One

"Chin up, chest out, and eyes forward!" Her mother held her head, preparing her for a Mark and Erin time. "We don't want him thinking you're not woman enough to be his wife."

Erin resisted the roll of her eyes and listened to her Yap about womanly duties.

"You know how much your father wants this and it'll upset him to see you're trying to drive Mark away." She explained.

The girl sighed, slouching a bit and looking down at the dining table.

"Mother, why can't I just be myself and maybe, just maybe-"

"No maybes in the Grendel's family, it's either a yes or a no. No in-betweens." She held her head once again and raised it. "Chest out."

Erin complied, sitting like a robot.

"We've had some closure already and he loves me… Do I still need to act perfect, you know this is not me… I crave dominance, I am the Faberge's protector and-"

"Hush!" The queen pressed her index finger to her cherry-red lips and threw a furtive glance around the dining room before pulling her finger away. "No one must know we have a Faberge."

Erin nodded, taking in a deep breath.

"But do you love him?" She inquired, sitting beside her daughter.

Erin blew away the stray strands of black hair that tickled her forehead as she felt heat crawling up her neck at the question that was being thrown at her.

"Well," she started, avoiding her mother's blue orbs. "You see…" she tugged on the sweetheart neckline of her blue dress. "He…"

"You like him!" Her mother clapped, displaying her pearly whites as joy glinted in her eyes. "Thank Dracula! The last time I checked you loathed Mark."

"Stop!" An involuntary smile tugged on the sides of Erin's lips. "He just crawled unexpectedly into my heart."

"You love him!" Her mother cupped her cheeks.

"Only because father wants me to and no, I don't love him." Erin got to her feet.

Erin Grendel's father is the second-in-command to the twenty-two fanged kingdoms, a clan of undefeatable vampires. He thirsts for more power, more dominance, and for this reason, he got her engaged to the vampire lord… The king to the superior and most powerful kingdom in the nation.

Why is Mark taking so long? Her inner-woman asked as she grew impatient, hating his tardiness, which she was slowly getting accustomed to.

"I'll be in my room, send the maids to get me when he comes," Erin said flatly, trying to maintain the supposed posture her mother had preached about all night.

Erin pushed out her chest and proceeded to walk away from the dining but halted in her tracks when her mother shouted in horror.

"What are you doing?!" Her mother questioned, furrowing her face into a frown.

"What did I do?" Erin's heart skipped a bit as she looked down on herself, feeling hazy.

"Why are you walking like that?"

"You asked me to walk this way."

"Not with your buttocks pushed out like a duck." Her mother rushed out of her chair and held Erin's waist, trying to push it into the right shape.

Erin ticked, twisting her lips up in disapproval as she said, "You're always extra, I dislike it."

Her mother widened her almond-shaped eyes and wrinkled her button nose in disapproval.

"That's no way to speak to your mother, just let me push your hip-"

"Stop it, mother."

Erin struggled, pushing her mother's hand off multiple times.

A man strode into their grand dining with an aura so powerful that it made the hair on Erin's neck rise like they were being propelled by a magnetic force.

"Am I interrupting something?" His voice held dominance in it.

They turned, startled. "Mark, Hi. I didn't see you there." Erin giggled nervously. How much did he overhear?

"I just came in." He kept his eyes on Erin with a picnic basket hanging down his hand.

"Eh-hem!" Erin's mother cleared her throat, getting his attention.

"Good evening, Mrs. Grendel." Mark bowed and kissed her plump hand.

"A fine evening to you too." The Queen nodded, taking back her hand. "We're pleased to have you, take a seat."

He cast a skeptical gaze at the chair and Erin's mother spoke out once again, "Or do you have other plans?"

"I was just thinking, what if I take her to see a play tonight?" He looked down at the basket and stretched it to the queen. "Here, I brought some dates and pineapples."

"Oh!" The Queen beamed, collecting the basket as she and Erin are great lovers of dates. "Thank you. Sure, you can take her to see a play."

