18. Rose

ROSE

Every beat of my heart felt like it would be the last. My chest and throat burned like I was the one on fire. I fell to my knees at the edge of the precipice of rocks that used to be the side of the Black Castle, squinting to hold back the sun and my tears.

Gabriel and Fleming rushed into what was left of the room, both ready to fight, both too late. I pointed to the lawn outside, gasping for air between sobs. “Please. Help. Me. Save. Him.”

He couldn’t really be dead. He couldn’t.

“Rose, we haven’t got a moment to lose.” Gabriel’s voice cut through the dimly lit room as he urgently grabbed me, preparing to jump down into the light. “There’s a chance, but James needs you.”

Fleming pulled a cannister from somewhere inside his jacket and sprayed Gabriel down with the glittery serum. Then he shoved it into my hands. “Cover him in this first, it will stop the effects of the sun from doing more damage while you work.”

I nodded and took the spray. Then I turned to Gabriel and let him wrap me in his arms. I thought we’d jump down, but in a weird whoosh of cold wet air, my world went all foggy, and poof, we reappeared in the grass.

Gabriel kicked the pile of ashes that used to be Anna away, and I squirted the serum across James’s body as fast as I could. The flames on his skin and clothing went out, but he lay as still as a corpse.

“Is it enough, will he be okay?” I couldn’t help the tremor in my voice. I was still grappling with the fact that Anna had turned herself into a vampire even after she knew she wasn’t going to be able to carry out her plans just so she could kill me and James.

I wasn’t ready to deal with the part where James, my fated mate sacrificed himself to save me.

Gabriel lifted James’s still form and carried him into the nearest standing structure, what looked to be a gardener’s shed, to get him out of the sunlight. He set him back down on the ground in the cool shade of the room, but shook his head, looking terrifyingly defeated.

“Listen, Rose. The only reason he didn’t burn up like Anna is the strength he’s gained with age, but he’s floating between life and death right now. Only you can save him.”

“Me? How? I’ll do anything. Does he need my blood? Take it, take it all.” I held out my wrist and when Gabriel didn’t move, searched for something I could use to cut my own veins open.

Gabriel clasped my arm and held me still. “Yes, your blood, but he won’t need much, not if you can share your soul with him.” Gabriel’s expression softened for a moment. “He should get to ask him this yourself, and I’m sure he would have. It’s his only hope.”

Share my soul? “It’s his. I swear it.”

“It takes more than words, but beyond that, only those who’ve done it understand how. The bond is formed when you have a deep emotional connection.”

Didn’t we already? I’d accepted James for everything that he was, and he’d done the same for me. “Are there words I have to say or something? I don’t know what to do. What if I can’t do what he needs?”

I didn’t know what to do.

I didn’t know how to be what he needed.

My heart hammered against my sternum, feeling as if everything inside was going to break from the pounding.

“Gabriel, I…” The hesitation cracked my voice, betraying my fear, but also my desire to do anything for James. Ms. Primrose appeared in the doorway and pushed her way into the shed, took in the situation and grabbed Gabriel by the arm, as if needing his strength. I looked at them both, pleading for them to tell me what to do.

This wasn’t a sewing challenge, some business opportunity, a reality tv show game. This was life, this death, and not something I could win just by being focused and giving it my all. I’d taken on haters, troll, and judges and the public that were fatphobic and created my own little empire from living my life as big and as loud as I could.

None of that was going to help me save James.

I’d fought off vampire hunters, thrown a sewing machine at an assassin, made friends with a wolf, and loved a vampire.

I didn’t know how to be anything more than what I was. I was always too much for the rest of the world, and I thought in James, I’d finally found someone I was just the right amount for.

“What if I’m not enough?”

Ms. Primrose kicked off her Chanel heels, peeled off her jacket, handing it to Gabriel, and knelt down beside me. “Fate chose you for a reason, Rose. You’re the only one who is the exact right kind of special for him. Your love for James is something that can’t be denied, nor his for you.”

She was right. Despite the doubts and uncertainties that plagued me, I knew that I would do whatever it took to save the man I loved – the vampire who had shown me what it truly meant to be alive.

“Alright,” I whispered softly, my breath catching in my throat as I decided what to do. “I’m going to try something and if vampires and whatever you are Ms. Primrose have every prayed, now would be the time.”

I had to shake off the lingering fear and uncertainty that clung to me. But beneath it all, I could feel the fire of determination and love beginning to burn brighter, fueled by my desire to save the man who had captured my heart.

Another vampire entered the shed, and his presence filled the room like a thick fog. He looked down at me and then at James.?”Your bond is a force to be reckoned with. You two are unstoppable, together. Why do you think I sent for you.”

