Audrina
The sun seemed too bright, too harsh. I hesitated on the front steps of Gabriel’s gorgeous house. I suddenly wanted to go back inside, to hide from the world…maybe to pretend that it didn’t exist.
I glanced at Gabriel. He looked impossibly handsome—and human—in his suit. His dark hair swept back from his forehead, and his keen eyes surveyed our surroundings.
Now that I knew he was King of the Underworld, his erect posture and regal bearing made absolute sense. He moved like a royal, not just a billionaire. He was a powerful vampire, the master of his universe, a ruler that hundreds-maybe more-took the knee for.
And he wanted me. Not just for one night. Not just for two
weeks. A permanent arrangement-one which involved drinking my blood. And scorching-hot sex. An arrangement that only ended in marriage, in death, or with the vampire’s release of his human.
I couldn’t begin to fathom it.
But even if I skipped over my disbelief, I had another question. How could he ask me for such a commitment when he knew about my sister? If I said yes and I was not saying yes-how would that work with Winifred? We would be living in two different worlds. And the Underworld was no place for my teenage sister.
Gabriel started down the sidewalk, his long, powerful legs carrying him away from me swiftly. I hustled to reach his side and lengthened my stride to keep pace with his.
Who were we here, out in the daylight? The beautiful townhomes rose on either side, gaslight lanterns flaming despite the sunny morning. Gabriel was a businessman, a billionaire in an expensive suit. And I was his…date?
I glanced down at myself. I no longer looked like a plain high-school senior who’d never had a boyfriend. My designer dress and high heels transformed me. And after the experience, I’d had with Gabriel last night, I felt different. More worldly. More experienced. Sexy-as though I’d learned a secret about myself.
Pleasure, greater than I’d ever guessed, was possible for me. I also had the power to give pleasure, which was heady indeed. Gabriel wanted me. I meant something to him.
His hand hung next to mine, and I itched to take it like I had last night. But that was crazy. He was a vampire, and he wanted to make me his…his… I didn’t have a word for it. Perhaps Leonora was right; perhaps he wanted to make me his eternal love slave.
Was it so wrong that I felt a flash of heat between my legs at the thought?
It didn’t matter. I would never make a decision based on lust. What else was it my father used to say? Act in haste, repent at leisure. I wouldn’t think of trading my life with my sister for the promise of physical pleasure, no matter how mind-blowing.
But I could see where it might be quite dangerous to receive such a proposition from a vampire. I’d been very, very close to begging Gabriel to take my virginity last night. If he’d made me the consummation offer then, what would I have said? In my lust-induced state, I’d asked him to have sex with me at the party. God only knows what I would have agreed to, had we made it back to his bedroom.
We reached an intersection and Gabriel turned left, heading down a cheerful street dotted with stores and cafes. Palm trees, planted in intervals on the sidewalk, swayed in the breeze.
There were people out strolling, drinking coffee, and window-shopping. My mood lifted at the sunny, cheerful scene. Charleston was so beautiful; it seemed a crime that I hadn’t visited for so long.
“I’ll be right back.” Gabriel ducked into a store and came out a few minutes later with two ice cream cones. A bouquet of bright-pink tulips was tucked beneath his arm. “I took the liberty of ordering you vanilla since it seemed safe.” He handed the cone to me and smiled.
Touched, I couldn’t help but smile back. “Thank you.”
“And these are for you, of course.” He motioned to the flowers. “To say that I am truly sorry about last night.”
He took a bite of his ice cream, and I couldn’t help but stare at his luscious lips. Oh, what those lips had done to me in that dark corner…
“Audrina?” He arched his eyebrow. “Everything okay?”
“Y-Yes. I guess I just didn’t see you as the ice cream cone type.” Because you’re a vampire. I decided it was best to leave that part out, given the crowded sidewalk.
“I enjoy an indulgence, now and then.” His red-hot gaze raked over me, and I wondered how his ice cream didn’t melt.
