Chapter 7
“Never claimed to be a human, did I…”
“So, your father is… the king from the Vampire Kingdom… which means… you are…”
A prince. I knew the word lay on her lips, but she kept quiet about it. The shock inside her about my heritage was still too much.
“The title has no meaning here. You don’t need to call me prince, although the idea of you submitting to me as your prince wouldn’t be anything I’d decline.”
“Did your eyes turn red… because you are part vampire?” She asked hesitantly, like she’d already guessed, but needed to hear it from me.
Her thirst for knowledge fascinated me. Deeply.
There was something endearing, almost innocent, in her eagerness to learn.
I wondered if she’d spent most of her life being silenced by her pathetic excuse for a mother.
And now, in my presence, she dared to ask the questions she was once forced to swallow inside her sweet soul.
And I was not only enjoying it, but yearning for the depths of her curiosity.
“Yes,” I said calmly, “it’s connected to my vampire heritage. But not solely because of that.”
I stepped toward her, just enough that I could feel the shift in the air. Her sweet gaze didn’t waver from mine… like she felt the pull between us just as I did.
“It happens when I lose control.” My fingertips brushed softly against the strands of her hair. “When the hunger stirs too close to the surface.” I paused, letting the words settle. It was obvious what I meant, but I didn’t want to scare her away.
“Hunger… for what?”
“A deep, sexual desire for you… obviously,” my brother bluntly admitted, his eyes trailing along her body.
I stiffened, turning toward him with my jaw tightening. His vicious siren eyes gleaming with amusement. Typical Sparrow. Always saying the most inappropriate things and never missing a chance to embarrass me.
“And that’s also why Xavier reacted so strongly when Aura insulted you,” Sparrow continued, grinning like a mischievous child. “Vampires don’t respond too well to insults, especially when it’s about someone they…
“Enough,” I snapped. Must he always be so childish and annoying?
I turned back to Gwendolyn, my gaze softening. No force on earth could quiet the storm raging inside my soul quite like those pretty brown eyes.
“I won’t let anyone insult you, Gwendolyn. And you don’t need to be afraid of me… my heritage doesn’t pose any danger to you.”
She stayed quiet, her mind clearly spinning through all the information Sparrow and I had shared with her. Her silence didn’t bother me, it meant she was listening.
“My mother was born in Marabour,” I began, aiming to distract her—and I knew mortals loved fairytales. “Alongside Aetrum and the Seelie Court, they form what one could call the Elven Kingdom.”
“Let me guess, Seelie means good and Unseelie means evil?” I couldn’t help the small smirk tugging at my lips.
“That’s a charming mortal view. But no, not quite. Seelies are structured, diplomatic and ambitious. Unseelies are impulsive, chaotic, and wear their hearts on their sleeves. Good and evil exist in both courts.”
Sparrow suddenly burst into laughter. I raised an eyebrow, looking at him. “What now?”
“Since when are Seelies ambitious? They are the laziest people I know of… Dandelion has ruled the Eternal Throne for decades and has not yet accepted that his powers aren’t ambitious enough to reign.”
“What is the Eternal Throne?” she asked.
“It’s the most powerful position in our world.
Centuries ago, a law was passed saying only the most powerful sorcerer could sit upon it.
But Dandelion… well, he’s refused to accept that the power no longer belongs to him.
And because elves from Aetrum are so ambitious…
” My gaze wandered back to Sparrow. “They don’t care about following their own laws.
Otherwise, he would have given up his reign and his son would have been ruling now. ”
“So, he’s not the rightful ruler?”
“No,” I replied quietly. “His son is. However, Dandelion clings to the throne like it’s an extension of his ego.”
“Was Aura talking about him… when she said…?”
“Aura meant his son. They shared one night, and now she believes she deserves a crown,” I murmured, the annoyance evident in the tone of my voice.
“She’s delusional about their relationship,” Sparrow said. “Besides, he isn’t even the heir anymore… even if he is still the most powerful.”
There was something painful in his voice, something too personal.
“Nathaniel,” I said softly.
Sparrow’s expression faltered. I knew how much that name meant to him. How much the man meant to him.
Dandelion would never accept a bond between them, longing for purity in his bloodline.
He even preferred cousin-to-cousin unions before he’d allow any other heritage not to his liking into the royal family.
But Sparrow was more than just an outsider to Dandelion.
Siren men, unlike most, were capable of both conceiving and impregnating, regardless of gender.
That made him a far greater threat than any noble from Marabour or the Vampire Kingdom.
He didn’t just love Nathaniel. Sparrow’s heritage line would have the potential to merge with Dandelion’s bloodline in a way that could change everything for the relationship between elves and sirens.
