s driving me fucking nuts.

The door opens and reveals Karmen, who looks me over before staring at Lucien.

“Has he done anything yet?” he asks me, and I shake my head, sitting numbly down on the chair.

“I don’t know what to do,” I say to him, and he nods.

“I guess you wouldn’t,” he says, then sits on another chair at the foot of Lucien’s bed. “But, from what I’m hearing from Sebastian and Alec, I’d like to talk to you. First, you should know that I’m Lucien’s younger brother.”

“Oh,” I say quietly. “I’m sorry about Lucas.”

Karmen sighs. “I’d like to know what happened there, as a start.”

“To be honest, and I wish you’d speak to Lucien when he becomes conscious...but it was never my intention to kill Lucas. I only wanted to kill Preston because I hated that bastard.”

Karmen chuckles. “Believe me, we all hated that bastard. So, how did Lucas die?”

“I was supposed to get the chunk of concrete through the heart,” I say, then look him straight in the eyes. “But Lucas got in the way. It was if he were...taking the bullet for me.”

“That’s Lucas for you,” Karmen says, then scratches his head. His silver eyes look all around Lucien’s room. “He was always the gentleman type and was never really a fan of Lucien’s kidnapping. The thing about Lucas is, he had the ability to see into the future, so he clearly saw something about you that would change Lucien or something for him to step in and take something to die in order to save you.”

I nod slowly. “But I don’t think either of you understand Lucien, and even I don’t, so what am I saying, but...even when I attempt at being myself...I’m normally a person that argues, I like to sass sometimes, but otherwise I’m a good person and Lucien just brings out something in me that isn’t pleasant...Karmen, I don’t even know what I’m saying...”

Karmen laughs.

“Sebastian says that he thinks there’s something going on between you and Lucien, but he’s not sure, so I’m just going to tell you some things I think you need to know.”

I nod again.

“I don’t really know much about Lucien’s past, because in actuality, I’m his half-brother, sorry for not emphasizing. His father is my father, if you want to know how. I had a pretty good life until one of his father’s enemies went after his sons. They killed my mother but I escaped and went under the housing of a vampire who eventually changed me. Lucien and I crossed paths much later in life, and he only told me little things, and I think some of the things are a bit personal, so I’m not going to tell you everything, but there is something you should know.”

“I’m all ears,” I say.

“Lucien has a hard time responding to rejection,” he says. “And right now, Alec says he’s never seen Lucien so adamant on making someone like him as he is, which is leading them to suspect that you’re something more than the human he just bought. Let me make this clear: Lucien never buys humans from anyone. Elizabeth, Rosanna, and Shelia were taken by individual vampires. I actually took Rosanna myself because I thought she was beautiful, and nobody in the human world wanted her anyways. Libby was taken by Sebastian, and Shelia just happened to become too investigative in her friend’s disappearance, so that’s why she’s here. All of the others that used to be here were sold because none of the men wanted them. But none, except for you, were ever personally bought with Lucien’s money.”

“What are you getting at?”

“You mean more to Lucien than you think you do,” Karmen says, leaning forward in his chair. “I might even suspect that it’s possible for you two to be mates, and Lucien is just keeping it a secret. That, I’m not sure of, because no vampire would try to kill his mate three times. But then again, Lucien would be one of those that would be the first...”

Karmen thinks for a moment. “You should attempt to bring him back to consciousness. All three of us, Sebastian, Alec and I, want to see if you have the kind of influence over Lucien that we think you do.”

“You think I’m capable of doing that?”

“You could at least try,” he says, and I stare at him for a few moments.

“Okay,” I finally agree, and Karmen gets up, pats my head, then leaves the room without another word.

I sit there and fold my arms, staring at Lucien.

There’s no way we’re mates. I mean, he treats me horribly, then nicely, tries to kill me, then almost gets killed saving my life. I just don’t understand, I guess. I want to understand, and it’s driving me nuts that I cannot.

I am a smart person and I know that I’m capable of figuring this out, but this is way beyond me.

I lean over and gently lay my warm hand over his cool one, staring at his handsome face.

As for right now, I’m not going to attempt to wake him up.

Why?

I look around the room, specifically at the dressers.

Nobody come around from this time to about four or five hours from now.

And what does that mean?

Time to investigate.

Bridget

The first thing I think of when my eyes open and I see Marilyn’s worried face is why I’m not dead yet.

I should be dead, in fact, I want to be dead.

Why can’t that fate person who allowed Sean and Olivia to be together just kill me? Or why can’t God cast lightning down and turn me into a pile of ashes?

My eyes stare right into Marilyn’s gray ones, and she swallows.

“Hold on a second, sweetie, I’ll be right back,” she says, the hurries off. I lay there, wiggling my fingers and toes, trying to believe that I wasn’t truly alive but my heart beating and my dry mouth lets me know that I am truly alive and that I have not gone anywhere.

Marilyn comes back with a glass full of some kind of red liquid.

“Here,” she says, and I take a sip of it. It is divine.

I chug the whole class before Marilyn wipes my lips with a napkin.

“How are you feeling?” she asks, sitting on the edge of the bed.

