He trailed three of his gloved fingers gently down the side of her face. "I was once a prince who became a king—a transformation that bound me to a sacred coffin and forced me to perform a dark ritual in search of a bride. My bride must be no less than a vampire like myself, according to the rules and customs of the holy court of my home. Once she is found, I am expected to return home to my duties with her and crown her queen."
Wish still wondered in confusion, but she understood the part in which he said his bride must be a vampire—his equal.
"My father has asked me to come home, and I am not leaving this room without you, my bride," he said so gently, as if luring her into a trap. His tone left her even more confused, as though he were testing whether she understood what he meant.
"Your… bride?"
He smiled and nodded at her, deepening the frown on her face.
"But…I am not a vampire like you. And it is against your customs to have a bride who is not your equal," she said desperately, using it as an excuse to escape him. Slowly, she began to withdraw from his lap, begging to be freed. "I…I don't want anyone to get into trouble again because of me."
He had never wanted to reveal the truth, for he feared she might use it against him. But if he was to spend his eternity with this woman by his side and fight tirelessly to have her as his cherished queen, transparency was essential. Letting her know everything—and what he might be drawing her into—would prepare her to fight as well. Who knew? She might be the first mortal queen his realm had ever had since its inception.
His hold tightened as he drew her closer.
"It being against the rules doesn't mean I am not ready to bend them to keep you as mine, Wish."
The poor girl shook her head, disliking the idea and unwilling to believe that anyone could consider her worth defying a host of ruthless vampire lords—or God knows what—just to have her as queen. His stubbornness could place her in grave danger in a foreign land, forcing her to fight them all alone, which terrified her. It was already exhausting enough fighting all the monsters in this world by herself; she wasn't interested in battling vampires just to be with someone who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, claiming to be madly in love with her.
She wasn't prepared to go through such a ordeal.
No, it was something she neither wanted nor wished to experience for nothing.
"Why don't you choose someone else? Make someone else your bride—someone you can pester all day—and leave me alone. Another vampire might be interested in being your queen, but I'm not."
Malachi didn't mean to growl, though his emotions slowly took over as she moved toward rejecting him completely; he held her to him, determined not to let go.
"I can't," he lied. "It doesn't work that way, Wish." His tone left her looking distressed and frightened, as if she might be taken against her will and forced to become queen in his universe.
"And…" he began, trying not to scare her further with the rising emotion and the myriad thoughts he perceived in her pretty head. "I will never, ever deny you consent. That's why I am taking my time to tell you all this."
She decided not to think any further, knowing that her thoughts would soon be an open book to him.
He calmed down a bit. He hated how little she thought of herself. He wished to complete the marking now so that she could dive into his thoughts, be overwhelmed by the strong feelings he held for her, and never feel ashamed.
"Wish," he began in the softest tone, feeling her relax in his arms, "I am not taking you against your will, nor am I trying to deceive or take advantage of you. I know it might all sound like bullshit to you right now because you haven't yet given me the chance to prove myself. Come home with me now, and let me show you what it means to be mine."
☆
"Come home with me now, and let me show you what it means to be mine."
His sweet words echoed in her mind all day. He had given her three days to make her decision. He would be leaving this world on the third day and would never return. She would never see him again.
Today was the third day. She had only ten hours until midnight, after which it would all be over. Her last bus to Romance would depart, and she would forever remain a miserable, workaholic idiot. He had been kind enough to tend to her injured ankle—and she wouldn't lie when she said it was much better in such a short time.
She was definitely not interested in anything he said, did, or tempted her with. Heaven knew he was just one desperate vampire spouting bullshit, trying to lure her into being his victim.
No one could be crazy enough to break the rules for her sake. At least, not any sane individual she could think of on this planet—let alone an alien from another world.
It all sounded like… bullshit!
And she was not falling for it!
"Yes…" she whispered behind the counter with a firm nod. Her hair was tied loosely in a high ponytail as she watched the last of the customers leave her workplace, the clock's hour hand drawing near the closing time. This time, she made sure not to leave for home without something for self-defense—a homemade pepper spray and a small, portable butter knife might come in handy.
