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She dared punch me in the face. That irritating woman just dared touch me in an angry way and I couldn’t do much about it. Was she upset about Celeste? Or maybe the fact that I said I didn’t want another woman in my life?

I ran into the woods to release this pent up anger inside. Why was she affecting me this much? Why couldn’t she understand that I wanted to protect her? If I told Cassius she was mine, being part of the royal family would put her in even more danger.

Mother and Father needed to know what was the cause for her tension around him, and I would tell them soon. I reached a clearing and took a deep breath, my heart racing from all that running. The night was clear and silent, all I could hear was the sound of the river as its water rushed South. 

“Why is the famous Kieran Moore alone in the woods?” I heard a deep voice, making me stand, alert.

“Who is there?” I asked, getting myself into a fighting stance.

“Easy, my friend. I don’t want to fight you. We just had dinner earlier, if I wanted to fight, there would have been food all over the place”

Cassius, I figured he was not entirely gone. “What are you still doing here? I thought you were on your way to town” 

“Well, I had to see you before I left. I figured you would take a walk after arguing with Illyria. And yes, I heard everything from outside and let me tell you something, that girl will be mine one day. I had already called it”

His words made my blood boil, because next thing I knew I was in front of him, face to face, confessing what I held back at dinner.

“Illyria is mine. I claimed her last night” 

His eyes went wide in horror and anger. He couldn’t believe it because he couldn’t see it.

“How did that happen? Your smell was all over her, but she had no mark. Unless-“

“Yes, blood mark instead of bite. I was not going to have her traumatized with pain. She is already going through a lot” I seethed. 

“You are the worst vampire in history, Kieran. Is she softening you up? I remember you being the most fearsome vampire in history. Or what happened to Celeste affected you?”

The mention of her name was enough to have me raging. “Don’t you dare mention her name with your filthy mouth”

“Does Illyria know who she was and what you did to her?” 

My eyes were glowing and my fangs were coming out, ready to teach him a lesson. I made the first move as I pounced on him, making us fall on the ground. He tried to push me back, enlarging his nails and getting a painful slash on my chest. 

I fell on the ground with a loud snarl as he picked up a black and red cane with a demon head on the top, and put it against my wound before I was able to heal. Groaning in pain, I held on to the cane, trying to push it away, but he was pushing it further down my chest.

“It might be best that you tell her, or else she will be disappointed to hear it from someone else other than you” he said, taking the cane away and disappearing into the night. I stood up and waited for a few minutes for my wound to heal. 

I ran to the castle and went up the stairs towards Illyria’s room. Luckily, the door was unlocked, so I walked in and silently headed towards her bed. I sat on the edge, thinking of ways to tell her, to confess what is going on.

“Kieran” she said, her voice sleepy and when I looked up, she was sitting there, rubbing her eyes, “what are you doing here?”

I scooted closer to her while she scooted away until she hit the headboard. It ached that she still hated me, but I couldn’t say I blamed her. Slowly, I brought my hand and put it at the nape of her neck, pulling her against me just so I could smell her.

“Tell me you are mine” I said, trying to find confirmation from her own voice. She looked at me surprised, but no words would come out. Taking a deep breath, she could finally speak.

“I am yours, you marked me, right?” 

“Say it like you mean it. Like you really want to be mine” I whispered, closing my eyes and peppering her neck with kisses. She was silent for a minute, probably trying to find the right words to send me to hell, but to my surprise, she put her hand on my chest, guiding it up to my neck, while she played with the strands of my hair.

“I am yours, Kieran. I will be yours, forever” 

I smiled at those words and fisting my hand on her hair, I pulled her against my lips and claimed hers. It was not rushed or demanding. She had responded to it like she was expecting for me to come in and kiss her. I could hear a soft moan, tempting me to go further down, but I had to respect her, so all I did was kiss her jawline and her neck, making it seem intimate. The moment was so sweet, it reminded me of her and I made the worst mistake I could have ever made.

“I love you, Celeste” I whispered in her ear, while I felt her tense and move away from me in a swift motion. I let out a regretful sigh, knowing the consequences of calling her by another woman’s name.

“Why would you call me that? I am not Celeste” she said with a matter of fact tone, and I nodded in agreement.

“You are right, I am sorry. I got carried away and since the dinner, I can’t get her name out of my mind” I confessed. She was standing on the corner, hugging herself and I could see a bit of disappointment and hurt on her face. 

Silence took over her room, all we could hear was our own breathing as I sat there on the bed, looking at the stone walls. Suddenly, I felt her walk towards me and put her warm hand on my cold face.

“Who is Celeste?” she asked, making me get off bed, but she held me back down, “If you don’t want to tell me, I will understand. But I would love to know. Who is she and what did she mean to you?”

I held the hand she had on my face and my walls were crumbling it down. I couldn’t let that happen. I needed to keep them up, but there she was, looking like an angel and making me want to say everything.

“You can tell me everything. What happened to her?” She asked, and I didn’t know how to start. It was very painful and telling her would mean she would have to carry my burden. Her soft hand was still on my face. Trying to comfort me, but I didn’t know how to start.

“Take your time. I am patient” she said, and I felt at peace for a moment. This woman was trying to get me to share my demons with her. She was as delicate as a flower, but feisty. 

“I am not sure if you want to hear everything, but one thing I am sure of, and that is, this still haunts me to this day”