"Thank you," he said, showing some courtesy and even if he was the vampire lord, he knew how to give women respect. "What about the king?"

"He journeyed to the kingdom of Isendia to see the third-in-command." She replied, raising her dress to free her legs. "I'll be in the kitchen."

With that, Erin watched her mother's retreating figure.

I see where Lola gets her thickness from. Erin's subconscious said.

Chest out, Erin! The queen mind-linked her daughter and Erin rolled her eyes, forgetting about her visitor.

Even with my chest out, my breasts are still lemon-sized. Erin mumbled in her head.

"I brought you something," Mark said, pulling her out of her trance.

She met his intimidating gaze that grew soft when they locked with hers.

"What?" She cocked her brows up, twisting her mouth to the side.

"Why don't you see for yourself?" He jutted his chin towards the exit of the dining room and gestured towards it. "After you my lady."

"To where?" Curiousity bubbled in Erin as she rubbed her clammy palms on her attire.

"Your room." He replied, urging her to lead the way.

"Why?" She frowned, blinking rapidly at him.

"I instructed your maids to drop them in your room." He answered, tilting his head towards the exit.

Erin nodded and took in a deep breath before striding out of the dining with Mark tailing behind her. She felt his gazing burning her delicate skin and she pressed her lips together, feeling itchy around her neck. Too bad her buttocks didn't swing like that of her sister's, Lola.

The walk down the purple hallway was quiet and she occasionally glanced at the picture frames of their family lineage.

She was going to be the third woman in the history of Nebramos kingdom to become the heir to the throne since her mother didn't birth any male child for her father.

"So…" Mark stopped her evolution of thoughts with a deep voice that reverberated throughout the empty hallway. "What does it feel like to be the second-in-command to be?"

With a deep breath, she said, "I'm not sure, it feels like a whole lot of responsibility but I'm used to that. I mean, I am the guardian of-"

Erin paused, gripping her door knob as her tongue glued itself to the roof of her mouth.

"Of?" His breath fanned the naked skin of her neck, tying her stomach into knots.

She pushed the door open and cold breeze greeted her by flattering her milk skin.

"The kingdom." She tittered, feeling an invisible sweat dribble down her forehead.

That was close, she couldn't risk telling anyone about her family's secret, no one could be trusted especially the son of the demons who created the laws in the first place.

Maybe, just maybe if she got into the family as a Valtimore, she might do more than just quenching her father's thirst for more power; She would change a particular law since they made the laws.

Mark broke her trance by placing his hand on the small of her back, "You seem to get lost in your thoughts a lot."

"I do?" She questioned, sparing him a glance. "I mean, yeah… Got so many thoughts, now that father is away I'm in charge of the kingdom activities."

Mark nodded, satisfied with her response. He pushed her further into the room and shut the door, leaving them encased in the four royal blue walls of her room.

"What are you doing?" She looked at at him with skepticism and he raised his hands in mock surrender.

"I'm just showing you what I want you to wear to the play, a dress made by one of the best seamstress in my kingdom."

"You bought me a dress?!" Erin beamed, clapping excitedly as she sighted three plastic bags resting beside her queen sized bed.

"Mm-hmm." He hummed, mirroring her smile with a smirk.

"You shouldn't have." She held her chest and rushed to grab the white plastic bags off the floor.

She pulled out a beautiful natural waistline dress with eyes that widened with each second that passed.

"Wow!" Her eyes sparkled with content. She turned to face Mark and detached her lips to speak, "This is beautiful, how did you know royal blue is my favorite color and how did you know my style?!"

Mark pushed back his frock coats that mirrored her black earrings and dug his hands into his pocket and answered, "I know what my wife likes."

Erin turned pink and she averted her gaze to her black tiles. Funny how she disliked him before, thinking he was too much of a rock for her but somehow, her mother forced her into spending time with him and now… he owned a tiny space in her heart.

"Thank you." She traced her fingers on the symbol of Mark's kingdom that was embroidered on the back of the dress with black thread.

"Change now or we'll be late for the play."