“Unstoppable,” I repeated, letting the word wrap around me like a weighted blanket, providing warmth and comfort. I didn’t know who this dude was, but I liked him, and we were going to be friends, after I saved James.

“Exactly. Let that fire, the passion that ignites when you’re near him, guide you through this process.” He draped deep red cloak he was wearing around my shoulders and patted my hand.

“Okay.” My breath hitched as I drew in a fortifying gulp of air, each molecule sparking the embers of courage within me. “Let’s do this.”

“James.” I leaned into to whisper to him, my voice filled with equal parts desperation and resolve. “Hold on. I’m here… and I won’t let you go.”

“Alright, Rose,” The vampire’s voice was the whisper of wind through the trees, “you’re ready. Remember, your love is the key.”

“Love,” I murmured, my heart pounding like the staccato beats of a metronome. “I can do this.”

My hands trembled as I cradled James’ face, feeling the chill of his porcelain skin beneath my fingertips. I remembered he’d made me feel protected and cherished in a world where I often felt like I had to prove myself. Now, shivering against the stark cold of his lifeless form, I knew I needed to summon that same feeling of safety from within me, to breathe it back into him.

“James,” I whispered, my voice no longer trembling. “I want to dance beneath the moonlight with you. Our laughter mingling with the rustling of the wind through the trees. I want to spend hours lost in the pages of our favorite historical biographies, debating the merits of kings and queens that I’ve only read about, and that you keep safe to this day.”

I felt something in my chest flutter like a candle struggling to stay alight. Our souls were reaching out for each other, wavering, caught between life and death, his so close to slipping away.

“Stay with me, James. We have so many more adventures to embark upon, so many more stories to share.” Memories I wanted to make with him flowed through me, a river of love and devotion that surged with each beat of my heart. “I want you to marry me in the ruins of some long-forgotten castle, and I want to make little vampire babies with you.”

I leaned in close, and my lips brushed against his, their warmth seeping into his icy skin. “I want to share my soul with you. Will you take me, let me be your Serenity?”

It was then that I felt it, a connection that transcended the physical realm, a fusion of our souls, as if the threads of fate had woven us together in a tapestry of longing and passion. It was a bond unlike any other I had ever experienced, at once both powerful and delicate, like the intricate lacework I painstakingly crafted for my most treasured designs.

I deepened the kiss, and I could feel the essence of our love flowing between us, a tide of emotions that swelled with each passing moment. I held onto the memory of his laughter, the heat of his embrace in the throes of passion, and the feel of his fangs, drinking from me, making me as intoxicated on his love as the finest wine.

Please, James,?I thought, willing him to hear the silent plea in my soul. “Let our souls find peace together. Be my serenity too.”

Slowly, ever so slowly, I felt a shift, a subtle change in the air as if the universe around us had gone quiet, waiting for his answer.

The chill that had once consumed James began to dissipate, replaced by a warmth similar to my own skin, that grew stronger with each passing second.

“Rose,” he whispered, his voice barely more than a breath, but carrying within it the promise of hope, of healing, and of a love that would never fade. He murmured against my lips, the word barely more than a breath, but heavy with emotion, with the weight of everything we had been through together. “My Rose.”

The cold, hard ground beneath me seemed a distant concern as I focused on the feel of James’s lips against mine, their softness marred by the sharp sting of his fangs as they sliced through my own flesh. The taste of copper filled my mouth, mingling with the intoxicating flavor of him, and I knew that this was the moment that could save his life or condemn us both to oblivion.

Our eyes met, locked in a gaze that spoke volumes without the need for words, and I felt the first tentative pull of his fangs against my skin, drawing the blood from my body and into his own.

I pushed away the fear that had threatened to overwhelm me, focusing on the love that burned so brightly between us. “Let me be your Serenity.”

His eyes fluttered shut as he drank, the sensation of our souls merging enveloping us in warmth like the glow of a thousand suns. I felt it deep within me, a connection far beyond what we’d even had when we’d made love. The room fell away, leaving only the two of us suspended in our shared emotions, tethered to one another by a bond that grew ever stronger with each beat of our hearts.

“Enough,” he whispered, breaking the kiss and pulling back just enough to look into my eyes. To my relief, I saw it there, a flicker of light returning to those beautiful dark depths, a spark of life that sent a thrill of joy coursing through me.

“Rose,” he said, his voice steadier now, filled with wonder and gratitude. “You...saved me.”

“Of course I did.” My heart swelled with a fierce, protective love that felt bigger than anything else in the world. “You’re my soul’s Serenity.”

“And you’re mine,” he whispered, the words heavy with emotion, and as our souls continued to intertwine, melding together like the threads of a golden bond that tied us together and could never be broken.

