14. A royal I actually like

14

A ROYAL I ACTUALLY LIKE

W hen Damek gets in the driver's seat of the car, he reaches his hand over the center console and gently laces our fingers together, holding my hand. As hard as I try not to react, my heartbeat gives me away.

Of all the dates I've been on, nobody has ever tried to hold my hand. And with his warm palm pressed against mine, I find that I like it. It feels nice .

"I'm glad that it's your turn," I tell Damek.

"My turn?" he asks.

I grin. "You don't have to pretend you don't know. The vampire community isn't that big, so I know you know about my previous dates. My advisor thought it would be a good idea for me to go out with each prince and my dad loved the idea."

"Yes, I did hear about that." He clears his throat. "I also heard about Prince Caedmon pulling some chick into his lap at the restaurant."

My eyes widen at his confession. "How did you hear about that?"

Damek puts the car in drive. "Like you said, the vampire community isn't that big. There were others there and word got around. I also heard that Prince Caedmon's father took away his Porsche for a month because of his behavior. And he's not allowed to go out with any girls. I think he was set on his son wooing you."

I wrinkle my nose. "Even without the flirting with other women, Prince Caedmon is too much like an incubus to be my type."

"How is he like an incubus?" Damek inquires.

"He took the time to check out his appearance on every single reflective surface he came across. And he frequently checked himself in the camera app on his phone." I chew on my bottom lip. "Incubi are very vain about their looks. I don't know if you knew that."

Damek chuckles. "Prince Caedmon is in love with himself. I didn't realize how deep the love went."

I find myself laughing along with him. "It's not funny, but it is. It's just so pathetic that my life has been like this. I don't like the idea that I have to choose a husband from a limited group of men. I don't want a marriage of alliance—I want one of love. Part of me wishes I had just stayed with my mom, but then I wouldn't have met Julien. As annoying as my little brother is, I love him."

"Even if you hadn't come, wouldn't you be forced into a marriage alliance of your grandfather's choosing?" Damek stops to look at me before pulling out on the main road.

"No." I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. "He tried that with my mom when she was younger and she flat out refused. He was going to force it, but then she got pregnant with me. I almost wonder if what happened with my dad was a defiance thing. But she wouldn't have allowed my grandfather to try it with me."

"I've always known that I would have a political marriage, likely chosen by my father." Damek keeps his eyes on the road as he says, "I always hated it, but now I'm thinking it might not be so bad."

Once again, my heart audibly reacts to him. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Damek's smile grow which makes my cheeks warm. Of course he heard my heart rate increase. I resist the urge to hide my face.

"You worked for your grandfather before you moved here?" Damek asks, kindly changing the subject to something less embarrassing than my body's reaction to him.

"Yes," I answer.

"What did you do?"

I lick my lip. "Mostly, I took notes, fetched coffee, and listened to my cousins complain about the presence of a hybrid."

"Your cousins sound nice," he teases.

"The absolute best." I don't bother keeping the sarcasm out of my voice. "Some of them genuinely loved me, but for the most part, I think they wished I didn't exist. I was a dirty mark on our pristine family tree. And they let me know it was my fault for being born."

"Like I said, nice ." He squeezes my hand. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. There aren't a lot of hybrid vampires, as vampires tend to be elite snobs, but I have a feeling you would've been welcomed. Everybody was excited when your father announced your existence a few years ago. They were upset that he didn't introduce you then. I will admit, I was curious about you."

"He announced me a few years ago?" I ask.

He nods. "You didn't know?"

"I didn't know who my father was until he showed up about six weeks ago at my apartment. He informed me that I had to go with him because he needed an heir." I take a deep breath, slowly letting it out. "How did I not know about this? Succubi love to gossip. Word would've gotten back to me if there was a hybrid succubus-vampire princess. I'm the only hybrid vampire in our community."

"Well, nobody knew you were a hybrid. They just knew your father had a daughter who would soon be an appropriate age for marriage. Vampires live to make and break alliances."

I frown. "No wonder Julien doesn't want to be the heir. I think he's worried our date will go well and I'll move to your clan and leave him to be heir."

Damek flashes me a smile. "Is it wrong of me to admit that I'm hoping for that?" He pauses, then adds, "If it were possible, I would leave my clan and let my younger brother be heir. As long as I end up with you, either scenario is fine with me."

Does he want to end up with me?

My heart races a little faster at the thought.

"I know the date just started, but this is already the best date I've ever been on," I admit.

He chuckles. "We're still in the car, on our way to our destination."

"I know. Though, don't get too excited. The bar was pretty low." I worry my bottom lip between my teeth, trying not to let my heart grow too attached.

"If I have my way, you'll never go on a bad date again." He squeezes my hand.

It's way too soon for Damek to say anything like that to me, I know this. But if I'm going to be stuck in a political marriage with somebody, being with somebody I like isn't a bad thing. And I definitely like Damek.

Damek took me to a restaurant on the lake. We sat by a large window that gave us spectacular views of the water. After eating, Damek orders a chilled glass of blood and I order a latte. He looks questioningly toward me, probably wondering why I'm not ordering blood.

"I can't drink blood," I inform him. "My body rejects it."

"Interesting." He tilts his head to the side and studies me. "But you have other vampiric powers, yes?"

I nod. "Hearing, vision, speed, and strength. I just don't drink blood."

"About about your succubus half?" he asks.

I shift in my chair. "I didn't get any succubus traits. Well, other than human men find me extremely charming. Though, I'm still not at the level of a full succubus."

"I doubt that."

I raise an eyebrow at him. "One time, my mom and I went out to eat together and a guy who was my age shoved me out of the way to get to her."

"What?" His voice lowers to an almost growl.

I laugh at the memory. "It was kind of funny."

