Richelle Mead owns the VA and Bloodlines series.
Okay, so this one... Well, I kind of don't know how I feel about it. It's basically just a Sydrian makeout session. Pure fluff with no point or plot whatsoever. Hope you enjoy it though :)
"It's been kind of crazy around here," Jill smiled, looking exactly like a princess in a sparkling blue evening gown made especially for her by Lia DeStefano. Even though Jill was back at Court now she still modeled for Lia occasionally, but she always had the designer custom make her outfits for royal events like this one. And if Lia thought the number of evening gowns Jill ordered was unusual she never mentioned it.
Jill looked between me and Adrian. "How are you guys out in California? I miss you so much. I feel like half my family is missing."
Adrian grinned at her, his green eyes sparkling with brotherly love. It was obvious he'd missed her too. "You see us all the time," he said, tapping his head with a finger. "Besides, you've still got Castile at your beck and call."
Jill blushed but otherwise ignored his comment about Eddie. "The bond is not the same as getting to hang out and talk to you. And I only get an occasional glimpse now that I've got the hang of it. Mostly I just feel it when you're really happy and I tend to want to stay out of your head during those moments," she teased.
I tried my best not to blush at that. Even though Adrian and I had been together awhile it didn't mean I was comfortable with his bond with Jill. It was something I understood, something I dealt with, but it would be a lie to say any of us was truly comfortable with it. Things had been less awkward now that Jill could control it better, but that control would have been nice when Adrian and I first started dating. It wasn't like she could unsee... the things she'd already seen.
"To answer your question," I said, steering the conversation away from all thoughts of awkward moments, "we're doing fine. I've been working on a really big project for one of my professors. If it turns out well I might be able to snag an internship at his architectural firm this summer."
"I thought you guys were going to Italy this summer?" she asked, her eyebrows slanting in confusion as she stared at Adrian. I guess she'd heard about the trip through the bond or he'd told her about it over the phone.
Adrian took a sip of his drink before he responded. He'd been nursing the same glass all night. I was proud of him for that, especially since I knew how much being at a royal soirée tried his patience. There must have been a hundred people here, all jostling to be seen talking to the Queen or the Princess. He'd called them groupies when we'd walked into the party to see a group of them already surrounding Jill. It was a miracle she'd managed to break away from them long enough to talk to us.
"We're still going," Adrian finally said. "But it'll be a shorter trip than we originally planned. The internship is important to her so we're working around her schedule." He wrapped an arm around my waist and smiled down at me. "But I will be taking you back there for a real vacation when you have more time."
I smiled. "I told you we could wait and just go once. I don't want to have to rush."
"We're not going to rush," he told me. "We're just going to have a less extensive trip. Besides, you're not the only one who could use a vacation." He turned back to Jill. "I've been working my butt off on a bunch of pieces for that show I told you about. I could use a little inspiration and where better to get inspired than the birthplace of the Renaissance?"
Jill started to reply, but Eddie walked over and interrupted before she had the chance.
"You're being summoned," he said with a roll of his eyes and gestured back to a group of Moroi royals, all old enough to be Jill's parents, yet they looked like they were waiting with bated breath for a chance to speak to her.
Jill sighed, but genuinely looked pleased to see her guardian/boyfriend. "I'm the princess," she said, indignantly. "Shouldn't I be the one summoning people?"
"You try telling them that," Eddie said with a laugh. Jill told us she'd see us later and then grudgingly turned toward the group of royals. Eddie gave us a quick smile, promising to get together once his shift ended, and then followed after her.
We mingled a little, but everyone I knew at the party was busy, either working or entertaining the guests. And Adrian was avoiding most of these people just so we wouldn't have to answer questions about our relationship. We were getting plenty of stares, even though at this point most everyone knew about the Ivashkov heir who ran away with "that Alchemist girl". We were old news in this gossip breeding ground, but people still asked questions. Very rude, intrusive, personal questions that we usually refused to dignify with a response.
Eventually we found ourselves wandering off a little, into one of the less occupied corners of the room. We talked about our trip to Rome and I rambled about all of the places I wanted to see. I knew Adrian appreciated art and architecture as much as I did, but sometimes it surprised me how intently he listened when I went into my lecture mode. Most people didn't. It was one of the things I loved most about him, he okay supportive when I got all brainy on him.
It wasn't long before he leaned into me, pressing his lips against my ear. "Have I told you how sexy you are when you get like this?" he whispered, his warm breath raising goosebumps across my skin.
Adrian pulled back before I could answer and raised his eyebrows a little, tilting his head to the side. The movement was slight, but I followed his motion, looking at the door he had gestured to. A plain wooden door with a plain silver knob was slightly open next to us. Adrian made the head gesture again, slightly more obvious this time. I rolled my eyes, but smiled a little. He took that as a yes and grabbed my hand, dragging me forward into the dark room without even a glance back to see if anyone was watching.
