25. Millie

25

MILLIE

It's about an hour since he left. So I keep busy with a movie even though I'm starting to fall asleep. Nightmare On Elm Street is over, so I decide to look for another movie to watch while I wait for his return.

I sit in the bed wearing a sultry black dress Hayden asked me to wear, my back to the new, unbroken headboard. I flip through the channels and realize Hayden has news networks on his.

Sure enough…I'm staring at a photo of me with a substantial MISSING text on top of it. My brother is there but where's my father? He must be home. I can't imagine what my absence has done to him and everyone that cares about me. They're all pale, with sunken eyes and hollowed cheeks. And then I see my mother, holding onto my older brother, Nash.

My mother! She's there, she cares about me, she's there, and there's no fucking Santiago in sight.

They look distraught.

Cole stands tall. His dark sandy hair looks longer than usual. He always keeps it short, but he looks different. Could it be my absence? Watching him takes me back to my days at the coffee shop. The days when he bossed me around, sprayed me with whipped cream when work was slow, and even our one intimate night during Thanksgiving.

"We all hope Millie is still alive." he stares at the camera like he wants to talk to me. "Millie, we love you. Please come back home. Whoever has her, release her to us. Do the humane thing," Cole begs, and my God, I miss that voice. I miss him .

I look at Cole, and my heart flips. My stomach turns to knots, and a tear slips out of my eye as I think about my old life. Leah stands behind him, holding onto my brother Nash.

"Millie."

Hayden's voice startles me like I was caught doing something terrible, and I turn off the TV before I can hear the rest. I pull my knees to my chest and let the remote fall to the side of my hip.

"Hayden…I—" I look at the dark television. "I was flipping through the channels when I saw the news."

He stares at the black screen as he stalks forward. He stops at the end of the bed and then back to me.

"I could feel you heat up when you saw him." Shit. He's referencing Cole. He had to be standing there watching me.

"Do you love him?" He asks me with a tone that sends shivers down my spine like he's ready to destroy the TV so I can never see Cole again.

I shake my head almost too quickly.

"I-I," I stutter. "He's my friend. I care about him, yes." As he clenches his jaw, I slip the words out of my tightening, dry throat. He brushes a hand through his wavy dark black hair as he digests my answer. He nods slightly longer than usual as his chest rises and falls like he's trying to contain his composure.

"You don't love him. You love me…" He walks toward me as my entire body tightens. "Right?" His hand reaches for mine, and I look at him doe-eyed.

Do I love Cole? I do, in a sense. Being trapped here…held prisoner by a monster, has made me realize many things. It has made me wish I had tried to take things further with Cole despite my doubts.

"Right." I take his hand, and he pulls me up from the bed.

"I spoke to my father."

"About what?"

He smiles, and it takes me aback. It's a pure, genuine one without malice attached to it.

He gets down on one knee, pulls out a box, and presents a ginormous glistening ruby ring. His muscles pull taut as he gazes into my soul.

"Marry me."

My mouth falls open, and my shoulders slant. My thoughts are delayed by a landslide. Still, he looks as hopeful and handsome as ever on his one knee, watching my stunned gaze, with his rugged good looks and glowing blue sharpened eyes. I can't handle it when he looks at me like this. His majestic features are out of this world.

"Marry me. I have to ascend the throne immediately, and I want you to be by my side as I take reign."

I can't speak. His question is rocking my brain. Marriage? To a vampire?

"It's a little fast, I know. But…it feels right. Nothing has ever felt right to me before. You're the first person to make me feel like my disarrayed life makes sense. My purpose in life isn't to rule, little Bambi. My purpose in life is to keep you …and I want to prove that to you every day."

His eyes flash red. But they're not from fury, wrath, or lust. I swear it's from solace. I do that to him. He's said it time and time again.

"I love you… all the time . I knew you were mine even before we met. Your soul has always belonged to me. I just had to find you. Everything about you, Millie… everything makes me want to fall to my knees. I never want to blink, and I never want to leave you for the next moon because I don't want to miss one second where I can't show you how much I love you."

"Can I think about it?" I ask. I sink my front teeth into my bottom lip with trepidation.

His eyes squint, indicating enrage, or maybe he's genuinely hurt at my response. I'm afraid he might let his demons take over after my rejection, so I think quickly.

