“Calm down? I find a dying vampire prince in my bathroom and you’re telling me to calm down?”

“You stupid girl, shut up.”

Taylor Devlin was tired.

Chestnut colored hair slapping her broad shoulders in the hot wind, blowing a few stray wisps from her dark blue eyes, she walked heavily toward her bus.

Heaving a sigh, Taylor hauled her bag off her shoulder to sit in the second seat of the bus, blowing more locks of light auburn hair from her eyes, and leaning against the bus’ heated metal.

“School is death in a different form,” she muttered, closing her eyes and blowing out a huge breath.

As the bus started up and began to bobble down the street the girl lay there, falling into the chasm between sleep and wakefulness.

Large, tall, and bulky, she was an overweight, slightly acne ridden not-so-normal teenager. At the age of almost sixteen near the end of her sophomore year, she didn’t have many friends. Even less of those whom were true friends, no, scratch that, none. She sighed in her sleep as these thoughts filtered through her mind.

As the bus ground to a stop, almost throwing Taylor to the ground, her eyes snapped open glaring at the driver.

The girl for the first stop stood and left, and the huge automobile rumbled on.

Leaning back again, Taylor turned to stare at the sky through the opposite window, an expression of longing detachment spread over her face.

The bus jolted a second time, and three people stood and exited quickly.

Again heading forward, the engine got going again, before the bus lurched once more to a stop, and the girl sighed.

Taylor again hauled her bag over her shoulder, and jumped off the bus with a small humph. Walking from her front yard, marked with a stop sign in its side, and across the cement driveway, she stopped just inside her backyard, breathing in a fresh breath as the wind blew a pure gust by her face.

Her uniform, comprised of khaki slacks, a white button up shirt, and a light blue vest, fluttered in the breeze, navy blazer slung over her bag moving back and forth.

After the pause, she pulled her keys from inside her bag and entered the cool house with a sigh of relief.

“Air conditioning, thank the lord!” she muttered, dropping her bag unceremoniously onto the shelf by the door in the mud room.

“Anyone home?!” she yelled into the silent house.

“Are you sure?!” she laughed, and she went to the fridge to grab a Dr. Pepper.

“I have the house to myself, yay! Oh, where is Merlin?” she sang, taking the can up the stairs with her in search of her cat.

As she stepped onto the eight or ninth step, she spotted something among the other stains on the originally white carpet.

“Is that…blood?” she muttered, her eyebrows flying up to her hairline, taking another swig of Dr. Pepper, “Nah.”

She bent down to examine a particularly large splotch.

It was not the crimson she would see if she cut her hand on glass, but a dark, deep purplish grey.

“What the hell…?” she whispered, trailing as she heard a crash in the direction of her room.

The purplish blood spotted her white carpet, and she glimpsed it among the myriad colors of her rainbow rug. Her eyes grazed over a hand print against the two archways leading across her room and into her bathroom.

“This better not be a joke…” she whispered, her eyes narrowed.

“Mitch is going to get in so much trouble for getting this all over my room and the carpet,” she muttered; then again she wouldn’t mind having him pay for the cleaning of it all.

She heaved a sigh, grinning in an annoyed way, and walked on, after setting her Dr. Pepper on her desk.

Following the supposed blood drops, her eyes keeping to her feet, she entered the multicolored bathroom in exasperation.

When she looked around the corner, she screamed and jumped back, a hand flying to her mouth.

A man lay on the tiles next to her bathtub, and she could see the blood leaking from a wound in his chest. The liquid was pooling around his body, his black clothes torn and bloody.

Standing there absolutely still and wide eyed, Taylor couldn’t move for terror. The man must have been tortured. How had he ended up in her bathroom? What could she do?

Even lying on the floor, she could tell he was much taller than her. Night black hair, fanned around his pale, angularly handsome face, thin lips parted in agony.

His eyes fluttered, and he gave a small, gasping breath.

Lids sliding open, they revealed scarlet eyes, the pupil cat like, covered in a silver film. Wonderment filled Taylor’s being as she gazed on those eyes for a moment before a startled gasp escaped her throat.

He’s alive?

His eyes closed again, and he moved to sit up with a grunt of pain.

“What are you doing, you stupid man?!” she yelled, moving forward to push him back down, sure to evade the numerous injuries to his shoulders. Taylor bit her lip as she felt his shoulder’s ripple under her fingertips; she was sure if he wasn’t so weak he could toss even her across the street.