“Like I should be dead and I’m not,” I answer. “I’m disappointed, honestly.”

“Unfortunately, Lucien is ordering for a training session with the girls so he can choose someone to sell to the allied coven,” Marilyn says, laying some clothes down on the bed. “If you are unable, I can simply-”

“No,” I say firmly. “Lucien is trying to play some kind of game with me, trying to break me, trying to diffuse my fire and I won’t allow him to.”

I swing my feet to the floor, pull a ponytail holder off my arm and wrap my hair up in a ponytail.

“Leggings and a sports bra?” I question, and Marilyn nods.

“Sweetheart, you should really stay here,” she is practically begging me to stay.

“No,” I say again, and she finally sighs and gives up on trying to make me stay within the building.

She leaves the room as I get changed. I grab a tight-fitting jacket as well to wear, because Lucien doesn’t deserve to see me like he did yesterday.

I can’t believe I slept a whole day off, but it’s not a surprise to Marilyn. The only surprise she has is the fact that I’m still functioning.

“Honey, you shouldn’t...” Marilyn tries once more to dissuade me from training with the other girls, but I affirm once again that I’m not letting Lucien shut me down like he always tries to.

I look out the window to see Lucien and Sebastian gathering up Shelia, Rosanna, and Libby. I give a final glance at Marilyn, who only flattens her hand against my forehead and sighs.

“Take it easy, sweetheart,” she says, then kisses my forehead. A chill goes down my spine and I give her a small smile before leaving the building in which I’ve been for so long.

Being outside for the first time in nearly three weeks almost knocks me off my feet. Fresh air is like a blessing to someone whose been kidnapped and not allowed to see the outdoors.

When I look up, I see Sebastian staring at me with a smirk on his face while Lucien looks a little surprised.

What, you thought you could keep me half dead in a bedroom? Nope, doesn’t work like that with Bridget Wayne.

I am a fighter, and I will fight you until the day you actually kill me, Lucien Rowe.

“Surprised to see you standing, Bri,” Sebastian says, then looks over at Lucien, who has turned his head to the side and doesn’t even want to look at me.

You know what?

What the fuck ever.

I don’t like you either, you bastard.

“Well, every one of you seems to be surprised by all the cards Bridget Wayne holds in her bag,” I say, then smile at him. Sebastian’s eyebrows go up, but then he chuckles.

“I guess you’re right,” he says. “Go stand by Libby.”

I walk over and stand there by Libby, who keeps looking at me, as if she’s expecting me to fall over suddenly. Yes, I basically just had my blood drained, but I took a day off, and I’m fine now!

“Okay, so what we will be doing today is woods navigation,” Sebastian says. “This is a mafia coven you’re living in, so you never know when you might have to run. We want to test your speed and agility in difficult spaces.”

Well, this should be simple enough, because I grew up in the woods with my brothers. I did most of the hunting, I put in the effort and made sure that we were always warm, had food, and were protected from the creatures that were in the woods.

Sebastian tells us to go, saying, “You shouldn’t try to escape, because there are several vampire guards throughout the woods, and they don’t have orders as to what to do with you, and some of you smell particularly sweet. Play it smart.”

For some reason, I feel that every part of that statement was meant for me, because I’m the only one that has the balls to escape.

I head into the woods, feeling a sense of serenity go over me because it’s been a while since I have gone back to where I came from and really came back down to earth. Being in this thick of woods makes me miss my brothers terribly. I know they’re the Betas of their pack and that they’re happy just where they are.

I remember training them to survive in the woods, to survive against a world that seemed to want to do anything to try to kill them.

I pick up the pace, heading into a steady run through the woods, leaping over logs, sliding under fallen branches and jumping over brambles.

I come up by a tree that seems to be almost dead, holding my hand on it to catch my breath.

I go to take a step forward, when all of the sudden I’m slammed to the ground, my forehead protected by a cool hand, a body on top of mine.

The tree above us cracks and drops a heavy ass branch on us, and I squirm at the sudden weight on top of me.

“Just...” I hear the person gasp, and I realize it’s Lucien. “Hang...on...”

I try to turn to see him, but his hand keeps my head in place.

“Don’t...move...” he gasps again. “Fuck...”

“Are you hurt?” I suddenly panic.

“Little...” his voice gets cut off and I feel his head drop down against mine.

I scream at the top of my lungs, trying to get someone’s attention, anyone’s.

Soon, Alec and Sebastian are on scene, throwing the log-like branch off of us.

“The Don’s hurt!” Sebastian yells, and it doesn’t take long before lots of vampires come over to us, pulling Lucien off me. Alec picks me up off the ground, asking if I’m okay, but my whole entire soul feels like it’s on fire.

Lucien hurt himself for me...

“Is he okay?” I demand, not listening to Alec. Sebastian looks over with a faint look of surprise, once again. “IS HE OKAY!”

“Does it look like he’s fucking okay, Bridget?” some guy yells at me.

“Karmen, shut the fuck up and get him to his bedroom!” Sebastian orders coldly, and Karmen quickly does as he’s told. I look to Alec for help, and he whispers that Sebastian is always to take over if Lucien is unable to do his job.

