The Vampires Mate

The moonlight shone brightly upon the lake, the stars glistening in the distance as the light danced across my skin. I sat there silently, watching the ripples from the fish in the lake. It wasn't long until I heard a rustle in the trees behind me, it was my brothers. I'm sixteen. My Father, the Alpha of our pack, was meeting with other Alphas about a problem with one of the neighbors, a clan of vampires. Our eldest brother, Jackson, was there because, after this year, our dad is planning to retire as Alpha.

My brothers sat around me, told me about what they had heard which was to go straight to the leader of the vampires.

It was dangerous for us to fight the vampires; so many good wolves have died due to them, including my mother, our Luna. Dad hasn't been the same since that tragic night... I, on the other hand, grew from it. That very night, I shifted for the first time. It should have been a happy night for me and the other sixteen-year-olds, it was our first full moon, but it also meant it was the best time to attack. New werewolves didn't have the best control of their bodies yet and that night, a few of the warriors, my mother included, followed us into the woods to make sure we didn't get into trouble.

I was attacked. The vampires wanted me, dead or alive; mom got in the way and for it, she was badly hurt. I held her hand when we both shifted back, I held her as she died in my arms. The vampire that killed her was torn to pieces, but I didn't watch. I was too busy being held back by my brothers as my mother was taken from me. My eldest brother had wrapped me in a blanket to cover me while he and our brothers took me back to the house. I cried the whole way there. We didn't see our father for days after that.

We all walked to the house when the other Alphas began leaving and went straight to our father. He was sitting at his desk in his office. All five of us piled into the office, me, sitting in a chair, Jackson was in the other chair, then the triplets; I was the youngest child which also meant I was the most overprotected, probably because I'm the only daughter.

"So, what's the verdict?" Jeff, the oldest of the triplets asked; dad glanced at all five of us, sighed, then answered,

"I go to the King of the vampires tomorrow. See what we can arrange to stop everyone from getting killed." he looked at Jackson, "Jackson will accompany me, I'll arrange extra guards for the pack while I'm gone. Jeffery, Wesley, and Thomas, your job is to protect the pack and your sister." I stood,

"Dad, I can protect myself, I don't need the triplets to babysit me."

"Aiday, it's not that, it's just, I don't want to lose you like I lost..." I watched him, but my temper got the better of me and I stormed out of the office and into my room.

I was watching a movie on my laptop when there was a knock on the door. Pausing my movie, I went to the door to see it was Jackson, I groaned and walked back to my bed, "Are you here to tell me that I need to go apologies to dad for my outburst?" he chuckled,

"No, even though you should. Dad and I are leaving first thing in the morning, so I just wanted to say bye." I threw myself back on the bed, "You know, it's not a bad thing to have the guys protecting you. We lost mom two months ago because she was protecting you. She knew that you are going to be important to our pack one day, and I believe it too." I started playing with the silver lock of hair on my head,

"Yeah, but I doubt I'm that important. I'm just your typical daughter of an Alpha." We chuckled a little.

"Baby sister, there is nothing typical about you." I got up and went over to my desk and grabbed my notebook. "I'll leave you alone; be safe. Dad and I will be back in a day or so. Love you." I smiled and hugged him,

"Love you too. Be careful." Jackson shut the door on his way out; opening my notebook, I saw the picture I drew of my mother, the spots where my tears had hit. I went over to the window and sighed, "I miss you, mom." I flipped to a spare page and started writing; for about a month, I've been writing letters to my mother, just to help. I didn't have any friends in the big house and I've been more of an outsider at school, just because I'm the daughter of the Alpha, everyone expects me to be this prissy princess when in reality, I'm a nerd that has a title. The only person I had was mom, but when she died, I stayed quiet for the first month after she died; the boys were worried about me, so they got me notebooks to write in to help, which it has. I curl into a ball watching the moon before shutting my eyes and drifting off to sleep.