His eyes snapped open at her touch, angry and pained silver sprayed crimson pools.

“Oh, bother, what the hell do I do?” Taylor muttered, staring at her bloodied hands, and back to the man, whose eyes were falling closed, but he stubbornly kept them open.

Glaring at her, he moved his hand slowly and shakily toward his pocket.

Taylor watched with her blue eyes over bright, her lips parted anxiously.

His long fingers reached inside to pull out a vial of liquid.

It was full of swirling metallic black liquid.

He moved to open the bottle, but Taylor grabbed it, and he glared at her, she glared back.

“Shut up, like you can do anything at the moment, just let me save your sorry ass,” she muttered, and she missed his small smile as she opened the bottle with a tug.

“So what do I do with this?” she said, and he grimaced as he lifted his right hand from where it had been resting over the main flow of the purple-grey blood.

Gasping, she stared at the large hole in his chest where she saw a glimpse of the man’s barely beating heart, and his spinal column, both intact, but both visible. It was as if someone had just stuck a claw through him, cutting away the flesh like acid.

She moved her bewildered eyes to the man’s face, and he nodded, pointing to it again with a quiver in his hand.

Moving with slow cautiousness, she shakily poured the black liquid on the wound.

Jumping back as the man let out a yell of strangled agony, her eyes widening as she watched the black liquid slither into the injury.

The man’s teeth were on edge, and Taylor watched in worry and anxious amazement; the liquid was bubbling sickeningly, slowly boiling to fill the hole. The man jerked, his teeth clenched, face screwed up in the scathing agony.

As the bubbling, frothing mixture of skin, blood and the strange black substance oozed away, the man gulped down air in huge gasps, yet a smirk curled his lips.

Taylor saw why; where the gaping hole in his body had been, now was only marred by the opening burned through his shirt. The skin of his sculpted chest was pale and whole, and he motioned toward the numerous other scratches and bloodied gashes.

But the girl couldn’t move; how had that just happened? One second his heart is exposed to the air, and the next its back under the skin like some morbid disappearing act.

Dark blue eyes found their way back to the man’s face. A shiver ran through her body at the sight of those crimson eyes, and his lips twitching in an amused expression.

“Who are you- before I help you any more,” she said, sounding less brave than she wished to.

His lips opened slightly and he seemed about to speak, but he closed his mouth.

“I just saved your life, and you aren’t gonna tell me your name?” she said incredulously.

His smirk grew more pronounced, and he nodded.

“Well, you can’t just come into my house, bleed all over the place, and expect me to help you!” she said, moving along his shoulder and tipping drops of liquid onto the rampant injuries.

“Well didn’t you just save my life?” he murmured coolly.

Taylor almost dropped the bottle as his voice took her off guard. A shock of electricity ran through her as his deep, haunting voice filled her ears. A shiver made her hands shake as it rumbled through her. Lips parted, she hoped he didn’t notice her breath coming faster.

Her eyes got caught in webs of silver brushed crimson, and she licked her dry lips nervously.

A growl fell from his lips, his eyes narrowing, pupils dilating, and Taylor scooted back, dropping the vial with a small tink onto the tile.

The man’s thin lips parted and his tongue drifted across sharp, pointed fangs, his eyes fiercely glaring into her own as though he wished to consume her on the spot.

“You’re scared little girl, aren’t you?”

“No,” she said, defiantly, her head lowering as she watched him. This statement wasn’t necessarily true, but she was having trouble concealing a different weakness. The effect his voice and eyes alone had over her made her tremble. Looking hoodedly at him, she struggled to regain a normal oxygen flow.

His tongue coursed across his teeth once more, and this small movement brought Taylor’s eyes down from his, her brain suddenly choosing to run again.

“A vampire,” she muttered in disbelief, her eyes glittering with interest, amazement.

“Yes,” he said, “My name, you asked for I guess, Lady?”

“Lady?”

“Saving my life grants you a title above normal humans,” he murmured, gracefully taking hold of the bottle from the tile with a long fingered hand.

Clenched fists resting on her thighs, she glared at the floor.

“What is your name, Lady?” he said in a brusque, uncaring manner, moaning as he sat up and laid an arm over one leg with elegant difficulty.

“Taylor,” she said, lifting her head with look of curiosity and wonder that she couldn’t tame in her eyes, “Taylor Devlin.”

He nodded absentmindedly, and tucked the vial of liquid back into his jacket. Then he placed a bloody hand on the wall and stood, unfolding himself carefully and warily, as though he were a butterfly trembling as it tried its new wings.