"It's just that…moments ago, you were promising to end my life, and now you're asking me to be your wife."

He softens his intense gaze.

It's not a lie.

He stands, closes the box, puts it into his pocket, and kisses me roughly.

"You're mine, baby. Even if you can't say it. Your heart, body, and soul do. And that's enough for me." He breathes against my lips, and my heart jolts. Electrical desire pumps through my veins every time he touches me. I can feel his body speak to me. It tells me the honest, raw truth. His actions reciprocate his words. Everything pulls together perfectly whenever he confesses his twisted love for me. He gets a hold of my hips and pushes his hard bulge on the front of my stomach.

"As much as I want to bend you over this bed, lift this pretty dress up, and fuck you in it, I have plans for us tonight."

His tongue grazes my bottom lip, begging for entry, and I welcome him.

"Why not?" I dare him and grind against his hard cock.

"Fuck. Don't do that. If I fuck you, we'll never leave this room…"

I groan as he thrusts back into my waist, forcing me to feel what I do to him. "You're going to make me cum in my pants like this…" he groans.

"What plans?" I complain as I kiss him back harder. The chemistry between us is palpable, and my body obeys without thinking twice about it. It's dark and disturbing, but I can't stop myself from being embraced by someone who haunts me like a shadow. I welcome his ghosts. I'm scared of him, yes, but I'm scared of how my soul comes alive and begs for him to hold me even more.

"I want you to meet my close friends, something I've never done with a woman. They want to meet the girl who's been keeping the Depraved Prince so busy and all to herself…wrapped around her wings."

He pulls my hair back, and I gasp at the quick maneuver. He hovers over my neck; his fangs brush my neck, but he doesn't sink into me.

He feels guilty for almost draining me the first time we had sex. He doesn't want to bite me again. At least not yet.

"Because you are my angel. And I am your demon."

Hayden is drunk. He smiles and laughs with his friends while I sit on his lap. Everywhere I go tonight, he's right by my side, holding my hand or hip. His grasp doesn't falter. He's turned into my shadow knight. Ever since he almost bled me dry, it's like he's afraid to let the cravings take over, along with the lust. He made sure I ate at least one more time before he introduced me to his friends, along with hydration all day.

There are about five of his friends. They're all in leather jackets and jeans and are also inebriated. One of them holds a cup of red, and I highly doubt it's fruit punch.

Hayden grasps a beer while I dangle my feet and move my head to the music that plays on a boom box. "Creep" by Radiohead. It's one of my favorite songs. I'm so lost in the music, and swaying my hips slightly to the beat, I hadn't noticed Hayden watching me… delighted and encaptured.

I stop dancing, and he blows out his cigarette. His sinful, dashing smirk and his blue eyes twinkle with desire.

"What?" I ask, slightly embarrassed.

"Nothing." He tells me with a pure tilt of his soft pink lips, and it causes a flock of butterflies to swarm crazily into my chest.

He flicks the cigarette and pulls me in by grabbing the back of my head. His lips are on mine, moving with harsh purpose. My entire body turns into fire, and I want to push him away because he's claiming my mouth in front of his friends.

The first thing I taste is the beer and cigarettes on his tongue. He's devouring me, and for a minute, I hesitate. I put my hand on his chest and push against it, but then he growls against my tongue.

"Don't be nervous. They need to know who you belong to. Kiss me back… hard ." He squeezes my thigh with his huge hand, and I let out a small moan that floats into the fresh woodsy air, and I melt into his body like always. I obey and kiss him harder. I grip his hand on my thigh and squeeze as our tongues dance together. I close my eyes and tune out our surroundings. Hayden tilts his head to the side and does it repeatedly to get deeper. We continue to make out like we're about to tear each other's clothes off and get lost in something forbidden and dark.

"I need to talk to one of the guys about something, and then I'm sending them all home and calling it a night. I want to be in bed with you. I can't wait any longer." He whispers with a deep tone. Images of his teeth deep inside my flesh while his cock is deep in me, making me cry his name, flash through my head. I nod through his kiss, unable to hide the anticipation. I can feel myself getting wet, and my core pulsates with need. He's taken my breath away. I open my eyes to see that even though we're here in Montana, our souls intertwine perfectly together when he's with me, and we're in our own universe. He smiles as he repositions me on the couch. He gives me one last quick kiss on the forehead and stands.

