“And that's my cue.” Jack smirks, knowingly, before disappearing with a rustle.
A deep chuckle emanates from Bash’s chest. Picking me up, he wraps my legs around his waist. I feel his body tight against mine and kiss him. Pulling his tongue into my mouth, I suck on it gently, my fangs sliding out of my gums. Kissing my way down his jaw, I suck lightly against his pulse point.
“Bite me,Tesoro. I want to feel your teeth.” So I do, easing my fangs gently into the delicate skin covering his jugular, I pull hard on the blood flowing across my lips. He moans huskily in my ear, his dick hardening against my pelvis as he holds me wrapped around him.
Releasing his neck, I lick my lips and plant a kiss on his mouth, sharing the leftover blood with him.
“That was pretty hot,l’immortal,” I tell him, a huge grin plastered on my face. “Don’t hurt yourself because of thatpsychopath. We will find him, and he will have to face what he’s done.”
“Let’s go, little troublemaker.” He takes off at a quick pace, me still clinging to him and laughing the whole way.
“Hey, so, Jack mentioned something,” I say, a little shyly, walking beside him a short time later.
“Oh yeah, I can only imagine.” He rolls his eyes at me, making me laugh.
“He said he felt your anger across the city…”
“Yeah, we are bonded, through the sire bond. You will have a similar bond to me after we do Legame di Sangue.”
“Ok, but…how much can he feel?”
I know his eyes are searching my face as I try to appear uninterested in the answer. Suddenly, he doubles over in laughter, clutching his stomach like I’ve said the funniest thing he’s ever heard.
“You’re wondering if he can feel when we…” He lifts his eyebrows at me.
If I were capable of blushing as a vampire, my entire face would be flushed. “I mean, yeah, kind of.Stop laughing at me!”
Still chuckling, he nudges my shoulder. “Yes, baby, he can. But he can block it out. And he can’t really feel it physically, more like a rush of emotions. I can feel him too. It’s like—happiness. He only knows I’m really happy, or maybe pleased. But he can't read my mind or anything.”
“And Sarah too? What about your mother? You don’t have a sire.”
“Yes, to Sarah, and that one was hard to add to my brain once she turned because you were missing. But Ethan was not. And he spent a pretty fair amount of time trying to cheer her up.”
“Ew, Bash!” More laughter. I join in this time.
“But no, not Vespera. She’s not really my sire. It’s weird, Iguess, because it would make sense but no. It feels natural to me, like an extension of myself, so I don’t pay a lot of attention to it. But if Jack or Sarah were to be hurt, my nature, as their sire, would compel me to find them and make sure they’re ok. The same way Jack felt compelled to hunt me down a few minutes ago. When you were missing, I was in bad shape, baby. Jack stuck pretty close to me, making sure I was ok. He walked the city from sundown to sunrise every single night, until he smelled you in that sewer drain. He was as obsessed as I was, but not only for me. For you too.”
“Why? Why would Jack care so much about me?”
“I don’t know exactly. He loves you. He loves you for my sake, but somewhere along the way, he loved you all on his own too.” My heart warms at his words. Knowing that we are building a life, a family gives me a sense of belonging I’ve never had. It’s always been grand-mere and I, plus Sarah.
“What happens when we do the ceremony?”
“From what I have been told, it should be relatively similar—you’ll be in my head, bound to me. We will have a stronger connection than I do with Sarah and Jack though. The binding, it’s soul deep. It’s a different sort of connection. We won’t only be able to feel each other, we will be able to find each other. Like I said, no one will ever take you from me again.” Grabbing his hand we walk in silence for a while.
“When can we do it?”
“Whenever you’re ready,Tesoro Mio. Anytime.”
Less than twenty-four hours later, I am in a small room in the chapel with Sarah, Vespera, Grand-mere, and Bash’s fourcousins. Sarah is holding up a stunning black wedding dress and I am ready to pledge myself and my future to this man. I marvel at the timeless workmanship of the stitches, beadwork, and lace. I had never really thought much about what I would get married in, I never even seriously considered the possibility that Iwouldget married. Now, I am preparing to take a vow that will tie me to Sebastien for all of eternity.
My hair is pinned up at my temples, clips that look like delicate black moths braided and looped through the curls that cascade down my back. Gia and Lessa take turns working on my makeup, meticulously applying heavy black eyeliner and creating a decadent smokey eye with just a hint of blue shimmer. Knee high stockings with red beading down the back and black sky-high stilettos adorn my legs.
“To the future Corvo Queen!” Everyone raises their glass, clinking them delicately. A tiara studded with black diamonds and onyx is set upon my head.
“How did you manage to pull this together so quickly?” I ask the room.
“We knew, when you came home, that this was your destiny. You’re one of us now,” Vespera tells me, moving a lock of hair behind my ear.
