Chapter 14
Chapter
Fourteen
Marcus looked down at the Little girl in his arms. She would sleep for an hour or so as her body absorbed the nutrients he’d introduced into her.
Building her health to a finely tuned level would help her feel better as well as prepare her to transition.
In case she decided to accept his invitation, of course.
If she refused, he would be crushed. After waiting all these years to find her…. Surely, she should wish to live many years with him. Marcus studied her peaceful face. He could only hope she would love him enough to allow him to turn her.
His own change hadn’t been difficult to welcome.
Defeated in the coliseum after he and two other fighters battled a dozen well-trained combatants, Marcus had fallen when five men came at him in a coordinated effort.
It wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment attack. Someone had selected these men to take him out.
News of his prowess with his favored sword had spread throughout the land.
Opponents had hunted him before. This time, they’d overwhelmed him with dirty tricks.
Carried from the arena and discarded in a pile of the deceased, Marcus bled the last of his life’s essence, waiting for heart to stop beating.
A mysterious fighter had appeared beside him.
The stranger offered a choice. Unable to believe what he said, Marcus had accepted, expecting death to find him soon. It did not.
He rose from that battlefield and walked between the corpses and dying to disappear from the scene. His fellow soldiers didn’t appear to see him as they moved in slow motion. Weeks later, Marcus realized he had used his first new gift of rapid movement to remove himself from the skirmish.
The vampiric speed had increased his deadliness in battle and in more everyday tasks. His plan to dash out for a stuffed raccoon for his Little girl evaporated as she cozied up to him. He needed to stay here with her—even if he could be back seconds after selecting and paying for the stuffie.
Connecting with his clan, Marcus sent a mental request. Can anyone take a moment to get a raccoon stuffie for Carina?
On it, Alaric replied.
The corner of Marcus’s mouth twitched upward. Alaric’s otherworldly handsomeness always drew attention, while the aura of danger that he wore like a coat scared humans. In the toy department, he would stand out like a neon warning.
A tap on the door moments later told Marcus that Alaric’s shopping trip had been successful.
Thank you, Marcus sent.
You’d do the same for me.
I would and will without hesitation.
I’ll remember that if I am ever blessed as you are with a mate. Will you turn her soon? Alaric asked.
We have not discussed it yet. After the kidnapping, I think her conversion is urgent. I won’t leave her defenseless.
And if she says no?
I will love her until the day her bones have crumbled to dust and forever after that, Marcus replied honestly.
Alaric didn’t comment for a few seconds but finally said, Being alone is no longer your destiny. She will be difficult to convince but will voluntarily decide to join you fully.
Encouraged by his clan leader’s prediction, Marcus paused before saying honestly, Whenever she decides it is right, I will celebrate. Carina stirred in his arms, fighting sleep. Marcus sent her reassuring thoughts. Of course, his Little could pick up on his emotions.
Do your best to convince her sooner rather than later, Alaric said with a chuckle in his tone that broke the tension of their conversation.
Definitely.
Alaric’s mind became distant. Marcus knew Alaric now concentrated on something other than the need for a stuffie.
As minutes crept by, Marcus’s curiosity built. How cute would the stuffie be? Would Carina love it? When she finally roused from sleep, he couldn’t wait to see her reaction.
Yawning, Carina stretched and froze when she whacked Marcus in the jaw. She opened her eyelids wide and stared up at him. “Oops?”
“Hi, sweetheart. How are you?”
Relaxing now that he didn’t seem angry, Carina yawned again and pushed herself up on an arm. Her pointed elbow came close to unmanning him. Marcus helped her sit up.
“Hi, Daddy.” She blinked her eyes and raised her hands over her head, wiggling back and forth to flex her spine. Marcus enjoyed the show of her bare breasts swaying.
When she settled, Carina reported, “I feel good. I can’t believe I fell asleep. I just woke up before I napped.”
“Your body needed the rest.”
Her eyes narrowed as she concentrated on him. “Did you vamp me to sleep? You know, like use mind control?”
“I did not use any vampire skills to help you rest,” he told her honestly before stressing, “You needed your slumber.”
Yawning again, she nodded. “I did. I haven’t gotten much rest lately. Life has been crazy for weeks at my job. I bet you don’t have the slightest clue about what I do,” she said.
He didn’t need to read her mind to guess. “You work in a hospital’s finance department. Your specialty is reconciling the most twisted accounts. I was impressed by your annual reviews. You are obviously good at your job.”
