Once I had calmed down, Grayson had picked me up, carrying me out the shop and outside where Preston was. Preston gave me an apologetic look, stepping closer to brush a piece of hair that was stuck to my cheek behind my ear. "You did good, Grace." he mumbled, giving me a small proud smile.
I gave him a tiny nod in acknowledgment, my eyes shifting to Blane, who was sitting in the street curb, holding his head. "Blane?" I called out, watching as his head slowly picked up at the sound of my voice.
His eyes lit up, and he slowly stood, limping his way towards where Grayson stood holding me. He stopped a few feet away, giving Grayson a cautious look. Grayson stared back, before slowly nodding his head at him. "Thank you, for protecting her."
Blane eyed him, before his eyes met mine. I gave him a tiny smile of encouragement, watching as he looked back up at Grayson. "You're welcome. I'm sorry I couldn't have protected her better." His voice came out defeated, like he was ashamed of himself.
Preston gave him a warm smile, shaking his head. "You did good. You're a new hunter, I can sense it."
Blane nodded, getting uncomfortable at the word used to describe him. "Yeah, I, uhh, need some more training."
Preston chuckled, clasping his hand on Blane's shoulder encouragingly. "You took on a vampire without hesitation. It bought us time to get here. Don't be so hard on yourself."
Blane gave him a smile of thanks, replying. "Thanks, Man."
Grayson cleared his throat, glancing at Preston. "I'm gonna get her home. Meet me there once you get everything taken care of here." He then glanced to Blane, focusing his words on him. "I'd like to speak to you also, if you're not injured too badly."
Blane nodded, rubbing his head gently with his hand. "I'm alright. Where do I need you to meet you?"
"Just ride with Preston to my place." I said, my voice not trembling as much as I thought it would. "You don't need to drive after hitting your head like that."
Blane nodded, glancing at Preston, who had began picking up Terry's dead body and moving it. Grayson began walking away, before tucking my head into his chest as he began running. He used his hand and arm to shelter my face from the wind, reaching my home in under ten minutes. He climbed through my window with ease, immediately going into my bathroom, and sitting me on the sink counter. Without any words being spoken, he turned on the shower, before making his way back to me and helping me get undressed. Once my bloodied clothes were removed, he helped me step in the shower, before removing his own clothes and following me in.
I stood under the hot water, grimacing as the water turned red with blood at my feet. "Hey," Grayson's soft voice said in my ear. "Close your eyes. I'll wash it off you."
I nodded, closing my eyes like he said, feeling his hands begin to gently scrub the blood from my skin. Once my skin was clean, he reached behind me, grabbing the bottle of shampoo and squeezing some into his hand. He began running his hands through my hair, which had been caked with blood. Once it was clean, he directed me under the shower head, washing the shampoo from my hair. Next, he massaged conditioner through my strands, rinsing it out after a moment. His hands softly scrubbed the remaining blood from my face, and finally, I was clean. I opened my eyes, moving back so he could step under the stream of water, washing the blood from his skin. Once we were both clean of blood, neither of us spoke. I laid my head on his chest, my arms wrapping around his midsection, hearing the faint, slow beat of his heart. His hands rested on my hips, his head on top of mine, pressing a kiss into my wet hair.
We stood like that for what felt like hours, but in reality, was only minutes. Neither of us spoke a word, just held one another as the hot water beat down on us. Finally, Grayson spoke, breaking the silence. "I thought I lost you tonight." he mumbled, one of his hands moving from my waist to the back of my neck. He moved my head to look up at him, his gaze intense as he stared down at me. "I'm gonna have Graham's heart when I return home. I swear it."
"Whose Graham?" I asked, my eyebrows furrowing.
"One of my so called advisors. I have to consult with them before making any decisions." he replied, practicing spitting the words out.
"You have to ask permission before making decisions?" I asked, my voice raising slightly. "That's ridiculous. What's the point in being the leader if you have to get permission to do anything?"
Grayson sighed, shrugging. "I know. Graham was on the council when my father was in charge. He always gave him a hard time, and apparently he hasn't changed any. He's the reason it took me so long to get to you." His voice was bitter, like he was fighting to not lose control.
I grabbed his face in my hands, caressing his cheeks. "Hey, calm down. You're here, I'm okay. You told me what to do, tried to keep me calm. It's okay."
"It's not okay, Grace." he gritted out, shaking his head. "If you would've been a second too late raising that stake, you'd be dead. I promised you I would be there, and I wasn't. I'm so proud of you, but Baby, you got lucky. Most humans don't live after being attacked by a vampire."
I tightened my hold on his face, pulling his forehead down to rest against mine. "Grayson, I'm alive. It doesn't matter what could've happened. I'm alive, Baby. That's the only thing that matters." I tried to soothe him.
He closed his eyes, pulling me flush against him, his forehead remaining against mine. "I can't live without you, Grace. I won't. I know it's cliche, but I don't care. You are my life, and when I heard that phone drop, and you scream..." He paused, his arms tightening around me, the words getting stuck in his throat.
I wrapped my arms around his neck, leaning up on my toes and pressing my lips against his. He kissed me back slowly, our lips moving in sync with one another. I pulled away, my lips hovering over his. "You aren't gonna lose me. I'm not going anywhere, Grayson. You're it for me, and I've known that since the night I found out what I was to you." I slowly opened my eyes, finding him already looking at me. My eyes bore into his, my gaze full of love and appreciation for the man in my arms. "I wanna go back with you. I'm safer there, and I need to start learning about your people anyways. They'll be my people one day, and I want to be the best I can for them— the best I can be for you. I know you don't consider yourself a king, but you are. And deep down, you know that you are. Fuck the council, and fuck Graham. They're below you, and they know it. You're the last natural born son of your bloodline, and they know that. Fuck them. What gives them the authority to tell you how to run your realm?" My voice was strong, stronger than it had ever been before. It made me mad that a group of undead felt like they controlled Grayson. He was a pure blood, superior to them in every way. And yet, they disrespected him like the realm was theirs to rule.
Grayson took in my words, his eyes shining with pride as he studied me. After a few moments, he leaned down, capturing my lips with his in a passion filled kiss. I kissed back just as hard, my hands tangling into his dark hair. He lifted me, pressing me gently into the tile wall of the shower. My legs wrapped tightly around his waist, a gasp leaving my lips as his rock hard member pressed against me. He pulled back, his eyes shining this time with a power I'd never seen in him. His eyes softened slightly as he searched my eyes with his, his words coming out with as much power that swirled in his eyes. "Be my queen."
I pulled his lips back to mine, our lips moving together in a searing kiss. "I already am, My King." I mumbled, moaning into his lips, as he slowly pushed into me.