And Dandelion… Dandelion would burn entire realms before allowing their powers to align. He’d even ignite a war. And that’s why I had to see my brother avoiding the man he loved every single day and drinking himself to sleep every night. Just to forget.
“Who is Nathaniel?” Gwendolyn asked.
I glanced at Sparrow, silently offering him the choice to speak.
“Dandelion is greedy for power…” my brother started to explain.
“He’d never share it, not even with his own son.
And Nathaniel… he’s kind and gentle. His power is pure and soft.
Not made for ruling, not made for this burden.
And yet his father sees him as a threat.
Enough to imprison him. It was only thanks to his mother that he escaped exile. ”
“Dandelion took his own son captive?” she asked, startled at the brutality of our courts.
“Yes… Dandelion was afraid the powers of his own blood would outshine him… He made the entire kingdom believe his own son was a monster,” I explained.
“And that’s why Aura’s here?”
“Likely,” I said. “I certainly didn’t invite her. And the Elven King surely wouldn’t welcome her back. Not when he believes she’s possibly conspiring with us.”
She shook her head slightly, like she was trying to make sense of it all. “So… she and you aren’t a thing? Because she acted like she was interested in you.”
“Jealous, are we?” I teased her, a smirk pulling at my mouth.
“You wish.” She rolled her eyes at me. If Sparrow weren’t here, I’d throw her over my shoulder and take her to my bed, to teach her some manners.
“I’d never let her touch me. She also isn’t my mate.”
“Your what?” she blinked. “A mate?” She looked baffled, like she had no idea what I meant. But then it was my understanding that mates weren’t a thing in the mortal world.
“Mates are partners that were chosen by the gods and goddesses that live within the stars and moon. They are very rare and when it happens, you just know it immediately—like there is a forcible energy that draws two people together.”
“But if it’s that rare… How do you even know when you’ve found them?”
I took her hand. She gasped softly as a spark raced up her skin. The same electric shock I felt.
“What did you feel?” I asked.
She hesitated. “Nothing.”
I raised an eyebrow, but didn’t say a word. I wouldn’t push her. Not yet.
“Aura and him aren’t bonded either,” Sparrow added, arms crossed. “It was only one night of pleasure. He was also drunk and vomited on her carpet the next morning. Hardly romantic.”
“In Marabour,” I said, “they take bonds formed between two beings very seriously. They stay loyal. If it’s once, it’s forever. No going back.”
“And vampires?” she asked.
“It depends... Once a vampire falls in love, they are able to bind themselves to that person, including their powers. Even if they fall in love again, each time a piece of their soul is given away. Most of the vampires, however, tend to live more polyamorous and share partners. They are way too afraid of their entire soul being affected through love and therefore prefer not to bind themselves to one person. No attachment. No risk.”
“But you are a prince…”
Prince. The way she emphasized the word made it almost seem like it carried a meaning.
“I am. But I’m not considered his next heir…
And my mother is a venomous witch with vampiric heritage.
She seduced him, thinking a son would make her queen, but he would never willingly choose to bind his powers and part of his soul to someone else.
Not even Sparrow’s mother, who had royal siren blood. ”
At the mention of sirens, I saw her body tense up.
“Not all sirens are the same, Gwendolyn,” I said gently. “Sparrow’s mother is nothing like the ones haunting your dreams.”
Her eyes widened; she was baffled that I knew. Especially because she didn’t tell me.
“You seem to read all my thoughts...” she stated.
“I can… and it would get even easier if you… and I… bond.”
Her gaze went to mine, the words sinking in. She knew what I meant—the way her cheeks flushed gave it away. She was embarrassed thinking about me like this.
“What do you mean?” she asked, and her curiosity amused me.
“Mates bond through physical connection.”
“Sex.”
I took another step toward her, close enough to breathe in her sweet scent.
My fingers slipped through her hair again, enjoying the way she flinched slightly, overwhelmed by how easily I unraveled her.
How would it be in bed? What would she feel like beneath me?
I took her chin between my fingers, tilting her head up.
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” I murmured. “Don’t act like you’re unfamiliar with the word.”
She looked down, her cheeks reddening. Oh, she wasn’t familiar with it.
And somehow, I burned to teach her, to undo her carefully, gently, until every fragile piece of her body and soul would be ruined by me.
And I could not wait to invite her in the depths of a vampire’s desires, to bring the same tone that rested on her face now to other parts of her body.
Her presence was surrounding me, her fire, her temptation, her light.
All I could think about was how my breath was no longer mine—how it belonged to the space between us.
To her. Making me want her, but also hating how weak it made me.
And I knew she hated how much she didn’t hate me.