Chapter Four
The men waited for her to elaborate.
Frustrated with herself, she wiped her tears with the back of her arm. “I… I’m supposed to be married soon.”
“Don’t most women live for that?” Noah asked.
Azurdee shook her head. “Not when your mother arranges everything and expects you to marry a man you don’t even know.”
“Ah, so you truly are one of the nobles, then,” Kai said with a slight nod of his head.
“It’s not fair. Why shouldn’t I be able to decide who I get to marry? I don’t even know who this Fredrick person is. I met him today and now, I’m supposed to want to marry him? How does that make any sense? Sure, he seems like an okay guy, but I don’t know him, I haven’t fallen in love with him, how can they expect me to live out my life with him?” She asked, looking at the two men.
She started to rip up the grass beside her once again before Noah grabbed her hand and stopped her. He didn’t say a word, only held her hand for a moment before letting go, his dark eyes sending a shiver through her spine. If these men had just fed, that meant they were hunters, some of the most powerful vampires on the island. They could crush a stag’s neck with a single bite.
“And…” Azurdee paused, wondering how much she should tell these strangers, but the more she spoke, the better she felt. “… it’s not like I can do anything about it. My mother is the matriarch of the Hallowed– “
“Hallowed?” The two men repeated, cutting her off.
“We really do have a little princess on our hands.” Noah mused, his fangs once again flashing into view.
“I’m not a princess.”
“Sure.” Noah chuckled. “Not a princess. Then why are you wearing that fancy dress and being assigned to marry some high-brow aristocrat? There aren’t many Fredricks, you know. If I had to guess, he’s that politician in the capital, the one that’s trying to completely destroy any rights the lower-class still have. Red, curly hair, large, sharp nose, eyes like that of a rodent.”
“Y-Yeah… that’s him. How did you know?”
“Noah and I are part of the Sanctioned Clan.”
“That’s one of the lower-class clans…” She whispered, her initial attraction to these men fading slightly now that she knew they were both lesser vampires. But… Noah’s fangs were so big.
“Don’t look at us like that.” Noah spat, noting her derision almost immediately. “Just because we aren’t purebloods like you, doesn’t mean we’re any less vampires.” His tone took a lethal edge as he got closer to Azurdee, his eyes burning with something of a hatred.
“Noah.” Kai grabbed his shoulder, squeezing it slightly, forcing him to calm down.
Noah mumbled something under his breath that Azurdee couldn’t quite understand.
“I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to offend you. I’m just… upset.”
“Don’t worry, my brother has a habit of losing his temper.” Kai offered her a kind smile. His fangs were significantly smaller than his brother’s, but still quite large for a lesser vampire.
“You know, I should probably go… they’ll start looking for me soon and I don’t want to get you two in trouble for being seen with me.” She got up quickly, shrugging off the leather jacket. She held it in her hand for a moment, feeling the soft leather between her fingers. It was warm and she could smell the men’s strong, musky scent rolling off it. In a way, she didn’t want to part with it.
“You can keep it if you’d like.” Kai offered, noticing how she clung to his jacket.
“No. No.” She handed it back to him. “I really should be going and if my soon-to-be husband is who you say he is, I think it’s best if we weren’t seen together.”
Noah huffed under his breath but didn’t say anything.
“Do you need help getting out of the woods?”
“I should be okay,” Azurdee said. She actually wasn’t very sure how to navigate her way back, but she had a stubborn streak in her. She rarely asked for help, and even then, she didn’t like it very much.
“Are you sure?” Kai reached out, touching her arm ever so gently.
Azurdee nearly moaned as sparks of pure energy ran through her skin, shooting straight for her heart. It almost felt like it would start beating. Her skin felt hot and her cheeks turned crimson.
Before she could leave, Noah got up, straightening to his full 6’5 stature. Azurdee had to crane her neck to look at his face. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach. It was almost like she could feel the unadulterated sex appeal rolling off his chiseled body.
Droplets of water still lingered on his chest, racing down his skin. Azurdee watched their descent as they traveled over his pecs, his abs, and finally disappeared against the fabric of his pants. For a split second, Azurdee wondered what he looked like down there. Her mind carefully undressed him, picturing him naked as she did so many times with the protagonists in her books.
She bit the inside of her lip to keep herself from going overboard. When she looked at Noah once more, there was a sly grin on his lips. He had obviously caught her staring.
Azurdee glanced at the two men one more time, feeling like she never wanted to leave their side. There was just something about them that made her so hot. She couldn’t explain it.
Finally, she mustered the willpower to pull away. She disappeared into the tree line, fighting the urge to look back at them, but she knew that if she did, she might never leave.