The next morning, around eight, I stood with my brothers as our father and Jackson got in the car. When they drove away, the triplets all looked at me,"What?" I asked,

"What do you want to do?" Thomas asked, I glared,

"How about, ditching you three and going for a run." I bolted for the woods, but the Beta's son tackled me,

"Nice try, princess." I glared at him,

"Seriously, Blake! I almost made it!" he got off me and helped me up as my brothers ran over to us, "I don't need babysitters, I'm sixteen, not six."

"Aiday, if you didn't need babysitters then Dad wouldn't have told us to stop you from going into the woods until he got back," Wesley stated, I growled and went to the house. All four of them followed me. I went into the gym and went straight to the punching bag and started letting out all of my frustration. The boys watched for a few minutes before leaving just as quickly as they came.

Once I had calmed down, I went to the kitchen to get some food. I saw the guys playing cards as I went over to get my classic peanut butter and apple combo and a glass of water, taking it to the living room and turning on a movie. The boys continued their card game while I watched TV; it was around midnight when I finally decided to go to bed. After a shower and I was dressed I crawled into my bed. Laying there for a while, I kept thinking what was going to happen: would we go back to war with the vampires? Would there be a compromise? Would more lives have to be lost to save others? I continue to ponder these thoughts as I feel sleep weighing on me...

The moon shone brightly overhead, the sound of growls and shrieks of pain echoed across the woods. A feeling in the pit of my stomach told me not to go towards the noise, but my body started running. The noise became louder as I got closer, I saw hundreds of wolves and vampires fighting; there were many bodies of both lay limp on the ground, I fell to my knees, seeing my brothers and even my father's bodies... I felt a piercing in my heart, and it shattered; I couldn't breathe, tears started pouring from my eyes, and without a second thought, I screamed. The fighting stopped; when I opened my eyes, everyone was gone, even the bodies. I heard something, a whisper, but I couldn't make it out, "Hello?" I called out, "Who's there?" No one answered me. I was looking around frantically, but I didn't see anything. I began running, I didn't know what I was running to or running from, I just ran. I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw hundreds of red eyes in front of me, I turned to see hundreds of glowing eyes behind me. I stood in the middle of both; my heart was pounding in my chest, without a second warning, I felt my body go limp as I fell to the ground...

I woke up in a cold sweat, I heard my brothers arguing downstairs, I growled under my breath and got up to yell at them. I went towards the yelling, but the strangest part was the argument was taking place in our dad's office. I was curious, why were they there? Were Dad and Jackson back already? I tried to listen in, but I couldn't make out everything they were saying, until, "We have to unite the wolves and the vampires." I froze...what did they mean 'unite'? I couldn't hear much else, I felt a hand on my shoulder, turning around, I saw Blake, he wore a grim expression on his face,

"What's going on?" I whispered, he looked at the door and knocked, the door swung open quickly; Jackson stood there, I ran in to hug him and Dad, but they didn't hug me back,

"How much did she hear?" Jackson asked Blake, I raised my eyebrow, why not ask me directly?

"Um, I'm right here." I stated, they all turned to me, "What did you mean by uniting the wolves and the vampires?" They all froze, looked at each other, then back at me. Dad looked back to Jackson,

"You should tell her; you will be Alpha next week."

"Next week? What happened to taking the rest of the year? What's going on?" I shouted, Jackson, came over to me, placing his hands on my shoulders,

"Sit down, Aiday."

"No." He heaved a heavy sigh,

"Dad let me speak with the King since I'll be the Alpha that the King will be having the treaty with if it goes through. At the meeting, he and I spoke for a while, and he told me about his people and his family. We both want the killing to stop, but" he froze for a moment, "To stop this, we need to unite us." It finally clicked, a werewolf would have to marry a vampire. I stepped back from him, shaking my head,

"Aiday," Dad muttered, I looked at him,

"It has to be a daughter of an Alpha and the Prince of the Vampires." Jackson finished. I felt like I had just been punched in the gut. I was racking my brain, thinking about all of the packs, and not one of the Alpha's had daughters, not one except...me...

