“Brianna, you can’t be serious,” Nathaniel said when I came out of his
bathroom.
“What?” I asked, walking over to him.
“We are trying to make your mother cheer up, not make her even
more depressed,” Nathaniel said, looking up from the laptop screen.
I knew that he was looking at the page I had up, doing my research.
“This won’t make her more depressed Nathaniel. Ever since my fa-
ther showed up on her front door step, she hasn’t been herself and I
personally think that she needs a night out without the constant stress
and worry that this horrible man has put her under,” I replied, sitting on
his bed.
“I still think that your mother won’t go for this Brianna. She isn’t the
type that would go to this upper class event with Beth and Jack and she
might just feel a bit left out as she has nothing in common with the rich
people that go to these types of events. I don’t want Marie to feel
worse than she already is,” Nathaniel said, grabbing my hand and
squeezing it.
I found it sweet that he was thinking about my mother like that. I
knew that there was something I could do to make this seem better.
“Then get Jack to find a single vampire or human friend around my
mother’s age and set her up with that person so she will have company
for the night!” I exclaimed.
“Brianna, why are you doing this for? And don’t say that it’s because
of what happened because I know that isn’t the real reason. I want the
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truth,” Nathaniel said, looking at me.
I was waiting for him to ask me that question; it was only a matter of
time. “Fine, I’ll tell you. I want her to have what I’ve got.”
“And what’s that?”
“I want her to have happiness and for not to be alone and depressed
and the only way I think that can be achieved is if I start playing match
maker with or without your help.”
“So, you just want her to be happy?”
“Yes! That is all I want for my mother Nate. Is that too much to ask
for?”
Nathaniel slowly nodded his head at what I was saying and suddenly
grabbed his laptop, typing something in pretty quickly. I watched him,
but he didn’t make eye contact with me. He was too busy doing what-
ever he was doing on his laptop. Nathaniel’s bedroom door opened,
making me look over to it. Chase was leaning against the door frame
with a smirk on his face. I raised my eyebrows and looked back at Na-
thaniel.
“What are we doing here?” Chase asked, walking over to the bed
and sitting down on the edge.
“Well, Nathaniel is busy doing something on his laptop while I am
watching him in total boredom,” I replied, smiling at Chase.
“You want to play match maker for your mother so I am just looking
up some options that we might be able to use if Jack’s vampire friend
has finally found his mate,” Nathaniel said, not looking up from the
screen.
“What vampire friend?” I asked, catching my attention.
“I’ve never met him before as he is too busy travelling the world to
kill some free time but he is coming back to Australia for this event so
he might be someone that Marie can go with and they keep each other
company for the night,” Nathaniel replied.
“The last I’ve heard was that he was in Europe somewhere but he is
hard to keep track of, like most vampires are,” Chase replied.
“Can I have a name at least?” I asked.
“David but I don’t know his last name,” Chase said.
I nodded and didn’t say anything. I glanced over at Chase and saw
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that he had a strange look on his face and I suddenly wanted to know
what was bothering him and I didn’t care if I had to force it out of him.
“Brianna, what are you looking at?” Chase asked, making eye contact
with me.
“You have a strange look on your face,” I replied. “Is there anything
that you want to talk about or are you just away with the fairies today?”
I asked.
Nathaniel burst out laughing and looked up at me, a glint in his eye.
Chase smirked and shook his head no, but I thought I could see a hint of
a smile forming on his features. I lay back on Nathaniel’s pillow, staring
at the ceiling while I waited for Nathaniel to finish playing perfect match
for my mother.
“Alright, I am finished with what I am doing,” he said after ten
minutes of more quiet. “Now to pay some attention to my girlfriend
before she walks out of here in boredom.”
I moved my head and looked at him, almost asleep from his com-
fortable bed and nodded my head in agreement. Nathaniel closed the
lid on his laptop and crawled over to where I was lying, placing his hand
on my stomach.
“Look at the cute vampire and human couple,” Chase said, making
gagging noises. “It makes me sick just being around it.”
