Chapter One

I couldn't help but be in a daze while sitting on the plane. We were returning from Siberia, where we had reunited Dimitri with his family after they had thought he was dead. They were ecstatic to find him alive. Especially after being hesitant to believe the note they had received. It claimed that he had, essentially, come back from the dead. Dimitri is my very serious, warrior-god like boyfriend. It had seemed like a lifetime that I had known him, when in reality it had been closer to a year.

He had been my mentor and teacher back at St. Vladimir's Academy, where I had graduated to become a guardian. Before my graduation, he had been turned Strigoi, which is an immortal, evil undead vampire. In short, I had dropped out of school, and gone to Siberia to hunt for him to put him out of his 'misery'. In the process of hunting for him, I had run into his family, telling them the news of his 'death'. The death of his soul anyways, even though his body would run around for eternity, until I killed it. We had mourned him, and they considered me his widow, realizing our relationship without me having to tell them. They weren't blind, they saw the pain I was enduring. It was too much for just a student teacher relationship.

I had gone on to find Dimitri as a Strigoi, but had failed in killing him after a very serious attempt. But I suspect that all the time he had held me captive and kept me weak due to Strigoi bites had only made it harder for me to kill him. After that, he hunted me down in the US, and even kidnapped my best friend to lure me to my death. Dimitri and I were electrically charged around each other, we couldn't seem to stay away for long. He had believed that I must die, because I was the only one who could have killed him.

But in the end, my best friend, Lissa had saved him, using her magical power of spirit. Moroi, Vampires who were born and thus alive, had magical powers. The most common were elemental: Water, Fire, Earth and Air. A very rare gift was Spirit. Its powers are still new to the Vampiric World, and not so widely known. Dimitri was the second Strigoi on record to EVER be healed, and very few knew of the first one. As far as most knew, he WAS the first.

Therefore, it wasn't surprising that Dimitri's family couldn't believe he was alive. They had after all believed me when I had claimed he was dead. He had to confirm the facts. Yes, he had died and become Strigoi, and yes, now he was Dhampir again. Dhampirs are half vampire, half human genetically. In modern society, Vampires no longer bred with humans, but breeding with a Dhampir would always result in a Dhampir. Dhampirs aren't magical, but were basically built for combat, although we never really got sick like humans. Dhampirs were basically made to take a hit and keep on coming.

Although it took the Vampiric World by shock, my once Strigoi turned Dimitri, had been restored to his Dhampir warrior-god like state. His soul had needed further healing, but his family hadn't needed to know that. His family had been over joyed to see him, and had treated us like we were already married…. Which in reality, was what bothered me now.

There I was sitting on a plane, with my fingers intertwined with Dimitri's, while staring at the seat back right in front of me. His grandmother, Yeva, had basically foretold our wedding. But I was only eighteen! I couldn't be married yet. A month ago I had been an outlaw, accused of killing the former Queen, and now I'm supposed to be planning a wedding? Dimitri and I had never really gotten the chance to just date, which is what I wanted to do now. We always had to fight our love in the past, either because we had both planned on guarding my best friend, Lissa, which could have put her in danger; or because or relationship was risqué due to our student-teacher roles; or because he was Strigoi and wanted to turn or kill me; or because after he had turned human I had already tried to move on with a Moroi- Adrian. The point being- we had never had the time to just love one another like NORMAL people. That was, until the last month anyways. We had professed our love for one another after our continual struggle. Even after that I had to break up with Adrian, which was hard considering I was a fugitive on the run with Dimitri, and Adrian was back at the Royal Court. But I had still done it after clearing my name, getting shot and nearly dying. Who knew that breaking up with a man you still technically loved (but not in the same way I loved Dimitri) would be harder than ALMOST dying.