The whole day, I was pacing the house like a crazy person, thinking about the conversation. I'd have to marry a vampire just to keep us from going to war. I'm only sixteen, but Jackson said that they've agreed to wait until I turned eighteen. I had to decide soon what I wanted to do, but I kept thinking about the nightmare I had; what was going to happen if I didn't marry him? Were those eyes the vampires and werewolves waiting for my decision? Who was whispering in the shadows? I felt my body grow weaker as I paced; I had to make a choice. It would be two years before I'd have to marry him, maybe I could come up with a plan to get out of it and save my pack and the other wolves. And what about my mate? I'd find him when I turned nineteen, what would he say?

I went to my Dad's office where he and Jackson were making plans for next week. They looked at me, trying to think of what I was going to say, but I made my decision, I took a breath and gave my answer, "I'll do it." I stated, I turned and walked away before they could say anything. I couldn't believe what I had just done. But I needed to protect my family. This decision will weigh on me for the next two years, maybe longer...

I paced my room, it had been two years since my father told me I would be marrying an Alpha's daughter. Even though I had never met her, I felt a strange connection to her, I couldn't put my finger on what it was. She was turning eighteen this weekend; I knew she had to hate the idea of an arranged marriage, it would surprise me if she didn't. I looked in my mirror, my ice blue eyes under my raven black hair drew the most attention; I wanted to look good for my fiance. There was a slight knock on my door, and my father walked in, "Son, are you ready?" I turned to face him,

"I'm nervous. I hate that this is how I'm getting married." I told him, but he sighed,

"Nicholas, son, you know the prophecy, the son of a king and the daughter of an Alpha. If this union isn't made, we return to a state of war. We already wasted enough time for the wolves wanting to wait until she turned eighteen." I glared,

"What if we don't want to be together?"

"Nicholas, we've been over this. Do you want to kill our people?" I looked to the ground and shook my head, "Okay then, let's go. You are expected at the Apha's house by this evening."

"Yes, Father." He walked out and one of the servants, Amy, walked in, "Amy, you're up late, did my dad tell you to help me?" she smiled lightly,

"Yes, your highness. His Majesty wants you to meet him in his office. I'm going to take your luggage to the car." I nodded,

"Okay, thank you. I'll see you Sunday evening." I told her as I walked out to go to the office. I knocked on the door then opened it to see my mother and father standing together.

"Nicholas, come in, we have something for you to give to your bride." Mother stated, they handed me a small box which I opened, it was a ring with a red diamond, "It's an engagement ring. We thought you could give it to her at her birthday party." I smiled,

"Thanks, I'm sure she'll love it. I better get going, love you." I hugged my mother and shook my fathers' hand then left. I saw Amy just outside the garage, "Thanks, Amy." I smiled, she bowed before heading off. My parents didn't allow many female servants or any; the only reason Amy was around is that she was gay. I went into the garage to find my cousin,

"Hey Nick, are you ready to go?" He asked,

"Rick, nice to see you, and yeah, I'm ready. Cool if I sit up-front with you?" he nodded and we got in the car. Rick cranked up the tunes as we pulled out and set out to our destination. As we drove, I let my mind wander to all of the questions I've been asking myself for the past two years.

We pulled up at the big house in the center of the town; it was nighttime, so it was safe for my cousin. We were met by the Alpha, his father, and three others. I stepped out of the car, as well as Rick, we walked up to them, I bowed lightly; I figured that Alpha's were the royalty of the werewolves for the packs, so why not? The Alpha stepped forward, "Prince Nicholas Serkan of the vampires, I am Jackson Alcmene, Alpha of the Silvermoon Pack." I shook his hand, "This is my father, and my brothers, Jeffery, Wesley, and Thomas " he motioned to his entourage, naming each of them, I nodded my head towards them,

"This is my cousin, Patrick Erkan," I motioned to Rick, he bowed his head as well,

