19. taste of the tether

19

taste of the tether

Rivian

The taste of blood sits heavy on my tongue. It's comparable to the fresh air of that crisp fall night that you walk into after being trapped in a stuffy room where you've been left benumbed and cold, hungry and soiled, for days on end. How would I know? Because I've gone through that pain too.

Finally being able to satisfy a craving that has been plaguing me for so long feels like walking through the gates of heaven even knowing I have sinned and belong in the burning depths of hell. It feels wrong, but it tastes so fucking right.

The female I have trapped in my hold—her neck strained for my preferred angle—doesn't make a sound or even move as I take what I need from her. I won't lie, I love it when they squirm for me, but I know that if I had it my way, I would risk draining her dry and her death would be on my hands. This girl has no victims and poses no threat, so I know I'd face consequences for that. Instead, I opted to compel her to hold still while I pinned her against the wall so that I could feed.

And while she is delicious, it still doesn't feel like enough .

To some extent, I regret making the decision to snag her off the side of the road to bring her back to my castle. But after I showed Lucynda her room, I knew I needed to do something to quell this hunger I'd been feeling. I knew I couldn't hold it in anymore. Being around her is like serving an open wound to shark infested waters. Dangerous.

I know I acted like an asshole when I picked her up and brought her back to the castle. She smelled like the roses I would leave for her, mixed with fear and confidence all in the same note. She looked like a fucking nightmare dressed in her short, olive-green skater-dress. Her wintery hair in a messy bun on the top of her head, her freckles bright against her pale skin and her lashes bating me every time she looked my way. And when I unknowingly gave myself a moment to gaze down at her pouty lips, I pictured the kiss she had given me. How I felt the need to pull another out of her, or to rake my hands up and down her body.

Fuck , the need was— is —so visceral that it angered me for wanting her. I'm not supposed to want her. But I knew the longer I tried to avoid fulfilling my bloodlust—which I'd been so disciplined in doing before—I was going to fucking lose it and that would have likely led me to do something I would have regretted.

So instead, I let some of my heated annoyance out on the poor unsuspecting human in front of me, who, unintentionally, yet willingly, lets me take a few more hits from where she bleeds for me. All the while I think of how fucking bad I desire Lucynda. And speak of the devil…

I hear her mouth let out a tiny gasp and at the same time I can hear her heartbeat picking up speed in her chest cavity.

"Rivian?" Her dulcet voice lingers with concern, and maybe even disgust. Which is the last fucking thing I'm willing to deal with right now. But also, I am not hers to judge. I don't fucking care what she thinks of me, albeit her king.

I reluctantly lean off the source of my blood supply and verbally tell her to forget everything that has happened since I picked her up before letting her go; blood pouring from her neck.

She pushes herself off the wall and calmly walks past me. I don't turn around right away to see the shocked look on Lucynda's face. I can sense it from here. Instead, I let myself balance against the wall, one hand palmed on the cement surface while the other reaches for the silk cloth on the inside of my jacket to wipe the mess I'm sure is smeared over my mouth.

" Troian ," I bite out in a tone of threat. Only then do I turn to face the two girls standing in the corridor of the basement, the same space where I had just ripped someone's heart out days before.

"Sorry, brother ." Troy holds out her hands in mock surrender, a feigned look of innocence coloring her face. "But when the future queen demands to see her future king, you kind of have to oblige." Troy pulls a mischievous smirk on her lips, and I ache to slap it off her face.

She knew what she was doing when she brought Lucynda down here. Although I love my sister, trouble is her middle name.

"Leave us," I demand her, and she wastes no time turning and obeying my command.

For a moment, silence sits between Lucynda and I. Cold air weaves between us as I watch the judgment swirl in her head. I'm not ashamed of who I am but part of me feels uneasy about the deplorable look she's working hard to hide.

Her eyes focus on the ground as I watch her try to figure out what to say next.

"Wh-what were you doing?" She finally asks, her eyes glazed over and her body in a stiff position, still in the stupid green dress.

I scoff at the question.

"Pretty obvious, little one. Don't you think?" I stuff the ivory silk back into my suit jacket before shoving my hands in my pockets.

I can't imagine what I must look like to her right now. My hair is probably a mess from pulling at it all night, thoughts of her intruding my brain like a fucking disease. Blood is still likely painting my lips and denial probably lingering from my demeanor, though I know I'm the only one who knows it's there. Denial of my fervent need for this one girl.