Even though I felt like I had known Dimitri for a lifetime, it felt like it was all moving too fast. We had ALWAYS fought our feelings. We were both perfectly prepared to deny each other our feelings while we were back at the Academy. Then as a Strigoi, he hadn't loved me, but wanted the power he thought he would possess by having me. He had fed off me over and over again, something strictly taboo in our world. Once healed, he couldn't forgive himself, so he pushed me away. I had tried to fight for our love, but he fought against me too, his guilt getting the better of him. Once I was with Adrian, and that sexual, romantic tension had come back, he fought because of honor. But I knew, just like I always knew, that I loved him unconditionally. I had tried to move on because he said his feelings had faded, and I convinced myself that they had, even though I saw evidence proving otherwise. It had led to me cheating on Adrian with Dimitri. All though it was wrong, I hadn't regretted it. Dimitri completed me in ways no other man could. We were both strong, and could depend on one another. We could fight along one another to kill Strigoi and know that we had each other's back. We could trust each other to stay safe, and we had a synchronicity that was otherworldly. He could always tell when I was lying. We could finish each other's thoughts. We could communicate volumes by just looking at each other. We knew extensively how the others mind worked. There wasn't much guess work to each other anymore, we just knew. We knew how the other moved in battle, and thus made quite a match for each other. It was hard to say if one was stronger than the other. We could feel each other across a room, feeling the other person act without even seeing it most of the time. Plus when Dimitri touched me, it was electrifying. He could wake up my entire body with a single touch, a single kiss. It hadn't been the same way with Adrian. I had loved him, yes. I had enjoyed our kisses, yes. But he didn't provoke the same burning passion in me. It had bothered me that I was his strength-

"I think this might be a record for how quiet you've been in your entire life. We should write it down somewhere." Said Dimitri, squeezing my hand. That had jolted me straight out of my daze, and my eyes bolted straight towards Dimitri's. He was smiling, and his eyes twinkled with a bit of humor.

"Well even Rose Hathaway needs time to think sometimes," I said with a touch of grumpiness to my tone. He took a minute to really survey me, realizing without another word that something had been bothering me, and of course he knew me well enough to figure out what.

"Rosa, don't feel rushed. My family didn't really mean much by it. They are progressive in the thought that if you love someone, there is no reason to wait around-"

"I'm not just trying to wait around." I said, cutting him off, agitated by the thought of it. He squeezed my hand again.

"Rosa, I wouldn't claim that you were. I know your feelings for me…unless you are making plans I am unawares of to replace me already." I looked back up at him, seeing a mischievous glint in his eyes. He was teasing me again. And…I couldn't help but smile.

"Oh yeah, I was going to choose one of the other devilishly handsome, warrior battle gods walking around that you see every day." I paused, while he mocked being shocked and hurt, very poorly I might add. "But seriously, you know I can't imagine being with anyone but you. I want only you. So it's not like I don't want to get married because I want someone else, or even fear that I might eventually want someone else… Because let's be honest, it's been only you ever since you caught Jesse and I back at the Academy. Not that I wanted him, because he was just a distraction-" I couldn't continue because his mouth was on mine in a very sweet kiss. It wasn't deep, yet it still managed to rattle my soul. There wasn't any man in the entire universe who could touch me as deeply as Dimitri could. We had been very lovey lately. There was nothing holding us back anymore. We didn't care what anyone thought any longer. We had spent too much time denying each other for reasons like that. Now, it was our time.

"We have the rest of our lives together, Rosa." He whispered after the kiss, resting his forehead on mine. If he was like me, he still had his eyes closed, savoring the kiss, and all the nerve endings it enticed. I couldn't help but smile.

"I'm just eighteen, Dimitri. I don't want to be a wife, yet. But I want to be yours. I want to live with you a playing major role in my life, publicly, I might add. No more hiding, no more secrets." We were both smiling. We hadn't the need to say more. We were intoxicated to just be in each other's presence. It was finally easy to be in love.

