The Queen's Forbidden Love

Chapter 9

Claudia's POV:

Once he was done applying the herbal mixture, I heard him set the bowl on the end table next to the bed. I turned my head just as he was walking out of the room. I took a deep sigh as my eyes stayed on him until he was out of the room. Just the scent of him again was causing memories of those nights to appear in my mind all over again. The feel of his hand along my back sent a chilled tingling sensation through my body, awakening all of my arousal all over again. The sound of his voice, even when he was scolding me, seemed to soothe the stress that I felt all through my body.

I winced in pain as I shoved my face in the pillow, wanting to scream the frustrations of my life but managed to refrain myself from doing so. It doesn't matter what I want or how he makes my body feel, he and I can never happen. It never should have happened! I don't understand why I keep letting myself get involved with these vampires even if I didn't go looking for it or it was just one night. I took a deep breath, causing all of my chest and back to hurt as my ribs expanded as I tried to relax so sleep could take over.

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My back was rammed into the wall next to the fireplace, knocking most of the air out of my lungs as his lips continued to attack my lips. My legs were wrapped around his waist with my hands squeezing tight in his hair. I had already ripped his shirt off when we first started, allowing me to scratch my nails down his back when his lips started to attack the side of my neck.

"You smell so good!" He growled into my neck as his fangs scrapped along my skin, allowing blood to run down all over my neck and on his tongue.

"Please, don't stop!" I whispered harshly as I tried to catch my breath.

His hands gripped my thighs tightly through my leggings as he held me against the wall. I could tell he wanted to take his fingers and rip the thin fabric that was preventing him from getting what he wanted. I leaned back against the wall, causing him to pull away from my neck. He never healed the wound created by his fangs, allowing the blood to continue to run down my neck and fill the room with my scent. I grabbed the tunic and pulled it over my head, leaving my upper body only in my bra as I grabbed his head and pushed his face into my chest.

His lips were quick to leave kisses all over my skin, causing me to close my eyes and moan at the feeling. He removed one hand, holding me against the wall with the other one, and placed it on my side. The chill from his hand and lips did nothing to the heat I felt in my body.

He continued to attack my skin with his lips as I pushed my chest out to allow my hands room to unclasp my bra. I threw it quickly to the side, freeing my small breasts. His hand slid up my side quickly, pushing my breast into his mouth as he sucked on it hard, sending a tingling sensation into my n****e as the blood was pulled to the location.

I gasped in pain when his fangs went through the sensitive tissue on each side of my n****e as he continued to suck on it hard. I could feel the pain shoot into my chest as he pulled the blood through my breast and into his mouth. He didn't continue for long before he pulled away, leaving my sore nub to bleed, filling the air with more of my scent. I bit my bottom lip when his hand slid up my breast, smearing the blood as his hand rubbed against my swollen and very sore n****e.

"I want you. I want inside of you," He whispered as he bit my lip before encasing them in a kiss.

My eyes shot open, my heart was beating hard as if it was going to break through my ribcage. I slowly lifted my head from in the pillow and looked around the room to see if he was still in there with me and thankfully, he was not. I was relieved to see that he wasn't in the room when I had that dream. Especially when I took my hand and wiped my mouth free of the drool that was evidence of my apparent arousal. Evidence of my moaning that was caused by a dream that was more than just a dream but was an actual memory.

Damn! I haven't had a dream during the night or day that replayed that part of the night! Most of my thoughts or memories have been of our conversations before or after but not during. The dream felt so real that I could feel the heat in my core already and I hadn't even tried to move from laying on my stomach when he smeared the herbs all over. I was almost scared to try to move, in fear that my arousal would be evident through my shorts. I already knew he would be able to scent out my arousal which made me wish I had never fallen asleep to begin with. If I never fell asleep, I wouldn't have had that dream that led to me feeling so wet with arousal.

I slowly turned to the other side and slid my body to the edge of the bed. I could feel the tightness in my muscles and the soreness in the bruises that were still evident on most of my body but at least my back was feeling a lot better. It didn't hurt nearly as much to breathe either. The potion would have soaked into my skin, leaving just the herbs which should now be dried and will fall off as I stand and move around. I reached down and grabbed the blood-soaked top. I looked again to make sure he wasn't in the room and when I saw that it was clear, I quickly pulled the stiff crusty shirt over my body. I felt disgusted wearing this thing, not just because I felt naked but mostly from the dried blood. It felt nasty and it smelled awful of my burnt flesh and smell of my blood.

I slid off of the bed and carefully walked, trying not to show too much pain in my movements as I walked to the door. I could smell his scent so I knew he was still in the cabin somewhere. I looked down the short hallway and saw an open door that looked like it went into a bathroom. I quickly walked in and shut the door. I turned the water on in the sink and to my surprise, it actually had water that appeared to be clean! I didn't know how old this house was or when the last time it had anyone living in it so I wasn't sure what kind of condition the plumbing would be in.

Actually, the more I think about it and look around, it appears well-kept and clean. I don't recall the bedroom being dusty and the bedsheets felt clean. Even this bathroom appeared clean and had toiletries and other miscellaneous bathroom items. Opening the cabinet even revealed towels and shampoos. Why do I feel as if someone is living here...currently? Did he kill them so he could use the house?

