Ariana POV
"I can't wait too much longer, my baby girl," Dimitri confessed, the strain of holding himself back evident on his lean, handsome features with his pointed chin. It was a good, strong face. Exotic, otherworldly.
But those sharp fangs, looking like thorns ready to pierce her, gave her pause.
"You said you'd give me pleasure when you bit me," she said in a small voice.
Flames kindled in his eyes, and he stroked her hair. "And so I will, my good little pet. But you have to come for me. You have to come harder than you ever will in your life. Give yourself over to the sheer ecstasy I'm offering. Don't hold back. Do you understand? When I tell you to come, you come."
She nodded, feeling his body caging hers, trapping heat between them. Her mouth was so dry, and her body so thirsty for whatever pleasure he gave her. She moistened her lips."
His growl sounded sexier than anything. "You know how to tease me, little pet. You know what I like. Wetting those beautiful lips of yours. Put that to good use. Kiss me."
His full lips looked like an Italian Renaissance artist had sculpted them. She knew they felt good. As good as the hard length of him inside of her. Leaning close, she kissed him, giving him her tongue.
At his groan of pleasure, she felt a thrill, and moved her hips in a sensual way. His groan became a growl once again and he claimed her mouth over and over again as his own hips moved in and out in a hypnotic rhythm.
"D*mn, sweetheart," he growled. "You know how to tease me. How to make me your love captive. But don't forget who's in command. I say when you can come. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Daddy."
"That's right, my sweet little pet. I'm your Daddy. I'm going to take such good care of you from now on. Like no one else ever has. No man, anyway. I'll be your only lover. I'll be the one to please you, forever."
He ran his large hand over her hair and her face and breasts, his touch feathering gently on her skin. "You're so soft," he murmured. "So sweet. You have the creamy skin that all your family does."
Her heart clenched at the words. "I wouldn't know."
He groaned, stroking her hair and moving with controlled precision inside her. "I'm sorry, sweet baby girl. My sweet little autumn leaf. Your hair looks like autumn leaves. I'm going to call you Autumn Leaf. Hmmm? What do you think?"
She wrinkled her nose. "I don't know ..."
"You're right. How about just 'Autumn'? I like that better. It's close to your name, anyway. Autumn it is. Say it. Say you like your name."
"I like my name, Daddy. My new name, Autumn."
She felt like she'd stepped into a strange and bizarre world, where she became "Autumn". First a princess in hiding, then a blood sacrifice, then a vampire's sugar baby named Autumn. What next?
"I like autumn, too," he murmured, flexing inside her, encouraging her to move with him and clench around him. His eyes grew hazy when she did that. "By the Old Gods, wo taught you to please a man like this?"
"A lot of reading."
He smiled sensually. "Well, you're certainly a star student. Keep up the good work."
Eager to make him feel good, good enough to keep her safe, she wrapped her legs around him. His loud moan of pleasure heated her blood.
He stared at her through heavy-lidded eyes. "You like that, don't you? You like the power you have over me, my little autumn virgin. My precious pet. Wrap your legs more. I don't want the slightest space between us. I want to feel you all around me."
He thrust harder to prove his point, hitting all her pleasure spots. Her eyes rolled back in her head and she thrashed from side to side, moaning.
"Good girl. So responsive, so eager. But you can't come until I say so."
His voice, a sensual rasp, only made her desire him more. She wanted to forget the last twenty-four hours. She wanted to lose herself in him.
The heat between her legs agreed. Each silken stroke he made within her brought her closer to the edge. And he didn't stop. True to his word, he loved her for a long time, until she wanted to scream in frustration.
"Daddy, please ..."
She caressed his magnificent behind, which felt like ripe fruit ready for the squeezing. She tasted his skin on her lips. She heard his grunts of pleasure as he pounded into her.
"Please what, sweetheart?" he asked with a calm detachment. "You want to come?"
"YES! Please, Daddy."
"Since you ask so nicely ... come for me. Come now. Shatter for me."