There was a ping, and Gabriel cursed. “Hold my cone?” He handed it to me and whipped out his phone.
“Ah.” He looked up. “This is for you.”
Panic immediately rattled my chest. Winnie. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes, of course. I spoke to Mrs. Finn earlier-your sister is fine-this is a text from Bianca.” He held out his phone so I could read the message.
Please tell Audrina that I cannot WAIT to see her! Ask if she’ll join me and my bridesmaids at the spa later. I’m going to make her my BFF, just wait and see!
“Oh, that’s nice.” I smiled at the message. “I like Bianca-she and your brother seem so happy.”
“Yes, they do.”
Gabriel put the phone away and grabbed his cone back; his skin briefly grazed mine, and electricity tingled between us. My hormones had no fear of him. But my hormones were dumb!
We walked on in silence for a few minutes, meandering through the shady parts of the sidewalk, enjoying our ice cream. Several passing women, all attractive and stylishly dressed, checked out Gabriel as they strutted past. He didn’t seem to notice, intent on finishing his ice cream before it melted. He seemed happy, content.
“You know, I should do this more often.” He peered around the bustling but charming downtown. “I don’t come out here enough.”
“It’s nice.” I held my face up toward the sun. “It’s beautiful.”
“So beautiful.” But he wasn’t looking at the scenery; he was looking at me.
I cleared my throat. “So…what’s happening in Vegas?” I didn’t want to be curious, but I couldn’t seem to stop myself.
“We have a private flight, then we’re staying at one of our hotels.”
“You own a hotel?” Why was I surprised? Of course, he did.
“Yes-and although I loathe Vegas, the hotel is quite nice. Once we arrive, apparently Bianca and her bridesmaids are going to the spa; my brothers and I are gambling.”
“That sounds fun.”
He frowned. “I hate gambling. It’s a waste of time.”
I leaned closer, and keeping my voice low, asked, “Does the king have to do things he hates?”
“Yes.” He rolled his eyes. “When it’s his brother’s wedding party, I have no choice.”
“Ah. You’re a good brother.”
“When I make an effort.” He shrugged, but he seemed pleased. “Then the plan is to reconvene for dinner, and afterward, a party in one of the clubs. It sounds like hell to me, but apparently, Bianca loves Vegas. So we’re going to Vegas.”
“I’m sure it will be fun.”
He turned to me. “I want you to come.”
“I… Thank you.” Surprisingly, I felt torn. I’d been so sure that I wanted to go home, to get as far away from him and the Underworld as possible. But out on the sunny sidewalk, with a bouquet of tulips beneath his arm, handsome, charming Gabriel Dalca was most certainly the man of my dreams.
That was the difficult part-that view of him was a dream; it was delusional. He was a vampire. A vampire king.
“You have a choice, Audrina,” he said quietly. “You do not need to walk away from me from the opportunity I offered you. You said yes to me once before. Before you say goodbye, you might want to consider why you’re here in the first place.”
I swallowed hard. “I didn’t know everything then that I know now,” I reminded him. I had many more questions about what he was, and how things worked in the Underworld. Most of it was still a mystery.
“True.” He nodded. “And I suppose now you know about me, you can make a more informed choice. But please consider that not all of our time together has been bad. There have been some highlights.” A smile ghosted his lips, and my stomach tied itself into a knot.
We circled back down the block, eventually turning down Gabriel’s street. The happy, playful mood between us turned strained. Gabriel’s big shoulders tensed beneath his suit coat. I had to make up my mind, to give him my decision. But I wasn’t ready. There was still so much I didn’t know…
By the time we reached his house, my head was pounding.
He waited until we were back inside, in the cool darkness of the hallway, to turn to me. “Have you decided?”
“I have more questions.” I crossed my arms against my chest. “Ones that weren’t appropriate for a busy sidewalk.”
He exhaled deeply. “Of course.”
We went back to the living room and sat down, facing each other once again. Before I gave him my answer, I needed to know a few more things—about him. About what he was.
It was time for Vampire Q and A.