I quickly washed my hands and my face, trying to clean some of the dirt, grease, blood, and mud off from the fight. There was so much all over me that you couldn't tell that I had makeup on! I really was a mess! I pulled the shirt off and set it on the counter, the back facing up. I placed my hands over it and closed my eyes. I concentrated on the dirt and blood that was in the fibers. I accessed their energy and slowly started to pull on it, pulling the dirt and blood from the shirt. I took the little particles and dropped them in the sink. I turned the water on and washed it all away before putting my shirt back on. I then took my fingers through my knotted-up mess of hair before turning and walking out of the bathroom.

The small hallway only had one door on the wall in front of me and two on the wall behind me, one being the bathroom. I'm going to guess that the other door is probably a small bedroom. I wasn't in the mood to look so I just turned and headed down the hallway. I saw right away that this house was just a one-story house when the hallway opened up into the living space and kitchen.

"I see you are moving around okay now?" I suddenly heard Jovian's voice, causing me to look over at him as he leaned against the counter, sipping on a drink that was in a mug.

By the smell of the room, I would say he had coffee in that mug. It's not unheard of for a vampire to drink beverages other than blood. It's food they can't digest. Their bodies can no longer digest solid foods but liquids aren't a problem. That's why you see them often at a bar or in this case, he's drinking coffee. Helps them blend in with society and feel human...I suppose.

"I just need to get back to the cabin with Bella," I told him, not bothering to entertain him by responding to his comment as I headed to the door.

"You won't be able to walk there," He commented, causing me to stop before opening the door.

"How far are we from town?" I asked him, noticing through the windows that we were surrounded by a forest of trees, as I turned and looked at him, noticing that he had a smile on his lips as he tilted the mug before taking one last sip.

"We're pretty deep in the forest," He informed me as he set the mug in the sink and put water in it.

"I'd say, around five miles from town," He continued as he turned and looked at me.

"And the sun will be setting soon but with how thick the trees are here, it doesn't really matter if the sun has set or not," He said as he folded his arms over his chest.

"Staying here isn't an option," I told him, causing him to chuckle.

"I don't think you're going to have a choice," He answered after his laugh.

I took a deep breath and sighed in frustration as I looked out one of the windows before looking around the small house.

"What about the owners of this house?" I asked him as my eyes fell back on his.

"Won't they be coming home or needing their house?" I continued to ask before he responded.

"No, at least I don't think," He said as he too, started to look around the house as if it was all new to him too.

"You do realize that it is my job to kill you if you killed the owners of this house," I snapped at him, causing him to push away from the counter and start walking in my direction.

"Just because I don't know where the owners are, doesn't mean I killed them," He continued.

"All I said was I didn't know. This house had been empty when I found it and no one has ever come back to claim it," He informed me as he raised his hands to the house and took the last steps to me, putting him just a few feet from me.

"I fixed the issues it had, cleaned it, and have been staying here ever since," He continued to tell me, shrugging his shoulders as he looked down at me with a grin on his face.

"Is that supposed to help your case about the owners of this house?" I asked him and he just chuckled as he turned and started to walk back to the kitchen.

"You want to leave so bad? There's the door!" He hollered over his shoulder at me as he walked to the sink to finish rinsing out his mug.

"I'm sure I will find my way," I snapped at him stubbornly as I opened the door and stepped out on the covered porch.

I looked into the thick trees, noticing right away that there were no animals nearby which is common for an area inhabited by supernaturals. I could also smell several more vampires in the area along with a rogue wolf pack. We were obviously in an area of the forest where a lot of supernaturals have taken up residence. This is probably why the owners of this house never came back. They probably are no longer alive. I wouldn't be surprised if they disappeared around the time that rogue pack or the vampires appeared.

I turned in defeat and opened the door, stepping back into the house, only to see Jovian pulling ingredients out of the fridge.

"While you were asleep, I took the liberty of picking up a few things." He said over his shoulder.

"I haven't cooked in a few centuries and what we ate back then, well, it isn't something you would eat now." He continued to tell me as he stood there and looked down at the ingredients he had sitting on the counter.

"This seemed easy at the store," He mumbled, causing me to smile at his cluelessness.

I walked over to where he was standing and looked around him to see what he had on the counter. He had eggs, bread, syrup, cream, cinnamon, and sugar.

"Didn't you watch a video to see how to do it?" I asked him and he shook his head.

"No, this is what the lady at the store told me to get. I don't know what to do with it," He told me, causing me to laugh.

I reached over and grabbed the bowl that he had and started to crack the eggs. He took a step to the side, allowing me to take over with making the french toast. At least, by the looks of the ingredients, this is the meal that he was planning. I started to mix everything when I felt his hands on my side, causing me to stop mixing.

"What are you doing?" I asked him softly over my shoulder.

"I've really missed you," He whispered into my ear as he placed his lips on the side of the neck.

"Jovian, please don't," I said softly as I moved my shoulder to indicate that I didn't want him to kiss me.

"Claudia..." He started to say but I cut him off by stepping away from him.

"I told you the last time. This can't happen. It never should have happened the first time," I reminded him but I could tell by the look in his eyes that he didn't believe that I was believing what I was telling him.

"Don't," I told him as I raised my hand, pressing on his chest to stop him as he took another step closer to me.

"Thank you, Jovian, for saving me from that demon. I will always be grateful, but once the sun fully sets, you will be taking me back to my cabin," I told him sternly as I looked into his eyes, doing everything that I could to keep myself strong and not let myself give in to what my body wants.