Chapter 18

Rose's Point of View

About one year later.

It was about a year after Dimitri's accident. We since found out through a note that Alex sent us, that Katrina was sent by him to break us up. Katrina was a Spirit user, and had been enticed by the idea of turning Strigoi because she couldn't handle the darkness that came with using Spirit. She was also incredibly in love with Dimitri – which I don't blame her for (have you seen him?). Dimitri said that they had dated for a few months in high school, when he decided to break it up because she was jealous of everyone Dimitri talked to and hung out with. 'Psycho,' were the words he used. It's exactly what I was thinking of. Alex had struck a deal with Katrina, promising to turn her Strigoi if she managed to bring Dimitri down with her as well. This deal proved to be more than attractive to her, and so she used her compulsion abilities on Dimitri that night. The bitch made me want to hunt down more Strigoi to kill! On the other hand, Dimitri was so incensed by what Alex did that it took everything in me to stop him from hunting him down. I couldn't have Dimitri hunting Alex down whilst I was pregnant – what if something happened to him? In a weird way, I could somewhat understand where Alex was coming from – it was low, disgusting and totally off limits to sell his best friend out like that, but when you're a Strigoi with a mission, I guess you don't think about consequences. Besides, Strigoi had no morals anyway.

Adrian was initially quite sheepish when he saw Dimitri and I together; but I told him to snap out of it. I knew he lied to us as he had my best intentions at heart. Dimitri and I decided that we would make him godfather of our child. We're still unclear as to how we managed to conceive a child; but neither of us were complaining. Dimitri was ecstatic that he was going to be a father, and whilst initially, I was a little hesistant about welcoming a new life to this world, I grew increasingly excited about having baby as my stomach grew.

We had to break the news to my parents and as we expected, my mum flipped out, whilst my dad congratulated us and looked forward to being a grandfather. My mum wouldn't speak to me for months, but when I went into labour, she and my dad flew over. She wasn't able to resist the baby girl she held in her arms, and so begrudgingly, decided to forgive us. Dimitri's family were more welcoming, his mum bustled and fussed around me in the weeks leading up to the birth, and I thoroughly enjoyed his sisters' company, especially Viktoria's. She wanted to move to Australia too, but I wasn't sure that Dimitri would let her, especially after he saw Adrian eye her up.

We named her Anya, short for Anastasia. Dimitri said that it was the name of a Russian princess, and that was what Anya was to him – his princess. 'What about me?' I had pouted childishly, trying to goad something out of him. He had merely laughed and after kissing me passionately, said, as cornily as possible – only because he knew it would annoy me, 'You'll always be my Queen,'

'Who died and made you King of anything?' I shot back at him and he laughed loudly, 'You never fail to disappoint, Roza,'

Lissa and Christian had their baby boy a few months before Anya arrived. They named him Ethan, and when Lissa saw Anya, she proclaimed that she was already seeing an Ozera bride in her! Talk about being impatient! Lissa and Christian decided to move into a bigger place to house all of us; to give us more privacy, Lissa gave us the bedrooms upstairs, whilst she, Christian and Ethan took the bedrooms downstairs. It was a massive mansion that they bought, and I don't even want to think about how much money they spent on it! Dimitri and I had insisted on paying for our share, but Lissa and Christian downright refused, saying that for laying our lives down for them constantly, it was the least they could do. I didn't have a problem with it, but I think Dimitri's ego might have been bruised a little. He always said that he would at least put a roof over my head. Men's egos are strange like that. So Lissa made a deal with him – she said that for buying the house, a fair trade would be if Dimitri paid for a swimming pool to be built in the enormous backyard that we have. On top of that, Dimitri insisted on paying for Ethan's schooling for the rest of his life.

'What's that got to do with anything?' Lissa exclaimed.

'Swimming pool and Ethan's education,' Dimitri had stood his ground, his pride taking over.

Lissa had stared at him disbelievingly. Turning to me, she pleaded, 'Can't you talk reason into him?' I merely shrugged. This meant a lot to Dimitri. Frustrated, Lissa finally gave in and a truce was called.