I'm sure she thinks me to be a monster right now with the way that I've treated her and the act that she caught me in.

"Okay, but why? I mean…" Her thoughts seem to spread in every direction of her head as she forces one of them to stick so she can find something to say.

"I'm a vampire, we need to feed, Lucynda. We've talked about this." I saunter past her into the hallway that leads to nothingness, so her only way out is the stairway she traveled down.

Torches embedded into the cement ground light the path from here to the exit, creating an ominous feeling for anyone who dares to come down to my dungeon.

"I know, I know, I just-" She seems to be lost for words. Like she is trying to be understanding but she also despises what she just caught me doing. "I didn't expect to walk in on you, I guess." Her tone sounds frail and defeated. Maybe even betrayed.

Part of me misses that fiery girl who fought against me before, but now she seems curled into this idea that she has to submit to the darkness that falls in between the cracks of her new world. Her light is snuffed, and though I crave for her black-laced heart to come out and play with my own, I miss watching her be herself. Something I'm realizing she hasn't truly been since I've made her aware of her future to come.

"Is there something wrong with that?" I ask, not wanting to spend much more time analyzing her diffidence when earlier as she entered the dungeon, I could have sworn she was heated with vexation.

"No, I guess not. But I thought you'd said-" She crosses her arms in innocence, but I know she's trying to hold back a feeling more laden. She doesn't finish her sentence and I become entirely too impatient.

"What did you need from me, Lucynda?" She walks out behind me into the dark and dingy hallway. The fire of a nearby torch illuminates her hair in little shimmers of golden yellows and amber reds. Her glass-like eyes also reflect the small image of burning fire within them, something that I know to be true for her soul as well. She just needs someone to help her light it.

"Well, you kind of locked me in a tower and threw away the key, Rivian. Remember? Was your plan to just leave me there? Until when?" She leans up against the wall behind her, I can tell now that her anger-induced energy is coming back to her. I knew I could sense that she was upset with me for something. And of course, I'm not stupid enough to think that she wouldn't be, I just didn't care. Or at least I told myself that I didn't.

If I spend any more time with her than I need to, I might succumb to that overpowering bond my soul is tied to. I have to force myself out of that idea because if I take what I so greedily want, it could betray my promise and my word is all I have left.

I know I can't ignore her forever; I know I can't expect her to stay in her room like a good girl, but I also can't fucking take the way that she's looking at me right now with her ember-lit eyes. Her arms across her chest accentuate the curve and lift of her breasts. Her cheeks are rosy from the heat of the fire, her eyes now eating me up making it harder for me to control this instinctual hunger I have for her; the need to hear what she sounds like when she moans or how she writhes when she's under me. That and she's fucking devastating to look at.

The line between right and wrong, want and need, heaven and hell is so fucking fine that I'm starting to feel my vision blur and my brain get dizzy at the thoughts. I'm the one with the mind controlling powers yet she's got an absolute fucking hold on me.

Do I want to put her on a pedestal and worship her? Or do I want to use her for the sole purpose of getting what I intended to do with my reign as king? I don't see an outcome where I can achieve both.

"Seems to me like you weren't locked away after all." I force myself to respond, knowing that I'm losing sight of what the ultimate goal is here. I can't let Lucynda work her hypnotic eyes and siren voice into my void to penetrate my reserve, because I am nothing but empty.

"Don't act stupid,” she spits, rather throwing me off guard a bit. I didn’t realize she could be so fiery. “You didn't speak a single word to me after dragging me back here. You left me feeling like I didn't matter to you, like my presence here is worthless to you. Is that how you expected to welcome your future wife into her new home? Don't you think you should have more respect for me considering-" Her nose scrunches as her brows furrow and displeasure spills from her tongue.

"Considering what? That you are to be queen? You'll get my respect when you earn it." I turn my back to her, needing to rid myself of the anger that pours from her. It's corrupting me.

Sweet, shy, calm Lucynda can rile me up with just the bat of her eyelashes and the quiver of her lips. Reasons why I try my fucking hardest not to look at her when I can avoid it. But heated, fiery, vehement Lucynda sets me off like a ticking time bomb. I know she's capable, but I don't expect it to knock me on my ass the way she does. She's like nothing or no one I've ever seen before.

