I had just finished the dinner they had sent up. I lay, sobbing quietly on the hard old couch in front of the fireplace. It was pitch black outside. All that was heard was rain tapping softly on the window pane, and wolves howling in the distance. Then, there was another sound. Someone was knocking at my door.

I rubbed the tears away with the heels of my palms, mustering up the voice to answer. "Who is it?" My voice still quivered. I kept it from cracking though.

"It's me." Lucian's voice mumbled from beyond the door.

I heaved in another breath, trying not to let him hear. "Go away." I said, my head still buried in the pillow.

But he opened the door anyway. "Oh now, is that any way to treat your fiancé?"

I remained silent, but managed to sit up. Wiping the tears away didn't help, they just kept falling. He sauntered over to the couch, sitting down next to me, a little too close. I felt his arm wrap around my back, his hand placed gently on my side.

"Tell me, Catalina. Would it really be so bad… to marry me?" He caressed my cheek, turning my head to look into my eyes. More tears fell at the words 'marry me'.

"You don't get it do you?" I whimpered, trying my best to make him feel terrible. "I had a future. I had hopes and dreams. I was going to go to Berkley for music and arts on a full scholarship. I wanted to be a singer. I wanted to enjoy my senior year, graduate with everyone else, go to parties and enjoy it just like every other eighteen year old. But no, I have to finish school early, come here and marry at eighteen years old to rule over a kingdom. You know what? I hate this. I hate you. I hate your father, and I hate everyone who got me into this mess… including my parents!"

I finally let out all the emotions and things I had wanted to say at the meeting to him. They'd been bottled up ever since I found out that I would have to drop everything to be with this guy.

I started crying quietly again. He stayed silent, just gazing over at me for a few minutes. It seemed like he was thinking about what I had said. Then he pulled me into an embrace, leaning back on the couch.

"I understand. Believe me I do. Now that I think about it more… but just give it some time… please. For me?"

My head perked to look up at him after he said that. For him? Did he really want to marry me? Even if there wasn't a promise?

We locked eyes again. I couldn't help but be drawn to him. "What?" I sniffled.

"Try it. For me." It was more of a command than a request.

My mouth hung up. I had no clue what to say. Was I supposed to say yes?

"Maybe… just maybe… you will end up wanting to rule with me…"

I could feel myself being pulled towards him. Slowly but surely. His hand pushed my side little by little, inching me closer. Our gazes never left each others, until our noses were nearly touching. I started hesitating, before mustering up the courage to pull away more. I was still close to him, and I could still feel the magnetic pull between us. It scared me.

He wanted to kiss her so much. The want was so intense that he could barely help himself anymore. There was such a pull between them and he hoped she felt it too. And she did feel it. But to her it was terrifying, being pulled to him, being controlled by him.

He was shocked when she pulled back. He could sense she was scared, but he knew how tempting he could be. He'd been with many other debutants that simply couldn't resist a little taste of his lips. He was irresistible. But she was tired and was absorbing so much in one day. He understood.

But he still couldn't resist just one more try. He pecked her on the cheek, stopping just after, close to her mouth. Her face was petrified.

He looked into her eyes once more, savoring their pearly grayness. "Sleep well, princess." She blinked and a single tear seeped out of her eye. She nodded and wiped it away.

As he walked out of the room he could already hear her start to sob timidly again. He felt terrible, but at the same time he knew it was her destiny. There was no way around it.

He walked swiftly down to the other hall, all the way down to his father's study. Knocking on the door he barged in without even getting a response.

"Oh, my dear boy! You startled me!" His father exclaimed. Then his face became sly, "How did your first goodnight kiss play out?"

His son's face looked disappointed. "She's too scared of me. She's terrified. She pulled away from me."

Eros got up from his reclined position as his desk to sit beside his son on the leather love seat. The girl had seemed very scared of his son from the beginning, but how she could resist his touch was… strange. He'd taken many debutants before her to bed easily. So, why couldn't she handle a simple kiss?

"She… she resisted you?" he asked, prodding for answers.

Lucian looked up at him slightly confused. "Well, not really. I mean, she—she was leaning in and then all of a sudden she snapped back."

Eros patted his son on the back. "Give her time, she will come around… they always do for you my boy." He winked.

His son laughed a little. "Father, she's not those other debutants who give themselves too easily. They are taught to go after me. She is too submissive, and I am afraid if I push her too far she might end up fearing me. I don't want her to fear me…" his eyes drifted away.

There were a few moments of silence before his father spoke up again.

"You want her to love you… you love her already, don't you?" He knew this would happen. His son's face said it all.

"Yes… Father, more than anything in the world I want her to love me; to willingly be my queen. But I'm afraid she will never want me the way I want her."

"Ah, yes her blood is very intoxicating. Oh, the smell. She smells… fresh… like freshly cut roses. How did you stand to be so close to her?"

"It was hard."

"I can see that. It's in your face. But you know very well you must wait until after her eighteenth birthday… then she is all yours to savor."

Eros couldn't help but talk about the girl. She was gorgeous. Simply magnificent. Just like her mother. It was a pity the world lost such a beautiful queen. But now there was an even more stunning one ready to take her place. The way her hair fell, the way she walked, the way her eyes looked even when she was scared… it was all so alluring to vampires. Everything about her was a magnet for vampires.

"How does she feel my son? Under your grasp?"

The question put a smile on his son's face. "Hmm… wonderful."

"She's beautiful."

"Simply amazing."

Eros smirked at his son. He was quite the mind reader himself.

He chuckled menacingly. "It must be hard for you… to have to wait so long to bed her."

Lucian's head snapped up, looking at his father for a second before smirking himself. "Yes. But that day is bound to come… whether she wants it or not… soon I may not be able to help myself."