Bitten

One

Ordering the carriage to pull to a stop and flag down the boy we had just passed takes not only my driver by surprise but myself as well.

There are not many things in the world that can stir my slow heart... And very very few of them reside in the small village surrounding the small palace gifted to me by the crown... A small piece of territory and allotment of people to lord over and protect...

An allotment that still so new to me that this fresh-faced beautiful young man with a basket full of apples so red they almost make the healthy flush of his cheeks look pale... Almost.

How I've not yet set eyes on the stunning creature squinting at us in the late afternoon sun is beyond me... Maybe his parents are like so many others whom upon my arrival had sequestered their more attractive offspring to stay indoors and out of my sight as an effort to prevent one of them from becoming my bride... There had been rumors of what I am, not to be put to bed just because I choose to walk among them when the sunlight isn't as strong...

Nothing could ever truly put them at ease with me but time... And maybe seeing this beautiful creature on my arm as my forever companion...

I never thought my little parcel to rule over would come with its own queen and yet my soulmate stands before me, his light scent mixing with that of his apples and demanding my attention.

With eyes so blue they put the sky to shame and hair the color of the lightest gold that drapes itself over his right shoulder in a delicate plait the other half of my soul stands flustered, most likely trying to figure out why I've stopped him, the basket of apples slung on his arm drooping lower as my driver steps down from the carriage and open my door before opening up a parasol to help shade my sensitive skin from the sunlight that's just a touch too aggressive for me to tolerate at the moment.

...
Nathaniel
...

The people watching with curious eyes that had stopped when the black horse-drawn carriage pulled to a stop in front of me with the coach yelling out for me specifically to stay where I am scatter when the door finally opens only to reveal a man I've only seen sketches of in the paper... The new Duke stationed to care for our little village... And a vampire.

A living vampire that walks amongst us in the daylight and exercises restraint and manners according to almost every article I've managed to read, not that it's been many lately with Papa in such a foul mood.

The sketches do not do him true justice... His jawline too strong to truly be captured on paper... His cheeks just a touch too sharp and his hair darker than any ink I've ever laid eyes on.

His intensity robs me of the ability to breathe until he steps out of his buggy and his height causes me to gasp, the sharp intake of breath enough to restart my lungs.

While technically the orchard I had picked the apples in didn't belong to me, the woman who owned it is a dear friend even if her son isn't fond of my presence from time to time... But still. It would be no matter for His Grace to be involved in...

And yet here I am... Being stared down while I give my best attempt at a bow while trying not to drop any of the apples piled high in my basket... Trying not to focus on how threadbare my shirt and trousers seem compared to his own fine clothes... How daper his jacket makes him look while I sport none in the crisp fall air.

I've been made to feel self conscious before... By the boys at school... Every time I pass the local pub and get called less than flattering names by the men drunk enough to presume me a bold woman in boy's britches... By my father even when he makes a point to let me know that nothing I do is up to his standard... But never like this...

All of those other people had the same clothes as me... Bathed just as often as me... Had the same schooling as me...

But the man in front of me outclasses me on almost every level if only due to having lived through so many lifetimes alone...

"Enough... I didn't stop you just to see you bow." The chuckle makes me feel that even though my clumsy bow hadn't been the sole purpose of this interaction he certainly enjoyed watching me mangle it with my arms so full.

...
Erasmus
...

Up close I can pick out a heartbeat that absolutely sings as it calls to me... So healthy and strong, the delicate angel's scent pulsating off of him in waves in time with his heart's natural rhythm.

I cannot recall a time when a warm body has called to me quite as strongly as this one... No way to know if he really is what I suspect him of being without sampling the beautiful nectar sure to be running through his veins... And yet I don't grab him and bring him as close as I can... I fight the desire to sink my teeth deep into the crook of that darling neck of his and simply take a moment to stare at the human in front of me, watching the shivers roll through his body with a fascination that is far from innocent and filled with every hope and dream of no longer having to navigate this ever-changing world on my own any longer... A stammered "H-Hello, Your Grace. Did you maybe stop me for an apple?" Doing it's best to rock me to my very core though I try not to show just how much his light voice affects me.