Two Handsome Men

The journey was taking much longer than I expected. I pushed the carriage curtain aside and leaned my face near the open space to look outside.

The dirt road ahead went on forever through the trees, and I was already getting completely bored. There was only so much sitting around a girl could do before she needed something to snap her back to life.

I knocked on the wooden wall. “Can we stop somewhere?” I called out to the driver.

“Yes, My Lady,” he answered quickly.

Not long after, the carriage slowed down and stopped near a quiet, open clearing where a few travelers had set up tents to rest for the night. I pushed the door open, stepped down onto the grass, and stretched my arms over my head.

“Finally.”

Since my maid was already dead and rotting in some ditch back down the road, I had complete privacy now. That was definitely a good thing. I always preferred being alone anyway.

I walked past the horses toward one of the empty white tents near the edge of the trees. I went inside, sat down on the ground, and rested my back against the side of the wooden support beam.

I had barely closed my eyes to rest when I heard footsteps crunching against the dry grass outside. I opened them and looked straight toward the entrance flap.

Two human men walked in. I looked them up and down, checking every inch of them before a slow smile spread across my face. Not bad at all, actually. They were both tall, broad-shouldered, and very handsome.

One of them noticed me sitting there and smiled, looking quite pleased with himself. 

“Are you traveling alone, beautiful?”

I let out a soft laugh. “Do I look like 

someone who needs company?”

The two men exchanged a quick glance, then took a couple of steps closer into the shaded tent.

“No,” the second one answered, grinning. “But we can keep you company if you want.”

My smile grew wider. These humans were either remarkably brave, or they were simply dead stupid.

I stood up slowly, smoothing down the front of my dress, and walked right up to them until I was standing right in their space. “Can you handle me?”

The first man laughed, looking down at me with full confidence. “I think I can.”

“You think?” I stepped even closer, until there was barely any air left between my chest and his shirt.

His smile widened. “I know I can.”

I shifted my gaze to the second man standing right behind him. “And you?”

He chuckled, crossing his arms over his chest. “I can handle you too.”

I almost burst out laughing right in their faces. They really had no idea what they had just walked into.

“Then come inside,” I murmured, turning my back on them to walk deeper into the tent.

They followed me deeper into the shadows without a single second of hesitation.

The moment they stepped fully inside, I turned back around and looked at them both. “Are you completely sure you can handle me?”

They both smiled, looking utterly pleased with themselves. “Yes.”

I grinned, letting my teeth show just a fraction. “Good.”

Before either of them could even figure out what I was doing, I grabbed the first man by the front of his neck and yanked him forward violently into my space.

His eyes went wide with shock. “What are…”

My fangs sank straight into the side of his neck. His body thrashed against mine for a few frantic seconds, his hands clawing uselessly at my wrists, but I held him tight against my chest and drank his blood. It was warm and sweet, flooding over my tongue.

The second man froze where he stood, his jaw dropping as he finally understood what I was. “Vampire!”

I released the first man after his legs went completely rubbery and his body collapsed onto the grass. I turned around to face the second one. He scrambled backward, trying to bolt out the entrance, but I caught him by his shirt collar before he could even take two steps.

“You should have listened when I asked if you could handle me,” I whispered in his ear.

I sank my fangs deep into his throat too. His blood wasn't quite as sweet as the first man's, but I didn't complain. Blood was blood to me, and my stomach was finally full.

When I was done, I dropped his limp body right beside his friend's and wiped my lips with the back of my hand. I looked down at the two of them lying side by side on the dirt floor and smiled. “Handsome and delicious.” 

I turned around and stepped back out into the cool evening air. The carriage was still waiting for me near the trees. I climbed back inside, pulled the door shut, and 

settled comfortably into my seat.

The journey wasn't boring anymore. At least I had a good meal to start the evening.