I wince at myself for having spoken utterly untrue words. I told Birdania that I wouldn't put up with the disrespect of my bride-to-be, and I meant that. The titles of king and queen are meant to uphold the voice of reason and allow for subservience in the kingdom. They won't respect her if I don't. Which means that I also hold some level of reverence for her, but she can't know that. She needs to believe that she is required to work just as hard for my trust in her, at least in this moment.

Lucynda steps forward and places her hand on my elbow, her shallow breathing can be heard feathering its way into my ear and I close my eyes wondering how she sounds when she's fully undressed and wanton. I'm proven to be a weak man when she says her next words.

"Okay, so tell me how to earn it." Her voice creeks up from the shadows that dance around us.

"Well, you can stop running away from me every five fucking minutes, for one." I state the only thing that's truly bothered me about my capture of her. Capture that I eased her into, imploring her to accept it, but capture, nonetheless.

"I'm here now, aren't I?" She lets go of her small hold on me and takes a step back. Oh, she's fucking good.

I know she's trying a different approach by lowering her guard a bit, speaking in a softer tone than what she came down here to use. But I don't have time to entertain her shit.

"What do you want, Lucynda?" My voice booms a little louder against the harsh echo down here.

"No, Rivian. What do you want? You sought me out. You made this my life." She takes another step back and throws her hands around her in the air. "You can't just drop this huge bomb on me and then disappear without giving me anything to ease these thoughts going through my head. You of all people, if you claim to have been following me for as long as you have, should know that leaving me to my thoughts is dangerous for my health. You should know. " Her last words leave on a disappointing whisper. Her eyes drop to the ground again.

She's right.

I should know, not just because of what I've seen happen to her but because I have been through it too. Or at least something comparable. Though she doesn't know that part of me and I am trying my best to ensure she never will. Vulnerability isn't something I'm keen to share too often and if I do, it’s usually with intended precision.

"Bite me," Lucynda says, my back still facing her with an unimaginable thrist angrily coursing through my veins. Thirst I thought I had satisfied after I reluctantly grabbed that outsider and brought her down for a forbidden feed. Forbidden because I fear of what I might do if I indulge too much while being under the ropes of this wretched curse.

"What?" I turn my head over my shoulder to see that she's looking up at me, anticipating eye contact so desperately.

"Your bloodlust, it's eating at you right? Take from me." Her words pound in my ears like a drum as lust licks at my curiosity, wanting to know how she tastes.

I turn fully around to face her, knowing my eyes have darkened. But hers don't turn away from mine, and I can tell she's not sure if she likes what she sees or not, but the bravery my little shadow possesses doesn't allow her to back down from the whirlpool of darkness my eyes display.

"Lucynda, you have no fucking idea what you're saying." My voice holds a bit more authority this time. If she asks me to do what I think she's asking me to do, I don't think I can hold back.

"I do. I know you claim to just want one thing from this marriage, and honestly Rivian, I call bullshit. But if you plan to use me for a power strike of some sort, then you might as well use me for your other needs as well." Her arms are crossed behind her back. It's a move of exposure, her whole body is open up to me now.

"Lucynda…"

She holds her hand up to signal that she’s not done talking.

"I came down here to give you a piece of my mind, Rivian. You hauled me off to my room and left me alone for hours. I'm not a little child that needs to be closed off to the world and I'm certainly not going to accept being some hidden secret of yours. Or a pawn or whatever you decide I am to be."

"At least you had the comfort of a bed and windows," I spit at her, feeling a surge of hate light me up.

"Are you so shallow to think that is what matters? Alone is alone and I'm done being left abandoned. I'm done feeling useless to the people in my life. If everything you're saying is true and I am your soulmate or tether tie or whatever the fuck you wanna call it, then let me be useful to you. Let me prove myself. Don't use me and throw me away. You don't have to love me or even like me, Rivian. But I won't sit idly by and be used anymore. And besides…" Lucynda takes a deep inhale, allowing herself to calm the nerves of speaking so many emotions into existence.

Her action of breathing is nearly identical to the times I'd embed my ghostly whisper into her mind to urge her to do the same. She misses it. The voice. I can tell.

"Besides, Rivian. You saved me from my monster. The least I can do is save you from yours."