"Thank you for allowing us to stay here for the weekend, we are greatly appreciative." Jackson chuckled lightly,

"It was our sisters' idea, she wants to get to know you." The shortest of the three brothers, Wesley, stated. I nodded,

"Where are my manners," Jackson said, "Please, come in." We all went inside the house, the moment we entered, I saw a girl with auburn brown hair with a streak of white, the second her eyes locked with mine, I was struck; those dark blue eyes. I watched her come down the stairs, her lightly tanned skin looked so delicate against her jeans and baby pink crop top. "Aiday, nice of you to join us. Come meet Prince Nicholas and his cousin."

"Please, just call me Nick," I said. Aiday walked right up to me, she looked me up and down like she was trying to decide whether to kill me or not. I was terrified of what she was thinking.

"I'm Aiday, I guess you're my fiance," Aiday said, kind of sad but she wasn't trying to show it.

We all sat down and talked for a while, I needed to get to know her better. I could feel her eyes on me, watching my every move like she's ready for me to do something wrong. Aiday got up from the table, "Let me show you where you'll be staying." Rick and I got up from the table,

"Have a goodnight, and thank you again," I told them before following Aiday upstairs. Aiday turned to face me when we got to the top of the stairs,

"Rick, your room is at the end of the hall to the left." he nodded and took his bag to his room, "Nick, yours is on the right, across from my room down this hall." she pointed to the opposite side of the hall, I smiled,

"Thank you, Aiday, for letting us come." she smiled lightly, but it went away quickly. She walked me to the room; when she opened the door, we went straight in as she gave me the tour,

"That's the bathroom and the guest's rooms only have wardrobes instead of actual closets." I opened the wardrobe; I glanced over towards the bed to see my bags, "I had the Beta bring up your bags; I made sure there were plenty of towels."

"Thanks," I said, trying my best to smile at her, but she seemed distant. "Oh, tomorrow's your birthday, right?" she raised an eyebrow,

"Yeah, why?" she asked, clearly curious, I started looking through my bags, trying to find her birthday present; when I finally found it, I handed it to her. She opened it to reveal a gold chain necklace with a ruby jewel. "This is beautiful, thank you."

"I wanted to do a silver chain but I know that silver hurts wolves so I got a gold chain instead." she blushed lightly, "Could I put it on you?" she nodded as she took it out of the box; I went behind her and latched the necklace. Clearing my throat, I stepped back from her as she turned around, "Beautiful," I muttered,

"I should let you get settled. Goodnight." Aiday walked out, shutting the door behind her. I smiled lightly as I started unpacking, after my stuff was put away, I decided to take a shower. The hot water hit my body while my thoughts began flowing like a flood: Aiday was so beautiful, I don't know what it is but there is just something about her. Once I was out and dressed, I laid down in the bed, allowing my thoughts to wash over me as I drifted off to sleep.

The morning was bustling with people getting ready for the party tonight. I quickly got dressed and went downstairs; Aiday was sitting at the counter eating breakfast. Taking a deep breath, I walked towards her, "Good morning, Aiday." she glanced over at me, then back at her pancakes,

"Good morning." I looked around seeing many women cooking in the kitchen, "They're going ahead and making dinner for tonight. My brother wanted tonight to be great since I have to get married." Hearing how sad she was when she said the last bit felt like a wooden stake to the heart, but it just encouraged me more to show Aiday who I was and prove that I could be good to her.

"What can I do to help?" Aiday looked up,

"You want to help?"