“Oh, my God!” Her voice came to a complete stop after each word. “What did you do? Invade the hospital and break into HR to read the files with my name on it?”
“No, Carina. Bram sent me a report. He’s impressed with you too. That’s why Darius showed up to meet you. He’s reclusive. I go months without running into him.”
“I’ve seen him a couple of times. Why did he want to meet me?”
“Darius is the clan’s financial wizard. He appreciates those with minds that function as his does.”
Carina paused for a moment before whispering, “I couldn’t have made a good impression.”
Marcus laughed, remembering how she’d wrapped herself around him, more focused on kisses than mathematical computations. “You did. Darius believes in enjoyment balanced with work, although he doesn’t always practice that philosophy. He likes you. More than me, I would bet.”
Marcus wasn’t jealous or threatened by Darius.
If anyone could challenge him in hand-to-hand competition, Darius would be the closest to Marcus’s strength.
Like all vampires, Darius understood the power of the mate bond.
Carina belonged to Marcus. As part of the clan, Darius would give his life to protect Carina without a second thought.
Not only because she was a clan member’s mate, but her brain intrigued him.
“No way. Isn’t that weird?” Carina asked.
“The entire clan hasn’t lived in the same place for many years, Little girl. We reunited here with the goal of launching Nightfall.”
She settled against his chest. Marcus guessed she wanted to think about information he’d shared. After a couple of minutes, he told her, “Something special arrived while you slept. It’s on the porch. Would you like to go get it?”
Carina rocketed off his lap and got halfway to the door before she remembered she only wore a diaper. Whirling, she said, “I can’t go out there like this!”
Marcus stood and grabbed the soft throw he’d draped over her when she napped. He wrapped it around her like a toga and tucked the end secured in place. “Go grab it.”
In a flash, she was out the door. Carina came back with a beautiful box. “Look, Daddy. It has my name on it.”
“That means you should open it.”
She plopped down on her padded bottom and tore the lid off. “It’s a raccoon. He’s adorable.” Carina hugged him tightly before extending him at arm’s length so she could check him out. “I love his mask and his dark eyes. He’s laughing, Daddy. What do you think?”
“Definitely, he’s happy to be with you, Carina.” Marcus smiled at the stuffie’s expression when she turned him around. Good job, Alaric. He’d chosen the perfect stuffed animal for his Little girl.
Did you have doubts? Alaric’s amusement filled Marcus’s mind for a second before disappearing again.
To Marcus’s delight, she hugged the stuffie close before dotting kisses across the raccoon’s face.
“He’ll need a name,” Marcus suggested to her.
“Mischief,” Carina answered decisively.
“Mischief,” Marcus repeated, running his finger down the side of his chin to tug his beard a few times like he was considering her choice. “I like it.”
“Me too! So does Mischief. I can’t get in trouble anymore, Daddy. Mischief would have told me to do it.”
“I’ll be sure to punish Mischief as well if he’s bad or leads you astray.”
Her gasp of horror almost made him drop his serious expression. “You can’t spank my stuffie, Daddy.”
“Of course I can if he urges you to make poor choices. I guess you’ll have to help him learn right from wrong.”
“I can do that.” She rushed to assure him before wagging her finger at Mischief. “Be good. You don’t want a red bottom. Daddy has hard hands.”
Marcus controlled the urge to smile at her cute interaction with her stuffie. He drew his eyebrows together to create a menacing expression as Carina turned her stuffie to face him. Mischief quaked in her hands.
“He says he’ll behave,” Carina reported.
“I’m counting on it, Mischief.”
“What would the two of you like for breakfast?”
“Scrambled eggs?” Carina suggested.
“Of course. You rest here with Mischief while I whip some up for the two of you. Would you like to listen to music or watch a cartoon?”
“Cartoon, Daddy!”
When she had chosen a show, he left her cuddled on the couch with the soft throw and Mischief cradled in her arms. In the kitchen, Marcus kept an eye on her as he chopped some veggies to hide in the eggs and beat the mixture to a fluffy consistency. With the pan heated, he noticed her squirming.
Marcus flipped the gas off on the stove and walked to her side. “Let’s show Mischief your nursery before breakfast.” He scooped her up and dangled her over one forearm with her weight on her tummy.
“Daddy, I have to use the bathroom,” she told him urgently.