My heart beats erratically in my chest at her words. She wants to repay me for what I've freed her from. But I fear I don't deserve that kind of gratitude just yet considering that I freed her from one monster only to lead her to another . . . me.

I stalk closer to Lucynda. I can see the way her chest rises and falls the closer I get to her, crowding her space.

"You don't mean that," I tell her, almost as if I'm giving her no option to mean anything by it. I don't want her to mean it. I want her to be anything other than selfless; I don't want her to sacrifice anything more for me than I plan to take.

"I do, Rivian. I really mean it. You have no idea how grateful I am that you-"

"Lucynda. You don't. Fucking. Mean it."

"You know, you don't get to tell me what I can or can't think or feel. I'm still a person whether you want to treat me like one or not. Just because I've agreed to become your wife doesn't mean I am to become your property."

I love how she stands up for herself. I can tell how much it means to her too. I am obsessed with the way she tries to fight for herself yet annoyed that she has gotten so good at getting under my skin like this.

I don't respond to her. I simply keep my eyes locked on hers, forcing her to feel the heat that eagerly burns between us.

"Can you feed on me after I become a vampire?" Her curious question floats between what little space lies between us, her sweet soft tone with a little rasp to it now after having to defend herself to me in a raised voice.

"Yes, I can," I start, "but that only serves as sexual gratification more than an actual source of food." My admission has her breath hitching, her eyes widen as she tries to avoid the eye contact I'm giving her. Everything I'm feeling is intensified, cravings so visceral it hurts.

"When you were sucking on that girl's neck at the party, or even the chick you were with just now, did that give you sexual gratification?"

"Why are you asking me this, little one?" Her breathing turns sporadic, her mouth hangs open a little and goosebumps visibly take over her skin as I back her into the wall. "Are you jealous?"

"I just-" She tries to explain herself, but I don't give her the time to when I suddenly place my palm against the cement wall behind her head and use the other one to brush her loose baby hairs off her neck.

"No. It doesn't," I whisper to her, answering her question. I allow my touch to glide over to that scar of hers. The one I find myself needing to touch and hating that I wasn't able to save her in time from it happening. But it's one of the most beautiful things about her. It tells a story of how even with such a beautifully tragic reminder etched into her skin, she still radiates with a glow of someone who can fight, someone who has strength.

"Then what does?" she whispers back, curiosity lighting up her cheeks.

Lucynda tilts her head to the side gently and slowly, allowing me to find the expanse of her delicate neck. I can see a few small freckles scatter over her skin here and allow my fingers to slide over a few of them, tracing over them and connecting them together as if they are constellations in the night sky. I can feel the hunger grow feverishly inside me; I'm able to track exactly where her pulse vibrates and how fast it's going.

"What will give you sexual gratification, Rivian?" Lucynda asks me again with sated, heavy eyes. She's so fucking pretty for me like this, neck wide open and waiting for my attack. I've never known anyone to be so patient with me. Not until this moment with my sweet sin willingly waiting for me to take what's mine. And she is mine .

"You," I say to her as I press my thumb a little heavier against the soft flutter of her pulse, completely entranced with how submissive she's allowing herself to be when I know my little shadow craves to be the alpha.

She draws her porcelain-silver eyes up at me, dark black lashes fan against her rosy cheeks.

"Then feed from me. Let me do this for you. Please, Rivian. Bite me." A pleading tone escapes her perfect pink lips in a devastatingly painful way, and I am seconds away from crumbling at her fucking feet.

"You fucking know what I told you about begging in front me, little one." I press harder into her skin, feeling the pulse vibrate from her neck, into my fingers and through my own veins. The thirst I have for her is all consuming.

"Please."

I don't take another second, falling into the spell my little siren has magicked on me. I lean down to brush my cold lips against her warm soft skin. I take one hand and bury it in the back of her hair, weaving my fingers into her tied up strands, not caring if it provides too much pressure whether for her pleasure or not. My other hand grips the side of one of her hips, tight, as I hold her into place.

She is not allowed to squirm.

I'm starving for her. The need so fucking strong that I'm scared of what I might do to her. I press soft kisses against the delicate skin I plan to penetrate. Her breaths can be heard escaping her in faint pants. She doesn't even flinch when I open my mouth against the side of her throat and sink my teeth into her skin.

