Fern Ch 02

The dusty rain clouded up the window, and Fern couldn't see to the outside street at all. Her mistress had ordered her to watch for a particular carriage, coming in on this cloud and dreadful day. Some "grand duke" was supposed to be gracing his presence to Lady Tiana today.

Since her twentieth birthday, the lady courted the finest bachelors of England. She should have been married and have children, but she insisted on a very rich person. She wanted the richest person she could possibly get with her demure looks and title. It was very selfish to say the least. Whatever happened to marrying for love?

Apparently the lady thought this particular duke was rich enough. She had talked of marriage. Fern just hoped the man knew what he was in for, because most people could barely tolerate Tiana's behavior. Even her servants.

Which, of course, was rude, selfish, and bad-tempered. And yet men still worshiped her because of her black hair, blue eyes, and fair skin. It was quite sad what the world had come to.

Fern took a dry piece of cloth and wiped down the windows. She had been standing in that very spot, just staring at the street for about an hour. Her back was protesting, but orders were definitely orders.

Then she saw the carriage. It was actually quite beautiful. All crimson and black, it was definitely well-crafted. The horses matched the carriage, they were also a deep color of black. In Fern's opinion, no matter how beautiful, it was slightly creepy. She stepped apprehensively out of the house and approached the carriage to greet her lady's visitor.

"Hello, sir, may I have your bags to carry in the house? My lady will be with you shortly." she said in the usual way of greeting visitors. She frowned when she said this, because she could not really see him through the blackness of the carriage. She waited for him to answer.

"Sir...?" she asked quietly and waited yet again.

"Ahhh...such hospitality." a husky voice said, and she slightly jumped. His voice was surprising, the sound of grating rocks. It was a hoarse, and somehow appealing voice.

"No thank you beautiful, I can carry my own bags quite well. But I would however appreciate it if you would be so kind as to show me to my temporary room." Then he stepped out of the carriage.

Fern found herself thinking that he was vaguely familiar, but she supposed it was just her imagination. But his green eyes, glossy brown hair that hung just above his eyes, and tall built definitely made him attractive. His eyebrows lifted as he withstood her examination and she finally realized she was staring.

"P..pardon me, I would be delighted to show you to your quarters." she said, a deep blush staining her fair cheeks. With that, she began to walk toward the house.

"Please come with me..."

~0O0~

Arin had been relieved and irritated that she had not recognized him. He couldn't keep his focus on what she said because he couldn't keep his damned wandering eyes off of her angel face. She walked to the end of a long hallway and opened the towering doors. Then she smiled kindly towards him. That was the first time he had ever seen her smile, and it astounded him.

"This would be our stop sir. Please make yourself at home." she began to walk out and paused. "If you ever need assistance, I will be in the servants quarter, or you could call Charlie, our butler." she said and moved out of the door and into the hall.

He definitely wouldn't be calling Charlie is all that Arin thought as Fern walked out of the room, leaving her scent behind her. The room...it was quite a nice room. It had a four-poster bed and potted plants arranged aristocratically throughout the room.

Not really his taste...but he supposed his facade seemed that way. He laid his black clad length along the bed and began to think about his many plans, most of which involved the pretty servant. His nose wrinkled. He really did hate that bitch. Lady Tiana was a slut, he had heard the stories. Opposite of Fern's almost innocence.

While Tiana repulsed him, after he had seen Fern in that dark street a week ago, he hadn't been able to get her out of his mind.

But the easiest way to get his angel...was from the bitch. And he would take drastic measures to secure her.

He planned on buying Fern, but the lady hadn't given him a chance to make an offer before she was all over him. Arin was planning on making the offer sometime in his stay here. And if she didn't except his proposal, he would be forced to use whatever means necessary.

As all of his plans floated around divertingly in his head, he slowly began to fall asleep. His thoughts occupied by a blonde haired angel.

~0O0~

The manor was in an uproar. Lady Tiana's dinner plans were so huge that the cook was practically crying in the pot roast. And the decorations...and cleaning...and preparation. It was far too much.

Fern, herself, was just about to give up on trying to put some lace on the wall, when a pale hand came up and did it easily. Fern turned around with a smile to thank the helpful person, and discovered that it was the duke himself.

"Oh, sir, there was no need..." he raised one long-fingered hand to signal her to stop.

"My beautiful lady, I grow tired of sitting in my room...I enjoy helping. Especially such a hardworking young woman. Would you deny me my pleasure?" he bent down and kissed her hand with a wicked twinkle in his green eyes, and with that he was gone.

Fern frowned very hard, staring down at her hand. Why had she felt tingles when he kissed her? Was it normal? Was it really even proper? She didn't have time to speculate on this because Charlie came running in.