“You,” Sebastian says, approaching me, “you are going to stay with Lucien in his room.”

My mouth drops open.

“Huh?” Why do I have to do that?

“Because Lucien seems to have a weird fucking obsession with you. You know he’s literally dying right now?”

Fear, panic, dread swirl in me.

“No,” I whisper, and Sebastian places two fingers under my chin and lifts my head up to see him.

“He can’t hurt you when he’s unconscious, Bri,” he whispers. “And, Carson will be right outside the door if you need anything.”

I nod slowly, and I let Alec carry me to Lucien’s room, the literal first and last place that I want to be.

Lucien

Her body weakens against me and she slumps against the floor, her eyes becoming more and more lifeless. That’s when the panic sets in, and I pull away from Bridget, sliding my tongue along the wound to heal it.

I let go of her and she slumps to the floor, her eyes still wide and staring, never blinking.

Alarm rushes through my system.

Did I just kill my own mate?

I fall against the wall, staring at her, her light green eyes still staring.

It’s like déjà vu, when I accidentally murdered Elaine...

And Elaine was a vampire...

And Bridget is her literal doppelganger.

I never believed in the theory that almost all supernaturals have a doppelganger until Bridget showed up with the same chocolate brown hair, gorgeous figure and light green eyes that Elaine had.

I was excited, thinking that I could have a second chance to do things right, but she’s so fucking deliciously infuriating that I can’t with her.

I reach forward and press two fingers against her pulse. Her heart is still rapidly beating, telling me that her heart is trying desperately to make more blood for her so she lives. Her breathing is a little shallow.

I get up and get a glass of whiskey to calm my nerves. I sip it and watch her, afraid that she’s going to die.

But I’m not a normal being.

If she did die, I guess I would deal with the whole mate bond breaking thing, which they say is horrible, but to be honest, could it really be that bad?

If she wasn’t my mate, I guarantee you she would have been dead a long time ago.

Elaine wasn’t a good woman, that was for sure. She was older than me by two hundred years, making her 686 if she were alive. True, she saw more of the world than I, but I am a man and she was a woman, and I resented the fact that she thought she could be my equal. We weren’t even mates, she was just a beautiful woman I fell for for the first time in my life.

She was known as a ripper, wiping out villages at a time if she was thirsty enough. She didn’t know how to settle down. She had been turned against her will and was on a rampage to exceed revenge in any way possible. Her ex-lover had turned her, in fact, and when she first met me she tried to kill me, but I easily overpowered her. I had been strong by human standards, but with vampire abilities, I became even stronger.

I follow vampire laws through and through. A counsel meeting had been held to decide what to do with Elaine. Everyone just wanted to banish her to Greenland, where at least she could live off animal blood, but Elaine was horrified.

She told counsel that she was my queen and that she would die before she ever lived in an area that did not contain me.

Well, later that night, when I was sleeping (as she is the whole reason that I choose to no longer sleep), she tried to smother me.

My childhood has not been the best, which is evident because I became a vampire at the age of six.

My mother was a druggie and prostitute and could care less about me, allowing me to be abused and screwed by sex hungry men and women alike.

I ran away and found Edgar, who turned me as soon as he found out about everything. I killed the men and women who tortured me for so long and then just left my mother since I wanted to prove that I could still be a person and not do something awful like that. She cried when I told her I was leaving her, but she let me go because she could then have all the money she needed.

I became worse and worse though, as I grew up, because I hung with the wrong crowds and got involved in wrong things. My very first girlfriend verbally abused me until I was so depressed that I tried to kill myself before remembering that this was no longer possible. I also didn’t have the guts to go to another supernatural stronger than me and ask him to kill me.

So I left her, and I was staying in a little village, having an animal now and then when Elaine the ripper came through, slaughtering all the people in the village. She spared my life, because, by then, I was nineteen years old and extremely good looking.

We became a pair of evil rippers, killing off innocent humans as a way to compensate what we felt, but eventually I felt that it was wrong to destroy families for the sake of my issues. Elaine saw problem in that and started becoming abusive towards me. I didn’t like her very much then and tried to stay away, but she was as sex hungry as she was bloodthirsty, and it was hard to resist a woman as good looking as she was.

When she tried to smother me, I grabbed her around the throat and effectively snapped her neck without further thought.

Now, Elaine was a good person. When she wasn’t in a blood craze or sex hungered passion, she was a likeable being. She was kind to people, offered help, and laughed and shared some of my favorite things. That’s the part of her that I fell so hard for. I just wanted someone to love me like I loved them.

That was fifty years ago.

And now Bridget is on scene. She’s human, and she’s the perfect girl. She’s my mate.

But there are several qualities about her that remind me of Elaine, besides the looks. I had no bias against Elaine’s looks, considering how beautiful she was.

The fact that she wants treated as a being doesn’t even bother me.

It’s just the fact that she continually acts like she wants me, then rejects me, then acts like it’s my fault. If we’re going to be honest, she doesn’t have a good track record with me. I bought her and she killed Lucas to escape, which did not benefit her very much. I was just thinking of letting it slide the first time I tasted her blood, but when she pushed me away and started yelling at me, I knew that this was not going to be.

