A/N: No happy heart attacks okay guys? I don't know why but I kind of ended up on a short roll. We'll see how far it takes me, but for now, enjoy an extra chapter on me.

Chapter 10

Bella opened her eyes to find Athenodora over her, normally bright red eyes nearly black. She couldn't hold back her squeak of surprise as she tried to scramble away, but all Athenodora had to do was press her body against Bella's to pin the human in place.

"Athenodora!" Bella gulped. Never before had she felt so much like prey in front of anyone before. The woman had to have heard how fast Bella's heart was beating, but she didn't say anything. Instead, she looked down at Bella with a cocky smirk on her lips, her eyes burning with a fire that Bella had seen once before. "Where is Heidi?"

"I sent her away." Athenodora slid her body against Bella's, making sure to pin the human's hands on either side of her head.

"And why are you here?" Any fire Bella had previously had was now long gone now that she was pinned and straddled by the queen.

"Isn't it obvious, Isabella?" The way Athenodora's tongue caressed her name...oh god did it make Bella feel hot and quivery inside. "It's about time I properly show you where you belong...under me."

It was at that moment that Bella realized a truly concerning fact; Athenodora was naked in all of her glory. The warrior queen was sexy in the most dangerous of ways, and Bella found her mouth going dry as she couldn't help but stare.

"Oh, isn't this interesting. Are you not about to try and fight me, Isabella?" Athenodora taunted.

"Stop saying my name like that." It was meant to be a demand, but instead, what came out was a pathetic whimper. What was wrong with her? When did Bella become so weak? She couldn't even think to fight the warrior queen, let alone actually try.

Athenodora let out a low, sultry chuckle as she leaned down to brush her lips at the pulsepoint behind Bella's ear. As Bella's eyes fluttered closed with a confused groan, Athenodora asked, "Then how do you want me to say your name, Isabella?" Athenodora released Bella's arms, giving Bella a chance to push her away. Instead, Bella found herself gripping Athenodora's hips, stopping the woman from rising off of her in a bout of desperation. Athenodora's smirk only widened when she saw how desperate Bella was to keep her there. Her hands slid up Bella's shirt, stroking the skin of Bella's stomach, threatening to go higher. And god, did Bella need her to go higher. "Tell me, Isabella; what do you want?"

"You," Bella whispered, unable to stop herself. She had never been so desperate, so needy, in her life. She was lost in the soft strokes of Athenodora's fingers, something so contrary to her strength and ferocity. Never before had Bella known touch could feel so good.

"Be more specific, Isabella," Athenodora murmured. She leaned in, brushing her lips against Bella's, and the girl could only gasp in response. It had been such a tease, and despite herself, Bella needed more. "You belong to three of us; if you want someone in particular, you need to say their name."

"...Athenodora."

Despite being far away from Bella's room, in the middle of a meeting to decide what to do about some wild newborns in Argentina, Athenodora heard her mate whispering her mate loud and clear.

"I need to go," Athenodora said abruptly. Didyme and Sulpicia nodded, having heard Isabella call for Athenodora as well. Despite wanting to join her, they felt that they couldn't; Bella hadn't called for all of them after all.

Athenodora was down the hall and in Bella's room in a flash. "Who is it? Who am I supposed to fight?" Athenodora demanded, unable to think up another reason for Bella to have called for her.

To her surprise, the only ones in the room was a very confused Heidi and a now startled Bella.

"What? What's happening?" Bella demanded as she rolled out of bed, still half asleep but ready to fight to protect herself and Heidi from any threat. Of course she managed to get caught in the blankets as she rolled and fell, flailing.

Now Athenodora was confused too; not that her confusion stopped her from catching her mate before she hit the floor. "You called for me. I believed you to need my expertise in slaughter."

"What? I didn't call for you."