I hear the slight break of flesh as my teeth punctures through and the taste of her blood fills my mouth entirely too quickly. The taste is euphoric and intoxicating. Her blood is a sweet and tangy mixture of pure ecstasy.

I hear her whimper and I can't tell if it's in protest from pain or if it's gratification she's getting out of this, but the small sound she makes goes straight to my cock.

I suck on her neck for a few seconds more before letting go, allowing me to savor what I took from her, eagerly, but gently at the same time. Her ability to not scream without me even asking her not to is what impresses me the most. I have to compel all my subjects to keep their mouths shut and even then, I can feel them try to fight for their voice.

I lick up the stream that flows down toward the neckline of her dress and she shivers as I drag my tongue along her skin.

"Did you like that?" she asks me, and it takes everything in me not to flip her against this wall and show her exactly how much I enjoyed that little taste of sin she just gave me.

"Your eyes," she reaches up for my face, but I bat her hand away. I know my irises are as black as my pupils and little dark smoke tendrils swirl in the whites of them. That's what happens when vampires get close enough to smell blood, it's something we can't control.

"Why can't I touch you?" she asks, and I know it was wrong of me to deny her the novelty of having her skin on mine again, but the last thing I need is for her to judge me for the inevitable features I possess as my turned self. But more so, I don't want to enjoy the look on her face when she decides she's not afraid of it. Of me .

"I want to touch you," she says to me with more plea and demand in her tone. But I still ignore her request.

"Fine," she throws herself back up against the wall in a pout, "but I know you want more."

I reach behind her and pull her up and into my arms. She immediately grabs onto me by wrapping her arms around my shoulders before I push her further up against the cement wall, not caring how rough I'm being with her. I help her legs around my torso, noticing how her dress creeps up along her thighs in this position.

"I do, but I don't want to hurt you," I admit, more concerned than not, and feeling completely satisfied with what she gave me but still wanting more.

The bloodlust seems to have simmered down for a minute at least but my desire for her has not. It only fueled it that much more. "That's going to bruise." I indicate the spot in question by leaning into the crook of her neck and smoothing my tongue over the mangled surface.

"I can take it. You won't hurt me, Rivian. I promise," she says with such sincerity but almost as if she's speaking to herself more than she's talking to me, and it causes me to push her even harder against the wall, everything I'm feeling for her is amplified in this moment. Not only do I want to continue to taste her blood, but I want her lips back on mine.

"Don't make promises that aren't yours to keep, Cyn," I tell her before leaning back down aggressively and sinking my teeth back into the spot they were before.

This time, she lets out a little yelp and my cock jolts at the sound. I feel her attempt to squirm against me which hardens me even more, desperate to give her what we both know she wants. But she knows she's trapped in my hold, so she gives up and succumbs to my assault on her neck.

But I realize now that her squirms were not from wanting to get free of me, she was pushing herself further into me. I use a pleasant mix of my teeth and my tongue against the side of her throat as I suck the sweet metallic liquid she bleeds just for me.

I can't help when my hand trails along the outside of her thigh to find the hem of her dress.

"Rivian," she whimpers.

I set her down gently on her feet as I pull my sharp teeth from her skin, blood drips from the puncture wounds and I use my fingers to swipe up the stream and pull them into my mouth, sucking her euphoric taste from my digits.

"You taste like a fucking sin, Lucynda." I feel everything in me break apart as I allow myself the indulgence of her blood.

Her eyes are frantically searching for somewhere to look, likely needing reprieve from the tension she'd been forced to feel.

"Kiss me," she begs, and I allow her to pull me into her, blood still layering my lips in a crimson mess. But her needs must be as deep as my own because she doesn't even bother asking me to clean myself off before she crashes her mouth against mine. Her soft lips meet the dark depth of who I am as she kisses the taste of her own blood.

She moans and I fucking lose it.

I keep one hand twisted in the loose strands of her hairs at the nape of her neck, the other now roams up her thigh underneath her dress. She threads her fingers in my hair, twisting and tangling at the roots; her eyes swim with fierce desire and it's all for me.

This is so fucking wrong. I know this is wrong.

But I want her too fucking badly to give a fuck about what I should know is acceptable right now. Acceptable for what I need her for.

I get to the apex of her thighs, and I feel a falter in her breathing, her lips stop still against mine as I move the fabric of her panties aside and meet the heat of her arousal.

"Rivian," she whispers again, this time with so much fucking lust that it hurts to see her so needy.