Once we were back on the ground, and driving to the Royal Court, I couldn't help but be more preoccupied by things closer to home. I kept having this itch to try to reach into Lissa's head. I had once been bound to her by Spirit. She had brought me back from death (technically healing me), and I had become Shadow-kissed Rosemarie Hathaway (Mazur). I had never in the past recognized my father's name, but in all actuality I hadn't known him that long either. But Lissa and I had shared a special bond. I could hear her thoughts, feelings, fears. I could jump into her head from across the country- hell across the world and experience what she was experiencing as she was experiencing it. That bond had kept us close. It meant that I could always find her. It was like my own personal gps right to the Dragomir Princess- errrr…. I mean, right to Queen Vasilisa Dragomir. Did I forget to mention that in the past month, my best friend had become Queen to the whole Vampiric world? I had known her mind better than anyone. I could read her feelings from the world over… But not anymore. When I was shot in court by Tasha Ozera, who actually killed the previous Queen, I had died, or almost died. I believed I might have actually crossed over at one time, but fought my way back. Only by living of my own accord, and not by Lissa's Spirit powers had I broke the bond. It felt like I had lost one of my crucial senses, like my sight, or hearing. It made me feel empty. It had been weird at first, but I had grown to depend on that bond. Now I actually had to ask Lissa what she was feeling, or thinking… and it is quite irksome to me. I had been able to save precious time knowing exactly what she was thinking whenever I wanted to. Now I had substantial guesswork. It was very inconvenient that our bond was broken. I was no longer shadow kissed. I could no longer take away the darkness that incurred to Lissa from using her power, Spirit. I could no longer sense Strigoi, the undead, or talk to ghosts, which had come in handy on countless occasions. Now I was an ordinary guardian, no more super powers.

Dhampirs, like Dimitri and I, were often the body guards of the Moroi. We had no magical powers, but we were stronger and stockier than the Moroi. The Vampires have special schools, like St. Vladimir's to train its students. Moroi learn to wield magic, as long as it isn't used against anyone, and Dhampirs learn physical defense and offense. Of course, that's just a very broad over stroke of what we learned at the academy.

After everything Lissa and I had been through, I was finally allowed to be her official guardian, especially after I PROVED that I was willing to give up my life for hers. Tasha Ozera had been, after all, aiming at Lissa, and I literally caught the bullet for Lissa, in my chest. After surgery and some recuperation, I had been able to attend Lissa's inaugural ceremony to become Queen, but I still had healing to do. Before Lissa had to go off to college (and I along with her), and before I had been fully healed and put on active duty again, Dimitri and I had decided to go to Siberia to visit his family. Now that we were almost back, I wondered what I had missed. I had a feeling I was going to be continually miffed about no longer having the luxury to invade Lissa's mind at my own whim. Now I would actually have to invest in a cell phone if I ever wanted to talk to her long distance.

"Damn" I murmered, after failing to get into her head again. I knew the bond was gone, I don't know why I kept trying. Dimitri was driving, like always. I had never once gotten to drive a car while this man was around. He smiled knowingly as he stared at the road.

"You'll have to get used to no longer being bonded." He said plainly. It was usual for me to try to jump into Lissa's mind during car rides.

"I hate being NORMAL." I said, in an almost whiney tone. His eyebrows rose in amusement.

"Rose Hathaway, you have never once been normal, nor will you ever be." He said in a teasing, yet mater of factly tone. I couldn't help but laugh a little. Although I was no longer shadow kissed, I still wasn't normal. How many people have died twice by the age of 18? How many found the love of their life in that time? How many had killed countless people by 18? How many had a Queen as a best friend? How many had watched their friend die? How many had been, for all intents and purposes, tortured by a Strigoi and lived to tell the tale? Okay, so technically Dimitri had been the Strigoi, and we always had special feelings for one another…. Although, while Strigoi, he could not feel love. But still, I had survived.