…

'Remember to dress up, I've booked out a nice restaurant!' Lissa yelled out as I headed off towards our home. I had just finished my shift for today and Lissa had wanted to stay behind at St. Basile's for a few things. She and Christian had applied for a job within St. Basile's teaching Spirit and offensive magic, under the supervision of Macca, which made Dimitri and my job a lot easier, as they were safe behind the school's wards and there were more Guardians around. Dimitri was offered the position as Head Guardian at St. Basile's, and he would start teaching up and coming Guardians soon. Whilst I initially considered a position as a teacher, I had to decline it, because Anya would require a lot of time and effort on my part and guarding Lissa was a full time job in itself. That said, it would definitely be something I would consider when Anya started going to school.

It was my birthday today and I still had to drag myself over to St. Basile's earlier this morning to guard Lissa. 'I can't believe I'm working on my birthday!' I had grumbled to Dimitri that morning. He laughed that deep melodious laugh of his and said, 'you have tonight to look forward to,' Lissa had already planned a party for me but he seemed to imply something more. I didn't want to pursue it further, knowing he wanted to keep it a surprise for later.

'Oh and I've already arranged babysitters for Anya and Ethan; they're with the babysitters now,' Lissa's voice brought me back to the present.

'Great, thanks!' I said, 'I'll see you soon!'

Dimitri was already at home when I reached. 'Happy birthday Roza,' he said as I came through the door. He picked me up easily in his arms and swung me around, kissing me affectionately, 'Anya's with the babysitters,'

'I know, Lissa told me,' I giggled, my lips imploring his hungrily, 'and thanks,'

'Mm, you have to stop doing that,' he said, breaking away from my kisses, 'otherwise, we'll be late for dinner and Lissa will never forgive me,'

I laughed. His arms were still around me and my legs were wrapped around his waist. 'But it's my birthday,' I said sulkily, wanting to lose myself further in his kisses.

'Nope, specific instructions from the Princess,' he said, releasing me gently from his grip and putting me back on the floor. I knew it was taking all his self control to let me go. He looked at me hungrily, 'You have no idea how hard this is,'

I smiled sexily at him, 'then stop denying yourself,'

Dimitri let out a low growl and I was back in his arms, kissing him furiously. I sizzled under his touch and just as he was about to rip my shirt off me, my phone rang. 'Damn,' my breathing was heavy with desire. It was Lissa. I rolled my eyes and put her on loud speaker.

'Don't be late!' Lissa's sing song voice came through. Dimitri chuckled lowly and I let out a frustrated groan.

'Rose, stop having sex with Dimitri! You have an hour to get ready and get your ass here!' she demanded.

'Yes, mum!' I muttered. After giving me a kiss on my forehead, Dimitri peeled himself off me.

'I tried to tell her Lissa,' he called out to her, 'But there's no stopping her, you know how stubborn she is,'

'Oh blame it all on me!' I cried indignantly. He laughed and kissed me again, 'You know I love you,'

I made a face at him.

'Guys, save the sweet talk for later; you're going to be late. 58 minutes Rose!' Lissa said before hanging up.

Dimitri wore an amused expression on his face. 'You're going to pay later,' I teased, standing on tip toes to run my tongue across his lips. 'As much as you want,' his eyes twinkled lustily.

It was a wonder we even got to dinner on time, considering the growing sexual tension between Dimitri and I. Lissa had booked out a classy Italian restaurant for dinner and invited all the gang – Christian, Eddie, Mia, Adrian, Ayeshah, Alberta, David – and even my parents flew in for the night. 'Did you think we were going to miss your 21st?' my dad said when I saw him sitting at the table. I threw my arms around him excitedly. As we were getting seated around the table, Dimitri and my dad left to the bar to get some drinks. I looked over at them, and saw Dimitri say something to my dad to make him laugh. I smiled contently. I loved the fact that my dad got along with Dimitri, even if my mum was a sourpuss around him. She still brooded over the fact that he's too old for me, and that we've had a child without getting married. Seriously, I didn't really care. Dimitri and I were living as though we were married anyway.

A band played mellow tunes in the background whilst we ate and chatted. It was nice to see my mum relax a little after a few glasses of wine; she always looked too stern and unmoving. It wasn't a wonder that Anya took to my dad more than my mum; she was going to grow up being not only Daddy's Girl but also Granddad's Girl. I smiled at the thought. 'What are you smiling at?' Dimitri asked.

I shook my head, 'Anya,'

He smiled at me and squeezed my hand under the table.

