Devour (10 page)

This is very real.
Cody is
the one
. We are meant to mate.

I’m not sure how long we’
re standing there before the Moment shatters. We hear Hannah asking everyone if they have seen Cody recently. Great, now I have to deal with Hannah. Cody, however, has other plans.

My fangs have finally
disappeared but my eyes are still bright. I’m not sure what he has planned, other than the fact that he has pulled me into the corner next to the door so we are out of sight from inside.

I think I like his idea.
He gazes at me through molten, amber eyes with need and desire. I almost blush under his scrutiny. He presses me against the stone wall and places his mouth on mine again.

Cody’
s like a drug. Now that I’ve had him, I need him. I return the kiss with more passion and desire than the last kiss held. I want to melt into him right here. His breathing increases and I let out a moan as he nips at my lip.

I feel the blood well up, but don’t pull away.
He tastes my blood and lets out a strangled noise of desire. I run my fingers through his hair and wait for what he is going to do next. He softly licks the wound closed and plants a slow, tender kiss on my lips.

When I open my eyes, I see that our eyes are still very much alight and burning with desire for one another.
Both of us are breathing heavily and all I can spit out is “wow.”

“Mm hmm, wow about covers it,” he replies lazily.

He pulls me towards himself and wraps his arms around me in a gentle embrace. There is silence between us for quite some time before I speak up.

I whisper against his neck, next to his ear.
“So what happens now?”

I feel his heart speed up and then he leans into my ear until he is touching the rim and making me shiver, in a good way.

“That’s up to you, princess. If I had it my way, we would be mated tonight, but I don’t want to push you. You’re amazing and I would be the luckiest guy in the world to have you.”

“I’m pretty sure we have already performed all the prerequisites for the mating ritual tonight with the bloodletting.
You are like my drug, Cody. I couldn’t walk away from you now if I tried. I would very much like to be mated with you.”

Pure happiness spread
s across his features as he pulls me up and swings me around in delight. I giggle in response. I want to savor this Moment forever. I have found my meant to be, my true mate.

However, h
appily ever after isn’t quite ours to grasp just yet. We’re very rudely interrupted at that Moment.

“Put her down
, Cody. Come along. I want to introduce you to my parents. I’m sure we can convince them that we deserve to be mated,” Hannah says snidely.

My face
goes red with rage and I want to knock that pretty, little head off her shoulders. I would have, too, if Cody hadn’t held me back and shook his head no. I back down, but remain on alert.

“
I’m sorry, Hannah, but we won’t be mated together. I’ve already found my mate and it’s Callie.”

“Nonsense, we’
re perfect for each other. Now, let’s go. I don’t want to keep my parents waiting.”

“No!
I’m not going anywhere with you,” he says more firmly. “I don’t think you’re hearing me. I’m mating with Callie. There’s no you and me. Go find another guy to drag to your parents. There are plenty of them here.”

Hannah
finally gets it and starts to pout. Oh, for heaven’s sake! “But they aren’t you, Cody! I want you!”

She looks like a two-year-
old having a temper tantrum in a pretty dress. I want to laugh, but I’m too angry about her crashing in on my Moment.

Cody finally ignores her and turns to me.
He pulls me forward and kisses my forehead. I grin ear to ear. Then he winds his hand in mine and we make our way around a very unhappy Hannah and back into the ball.

We vaguely hear her calling after Cody, but we just ignore
her.

“Do you think we should celebrate with a drink?” I ask him.

He snatches two drinks from a nearby waiter and hands me one. “To new beginnings and happiness for the rest of our lives,” he toasts as we clink the glasses together.

I’
m so happy. I don’t even need the blood high, but it’s welcomed nonetheless. I swallow the contents of my glass and wait for Cody to finish his. When he’s done, he grabs both of our glasses and sets them on a nearby empty table.

“Come on, we need to find Lord Dominique to make it official.
Then we can tell our families.”

I smile and grasp his hand tighter.
We’re really doing this. We’re going to initiate the blood bond tonight. The thought sends a thrill of excitement through me as we weave our way through the crowd of curious onlookers.

We finally reach a small
, closed off room at the end of the ballroom, next to the staircase. Cody knocks loudly and we wait for permission to enter.

When the door opens, we are face to face with Lord Dominique himself.

“Well, Callie and Cody; what brings you to me tonight?”

“We wish to be mated
, sir.”

He looks from me to Cody and then back again.
“If you’re sure, come on in and shut the door behind you. Please, have a seat at my desk.”

Excitemen
t races through me and I’m having a hard time keeping myself in check. Cody’s touch is the only thing grounding me right now.

“Initiating a mating is serious.
There is no going back once the bond is started. I just need you both to be aware of this. This is forever binding.”

“We are aware and very excited to do this,” I say as I smile at Cody with more love and respect than I thought I could muster up for another person
, especially after such a short amount of time. I mean, I have known him forever, just not like this.

“I agree. We’
re ready,” Cody adds.