Our arrival back at court wasn't quite the homecoming I thought it would be. I thought my best friend would come see me or something, but she seemed busy with her queenly duties. Dimitri and I had chosen to share a room at court, essentially moving in together. After almost loosing me to a gunshot wound, Dimitri had wanted to be as close to me as he could, when he wasn't working. We had managed to make it back to our room and pack away our belongings without interruption from anyone. People knew we were returning today, and the guardian's knew we were back since they had to let us into the gates leading to the Royal Court. We decided to go to a restaurant in the Court to spend the rest of our evening. It was technically very early morning, but due to the backwards schedule of the vampires, it was evening our time. Vampires typically slept during the day and were awake at night since the sunlight was an irritation to the Moroi. The sunlight just got to them a lot easier than it did humans or dhampirs. They sunburned so much easier.

I chose to shower first, since it would take me longer to get ready. And after traveling for so long, it felt amazing to get cleaned up. While Dimitri was showering, I chose my outfit, wanting to surprise him. I applied my make up while still in my towel. I chose to be subtly sexy in my makeup, not glamming it up, but not being just simple either. I had this routine down pretty quickly, and it wasn't long before I was blow drying my hair into beautiful dark brown waves. Dimitri was out of the shower, completely dressed, and laying on the bed in his duster reading one of his cowboy western books when I chose to come back out of the bathroom after blow drying my hair. I had dressed in the bathroom once he had abandoned it. I had also applied a few spritzes of very subtle perfume that I had come to love. It accented my natural body chemistry well. I had chosen a dark red halter dress that clung to my curves. I had plans for tonight. I had every intention on spending our last night of 'vacation' wrapped up in pleasure, so I had chosen just the outfit to accomplish it. I didn't need to be falling out of my dress in order to be sexy, like so many other women. My curves spoke wonders to a man, and especially Dimitri. Everything about my outfit screamed effortless sexy. I had spent 15 minutes getting ready, max.

I grabbed my heels and leaned against the bedroom door frame as I put them on, allowing Dimitri his first look at me for the night. His eyes shifted from his book, and he visibly stopped breathing. I couldn't help but grin as I saw the look in his eyes. He no longer wanted to go out and eat. He wanted me. I was thrilled to elicit this response from him. He slowly put his book down on his night stand.

"Maybe we should stay in." He murmured, looking me up and down, committing me to memory all over again. I shook my head grabbing my purse and making my way towards the door, not even responding to him verbally. He could stay if he wanted, but Rose Hathaway always needed food.

It took him seconds to be by my side. I had chosen to leave a message with the person at the desk down in the lobby of my building, in case Lissa came looking for us. The restaurant we chose wasn't too far. It was nice and even had a bar. It didn't take us too long to get there, even though I knew Dimitri was looking at me from the corner of his eye the entire time. Being around each other was electric, even without touching. Our attraction for each other had become palpable, now that we didn't have to hide it anymore. Plus, it's not like we were on duty. We could spend this time focusing on each other.

We chose to sit in a decently secluded spot in the restaurant. Dimitri was rather anti-social, and neither of us was really up for socializing with anyone else besides each other, unless Lissa had come by of course. We had ordered food, and flirted back and forth, recalling fun times we had just had in Siberia. Knowing I would be on duty in the next couple of days, I knew I wanted to have fun tonight. The Royal Court was one of the most secure places in the world, both with Magical wards and guardians to protect those within. We had decided it was reasonably safe enough to let our guards down for one night, although we knew our instincts would kick in during times of emergency. And god, I hoped I didn't have to fight in this dress.

After dinner and desert, since I loved my sugary delights, we ordered and downed several drinks. At that point, I decided to go get drinks, leaving Dimitri at the table, when I returned from the bathroom. He had requested a drink, but I had something else in mind for him, and I knew not ordering by our server would be the only way to pull my tiny prank off. After visiting the ladies room, I sauntered up to the bar. I immediately caught the male bartender's attention. It was a gift of mine, especially in this dress.

"I would like a White Russian and Tequila Sunrise, both of them straight up and extra strong." I said flashing my bright whites. I was already a little buzzed, halfway enjoying not having to pay attention to everything around me. So that's why I was so easily caught off guard. Suddenly a hand caught my wrist, surprising me. With all the people around, I hadn't noticed someone move in closer to me.