I want a gentle romance with someone, except for in the bedroom, where I like to be a bit naughty, rough, and dominant. But other than that, I want a girl who will snuggle with me on the couch and watch boring things that humans enjoy, or sit on my lap when I’m working and play with my hair, or enjoy teasing the hell out of my cock until I can’t take it anymore.

I want to be loved.

Nobody has ever loved me like I should be loved.

Nobody understands me, nor sees a person attempting to build feelings and connections with people.

Nobody cares to see that Lucien is in pain.

All everyone sees is this ruthless guy that gets what the fuck he wants all the time, and that’s only because that’s the only way I know how to do it. If you ask someone, they have the option of saying no. If you demand someone, they can’t refuse you. If they do, swift punishment is necessary and it never happens again.

But Bridget has this fire on the inside of her that I like. She’s willing to stand there and duke it out with you as long as it takes until she reaches an agreement with you, or gets what she wants.

The thing about that fire is that I won’t be burned by it, and that’s what she did wrong earlier. She flat out told me she hated me and that hit so many triggers that I couldn’t conceal or control myself.

Now the only problem is is that when she comes back to it, if she does, she might never like me again.

And that thought alone..

Bridget

I wish I could say that it was smooth sailing after that.

I am back in the slave girls’ room, terrified after Lucien and I’s interactions in the car.

Here’s the recap:

As I was getting back into my clothes, it dawned on me that I was literally just making out shamelessly with the man who ruined my life.

And I was disgusted with myself.

I made myself swear an oath that I would not kiss him or let him drink my blood again.

I exited the changing room and Lucien immediately put an arm around my waist. He was seemingly pleased with our interactions while I kept telling myself that this was fake, that he did not like me and that as soon as we got back he wouldn’t pay not one iota of attention to me, that he has mistresses to satisfy him, that Layla will always be his number one and that she is one day going to be crowned as his queen.

I drilled myself over and over again with those words, making sure that they were well beat within my skull as I entered the car. Lucien tried to pull me on his lap but I sat right where I was and refused to come close to him. I could tell he was confused, because I was sober and my interactions with him were purely instinctual there.

Lucien let me alone for a while, but evidently his thoughts were in the same place as I was because he tried to lean over and kiss me, but I dodged it and looked back out the window.

“What is wrong with you now?” he asked me, and I just shook my head.

“This is all fake, Lucien, fake.”

I realized I just called him by his first name right to his face and I started panicking, but Lucien only chuckled.

“It’s alright, little dove, I don’t mind hearing it from your lips,” he said, clearly seeing my distress from that. “But I would like to know what part of that kiss was fake. Especially since you wanted more.”

“There is no relationship between us,” I spat out bitterly. “You have Layla and you have plans on being with her forever, so I don’t know why you even fucking bother with me. Besides, you’re the guy who ruined my life anyhow. I won’t necessarily be making out with you again, drunk or sober.”

That seemed to make him angry.

“Do you not understand something, Bridget?” he fumed. “I bought you. You belong to me. I paid $50,000 for you, and on top of that you killed Lucas. You owe me a lot, and asking for a kiss or your blood is actually the least you could do.”

I turned to him in shock. “$50,000?”

“$50,000 is what I paid to fuck you,” he said, and I glared at him.

“You’ll never get to fuck me,” I blazed. “I don’t like you, Lucien. You are a monster, and nothing will ever change that.”

I turned and looked back out the window, but I felt a hand curl around my neck and squeeze so tightly that I couldn’t breathe.

I fought against him, but I gave up and just let it be. If I was meant to die, I was meant to die.

But he let go right before I passed out, just like the first day we met.

I fell against the car seat, near his thigh. His fingers started lacing through my hair, being surprisingly gentle.

“Oh, little human,” he said, “you are in a lot of trouble.”

As soon as my body gained enough oxygen, I shot up, threw his hand off me and scooted as far away from him as possible.

“I hate you,” I said bitterly, and a hiss came flying out of him. I took a peek over my shoulder and screamed when I saw his face. It was completely dark all over, his eyes black, his veins black and his skin white as ever.

He looked like a literal demon from hell.

“Take it back,” he growled in a voice that did not sound like his. “Take back what you said!”

“No,” I replied stubbornly, afraid.

His fangs came out and his eyes blazed red and he basically went to launch at me when Alec suddenly appeared and yanked the car door open, grabbing him. Sebastian helped pull him out.

I rode with another driver that held Libby and Marilyn. I sobbed the entire way back while Libby and Marilyn tried to comfort me as best as they could.

I felt like Marilyn was in a I-told-you-so moment, because the way she kept looking at me let me know that she knew this day was going to come.

“I did tell you not to burn the vampires, right?” she said quietly when I asked her what she thought.

Libby sort of smacked her arm, and that was the end of those words.

Now I wait here in the slave girls’ room, either for death or for forgiveness, but Lucien already told me once that he doesn’t forgive.

I’m fucking dead...

And I never got to meet my birth parents.

