The Count's Princess (Completed)

The Talk

The flight to Paris gave us an extra hour and Alexandru treated me to a late dinner. I talked to him in Romanian and he said I didn't understand how turned on he got when I did. We enjoyed a stroll in the city of love then went back to our hotel room that overlooked Paris including the Eiffel Tower.

Paris was first, then Ireland, New York, Montana, California, Galápagos Islands, Zimbabwe, Egypt, India, Indonesia, West China, Italy, Spain, then Romania.

I woke up sore and ate breakfast as the sun went down. Alexandru was still sleeping. I went out to the balcony of the hotel that overlooked the Black Sea, and watched the pink clouds slowly turn purple then black as I ate cereal in a robe. I got dressed and packed up. I was incredibly worn out from the trip. It might have been too much but I enjoyed every moment with my husband. As I packed I watched him sleep with only a sheet as a cover. I couldn't believe that I was married to a man as handsome as he was. He woke up and smiled at me.

"Goodnight beautiful," he flirtatiously said. He came out of bed and kissed me. "Are you ready to go home?" I nodded and added,

"Once you put some clothes on that ... godly body." He laughed and kissed me passionately.

We went to the castle and everyone welcomed us back. Ana-Maria was a little bigger and now had a watermelon for a belly. I went up and placed my hands on it to feel the kicks of the baby and couldn't help but wish to be in her state.

Alexandru wanted me to redecorate the castle how I wanted to. I suggested more plants in the house and also furniture for the front entrance. I wanted to put electricity in the castle but knew that that would be a big job. I themed the bathrooms and placed the painting of Alexandru and I at our wedding in the hallway of our room. Lukas's and Ana-Maria's baby was soon due and we decided to convert my old bedroom into a baby's room. They had a baby boy and I helped Ana-Maria take care of it. Octavian left without a word and I remembered him doing that a lot when I was younger. Lukas got a job because he felt like he needed to be more responsible and not just live off of Alexandru. The vampire himself still had a job as the sexton of the town.

He never wore his slacks and vest or slicked his hair back anymore. I kind of missed the look and wished he would. The word got out that the Count married someone and soon enough the entire town knew my name. A few people recognized me as the girl he had taken in years before and thought how taboo it was that I was so much younger than him. To the town, Alexandru and I were ten years apart.

Every morning I'd curl up to him and he'd read me to sleep. We played piano together but it was much more flirty than when I was fifteen. We sometimes sat in the library and studied and he tutored me in Spanish, French, and German. Ana-Maria knew German so I talked to her as much as I could, same with Lukas of course, he being German and all.

It was three months into Alexandru's and my marriage and I noticed Ana-Maria breast-feeding Berman, her's and Lukas's little chocolate boy, very tiring.

"Has Berman been keeping you up all night?" I asked.

"Yeah," she huffed. "I'm just glad that babies of a turned werewolf don't inherit the animal traits." I chuckled. I subconsciously touched my own stomach and didn't realize until Ana-Maria pointed it out. "Are you and the Count expecting?" She asked all excited and curious. I looked down and frowned.

"No," I removed my hand, "I guess I just ... I don't know." I know I'm not pregnant because Alexandru would have heard a heartbeat if I was.

"But you want kids, don't you?" I nodded. "Then why not?" She switched Berman over to the other breast.

"I don't know. Alexandru and I haven't discussed it."

"Not even a little bit?"

"Well, I guess while we were dating I sorta mentioned it. But he totally blew off the topic as I explained how I didn't want my kids to grow up past their father. I don't know."

"Well, I think you two should consider it." I watched her. I watched her until her own husband came into the kitchen where we were. He looked worn out. He had recently turned into a werewolf and had lost a lot of energy. He knelt down beside his wife and gave his baby a kiss. And then he gave his other baby a kiss as well. Ana-Maria and Lukas didn't lose eye contact as they both smiled at one another. Salt and pepper. They kissed again and I silently yearned for my lover.

"You two need a break," I realized as I watched them. Berman has been a lot on Ana-Maria especially with Lukas gone so much working.

"A break?" The werewolf's pointy ears shot up at the suggestion. His nose twitched and I could tell he was excited by me mentioning such a thing.

"A break?" His wife's tone didn't show the same enthusiasm but her eyes wanted the same thing.

"Yeah, you two go have fun and Alexandru and I will take care of Berman. Trust me. I've worked at a daycare and a school before. And Alexandru has had a kid before."

"Let's do it, babe," Lucas said instantly once I was done speaking. Suddenly, my husband walked through the back door of the kitchen with flushed cheeks. He just got back from a successful hunt. I walked up to him and gave him a peck on the cheek. He smiled down at me and placed his hand around me and on my hip.

"So?" He asked with a mischievous grin. Realization hit us all as we remembered that the vampire could overhear conversations miles away.

"I think we're gonna take the offer." Ana-Maria said with a cheerful smile.

"Yes," her husband added.

The next night Ana-Maria and Lukas kissed their Berman goodbye as Lukas carried duffle bags in his large hands. They would be gone for a week to who knows where and Lukas added that where they were going, service wouldn't be a luxury. They soon left around six o'clock and that left Alexandru, Berman, and me basically a whole night to enjoy one another's company. I looked to Alexandru as I held the brown baby in my arms and kissed his cheek. The vampire tickled the little boy and he giggled through smiles.

We went to the ballroom and the Count played piano as I rocked Berman in my arms. The baby was soon asleep and my husband was soon at my side.

His hand was behind me resting palm down on the red cushion as his other hand rested on my knee.

"This baby is way too cute to be "Lukas's." We both laughed at his words as we studied the sleeping child.

Berman's breaths were quiet and small. His mouth puckered open and his little fingers twitched. He was so light and so heavy in my arms. He was full of responsibility and yet innocence.

"I want one," I mumbled under my breath. Alexandru went rigid. I looked at him and he turned his head to look at me as well. "I want one." I repeated a little louder. I had all the money in the world and I never once told my husband that I "wanted" something. "Spoil a desire of mine just this one time." Of course I wanted many children, especially with the one I love. But one would satisfy me just fine before I convinced him once more.

My husband looked away then began rubbing my back.

"I just don't want you to be disappointed."

"About what?" I protested. We both kept our voices low.

"About me not aging," he got up from the couch and walked towards the window. He stuck his hands into the pockets of the jeans he wore and I just fell in love with his serene image all over again.

"Verona asked for children," he turned to me. "And I granted her that wish." I swallowed. Verona was his first wife. But they were married before he became a vampire. "While she was pregnant," he went on, "she would constantly ask me if I was sure that I would stop aging. She didn't want to talk about herself growing old. She hated the topic. When she died, I regretted thinking that it was good that I didn't have to deal with her growing old in the future. But I also resented her for cheating on me with Tavian." He walked over to me and knelt down in front of Berman. He grabbed my hands and kissed them. "I will grant you any desire you wish for. But the one and only thing I ask of you is that you never bring up the fact that I don't age. I know I'm being foolish. I don't care." I looked down at Berman and smiled. I wiped a tear away and lifted one of Alexandru's hands up to my face. I pressed it against my face and allowed heavy breaths to escape my body. I kissed his hand then he took control of it. His long sharp fingers wiped away the tears then he leaned in and kissed me.