A Castle of Sand (A Shade of Vampire 3)

CHAPTER 1: SOFIA

Vivienne held the blood-red rose in her hand and caressed it fondly. Sadness traced her blue-violet eyes as she stood alone in her greenhouse.

Liana Hendry stepped into the princess’ sanctuary. Worry marred the features of the lovely vampire with amber gold eyes. “Vivienne? Xavier and I have been worried about you lately. Are you alright?”

“I didn’t think it would be her. I honestly thought Derek would end up killing her.”

Liana stood still, a patient expression on her face, waiting for Vivienne to offer an explanation.

“But she is lovely, isn’t she?” Vivienne appeared serene, though strangely bothered, as she took a whiff of the rose she was holding.

“Who?” Liana took a step forward. The gaze she was giving the young Seer was pensive and kind, almost motherly.

“Sofia Claremont.”

Liana wrinkled her nose, perplexed. “Your brother’s slave?”

Vivienne shook her head as she placed the rose into a crystal vase. “She’s far more than his slave. I could sense it the moment they first kissed. The premonitions that followed… I can’t even speak of them…” Vivienne jolted to a start, as if seeing a vision, before she grabbed Liana’s hand. “Promise me you’ll be loyal to us, no matter what.”

“Of course. Vivienne, we owe Derek our lives… He will bring us true sanctuary just as you prophesied.”

“Then support him even if you don’t understand what he’s doing. It’s a rough road ahead and he will need the girl. She’s the one the witch spoke of all those years ago. The girl who will help him find true sanctuary.”

“Vivienne, why are you speaking as if you won’t be around for what you say is to come?”

“Because I might not be. Our island will suffer severe loss before all this is over, Liana. None of us are safe.”

The deep frown on her face easily revealed how bothered Liana was over these revelations. Vivienne offered no consolation. Her mind was elsewhere—off to the future where she was seeing her beloved twin’s fate. “They are strongest together. They are weakest apart.”

I couldn’t help but wonder why I woke up to the memory—one that was given to me by Vivienne before the hunters took her. Her memories always seemed to come randomly, triggered by situations I had no control over.

“Why the frown, beautiful?”

Before I could follow the sound of his voice, Derek jumped on the bed, his knees straddling my hips as the cushions bounced beneath us. Kneeling over me, he held my waist with one hand and ran his palm from my forehead down to my mouth.

“What are you doing?” I asked in a voice muffled by his palm playfully rubbing over my mouth.

“I’m trying to erase that scowl on your face.” He chuckled as he removed his hand from my lips and made a face at me. His dark hair was still a wet, tousled mess, his pale white skin a breathtaking contrast to his raven locks. His firm lips were curved up in a mischievous smile.

I loved this side of him. Fun, carefree, boyish. He was only this way when he was around me—especially after his father, Gregor, returned to rule as king of The Shade. To the eyes of most of the citizens of The Shade, Derek was prince of the kingdom and I was his favorite slave, his pet. Those who knew us well, however, were aware that we were more to each other than just master and slave. We were in love, but I’d grown to accept that what I had with him was temporary. Losing him felt inevitable. After all, how long could a relationship between a vampire and a human last?

Ben once told me—after ruining a sandcastle I’d built—that sandcastles were temporary. It was better to part with them sooner rather than later. What I had with Derek felt like a sandcastle. I was aware that it was temporary, that the waves of life and time would soon ruin it, but it was too beautiful, too precious to me to just let go of. No. This sandcastle was something I planned to protect and be fascinated over for as long as I could.

I didn’t realize that I was looking at him pensively until he took a deep breath and feigned exasperation by rolling his eyes. “What must I do to make you smile?” His legs stretched out on the bed, his elbows holding him up so that his weight—at least twice as great as mine—wouldn’t fall on me.

I still felt small and fragile compared to him, but I knew he would never intentionally do anything to hurt me. Staring up at him, butterflies fluttered inside my stomach, even more so when his lips caressed my cheekbone and his voice found my ear.

“I know how to make you smile.” He raised his head so he could look at the expression on my face.

I played along. “Oh, really now?”

“It’s easy.” He traced a thumb over my lips and grinned when he felt me shudder beneath his touch. He knew exactly the kind of effect he had on me.

He kissed me full on the mouth, his tongue thrusting in—exploring and tasting. His hands wrapped around my waist as he began to shift us both to an upright position, so that he was kneeling on the bed and I was planted firmly on his lap.

I felt his hands creep beneath the silk night gown I was wearing and I had to break off the kiss before things got a lot more heated. I had plans for that day and he wasn’t about to distract me from them by seducing me back into his bed.

“That’s what you thought would make me smile?” I managed to ask as I tried to catch my breath.

His breaths were also coming in pants, but the way he looked at me spelled trouble. “No. This is…”

One hand began tickling me on the side while the other caressed my knee caps, one of my most ticklish spots.

“No! Derek!” I shrieked before breaking into laughter. “Don’t! You’re supposed to make me smile, not laugh.”

He relished my failed attempts to pry his hands off me before my back fell on the bed and he finally stopped the playful torment.

“You’re supposed to smile when I kiss you,” he announced.

Only I was privileged to see this side of Derek Novak. He was mine and I was his. Derek had this way of making me feel like he knew me. I couldn’t help it; the thought made me smile.

“There you go…” His blue eyes twinkled upon seeing my face light up. “Lovely.”

“Now that you’ve got what you want, could you get off me now?” I tried to push him away, but as usual, failed to move him an inch. “Come on, Derek… I have a whole day planned ahead.”

“Do you now?”

I nodded. This was our day. Ever since Gregor Novak returned, he’d been keeping Derek busy with building up The Shade’s army. Being the commander-in-chief of the island’s military force, he had his work cut out. Much to his father’s disdain, he still managed to find time for me.

I pouted at him. “You promised. For the next twenty-four hours, you’re supposed to be all mine, Prince Derek.”

He frowned. He hated it whenever I called him that. “Fine, but you’re not to call me that again. Ever.”

I grinned. “I’ll try.”

He rolled his eyes in response. I watched him as he got up from the bed, admiring his chiseled form, covered only by his boxers. He grabbed his guitar and sat over the edge of the bed with his back turned to me. I listened to him expertly pluck a tune on the instrument. He must’ve felt my gaze on him, because he looked back at me. “Well? Is this what you had planned? Staring at me all day long?”

“Ha!” I threw a pillow at him. He didn’t bother to dodge it. “You wish I were that into you.”

“Oh please…you know you are.”

To that, I couldn’t think of a worthy comeback, so I just gave him a light shove on the shoulder and walked toward the bathroom to get myself ready for the day ahead. But I stopped just before the door of the bathroom and lowered the spaghetti straps of my night gown down my shoulders and let the silk gown fall to the ground. I knew I’d caught his attention the moment the melody he was strumming went grotesquely out of tune.

“Too bad you already took a shower,” I commented before shutting the door behind me.

A few minutes later, we were both in the tub, my back leaned against his chest.

“Today’s going to be a good day,” he said as he ran both hands from my shoulders down to my elbows.

I had to smile. “You have no idea.”