The rapidly-blossoming heat exploded inside her and the pleasure crested over her. Flinging back her head, she screamed as her vision went white.
Two sharp pinpricks on her neck added to the wild rush. He'd bitten her ... and it didn't feel like she was being ripped apart.
"Oh God, Oh God, Oh God..."
* * * * *
Dimitri POV
She was his.
Her sweet blood, like chocolate, cherries, and bourbon, filled his mouth. A hint of saltiness and spice too. Mmmmm.
He'd have to be careful not to drain her, or take too much of her blood at once. As it was, he felt intoxicated and loopy.
With a mighty roar, he emptied his seed inside her pulsing liquid heat. The Old Gods had made this woman just for him. They'd probably arranged this, knowing full well how his family could be. Why else would he have the privilege of claiming Ariana ... or Autumn, as he would call her from now on?
Autumn would be better, anyway. The pet name would conceal her identity. Maybe he'd have a stylist come to his house and dye her hair, or at lest tint it. Dressed in designer clothes, she would be a new woman.
"Oh God, sweetheart," he gasped, fighting for breath. "If I wasn't undead, you'd be the death of me. You're addictive. I'm going to love doing this with you. Often. Every night."
Her eyes widened, and he laughed at her overwhelmed expression. "Don't worry. I promise, you'll enjoy yourself. I took good care of you, didn't I?"
"Yes, Daddy."
She lay quietly beneath him, cushioning him with her curves. He rolled her on top of him so he could stroke her back tenderly. Her head drifted onto his chest and she buried her face in his hard pecs.
Pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head, he murmured, "That was amazing, sweetheart. We're sealed to each other now."
"Sealed? Like ... married?"
Her head shot up, and he chuckled at the suspicion in her wide eyes. They churned like the ocean surf.
"Nothing like that, pet," he reassured her. "But making love to you slowly and giving you the bite when you orgasmed is part of an old ritual. Older than the less pleasant ones. It seals the bond between a vampire and his or her lover and blood servant. We usually make our blood servants our lovers and vice versa, because it's such an intimate thing."
"Really?"
He stroked her hair affectionately. "Really. It enhances the experience."
"Then why couldn't the princesses in my family just be blood servants to your family? And just what is the deal between our families and our kingdoms anyway?"
He hesitated. D*mn her. He couldn't blame her for being curious, especially since her world just got turned upside down. But couldn't she let them bask in the afterglow for a while before she started interrogating him?
"Are you sure you're not pre-law?"
She rolled her eyes. "Science is all about asking questions. Seeking information."
"Fair enough. But could we give that a rest for now?" He caressed her back, feeling her tiredness, using his vampire enchantments to make her even more drowsy. "You've had a huge shock. And your sleep was fitful last night. Take a little nap."
His tone brooked no argument. He wanted her happy and healthy. Not to mention that the history of the feud between their two families didn't exactly flatter his family. He really didn't want to dwell on the convoluted and unpleasant tale. She'd never get any rest then.
He owed her an explanation, but she'd had enough ugly awakenings for a lifetime. Besides, he just wanted to savor the feel of his Autumn in his arms.
Sighing, she said, "As you wish, Daddy. But promise me an explanation when I wake up."
"Of course, sweetheart." He pulled the covers over them both, then lay back with her wrapped in his arms. "I could get used to this. You in my bed, where you belong, drifting off to sleep without a care in the world. Dream well, my little pet."
A soft snore answered him, and he tightened his arms around his Autumn.
The grating sound of his phone buzzing made him want to throw something, he picked it up without disturbing his sugar baby and glanced at it. A text from Luc, the bastard, with a string of coffin, blood, vampire, and skull emojis.
Luc: You think you can hide from us, but we'll find you, traitor, and your royal human b*tch. I'll search every castle in the country and every college for your precious human teacher's pet. You're both dead when I find you. And you'll be staked while you watch me drain her dry.
Dimitri blocked the number and deleted the text conversation. "That's what you think, Luc," he muttered. "You won't get your way this time."