'Rose,' Lissa interrupted my thoughts, 'since it's your birthday, will you grace us with a song?'

My dad beamed at me proudly and nodded. 'What kind of logic is that?' I protested, 'my birthday, someone else should sing,'

'Come on,' Lissa begged, 'We all know how you love to sing,'

'Hey, it's not fair to use compulsion on me,' I pouted, 'not on my birthday,'

'I wasn't!' Lissa defended, 'but don't make me,'

I laughed. 'Come on Rose, we all know how you love to be the center of attention,' Christian teased, grinning at me.

'Don't make me punch you, Sparky,' I retorted, much to my mum's horror.

'See the kind of domestic abuse I'm subjected to?' Christian complained to my mum.

'Oh stop being a girl,' I taunted and he wore a look of fake horror. I sensed that my mum was about to say something so I said, 'Relax, mum. He's only joking, take a chill pill,' What happened to lightening up? My dad roared with laughter but quickly shut up when he saw the look on my mum's face.

Lissa dragged me to the stage and requested that the band let me sing a song. Adrian led the cheer squad on my table and the other patrons in the restaurant turned to look. This was highly embarrassing. 'You're going to pay for this,' I hissed angrily at Lissa.

Lissa grinned back at me, 'I love hearing you sing,' she flashed me her brightest smile. How could I refuse her?

'Alright, but only because I love you,' I said dramatically. She laughed and rolled her eyes, 'Of course,'

I picked up the microphone on the stage and looked out towards my table. Lissa had snuggled back into Christian's arms; Dimitri was looking at me intently, love and pride shining through his eyes. Our eyes met, and I felt myself drowning in them. I love you, he mouthed to me and I smiled happily at him. Eddie had his arms around Mia, who was looking lovingly at him. I could sense a wedding coming up soon. My mum had settled into my dad's arms, as they proudly looked on, anticipating my song. Adrian whispered something into Ayeshah's ear and she giggled. Maybe something would happen between them after all. Peter and David were checking out some Moroi girl on the other table. A rush of happiness filled me – this was my family; and I loved them with all my heart. Only Anya and Ethan were missing, but maybe next year, they'll join us.

I looked down at the microphone and started to sing. I had picked out Taylor Swift's song because I heard it a few months ago, and decided that the lyrics were perfect for Dimitri and I.

Friday night beneath the stars
In a field behind your yard
You and I are painting pictures in the sky

And sometimes we don't say a thing
Just listen to the crickets sing
Everything I need is right here by my side

And I know everything about you
I don't wanna live without you

I'm only up when you're not down
Don't wanna fly if you're still on the ground
It's like no matter what I do

Well, you drive me crazy half the time
The other half I'm only trying
To let you know that what I feel is true
And I'm only me when I'm with you

Just a small town boy and girl
Living in the crazy world
Trying to figure out what is and isn't true

And I don't try to hide my tears
The secrets, all my deepest fears
Through it all nobody gets me like you do

And you know everything about me
You say that you can't live without me

I'm only up when you're not down
Don't wanna fly if you're still on the ground
It's like no matter what I do

Well you drive me crazy half the time
The other half I'm only trying
To let you know that what I feel is true
And I'm only me when I'm with you

When I'm with anybody else
It's so hard to be myself
And only you can tell

That I'm only up when you're not down
Don't wanna fly if you're still on the ground
It's like no matter what I do

Well, you drive me crazy half the time
The other half I'm only trying
To let you know that what I feel is true

And I'm only me
Who I wanna be
Well, I'm only me when I'm with you
With you, oh yeah…

As I finished singing the last word, I looked up to see Dimitri get out of his chair and walk towards me. I smiled brilliantly at him, my heart brimming over with love. The restaurant fell deadly quiet, as if everyone were holding their breaths. Their eyes were on my handsome warrior as he strode towards me. He looked serious. Didn't he like my song? I put the microphone down as he lifted himself easily onto the stage.