Room may have been too kind a term, I decided when I stepped through the door. It was really more of a closet. From the mop and bucket I bumped into on my way in, I was guessing it was a janitor's closet. Didn't seem to bother Adrian, of course. He closed the door behind us, leaving us alone in the small, dark space.
"This is cozy," he whispered, his voice thrumming around me in the tiny space. His warm breath danced across my skin inciting another riot of goosebumps to break out as he leaned closer. His hands closed around my hips and he backed me up into the shelf behind me.
It all happened so fast I couldn't be sure who started it, but suddenly we were kissing. I reached up and wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him down, and he responded by squeezing me tightly to his chest. His hands ran up my back, sending shivers down my spine, before pulling a total 180. His palms glided down my back, flaring out over my hips, until they finally curled around my backside. He pulled me up around him and I wrapped my legs around his waist. My back slammed into the shelf, the metal pipes stabbing into me just enough to be uncomfortable, but I was too distracted to care. All that mattered was Adrian. His warmth, his scent, his taste—cloves and mint. The firmness of his body against mine. It was all I knew. It was all I ever wanted to know.
One of his hands skimmed down my thigh and then slowly traced its way back up. He had absolutely no respect for the beautiful dress I had purchased for the party. He roughly hiked it up until he had full access to my thighs. That also meant the skirt was practically pushed up around my waist, but all I knew was that now I could wrap my legs tighter around him, pull him flush against me. He wasted no time running his hands up and down my bare legs. My back hit the shelf again as we clung desperately to each other and this time something crashed to the ground.
My fingers tangled in Adrian's hair as I wildly pulled him closer. I couldn't get enough of him. His lips were so rough against me I knew they would leave marks every place they touched, but I didn't care. I needed him closer, needed to feel him kiss me harder. I whimpered as I felt his hands curl over my butt again. His fingers felt hot against me. Something else crashed against the floor, a bottle of what smelled like lemon floor cleaner spilled open. It didn't matter. All that mattered was the feel of Adrian moving against me. The taste of his lips.
I pulled away after a minute, desperately in need of oxygen, and leaned my head against his shoulder. His head rested on top of mine, his breathing just as labored. A blush crept over my cheeks, and I thanked god it was so dark in the closet. It wasn't the first time Adrian and I had gotten carried away while making out, but we had very nearly gone too far in a janitor's closet, in a very public place, while all of our friends were outside. Not to mention all of the royal gossipmongers who could have walked in on us.
"Wow, Sage. Maybe we need to go back out there. Unless, of course, doing it in a supply closet is on your bucket list," Adrian panted, mimicking my thoughts.
I laughed and kissed him—as softly as I possibly could in an attempt to avoid round two—and unhooked my legs from his waist. He helped me flatten my skirt back down over my knees and told me I looked no worse for the wear. I helped him straighten his tie. His jacket had somehow come off once we entered the room, but it was on the floor soaking in the lemon cleaner.
"Just leave it, Sage," Adrian said when I halfheartedly attempted to pick it up. "It's done for."
"We could have it dry cleaned," I suggested.
He kicked the jacket to the side near the metal racks. "Let's just get out of here, huh?" he asked, his fingers smoothing down my hair. I could only imagine what it looked like. "I'm ready to get back to our hotel room." I raised an eyebrow and he laughed. It was such a beautiful, rich sound I nearly kissed him again. "You have a dirty mind, you know that? I was going to say we could order room service and chill out for a while, just the two of us. I'd so rather spend the night like that than at this party."
"You don't want to stay for Jill?" I said, pulling the closet door open and walking back into the bright party.
"I'm sure she understands," he said, putting his hand on the small of my back and leading me forward through the crowd. When we reached the exit I noticed Jill smirking at us from across the room. A moment later Adrian's phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and laughed.
"Actually, I think she'd prefer we leave," he said, holding the phone out for me to see.
You nearly made me spit my drink all over Princess Natasha. You two are like rabbits!
I snorted out a laugh before I could stop myself and sent a sheepish smile in Jill's direction. She grinned back and waved us away, much to the chagrin of the Moroi woman she was talking to.
I took Adrian's hand as we went outside to find a cab. "So, what sort of non-dirty things do you have in mind for the hotel?" I asked innocently.
He hailed a cab from the long line waiting outside and then looked over at me with a smirk. "There's a jacuzzi tub in the room, Sage. Did you really think we could just 'hang out' without it getting dirty?"
He opened the door for me and I leaned in close to whisper, "Well, I hoped not," before getting in and pulling him with me, his beautiful laugh ringing out through the backseat.