The door opens and it reveals Carson, and he looks grim.

“Bridget,” he says, and he looks down. “Don wants to see you.”

I nod and slowly get to my feet.

“If anyone ever asks what my last words were, tell them that Libby, Rosanna, and Shelia are my sisters from other misters and that I loved and raised my brothers...” I say, and Carson just bows his head again.

“It’ll get out,” he whispers.

Carson leads me to his office.

I stand there with my head down, and I don’t even know where Lucien is at.

“Bridget,” his voice is deadly and it is right...behind...me...

It’s not that I don’t answer, it’s that I can’t answer. I’m waiting to die.

“Look at me, Bridget,” he says, his voice still dark. My body is immobile. For the first time in my life, my amygdala has taken over my body and my fear response is to stay frozen. Normally, my brain makes a list of possible escape routes and what ones would possible work when I feel fear.

But this is a different kind of fear, because I basically pissed off the devil.

And this devil will burn you.

I feel his hand on my shoulder and he turns me around. He doesn’t look like he did earlier, but his voice is definitely still scary.

I try to calm myself down as much as possible.

“You have two options here, and none else,” he says, and I know he is truly serious. “I wanted you and I paid for you. Fair, I maybe am not the nicest person you’ve ever met, but what did you actually expect of me, Bridget?”

I don’t answer him again.

“Your two options are me, or death,” he watches my facial reaction carefully. “Take your pick.”

I stare at him for the longest time.

I know he wants and expects me to choose him. But I feel if I do that, he’ll always hold that over my head. I chose him, and he wants me. That’s basically the green light to head to the bedroom to consummate whatever is going on between us, and I don’t want that. I think I’d rather fuck myself and enjoy it than have a vampire greedily humping me. I’m good, thanks.

But on the other hand, death doesn’t seem like a fun option from what I can see. If he’s going to turn into a demon to slaughter me, I’d rather just stick around and deal with the sex rather than death.

I am too stubborn to say that I choose him, so what I’m going to do is pick or.

I’m not going to say anything at all and see what becomes of it.

Lucien takes a step towards me, reaches out and runs his fingers up my arm to my neck. He gently caresses my cheek with his thumb, tingles spreading out all over my facial skin.

I pull away from him, and he hisses in anger.

“Death is what you pick then?” he growls at me, and I swallow, looking down at the floor.

He picks me up by the neck and throws me across the room. I land on the ground after hitting the wall and I groan, trying to get back up on my feet, feeling broken on both the inside and outside. I let out a cry of pain and sink back to the floor, trying to breathe.

He walks over to me and grabs my upper body, leaning it against his thigh when he squats. He grabs my hair, tilts my head to the side and plunges his fangs into neck. Unlike any other time, this does not feel friendly. I fight against him as much as I can, but there’s no way I can stop a vampire.

I sob and cry, begging him to stop, but he doesn’t. It’s like he’s possessed. I feel my strength ebbing as my legs begin to feel faint and heavy.

I’m being drained of my blood, and there’s nothing I can do about it.

I keep my eyes open, staring at the ceiling as I mentally say good bye to my friends, my family...and also ask forgiveness from those that I’ve done wrong.

I never wanted to leave like this.

White begins to take over my vision.

And finally...this might be the end...

Bridget

We arrive at the beach a little later than what Lucien would have liked, and I know he probably blames it on me, and to be honest, it’s probably my fault.

I took all the time in the world picking out a bathing suit, and then teaching Winter and Summer how to do a few poses.

As we exit the car, Lucien says, “I hope you have that freaking romance shit story or whatever they call it, because I guarantee that Olivia will ask you how we met.”

“I already told Summer and Winter the story,” I say blandly. “I mean, I am the daughter of billionaires after all.”

Lucien rolls his eyes and wraps an arm around my waist again, pulling me flush against his side.

We walk along the beach, with Alec, Marilyn, Sebastian, and Libby. I would rather walk near Libby so I can tell her about the mall trip, but she looks happy enough to be by Sebastian’s side. I have to wonder if these slave girls are demented or something. Who in their right mind would be happy to be with a vampire who abducted them? Maybe Libby didn’t have a good life before she came, or maybe she’s faking it just like Lucien and I are. But from what I can see, Alec and Marilyn are pretty engrossed in each other and Libby clearly thinks highly of Sebastian.

I, on the other hand, wish I was home playing War with Rosanna and that Layla was walking with Lucien across the beach. I mean, before me, who did Lucien go with?

As we’re walking towards a group of people sitting near the shoreline, I feel that craving bubble up again. I groan in annoyance, and Lucien clearly notices it.

“What?”

“That feeling is back again,” I mumble, and he sighs.

“Speak to Alec and Marilyn about it,” he says, and I light up. ”After you get introduced to Olivia and Sean.”

“Okay,” I comply to his surprise. To be honest, Lucien seems to get surprised at me pretty often. I must not be something he’s used to dealing with.

I like that.

“Hello,” a slender, drop dead gorgeous lady says, standing up. She gives a beautiful red lipped white teeth smile to both Lucien and I. “I’m Olivia, Sean’s wife.”