"Fern, Lady Tiana has called you to her chambers." he had a slightly sad look, so she knew the lady was in one of her moods.

"Thank you Charlie." She walked swiftly up the spiraling stairs, Lady Tiana's room, the first on the left, didn't take long to get to.

"Yes my dear lady?" she asked in her most kind voice.

"SERVANT! Lace up my dress. And while you at it, change the sheets on my blasted bed! You have been running very errant."

Fern sighed quietly and did exactly how she was told.

~0O0~

Whoever thought that vampires could not go into sunlight was slightly off. Arin, for instance, was walking down the main street in broad daylight. It was silly how many stupid things humans could take comfort in.

He had been human once. So he supposed he understood. Humans shielded themselves behind false beliefs and convictions, so supposedly nothing could harm them. But he knew that they were just lying to themselves.

All the sun would do to a vampire though, was give them a slight rash. A horrible rash really, any part of their body that the sun touched. He was grateful to have dark clothes on. As Arin made his way to the river, he stopped just along the line of the tree, and he saw her. He knew from watching her that Fern came to this particular river every evening and fed the ducks, he thought it was adorable.

He could even sometimes hear her talk to them, not really talking, but just using endorsements. "See you guys tomorrow" or "Hey! Share the food!"

Today, however, she wasn't feeding them. She was just walking in the clear and shallow part of the water. He figured that she was probably thinking about something. He didn't look into her mind to find out what that particular thing was, because he felt it was her own business.

He simply stood by the trees and watched her, and came into his own thoughts. Fern was quite amusing. And he could see that she was obviously the life of the household, considering Lady Tiana was a total bitch and the others were wiped. He couldn't even begin to think how god, if there is a god, could possibly fit such a big spirit in a tiny woman's body. And now, among the trees, by himself, he had to admit to himself. He loved her.

Now to understand how this was a sacrifice, you have to understand Arin. He had never loved anyone before...except his mother, whom had died in the 1300's. He had been in plenty of noncommittal relationships, and had his fill of sex from prostitutes to virgins. But he could tell that she was something special. Like a child...and yet a very responsible woman.

Arin looked to the sun, his own personal watch, to tell the time. He realized that he was almost late to change for dinner. That surely wouldn't make Tiana happy. Then he took one more look at Fern with his woeful glowing green eyes, and he strode away. Strode away from the woman that made him feel like a man.

~0O0~

Dinner went by smoother than Fern had hoped. The roast was perfect, everyone important was exceedingly early, and the after-party had already been planned.

Lady Tiana looked as brilliant as ever in her sapphire blue dress, and her beatific fake smile. The duke, Arin...well Fern figured the duke would look good in just about anything he wore. And for some foolish reason, she wished she also had a beautiful dress and could dance among these beautiful people. But wish was all that she could possibly do.

Fern was an attendant on the dance floor. The beautifully dancing woman and men looked through her, most only looking into each other's face. They all had perfectly white smiles on the canvas of their face, and they all seemed perfect. Fern sighed loudly and set a small silver tray on the wide table centering in the dance room. Then she felt a slight tap on her shoulder. She jumped as she felt the tap, feeling dizzy as she turned around.

"Care to dance, beautiful?" she recognized the grave voice at once.

"Oh...excuse me sir, I must serve the beverages." she stammered slightly, "I...I...I'm sorry.."

"Oh, but come now. You must be braver than that. It is a time for fun. Please join me." he said with a smirk on his face.

Fern could tell it wasn't really a request, so she put her hand in his and they spun off to the dance floor. She kept her head down as they dance and he began to speak.

"Ahhh...are we shy?" he grinned widely and she thought for just one second that she saw an unnatural glow in those sparkling green eyes.

It was then, dancing on the floor that she saw Lady Tiana's face. And she let go of him immediately. The duke seemed to have seen it also, because his face was facing the lady's way and he was grinning. Lady Tiana nodded at Fern, it was a dismissive gesture.

"I must...retire...goodnight sir." And with that, she picked up her skirts and fled to the safety of her room.

~0O0~

The ball had been over for a while. Three hours to be exact, and Arin was restless for some reason. He paced his room and muttered curse words every now and them. The building sensation of discomfort and anxiety was building. Almost like the hunger for blood.

Arin opened the door that centered at the front of the room, and strode out. He began roaming around the house, searching for something to do. It was strange, he felt as if he were about to have an anxiety attack. All of the anxiety was centered around Fern, he knew it was. He wondered if it would be relieved if he saw her.

Arin slipped under the stairway door, where she slept, and stood over her bed. The temptation was too much, he put one long finger on her cheek and slid it all the way down to her chin. He groaned at the silkiness of the skin and the appearance she made. A sleeping angel.

