Bride To His Darkness
Chapter 154: Mixed Feelings

Chapter 154: Mixed Feelings

The obsidian tiles seemed to have turned slippery as Samantha had issues regaining her posture. The bathing chamber that always emitted a darkness of its own, was brightly illuminated by the candles she had lit around so she could see properly, but now her mindset was starting to crumble with Ivan holding her captive, her lower back resting on the bathroom sink, whilst it left no room for escape, or even a chance to make a slip.

She had witnessed a lot of cruelty, but Ivan’s ways of dealing with an enemy were just too horrendous for her, but, in spite of what she had seen, she understood, regardless of her own strict perspective. Possessing the bloodlust of both vampires and demons must be challenging for him, and he had merely done what he did because that servant– or witch made attempts to harm her. If they were still in disguise under GreenHollow, then it is not a matter that should be taken lightly. But then, that little boy, if it wasn’t for his sudden scream, she couldn’t have imagined what would happen to her at that moment, yet she was curious to know, how did he know the servant was up to no good?

"Are you still thinking about what happened?" Ivan’s voice snapped Samantha out her deepened thoughts, and her heart involuntarily fluttered when she met his crimson eyes that stared directly into her own. Offering a slight smile, her hands reached up to his neck as she adjusted the collar of shirt, and she shook her head without meeting his gaze.

"Did you know there was one in the Palace? I mean, everyone seemed shocked except you and Herbert." She inquired without lifting her gaze, her lashes quivering while her hands moved down to fully button up his shirt, keeping that tantalizing view of his chest hidden from her gaze.

"Did I know there was a witch in my Palace? Yes, but did I know who it was? No until a few minutes ago." Ivan answered before firmly grabbing her wrist, and Samantha was prone to look into his intense amethyst eyes as he stated further. "I knew eventually that whoever it was will try to track you down, as you possess powers that still cannot be explained, but staying anywhere close to you will keep the gender hidden, probably for a long time as they are known to magically subdue their scent, so I played games and kept Herbert close, pretending to be inattentive. The intervention of some fascinating company was just what I needed, and the servant fell right into the trap."

"But what happened to the real servant?" Samantha knew she had seen that maiden a couple of times in the Palace. She always assisted Lady Agathe as her personal servant, and she was more reserved than Felicia, hardly interacted with her fellow servants, but could it be all this time that that servant was never really a servant? Has she done something to the actual servant?

"If they can shapeshift, then I think it will be better if you send a notice to the citizens." Samantha suggested to Ivan after much deduction. "At least till we can suppress them all, everyone should be aware of how careful they’ll need to move around for the time being, most especially those with children, since these witches or whatever they are have their targets on them. We need to ensure the safety of everyone first, and you, as a King of GreenHollow, need to take this as serious as you’d take anything else before looking into the precautionary measures"

"Did you say ’we?’" Ivan arched an inquiring eyebrow at that pronoun, and when he noticed she didn’t get what he meant by asking, his sensuous lips gently brushed the shell of her sensitive ear, tingling her nerves as he whispered into them. "You say it like the way a Queen would say it to her doting husband. Shall we get married tomorrow since you’re beginning to fulfill your duty?"

"That isn’t what I..." Samantha’s eyes widened, and she could feel her cheeks heat up, not to mention the way he whispered it, he made it sound like the most exciting thing that could ever happen to the both of them... but then it shouldn’t, as tempting as it may be, she wasn’t ready to go into a marriage she wasn’t completely sure of, and when the time comes, she wouldn’t need to think twice before saying yes to him. Presently, they needed to put their heads together and solve the problem that they were about to face.

"Little Lamb." Ivan uttered, calling her by the nickname she had grown to love more than her own name. He caressed her head before leaning a bit to drop a tender kiss on her forehead, and he whispered against it. "Don’t ponder deeply on what I just said, remember, I’m going to wait for you until we encounter the day you realize you love me just as much, but in order to make that happen I have to woo you in my own way, we’re not going anywhere little lamb."

"But..but what if..." Samantha stuttered suddenly, her green eyes holding her skepticism as she managed to whisper it out. "What if someday you realize that I am not your true mate, what if I become your mistress? Then what?"

"Do you doubt my love for you?" He asked, but then his fingers grazed the contour of her skin, tentatively moving to the back of her ear whilst she shuddered in a way that made Ivan’s lips curve at her response to his touch. "You will never be unloved by me, you are too well tangled in my soul, little lamb. You can’t escape." And then he pecked her lips– striking red eyes meeting expressive green ones. To any other person, they would have fainted at the spot as it is rare to see Ivan displaying this type of affection to anyone else.

It was his endearing nature towards her that always made Samantha feel like she was floating on cloud nine. Her feelings for him were indeed tangled; she loved him, but she hated him too, he was noble, and he was ruthless, he was strong, but also weak. He is everything combined to form one being, and that thought alone gave her a mixed feeling of excitement and fear.

"Considering your earlier suggestion." Ivan skillfully brought back the topic. "The herald has already done that, and I made sure to station a few trustworthy guards at each village and town, including the capitals. However, I can’t guarantee a perfect job well done, so I made sure the notice denotes that people should protect themselves first so others can do the same. Satisfied?" He held her hand, bringing it up to his lips and dropping a kiss on her tender knuckles.

Samantha’s smiling eyes was enough to make Ivan’s heart swell, the way those eyes glimmered like priceless jewel under the illumination of the candles, this woman really had no idea what she was doing to him, but when he leaned down so he could kiss her deeply, to explore her sweet mouth and tongue, he felt her hands on his last button as she quickly buttoned them up.

"You’re running late." She uttered, "don’t you have to see the new Ministers sir Abdiel had appointed? You should not delay in matters like this, come." Quickly turning the baffled Ivan around, she pushed him all the way to the exit and watched him narrow his eyes at her, and then his eyebrows slanted into a slight frown.

"Did you read my missive?"

"Perhaps." And she closed the door, shutting him out and locking it so she can finally get some breathing space. He heard the lock click from the inside, and he found it cute how she thinks a little lock can stop him going back in, but unfortunately, he couldn’t do that, and he felt thankful she reminded him about the missive cause he had completely forgotten.

"I need to start letting her in on my important schedules." He frankly noted in mind.

When Ivan stepped out of his room, Abdiel was waiting for him just outside the corridor, and they both began to head down together before he asked.

"Did the cartographer show up as asked?"

"The cartographer arrived a few minutes ago." Abdiel informed him, his hands folded behind his back as his expression turned grim. "Shockingly, there is no such place as Carmarthen on the map."