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I want to get lost in his embrace, so I wrap my arms around him as well. Although for now, things seem to have quieted down, but I know all this is far from over. He knows it as well.
When he releases me from his grip, he cups my face and looks straight into my eyes.
“You were marvelous,” he says with so much tenderness that it makes my heart want to burst.
“I was?” I ask, blushing. “I didn’t even know what I was doing.”
“See?” he nods. “That is exactly what I told you. You will know what to do when the time comes. Your mind might not know, but your body will, because your body will finally recognize who you are.”
“A dryad?” I ask, the word still sounding strange and unfamiliar. But with each passing moment, I am starting to accept who I am, especially taking into account that the new me is a wood nymph. Who would have thought that a lost little baby would be a dryad? Certainly not me.
“Yes,” he nods.
“I have to ask you something,” I suddenly say, with hesitation.
“You can ask me anything,” he assures me.
Upon saying those words, he looks at me as if he is seeing me for the first time, truly seeing the real me. I want to see myself through his eyes. I want to see what he sees. But I guess I have to learn how to do it on my own.
“Did you mean what you said back there?” I ask, with trepidation in my heart.
Maybe it was just a spur of the moment thing. Maybe he thought we were going to die, and he said it because he thought it was what I wanted to hear. Truth be told, it really was what I wanted to hear, but now it’s obvious that we won’t die. At least not for a long time. And I need to know if his words were true, if his feelings are true as well.
“That I love you?” he asks.
“Yes,” I nod. “Because I meant it. Every word of it. Whether or not we were going to die, I still feel the same. I can’t fight my feelings any longer. I know that I am not worthy of being a vampire queen, but at least– “
“Not worthy!?” he interrupts me, sounding incredulous. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No,” I reply, a little puzzled, not really sure what he means now. “I’m really asking.”
“Then, you must be blind, because I see before me a dryad, a warrior, a woman who would make any man, vampire, shifter, werewolf or whatever other supernatural creature damn proud to be his partner. I am no exception, Bianca.” He pauses to take me by the hand, then places a soft kiss upon it.
A million little butterflies start swarming inside my stomach the moment he does it. There is nothing erotic about it, but rather in this one simple kiss, he made a promise that no other kiss ever could.
“Nothing in this world would make me happier than having you as my vampire queen,” he continues.
“But I’m not a vampire,” I remind him. “What will your clan say? Do you have rules for this?”
He shrugs. “Sometimes, rules are meant to be broken. I’m sure that my clan wants me to be happy, as their leader. And only you can make me happy.”
“You have no idea what it means for me to hear you say that,” I say, my voice on the verge of breaking. I’m not usually the type to cry when overcome by emotion, but this time is different.
He kisses me softly on the lips, then continues. “We have to go back for the well.”
“But what about the shifters?” I ask.
“They won’t dare attack us again,” he sounds sure. “Not when they know that we have a dryad on our side.”
“But I am not that dangerous.”
“You are still not that dangerous,” he corrects me. “You will be soon. You will be dangerous beyond your wildest belief. But at the same time, you will be kind and benevolent, because it is in your nature. Loving to those closest to you, the worst enemy to those who dare to impose on what is yours and what you love.”
This sounds exactly like me. Only, I never had the strength to act upon those emotions. Now I have. Now I have more strength than I ever thought I could fit inside the small frame of my body and mind.
“Follow me!” he says, shouting to all the other vampires, and without any more words said, they all start following us, as Edmund and I walk hand in hand, leading them.
It is a silent moment, and I am in awe of where I am now. I dare not say anything. Edmund’s hand in mine is enough to assure me that this isn’t a dream. This is reality. This is my reality now.
