He watched her as she slept, the gentle thudding of her heart pounding in his ears like a drum. The whole room smelled like her, a sweet feminine smell accented by her various perfumes and lotions. It was making his head spin.

Her dog slept in the corner on a big pillow. The Golden Retriever had jumped up the moment the sliding glass doors had opened, but a simple sleep spell had eliminated that problem. The dog would go on sleeping, completely on aware of the world around him, only to wake in the morning as if nothing had happened.

This was his third night watching the woman. Fourth if you counted the night he saw her leaving the train station and followed her on her errands. Her sweet scent had made him stop and turn. In that time he had learned much about her. She spent her days engrossed in her work as an intern at a downtown law firm. She took the train there and back everyday. Her townhouse was barely a 5 minute walk from the train station. He didn’t look into her mortgage on it, but he knew it must cost more than her paycheck covered. Hers, and the two on either side of hers, had yards; small, fenced in patches of grass, accessed through the kitchen door, just the right amount of space for a rowdy puppy to burn off some energy and do his business. Yard space was a premium in any city.

He had looked into other things though, and knew her name, age, height, weight, shoe size... the list was endless. He smiled, knowing that he knew nearly everything about this wonderful human. It seemed even more perfect that she was a relatively solitary woman with a few casual friends and only one friend who would really search for her. No boyfriend. Her father, mother and brother had died recently in a boating accident.

Ceran and the other members of the Council were pressuring him. They needed him to step up and take his place as the Lord of the Council. He didn’t feel nearly ready; he was quite young for a vampire actually. But, he had been named successor and Ceran assured him that he would do fine. Of course, the fey would always be there to help him.

He waved his hand and the woman stirred awake. He waited for her to find him, and focus on his presence. She was obviously startled, and pulled her blankets up, as if those could save her from him.

"Who, who are you?" She asked, her voice soft and trembling with fear.

"It doesn't matter right now." He told her. "You can relax. I will not hurt you." He silently cast a spell to calm the woman’s escalated heart rate. It was as much for his sanity as hers. Her scent was so intoxicating…

"Why are you in my room?" She asked. The spell had worked and she seemed to have gained a little more confidence.

He thought about his response carefully. Should he be honest with her? She would eventually have to be told what was happening.

"The truth will only frighten you right now." He finally said.

"Are you going to kill me?" She asked. Obviously he had not made the spell strong enough if she was still frightened.

"I told you, I would not hurt you."

"Then why are you here?"

The sound of her heartbeat was now singing in his ears. Why was he there? He hadn’t fed yet and he wanted her more than he had ever wanted anything. He glanced outside. He had to get away before he did something he would regret.

"I waited too long to wake you and I don't have time to talk. I'll be back tomorrow night. Will you wait up for me?" He asked.

She was practically shaking in her bed, the blankets still up to her chin, like a child hiding from a monster. He walked over to her and she slid down onto the pillow.

"Tomorrow, around midnight I should think. Sleep now." He waved his hand before her face, casting a strong sleeping spell, and she instantly fell into a deep sleep. He leaned down and kissed her forehead before disappearing out the doors to the balcony.

The next night he slept in late, until nearly 8, even though he was incredibly nervous about what was to come.

“She’ll be here tomorrow. Are you sure everything is ready?” He asked the woman he had designated as Jaylin’s personal assistant.

“Of course it is.” She snuggled against him, her head still spinning from recent blood loss. He pushed her away and slid out of bed to shower. He had a lot to do before he went to see Jaylin.

He arrived at her house early, he was excited and nervous and couldn’t wait any longer. A lone light on the night stand illuminated the bedroom and the soft flicker of candle light came from the connected bathroom. As he opened the sliding glass door (only enchanted locks were a problem for him anymore), he heard the bathtub draining. Moments later, she stepped out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around her naked body. The sudden assault on his senses startled him, but he quickly recovered his composure. The reactions she caused in him! There was no way he could be wrong.

"I'm sorry. I'm early."

She glanced over at her alarm clock.

“You, you weren't a dream?" She asked, her eyes returning to him.

He tried not to laugh. Did she really think he was a dream last night?

"Not hardly. Again, I apologize for being early. Please, get dressed and I'll explain everything."

She stared at him, studying him. Her mind whirled with a thousand thoughts, but only one really concerned him.

"I will not hurt you Jaylin.” He put out a calming spell. “I swear that to you. You don't need to fear me. Your dog is not at all disturbed by my presence." He gestured towards the sleeping dog. She looked over at the puppy dumbly. Suddenly she began to wobble on her feet and her eyes rolled back in her head. He was able to catch her just before she passed out.

“Oh Jaylin… I wish you didn’t fear me. I haven’t even done anything yet.” He said as he carried her to the bed. He watched her for a few moments before waking her.

