Bleeding Love (26 page)

Austria was
beautiful and green as it always had been. Foliage of all sorts surrounded the
few Mediterranean–inspired houses that dotted and gave color to the landscape. A
historic castle stood at the very center of the valley, its size and elegance put
the surrounding residences to shame. Tall Roman columns supported the balconies
that circled the stone building, and there was at least a two–story window on
each side of the entrance to the fortress.

Nothing had
changed since he had last left home, Xavier realized as he dragged his feet, pulling
his luggage up the cement steps of the castle's grand entrance.

“Your father's
waiting for you.”

He felt a small,
soft hand on his left shoulder, and he put his own hand above it and gave it a
loose squeeze. He wasn't prepared for this, no matter how nerdy that must have
sounded. He wasn't ready to meet his dying father. He was even less ready to rule
a kingdom, not when he was alone.

“He really wants
to see you,” his mother said pulling her son up the winding staircase and into
the Master bedroom.

The room was dark
and cold. The long, wide, and heavy curtains insured that no light would enter
the room. A chilly feeling swept through Xavier, and he shivered slightly in
reaction. Amidst the cool, swishing sound of air, he could hear a pained groan.
He couldn't help but cringe.

“Xavier?” a
broken voice asked.

The tone held a
raspy air to it. The voice cracked as if the speaker was having a hard time
talking, and Xavier shook his head in denial. A vampire couldn't die, his
father just couldn't.

“It's me.”

“It is 'I',
Xavier,” he corrected. “Don't succumb to informal English. Now, come here, son.”

He moved and
stood at the foot of the bed. His head bending downward, he caught sight of his
father's thin, frail body. His face was gaunt, eyes baggy, skin pale, and his arms
and limbs emaciated. He could've posed in competition for anorexic models and
won. How his father appeared was the complete opposite of the strength and fire
found within immortal vampire kings. Xavier believed that these kings were
all-mighty, forever and always, and immortal. Obviously, he had been wrong.

“It's nice to see
you, Father,” he said, and bowing slightly, he continued. “Your Royal Highness.”

“I suggest not
calling me that anymore, Son.”

Xavier shook his
head

But his father
wouldn't listen. “You, on the other hand, should get used to the title. Smile
when someone calls you by that name. Acknowledge the respect you are being
given, just as a true King.”

Henrietta
Kristofferson immediately interrupted the father–son conversation.

“Frederick,
Xavier's pretty tired,” she said to her husband as she rested a soothing hand
on his thin, bony fingers. “You two can bond over politics during the banquet,
and I'm sure our son has many stories to tell us. There will be time for those
later.”

“Definitely,” the
dying king said with another nod, and after, he gifted his son with a
mischievous smile. He had obviously read his mind. “There's this woman you
constantly think about. You will have to tell me about her during your
Welcome
Home
party.”

“Oh, Frederick!”
The queen regent suddenly brightened up. “She's a lovely woman, an adorable,
endearing, and liberal American girl!”

“I'm sure Carter
raised her correctly, and speaking of that dear friend of mine, when will he
visit, Henrietta?”

Xavier stayed
silent in the background as his parents' pursued the topic of Adrienne's
father. He was merely staring off into space until he heard his mother.

“I’m sure at the
very least he'll be here when the two are married,” his mother answered.

Head turning
sharply, Xavier eyed his parents with an astounded stare. He wasn't even
officially betrothed to Adrienne yet, and they were already talking about
marriage. Two things came to mind at that realization. The first was that his
father couldn't die so quickly, and the second was that he was really missing
her to the point that he was craving her touch. He was a guy, vampire or not.
That was that.

“Now I'm dying to
meet that fiancé of yours, Xavier. You will certainly have to tell me about her
during the celebration later tonight.”

The banquet hall
was embellished with all sorts of intricate decorations. They were black and
the gold, which combined to create a dark, mysterious, and elegant theme.
Vampires from all–across Europe gathered, united in their desire to welcome the
return of their future ruler. Xavier Kristofferson wasn't used to the kind of
attention he was currently receiving.

Sure, his peers
in school looked up to him as their leader, but to receive praises and
compliments by people much older and wiser than he, was something he’d never
imagined. He was elated to see all these vampires mingle with one another
because of him, yet, at the back of his mind, there was still one thing
missing.

“Many people have
shown up in order to meet you,” his father whispered.

Frederick
Kristofferson sat on the middle throne. They were all seated on the elevated
platform so that the king could see the entire expanse of the room and even the
balcony across from where he sat. He was too sick and too weak to walk around,
so instead of walking up to people and chatting with them like he would
normally do, his visitors came to him, knelt in front of him, and bowed at
their king before they turned to their right and did the same to Xavier.

“You know how
people love gossip. They probably came just to hear the latest juicy secret,” he
stood up from his own thrown. “I can't stand just sitting here and looking at
everyone talk and dance.”

“You'll have to
get used to it, son, but for now,” he whispered a few, short words to his wife
before turning back to Xavier. “Why don’t you go dance with one of the lovely
women who have been eyeing you tonight?”

“I really have no
interest in speaking with them.” There was really only one person in his mind
at the moment, and just thinking of her made him wish that she wasn’t so many
thousands of miles away. He missed her. And he was acting like a whiny kid that
couldn’t have his favorite play toy. He sighed.

“You don't want
to sit down, yet you don't want to dance. Tell me, Son, what would you like to
do?” His father faced him, his expression was stern, but his eyes held a sad disappointment.

