Lady Dhampir
Chapter 103

Though she took pride in being a cold-headed woman, Milena was completely lost in the heat of the moment. Her lips were still hot, and she could barely process what he had just said when she was under his burning stare. She needed to remember how to use her lungs and breathe because that savage kiss had left her short-breathed. The young Duchess De Crescent could feel the blood rushing to her cheeks. She tried to regain a bit of her composure. "W-what did you say...?" She whispered.

He was so close, she could feel the feedback of her own breath against her lips, and the cold blow that came from his. How come a man whose skin was so cold could make hers feel that hot?

"I thought you were going to die in front of me," he said. "Don't ever do that to me again."

Milena was surprised by the anger in his tone. He was that upset? Because her life had been in danger? She didn't know if she should feel annoyed, excited, or embarrassed now. Her own heart couldn't settle for one emotion, it was about to implode instead. Rayan let out a long sigh, as if he had been waiting for a while to say this. Milena was at a loss for words. It didn't happen often for her to be at a loss for words, but there she was, a bit unsure and even intimidated. It was a bit awkward, how close he was standing to her. They were in a large room, though, yet she couldn't even escape.

The Prince's hands on her nape weren't as cold as she should have thought. Maybe because it was melting with her own body heat, they were just cool to her, which was pretty much what she needed when he stood this close. Her heart was beating crazy no matter how hard she tried to tame it.

"I'm sorry."

He chuckled, though his eyes looked tired, his fingers gently caressing her neck. Rayan didn't look like he was about to step away or let go any sooner, and secretly, Milena thought may not mind that.

"I even get an apology from Lady De Crescent?"

"Don't start making fun of me now," she retorted, a bit annoyed.

Milena tried to push him away, her hands on his chest, but he didn't budge. She didn't try very hard either, but just enough to look away and sulk a bit. She didn't like it when he used her feelings to make fun of her. The Prince shook his head and moved his hand so he could caress her lower cheek with his thumb. He looked very serious for a moment, losing all of his usual smirks.

"I'm serious, Milena. Don't stay so defenseless again."

"I was taken by surprise," she confessed. "I was careless. You're the one in the wrong, though."

"I am?"

"You shouldn't have put yourself between her and I. You could have been killed, I almost shot you myself."

Just as she said that the prince smirked.

"You might have missed your only chance to..."

"I'm not laughing!" She scolded him. "You're a prince! You can't just put yourself in danger like that, Rayan, not in a situation like this... Not again."

Rayan nodded, and gave her a quick kiss on the lips, making Milena blush again. She was a bit annoyed that he was dismissing her words this way, though.

"Don't be mad, you know I can't resist when you do that."

"Will you stop teasing me," she said, a bit annoyed.

"Mh... It's unfortunate, but I'll confess, I think teasing you is about to become my favorite sport, my Lady."

She sent him a glare, but her blushing was giving her real feelings away a bit too easily. Milena hated it when he made fun of her like that. She hated that he was the only one she'd lose to, that he could so easily get into her head. As if none of her defenses mattered to him. He shattered every wall she put up with one word, one movement. His cold fingers on her nape, some intertwined in her hair even, made her shiver.

The Prince's eyes weren't leaving her, making Milena even more desperate. His ruby irises were louder than his voice could be, and the fire burning when he looked at her was enough to set her skin aflame. He moved his hand to grab her chin between his fingers, with a little smile.

"When you pout like that, you're even more irresistible..."

She didn't protest when he leaned in for a new kiss. Milena thought about how they were going to mess up her lipstick for a second, but that fleeting worry was soon gone. If she had truly been worried about smearing her lipstick, she wouldn't have picked a nude color today. Maybe a part of her was guilty of having expected this...

Their kiss was a bit tamer, but it did last a little longer. She had given up on resisting him or pretending to. Milena liked those kisses, and what they did to her. She could feel the heat spreading down her skin, making her shiver. This hot and cold situation between their lips was driving her crazy. Her corset was starting to feel stuffed, too. Milena couldn't understand how a vampire's skin could make her this hot, but Rayan's hands were driving her absolutely insane. His fingers caressing her neck were exciting her, giving her feelings she had never experienced before.

