With thanks to HopeCoppice for encouraging me to write this and to Werepuppy Black for the prompt.

Hope you enjoy!

xo

Chapter 1

'I can see the desire in your eyes.'

Of course there was desire in his eyes, with her dark eyes, pouting lips, flawless skin and black curls, Adze was absolutely beautiful. What male vampire wouldn't desire such a creature? Just because his body wanted her didn't mean that Vlad wasn't going to resist the match. He was seventeen for Lucifer's sake! He was far too young to enter into a commitment as serious as marriage. He had centuries of unliving to do before he settled down into marriage and parenthood. Not that he planned to ever settle down. No, Vlad had decided some time ago that marriage and parenthood were no-go areas for him. He had seen enough emotional wreckage from his parents' relationship to last him several millennia. He had no desire to repeat those mistakes in his own unlife. As for children... The prospect of bringing yet more bloodthirsty vampires into this world filled him with dread.

But if Vlad was in no hurry to rush down the aisle, his father was the exact opposite. The Count barely had a few months left as Regent, his power and influence were rapidly dissipating and this made him more dangerous than he had ever been before. It pained Vlad to consider his Dad as an enemy. No matter how fraught or difficult their relationship had been in the past, Vlad had never truly believed that his father would sacrifice his son's happiness to prove his authority. He kept thinking back to his thirteenth birthday. The Count had been so eager for Vlad to become a true vampire but in the end he chose Vlad's happiness over his own by trying to replace the Transylvanian bat blood. Even though his Dad had messed up, it had always comforted Vlad to know that he did care. Except now, he wasn't so sure.

Vlad stormed up and down the training room, a look of intense anger on his features. "Why can't I just say no?" He flung out his hand sending a bolt of lightning across the room in his frustration. "I'm the Chosen One. I shouldn't have to obey anyone!"

Bertrand shrugged. "You're not yet of age," he reminded Vlad. "As Regent your father is entitled to enter into contracts on your behalf. Including betrothals. Any decent lawyer would ensure that such a contract is still enforceable after the Regency has ended." He set aside the tome of vampire law that they were supposed to be studying. "Naturally, Ramanga will have invested in the best lawyers that gold can purchase."

Vlad made a sound of exasperation before flinging another bolt of lightning at the heavy stone walls.

Bertrand raised his eyebrows at this uncharacteristic show of temper. Still, given that his liberty was being threatened, it was hardly surprising that his protégée was demonstrating some of his more destructive tendencies. He calmly poured Vlad a mug of soy blood and pushed it across the table. "Sit," he commanded as the Dracula fledging continued to stride around.

The Chosen One threw himself onto the chair in an overdramatic fashion. "Bertrand, what am I going to do?" He raised pleading eyes to his tutor's face.

There were times when Bertrand was sharply reminded of Vlad's youth. For all his power and unique abilities, the Chosen One was still a seventeen old year boy and as such he was just as prone to a teenage tantrum as any other fangling. Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Bertrand leant forward. "We play the game Vlad." He smiled in satisfaction as a flicker of hope entered the eyes of his charge.

"Catherine de' Medici." Her fiancé set the bottle of vintage blood down on the table and pulled up a chair.

Adze raised her perfectly arched eyebrows questioningly as she leant forward and picked up the bottle. Her fingers ran adoringly over the faded ink. "A fine vintage indeed." Her gaze flickered upwards to the face of her fiancé. His eyes, such a brilliant shade of sapphire blue, were focused on her. His rosebud of a mouth turned up slightly at the left corner in the promise of a smile. "I thought you didn't touch the stuff."

Vlad produced two glasses of cut crystal with a flourish. "I don't." He uncorked the bottle causing the rich scent of royal blood to waft towards her.

Adze breathed it in deeply. It was rare, even for a vampire as elevated as her, to drink a vintage of such quality. No doubt, the Dracula brat, as her father called him, was trying to show off. She watched intently as he carefully poured the blood, filling both glasses almost to the rim before sliding her glass across the smooth polished surface of the table. His cold fingers brushed against hers for briefest of moments and despite all her bad intentions Adze could feel a flicker of attraction igniting between them.

"However," Vlad continued, acting as if the touch were entirely accidental, "We are both puppets in the grand schemes of our fathers. I think they owe us a little something in return." He raised his glass and against her better judgment Adze followed suit.

After quite a few glasses of de' Medici, Adze found that the Dracula brat was surprisingly charming. Some of her earlier anger at this presumptuous little upstart was beginning to fade. Adze didn't want to marry him anymore than he wanted to marry her but that hadn't stopped her from being hurt and furious when she had found out about his protests against the match. He was only seventeen to her two hundred years, only a Count to her Princess and yet he had fought viciously against their betrothal. How dare he reject her? It didn't matter that he was supposedly the Chosen One, she was still of impeccable lineage and reputation, he should have been grateful to receive a bride like her. A girl had to have some pride after all and Adze Ramanga deserved better than to be cast over by an infamous wimpire.

First impressions mattered. At least, his sharply cut suit had indicated he understood that much. She had strived to look as beautiful as possible for their first meeting and although Vlad's face may have been trained into impassivity, there had been no mistaking the desire in his eyes. The Chosen One wanted her. Badly. And, perhaps, as she watched him laugh in the candlelight, dark hair falling into those gorgeous eyes, his elegant fingers spread out on the table so tantalising close to hers, perhaps she wanted him too.

As if he were reading her thoughts, Vlad's hand rose to caress her cheek, his touch sent electric shocks rippling across her skin. "You're so very beautiful." His voice was almost an awed whisper, his eyes seemed to be drinking in every detail of her appearance.

Adze didn't bother to thank him for stating the obvious. Instead she leant forward and pressed her lips against his. She was completely unprepared for the way he tasted, of blood and power, or for the skilled way in which his tongue teased hers. She found herself moaning as he deepened the kiss, was barely aware of glass shattering as the table separating them fell to the floor. Perhaps marriage to the Dracula brat wouldn't be so bad after all.