"Yeah, I'm a decent cook or I could help decorate. Just tell me what you want me to do." she raised an eyebrow,

"Fine, go ask the Beta's mate, Merissa, what needs to be done." She pointed over to a tall blonde woman with dark green eyes, "I'm about to go back to my room, maybe go for a run." I nodded,

"Okay, I'll see you later." she forced a small smile before I went over to Merissa; she looked at me, a bit scared but she hid it well, "Aiday told me to ask you what I could do to help, so, what can I do?" she raised a brow, staring me up and down, just like Aiday, I honestly wondered if they were related,

"Fine," she said, "You can help get in here to set up for the buffet." I smiled,

"Sure, thank you." I started helping some of the guys move furniture out of the way before setting up tables and decorating them. In a corner of the room, Merissa wanted a table for gifts, which I took care of; even going as far as hanging a sign that said gifts on it. Continuing to help, I could hear a lot of the others talking about me; my cousin was over talking to Thomas, seeming to be having a pleasant conversation.

I helped more where I could before the Alpha summoned me over to him. I went over quickly while untangling some fairy lights, "Alpha, is there something I can help you with?" I asked, trying to keep eye contact while pulling cords from the tangled ball,

"I wanted to see how your first day here is going? You'll be my brother-in-law one day soon, so it's time to start acting like it." I smiled, taking his hand, "Now then, I believe my father wanted to speak to you."

"Okay, let me just finish untangling these for the photo section. Merissa said that Aiday really wanted a photo booth so I wanted to fix this for her." I chuckled lightly,

"I'll let him know." Jackson turned to walk away, "Oh, and Nick, give Aiday some time; she always does what's best for her pack, even if she hates it. With this, though she's acting strong about it, she's angry and scared, just try to let her get to know you, she's been through a lot since the arrangement and we don't want to stress her out more."

"I understand; if I may be honest, I felt the same way. My father forced this upon me, not asking me if this is what I wanted, but like Aiday, I do what is best for my people." Jackson smiled lightly before walking away.

Once I had everything set up for photos I went on the hunt for Aiday's father. I found him sitting on a bench next to a little pond; he seemed lost in thought. I cleared my throat, he turned to face me, his face was slightly red and his eyes were puffy, "Nicholas, come sit." I did as he said,

"Mr. Alcmene, Jackson said that you wanted to speak to me?" He nodded,

"Yes, and please, call me Henry." I smiled lightly and nodded, his face seemed grim as he glanced back at the pond, "This is where I met my wife, where we shared our first kiss, where I asked her to marry me when we learned that we were mates." I listened carefully, hearing his voice begin to crack,

"You must have truly loved her," I said,

"I did. Aiday reminds me so much of her, just as spirited and hardheaded. My wife insisted that Aiday was born for a reason; she wasn't supposed to have any more children after the triplets due to it being a risk to her life, but about seven years later, she was pregnant again with Aiday." I sat there silent, unsure of his point, "The day Aiday was born was the happiest day of my life, because I had gained a beautiful daughter, with the deepest blue eyes, more so than the ocean itself, and Summer was alive. The moment she held her in her arms, she smiled and told me that Aiday would be intended for something truly amazing, and I never doubted her, not once."

"Wow, that's amazing," I said sincerely, but I was trying to figure out what he was trying to tell me; does it have something to do with Aiday? He sniffled then stood,

"Well now, you don't want to keep everyone waiting. Run along and get ready, I'll make sure everything is ready here."

"Thank you, sir, for everything," I told him, Henry shook my hand before I took off towards the house to get ready.

I paced around my room, pissed off to hell and back. How did they expect me to go through with this? How am I supposed to be happy with an arranged marriage? I could feel my wolf wanting to emerge and take control as I thought more and more about the prince and what was to become of my life. I slipped off my pale blue sundress and started the shower. I could feel the steam already; once I was completely naked, I hopped in, letting the water pierce my skin before washing my hair. I sighed, happy to relieve some of my stress.

For the past two years, I've been thinking of ways to get out of this nightmare with no prevail. I don't want to be the bride of a vampire; perhaps I could talk him into giving me another year? Doubtful. I hurried along with my shower then stepped out, wrapping a warm towel around my wet body.