Taylor stood with him, watching as his limbs stopped shivering and he took his hand from the wall.

Only then did she notice that the man was a foot and a half taller than her, and she was five seven! His large chest claimed her eyes as they traveled up to meet his eyes. He engulfed her, and dwarfing her was not something easily done. A strong, thin arm rose to brush his long hair from his face as they gazed at each other with something akin to pure inquisitiveness.

Stepping back so she didn’t have to crane her neck to look at those gorgeous eyes, Taylor said, with more brazenness than she thought possible in this situation, “And your name?”

“Anton Gerant,” he said, “Prince of Vampires.”

Taylor raised her eyebrows, “Prince?”

“Stop turning everything I say into a question,” he muttered, giving her an icy look.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, is it aggravating you?” Taylor said sarcastically, “You seem to think I’m an idiot just because I’m young. You’re telling me vampires exist, and you not only expect me to believe you, but not have questions? You guys really are arrogant.”

He glared down at her, his dark burgundy irises narrowed, causing her expression to slip fractionally, and allow a glimpse at her behind her stubborn mask.

“You are afraid,” he muttered, titling his beautiful head to the side, and took one step closer to her.

Her eyes widened, then suddenly turned into stormy slits, “Why shouldn’t I be?!” she said, her voice glinting with slight hilarity.

“Calm down, Lady,” he said, folding his arms against his thin chest, his eyes amused.

“Calm down? Calm down,” she said, forcibly calm, her voice rising in hilarity as she spoke, “I find an injured vampire prince in my bathroom, and you’re telling me to calm down?!”

“Youstupid girl, shut up for a second,” he said scathingly, calmly staring down at her with maroon unreadable eyes.

Taylor followed his severe command, but gave him a hating look as she crossed her arms over her meager chest.

“My clan has been over taken by the Nightlyters, another vampire clan that broke away from the Honor Clan…”

“Honor Clan? Nightlyters?” Taylor said incredulously.

The prince rolled his eyes and placed his hands on his slender hips, a put-upon sigh indicting that he thought her an incomprehensible invalid.

“The Honor Clan is the collection of vampire kin whom follow the Night Code with the normal rules like ‘Never kill when feeding’, and ‘Keep your silence,’” his voice shifted from indifferent respect to controlled aversion, “As far as the Nightlyters, they can’t be described so callously.”

Taylor stepped back at the malevolence in his sonorous voice, creating shivers down her spine.

“Your- enemies?” she asked meekly, in contrast to his low bass.

The vampire looked sharply at her, scarlet eyes softening at her obvious fear.

“Why am I telling you this?” he asked, his face confused.

Taylor held back a smile, “Because I saved you, remember; I’m owed an explanation.”

“Really?” he said, moving toward her.

Taylor stepped away as he moved closer, her heart pounding, lips parted anxiously.

What is he doing? she thought, eyes widening as her back hit the wall.

Pulse racing, she swallowed deeply and closed her eyes tightly before opening them again to see his scarlet eyes directly in front of her.

He placed his hands on either side of her head and lowered his own, ebony hair touching her skin as he whispered, “You are owed nothing.”

“Then why are you telling me?” she asked breathlessly, eyes falling closed as she felt his breath on her throat.

“I’m hungry,” he breathed, and Taylor took a shocked gasping breath as he licked her throat where her pulse quickened.

“And you are driving me mad…” he whispered heatedly, licking her neck slowly.

Taylor’s breath hitched in her chest, and her body involuntarily arced forward into him.

“Like that?” he said, and Taylor barely managed to notice how his breath was labored as well.

“Why…” she muttered softly, her eyes rolling backward as he traced a finger down her side.

“Why am I doing this? I told you,” he licked his lips, “I’m hungry. I’ve been too injured to feed,” he said, scraping the skin of Taylor’s chest with his teeth.

Taylor’s head fell back to rest against the wall, as he licked where he’d scratched a red mark on her chest.

But I’m not pretty, why…? Right I was the one he happened upon, she thought, gathering the strength to push him away, but he growled and pinned her arms above her head.

“Not yet, Lady,” he muttered intensely, his voice alone making Taylor tremble.

His lips rested on her collarbone, and his fingers skated over the skin of her belly.

Taylor again pressed herself close to him, his hand between them, the other holding her hands.

“You are sensitive, have you ever been touched this way before? I guess not,” he said, smirking at the embarrassment that fell over her cheeks as he moved his hands slightly down to her jeans, she looked anywhere but at him.

