Sookie's POV:

I was standing on the top deck watching the sunset when I felt my new vampire husband rising through our bond. He was currently feeling elated and also… very, very horny. I put my hand on my stomach and hold the railing, trying to manage these brand-new feelings inside me, feelings that weren't mine obviously. It was strange feeling this way again, being bonded to another vampire. Though there were many occasions that I had gotten angry with Eric for the emotions he was sending me through our bond, I honestly didn't mind it too much. Why? Because I loved Eric. Right now, it felt like an annoyance, like someone invading my privacy. Like Marten was the parasite and I was the host. I didn't want to experience what Marten was feeling all the time.

"You should've thought about that before you exchanged blood after the third time," I mumble to myself angrily.

I sigh unhappily. Oh well, I made my bed and now I had to lay in it….

I knew I would have to talk to him about learning how to control the bond and toning down the emotions. I didn't want to end up overstimulated at every minute of the night.

I breathe a sigh of relief as his emotions turn to concern for me. He was obviously reading my current emotions.

I head downstairs to our light-tight bedroom downstairs. I punch in the security codes to the floor and open the door, making sure it was locked behind me.

I open the door to find Marten putting on some jeans and a shirt.

"Good evening, my darling wife," he says happily, not showing any signs of concern on his handsome face.

"We should talk," I say in a neutral tone.

"Oh, ohhhh," he says in a playful tone. "Is this our first argument as a married couple?"

He runs his fingers through his dirty-blonde tousled hair and walks towards me, giving me puppy dog eyes.

"Marten, I know this is all new to you…." I say, putting my hand up and gesturing to the two of us. "But you need to learn how to control your emotions. I mean not to hide it or anything, but to block it from me once in awhile or at least dim it.. I'm not sure how to explain it."

I put my hands on my hips and think about how to re-word it. "What I mean is, when Eric was here and we were bonded, he was able to control the bond, and I don't mean by manipulating it, well he did do that a few times and I got angry with him when he did, but what I mean is…. ugh!"

I found myself exasperated, getting my words mixed up.

I sigh out loud and look at the ceiling.

We're both silent for a moment.

"Ahhhh…" he says and he rubs his hands together. "I think I know what you mean."

I look at him with a raised eye-brow. "You do?"

"Well I know how it feels to know what another person is feeling. I share a bond with my master," he says. "Most of the time he shields what he is feeling from me. He does it to protect me, he says, but I'm not sure if I really believe that. But anyway, so you want me to do the same with you?"

"Ummmmm, yeah, that would be helpful," I tell him. "I mean I have my own emotions to sort through, to have someone else's to contend with as well would make me go crazy!"

"Okay," he says as he purses his lips. "The only thing is, I don't know how to do that. My father never taught me how."

"Oh," I say loudly. "I mean can you call him and ask?"

"You mean call him now?"

I nod my head.

"Okay….." he says in a confused tone.

Marten grabs his phone from his back pocket and makes the call. Someone answers and he begins conversing in an Old Norse dialect. He glances at me as he continues talking.

I glance at him occasionally too as I walk around the room while he talks on his phone. I could understand most of what he was saying. He was asking him about what I wanted him to do, but he was also telling him about our first night together and asking about his kingdom.

I could feel my cheeks burning in mortification as Marten tells Marius about our intimate moments…. I was going to have to have another conversation about this topic as well. It seemed that Marten didn't realize that whatever happens between a husband and wife in their bedroom stays between only the two of them. Either that or he didn't care about who he talked to about our sex life.

He finishes up his call.

"I got some good news and bad news," he says and he tucks his phone back in his pocket. "The good news is I can learn how to do it. It takes some practice."

"Okay," I say as I tuck some strands of my hair behind my ears.

"The bad news is because this is the first time I've created a bond with a human, that it may not work. What I mean is the chance of success is small," he says as he looks at me with hesitation.

I stare at him. I wanted to ask him if he was sure, but I could feel through our bond that he was telling me the truth.

"I… I don't understand, why can't it work?" I ask.

"He said that usually when a vampire bonds with a human for the first time, they aren't able to control it," he says.

I stare at him in disbelief without blinking my eyes.

"But you said he was able to shield his emotions from you and you were the first human he bonded with," I state.

"That's not accurate," he says. "He was bonded before me, to a woman, a human woman."

Again, I stare at him without blinking my eyes. I think back to my previous existence to recall any time when Marius had said he was bonded to another person, but I don't remember anything.

"You mean he had a wife or something?" I ask, a little shocked.