Glancing out the window, I see my father talking to the man I'm to marry; I must admit, he was devilishly handsome. Brushing off that thought, I sat down at my vanity and started getting ready. There was a light knock on the door, "Come in," I called, Merissa walked in, shutting it quickly, "Merissa, is everything alright?" She came up behind me and grabbed my hairbrush and started brushing out my still wet hair,

"So, a penny for your thoughts?" I chuckled,

"What is it, Merissa?"

"What are you thinking about the prince? He is very handsome, and you should see everything he helped with downstairs; it's absolutely gorgeous." I groaned,

"I don't want to marry him. What about my mate? What is he to think when I find him? His mate, taken by a vampire." she sighed,

"Perhaps you're being a little tough on him. He seems to be a great man, maybe give him a chance to prove himself to you." I groaned, knowing she's right,

"Fine, I'll tone down my sassiness some." Merissa smiled and rubbed my shoulders then continued doing my hair. She braided half of my hair back before curling the bottom. Once that was done, I started doing my makeup while Merissa was going through my closet to find me a dress for tonight. I went with a smokey-eye with silver on my lids and a bold lip color; Merissa pulled out a royal blue dress with silver detailing which I paired with a set of strappy silver heels. After I was dressed, I looked in my mirror, truthfully, I almost didn't recognize myself,

"Now, for the finishing touch," Merissa put the necklace that Nicholas got for me around my neck, "Perfect." I smiled lightly, trying so hard not to cry.

"I miss my mom..." Merissa rubbed my arms then hugged me tightly,

"I know, honey, I know. Your mother was my best friend, and it breaks my heart whenever you or your brothers have these big milestones and she's not here for it." I wiped the tear that was beginning to rule down my face,

"Let's get going before they send a search party." We both laughed before we headed towards the party.

Everyone looked towards the stairs while I descended, so many eyes were on me. My father, brothers, and the prince stood at the bottom of the stairs; Nicholas came over when I was almost to the bottom and extended his hand. I looked at his face, though his face seemed gentle, his eyes said he was scared of what I might do next. Merissa was in the crowd and encouraged me to take his hand, groaning inside, I did. Seeing the small smile form on his face, I looked at everyone as they came up to me wishing me a happy birthday. It wasn't long until everyone was outside dancing on the dance floor my brothers set up; I soon joined, letting the music take control of my body. A slow song came on and everyone began partnering up, including Jackson; I smiled lightly before starting over to a table to sit, maybe drink some punch until, "Do you want to dance?" I turned my head to see Nick,

"I'm pretty tired already, I kind of just want to sit for a minute." He nodded his head,

"Can I get you anything?"

"I could use a drink, but I can get it myself." I went over to the punch bowl and fixed myself a cup; Nick pretty much stayed away from me, which surprisingly made me feel bad about how I've been treating him. It wasn't long until Jeffery came up beside me with a glass of whisky,

"Not dancing with the new boyfriend?" I gave him a glare and he put his arms up to defend himself, "I had to sis, chill." I sipped on my punch some more, "For real though, why aren't you dancing? This is your party after all; it's not right for the birthday girl not to dance the night away at her party."

"I don't know, Jeff; Nick asked me to dance but, with everything I'm being forced to do with him..." I didn't even have to finish my sentence before Jeffery pulled me into the tightest hug he could give me,

"Aiday, you may be forced to marry him, but that doesn't mean you'll have to sleep with him. And if he hurts you, I'll be right there to rip his head off." I chuckled lightly, but composed myself,

"I guess that's your way of telling me to give him a chance, huh?" Jeff smiled,

"Did it work?" I stared at Nick, who was trying to act funny for the children that were there. Gulping down the rest of my punch, I went over to Blake to request a slow song. He nodded, giving me a smirk, which earned him a 'quit it before I kill you' look.