"Well well, if it isn't the cheating little Dhampir," said Adrian, swaying a little as he spoke. "What need do you have to get drunk? From as far as I can see, you have everything you want including your once Strigoi lover, your best friend as Queen, and the assignment you so desired. You've even been flaunting your 'true love' over there in the corner of the restaurant. Not like the rest of us want to see your behavior." He spat, his eyes flicking to Dimitri, who hadn't spotted us. My blood boiled inside me at the way he was speaking to me, and the way he spoke of Dimitri. He continued before I could but in, " I hear you just got back from your honeymoon from Russia. Who did you con into paying for your trip this time? Please tell me they actually got sex from you, unlike me. I was blind enough to let you use me until you no longer needed my money, magic or companionship. Once your teacher came back into your life, you turned back into that obsessed schoolgirl over him, leaving heartbreak in your wake." Part of me was shocked. Our breakup hadn't been easy, and we hadn't seen each other since that night. But I hadn't been expecting this.

"How dare you speak to me that way. I gave you a chance. If you have any grievances against me, why don't you come talk to me about it in a less public setting." I said, yanking my wrist out of his grip more fiercely than needed, but it drove home my point. The hostility was becoming palpable, although I was trying to control myself. Dimitri still picked up the 'scent' of it in the air though, his demeanor immediately changing. My glare never left Adrian.

"You're drunk again, aren't you?" I uttered, surveying him a little more closely. He flicked his wrist in a casual way.

"So what if I am?" He replied, as if he had this conversation all the time. "Our contract is broken, you have no control anymore in how much I indulge in my vices." I was disgusted. This was not the Adrian I had been attracted to, but at this point in time he was holding a grudge against me. "Nor do you get to choose how I spend my money. I no longer have you conning my money out of my grasp. Now I can shower these little ladies in it." He said, mentioning a few women that I hadn't seen until now. There were three Dhampir women scantily dressed, all with dark hair like mine. As far as I was concerned, they were replacements for me. I got a slight feeling of satisfaction, noting that I was prettier than all three. One of them clung onto Adrian, trying to pull him closer. It was like she was scared that I might try to steal her fun from the night. I was not impressed at all.

"Adrian, I don't want your money. If that was all I had wanted from you, I wouldn't have dated you AFTER you funded my first trip to Russia." Dimitri had reached my side when I said that, placing a hand on my hip. I could sense the emotion it sparked from him, but I couldn't respond to that yet. "And I don't want to control you. It's your life. Do with it what you will. I honestly hadn't expected you to complete that 'contract' as you call it. I just wanted to see how important I was to you. But regardless, that is a moot point. Like you noted earlier, we aren't together. I don't need you attempting to slut shame me, when you have three poor Rose Hathaway look-a-likes clinging to your side. Go sink your fangs into them-" I started saying before Dimitri grabbed me by the arm and started calmly pulling me away. I pulled back, grabbing our drinks that were now done and throwing some cash onto the bar. "Keep the change." I muttered, fuming at Adrian's drunk outburst. I could see the crowd now that we had attracted. People were murmuring to themselves about the things he had accused of me. Not that they were the worst rumors that had ever gone around about me.

"Little Cheating Dhampir," he said boisterously, obviously not minding the attention. "This is not the end of our discussion." He noted, still swaying a little. I was fuming, but I knew punching Adrian in this moment wouldn't actually help anything…. Well besides sate my fury. I had let Dimitri grab me by the elbow and escort me back to our seats, far away from Adrian. Adrian's eyes followed us, I could feel them. Everyone else in the bar had started sneaking glances our way, obviously talking about the confrontation. I pushed Dimitri's drink into his hands, barely noticing what I was doing. I had already forgotten about the joke I was going to pull on him. He looked me over, with a knowing glance. It was obvious he would have to defuse the bomb before he got any real cooperation. I had already started chugging my drink. Damn I was happy that I had ordered it extra strong. It had just now occurred to me that the bartender hadn't carded me, but it was Dimitri who had broken me out of that train of thought.