The next morning, the long journey continued down the dusty road. I slept comfortably for a few hours inside the carriage, and by the time I finally woke up and rubbed my eyes, I could already see the white stone walls of Averaine rising up in the distance.

I sat up straight on the seat, immediately pulling the velvet curtain aside to get a better look at the view.

“So this is the human kingdom?” I muttered.

The carriage driver nodded from the front bench, his voice echoing back through the small window. “Yes, My Lady. We will 

reach the palace shortly.”

I smiled to myself, leaning back against the cushions. I had been waiting so long to finally see the man I was supposed to marry. My delicious human prince.

I wondered again if he was actually handsome. I certainly wouldn't mind having a handsome husband, especially if his blood tasted anywhere as good as those two men from yesterday.

Though honestly, I was going to give my husband a higher rating in advance, simply because I knew royal blood was supposed to taste much richer. I grinned at the thought, running my tongue over my sharp teeth.

The carriage finally rolled through the heavy iron gates of Averaine. I peered out the window as we moved through the busy paved streets leading toward the central palace.

Citizens were everywhere, but the very moment they noticed the dark vampire emblem on the carriage, dozens of people scrambled away from the road. Some stared at the windows with wide eyes, while others leaned together and whispered nervously behind their hands.

I didn't care at all. Let them stare all they wanted. I was a vampire noble lady, not some frightened little girl who was going to duck her head and hide just because a few soft humans were looking at her.

The carriage finally came to a full stop right in front of the grand palace stairs. I opened the door, stepped down onto the stone courtyard, and looked around at the crowd waiting to welcome me.

There were royal servants, armored guards, and nobles standing in neat rows, but not a single person looked happy to see me. I almost laughed out loud. Was this supposed to be a grand welcome?

I didn't have time to dwell on their ugly faces, because my eyes suddenly landed on a man sitting a short distance away from everyone else. I frowned, my eyes narrowing.

That was him? My supposed husband?

I stared at him carefully. He was sitting in a wooden wheelchair, dressed in fine royal robes, looking completely motionless.

No fucking way. A disabled prince couldn't possibly be the husband they picked for me. I stared at him for a few long seconds, then looked around the rest of the courtyard, genuinely wondering if there was another prince hiding somewhere behind the guards. But nobody else stepped forward.

I slowly walked toward him, holding back a laugh. So this was the human prince my family had traded me away to marry?

He looked calm. In fact, he looked entirely too calm, as if he wasn't bothered in the slightest by the fact that every noble in the courtyard was watching his every breath.

I stopped right in front of his chair, crossing my arms over my chest. I looked down at the iron wheels, then shifted my gaze up to his face.

He was actually handsome. Like, so damn handsome it was almost annoying. It irritated me a little because I had fully prepared myself to see some ugly, pathetic old man sitting in this chair.

I tilted my head, studying his pale, smooth 

features. “Are you Prince Rowan?”

“Yes.” His voice was deep, smooth, and completely steady.

I looked down at the wheelchair again, then met his gray eyes once more. A wide, mocking smile slowly appeared on my lips.

“Can you even handle me in that wheelchair?”

The nobles and servants standing around us went completely dead silent. You could have heard a pin drop on the stone pavement.

Rowan simply sat there and looked up at me. And for some strange reason, the way his cool gray eyes stared back into mine made my smile slip for a tiny fraction of a second.

There was something weird about his eyes. Something deep and heavy that I couldn't quite explain, but I quickly brushed the strange feeling aside. After all, he was only a fragile human sitting in a chair.

I tilted my head further to the side, letting my smile return full force. “Can you fuck me?”

The nobles around us looked as if they desperately wanted the stone ground to open up and swallow them whole. A few court ladies gasped out loud, clutching their necks in horror.

Rowan didn't even blink. He didn't blush, he didn't look flustered, and his heart rate didn't even spike.

He simply looked at me for a few quiet

seconds before speaking in that same calm, unbothered tone.

“If you're planning to become my wife, you'll have plenty of time to find out.”