I allow my finger to slip inside and brush against her slit, feeling just how badly she wants me.

"My sweet fucking Cyn, you're dripping." I grin devilishly at her, my voice a deep growl as I explore the evidence of what I do to her.

"Feed from me," she says, and I lean back down to drink from her once more. Knowing that this is the last hit I’ll take because otherwise, I won’t be able to stop.

As I work my teeth into her neck, I find that delicious spot that makes her squirm. Her clit sits heavenly between my fingers as I pinch it with the slightest amount of pressure.

"Oh god," she moans, and I chuckle darkly knowing that I am no god for her to be singing sweet prayers to.

I swirl my finger from her clit to where she drips for me and make soft and slow work of my movements, knowing that she needs me to be gentle with her.

"Rivian, I-" I remove my teeth from her neck and this time I enjoy watching the blood drip down her skin like red honey. I watch as her eyes close when I get back up to her clit with my middle finger and her breathing starts to pick up pace. She steadies her bottom lip between her teeth, her face flushed with so much need.

My dick is so fucking hard right now, that craving of blood replaced with my desire to see her come for me. To see her greedy for pleasure.

But before I can get her to that point, desperately needing to get her there, she pulls my hand out from under her dress and covers her face as she pants frantically.

"What the hell was that?" She breathes out, not sounding irritated or upset but rather confused and intrigued instead.

I wipe my face clean of the mess her blood has made of me, annoyed that she pulled away because I was so close to fulfilling this merciless desire that swarms me.

Concern licks my curiosity. "Lucynda, I know you said you were a virgin, but have you never had an orgasm before?"

"No-I…" she trails off as she tries to catch her breath.

I close the space she had put between us, caressing her cheek with my palm, touching her scar.

"You've never touched yourself?" I ask her in a serious tone, not caring how uncomfortable it may be to her to talk about these things.

"Never," she admits, and it feels as if a bomb were just set off inside of me.

I can see the blush of her skin glow in the shadows lit by the torches. She reaches up to touch her neck and pulls her fingers in front of her and seeing red paint her skin, her eyes widen.

"Ever since my dad, I-" her voice goes hoarse, I can sense sadness lace her tone. Something she hasn't expressed much of since I've been around her. She's proven to be strong on her own and she's been brave in her standing, but being only human, she has no choice but to feel the wave of dejection that hits her.

"I'm so embarrassed, I'm sorry -"

There it is . . . the people pleaser in her. She hides it well, but I knew it was there. She can feign not giving a fuck about what others think of her all she wants, but she's been trying all this time to get anyone's approval that it burdens her to know someone might be disappointed in her. But I am not disappointed in her. I'm so fucking proud of her.

"Lucynda." Her name is like a prayer on my lips. Lips that just drank from her and corrupted the girl she once knew, never to be remembered again.

I pull her into my chest, wanting to ease away her worries regardless of our situation, and allow her this moment of comfort as she takes it all in.

"You have nothing to be embarrassed about. But I'm afraid we can't avoid that part of the marriage, Cyn. Consummation of marriage is an important part of the blood bind."

"The blood bind?" I can tell she's thrown off. I haven’t gotten to that part yet. I know she’ll need to know sooner or later.

She was just trying to help me the way I've helped her. But this doesn't change the facts of our situation.

Though I know I've been a complete asshole to her, this moment is something that I can't allow myself the selfishness of avoiding. We've already gone too far, and she needs this comfort. Besides, after she just gave herself to me in an act of requite, I owe this to her just the same.

Breathe.

I let my voice float into her head the way I know she misses the most, allowing it to give her the kind of calm she needs in this moment. She wraps her arms around my back and squeezes herself in my hold. I let one hand rest on the small of her back, and the other smooths gently against the back of her head.

This is so fucking dangerous.

She is dangerous.

Having her this close to me and allowing the luxury of physical touch wasn't a part of the plan. None of this was a part of the plan.

Feeding from her.

Pleasuring her.

Learning that I'll be her first everything.

Pure enrapture.

That's the only way to describe it.

Something carnal yet formidable threads its way into the fabric of my soul at the thought of tasting my sweet sin. How high it made me feel. How I'll never be able to live without it from this day forward.

I guess it's a good thing that soon, she'll be mine forever.

To have and to hold, till death do us part.