I made it over to Nick just in time before the song started, I grabbed his hand and pulled him to the dance floor right as the soft melody started, "Well then, I guess we're dancing now." Nick laughed, I gave him a faint smile, "Your mind is in distress, will you confide in me?" He asked as he twirled me around and pulled me back so my back was against him and his hand was just above my hip,

"How much will my life change after we're married? Will I have to become a vampire? How would that even work?" My mind raced through hundreds if not thousands of questions; Nick placed a finger over my mouth, shushing me,

"I can't answer so many questions at once, but let me try." He stated as he twirled me out again and back into him, this time, I faced him and his hand landed softly on the small of my back, I tensed slightly as my face flushed. Nick noticed and smirked slightly, "Your life will change greatly, but I'll do what I can to make it seem normal to you. No, you won't have to become a vampire, unless you want to; if you did, the way we'd do it is in private the first time, but when you finally turned there would be a ceremony. Does that answer your questions?" I nodded, I still had more but just those few answers were enough for now.

"Can I be honest though?" He nodded, "We need time to plan a decent wedding, so maybe we should be engaged for a year before we get married." Nick gave me a look,

"You want to wait until you turn nineteen, so you can find your mate, don't you?" I shrank down a bit, too scared to answer, "My parents are not going to like this..." I sighed,

"Okay, how soon are we going to be married?" I asked him sadly, I heard him sigh,

"I'll grant you your year. But, I have a few conditions, are you willing to listen to them?" I nodded as the song came to an end, we stepped away and bowed to each other, "I'll have my cousin draw up a contract that we will discuss over tomorrow. There is one thing,"

"Okay, what is it?" Nick pulled out a box,

"My parents gave me this to give to you tonight, may I propose to you tonight?" I held my breath for a moment, trying to think everything through,

"If I say yes, will we go over the contract tomorrow?" He nodded,

"Do I have your permission?" I nodded slightly, "Alright, I'll wait a little while longer so you can be somewhat surprised. I want this to be special for you, even if you don't want to marry me." I nodded as we walked away from each other.

The night went on, Nick and I danced a few more times and did gifts, Dad and Jackson stayed by my side for most of the night. My anticipation rose every time Nick came around thinking he was about to propose but each time, he didn't. It was nearing the end and the next thing I knew, I was being pulled on the stage, confused, I stared at the crowd of people, just then, Nick came up on stage with a microphone in hand; this was it. This was the moment I have been dreading, "Aiday Silvia Alcmene, I know this is just an arranged marriage but I want to be there for you, no matter what. I want you to have everything you've ever wanted. I know this is very sudden, but," he pulled out the box and opened it, revealing a gorgeous ring with a ruby red diamond, "will you marry me?" The crowd of people was waiting for me to answer; turning my attention back to Nick, I held out my left hand,

"Yes." That is all I said; everyone cheered as Nick placed the ring on my finger. When Nick got up, he grabbed my hands and kissed my cheek, he then whispered in my ear,

"I already talked to Rick, he's drawing up the papers as we speak, and I spoke to your brother and we have the office tomorrow morning at eleven to discuss everything. If you need anyone to look over the contract, feel free to do so." I nodded. We walked down together and everyone was congratulating us on our way out. I yawned, clearly exhausted, "Here, let me take you to your room so you can sleep." I nodded, he held my hand, walking me to my room. Reaching my door, he opened it and let me go inside.

"Thank you, Nick. Goodnight." He kissed my cheek,

"Goodnight, Princess." I closed the door and stripped from my dress and heels and took off my jewelry. Slipping on some shorts and a tank top, I grab my notebook and a pen and headed over to the window, deciding to write to my mother again,

'Hey Mom, it's my eighteenth birthday. One more year and then I'll find my mate, but I'm not sure how that will work because I'm engaged; I'm engaged to the vampire prince... Everyone tells me that the match is mandatory, but what am I supposed to do? What will my mate think of me being with a vampire?' I sighed and looked at the diamond, 'At least he has good taste in jewelry. The ring is gorgeous.' I doodled a picture of the ring in great detail, 'Anyways, it's late, I'm going to go to bed, I love you, Mom and I miss you.' After I closed the notebook, I crawled into bed, trying to wrap my head around everything as I drifted off to sleep.