She shakes my hand and I at once note that she’s a vampire. She’s light skinned and her hands feel slightly cold. Sean looks up and gives a nod.

“You are?” she directs at me, and I give my name. “That’s a lovely name. You know, Bridget, you’re the first girl Lucien’s ever introduced, so I’d like to know how you two met.”

“Drag her away,” Lucien mumbles, and Olivia does just that, taking me to the beach bar. I have to wonder if she knows of Lucien’s abductions, or if she is in the dark and her husband knows...

“So?” she prods, ordering me a fruit cocktail.

“He slid into my DM’s,” I say, and she laughs.

“Really?” she questions. “How did that work?”

“Well, I’m a model,” I say, taking a sip of my drink. It tastes like grapefruit and peaches, which I instantly like. But that craving still lingers. “And I posted a few pictures that were taken of me and he commented that he liked it. He then later messaged me and told me he thought I was beautiful.”

“So cute,” Olivia breathes. “How was meeting up the first time?”

“Bliss,” I lie, and she smiles.

“So, you’re human?”

I nod, and she gives me a knowing glance.

“I was human,” she muses. “I honestly don’t know what I like better; being a vampire or being human.”

“You were human?”

“Oh, yes,” she says, then smiles. “Sean changed me two years ago after we got married.”

“Why did you pick him?” I question, taking another sip.

“I didn’t,” she confesses. “Fate choose us to be together.”

“Fate?”

“We are mates, Bridget,” she says, then cocks her head when I look confused.

“What are mates?”

“The term is short for soulmates,” she explains. “Sean and I are soulmates, and he changed me to abide by vampire laws.”

“A human and a vampire cannot be together?” I ask, and she shakes her head.

“Creating dhampirs is not allowed,” she says. “But sometimes it does happen. There are currently no laws for dhampir’s, but I think that if one existed they’d have to be reported to the counsel and the counsel would decide what to do with them after that.”

“How did you know that you and Sean were mates?”

“Well, you see--” Olivia is cut off by Lucien clearing his throat. She looks up at him.

“Olivia, Sean and I are done speaking and he requests you,” Lucien says politely, but I can see a twinge of worry in his eyes. What is he so worried about?

“Well, it was nice meeting you, Bridget,” she says, then smiles at Lucien. “You have a wonderful girl here.”

Lucien smiles.

“Thanks,” he replies, and I look up at him with raised eyebrows.

“You interrupted her,” I protest, and he rolls his eyes.

“Who even cares?” he says, then eyes my drink. He grins. “Haven’t you had enough of alcohol?”

“I doubt this has much of anything in it, and whatever are you talking about?”

“Oh, nothing,” he says, still grinning. “Just an attempt to kiss me, and you getting a clitoris orgasm.”

My face completely falls and I widen my eyes in panic.

“WHAT?!” I practically yell and he laughs.

Lucien laughs.

“How funny it is that you humans lose your memory after getting drunk,” he says, then leans toward me. “Don’t worry, little human, I didn’t fuck you, though with you grinding on me, it was sure a very hard thing to resist.”

“Oh my God,” I say, burying my face in my hands. “Forgive me for acting like such a whore...”

“I don’t forgive you, little human,” his husky voice murmurs in my ear. I suddenly become aware of the fact that he’s caging me against the chair with his body. “I enjoyed myself and it’s rare that ever happens, so don’t apologize.”

I burn red again and take another sip of the drink.

“Would you like to head to the water?” he asks me, and I nod, wanting to get away from the scene here.

He takes me up to the changing room and I change into the bathing suit, checking myself out in the mirror. I run my fingers through my chocolate brown hair and lay it gently down. I step outside the door and give Lucien my clothes. He just stands there, gripping them as his eyes take in every curve of my body.

His Adam’s apple bobs.

“I...um...you look nice,” he finally manages before blinking and his eyes clearing. I smirk at him.

He looks delicious himself, with his abs out on display for the world to see, every part of him toned and strong.

He sets the clothes into a lock box.

“Last to the water is a rotten egg,” I yell, then charge down to the beach, forgetting that vampires have speed and this is apparently a vampire zone in which it’s okay to show off your blindingly fast speed.

I feel his arms around my waist and I yell, trying to break free.

“Not so fast, little human,” he says, but when he drops me I grab onto his legs. He falls backwards and lands into the water before dragging me in right along with him. “Whose the rotten egg?”

I push his chest and he pushes me right back. I fall down into the water and come fighting back up. I yell a war cry before throwing myself at him, causing him to fall backwards into the water.

When we finally come back up, my arms are around Lucien’s neck and he has me by my waist. We stare into each other’s eyes for what seems like eternity before I hear Olivia’s voice combine with a male’s.

“Kiss!” they’re yelling at us, and Lucien eyes me for a moment. We’re still faking it, right?

He leans in and presses his lips against mine. I bask in the tingles and warmth, kissing him back. He takes my bottom lip between his and sucks on it, causing me to moan. I wrap my arms and legs around him, the ocean water spraying all over us as he deepens the kiss, sliding his tongue into my mouth. It feels incredibly amazing as his cool tongue slides neatly against my warm one. He tastes my entire mouth and I moan in pure bliss.

