Taming an Immortal Ch. 05

"Nothing is stopping you from leaving my Lord," she complained, throwing back her covers to walk towards her wardrobe. "You're not the one naked."

"Humour me."

With an exaggerated sigh, she picked up a silken robe and tied it around herself. It was a shame that her nightgown had been torn - the court seamstress would surely not be pleased but Rose was not intending to explain that either.

Only when she had some semblance of modesty did he approach her, standing close enough that she felt something sizzle between them.

"I will see you in an hour in the courtyard," he whispered, placing a soft kiss on her lips. "Rid yourself of my scent before you do."

And in a blinding flash of light, he was gone.

Rose could not scent anything different about herself but knowing how keen Vampire senses were, she wasn't going to argue. A good scrub in a bath would have to suffice for now.

When she was finally cleaned and dressed, Rose picked up Wind Eternal and buckled the sword at the sash around her waist. She had to be honest with herself - she was looking forward to their sword training. When it came to the ways of the sword, no one in her opinion, could overshadow that of Lord Etienne's.

Brimming with anticipation, Rose half skipped and half ran down the stairs towards the main open area of the castle. She would make amends to Nahia later - no doubt she was upset that Rose had not come down for two meals now. Although, it was thoughtful of her to have left some food outside her door - at least that's what Lord Etienne said.

When Rose stepped out from under the sheltered walkway into the courtyard, she was stunned to see two silvery whitehaired Vampires in deep conversation. Lord Etienne had his back turned to Beatrice whose hands were gripped tight around his arm.

Feeling like an intruder, Rose inched backwards, hoping that neither of them would catch her scent.

Too late.

"Who are you? How dare you disturb your Lord and Lady in their private moment?" Eyes of gold flashed arrogantly at Rose.

More annoyed than hurt, Rose simply nodded her head in polite greeting. "I am Lady Rose. My apologies for not greeting you last night; I was down with -"

"Who are you?" she demanded, stepping away to be closer to Rose. A sniff and she bawled; tongue wagging out in disgust. "She reeks of human Lord Etienne!"

The Pureblood finally turned his head, his face a blank canvas as he looked down at both of them.

"My company is my decision to make Beatrice. You are merely a guest here, who has overstayed her welcome." Looking away, he seemed to whistle to the wind; his lips facing upwards but no sound was heard. "My advisor Keiko will see to your travel needs."

Keiko was seen walking swiftly from the shelter to the courtyard. From the look on his face, Rose figured that Lord Etienne had interrupted him from a meal.

"This way please ma'am," he half offered, half burped the words. But by the look of disgust on her face, Rose didn't think she was that impressed.

"You are sending this pig to escort me out?" Beatrice shrieked, turning towards Lord Etienne. "I will not tolerate anything less than yourself my Lord."

Before he could reply, Keiko had balled his fists; stepping forward until he was inches from her.

"You dare! Speak out of line to the Master? You are nothing but a power hungry witch!" Keiko spat the last words onto her face.

"Why you insolent little..." Beatrice lifted her hand; a slap aimed for the Noble's face but her breath was caught at the sight of Lord Etienne's sword aimed at her throat.

"I have killed for lesser." His voice flat and his eyes a lazy cast away into the distance.

The fire died in her eyes; a tiny squeak from her lips, "My Lord..."

Still keeping the blade resting against her skin, he moved his gaze until it rested gently on Rose.

"The Lady of the West will be one who cares not for herself but for those beneath her." Turning his face towards Beatrice, he narrowed his eyes. "And you are not worthy."

"I... I understand my Lord." Her head bowed so low that her hair fell like a curtain in front of her face. "I shall take my leave now."

The trio kept their eyes on her as she broke into a trot back to the main castle grounds.

"Keiko, make sure she doesn't leave behind unwanted souvenirs," said Lord Etienne, turning his head away from the drama.

"Yes my Lord!"

Rose could tell from the slight throb at his temples that he was upset about the way he had dismissed Beatrice. She had no doubt that he would have preferred to duel her into defeat than engage in a dramatic show of prowess.

"Would you have preferred me to let her stay?" he asked suddenly.

"What made you think that?" Rose would rather chew the Vampiress and spit her out in the garbage but...it was not her right to say so. Therefore, it came as a surprise to herself when she blurted her thoughts without thinking. "I'd rather not have any others."

"Getting possessive now, Rose?" He might have said them with no intonation whatsoever but Rose could tell when Lord Etienne was joking with her. It was an important tool of survival when a girl travelled with a Vampire such as him.

And after ten long years of yearning, surely a woman was entitled to be a little possessive.

"I'll take that as a yes then," he said; a smile slowly creeping at the side of his mouth. "I will take that into consideration for the next candidate."

As her face broke out in a flush of pink, Rose drew her sword and pretended to be busy with some training moves. Those were mere empty words. They both knew that his duty to his lands would be of higher importance than whatever it was that happened this morning - or any repetition of it.

Rose had surrendered to the idea of living for the moment before living the remainder of her mortal life craving for what she could no longer touch.

There was no place for a human in the immortal life of a Pureblood.

"Put your arms higher," he said, moving closer to push her arms up. "Wind Eternal is made to float with the breeze."

Rose tried not to shudder at his touch. Those fingers had left her warm and sated just an hour ago and already she was hungry for another stroke.

"Rose." A soft warning growl.

"It's hard to focus when you're breathing down my neck."

She could almost feel him pursing his lips at her complaint but Lord Etienne took a step backwards.

"Then watch me carefully," he said, lifting his own sword to create swift yet graceful downstrokes. Rose mimicked him as best as she could; her body finding it difficult to manipulate the weapon into the seamless dance he demonstrated.

"Again."

Patience was not his forte, but Lord Etienne continued to show her the same four step motion- a downward stroke followed by a reversed attack using the handle of the sword and a change of hands for a final backward thrust.

He made it look so easy. Not giving up, she repeated the sequence, aware that he was no longer doing it alongside her.

"Arms higher. Your opponents will not be as short as you are." Rose had to roll her eyes. They both knew that he wasn't referring to the human kind.

"I doubt they'll be allowed to breathe much if they so much as touch me." It wasn't arrogance - simply a fact. Shuddering at the thought of the hyena's head severed in front of her, Rose focused her attention on the Vampire who had delivered that killing blow.

Eyebrows drawn close, he wore a frown that was reserved only for her. She'd seen that one before.

"That is but of course. Haven't I always protected you?"

Rose lowered her sword and turned her body to face him. "Someday you might not be able to but until then, yes."

His frown only deepened. "You are doubting me?"

She had to nod. Had to. "Marriage and offsprings come with greater responsibilities than a pet."

Though his expression remained unchanged, his eyes flashed golden for a split second before he strode in purposeful strides to close the gap between them. Knuckles grazing her cheeks, he bent his head closer to her ear. "If it pleases you... I will not take a Pureblood mate for the rest of your human life."

Rose wanted to scream, to curse and fight her way out of the unfairness of their situation but when Lord Etienne stood back upright, looking down at her, she simply turned away. She understood the sacrifice he was making to give her that option and yet...

***

NB: This is one of those chapters that made me sad just writing it. Hope you've enjoyed it as much as I did! And thank you everyone for your comments and feedback. Really appreciate it. As mentioned on my blog, I'm tweaking the next few chapters based on some comments so far so it will take some time to sort out the gaps. But, I promise no longer than a week wait between chapters!