23. Is It Your Heart, Is It Just Thunder

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A/N: I'd love for some feedback from my readers. What do you think the rituals will entail? Do you like Adelina or do you think she is being abrasive?

On a second note, this chapter is dedicated to the love of my life. My soul mate and my everything. For he makes my heart sound like thunder ;) 

 For he makes my heart sound like thunder ;) 

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The morning had been dull and uneventful. Adelina paced the room in anticipation of the engagement party that would start soon. She hissed out loud as her thoughts focused on the fact that her sister was marrying someone as evil as Falentine. In a rage, she threw her fist to the wall, punching the dark green walls. The pain erupted in her hand as she cradled it in her arms, regretting her temper. This place was making her turn into something she never thought she would be; she was turning into someone tougher, but what was the price?

As Adelina paced around the room with her hands behind her back, a knock resounded from the door.

"Come in," she said without even thinking. Asmund stepped in a few moments later. As she looked towards his direction, she saw he was holding a vibrantly colored bouquet of lilies in his hand.

"Are those for me?" Adelina's mouth dropped open from shock.

He laid the flowers on the wooden nightstand beside her bed, afterward closing the distance between them. "They are my favorites; how did you know?"

"Well, I guess you could say that it was a lucky guess. They've always been one of my favorite flowers too; but of course, nobody goes around handing me bouquets," he chuckled.

"I didn't know men...err, vampires could have favorite flowers? I thought that that was a feminine thing?"

"It's okay to call me a man, Adelina. And I have no shame in admitting that I find flowers beautiful. I even help manage the gardens in the spring. Maybe this spring you would like to help me?"

"I would love that," she stated but quickly corrected herself. "Asmund, I can't stay here. I don't belong here, and I think you know that. I can already feel a part of me dying, and my light feels like it is fading. I know that sounds a bit ominous, but it is truly how I feel."

"You are safe here, Adelina," he pulled her to his body. Adelina inhaled the warm pine scent his body seemed to give off. It had made her lose any sense, and she laid her head gently on his shoulder. "I would never let anybody hurt you. I will protect you." He nuzzled his face into her hair and wrapped his arms tightly around her, pressing her up to his body even further. They stayed like this for a few minutes in silence.

"I heard you hurt your arm yesterday." He lifted her arm and inspected it. "Are you okay? How did that happen? I wasn't the cause of this, was I?" His blue eyes bored into hers, making her shift uncomfortably.

Adelina's face flushed at the memory of their heated kiss. Her heart beat rapidly in her chest, the sound echoing in her ears. His embrace had felt warm and safe, but she knew she was anything but safe. She looked into his eyes and pushed herself away slightly. Asmund was unrelenting in his grasp on her body though. She pulled her hands up to her face, hiding the flush that spread across her face.

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