Chapter 17: .•8.2•.

"Nana!"

"Nana please get down here now!"

He loudly called after the maid as he held the unconscious girl into his arms, his dark eyes roaming all over her delicate features as he proceeded to place her over the couch, however still keeping an arm under the back of her neck as he attentively examined her. He listened to the sounds of her breathing. Her heartbeat. Was she sick? She hadn't appeared so.

"Sweet lord! What happened?" He suddenly heard the old maid say from somewhere close to him, not wasting the time to spare her a single glance as he quickly replied,

"She fainted. Go bring me something to wake her up, please,"

The maid only nodded and scurried away, all the while he closely gazed at the girl's deceivingly peaceful features, taking in every edge and every smooth curve, from those long and dark lashes and all the way to her naturally pouty lips.

He could barely wait to have her all to himself. To taste her blood, hear her cries as he sunk himself into her. He only needed to be patient. Charming.

He heard his Nana return into the room, watching her hold a glass of water and a small cloth soaked in vinegar as he turned.

"Here. Pass it under her nose, master," She told the male as she handed him the cloth, Nicholas lightly nodding before shifting to hold the girl closer, and gently dabbed at her upper lip.

That small twitch in her nose was the first thing he noticed, right before her long lashes fluttered and with a sudden startle, she jolted awake.

And just as those big green eyes found his they immediately widened, like a scared deer mildly squirming in his arms until he let go and raised his palms into a surrendering manner, careful not to scare her any more than she already was.

"Shh...it's okay, you're safe," He soothingly cooed as she slowly took in her surroundings, gradually calming herself down before her gaze found his once again.

"Did you have anything to eat today?" He questioned as soon as he noticed she was aware enough, the girl finding herself mildly blushing as she remembered that she'd only had two coffees for the whole day and a small cupcake.

Damn it.

Noticing that guilty look into her eyes and the faint blush coating her cheeks, he took it as a no and immediately turned to the old maid, gently asking,

"Nana, will you please prepare her something to eat?"

"Of course, master," The maid replied with a small bow, giving the girl a kind smile before she turned to scurry away.

"Thank you, we will be right there with you in a moment," He told her retreating form, however not even sparing the old woman a single glance as his attention remained trained on the human beauty before him.

All silent and completely invisible, the dark shadow watched from a close corner as the two unsuspecting and very different beings intently stared into each other's eyes, the mere sight making it feel so sick and utterly disgusted.

That last nightmare he had planted within her mind should've been enough to scare her away or even make her move out, with a little bit of luck. But no, there she was lying in the vampire's arms like the fucking sleeping beauty she was and closer than ever.

Fucking whiny little bitch.

"Can you walk?" Nicholas asked the girl before moving to stand up from his kneeling position and politely holding one hand out for her to take.

Diana silently stared up at him, hesitant to respond as she didn't want to seem weak or needy, even though she didn't exactly feel strong enough to do it. She eventually tried to stand up on her own two feet, only to feel a strong wave of dizziness hit her hard and fast, dangerously close to falling back onto the small couch if it wasn't for those two strong arms that securely wrapped around her waist, holding her in place.

"Whoah, easy there," He said just as she timidly rose her sight to peer into his dark brown eyes, feeling so...flustered by the mere touch of his palms on the small of her back and the heat of his body as he stood so close. And before she could even realize what was happening he had already scooped her up into his arms again, earning nothing but a surprised squeal, the girl instinctually reaching out to grab ahold onto the side of his neck.

"Come on, let's get you something to eat," He said as he started walking in the direction of the kitchen, the girl choosing to remain silent as she was already feeling so embarrassed to be in such position.

Carried by her employer as if she were a little child...

She mildly blushed at the thought yet again, her gaze unintentionally trailing to the side of his neck and falling onto the beautifully tattooed red rose with green thorns and leaves as she could see it from up close now. However, she couldn't help but also notice how incredibly good he smelled, much to her utter mortification feeling like burying her nose into the collar of his slightly unbuttoned shirt and taking a long and refreshing inhale.

Holy god. What is wrong with me?

She blushed even harder, failing to even notice when they had arrived into the kitchen, her gaze finding miss Nancy's as she had just turned around and set a full plate onto the kitchen island before giving her a candid smile.

"My job is done here, master Nicholas. Now if I may return to my bedchamber," She told the male just as he was setting Diana onto a chair close by the island, the girl's pulse immediately spiking at the thought of being left all alone with him. He was already making her feel so uncomfortable, how was she going to manage to eat in his presence?