The kiss deepens further when my tongue finds its way into his mouth, and I roam around, picking up a taste that seems to make the craving inside me roar. I kiss him passionately without a care in the world, my rational mind gone somewhere. The inside of his mouth is pure fucking heaven, and the taste is driving me nuts.

I want more...

Lucien breaks off when he suddenly realizes that I need a breath. I press my face into his neck, inhaling that delicious scent.

“You’re fucking heaven, Bridget,” I hear him murmur.

I tilt my head to the side, allowing him to have what he wants. He sinks his teeth in and the blissful feeling inside me forms and I sigh.

He drinks a little bit before licking my neck, healing it. I plant my lips on his again, and he recoils, but melts into me. The craving grows a little bit inside me as I get a taste of my own blood.

I pull back after a minute, the taste still lingering on my tongue.

“You little tease,” he says, then gives me a half smile. It seems genuine. “Ready to go, little human?”

Bridget

The ride to Corolla beach, North Carolina, was quite quiet. I didn’t say anything to him, and he didn’t say anything to me. We made sure there was a big distance between us.

I suppose I have a correction to make; for the first 45 minutes of the ride, nobody said anything, and the big space was established.

Within 45 minutes of the ride, I have a headache. I really bad headache. I tried rolling the window down a little bit, thinking fresh air might help, but it didn’t. I then developed a stomachache, which wasn’t even alleviated when the driver, Harvey, got me some ice cream per request of Lucien.

In fact, it only seemed to make me sicker. I seemed to be in want of something else that I could not figure out for the life of me. I never felt like this before.

I have this intense, insatiable craving that I cannot explain.

And for some damn reason, Lucien thinks it’s funny.

“I don’t see what’s so funny about this,” I snap at him when he gets that amused look on his face.

“Oh, it’s nothing, little human,” he says, then smirks at me. “Mind explaining exactly how you feel? I’m quite used to dealing with slave girls’ issues.”

“It’s inexplainable,” I say, then wince at the sharp pain in my gut.

“Try me,” he says back. “I have heard all sorts of things in all of the 467 years of my life.”

I gasp and look over at him in shock. “467?”

“Confirm my year of birth, little human.”

He wants me to do math right now?

“1556,” I murmur.

“Correct,” he says, adjusting the sleeves on his button up shirt. “Now, explain.”

“It’s like this intense craving for something...” I trail off. “My throat feels dry and it aches...”

Lucien’s head snaps over to me so quickly that I’m surprised that he didn’t break his neck in the process.

He narrows his eyes at me for a moment.

“To be honest, that’s a new one coming from a human,” he says, then takes in a breath. “But it’s an old one if you were a vampire.”

“Huh?”

“When vampires have a lack of blood, that’s usually how they feel. That insatiable desire that burns until you have your fill,” he explains, then gives me a strange look.

“If you’re thinking I’m a vampire, you’re nuts,” I affirm, and he just grins.

“Oh, sweetheart, I would know if you were,” he says, then drops the grin.

I roll my eyes and stare out the window again at the passing palm trees.

“We’re almost there right?”

“You talked my ear off for thirty minutes, so we only have 75 minutes left.”

Thank God.

Speaking doesn’t happen again until I see the North Carolina sign.

“Finally in the state,” I murmur, pulling on my shorts.

“You’ll have to come up with the story of how we met, because I don’t do that romance shit.”

I look over at him in surprise.

He isn’t even looking at me.

“Oh, I know,” I say. “You’re the type to take what you want and leave, never to be seen again.”

“That’s right, little human.”

“Stop calling me that.”

“Would you rather me call you Bridget?”

“Bri would be fine.”

“News flash, I don’t give people what they want.”

“Noted.”

I replay the little conversation in mind again, then burst out laughing. Lucien finally looks over at me with a raised eyebrow.

“What’s so funny?” he asks, clearly getting annoyed.

“You’re a trip,” I say, then go back to looking out the window.

Lucien gives me a glare that I can see through the window, and I hold back a smirk. I like getting on his nerves when he decides he isn’t going to be violent towards me.

“You do have a bathing suit on, correct?” he asks me, and I look over at him again.

“No, I do not,” I say, and Lucien rolls his eyes.

“Harvey, stop by a mall,” he says, and I hear Harvey’s gruff reply.

“Of course, Don,” he says, and at the tone he gives, I wonder if he likes Lucien. Preston had a bad impression of him, and I have to wonder what his own men think of him.

A few moments later, we’re pulling into a mall. I start getting excited for some reason, maybe the fact that my parents--no, wait, I forgot. Agent Rawling probably informed them that they wouldn’t ever see me again so there’s probably no missing person thing going around.

I sigh, and that causes Lucien to give me another look.

“I thought girls liked to shop,” he says.

“Most do,” I reply with a twinge of annoyance. “But then again, Lucien, I’m not most girls.”

“Noted,” he says, and that causes a smile to go across my face. He notices it, but his facial reaction doesn’t change in the least. But a warm feeling develops in the pit of my stomach, and I have this weird feeling in my head that this is not my feelings.