"What is this?" He asked, lifting up his drink, attempting not to smile. "This is not what I had asked for." A sly smile couldn't help but break from my lips. It was completely clashing with the churning rage inside of me, but the need to explain my joke won over- for now.

"It's a White Russian, Comrade." I said, flashing a brilliant smile. I was obviously playing at his 'home country'. "It might not be motor fuel they passed as alcohol in your country, but I thought you might still like it." I teased. He lifted an eye brow.

"Are you referring to Russian Vodka, Rose?"

"I thought you would get the reference without me having to explain it to you." I said, momentarily sticking out my tongue. I was waiting for it, and I knew the moment was coming that he would ask me about what happened. He started sipping his drink, not looking at me. Then he started stirring his drink with a straw, choosing to look down at it as he spoke, instead of at me.

"Is what he said true?" He asked. We hadn't exactly talked a lot about Adrian's and my relationship. We had both understood, without words that Adrian had only come to be my boyfriend because Dimitri had been turned Strigoi.

"What do you mean?" I replied defensively. Dimitri was still looking down, pausing to collect his thoughts before continuing.

"Did you really take money from him?" He finally said. I blanched, and immediately lashed out.

"What, so you also think I just used him?" I said, attempting not to yell. This was adding to the fury I had already felt inside of me from Adrian's conversation. His eyes flickered to mine.

"That's not what I said, Rosa." He said, keeping a soft tone, obviously attempting to keep me calm. I realized there was no accusation in his voice, but that didn't necessarily unknot the fury in my gut. But I knew I had to explain.

"That next afternoon… in the caves at St. Vladimir's…" I started, realizing it was a lot harder to say than to think. My eyes shifted down to my hands as I continued. It was easier to look at them, while I was fidgeting with my nails than to look at him. "They wouldn't let me go, but they looked for you. I waited for your body to come back on a stretcher with the others… Except your stretcher came back empty. They said you were no longer there. So either you were alive, and the Strigoi had captured you to feed on you, or… they had turned you. I rushed outside the wards and immediately summoned Mason. He was able to confirm my deepest fears." I paused, having a hard time continuing. It was taking a lot of courage to tell this story, for it was a very dark period in my life. Dimitri wasn't moving, he was merely studying my face as I continued to talk. It didn't feel like he was even breathing. "He confirmed that you were now one of the undead. Something broke in me in that very instant. The man I loved was gone. The man I had just given my virginity to, was gone forever… Or at least walking the earth as an evil killing machine." I managed to break a smile at that thought. "Well, you have always been a killing machine, but it just changed who you were killing…. The innocent. I knew I had to fulfill the promise I had made that day in the mall. I knew my Dimitri, didn't want to be Strigoi. I knew I had to kill you. That mission burned inside of me. I couldn't stand the thought of waiting until the end of school. You were out there at that very moment, and you needed me to put you to rest. But I had no means to chase you to Russia, which was the direction Mason had pointed me to. So I did the only thing I could… I asked Adrian to fund my trip. I felt too guilty asking Lissa, since I was abandoning her. I knew Adrian liked me, and he hoped it would help me get past you. I had promised to give him a chance when I returned... He moved money into an account for me." I paused again, knowing he already knew a lot of what happened in Russia. I took a deep breath. "When I returned, I did give him a chance, and he promised to cut down on his vices. I grew to love him, but we never had the same chemistry-" my eyes flicked up to meet Dimitri's, "that you and I had. Adrian was comfortable." My face hardened by my next thoughts, and I tried to keep my voice from rising as my fury started to return. "But did I date him just because I wanted his money? No. If he hadn't have pursued me so hard, I probably wouldn't have dated him. It's not like I sought him out and flung myself upon him because he had MONEY." I finished. Dimitri sat silent for a little while longer, taking in my story.