A deadly kiss with my demon disguised as a charming, beautiful man will always be my favorite type of crime.

"I'll be right back, baby." Hayden kisses my lips, and dammit, I melt when he kisses me. He's been so gentle with me since I sacrificed myself for him…and since he fucked me.

I watch him leave, and just the way he walks with so much confidence makes me clench my thighs together. I clear my throat as one of the men stays behind. I wipe my lips and try to control my breathing and escape the hypnotization he always has me in when he touches me.

His friend looks familiar. I stare at him as he drinks his beer. He doesn't make our interaction comfortable, but it's nothing bad. When his eyes flash to red, I flop against the couch.

Why did Hayden think leaving me alone after everything we've been through was a good idea? After knowing the amount of people who've tried to kill me?

Maybe he trusts his friends.

I sink into it more until my back touches the leather. There are multiple reasons why vampires' eyes change…I just hope it's not the one I think.

He walks to me, and I ball my fists.

I don't trust anyone.

He holds his hand to me, and then his eyes change to normal brown ones. He gives me a friendly smile, and dimples appear on his cheeks.

"Gerard."

I glance warily at his hand, then back to his face. I swallow and shake it.

"Millie." I let him go after two shakes and hold my knees to my chest.

"Why do you look familiar?"

He scoffs and takes a swig of his beer nonchalantly.

"I was with Hayden when we first found you at that nightclub in Texas and rescued you."

The memory flashes in my head, and it all connects.

He helped Hayden kill the men who took me from the coffee shop. I remember their snarls and blood and body parts everywhere. Sometimes, I can hear and see it in my nightmares when I fall asleep. Now, I'm in a relationship with said nightmare.

"Oh…that's right," I murmur. The memories settle in, reminding me that this is not normal. Being here in Montana, taken by a vampire, is not normal, and my heart starts to beat thunderously.

I need to get out of here .

Maybe Gerard can help me.

I need to stay calm if I'm going to try to make a run for it again. Hayden will sense my unease and flashback here in seconds.

"I'm glad to see that you're still alive. The law says we cannot kill you. So you don't have to be scared of me." He chuckles and looks at me like I'm going to join in on the joke and laugh. But instead, I look at him with a blank stare. I pin my vision to the back of him, side to side, looking for any sign of Hayden over his shoulders. They must have gone far.

He catches onto my body language, and I bite my lip. I'm trying to muster up the courage to ask him for help.

Keep calm.

Keep . Calm .

Or Hayden will notice the change in my emotion .

"What's on your mind?" He puts the beer down and walks forward, about to join me on the couch, but I stand up.

"Help me get out of here," I whisper, low with gritted teeth.

"What?" He takes a step back from me like I asked him something wild.

"If it's illegal to kill me in your world, it should be illegal to hold me here against my will, right?" I whisper, and if vampires can go pale, Gerard does and stiffens.

"He has you here against your will?" he asks me, shocked. Perhaps the kiss we just put on display for everyone to see has him questioning my intentions.

I nod fast and look over my shoulder.

All I see is a full moon and tall trees dancing in the wind.

"Oh, Millie. I can't. I'm loyal to Hayden."

"Please! I know there's good in you. Please help me get out of here?" I practically beg, and Gerard looks around us with fear evident in his pursed lips. No, I do not know if there's good in him, or maybe he's just as depraved as Hayden. Still, I need to take my chance.

"Keep it down, or he'll kill me for even considering this request of yours!" He sputters out so quickly that it's hard for me to understand him.

He looks around and then turns to me. He grabs my hand, and I immediately look around for my demon. If Hayden notices any other man has touched me, he'll lose his mind.

"I went to take a piss, and you ran. Okay?" Gerard offers a plan.

My heart flips with hope. Is he really going to help me?

"When he starts to look for you, I'll meet you at my car. It's a Toyota 4unner, parked just through those woods." He points behind him, and I see a bunch of cars parked together in the distance. They are barely visible, but they're there.

Hope is reborn, and tears spring in my eyes.

"Fucking go now, Millie!" He snarls, and I see a side of him that scares me. His fangs grow over his bottom lip, and his eyes pool red.

I nod and mouth my silent thank you. I take off running through the trees, not bothering to see if Hayden can feel me running away. I don't know the extent of his powers, but whatever is keeping him busy must be important.