"Yeah," he says. "He doesn't really talk about her, but he met someone after his maker met her final death. I guess he was lonely and this woman wasn't afraid of him and they fell in love and they got married, despite the fact she knew he was a vampire. Long story short, she died young or something like that."

"Wow," I say. "I didn't know that…"

"Not much people do," he says, looking at me with confusion in his eyes. "Why are you so interested in this?"

I look at him quickly then look away. I still hadn't told him about my connection to his maker. I wasn't sure if I should now, especially now that we were married. Maybe he wouldn't care? But I had a feeling it would bother him immensely.

I knew it was something I would have to let him know about, but now wasn't the time.

"I just find your maker interesting," I say which was kind of true. "He's lived a long life since he's one of the oldest vampires on the planet. He should write a book about his experiences."

"Ha!" Marten responds. "I doubt it, but I'll mention that to him, that might intrigue him."

He comes up closer to me and puts his hands on my waist. Suddenly, I am overwhelmed with his insatiable needs for sex, which was far from my own mind a minute earlier.

"So…. have we made up from our first fight?' he asks me, giving me puppy dog eyes again.

"Hardly," I roll my eyes. "First off, I'm hungry, I haven't had dinner yet. I didn't really eat much today. Second, your feelings are really crushing me right now, literally and emotionally."

"Okay, Okay, okay….." he says as he continues to rub my sides. "I'll tone it down. I wont be soooooo, how can I put it, a loud broadcaster."

He gives me a chaste kiss on my lips.

"How about we go upstairs and have dinner? We can fix your appetite and mine as well for blood."

I nod my head in agreement and we head upstairs to eat.

We have a warm and friendly conversation over dinner. I was eating some sort of seafood dish that the chef prepared, while Marten sipped on Royalty Blend. He tells me that we were going to head back to New York and leave for the second part of our honeymoon. I ask him where we are going, but he says it was a secret. I don't make any effort to hide my annoyance. I hated other people making decisions for me. I had lived all these years taking care of myself and making my own decisions.

"Trust me Sookie, you will enjoy this," he says reassuringly.

We end our night playing board games while I drink wine. The wine helps me feel at ease as I begin to enjoy myself. I turn on the music and ask Marten to dance with me. I sway my hips to the music and close my eyes. I wanted to lose myself to my inhibitions at this moment. I was tired of being worried about things that weren't in my control. I knew that our marriage would face many challenges. I wasn't happy about being a vampire queen and living my life under the spotlight again. I missed being at home in Bon Temps and I wasn't sure when I would be able to go home again. Marten had promised that we would spend as much time as possible in Bon Temps, but I knew better. The life of a vampire king was fast paced and frightfully busy. He had a large kingdom to run.

I continue to sway my body to the music as Marten comes behind me and presses his body against me. I lean back and rest my head against his chest.

"You're gorgeous, you know that? I can't believe how fortunate I am," he whispers into my ear.

I bite my lower lip and then take another sip of my wine. I was definitely feeling buzzed.

"Shut up and take me downstairs," I say in a low tone.

A few hours later, we lay in bed, naked, under the covers. I lay my head on his chest and close my eyes, enjoying the quietness while he rubs my back.

"Sookie?" he asks.

"Hmmmm?" I answer in a sleepy tone. I was on the cusp of falling asleep.

"Have you ever thought about becoming a vampire?" he asks.

I perk up a little and open my eyes.

"No," I answer quickly. "I don't want to be one. That choice isn't for me."

He stays quiet.

"Why do you ask?"

"It's just that…." He stammers, "I'm scared of losing you. I don't want to be a part from you ever."

I rub his chest softly. "Try not to worry about that right now. I don't plan on going anywhere."

"Nothing else scares me," he continues, "Except the thought of losing you and my father."

"Death comes for us all," I say. "It's how we live that matters."

"Right," he says softly.

"I think it's time for me to sleep," I say trying to change the subject. "I'm soooo tired."

"Okay, is it okay if I hold you till I go to rest for the day?"

"Sure," I reply, before falling asleep a few minutes later.

In my dreams, I was at home running through the field behind my house. I was running towards something, but I wasn't sure what. I only knew what I was seeking was beyond the hill. The more I kept running, the further it was getting away from me.

"Eric!" I yell in my dreams.

A few seconds later I wake up. I sit up quickly and look around the room. I knew it was daytime. I lay back down feeling lonely again,

"I miss you so much," I hush to myself.

I needed to move on, I needed to learn how to let go, but I didn't want to. I close my eyes again, hoping that my dreams would take me to him, to my Eric.