'I can't live without you,' Dimitri said, repeating the lyrics. I grinned and was about to say, write your own lines, when he said, 'I know you're going to say something smart,'

I heard a few chuckles around the room and blushed. 'It's one of the many things I love about you,' he continued, staring deeply into my eyes – God I love his eyes, 'I wish I could guarantee you a life of happiness, guarantee that everything will go to plan. I would love to make you smile every day, to hear you laugh, see you sing. But I know we're going to fight and I know we're going to make our mistakes, me more than you,' he smiled and there were more chuckles around the room. I smirked at him as he continued, 'There may be days when I forget to tell you how beautiful you are to me, and other days when I forget to tell you how much you mean to me. I wish I could make it perfect for you, but I know that the going will get tough at times. But no matter what, I want you to know that I'm always here for you, that I'll try my best not to mess up, that every day I wake up with you by my side is a good day to me, that I'll lay my life down to keep you and Anya safe. Roza, I don't have all the riches in the world but I feel like the richest, luckiest man in the world when I'm lying next to you,'

I started to tear up, not knowing where this was going but enjoying his public declaration of love nonetheless, especially since he was such a private person. My eyes opened wide with surprise as Dimitri dropped down to his knees, pulled out a beautiful diamond ring and looked at me lovingly, 'Will you marry me, Roza?'

My hands flew to my mouth. I heard my mum gasp in the distance and I imagined my dad clamping his hand over her mouth to stop her from ruining the moment. I heard Lissa suppress her squeal of delight. I opened my mouth to speak but no words came out. Was it possible to love this man anymore than I already do? Was this really happening to me? I must have been silent for a few minutes because I saw a flash of doubt cross his handsome face as he repeated, 'Will you mar-…'

'Yes!' I half-shouted, half-laughed. As if there would be any other answer to it, 'A thousand times, yes!'

He looked ecstatic as he slid the ring onto my finger, scooped me up in his arms and kissed me passionately. The restaurant erupted in cheers. 'Thank you,' he whispered fiercely into my kisses. I felt tears sting my eyes. He wiped them away gently. 'Why are you crying?' he asked, concerned.

'Because I'm so happy,' and he crushed his lips against mine once more as the band started playing behind us. I couldn't stop grinning as we made our way back to the table.

'Is this a little better than my proposal at the hospital?' Dimitri smiled cheekily at me.

I threw my head back in laughter as I remembered his proposal over a year ago – maybe we should get married – 'Oh, maybe!' I joked as I kissed him again.

Lissa gave me a tight squeeze when we got back to our table. Her excitement bubbled through me. 'I was starting to wonder when you'd ask!' Lissa complained to Dimitri. He blushed and I laughed at him, pulling him in for another kiss.

'Get a room, Hathaway,' Christian called out. I ignored him; I was too happy to care. I was painfully aware of my mother's thunderous looks. And I guess, so was Dimitri because he soon said, 'Guardian Hathaway, Abe, I'm sorry, I've been trying to contact you all week, I would've liked to get your blessings first but… you two must be incredibly busy because I could never get through,' so that's what all his secretive phone calls must be about.

'Never heard of voicemail?' she snapped. Wow, my mum's scary. Dimitri didn't even flinch, 'It was something I preferred to do in person,'

'He asked me just before,' my father jumped in, quietly. My mum ignored him. Typically.

'How many men do you have on the go? Weren't you with Adrian for a while?' my mum turned her anger on me. Dimitri started to jump to my defense but he was cut off by Adrian, 'Janine, can I call you that? Oh come on, we're all one big family now, there's no need for formalities,' he grinned at my mum who looked like she was going to break his neck. Adrian gave my parents a quick summary of everything that happened, and the initial confusion surrounding Anya's parentage. My mum's expression changed from thunderous to murderous to completely homicidal very quickly. 'So it's kind of my fault, really,' Adrian ended gallantly.

'Ivashkov, it's mine,' Dimitri offered.

'Ivashkov,' Adrian rolled his eyes, 'Dimitri, its Adrian. What did I say before? One big family now,'

Dimitri wore a funny expression on his face, like he couldn't decide whether it was a good or bad thing that Adrian now considers him 'family', 'It's still my fault – everything that happened,'

'Alright, will you two stop arguing whose fault it is? Does it really matter now?' my mum shouted angrily. Looking at me she said accusingly, 'How could you keep this from me?'

'I didn't know if… You'd be okay with it,' I stammered guiltily, staring at my plate. I pushed my food around the plate to distract myself, 'Besides, you wouldn't take to me for months before Anya was born,'

'Look at me when I'm talking to you,' my mum snapped. My dad was rubbing her back, trying to calm her down. I looked at him pleadingly and he shrugged helplessly at me.