“Fair enough
, let me get the tools and we’ll get started. Face the chairs toward each other while I’m gathering supplies and ensuring our privacy. This is a very sacred ritual.”

We do as we’re told and I squeeze both of Cody’s hands in excitement.
He takes advantage of the situation and leans forward for a quick kiss. It reminds me why I am here and I become more excited, if it’s even possible.

Soon, Lord Dominique returns, setting various things on the desk.
Then he goes to task preparing us. He ties our left hands together with silver infused rope to test our sincerity. It hurts like hell, but I know it has to stay on until the completion of the ritual. We are able to heal quickly, so it’s just the pain we have to endure.

Then
, on our right hands, he must give us the mating seal. He heats the seal up with a flame and then dips it into the red ink. I am to go first. I give him my wrist face up and wait for the pain to come. He lines the seal up with the base of my wrist and then stamps it down in one swift motion.

At first, I want to pull my hand away from the pain.
Lord Dominique holds it firmly in place and soon the pain dissipates. When he finally removes the seal, I am left with a family crest. The crest belonging to the vampires is tattooed on my wrist. I am officially a mated member of the community.

I look up at Cody and grin.
He looks back at me with desire and determination. Lord Dominique repeats the process on Cody. He takes it admirably. There was no expression of pain and he remains stoic throughout the entire process.

Lord Dominique wipes the remaining ink off
each of us with an alcohol pad. Now it is time for the words.

“Cody will go first.
Please repeat after me. I, Cody Gregoria, pledge the mate bond to you, Callie Andell. I will go to the ends of the earth, heaven and hell for our love.”

Cody enthusiastically repeat
s the words and then it is my turn. “I, Callie Andell, pledge the mate bond to you, Cody Gregoria. I will go to the ends of the earth, heaven and hell for our love.”

“
Great, now repeat after me together. May our houses be forever unified and our love never quantified.”

We both repeat
the promise and wait for the last part of the ritual. “You may kiss your mate-to-be and untie each other’s bonds.”

Cody’s lips sizzle against mine as I return
his kiss. With my right hand, I manage to untie the rope and have it off of him in a matter of seconds. I toss my end to the ground and wait for the rest of mine to be untied.

My rope c
omes off just after I fling his end to the floor. Relief settles into me and I deepen the kiss by taking my rope burned hand and wrapping it around Cody’s neck. He does the same and it feels like there is no one else in the world but us.

“I now pronounce you mates and may the remainder of this process go smoothly for the two of you.”

The mating is a seven day process. Our bond will grow stronger by the day until we unite on the seventh day, sealing our union. Because of the temptation that comes with the mating process, we have to be chaperoned for any time spent together until the seventh day.

A mating is a very private affair.
We don’t have weddings like humans do. Our bonds are formed in private, making the whole process very intimate and special.

We stand up and thank Lord Dominique for his help.
Then, hand in hand, we exit the room and shut the door behind us.

N
ow we have to announce it. It’s already obvious because we just came from the ritual room, but our parents will want to hear it from us never the less.

“Let’s tell your parents first, then we can bring them over to tell mine,” I say to Cody.

He leans over and kisses me on the cheek and I beam.
Then he tugs me towards the other side of the room where his parents are mingling. When we reach them, hand in hand, all conversation in the vicinity comes to a halt.

Thankfully
, the DJ starts up some pop beat and it covers up our drama. I look up at Mrs. Gregoria and grin like a child. I’m so over-the-moon happy, nothing can ruin this for us.

“Oh
, dear, I see you two have started the mating. I’m so happy for you both. This is definitely a cause for celebration. I can’t imagine it happening to two better people.”

I let a little breath of relief escape me.
I’m so glad Mrs. Gregoria accepts me. I’ll be part of her family after this. Our families will forever be united. I look over at Mr. Gregoria and he pulls me into a hug. I thank him and step back, into Cody’s arms.

“We still have to tell my parents.
Would you guys like to accompany us?” I ask them.

“It would be our honor.
This is simply wonderful news,” Mrs. Gregoria gushes as she proudly follows us across the ballroom and towards my parents.

My parents are already suspicious that something is up.
I can see it in their eyes. However, I can’t help but be thankful for the look of surprise and pure joy that crosses their faces as they see Cody and I, hand in hand.

Our marks are clearly visible and my mother pulls me from Cody’s grip to fold me into a hug.
My Dad pulls Cody forward and shakes his hand.

“Cody, it’
s great to have you in our family. You will be a welcome addition to our part of the royal line.”

“Thank you
, sir. I couldn’t be any happier to have found my true mate.”

“You guys are true mates?
We don’t come across them very often. Are you quite sure?” my mother asks skeptically.

I wonder if she thought at first that I just picked a mate to make her happy.
I will definitely have to rectify that misconception.

“Yes
Mom, we are true mates. I am positive. We even tested our theory and it is in fact correct.”

Tears beg
in to form in my mother’s eyes. My Dad has to turn his attention to comforting her.

“I’m so
sorry. I just never thought my daughter would get the chance to experience such a wonderful phenomenon in her lifetime.”