“Yeah right Chase, like you don’t do this with Lucinda. I have walked
past your room countless times while she has been here and you have
been looking at her like a love sick puppy and you don’t hear me saying
anything about it,” Nathaniel said, looking at his vampire brother, daring
Chase to challenge him.
“I can’t help the fact that I am happy with Lucinda,” Chase replied.
“Yes and I can’t help the fact I am happy with Brianna so enough
with the gagging noises this time around.”
“You are both in the same boat,” I muttered. “Both dating humans
and both being love sick puppies and sulking when we have to leave or
something comes up that you can’t attend.”
“I do not sulk,” Nathaniel said, crossing his arms.
“Oh really now? What about the time I went home because mum
needed something and when I told you, you stormed off like a child with
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your arms crossed and bottom lip jutted out in a pout like a child who
couldn’t get what he wanted? If I remember you were like that for a
good section of the day.”
Nathaniel didn’t say anything. He just got off his bed and walked out
of the room with his arms crossed like usual. I was looking at him and
waiting for the bottom lip to come out, but it didn’t happen. Either that
or he waited until he was in the hallway so we wouldn’t be able to see
it.
“My brother can be a sook sometimes,” Chase said, making me look
over at him.
“Anyone can be,” I replied, sitting upright.
“I just can’t get over how happy Lucinda makes me and she is hu-
man. That is the one part I can’t understand and that is why a human is
making me so happy,” Chase said, sounding lost and confused.
“Maybe it’s the warmth or our beating hearts that make it a happier
occasion for you? Or maybe you are slowly falling for my human
friend?” I suggested.
“I just don’t know. Humans are our prey and it is rare for a vampire
to date one and now two vampires are dating two humans in one family
and a human is expecting a vampire’s child,” Chase said, looking down
at the floor.
“Something must be right in the air or something like that. I can’t
give you an answer Chase as I don’t know either.”
“But in the end, it doesn’t matter. I’m happy and Nathaniel is happy.
That is the most important thing in my family’s eyes. It doesn’t matter
that you and Lucinda are human, but what does matter is that you both
have the power to make Nathaniel and I happy and have the power to
break the two of us into something that brings us pain just by thinking
about it.”
“I know that I have power to hurt or make Nathaniel happy in a
heartbeat, but I don’t think Lucinda knows about it just yet. She is still
trying to wrap her head around the fact that you are a vampire and eve-
rything else we have thrown on her in the last few days since she has
come around and accepted what you are.”
“Who is going to tell her that she has that power to break me?”
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Chase asked, sounding hopeful.
No way in hell was I going to tell Lucinda about this one. Chase was
her partner so it was his job and not mine to handle. This was one point
I was going to get across.
“You are going to tell her that Chase. That one is your job, not mine.
I’m just the one she goes to for answers as well as you,” I muttered,
looking at him.
“Damn. I was hoping I could get out of doing that.”
“Chase, if you have forgotten, I am Nathaniel’s slave, and not yours.
It’s hard enough being a slave for one person than for two people.”
“Who’s my slave?” Nathaniel asked, walking back into the room and
looking at the two of us curiously.
“I am your slave Nathaniel,” I muttered, looking at him. “Do with me
what you will.”
“Oh how wonderful. Alright slave, I think you can stay the night to-
night. What do you say about that?” Nathaniel asked, climbing back on-
to his bed and pulling me into his lap.
“Only if it is okay with the boss first. You know how mum is lately.
There is a high chance that she might say no,” I replied.
“Marie should be fine with it and that way, it will give us more of a
chance to go through suitable matches for your mother,” he said.
“I take it you are playing match maker for Marie?” Chase asked.
“What gave it away?” I asked.
“I overheard you and Nathaniel talking about it before I came in here
and I wanted to know what was going on so I stuck around, hoping to
get more answers without having to eavesdrop in the hallway or some-
thing,” he said.
“I just want my mother to be happy. After everything that has hap-
pened, I think that is something she deserves. Wouldn’t you have want-
ed the same if you were in my shoes?” I asked the both of them.
