I couldn't help it, I wanted this trip to be over so we could be alone in Venice, just me and Erik. I wanted him, so bad. Every so often I would send Erik a seductive look, sometimes he would return with an exhilarating smile, other times he would just smile plainly and look away. I would pout at his tormentous actions; he was doing it on purpose. I crossed my arms over my chest, looking at him angrily. Erik leaned across the cab, his hand slid slowly up my thigh; I couldn't help but utter a throaty moan. Erik's voice caressed my ear gently.

"Soon, my wife, sooner than you think." He told me, I smiled deviantly, the carriage slowed to a stop in front of a well lit building.

"I told you." He told me.

"I never argued." I told him, the carriage door opened and I stepped out with the help of the carriage driver, Erik joined me outside, he took me in his arms, crushing his lips against mine. I felt the cold material of his mask against my cheek. He pulled away from me.

"Welcome to Italy, my dear." He whispered in my ear. I smiled and giggled seductively.

"Can we please just get a hotel room?" I begged him, my husband chuckled. Taking me inside, the workers saw my flowing white dress and immediately started chattering in Italian. Erik replied in perfect Italian, I looked to him, agitated. He looked to me:

"What, you should know I speak multiple languages, what made you think Italian wasn't one of them?" He asked tauntingly.

"I don't know…" I muttered. Erik pulled me into a hall, following a hotel worker, up several flights of steps and to a lone room on the top floor. I could only blush as we entered the room and Erik took the keys from the hotel worker. I took in my surroundings, there was a majestic king sized bed, the sheets were a dark scarlet, reminding me of Erik's appearance at the Masquerade.

Flashback

I stood there, sipping a glass of champagne when everyone fell silent and a masculine, powerful voice filled the room menacingly. I turned and saw, him, a scarlet drop among the golden, black and white audience. I sighed at his eyes scanned the audience. Oh his mystery drew me to him like a moth to fire. I could've sworn we made eye contact, but I pushed it aside as wishful thinking. His only interest was Christine, the breath-taking soprano whose voice made the angels in heaven weep. He gave his orders for Don Juan to be performed and disappeared in a thick cloud of red smoke.

I was brought back to reality by the tugging of the wedding dress' strings being undone, followed by the corset strings; soon Erik's warm hands caressed the skin on my back softly. His hands slid up to my shoulders, forcing the white dress away from my shoulders and arms. Soon the dress was around my ankles; I kicked it away and turned around, kissing Erik passionately. He slid his arm under my knees picking me up; I wrapped my legs around him, deepening the kiss violently. We eventually landed on the bed; Erik kept pushing me back toward the headboard. I laid against the pillows and let my husband have his way with me.

I was sore the next morning, nude and lying under the silken sheets next to Erik, who lay beside me, breathing softly in his sleep. I smiled and snuggled closer to him, his arm snaked around my back. He kissed my forehead.

"Good Morning, my Wife." He whispered in my ear. I sighed and kissed his lips.

"Good Morning, my Husband." I replied gently. My hand traveled down his neck and unto his chiseled chest, I let my hand rest there, feeling his heart beat against my hand. I sighed again and rest my head against his shoulder.

"We'll need to get ready to leave soon if we want to get to my castle before nightfall." He told me.

"Okay. But if you had a castle all along, why did we go to your mother's home?" I asked him. Erik chuckled.

"Too far away perhaps." He replied, I got up and went to the washroom, running a steamy bath. I sank in, Erik came in, clothed, with his toiletries bag.

"You aren't going to get clean?" I asked him, flicking some water droplets at him. He looked to me.

"I will but after you get done." He replied. I watched him as he shaved away his whiskers.

"But why get dressed?" I asked him. He looked at me in his reflection, patting his face dry with a fluffy white towel.

"Just to torture you." He said, bending down and kissing my forehead, leaving the bathroom. I watched him go. Only to grab a bar of soap and started to bathe quickly, after I was finished I got out of the bath tub, I went outside and grabbed my corset and a fresh dress. I studied myself in the mirror after my hair dried. Wearing a grassy green dress with black lacing along the v-cut, showing only a small amount a cleavage, I frowned at the sight, pulling up the dress a little, it only sagged back into place.

"Damnit." I muttered annoyed.

"I think you look stunning, why hide such a gift, Jaclyn?" Erik said tauntingly from the doorway. I looked to him.

"I'm not hiding it, I'm just covering it up to people who don't need to see." I told him. He laughed, coming into the bathroom. He took me in his arms, his hand traveled across my stomach, while his other hand kept me in place, he kissed my neck and followed along my collarbone.

"I've been hiding my face my entire life, there is no difference in 'hiding' and 'covering up.'" He whispered in my ear. I glared at my husband.

"Well there is to me so shush." I told him, Erik smiled and left me to finish up in the bathroom. When I did I left and laid down on the bed, Erik eyed me lustfully, only to look away from me, get up and go into the bathroom. We had caressed each other's body the night before; he followed the curves of my body. While I had felt the scars on his body memorizing each one, they crossed on his back, making a series of x's. I shuddered, remembering the searing pain that the whip could cause.

Erik

I glared at my reflection, from the hideous face to my scarred chest and arms. Jaclyn's hands had traveled all over my body last night, feeling every blemish, every scar and distortion. I ran the cold water and let the cool, clear liquid pool in my cupped hands, splashing the water on my face chasing away what little sleep remained. I finished my morning routine and went outside, into the room, seeing Jaclyn sprawled out on the bed, looking like a blade of grass in a scarlet pool of blood. I shook the slightly dark thought from my head and joined her on the bed.

"Are you ready to go?" I asked her. She looked at me and nodded, she got up, I took our bags and went down. Leaving the building, we had a carriage waiting for us, so I loaded the bags and helped Jaclyn board the carriage, then got off myself, giving the driver directions, we were off for a few hours worth of riding.