Chapter 9

Heaven

Kayla looked at Cain's face for a moment before gently kissing his forehead. He was sleeping peacefully, smiling in his sleep. Seeing him like that warmed Kayla's heart, his happiness made her happy as well. They have had a fun day together; they had gone to a carnival. Two men from Lucien's security team had accompanied them, as usual, but they had kept their distance. Cain had won a huge teddy bear and insisted of giving it to Kayla. He had always been a very kindhearted and selfless boy.

Now he finally had a safe place to live. The thought made Kayla smile, she had never even dreamt of something like this. Both she and Cain were living in Lucien's house; her room was right next to Cain's. Lucien had offered them everything they needed and more. What he had wanted in return was the exclusive right to Kayla's blood. At first she had been sure that he hadn't meant just her blood, but she had happily accepted his proposition. She had expected him to claim her body as well, he had most certainly earned the right to do that, but he hadn't.

He had invited her to have dinner with him several times, but all he had asked from her was her blood and a conversation. For some reason he had actually wanted to talk with her. At first she had done like she always did; tried to interpret what he wanted to hear and who he wanted her to be. No one, except Cain, had ever wanted to get to know her or cared about her thoughts. Lucien had said that he did. He found her intriguing.

That had sounded very strange, but she couldn't deny that she had enjoyed their dinners. He was always polite, like she would have been a lady. And he had never been rough when he had fed from her. She hadn't tasted his blood, but she certainly didn't expect to. He had arranged vampire's blood for her and Cain, just like he had promised and that was more than she could have asked for. Cain was finally happy and safe.

His room was very nice, he had movies, games, comic books, nice clothes, a comfortable bed, everything he had wanted. At first Kayla had hesitated to use Lucien's money, but he had assured that she could buy whatever she and Cain needed. He had even given her a credit card and he never asked what she bought and why. Still she didn't buy unnecessary things for herself; she didn't really need much to be happy. What she had right now was almost too good to be true.

"Good night," she whispered before walking out of Cain's room.

She headed to the kitchen and bumped into Lucien.

"Oh, hello," she greeted him.

She hadn't been sure if he would come home tonight, he was away a lot.

"Hello, darling," he replied smiling. "You seem to be in a good mood."

"Yes, I had a very nice day. Cain and I went to a carnival."

"Hmm, sounds nice. How is Cain?"

Lucien tried his best to sound polite, but Kayla was aware that he wasn't very fond of Cain. The feeling was definitely mutual, but thankfully Cain and Lucien didn't have to interact with each other very often. It was no wonder that Cain hated all vampires and Lucien probably didn't like him because they were natural enemies. Still Lucien had done so much for Cain and that was something Kayla would never forget.

"He's sleeping."

"Oh. How about you? Are you tired?"

She shook her head.

"No, I was just heading to the kitchen."

He smiled.

"Do you mind if I join you?"

"No, of course not."

If she wasn't mistaken, he has had a rough day.

"Would you like something to drink?" she asked as soon as they were in the kitchen.

"Yes, sure," he replied.

He sat at the small table as she poured him a drink.

"Thank you, darling."

"You're welcome."

She poured some sparkling water for herself and sat down opposite him.

"How was your day?" she asked.

"It was murder," he sighed.

She didn't ask did he mean that literally.

"Oh. Would you like me to massage your neck?"

"No, thank you, that won't be necessary." He paused for a moment before continuing. "I could however have a little different drink if you don't mind, darling."

"No, of course not," she replied and stood up. "Here or…?"

He stood up as well.

"Let's go to the living room shall we."

"Sure."

They went to the living room together and sat down on the couch. He smiled as he brushed her hair out of the way and touched her neck with his thumb. She was wearing a light rose print summer dress which left her neck exposed. Once again his bite wasn't rough and his hands didn't grope her while he fed. She breathed calmly and smiled at him when he was finished. He licked his lips and stared at her for a moment before speaking.

"Listen, Kayla… I was thinking… Would you like to taste my blood?"

She couldn't deny that she was surprised.

"Your blood? No, I couldn't ask you to…"

"You don't have to ask," he cut in. "I'm offering it to you."

"Why?" she asked, she couldn't stop herself.

"Well… Why not? Would you like to have a taste?"

She hesitated, trying to decide what to say. He was much older than any other vampire whose blood she had tasted; there was no doubt that his blood would be much stronger. It would have been a lie to say that she wouldn't have wanted to taste it. He smiled and bit his wrist.

"Go ahead, darling. Have a taste."

She bit her bottom lip and carefully took his wrist. Should she really do this…?

"Go ahead."

Yes. She wanted this. Slowly her tongue touched the bleeding wound. Oh dear lord… She was floating, there were stars dancing in the sky. She was weightless; the pleasant waves were washing over her. She was flying. She was warm. She was happy. She was in heaven.

"Alright, that's enough."

She heard his voice, but she barely registered it.

"Kayla? Are you alright?"

Somehow she managed to nod, her whole body was shivering. She leaned her head on his shoulder and felt him wrapping his arms around her. He was holding her. No one had ever done that before. In that moment she felt something. He cared about her. Really cared. And he wanted her, she could feel how much. Yet he hadn't touched her. He wasn't going to touch her without her consent.

"Kayla? Are you sure that you're alr…"

She muffled the rest of his sentence with a kiss. She had never willingly kissed anyone, but now she really wanted to kiss him. His lips were soft, they tasted like blood. She wanted more, she wanted to feel him. Slowly he pulled away and cupped her face.

"Woah, woah, darling. As much as I'm going to hate myself for this, we have to stop. It seems that you're not yourself right now…"

"I am," she cut in. "I want this."

He stared at her intently, trying to estimate did she mean that. He was concerned that he would be taking advantage of her. She couldn't help but smile.

"I want this," she repeated. "I want you."

He bit his bottom lip and kept his eyes on her while standing up.

"Well then…" He paused and scooped her up into his arms. "I hope you're not tired, my sweet Kayla, because this is going to take a long, long time."