"I'm a vampire, Isabella; I'm certainly nowhere near deaf. I heard you call my name." Athenodora couldn't help the grumpiness that slipped into her voice, but she couldn't help it, not when she had no idea what was going on. Not that she minded, of course; for whatever reason, Isabella was still in her arms and hadn't pulled away. In fact, she had a gloved hand on each of Athenodora's biceps as if to steady herself. Despite the simple contact, it took Athenodora quite a bit of concentration not to purr.

"But I was asle…" Bella trailed off, her eyes widening as the dream she had came back to her in a rush. Her, Athenodora...the fact that Athenodora was naked. Of course it was a dream, skin to skin contact could never feel that good to Bella. Knowing it was a dream, of course, didn't help her current situation in the least. "No, um, forget about it," Bella said in a panicked rush, burying her face in Athenodora's neck to hide her now bright red face. Athenodora, still clueless, was more than happy to tighten her hold on the human, but instead Bella pushed away, realizing what she had been doing to the queen. "No, get away from me!" Bella said with even more panic than last time, and now she knew why. Now she understood why she had been so uncomfortable and awkward when Athenodora had caught her in the kitchen; she was well, well beyond attracted to the queen.

Not that the realization helped in any way. She was now beyond freaked out; Bella had never been attracted to another person before, let alone had a dream about them, and now she was getting a one-two combo from Athenodora.

What if I start feeling this way towards all the queens? This can't happen, I need to stop it!

Still pushing uselessly against Athenodora, Bella was brought out of her panicking thoughts by Athenodora's growl. "Will you explain to me what's going on already?" the queen demanded, allowing Bella to push herself away just enough so that she could glare into Bella's eyes in frustration. "Well, Isabella?"

Oh, no. Oh no oh no oh no. Why did she have to say Bella's name like that? Bella shook her head furiously, unable to admit anything with words. Having enough of being left in the dark, Athenodora looked towards Heidi, expecting answers.

In response, Heidi purposely made a show of sniffing the air. So of course Athenodora finally took the moment to scent the air. Immediately, it hit her; the smell of Bella's arousal. More than just arousal, even.

That's when it hit her. Bella has been dreaming about Athenodora. Not just dreaming, but having a wet dream about her. Just like that, Athenodora felt true hope...and quite smug.

"What did you dream about, naughty girl?" Athenodora purred in Bella's ear, needing to rub it in. Despite all of her fight and fire, it was clear; Isabella desired her. If Athenodora had even one doubt in her mind, it was blown away by Bella's answering blush as the scent of her arousal strengthened.

"Nothing, you jerk!" Bella snapped, but her desperation only made Athenodora want to tease her more.

"Really?" Athenodora taunted. Still high off of her discovery, she pulled Bella closer, daring to let one hand wander close to Bella's ass. "Because what I smell from you says otherwise."

Oh my god she could smell…? No way, no way, that so wasn't fair. Reaching her breaking point, Bella blurted, "Well maybe I was dreaming about Didyme or Sulpicia instead, ever think of that?"

"Oh, were you now?" Sulpicia murmured from behind Bella, eyebrow arched at what she had just heard. She couldn't be happier to have decided to follow Didyme's suggestion to check in on them, not after hearing such a line while watching her mate flush such a dark red. "Please, tell me more."

"I'd be more than happy to hear about any dream of yours, Isabella," Didyme added with glee. Not only had every word been entertaining and adorable to listen to, but now, clear as day, Bella's bond to Athenodora had strengthened quite a bit. In fact, sometime during Bella's protests, her bonds to all three queens had strengthened somewhat. Didyme couldn't be happier if she tried; their mate was certainly accepting them, whether Isabella was ready to admit it or not.

It took so much longer than she should have to recognize those voices, but Bella was just that deep in denial. Finally, Bella had no choice but to turn, horrified at what she might find. Her fears were confirmed when she found both Didyme and Sulpicia in the doorway. They had to have heard every word.

Well, there was nothing else Bella could do now but see if she really could die of embarrassment. She was never going to be able to look in any of the queens' eyes again.