"Tell me where this was and I'll take care of the human," Damek says in a voice that promises death.

I reach across the table and squeeze his hand. "Hey, it's fine. That was a few years ago and it's not like I got hurt." I pause. "Well, maybe my ego was hurt a little."

His shoulders relax, but only slightly. "Did this happen often?"

"Often enough that it stopped bothering me when I was about fourteen." Or at least, that is when I stopped letting it affect me.

"The way you were treated isn't fair," he says.

I shrug. "It's just the way it was. But who cares about that? It's in the past. I've learned to accept who I am."

"Have you?" Damek's dark eyes meet mine and I feel like he's looking into my soul. Can he see how much I've longed to fit in? Does he know how badly I've wished I weren't a hybrid?

"I know who I am." I don't break eye contact. "I don't fit into either world. I'm a vampire who doesn't drink blood and a succubus who isn't charming and beautiful." He starts to argue, so I hold up a hand. "Any charm that I have is unrelated to my succubus blood. I'm talking about the magic that makes a succubus charming. I don't have the magic."

He nods. "Okay, maybe you don't have succubus magic, but living with succubi and incubi has warped your idea of beauty and charm. Because you're the most beautiful woman I've ever met, Madeline Scott."

I don't know how to respond to that, but before I get the chance the waiter comes back with Damek's blood and my latte.

I nod to Damek's glass as our waiter walks away. "Why does our human waiter not think that it's strange you're drinking blood?"

"There are select humans in this town who are aware of the existence of vampires." Damek runs his finger along the rim of his glass. "They're compelled not to speak of it."

My mouth opens. "I, uh, is that legal ?"

He shrugs. "Vampires care little of what other supernaturals want. We keep the existence of others a secret. Only vampires are at risk. But it's a calculated risk—a risk that increases our quality of life."

Other supernaturals are dead set against humans knowing about us. There have been arguments lately that supernaturals should come out and reveal themselves but the vote has been vetoed each time. If the Supernatural Council knew that vampires were being so reckless, it would be bad. Like, possibly start a war bad.

"Don't worry," Damek says. "It's been this way since long before either of us were born."

Maybe it really will be okay if they've kept it a secret for that long.

I take a sip from my latte. "So, you've learned all about my life as a hybrid, but I know hardly anything about your life."

He studies me. "You haven't heard about me from Julien or your advisor who has a crush on you?"

"Kaine doesn't have a crush on me," I object. "But, no. I don't know much except that our clans used to not get along."

Damek takes a sip from his glass, the red blood staining his lips. "It's not a pretty story. My family is complicated."

"I can handle complicated."

He sighs. "My dad didn't want a political marriage. I guess he thought like you did and he wanted love. But he thought love would be impossible with a royal. So he fell in love with a human. His father forced him into a marriage, but he didn't love her. They had me out of duty, but my dad was miserable. So was my mom. When I was two years old, she left. Vampires can't divorce, but somehow she got the magic of their mate bond erased. And we haven't heard from her since. My dad married the human he loved and he changed her into a vampire. I know I said I'd love to join your clan, but I can't. My siblings aren't eligible for the throne."

My heart aches for Damek.

His mother left his father, but she also left Damek.

I know what it's like to grow up with a parent missing. I thought my father didn't want anything to do with me. I only found out recently it was a lie.

Tears press against the back of my eyes. "I'm sorry."

This time, Damek reaches across the table and takes my hand in his. "It's okay. I accepted what happened a long time ago. My stepmom raised me like her own kid. I'm treated the same as my other siblings, other than the expectations that come with my title. And my dad has been patient with me. He's not forcing me to choose a wife. But I know that I'll have to at some point."

Damek doesn't seem any more thrilled by the prospect than I do.

"Why is it important for heirs to marry royals only?" I ask.

"It's the law."

"It's a stupid law." I put my latte cup down. "Vampires don't have a reigning monarch, right?"

"Correct."

"So who decides these things?"

Damek raises an eyebrow. "You don't know the history of our people?"

I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. "Not exactly. Kaine has been teaching me, but there is a lot to go over. It's overwhelming."

"Right." He shakes his head. "I forgot that you weren't raised with our kind. I grew up, learning all this." He sits up straighter. "All the monarchs got together and made the law. It was over two hundred years ago. But there was no law in place for a long time. Still, most monarchs would marry only royals to keep the bloodlines strong. But a vampire king fell in love with a human woman and decided to marry her. It was a scandal, but nobody stopped them. But the human woman died during childbirth. The child was sickly and weak. Usually, a child isn't turned into a vampire until they're sixteen, but this child wasn't going to make it that long. They ended up changing him when he was ten, but his body wasn't strong enough to survive the change. The king never had any more children, never had any heirs, and his clan dispersed. To save any more royal lines from dying out, the monarchs decided to make this law."

"Wow, that's sad." I rub a hand at the base of my throat. "I thought you were going to give me a lame reason, but that's understandable."

Damek shrugs. "It's reasonable to ban vampire-human marriages among monarchs, but I don't see why a monarch couldn't marry a vampire from a lesser family." He looks at me. "Or even another supernatural. Just look at what mixing royal vampire blood and succubus blood did. You're incredible."

Incredible?

My heart swells at the compliment.

I've never thought of myself as incredible, but when Damek says it, I believe him.

"Thank you."

"For what?" He drinks the last of his glass of blood.

"Just for tonight. And for everything you've said." I run my fingers over the handle of my coffee cup. "I have no idea what's going to happen with this alliance, but I wouldn't mind getting to know you better."

Damek smiles widely, revealing his dimples. "I would like that as well."

And for the first time since all these political dates started, I don't have to end the night with dread about what my future will be. Because Damek seems nice and I wouldn't mind getting to know him better.

Kaine will be so happy when I tell him there is one royal I actually like.