Xavier had to
grit his teeth and force the thoughts in his mind to stay on the dancers in
front of him. He really didn’t want his father thinking he’d been forced to
come and leave Addison behind. He wanted to be here, he truly did. He just
missed his fiancé.

Frederick
Kristofferson eyed his son, after a short silence he looked away. He could
easily read his son's thoughts; he knew what his son was thinking.

“I wasn't forced
to come home, Father,” his son answered. “It's just, if I talk to these women,
I'm going to feel like I’m being unfaithful to Adie, and I'm not.”

“Consider it a test
of faith or think of it as whatever kind of test you want, Son,” his father smiled
at him. “You will need to get to know many of those who are here tonight. I
haven't seen this girl of yours since she was just an infant, but if the
thought of her has this kind of an effect on you, you will need to bring her
here as soon as possible.”

Xavier stayed
silent. Did his father really just say those things? Possibly. He was still
confused though, and it was his mother who clarified some of their
expectations.

“I'll put it
bluntly dear,” she said, sending her son a small, comforting smile. “I can see
that your betrothed is the top priority in your thoughts, not 
this
 kingdom.
But your father and I will expect a lot from you in the next few years. We fear
that without her at your side, you won't give the attention to your duties as
king that we will demand. We may need to insist that she move here within the
next few months if you can’t prove us wrong.”

Xavier ran a hand
through his well–kept and neatly styled hair. He didn’t know what to think. For
one thing, the way that he and Adie had left things, nothing was resolved. They
were affianced or betrothed in name only. He believed that with time things
could move to a strong connection. But he felt as if he didn’t have the time to
give her. His parents were already harassing him, telling him to focus his
thoughts and time on the kingdom. He didn't want to be king 
yet
. He
was still in high school for crying out loud. And yes, he might have been
trained to be a ruler during Adrienne's infancy, but he still didn't want to
take his father's place. Not now.

“We're sorry.” He
heard his parents say those words in unison. “We didn't want to pressure or
harass you in any way.” It was now obvious that they’d read his mind. “We just
want you to know our expectations.”

Xavier sighed. He
couldn't get mad at them. He had no right to. It was his duty to respect his
parents' wishes, but he hoped that they would also understand where he came
from. He would study and learn how to be king, but he didn’t think he could do
that now. Not with his whole heart. There was something missing. And that one
thing was something he'd have to climb mountains and cross oceans to reach.

“How about we
settle this later?” he asked, bowing to his parents, to his king and queen. “I
don't want to talk about my future right now.”

His parents
nodded and gave him permission to take their leave. Xavier knew that they hoped
that he would mingle and greet their guests. He wasn’t sure if he could do that.
The moment he stepped down and left the pedestal, a conglomeration of female
vampires surrounded him. The beautiful women introduced themselves and even
tried getting him to dance.

“I don't really
dance,” Xavier said as an excuse, but the vampires didn't let him get off that
easy.

“Trust us. It
will be fun,” a redhead said, her perfect scarlet eyes giving out mischievous
sparks.

She was gorgeous,
Xavier had to admit. In fact, all of them were. The mass that gathered around
him showed off their endlessly long pale legs, sharp jaw lines, flawless
porcelain skin, and ravishing hair that encompassed the color spectrum. And
they were all looking at him as if they were a pack of lions, and he was their
lunch. They were eyeing him, putting off a sexual come-hither so strong, it was
getting difficult for him to resist their advances. All he had to do was remember
Adrienne, and he managed.

“I have two left
feet,” he answered meekly, his hands in the pockets of his pants. “So I don't
think dancing would be a good idea.”

“Nonsense,” another
headstrong female countered, and before he knew it, Xavier had been pulled to
the center of the dance floor.

He stood stiffly
at the middle of the circle. He really didn’t want to do any of this stuff, but
at the same time, he didn't want to come across as a killjoy. Slowly, he
loosened up and began to stretch his arms out at his sides. He started to sway
and move to the beat, and he'd smile from time to time. He eyed his numerous
partners, and they were all looking at him covetously. Some of them stared at
him possessively. They made no secret that they wanted him.

He ignored the
lustful attention directed his way and just let go. Dancing however, just
reminded him even more of Adie. It was something she did so well and with total
abandon. He couldn’t help but think of how she’d been during the Halloween
Dance.

Even if it was
fun to dance and act like a somewhat normal
teenager
during his Welcome
Back party, nothing would compare to what he had experienced living in America.
The vampires here in Europe seemed freer than those in America, but their
energy was nothing compared to the youthful spirit and vigor of normal human
beings.

“So are you
staying here for good?” one of them asked, slowly advancing towards Xavier. “Or
is this just a visit?”

He looked at her
and then answered, “I'd say a visit with a purpose.”

“And what may
that purpose be?” another one questioned.

The whole dancing
circle was looking at him now, and every female gave her full attention to him.
Amidst the crowd and the soft music coming from the speakers, he could only
think about two specific things, the first one being his parents and the
second, Adrienne. At the thought of her, he shook his head and ran his finders
through his hair. He really couldn't stop thinking about her even if he was
surrounded by a mass of attractive female vampires. He knew he loved her, since
day one, but he had no idea that his feelings for her were so deep. This was
bad. He had no idea if she felt the same way, and no time to help her come to
the realization that they should be together.

“My parents want
me back home,” he answered and discontinued his dancing.

“But what's
stopping you?”

He knew the
answer to that, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to let the other vampires know
about Adrienne. He didn't know if anyone knew about his engagement, or if his
parents wanted the entire kingdom to know that he already had a fiancé. The way
these women danced and talked seductively to him, they must have thought that
he was still single and totally available.