"Adrian is going to hurt for a while, Rose. It looks like he loved you stronger than you loved him. That happens in life sometimes. Unfortunately for him, I'm alive again, and there's this…" He paused, searching for the right word. "Connection between us that neither of us can ignore." He reached across the table and took my hand at this. "But while Adrian is healing, you might have to endure, and understand more outbursts like this. Remember how you fought for me? You had many outbursts until you resigned to our fate, and then I had to basically steal you back." His eyes were sad at this last part. I knew he was ashamed he had basically stolen another man's woman. But in all honesty, I was always Dimitri's. Even when I was trying to fool myself otherwise. Our chemistry was always that strong. Our eyes met. I knew he wasn't mad from learning Adrian's role in my Russian trip, and maybe it explained to him more of what happened.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I have to like these… outbursts from Adrian." I muttered, refusing not to get the last word on the subject. There I was, stubborn Rose Hathaway. I glanced back over at the bar and saw all three Dhampir women all over Adrian. I scrunched my nose at the sight. When I looked back over, I saw Dimitri looking me up and down again, seemingly studying my every curve. I could see the hunger in his eyes. He had waited all through dinner, with the thing he wanted most dangling itself right in front of him the entire time. Now that we were officially together, and it was legal for him to love me, he didn't hide his emotions as much.

"Maybe we should go back to our room." He murmured. The way his eyes caressed my body distracted me from the outburst that had happened earlier. Just the way he looked at me, made my body tingle, and he wasn't even close to touching me yet. Unable to respond verbally, I just nodded my head, very thankful to be leaving. He signaled for the waitress, and we paid our bill.

It seems so cliché, but on our way back to our room, we held hands. It seemed nice to just feel his touch while we were so relaxed. We would never do this if we had been on our guard. I couldn't help but smile. This is the affect Dimitri had on me. I was glad to just be around him. Once we reached our building, I checked with the front desk to make sure no one had tried to get ahold of us. Lissa had left a note. It was short and sweet, reminiscent of my mother's notes while I was back at St. Vladimir's. Maybe Lissa was taking lessons from her.

Catch up tomorrow morning.

~Lissa

I smiled and shook my head. By morning, she actually meant evening, since the vampiric schedule was flipped around. Now it was early morning, I would say 5 or so in the morning. But this was our evening/night. We slept during the day. But Dimitri and I still had enough time to 'go to church' so to say, and 'worship' each other, before we had to get some sleep for the next day. When we reached the elevator, Dimitri grabbed me, and gently pushed me up against the wall. I could have easily countered this action, but I let him. I didn't mind him putting me where he wanted me to be. He slid his hands around my waist, making it easy for him to smoothly multitask and push the elevator up button at the same time. He leaned down and kissed me eagerly, pushing me into the wall while we waited for the elevator. As far as I was concerned, the elevator could have taken until Christmas to arrive. Unfortunately, it arrived in what felt like seconds. We scooted into the empty elevator in a flawless movement seemingly created by one unit. Being around Dimitri was like a dance, in a battle, and everyday life. It's like we already knew the steps, and could flawlessly move together as if we had practiced it 100 times before. This was part of our chemistry, our connection to each other, our awareness of each other. He continued to kiss me the entire time in the elevator, breaking only once we reached our floor.

Reaching our room, I turned my back to him to unlock the door. The second the door was ajar however; he reached underneath me, picking me up bridal style and tossing me down on the bed. I knew I would have to comment about the bridal style treatment later, but now wasn't the time. I wasn't a bride…. yet. But right now, my body burned for him, and it was all I could focus on. It was almost like Christian had engulfed me in flames. Looking in Dimitri's eyes, I knew he felt the same way. He barely made sure the door was shut before jumping onto the bed with me. His lips were on my neck, and he was already tugging at my dress. It was in this moment that my thoughts echoed themselves to past thoughts I had- I was very glad that Dimitri was the only man I had ever truly been with. I couldn't wait to give myself to him over and over. The fire within me began to blaze even brighter, as if the fire I felt earlier was only a coal simmering. I knew before the night ended, we would both feel like blazing forest fires. Yes, we were in OUR 'church', our bed, and it was time to worship one another. I knew it was going to be a long night.