Chapter 55: .•23•.

The mewl that tore through her throat sounded so pained and helpless, like dying prey. It hurt. It hurt so bad, and she couldn't help but let those few tears fall.

She wanted to squirm and pull away. Force him to stop. She could feel those fangs bury so deep into her thigh, like burning needles hurting her flesh. Piercing it. And like hot lava her blood immediately gushed out of the punctured wounds, filling Nicholas' mouth.

He let out a pleasured moan, his fingers gripping so hard onto her thighs. Almost to the point where it hurt. Diana's eyes though widened at the hearing of that incredibly erotic sound rumbling through him, her nether regions quivering in response. Her hands gripped tighter against the edge of that piano, breathing through the pain. That conflicting lust. She could only hope that he wouldn't take too much. That he would stop just in time.

He continued to suck onto that spot. His hands pushing her closer to his face. Holding her as if she were his only source of water into a barren desert. As if she were the tastiest meal that he'd ever tried. He chugged mouthfuls, letting out those pleasured moans and groans from time to time. Making her feel so embarrassingly turned on by those sounds.

She sat there and endured, anxiously waiting for him to finish. Let go of her. But he was starting to take so long, and those tiny whitish dots were already making their appearance into her vision. She was feeling dizzy, and light-headed. So she did the only thing that she could think of at that very moment. She rose a shaky hand and buried it into those jet black locks at the top of his head, softly caressing him.

"Nicholas..."

The whisper lulled him as if from a deep slumber, echoing into his mind. Calling out to him like a sweet little prayer. Clearing that haze that had fallen over him like a spell.

He blinked and retracted his fangs. Hearing that weak and pained little whimper. Those sluggish heartbeats. Her tired and wheezing breaths.

Fuck.

He softly licked onto that wounded spot  that he'd made and then rose to his feet, noticing that slightly unseeing look in Diana's eyes. The pallor in her cheeks. She swayed and he easily caught her, holding her against him with only one arm. She was so weakened. He'd taken rather much, the effect pretty visible.

He didn't waste any more time and quickly bit into that soft spot on his palm, pressing it against her slightly parted lips afterwards.

"Suck," he firmly ordered.

She weakly mewled in reply but did as told nonetheless, her wet and warm tongue caressing his skin as she started to clumsily lick at his blood. It immediately made him hard again but he forced himself to ignore it, that ever-growing concern for her wellbeing much more pressing now. He cared now whether she lived or died. And it was so weird. He'd never done this before. Not even with Adelaide. Maybe that was why her demise had struck him so hard. He hadn't expected of her to ever die. Vampires had neverending lives unless murdered through decapitation or the old-fashioned stake through the heart. And gods only passed on to their celestial cycle.

He'd never had to care for such a frail and ephemeral being before. Never had a reason to. It was odd, to say the least. And equally annoying. She could get hurt so easily. And die from the dumbest of accidents. Humans were puny like that. He knew it so well. He'd killed so many of them since his transformation. And now he had one in his care. It wouldn't have been so hard if she hadn't smelt or tasted that good. But then she wouldn't have awoken his interest either.

He blew out a tired sigh, peering between her large and incredibly beautiful green eyes. They were still so wet from those tears that she'd evidently shed. But at least she looked better now. Healthier, and more alive. Even her cheeks had gained back their colour. That sweet-looking rosy tint.

It...pleased him. The sight of her like that. So innocent and bashful. So delectably pure. And equally enticing.

His hand slowly fell away from her lips, revealing that red smear that tainted them. His blood. He couldn't contain that satisfied smirk that tugged at his mouth at the sight of that.

"Such a sweet and obedient little pet your are," he softly murmured, intently gazing into those doe eyes of hers as he let his fingers gingerly trail over the side of her face. Slowly caressing her.

He didn't fail to hear that tiny little hitch in her breath. That faster pump of her heart. He devilishly smirked again.

"I'd say that you deserve to be rewarded, don't you think?" His brow rose as he peered at her with naughty intent. Confusion written all over Diana's face in return.

She could only blink, staring up at him as he peered at her like that. So intense and nerve-wrecking. His lids were half-closed now, his tongue darting out to lick that remaining blood off of his lips. Her blood.

She thickly swallowed, feeling faint traces of that coppery taste of his blood into her mouth. He'd healed her. Once again. And he'd stopped just in time.

And now he was talking about...rewards?

She continued to peer between those dark eyes of his, so evidently lost and even a little bit curious.

She could feel his fingers trail at the nape of her neck, touching her so incredibly slow and careful. They gradually moved upwards then, burying into those locks at the back of her head.

Her heart immediately picked up its pace in response, eyes roaming all over his painted features. Searching. Struggling to find an explanation for all this. A single hint at what he was about to do to her.

"Let's try this again, shall we?" He murmured, the faintest hint of mirth lacing his tone. And without any further ado he leaned over and pressed his lips against hers, moving into a slow and heated kiss.