Vlad The Impaler (VAMPIRE-ELF)

104. Slice of Paradise

Count Dracula smiled as he watched his wife sleep. She always got drowsy after a good climax. He lifted his hand and caressed her soft lips, pink and bruised from his kisses.

He now realized that he had been lying to himself when he had thought that a few happy years with her would be enough because there was no way in hell he would ever let her go, curses or no curses. If he ever died, he would come back from the grave to haunt any man who breathed near her.

In her sleep, she was so relaxed, looking as peaceful and content as his soul felt in that moment.

"You're so beautiful." He whispered.

His wife made a sleepy sound and mumbled, "So are you," without opening her eyes.

She snuggled closer to him, throwing her leg over his and tightened her arm around his waist, as if she didn't want any distance between them, even in sleep. The whole week had been like that, if he wasn't in her, she wanted him beside her. There was a certain neediness in their bond, that even Vlad could feel.

There was general desire, he always felt that around Erinna, but this need, it was new. Maybe it was pregnancy hormones but something was happening between them that made it impossible to not be constantly touching each other. It was almost a compulsion at that point. His eyes locked on Erinna and he just had to be inside her. It didn't matter if they had spent the day locked inside each other's arms.

Normally he would embrace these feelings and growing desire but he was trying to be careful with her. It had scared seven years off him when she had bled that time. Luckily it had not been a miscarriage and had not had any lasting effects according to the midwives who examined her everyday but it was not something Vlad wanted a repeat of.

"Didn't mean to wake you up," he said, playing with her hair.

But she wasn't awake because she didn't reply to that statement as she had the previous one.

Vlad didn't usually sleep at night, his body was too awake during that time to achieve any form of restful state, so he just held her as she took a nap. He had taken her for breakfast at dusk then to the stables since she wanted to see Astaldo. She had begged prettily for a ride but Vlad's answer had been a firm no. He was not going to have his first born delivered on a horse.

They had returned to their chambers so that she could have the final fitting for the dress that the seamstress had made for her for the ball that would happen tomorrow night. Once he saw her in that dress, Vlad had had to have her. She was irrisistable like that.

Looking at her now, he wanted to take her again. She would let him too, if he woke her up. But she needed the rest so he kissed her forehead and let her sleep.

In the end, it was their baby who woke her up.

"Are you alright?" He asked when she woke up writhing, her hand on her back.

"I don't feel so good." She opened her eyes, her face looking miserable.

Alarm danced down Vlad's spine but he kept his expression calm.

"You don't feel good like you sprained a muscle or you don't feel good like the baby is coming?"

She frowned, thinking about the answer. "The first? I don't know."

Vlad was pleased to note that she was practicing the breathing techniques that the midiwives had taught her and trying not to panic.

"Contractions?" He asked.

She shook her head.

But Vlad didn't want to take any chances so he called the head midwife. The woman said there was nothing alarming but gave her a serum to help with the pain and advised her to take some rest.