“Feed, just stop doing this, please,” she begged as he hooked a thumb on the hip of her jeans.

“You want me to stop?” he asked, curiously, his hand moving the fabric down her skin.

“Please,” she muttered, her eyes still closed, biting her lip as his long fingers petted her now bare hip.

“Why do you want me to stop?” he said, running his hand from her hip to her chubby stomach and to her rib cage, a line of flame being traced by his fingers.

Drawing in a sharp breath, her eyes snapped open to see him watching her with curious eyes.

Closing her eyes another time, she bit her lip before speaking, “I don’t know you.”

Anton’s eyes widened and he paused for just a second, his fingers settled on her abdomen, before leaning forward again, and whispering, “Be ready.”

Taylor’s breath came out in quick gasps heavy and frightened.

“Trust me…” he whispered, as he licked the skin above her right shoulder, and sunk his teeth straight into her skin.

Taylor screamed and clutched at his back as he ate.

Whimpering she felt herself loose the strength in her arm, then felt her heart slow.

He’s starved, if he continues, he’s going to kill me…she thought languidly.

As her eyes closed, and she fought to keep them open, Taylor caught a glimpse of his eyes. Her own eyes widened as she caught the maddened look in them, the former man buried in lust and hunger.

Taylor dug her fingers into his back, to try and bring him to himself, Wake up, please wake up…

As she fell deeper into unconsciousness, Taylor barely noticed the needle like pain of his teeth slipping from her, and his cool tongue on her shoulder.

“Mhm,” she heard him murmur, and through fluttering eyes she saw scarlet staring at her.

“Damn it,” he growled, and Taylor’s world went by in a mix of bright colors before she was set on a soft surface.

The vampire glared down at his victim, I realized she was resistant to the change and went too far…he thought.

“Damn it,” Taylor heard him say again as she tried to find him in her blurred vision.

“I’m not quite dead yet,” she whispered with gasping breaths, trying to sit up. Anton pushed her back down.

“Now you’re being the idiot,” he said, glaring with ruby eyes down at her, his hands on her shoulders holding her down.

Smirking lightly Taylor bit her lip unconsciously, looking at him with a questioning gaze, “Are you going to disappear like all vampires do?”

He smiled that pointy teethed smile.

Taylor shivered and closed her eyes imagining his teeth on her shoulder again, “Do you always do that to…those you feed from?”

Anton sighed, and ran a hand through his hair, Taylor caught her breath and looked to her pillows, away from him.

“I’ve never felt that vulnerable in my life,” she whispered.

“And it wasn’t that you were about to bite my neck and suck my blood,” she said turning her head back to look at him.

“No,” she said, “In answer to your previous, most likely insignificant question meant to annoy and embarrass me. I have never had a boyfriend because I am ugly and too strong minded.”

Taylor could tell she was blushing madly, “Why did you do that? To taunt me, tell me how much power you have over women? No, it was to excite my blood, that’s why you did it.”

Anton frowned down at her, then turned and walked out of the room.

Taylor stared at the ceiling, breath coming more forcefully, heart pumping as fast as before.

Eyes closed she tried to get her breathing in working, normal order.

“You are too observant and smart for your own good,” said the haunting voice that electro shocked her heart into overdrive. Taylor’s eyes snapped open and she repressed a shiver at the sight of him standing in the doorway leaning on the frame.

“No I’m not, its just common sense,” she said logically, “Men only seduce pretty women, I was only used, and I don’t like being used, or made feel like I’m going to explode.”

He laughed at that, “And what makes you think you are not a pretty woman?”

“You’ve looked at me, haven’t you?” she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

He folded his arms over his own chest and leaned his head slightly to one side, brow furrowed, listening silently to her rant.

“I’m fat, always have been, nothing I can do about that. My face could be pretty if I just lost weight. I have acne like every other teenager. I’m just not pretty,” she said in nonchalant conclusion.

Anton stood and listened patiently as she finished, grabbing the chair from her desk and coming to sit by the bed, “You sell yourself short Lady.”

Taylor scoffed and looked to the ceiling.

“You aren’t the prettiest girl in the world, but you definitely aren’t ugly, and I’ve seen ugly,” he said, eyebrows going to his hairline, “You don’t want to see the Queen of Vampires without makeup.”

Chuckling along with Taylor’s crushed laugh, Anton watched her shoulders fall from depression.