The intensity made me tremble, and I couldn’t help but feel vulnerable, as if my soul was laid bare before everyone here.

His hand found mine and he gripped my fingers tight in his.

“Can you sit up?” I asked, eager to see how much he had recovered.

“Let’s find out.” With a grunt of effort, James pushed himself into a seated position, his arm still wrapped around me for support. He glanced around the room and nodded at Gabriel and Ms. Primrose as if expecting to see his friends here by his side. James’s face blanched when he spotted the new vampire who?watched us from the shadows, his arms crossed over his broad chest.

I smiled at the vampire, and somehow, I knew the returning one he gave me was a rare one. But I liked how it tugged at the corners of his lips as he took in the scene before him.

There was relief in his eyes, a glimmer of hope that perhaps, one day, he too could find his own Serenity.

Before I could say as much, the vampire turned and walked right out into the sun, a few feet across the yard, and then poof, he was gone in a puff of smoke. “Ooh, that’s a fancy vamp trick. Who was that guy?”

Gabriel and James looked at each other like they’d just seen a ghost. Ms. Primrose reapplied her lipstick.

James interjected, his voice now steadier than before, “perhaps you two could give us a moment? It seems, after all this, Rose and I have some... catching up to do.”

“Of course,” Gabriel replied, a knowing glint in his eye. He dipped his head, grabbed Ms. Primrose’s hand and dragged her out of the shed, leaving James and me alone.

“Finally,” James sighed, pulling me closer. “A moment of peace.”

“Peace?” I raised an eyebrow, a mischievous grin spreading across my face. “I thought we were catching up.”

“Ah, yes.” His eyes darkened with desire, his fingertips tracing patterns on my skin. “There is much to catch up on, isn’t there?”

“Indeed,” I murmured, feeling a shiver run down my spine at his touch. My heart pounded in anticipation, our earlier fears and doubts fading away as we focused solely on one another.

As our gazes locked, the world around us ceased to exist. It was just James and me, two souls forever bound by love and sacrifice. We had faced unimaginable adversity and emerged stronger than ever before; now, we would celebrate our connection in the most intimate way possible.

“Show me how much you’ve missed me,” I whispered, my pulse racing as I leaned in to press my lips against his once more.

The kiss was slow and sensual, a dance of desire that left us both breathless. James gently pushed me back onto the soft earth, his body covering mine as we continued to explore one another. Our hands roamed freely, reacquainting ourselves with every curve, every scar, a testament to our shared journey.

“James,” I breathed, my voice ragged as desire coursed through my veins. “Are you sure you’re up for this. You were just dead a minute ago.”

“Rose.” He pressed his lips to my throat and dragged his fangs across my skin. “You just shared your soul with me. I’ve never felt better in my hundreds of years.”

He lifted me over him and shredded my shirt, then my pants, and it took him all of a second to divest me of my bra and panties.

Good thing I had that blood red cloak to throw on later.

“I need very much to taste you, Rose. Come up here and put that luscious cunt on my mouth.”

He grabbed my hips and dragged me, not that I was kicking and screaming to say no, and sat me right down on his face.

I rose his lips like a very happy cowgirl. It wasn’t like he was going to die again.

When I was so close to coming, I groaned and ground my hips on him. “Please, you know what I want. Bite me, James. Do it. Make me come.”

The sharp sting of his fangs slid into my pulsing clit, and I let out a long, low groan as my world went explosive with pleasure.

I was still shuddering from the effects of that orgasm, when he flipped us both, climbed over me, and entered me, filling me completely, with my pussy still pulsing from that massive climax. He made love to me with long, slow strokes, peppering me with kisses and nips that drove me wild.

We moved together, lost in a world of sensation that transcended the act of sex, and became a sharing once again of our souls. Our bodies intertwined, and I pulled his face to my neck, needing once again for him to take blood from me, and reconfirm our unbreakable bond that would last an eternity.

“James...” I gasped, feeling the pressure building within me, threatening to consume us both.

My name was a growl, his own control slipping. He sank his fangs into me, and it was as if time slowed to a crawl. This moment, our union, our love, this bond between our souls, it was all that mattered.

Together, we reached the peak of ecstasy, our cries of pleasure echoing for all to hear.

When we were both so spent we couldn’t move even and inch, I lay wrapped in James’s arms.

“I love you, James Vond. I’m not sure I’ve ever said that and figured you should probably know.”

He chuckled and kissed the top of my head. “I did in fact know that, my Serenity. But I do love hearing it just the same. I will love you forever and always. While the words are delicious, I’d rather show you at least a dozen more times.”

“Ooh. You did say vampires had great stamina. I think I’m going to enjoy that.”

“I did get some advice somewhere along the way that said mates liked lots and lots of orgasms.”