“Okay.” He continued to carry her, dangling.
“Oh!” she gasped.
Marcus walked slowly to the changing table. Without commenting on her soaked diaper, he changed and cleaned her up. He dressed her in a cute outfit of leggings and a soft top so she wouldn’t catch a chill at the table. After pulling socks onto her feet, he stood her on the carpet.
“Go explore. Show Mischief your nursery.”
He busied himself tidying up as his Little girl and her new best friend toured the nursery. Watching her waddle slightly from the padding between her legs enchanted him. What an absolute cutie!
When he finished, he collected Carina and carried the now-bonded duo to the kitchen. “Do you have stuffies at your apartment?” he asked.
“No. Mine got thrown out.”
“Really? What happened?”
“I went to college and didn’t take my stuffies to the dorm. I was afraid my roommate and the others on my floor would make fun of me. Turns out, a lot of them brought a stuffed friend or several. When I went home to visit, I planned to bring them back but….”
When her voice faded away, Marcus prompted, “And what?”
“My mother made my room into her craft studio. She got rid of most of the stuff I’d left at home.”
In her tone, he could hear the sadness that still lingered inside his Little girl. He stopped in the hallway to say, “That was wrong of her.”
“It was. But there was nothing I could do.”
Marcus hugged her tighter and walked into the kitchen. What mother would hurt her child by doing something so thoughtless? Pushing the thoughts of violence toward the unpleasant woman from his mind, Marcus focused on his Little girl.
“What did Mischief think about the nursery?”
“He loved it. There’s a game in the chest he’d like to play after breakfast.”
“Is it something Daddy can play too?”
“We might let you join us,” Carina said with a smile.
“Hooray.” Marcus sat Carina in a chair at the table. “Stay here and I’ll grab you some juice and a snack to help the two of you survive until I get the eggs scrambled.”
He returned with a sippy cup of cranberry juice and a box of animal crackers.
After scattering a half dozen crackers on the table, Marcus returned the box to the pantry.
He didn’t want her to ruin her appetite by munching on too many.
As he scrambled the eggs, Carina discussed with Mischief what each beast was.
With that task completed, she galloped the different creatures across the table with the appropriate sound effects before popping them into her mouth.
He'd just flipped off the stove when Carina asked, “Do you like seafood, Daddy?”
“I do,” he answered and turned to see her stick a treat into her mouth.
“Look, Daddy, I’m eating a giraffe,” she mumbled before opening her mouth to show him the partially chewed cracker. “It’s seefood now. Get it?”
Carina laughed and inhaled some of the crumbs. To his horror, she coughed and choked. Marcus raced to her side and pried her mouth open to scoop what remained out. He tore the lid off her sippy cup and held the juice to her lips. “Drink, Carina.”
Shaking, she followed his directions and automatically swallowed the ruby liquid. To his relief, the juice washed the last of the crumbs down her throat. She slumped against the back of her chair. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“Of course, Little girl. No talking with your mouth full,” he warned, trying not to show her how shaken up he was as well. Marcus forced himself to breathe slower. Years in combat with people who would have loved to shish kebab him and an animal cracker almost gave him a heart attack.
“We don’t like giraffes anymore.” Mischief nodded in Carina’s arms, agreeing with her completely.
“No more giraffes. Maybe we'll give them another chance on a different day. And we don’t tell jokes and eat at the same time.” he suggested casually as he snapped the lid on the juice and settled in the seat next to her.
“Take another sip for Daddy. Good girl,” he praised her as she drank deeply.
“How about a bite of eggs?” He placed a small amount on his fork and held it to her lips.
Tentatively, she opened her mouth. He guessed she was afraid of choking again. To his delight, her expression changed from one of fear to appreciation. When she started to comment, Marcus reminded her, “No talking with food in your mouth.”
She swallowed dramatically before opening her mouth to show him it was empty. Then, Carina reached for the fork to have another taste. “Those are really good.”
Marcus held the utensil away and reminded her, “Daddy will feed you.”
“Fine,” she said and pouted until he collected another portion.
Marcus gave her time between bites and ate a couple himself when she insisted.
Carina hadn’t asked him a lot of questions about what vampire life and needs were.
With each moment that passed, the urgency grew inside him to turn her into a being who could be his Little for many years to come.
He would need to have that discussion with her soon.
Not now. Today was for being Little.