He put a hand on each of those shoulders and pulled her to sit up, laying a hand over her eyes to allow her dizziness to settle. His fingers breezed across her cheek to cradle her jaw, thumb skating over her parted lips.

Taylor’s breath hitched again, as his other hand fell from her shoulder to pull her off the bed and onto him, stroking along the fabric of her shirt before lightly hitching it up and placing his cool fingers on her waist.

Taylor had never thought this was what it would feel like. He hadn’t even kissed her the last time and she’d felt ready to die. Now as he pulled her lips to his and slipped his tongue inside, she shivered almost uncontrollably. His other hand was undoing her jeans, and Taylor’s eyes shot open and widened as she felt him. She looked at him, and he grinned against her lips.

Damn him…she thought incoherently as he kissed from her lips to her chest, his hands moving from her thigh and back to under her shirt to feel her bra.

Taylor let out a startled gasp and her head fell back as he continued to kiss down her chest.

Dizzy as he slipped a finger under the bra’s catch to loosen it, her eyes rolled back as he nipped at her collarbone before licking the few drops of blood that trickled out.

The hand that was not at the catch of her bra went up to move smoothly over her breast and lingering lightly on the nipple, not quite touching.

Taylor let out a soft scream, and she felt him grin against her skin, as he pulled down the remaining cloth of her tank top and kissed a trail to the nipple, before taking it into his mouth and swishing his tongue over it, pricking the soft skin of her breast with a tooth and sucking the blood. Taylor’s thoughts were blown from her mind as a moan ripped itself from her throat.

“See Lady, you aren’t ugly, different maybe,” he whispered against her lips, as he rolled his finger over her breast, her bra redoing itself and her tank top righting itself, “But not ugly.”

He picked her up and set her on the bed, positioned himself over her and said, “You are a virgin, aren’t you?”

“What do you think?” she muttered, coming back to herself as her head hit the surface of the bed, brow furrowed, not liking the direction of this.

Giving a short nod in agreement he looked back down at her, frowning, “Sorry Lady.”

“What are you going to do?” she asked, though she could already guess, she tried to get up, but he pinned her with his body.

“Saving you,” he muttered angrily as she kicked at him.

“What?” she stilled, blue eyes innocently staring up at him.

“Would you rather be a vampire or a mindless daemon?” he asked, after a taking a deep breath and looking at her with sad and angry eyes.

“Daemon?” she asked, frowning.

“You wouldn’t have any thoughts, you’d be a shell, your soul would cease to exist,” he said, looking at the floor, and then he winked at her, “Your mind is too precious to waste.”

“What the hell, you don’t know me! Damn it, let me up!” she said.

“I’ve been in your mind already, and I do know you now, I’ve fed from you, and the other vampires are not going to just let you be! You are now infused with royal cpheres, you wouldn’t do very well without me,” he said.

“What?!” she asked angrily, “I don’t know what the hell you are talking about, series? What…?”

“Cpheres; It’s the healing balm we produce along with saliva, to close the wounds we make when feeding, so no blood is wasted, ugh,” he said, gritting his teeth as she made one more effort at escape.

“What does that have to do with sex?” she asked, bluntly.

He gave her an odd look with raised eyebrows, “If you are attacked by another vampire in your state now, they will dry you out and you will become a daemon, no mind or soul, worse than dead,” he paused, “it’s my fault, because you saved me, you are different than a normal person when it comes to normal rules. But that’s the deal for you, worse than death.”

“And if I am not a virgin, the worst that will happen is I’ll be a vampire,” she finished, and he nodded, “Not very optimistic are you?”

“I am a vampire,” he muttered, grinning; she shivered under him.

“Why does everything have to include sex these days?” she muttered angrily, “I am a virgin and I want to stay that way for a while, thank you!”

“You want to stay a virgin even if you loose your mind from it?” he said incredulously, leaning closer to her.

“I-I…” she growled and pounded her fists on the bed, “I didn’t know I had to choose today! I’m only fifteen!”

“But I would rather try and keep it as long as possible,” she said, recovering from the momentary lapse in her calm exterior.

Anton laughed, and got off her, sitting up and watching her do the same, “Thank you,” she muttered, blushing again.

“You won’t last a day without me, and I’m sorry you feel that way about it,” he said smirking at her and winking.

Taylor rolled her eyes, “Guys.”

He stood, and looked at her as he crossed the room, “I’ll be sorry to see you die, Lady.”

And with that, the most exciting thing that had ever happened to Taylor Devlin, disappeared in a gray blur.