He had waited far too long...Arin slid the thin covers off of her body and heard her moan softly in her sleep. He slid his hand downward to her shoulder, and lightly shook her.

"Fern, my angel, wake." he said desperately. Her eyelids fluttered open. For a moment, just a split second, she looked as if she would scream, but them he slid his long fingered hand down the smooth expanse of her shoulders and cupped her full breast. Instead, she moaned deeply in her throat. It was a cat-like purr of pleasure. And he slid his finger along her nipple, feeling it harden.

Her eyes opened wide and looked at his face. And he knew that his fangs were sticking out...and he was afraid that she would be frightened. Most people were.

But she simply looked at him with her innocent eyes, and he felt dirty, but he wanted her to the point of madness. To his relief, he saw something he would have never expected, lust. He began to playfully pinch her nipple.

He focused my on the room, so that nobody would hear her moans, and he pulled her down so that his body was pressed against hers. He raised up and gazed down at her body. She was definitely blond. A lovely blond, perfect angel.

He had to admit, he had never seen anything as beautiful as her body. Her breasts stood out brazenly and then slit to plump hips. Then down, to the place he wanted to be. Her mound was also beautiful. The lips stood out pouting and invited him in. She was like his best fantasy come true.

Fern pulled up her drowsy head and began to kiss Arin. He slid his mouth deep into her own, it felt better than anything he had ever felt, for her not to be afraid of his fangs. In fact, she was sliding her tongue lovingly down each sharp point.

He felt the beast, just beyond the facade of the man. Wanting to finish. Wanting to take and mark. But he refused it, being patient to the point of misery. He noticed with irritation as he pulled from her mouth and nibbled down her neck, that he still had on his black, leather trousers. Too much clothes.

He took them off swiftly with precision and care. His cock stood pointed from his body. It was begging for attention. But he ignored it, moving down to her mound, sliding his tongue through her slit with exaggerated slowness.

Reveling in the sweet taste she left on his tongue, moaning as he felt his cock twitch. She felt this against her knee and asked him a question that he couldn't have denied even if he had tried. Even though he was so much stronger than her, in this way he was weaker.

"Can I taste you?" she whispered, almost embarrassingly.

He groaned again and flipped her on top of him, almost coming when she moved down her way down his stomach. She licked her way down, and nibbled on the bunched muscles of his stomach, that spas med as she bit down.

"Please..." he said desperately, thrusting his hips up and begging her silently then. Him, a vampire, probably two hundred times stronger than her...begging.

She smiled smugly and moved even further down, coming into contact with a prominent part of his body. Her mouth shaped an into a small circle and she reached a small hand out and grasped him.

He practically shouted when she slowly began to caress him, then she moved her mouth down and wrapped around him. He felt a pure moment of pleasure, and actually saw stars. Bright shining pinpoints of light. When she began suckling him, his hips going up.

The pleasure was too intense, too deadly, it would surely kill him. He grasped her shoulders, and with a growl, flipped her over back onto her back, towering over her.

~0O0~

Her lover was good, massaging her tender breast and breathing words of love in her ear. She felt his manhood against her hip and tried desperately to get it in the right place, she was surprised and startled when he hissed through his teeth. He was breathing loudly through his nose, a look of pleasure on his beautiful face.

She embarrassingly noticed her breathing was ridiculously loud too. But forgot about it when he moved his cock at her entrance. He just lightly moved it against her for a moment and then pushed. He was gentle at first moving at a slow rhythm. His hips pushed lightly, and grinded against her clit.

Then he seemed to break. He pushed into her savagely, riding her hard. His moans told her of his pleasure, and she couldn't help but moan with him.

She felt hot all over, so incredibly hot. And she felt something building in her. She was scared of this, scared of the sensation. She felt like she was about to explode. She vaguely realized she hadn't even felt the pain when he had broken her hymen. He was growling now, forcing her to meet every thrust of his hips. His rhythm had disappeared and he was frantic.

"You're..." he growled this out. "MINE!" he said. Then he tipped his head back and she felt something very hot deep inside her. That was when she burst. Burst into flames, a thousand pieces of flames, felt a sharp, yet erotic pain in her neck. It was too many sensations at once. She passed out.

~0O0~

He had known all along that she would be good. And she had been. The best thing he had ever felt in his life was her warm tunnel clinging to him in release.

He had been so absorbed in his passion that he had bitten her. She tasted of honey and moonlight, an intoxicating combination. All he wanted to do was lay down with the woman he loved and have her wake up to him holding her, know that she was his.

But he knew he could not. For her sake as well as his own. So he looked once more at the angel that laid beside him and stood up. Walking back to his lonely bed was the worst thing he had ever felt.

(To Be Continued...)