She had to keep up with his lips, too, and somehow, she didn't want to lose. He was an expert at making her go crazy, yet she was the one supposed to make him thirsty. After a while, their kiss slowed down even more, and Milena felt him bite the inside of her lower lip, very slowly.

The vampire Prince smiled as he retreated, visibly satisfied with the little taste. Milena touched the little cut with her tongue, a bit surprised. He really was a vampire, and tasting her on every occasion he got.

"You don't have to bite every single time..." she whispered.

"Oh, I'm already restraining myself. I'm waiting for when I can finally devour you properly, and all I want..."

If Milena could blush more than she already was, she did. They weren't even married yet, but there he was, making her shiver about the wedding night. She rolled her eyes to look elsewhere, pushing him away again. Did he ever let go of an occasion to be so shameless!

"I should honestly let my father kill you," she said with a frown.

"Oh, I certainly had a spare pair of pants ready. Yet, I am glad Lady De Crescent didn't try to play to innocent in front of Daddy."

"I am not the type to go back on my word," Milena retorted. "Moreover, there were more pressing matters at hand... And why the White Palace? This wasn't necessary."

"Oh, anything that can piss off my brother is necessary. He'll get the message."

Milena sighed, crossing her arms. So this was about their siblings' rivalry again. She had thought so when they had mentioned the true meaning of the White Palace. Milena didn't really care, though, she already had plenty enough to deal with in her own relationship with Ellias. Or whatever was left of it by now...

"... How have you been?" She asked, finally letting out the one question she had been curious about.

Rayan lost his smile, understanding right away what she meant. He nodded, and it was as if her asking the question allowed him to show all of his fatigue again. She could see it, in his low shoulders, his sunken eyes, and somewhat grey complexion. Even his hair wasn't as well-combed as usual.

"Still alive," he sighed. "Unlike my mother..."

Milena frowned. She had no idea how Lyriana's death was truly affecting her sons. The Queen's passing wasn't yet made a public fact outside of a handful of nobles. Not everyone had recognized the nightmarish creature as their Queen, and those who did probably had gone straight home in fright. No one had been able to gossip or talk much yet, but they probably waited for an official royal announcement to confirm their fears. What would the King say? Would he make the facts about the wendigo public? Would he pretend the Queen had died of a different cause, and pose this as a coincidence?

Compared to his father, Rayan probably had more to deal with. People had seen him kill his own mother. She could understand why he had done that. They had met a wendigo before, both of them knew there was nothing left of the soul that had previously inhabited that wrecked body. Yet, it still was Lyriana.

Milena gently raised her hand and caressed his cheek. She wasn't afraid to touch the one with a scar, she had simply gone with the one her dominant hand reached. The Prince seemed surprised by her gesture at first, but then, he closed his eyes, and his other hand came to hold Milena's. He let her hold his cheek like this for a long while, his eyes closed. They didn't exchange any words, he simply stayed like that, looking grateful.

"...The Senate will use this against you," she said.

"I know. They are already talking... Those who wanted to support Ellias just got fuel to add to the fire. The vampire Prince assassinated his mother..."

"Your father won't let it pass."

"It doesn't silence those who will talk. Once the rumor spreads, it will be hard to silence them."

Milena looked worried, but the Prince chuckled and took her hand to his lips.

"Don't worry. I already got my queen to take care of me, what do I have to be afraid of? I mean, aside from being shot at."

This time, he managed to make her smile a little. She slapped his shoulder, a bit annoyed at what he was insinuating, but they both smiled after that. Milena felt some strange little wave of happiness fleeting over her in that moment. Would they bicker like that for all of their married life? Hearing him call her his queen was a bit too addictive already. If she wasn't careful, he was soon going to be able to do whatever he wanted with her...

Milena cleared her throat.

"I kept my end of the deal already, Rayan. Now, it's your turn."

He frowned, unhappy. She had just broken their bubble of happiness with a reminder of their deal.

"You're really impatient, Princess," he sighed.

"How much longer am I supposed to wait!" She protested. "You're the one who said you'd tell me everything once we were engaged. Are you going to find more excuses to push it back now? When are we supposed to finally have that conversation then?" The prince snickered and put his arms around her with a sneaky smile.

