Inhibitions

Margaret and Victoria were led to their rooms. The two women begrudgingly settled into their suites on the west wing of the mansion. After asking, they were told Caleb and Rose were settled in the south wing. This meant they were not going to be close to Caleb's room and it would be suspicious if they were caught wandering around the south wing.

"Don't worry about it, we will find a way to get you over there," Margaret said as she watched her daughter's eyes redden with anger.

"That human bitch!" Victoria groaned through clenched teeth. "I can't believe she spoke to you like that! When I kill her, I'm going to make sure she suffers! I'm going to make her beg for death! I'm going to-"

"Victoria!" Margaret hissed. "We are not at home. The walls could be listening and watching."

Victoria inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, they had returned to normal. "I'm going to check the rooms to be sure. You unpack and get settled in."

Margaret nodded as she watched her daughter walk out of the room. She frowned. Wasn't she going to inspect the rooms? Did her daughter run away so she didn't have to unpack? She looked down at all the baggage and shook her head. There was no way she was going to do this! Without a second thought, she walked out of the room in search of some help.

Caleb was still smiling as he looked at Rose, who was frowning unhappily. They were sitting on the couch in his study, talking about his so-called relatives. "Are you okay sweetheart?"

Rose shook her head. She still couldn't believe those women were his family. "That woman is vicious! How could she… I just don't understand… the way she… ugh!" She groaned exasperated. She turned to look at him, realizing how similar their lives actually were. They both had cold-blooded relatives. They were nice when it served their purpose and vicious when it didn't. Her heart ached for him.

Caleb smiled warmly and reached out to caress her face. "Thank you for defending me. It meant a lot."

She swallowed nervously as his hand sent warmth through her body. Her cheeks turned red and she quickly avoided his gaze. She cleared her throat. "I would have stood up for anyone being bullied."

His smile only grew. "I know, but you stood up for me, and that's what matters." His smile suddenly fell as the aura around him turned cold and ruthless. "Rose, I don't want you hanging out with either woman on your own."

She turned to look back at him. She was a little surprised by how serious he was. It made the hair on the back of her neck stand. She nodded and bit her bottom lip nervously. "Do you think they're here to hurt me?" she finally asked what had been on her mind since the pair of vampires walked in.

He frowned and quickly lifted her on his lap, shocking her.

She gasped in surprise as she landed on his lap and her arms instinctively wrapped around his shoulders. "What are you doing?" she hissed as she looked up at him angrily.

He smiled, happy to see her angry eyes glaring at him. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly against his chest. He looked into her eyes, smile disappearing as he recalled her question.

Her heart faltered as she watched the tenderness in his eyes. She jerked her gaze away, gulping as the air around them began to thicken. "Ca-"

"I won't let anyone hurt you," he said seriously, interrupting her.

She turned to look back at him and bit her bottom lip nervously. "I know."

"I know you can't be by my side 24/7. Ksien will be with you when I'm not around. You will always be protected, not matter what." He pressed his lips against the side of her head and pulled back to look at her. "You're all that matters to me Rose. I will not let anything happen to you."

Her breath caught. She felt her heart tighten with his words. Why was he so good to her? It was so hard to resist him. How was she supposed remain unmoved if he kept acting like this towards her? He made her feel like the most important thing in the world to him. When she thought about it, she had never felt like this with Jack. She always felt like there was something more important to him, whether it was his job, or his commitment to his morals, she never felt like she was his priority. In his eyes, she was always second to something else, which she had gotten used to. But, now that she was experiencing something different with Caleb, she had to admit she liked it. The feeling of being so important to someone was almost addicting.

He watched her cheeks turn red and her teeth nibbling on that plump bottom lip nervously. He smiled warmly. He knew she was struggling with her emotions, trying to fight whatever feelings she had for him, and dealing with the guilt of being attracted to him when thought she was in love with another man. He was willing to wait. In the end, he was positive she would fall in love with him even if it took some time.

"I need to eat breakfast," she said to try and break the mood. She looked away as she saw the tender emotions in his eyes. "I'm hungry."

"Me too," he said, voice hoarse as he continued to look at her. "Very hungry," he whispered against her ear, making her shiver.

Her breath caught as she felt a tingling sensation against her ear that traveled down her body as his breath blew against her skin. She gasped when she felt his lips pressing against the side of her neck, but instead of fighting him off, she closed her eyes and tightened her hands around his shoulders.

Caleb lifted his right hand and moved her wavy locks out of the way, as he began to spread more kisses over her soft neck, making her tremble and moan. The air around them thickened. Their bodies began to heat up as he moved his tongue in circles on her skin while he sucked lightly.

Rose gasped and moaned as his tongue and lips made her burn for more. She felt his mouth move from the side of her neck, over the front and finally to the other side. She was trembling when he finally pulled away.

His stomach tightened as he watched her eyes burning with desire when she looked up at him. He didn't waste another second, as he pressed his lips against hers, making her moan and tremble. He groaned as she returned his passionate kiss, tongues dancing together as they devoured each other.

Rose tightened her arms around his neck, pulling him tighter against her, intimately pressing her chest against his. In just a few seconds, their kiss turned more passionate, more needy as she began to feel a burning ache between her thighs, which made her press her legs together.

He groaned as he fought the urge to take things further when he noticed her actions. Despite knowing he shouldn't go forward, he could not bring himself to break the kiss. He slowly moved until they were both laying sideways on the couch. His hands unconsciously moved from her waist and caressed up and down her thighs. When he finally realized what he was doing, his hand froze.

Rose wasn't aware of his actions as her mind had stopped functioning long ago. Her body continued to burn, as they continued to get intimate. She finally came to her senses when she felt his hand wrap around her ass. She moaned and shivered before pulling away from him. She felt her whole body aching as a scorching heat engulfed her. She panted as she held his gaze.

"I'm sorry," he said, panting as her eyes bore into him. "I… lost control."

She swallowed hard as she tried to control her breathing. She saw the guilt flash in his eyes, and for once she felt guilty herself. She hadn't stopped him, so technically this was also her fault. She bit her bottom lip and frowned as they stared at each other.

Caleb was not sure what she was thinking, but he felt a little joy when she didn't push him or his hands away. Did she want to go further? She wasn't stopping him. His eyes suddenly landed on her exposed neck. He gulped as his throat suddenly burned with thirst.

Rose watched his eyes turn red momentarily before returning back to normal. He was hungry. He had just taken her blood. Had he not had enough? How much blood did vampire need to function? She swallowed hard as she watched him nervously, recalling the last time he fed on her.

"I really am hungry," he whispered as he turned until she lay flat on her back. He positioned himself between her legs, using one hand on the armrest to hold himself up while the other one lowered to her neck.

Rose gasped and shivered when she felt his hand around her neck. His touch sent a tingling sensation down her body that ended up between her thighs. Try as she might, she could not bring herself to ask him to stop. She had never felt so powerless before in her life. Her body wanted more, despite her heart protesting, and she could not muster the willpower to stop him.

"May I?" he asked as he lowered his head, eyes meeting hers, waiting for permission.

The passion and hunger in his eyes slowly burned away her inhibitions. She swallowed hard before nodding and tilting her head up to give him access. She held her breath as she felt his head lower.