I shake it off, then get out of the car when the door is opened for me by Harvey.

“Thank you,” I say to him, and he looks completely shocked. What, does he not think I have manners? He hasn’t done anything wrong; in fact, he may have given me the opportunity to escape by driving Lucien and I the whole way out to North Carolina, then taking us to a mall.

“Bridget,” Lucien says, catching up with me as I push open the mall door. His arm slips around my waist and he holds me protectively to his side.

We go straight to the women’s department and he busies himself by looking at his cell phone, which I’m surprised he has since he’s 467 years old.

I look through some bikinis, wondering if I should flare Lucien’s lust or not. As I’m looking through some white ones, two teenage girls around the age of sixteen come up to me. I want to tell the chicks that they should keep their distance, that we have a teenager girl kidnapper to the left at about a distance of four feet, but I don’t. I don’t need to cause more trouble.

“Excuse me,” the light blonde one says. “Are you Bridget Wayne?”

Lucien’s head snaps up and he watches me.

“Yes,” I say after a moment’s thought. “You are...?”

“Oh, you don’t know me,” she says, then smiles. “But I know you’re a model and you’re Eliza and Dean Wayne’s daughter. Do you like modeling?”

“Yes,” I say, then give a genuine smile. “Are you thinking of pursuing it?”

“I am,” she says, then looks down at the floor.

“She’s a little nervous though,” her friend says. “Winter isn’t sure she’d make a good one.”

“You are?”

“Her sister, Summer,” she says. From what I can see, Summer would make a good model as well.

“Summer and Winter,” I say, then give a little laugh. “Your parents were pretty original.”

Summer shrugs.

“Say, how about you grab some clothes and then we’ll go to a dressing room and you can do some poses,” I say to Winter, and she brightens.

“Really?”

“Yeah!” I say, then look over at Lucien, who has this adorable look of admiration. It fades though when he sees me looking at him. “As long as my...boyfriend doesn’t mind. You don’t, do you?”

“No,” Lucien says, and when Winter and Summer hurry off to get some clothes he gives me a look. “You couldn’t think of anything better than boyfriend?”

“I could have introduced you as the guy who ruined my modeling career,” I say, fishing out a cute black bikini. I put it under my arm with the white one and go to the dressing room with Lucien a bit of the way behind me.

He doesn’t go in the dressing room, because he’s male.

“Your boyfriend is fucking hot,” Summer whispers to me. “How do you snag such a good looking guy?”

“Slid into my DM’s,” I lie, and Winter giggles.

“I hope that’s way it is with me,” she says. “Did you two like...meet up person and it was like, love at first sight.”

“You could say that,” I lie again, disgusted that I’m literally faking a relationship with Lucien.

“So romantic,” the sisters sigh, and I order Winter to go into the dressing room and put her stuff on.

When she comes out in a tight white tube top and black shorts, I give her a thumbs up.

“Now, from the photographers that I’ve had, they seem to like natural,” I say, then gesture at her hair. “Pull your ponytail out and run your fingers through your hair. Toss it up a little bit.”

Winter does as I ask and I can immediately see the modeling quality in her.

“Lift your chin,” I say, and she does. “Lean back slightly and move your left foot forward a tiny bit.”

I grin when she follows the order. “Nice, Winter. Summer, go up there with her and give me your cell phone for a picture. I know you have the same ability in you.”

Summer gets into a bit more than Winter, because she’s more confident of her body.

I change the photo lighting to soft and snap a picture of them.

I hand Summer her phone.

“Can we take a selfie?” Winter asks, and I stand in between the girls and give them my best smile.

“Do want tagged?” Summer asks.

“No,” I say, then smile. “You girls will make it, no matter what you decide to do.”

“Thanks!” Winter says, then her phone starts ringing. “Oh, that’s Mom. We’d better go.”

I nod, then go into the dressing room. I try on the white bikini, then the black. I think about it for a few more moments before deciding on the white.

As I put the black one back, I see Lucien watching me with that same look on his face.

“What?” I ask him, and he just shakes his head.

“Are you ready to go yet?”

“Yeah,” I say, then he takes me to the counter.

The cashier lady scans it and Lucien pays, then I grab the bag and we vanish back out to the car, where Harvey opens the door. I head inside and Lucien goes in the other side.

“Do me a favor and don’t order anyone to take those girls,” I say, and Lucien gives me a look of utter surprise.

“Why would I do that?” he asks, like he’s totally the most innocent guy on earth.

“Because you have a knack for doing it,” I say. “They’re not eighteen, and they have a big life ahead of them.”

“Whatever you want, Bridget,” he says quietly, and I look over at him.

“I thought you didn’t give people what they want,” I say, and his lips form a ghost smile.

“I don’t,” he says, then turns towards me. “But you’re not just any person, Bridget.”

“I don’t know what to think of you sometimes.”

“Keep trying to figure me out, little human.”

We are silent as Harvey begins moving the car again.

“For your information,” I say, catching his attention again. “We are very much faking it.”

Lucien gives a nod, but for some reason, deep down on the inside, I feel that he doesn’t want to fake it.