“I never got along with my parents to care if they wanted a bit of
happiness or not,” Nathaniel said, looking at Chase.
“And I don’t feel like going into my family history to answer that
question either,” Chase added.
“Wonderful,” I muttered, feeling like I had just hit a brick wall thanks
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to these two.
“But we can understand where you are coming from. You want your
mum to have what we have all got and that is happiness,” Chase said.
I nodded in agreement at what Chase was saying and if that meant I
had to play match maker, then I was gonna do that. She needed some-
thing to help her get over the pain my father had put her through and I
was only hoping that they could find this vampire friend that Jack has.
As much as I didn’t want her getting involved with vampires, something
was giving me a good feeling about this one. The one thing I had learnt
being in this relationship is that vampires are extremely loyal to their
mates and I was hoping that this would happen to my mother. I didn’t
want to see her getting hurt anymore.
“What are you thinking about?” Nathaniel asked.
“Nothing to important,” I replied, smiling at him.
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“Totally sure,” I said.
“Anyway, I am going to leave you love bird’s alones and ring Lucinda
to see how she is going. She wasn’t feeling well yesterday and I want to
make sure that is okay enough to be on her own or if I need to go to be
with her,” Chase said walking out of his room.
“See Chase; you really do have a heart,” Nathaniel said.
“It must have been frozen all these years but being with Dakota
would do that to a person,” he replied and left.
That left Nathaniel and I alone in a silence that I didn’t know how to
break it. Nathaniel just stared at me, making me think I had something
on my face. I placed my hand there and pulled it back, seeing that noth-
ing was there.
“What are you looking at?” I finally asked, getting sick of his stare.
“I’m looking at you,” he replied.
“Why? I am nothing important for you to be staring at like that,” I
said, feeling self-conscious of his gaze.
“I am staring at you because I can’t get over how beautiful you are.
You are like an angel that was sent down to me and I will forever be
grateful towards your mother for deciding that you move here and not
somewhere else. Someone else would have gotten to know the real Bri-
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anna and I wouldn’t have wanted that to happen as I get to see the frag-
ile and vulnerable side. I have been waiting a very long time for you to
come to me and now that I have you, I will never let you go, even if you
wanted me to, I wouldn’t be able to. I love you so much, my fragile, hu-
man love,” Nathaniel said, wiping the tears that had leaked from my
eyes.
“That is the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me,” I whispered,
trying to calm myself down.
“I’m just telling you the truth, my love,” he replied and leaned into
kiss me.
I pressed my lips to his, kissing him harder than I ever did before and
I was expecting Nathaniel to pull away from the emotion and intensity I
was putting into the kiss and scold me like he normally does. He didn’t
though. Nathaniel replied to the kiss eagerly than normal, putting more
passion and intensity than I was.
“Brianna,” he whispered as he pulled away, letting me catch my
breath. “Tell me to stop what I am doing so this doesn’t go any further
than it already has.”
What surprised me were the words that came out of my mouth next.
“I don’t want you to stop. I want you to keep going Nathaniel.”
He growled lightly before going back to what he had started before
moving down to my neck, lightly sucking and nipping at it while placing
his hands on my rib cage. I could feel the coolness of his hands through
the fabric on my clothing and started to imagine what it would feel like
skin on skin.
“Are you sure you want this? You can still say no Brianna and I prom-
ise you, I will stop,” Nathaniel whispered, his fingers playing with the
end of the top. “I won’t force you into anything that you aren’t com-
fortable doing.”
“I’m sure Nathaniel,” I replied. “I’m ready.”
In the end, it never mattered what happened in your life as it turned
out; love conquers all. I could only hope that this would be the begin-
ning of a long and very happy relationship between Nathaniel and me.
But things never worked out the way I wanted them to and some-
thing inside of me was telling me that wasn’t going to be any different.
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Mentally, I was trying to prepare for whatever life was going to throw at
our relationship next, but physically, I didn’t know if I could take it. I
might have been a strong girl, but I didn’t know how strong I actually
was.
Only time would be able to tell me that.
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