'Dhampir relationships are always forbidden and I didn't know if you would approve,' I defended.

There was an interesting play of emotions on her face as she struggled to find the words she wanted to say. Everyone around the table was silent and staring at her, waiting to see her response. 'Have you so little faith in me?' she finally said, her eyes softening, 'since when did you do anything that everyone approved of anyway? As long as you're happy, I would have approved of anything,'

I scraped my chair back, ran to my mum and flung myself in her arms. 'Anything, Rose,' her voice quivered with emotion. 'Thank you,' I beamed at her. This was turning out to be the best birthday ever. 'God help Dimitri,' she teased, 'between you and Anya, he's going to have a lot on his hands,'

Our table erupted in laughter. 'Hell, give me Strigoi any day,' my mum continued, her eyes laughing at me. Christian and Adrian hooted with laughter. Dimitri put his arm around me as I returned to my seat. I decided to let her have her fun with me. 'Strigoi aren't so beautiful,' Dimitri said, looking at me intensely. He looked so irresistible and I blushed furiously.

'So that's where Rose gets her smart comments from,' Christian laughed, interrupting the moment. He was wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.

'Hathaway vs. Hathaway,' Adrian shouted, thumping a drum roll on the table and Eddie whooped. I shook my head at them, 'Juvenile,' and Ayeshah heartily agreed with me. Looking at her, Adrian faked a broken heart, 'I thought you were on my side!'

My dad raised his hands to silence everyone. Looking at Dimitri, he said, 'You and I need to talk, later,'

Dimitri nodded solemnly and I looked at my dad quizzically. What did they need to talk about? I hope my dad wasn't going to give Dimitri too rough a time. 'Don't worry,' Dimitri said, smiling at me. He squeezed my hand in reassurance.

'I'm sure, nothing he can't handle, kiz,' my dad said to me and I gave him a look that said, don't meddle.

'But Rose, now you need to seriously consider how suitable it is for you to continue being Lissa's Guardian,' my mum said solemnly. She was right. It wasn't like I haven't thought about it, especially ever since Anya was born. 'Guardians tend to have flings, short affairs… Rarely do they get married or even have children,' she continued.

'Well, nothing I can do about Anya now can I?' I said defensively. Dimitri squeezed my hand, trying to calm me. What the hell was my mum trying to say?

'It runs in the family, my love,' my dad said, trying to dissipate the tension between us, 'you Hathaway women tend to go for the most dangerous, most unsuitable men,'

He grinned at me and I couldn't help but crack a smile. My mum looked murderously at him. 'But they make the greatest love stories,' he said softly. I gagged at them; I wasn't used to seeing my parents so affectionate with each other. Dimitri let out a low laugh as Lissa stared unbelievingly at my dad.

'Stop it,' my mum said; smacking my dad playfully, 'I'm trying to be serious here okay? This is our daughter's future,'

'Mum,' I said determinedly, 'I'll make it work. We work at St. Basile's; we can always leave Anya at the day care when we work. Besides, Lissa's got Ethan. It's not like she's going to be doing some extensive travelling any time soon,'

'We'll make it work,' Dimitri corrected and I grinned at him appreciatively. I saw my mum struggle to suppress a smile. I knew she had a deep respect for Dimitri and I was hoping we could count on that to gain her approval.

'Be good to her,' was all my mum said but her soft smile said much more. Dimitri seemed to understand what she was saying and gave her a small smile and a nod. I felt on top of the world as everyone congratulated Dimitri and I. I was so happy that I ordered extra food – nothing boosts an appetite like a wedding proposal.

It was when dessert was being served up that Ian, one of Lissa's Guardians that night, rushed to our table urgently. 'Princess…' he started.

'What is it?' Lissa said impatiently, 'I know it's late, but Rose just got engaged and we're celebrating,'

'No Princess…' he looked nervously around the table, 'Anya and Ethan are gone,'

Uh-oh! BUT, this won't be much of a cliffhanger, because you'll get to read the next chapter immediately. :)

Before we proceed, I need to inform of two additional disclaimers for this chapter (obviously, the usual ones for Richelle Mead applies) - Taylor Swift for her song 'I'm Only Me When I'm With You' and Australia's very own Guy Sebastian for his song 'Art of Love' which was the inspiration behind Dimitri's proposal. What did you think of it? :)