"Jaylin, wake up." He whispered, leaning over her and brushing her cheek with his finger tips. Her eyes fluttered open and focused on him. She studied his features, mentally cataloging them.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

"My head hurts." She answered.

"I'm sorry." He touched his hand to her forehead, using magic to remove the pain. "I didn't mean to frighten you earlier."

"Who are you?" She repeated her question from the night before.

"My name is Kenyon." He knew that wasn’t a complete answer, but it was all he would offer now.

"What do you want from me?"

He leaned his face closer to hers until their lips nearly touched.

"I want to own you." He whispered, and she shivered. He pressed his lips to hers before she could react, using more magic to subdue her mind. He leaned his body down on hers and held her arms at her sides to keep her from fighting. She tried at first, but he gently prodded her mind, telling her to calm down, that everything would be all right. She stopped struggling when she realized the voice was his.

He made sure his kiss was soft, not forceful. He didn’t want her to be afraid. Part of her still wanted to fight him and the way his magic made her feel, to fight his voice in her head. 'I won't hurt you Jaylin,' he told her, 'if you let me take you, you will never have to worry about anything, ever. You will be royalty among my people. You will be loved and cared for.' The part of her that protested became weaker and weaker as Kenyon intensified his kiss and his magic. He released one of her hands and tangled his fingers in her long black hair. 'Please let me have you.' He begged in her head. He hadn’t realized how much he would want her when he got this close. He released her other hand and pulled the blankets down away from her chest. 'I have to have you.' He kissed her again, pulling her body against his. Then he kissed his way along her jaw and to her neck, burying his face against her skin. Her smell and the pounding of her pulse was testing every level of his control. His tongue flitted across the spot just beneath her jawbone where her pulse could be felt and he felt his penis harden.

"Please," He whispered out loud, his voice husky and full of lust, "You have to say it; you have to give me permission."

"No, I don't understand." She whispered. She shouldn’t still be afraid! God her mind was strong! She resisted magic better than any human he had ever met! He growled in frustration, moving away from her. She quickly pulled the blankets back up around her.

"How could you understand? No one's ever told you. No one wants you to know." He paced around the room, his pent up urges making him lose the control he so needed to maintain.

"I...I'm sorry." She said.

“There’s a whole world you don’t know about! A whole society hidden within and behind the one you know! Why should I think that maybe you would understand what I want from you?”

Suddenly he was on top of her, holding her body to the bed. She screamed in surprise. He leaned his face down to her neck, again licking the spot where her pulse could be felt.

"God I can imagine how sweet you’ll be. You smell… damn it! I should just take you." He said against her neck. "It would be quick, painless. By the time you realized what was happening, your body would be numb. Or I could just turn you, and you’d be mine anyway. But I can't do that. It’s not that simple." He looked into her frightened brown eyes. "You're the one. I'm sure of it. You have to give me permission or they won’t allow the ceremony. You have to say yes!" He sounded almost desperate.

"I'm sorry." She cried, tears streaming down her cheeks, she was obviously terrified. "I'll do anything you ask. Please don't hurt me."

He sighed, getting off of her once again. "I'm not going to hurt you! Don't be scared. I don't want you to fear me." He waved his hand over her face offering only a weak spell, too distracted to do otherwise.

He sat beside her on the bed. "I just need you to allow me to take you. I need you to give me permission to make you mine." This night had been so carefully planned and he was messing everything up. He need to control himself and make Jaylin his. "You'll be given everything your heart desires.” He told her. “You'll never have to work again. Everything that troubles your mind will be taken care of. All you have to do is tell me that I can take you. I promise you that as long as you're mine no harm will come to you." He reached out to push her hair out of her face, stopping when she flinched.

“I’m not going to hurt you Jaylin.” He repeated.

"How can I trust you?" She whispered.

"Jaylin it’s in my best interest to make you happy. Please give me permission." He was done playing. He felt calm again and ready to take what was his. She was trying to rationalize to herself why she was going to let him.

"Okay." She said softly.

"You'll let me take you?"

She nodded.

"You have to say it out loud. Jaylin, may I take you?"

"Yes."

A smile came across his face and he pulled her to him, nuzzling his face against her neck. Yes! This was right, he just knew it. Tears streamed down her face as he kissed and licked her throat, his mouth wrapping around her pulse. She gasped in surprise when she felt him pierce the skin and begin to suck on her neck, eliciting the sweet liquid that flowed through her veins.

"You're a..." She trailed off before passing out for the second time that night.

Kenyon didn’t take much, just enough, because she had passed out. He wanted more, if he wasn’t so sure she was his one, he would have drained her. But no. He would love her and care for her. She would be his wife, his partner, his queen. Gently kissing Jaylin’s lips, he placed a note on her kitchen table and left her to sleep. He couldn’t keep the smile from his face as he headed home, anxious to share the wonderful news to his staff.