"I was actually hoping for some pillow talk..."

"Oh, really? About my mother's death and my k********g?" She coldly retorted.

He grimaced and took his arms back, realizing his mistake. It probably wasn't the best topic to bring in the bedroom, indeed. The Prince sighed, and gently, took her hand to take her to one of the sofas. Milena let him do so without protest, but she still had that suspicious stare on him. She wouldn't let him get away with some sweet talk or more promises this time.

They sat next to each other, so close their knees touched. Rayan called for some servants to bring tea, but chased them out right after. Milena waited silently, anxious. She had lost all of her blushing from before, though, as her heart was now beating to finally hear the truth. She was nervous about what she was going to hear but mostly impatient. The Prince had a sigh while seating down, and took her other hand, grabbing both in his.

"Fine," he sighed.

"You ought to tell me everything," she said. "No lies or omitting anything, Rayan, you promised."

He chuckled.

"Are you going to let me talk or not, Princess?"

Milena pouted a bit, but she kept quiet this time. The Prince sighed.

"Alright... I don't even know where to start now..."

"Father said we were close... as children," Milena whispered.

The vampire prince raised an eyebrow, visibly surprised.

"Your father said that?"

"That's what my mother told him."

"Ha... That makes sense."

Milena felt her heartbeat accelerate a little, as she was in a hurry. A hurry to finally know this truth he had been hiding from her, and about their childhood too. Rayan nodded, looking at her hands, with her beautiful ring on it. His gaze soon got lost into something far from there, into his memories.

"Many, many years ago... As a child, I didn't cope well with the reality of being a Prince."

Milena was surprised. She had never thought there was a time the Prince wasn't fond of his condition...

"That was when I was very young," he said, as if he had guessed her thoughts. "Because she had finally managed to produce heirs after so many years, our mother was obsessed with our education as Princes. Plus, I had the curse of being talented. Really talented." "Of course..." she whispered, a bit mocking.

"It's true," he chuckled. "I'm not gloating. All my preceptors were amazed by my success. I learned how to read, calculate, and write sooner than most children. I... I didn't really like studying, to be honest. However, one thing I quickly understood was that no matter how smart or how good I was, I couldn't catch up to Ellias."

Milena was surprised. Rayan had never talked about their rivalry as him being... the one behind. He was always so witty and proud, while his human brother struggled, that this was truly unexpected. Rayan grimaced.

"I was too young to understand why, but my mother and our preceptors always favored him most. Mother was happy of my progress, but if Ellias did any good, he was congratulated twice as much. It made me sad. I could feel her attention focused on my brother instead of me, and I was desperate to get it back. So I studied even more, more than reasonable for how young I was."

"You mean this was all... When you were five years old?" Muttered Milena. "It can't be..."

"It's the truth, though. I was a child prodigy, and avid to get better. I would study always more, to get better. The only one who tried to stop me was my literature teacher. She was... The one woman who truly saw me as a child, not as a young prince. Nothing like my mother, who was desperate for any progress and didn't care much for anything else. My professor wanted me to play, instead of always studying. She tried to make me smile, show me games for children my age. She tried to have me get along with her sons, too." "... It sounds like she was a good teacher," says Milena.

"She was. She even tried to talk to my mother several times, asking her to focus on playing with us instead of raising us into that royal mold. My mother never listened... She was too preoccupied with her relationship with my dad. After Ellias and I were born, he became colder. He took a few mistresses, which made her feel worse. I can't blame him, they never loved each other. All my mom wanted was for him to only see her. She didn't love my father, but she couldn't tolerate him loving someone else instead..." "The King... Your father said my mom advised them both a lot."

Rayan chuckled.

"She did a lot to try and help our family. I think she may have seen a bit of your father in mine and tried to help my parents. The one she helped most was definitely me, though." Milena gasped, suddenly understanding what he meant.

"Wha... Wait a second, your meaning is... Your literature teacher you were talking about until now, it was actually... my mother?"

"Yes, Milena. The Duchess De Crescent was my favorite teacher. And every time Lady Elizia came to teach me, she'd bring her adorable baby girl to try and make me smile."