After the last customer had left, having purchased the book he had been reading, she thought of going home to rest for the day. It was already a few minutes past seven, and she dreaded walking back alone when it was too dark. God knew how many wendigos in human form might be lurking, waiting to feast on her brains, so she had to be very conscious of the time and the road home.
Wish knelt under the table to retrieve her charger and phone. She rose to her feet and nearly had a heart attack upon seeing the person waiting on the other side of the counter. His dark, ripped jeans perfectly complemented his bad-boy leather jacket as he stood confidently before her, his hands buried deep in his pockets.
She stood frozen in shock, eyes wide at the sight of the figure before her in the flesh, hardly believing it.
"Hey, gorgeous," he greeted, nodding in her direction—a nod that made her heart skip a beat and her mind reel in shock.
"T–T…Tyler?"
"What's up?" he said in his deep, dreamy voice as he pulled his hands from his pockets and leaned against the counter, smirking in a way that made her heart race and the world seem to stop as she stared at her long-time crush in a daze. "This is where you work?"
Why was he being so…
"Uh…ye…yes. I work here now."
He seemed a bit intrigued, nodding in approval. Wish placed her hand on her chest, struggling to remain composed and cool in his presence.
"Nice, nice, nice. Another reason to find you pretty sexy."
Really?
It was as if a firework had lit up in her brown eyes as she stared at him, wishing they could remain in that moment forever. He wasn't the drop-dead gorgeous vampire who had been haunting her for some time, and no one could match his beauty and charm. It would be far more satisfying—and less pressure—if she had Tyler as a partner instead of a Vampire King who was a thousand and one miles out of her league. After their last incident together, she had thought all hope was lost with Tyler. Yet here she was, alone in a library, her mind blown like dynamite as he called her sexy.
"So…you read and like books apart from your little witchy thing?" he asked.
She nodded after a moment, feeling nervous again now that he still considered her an "evil witch." It was something she shouldn't be ashamed of, but…
"Great. Caz…I have something for you that you might like."
Wish's eyes widened as he dropped a small comic book on the counter before her, a mischievous grin on his face. She gave him a questioning look as her fingers curled around the little comic, drawing it close in acceptance. He gave her an encouraging look, urging her to see what his gift was, and though she was hesitant, she did not want to disappoint or squander the opportunity life was offering her.
The first page of the comic surprised her so much that her hands trembled at the explicit scenes. Characters were depicted in very revealing poses, their faces flushed with desire and unrestrained lust. Every inch of her skin itched with repulsion at the images, and with each turn of the page she grew speechless until she could no longer continue without feeling nauseated.
Tyler burst into laughter at the sight of her pale face as the comic slipped from her trembling hands. He relished the look of terror on the poor girl's face.
"You like me, don't you?"
She looked up at him, her glossy eyes matching his in disbelief. He studied her from head to toe as if confirming one last truth to himself, his mouth moving in amusement.
"Okay. It's literally impossible to not fall for me—although I don't do love, only sex. You have a really great shape and body, and my guys later made it clear that it would be a shame if we didn't have a little fun with it. That's why I'm here: to show you what a relationship with me is like. You can keep your feelings to yourself, but be ready to spread your legs wide open for me—anything we ask for."
Her face grew sickly pale as she stepped back, mortified and heartbroken.
"Though you're free to call yourself and brag to everyone in town that you are one of my girlfriends, know that I am no one's boyfriend."
He grabbed the comic book and flipped through its pages until the very end. Just to the left of the last pages was a number scribbled neatly, and next to it was the inscription "Tyler Black" with a crude "fuck you" scrawled beneath.
"Call me tomorrow morning when you've made up your mind to be my little plaything, and I'll have Josh move you over to his place first—before you step those pretty legs inside my house, still looking like the scared little girly virgin you might be."
With one final hot slap to her cheek and an encouraging wink, he left her alone in the library.