Chapter 33

Oriel tried his hardest not to think of Adam and Dracula, and the fact that they still hadn’t returned after a couple of days. His condition continued to worsen—chills in his bones, difficulty breathing in his lungs, and his fatigue prevented him from leaving the house without help. Mr. Chaplin had to aid him even just to spend a little time outdoors. He had never felt so helpless in his life.

When the door opened on the other side of the bedroom, he tore his gaze away from where he sat at the window seat and smiled when Cosette entered.

And she brought with her a goblet filled with blood—he could still smell it, though barely, as his senses dwindled.

“Zachariah says you should feed in the instance Adam finds bloodbane. It isn’t likely you will be able to feed for a while if the surgery is successful.”

Cosette shut the door behind her and handed the goblet to him.

“You spoil me.”

He didn’t realize how thirsty he was until he drained the entire goblet, and to his immense relief, the blood energized him. He sat a little straighter. His chills toned down a notch, and he breathed better than he had in days. Unfortunately, he suspected the effect would only be temporary.

“How is Leif?” he asked. “Does he need to feed?”

“I made sure to feed him today.” She sat beside him, running her fingers comfortingly through his hair. “And before you ask, Miron is seeing to your duties, Laurel is busying herself with helping Zachariah, and your estate is running smoothly in your absence. You needn’t worry about a thing.”

He sighed. “Thank you, Cosette. You are wonderful.”

Closing his eyes, he enjoyed the feeling of her fingers stroking his hair, at least until he felt her fingers trembling. He glanced up at her, but she gave no indication of sadness, nor did any tears come.

His eyebrows rose when he recognized her trembling as nervousness. On their union trip, she had trembled plenty whenever she was nervous.

He waited for her to explain, but she said nothing. Or at least, she looked to be trying to say something, but each time she opened her mouth, she closed it again. To his dismay, she dropped her hand from his head and crossed the room, and for a moment, he thought she was about to leave when she stopped at his desk and picked up a quill. Dipping the quill in ink, she wrote on a piece of parchment, though he couldn’t see what it said from here, especially because words had become blurrier in the past several days due to his declining eyesight.

Finally, she handed him the parchment and proceeded to tuck her hair timidly behind her ear. The words blurred, and he blinked several times as he held the paper close to his face and then farther away. But when the words came together clearly, he sucked in a breath.

Dear Oriel, I love you.

Yours, Cosette A smile blossomed across his face as immense joy filled his heart. He smirked and grabbed her wrist, tugging her toward him so they were only inches apart.

“Say it out loud,” he whispered, but it only resulted in her blush. His hands moved to her sides, and he resorted to tickling her until she laughed and shrieked and attempted to escape his hold. “Say it out loud!”

“I love you!” she shrieked. “I love you! Now stop!”

He chuckled as he pulled her close and kissed her. “I love you too. So very much.”

Her hands started trembling again, and her voice came out as hardly a whisper. “There is more.” She reached again for the parchment, but he held it out of reach.

“My sight is going bad, but I can hear decently.”

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I want to try again,” she whispered. “Just slower this time. I am easily flustered.”

A crease formed between his eyebrows as he tried to understand her meaning, but then he inhaled sharply. “You want to…to mate? But Cosette, it would be cruel to you should a remedy for me not be found. The blood bond will crush you if I die. I can’t do that to you.”

“You won’t be doing that to me but for me. If I lose you… I want the opportunity to still be able to have you in the afterlife. This life is so short comparatively.”

He couldn’t believe he was trying to talk her out of it. He had only wanted this for so long. But hesitancy and guilt ate at him. He wasn’t sure what to say.

“If this is the last thing I can give you, I would gladly do so,” she whispered. “You are my mate, and I yours. My heart will break more should I not have the blood bond with you. I know what I am asking. I know what I am risking. And so I am asking you now. Oriel…”

He bit his lip, his resolve wavering. He wanted the bloodbond. He wanted the connection, the love, the union. But it would only hurt her worse if he died.

Laurel’s words came unbidden to his mind. “Shouldn’t it be her choice to make?”

“Yes,” he finally said, both answering Laurel’s unspoken question and Cosette’s request. “But…I am very weak. I am afraid this is not how I imagined this happening.”

She held on to his arms as she helped him from the window seat to the bed. Fatigue settled deep within his bones, but he still found enough energy to lay her beneath him. Long tendrils of black hair framed her sweet face in angelic perfection.

“Wait,” she breathed. “Slow down.”

His lips twitched with amusement. “Already? But I haven’t done anything yet.” He stroked her hair, her face, her arms to help her calm down. But when he skimmed his lips against her throat, he felt her pulse spike beneath his touch. The softest whimper escaped her as she arched her back. He slipped his hands beneath her and unbuttoned her dress, slowly pulling it off. When he started unlacing her corset, she clasped onto his hands to stop him.

“You are moving agonizingly slow. My heart can’t take it.”

“First too fast. Now too slow.” He chuckled before capturing her lips in a scalding kiss. He trailed his kisses across her jaw and whispered in her ear. “Make up your mind.”

Her laugh cut off abruptly as she pulled him back into a searing kiss.

He repeated his vows against her lips. “One with each other, One with our gods, One in mind, body, and soul. To cherish you until death and into the afterlife.”

A tear trailed down her cheek, but still she smiled. “I love you, Oriel.”

“I love you, Cosette.”