The Demon Lord's Lover
Chapter 12

The look on his face was of shock, adoration, and a bit of concern. Dante pulls me closer to kiss me softly and deeply; he cups my face and looks in my eyes, opens his mouth to say something but then changes his mind. “Dante, say it.” He shakes his head. “Not now, come let us go see Marco.” He leads me down the hall until we reach the red door; he presses his hand on the door, it glows and opens.”

How did he use magic? He holds my hand as we walk down the stairs. At the bottom, Marco’s chained to the wall in the back. “Ah, Naila! How nice of you to join me. Will you let me have a taste? Or does Dante not want to share what doesn’t belong to him?” I don’t answer.

We get closer, and I thought that Marco would look deranged, but he looks the same as the day I met him. “I see you let him mark you. His scent is all over you, but I am sure your blood is as sweet as honey.” He licks his lips and sits on the bed. His ‘room’ is surprisingly neat for a prisoner; he even has a fridge. Dante grabs us both a chair, and we sit. “Okay, Marco, enough of the bullshit.”

“Have you given any thought to what I offered you the other day?” Dante says, placing his hand on my thigh. I fidget a bit and shoot him a look. Marco glares at Dante. “I will do what you want if you let me have a taste of her, and I am not talking about her blood. You marked her without letting me have a chance, but she was my mate too.” I hold my hand up. “Before you guys go any further, don’t speak about me like I am an object, and don’t talk about me like I’m not sitting right here.” Dante sits back.

“Just let me go; I won’t bother you or her.” Marco’s face suddenly became serious. “After you marked her, the blood lust I had for her dwindled, though I am sure she still has unique blood, I wouldn’t want to be near her or you. Selfish bastard.” Dante sighs and looks over at me. “What do you think we should do about him?”

I blink, a bit shocked that he would want my input in this matter. “Apart from trying to suck my blood, I don’t have an issue with him. But I don’t know him or what he plans to do if we let him go now.” Dante ponders for a moment. “Fine, we will let you go.” Dante walks up to Marco and releases his chains; Marco rubs his wrists. His eyes are on me; I instantly feel uneasy. “Don’t worry, I won’t bite you; Dante already got you good.”

He eyes my neck, and a flicker of sadness crosses his face briefly. “Well, I hope to see you soon.” And with that, Marco disappears into a cloud of black smoke. “What was that? Where did he go?” Dante grabbed my hand and led me out of the basement. We entered the main living room and sat down; he looked bothered.

“What is it, what is on your mind?” I asked him as soon as we sat down. “I hope Marco doesn’t do anything stupid; I don’t want to have to be the one to kill him.” I rub his arm, trying to console him. “So, how did it taste?” I asked, trying to change the topic. Dante looked at me, confused.

“What are you talking about?” I point to my neck, and he smiles. “It tasted delightful; I mean, I don’t go around sucking people’s blood but compared to mine, yours is very sweet, and it’s like an aphrodisiac to me.”

His eyes darken as he recalls our romp in the living earlier on. “Do you feel different? Stronger?” I asked, wondering how long it would take for my blood actually to take effect on someone. But Dante shrugs, “I don’t feel particularly different from before, but maybe that’s because I have to drink more, but I don’t want to hurt you or drain you of your energy.” I reveal my neck to him.

“I want you to try some more.” Dantes’s eyes widen at my sudden proposal. He shakes his head in disapproval. “What did I say? Do you not listen to me?” I let out an exaggerated sigh. “It is going to be fine; it’s just a trial. Plus, if I start to feel dizzy or anything, I will let you know; you won’t hurt me if that’s what you are worried about.” Dante makes a face I can’t quite read. “I am not a vampire, so it might not even work on me. It might not have lasting effects.” I sit in his lap and pull my dress off.

“You won’t know until you try, and it doesn’t hurt, so that has to be a good sign, right?” I slowly grind on him, and he growls, gripping my legs. “Naila, stop. We can’t do this now. Let’s get something to eat first, then see how you feel. I am sure your body needs more rest.” His darkened eyes have me stilled in his piercing gaze. What is wrong with me? I’m like a horn dog. I sigh, getting off of him and take a seat next to him.

“You do care about me, huh?” I put my dress back on. “Baby, I do not deny you, but we have been so busy today, and I think that you should eat. I want to make sure that you are healthy. Even though we got sidetracked today, it doesn’t mean that your training is out the window; we still have to do it tomorrow. But tonight, I want you to stretch cause tomorrow we are going to work on your patience.”

He pulls his phone out and sends a quick text. “I am going to have the maids come and bring us some food.” I shoot my head up at him. “Wait, you have maids?” He nods slowly. “Who the hell did you think kept this house clean when I was away on business trips or going to the underworld?” I open my mouth to ask him if he can take me, but he speaks before I can even say anything.

“No, not right now as you are, that would be asking for death. You need to be able to take on someone at least a bit stronger than your friend to go to the underworld. Ah, that gives me a good idea, invite her over to help with your training. She should have something to teach you if she can call herself a demon.”

The way he speaks about Amber is low, I wish he would stop, but I guess that’s in his nature. “Dante, why are you speaking about her like that?” Dante shrugs. What an asshole. I frown at him. “Fine, whatever. I realize I don’t know anything about you. How old are you?” He thinks for a bit. “I would say about 500 years old.” My jaw drops. “Are you serious?” He looks at me and nods.

“Don’t be so surprised; your father was 200 when he met your mother.” Another question comes to mind. “Have you had any other mates beside me?” This question makes him stiffen. “I have….” I squint my eyes at him.

“But…?” At that moment, his phone chimes, and Dante gets up and walks to the door, I’m assuming to get the food. What the hell? I get up and follow after him; he isn’t going to be able to run away that easy. He motions me to sit at the table, and he sits next to me.

Two people handle the food and portion it out for us—Korean bulgogi with rice and broccoli. After our food is served, the maids see themselves out. We eat in silence, after a few minutes, I drop my spoon with a clink! “Dante, how many other mates did you have?” He ponders for a bit. “I don’t know, a lot.” I swallow. “Where are they?” He slowly puts his fork down. “They are dead.” Dante then looks at me with a cold gaze. “Before you ask, I’ll answer for you. I killed them, all of them.”