Married To The Mad Vampire Lord

He had expected her to refuse it because it belonged to a lowlife like him, but instead, she reached for it. Their fingers grazed in the process, cool against cool, a fleeting contact that still made him tense. He quickly pulled his hand back, as though the touch had caught him off guard. Muttering a quiet thank you, she wiped at her eyes and cheeks.

"He's such a strange baby..." she remarked, turning to look at the child, who was now staring at them both with a blank, almost unimpressed expression. His small brows drew together slightly, as if offended at being placed on the bed like that, where he had nearly lost his balance and almost toppled back onto the mattress.

Angel gave a soft, displeased huff; he did not like being handled in such a way, and he turned his eyes toward Rav, the one who had handled him like that.

"Yes, he is," Rav agreed, his voice calm, though his gaze lingered on Evenly a moment longer than necessary before he turned them to the baby.

"Mama..." Angel said suddenly, his small voice breaking the silence. His lower lip trembled faintly as his gaze drifted toward the door, eyes full of longing. He wanted to leave these two and go back to his mama.

"I think he wants to return to his mother," Evenly murmured as she moved to lift him into her arms again. "Should I take him to her?"

"No. Master said to bathe him and feed him. He is to spend the day with you."

"You mean with both of us?" she corrected, narrowing her eyes. She could clearly see how much Rav was trying to avoid being with the baby, and how, only moments ago, he had quickly put him down on the bed like one would handle a dirty child.

"I have work to do, my lady. Even if I were to pretend to be your husband and the baby's father, it is your job to be with him always, not mine. It is you who will have to keep him close in Aragonia. I don't see why I should be here to watch you bond. If you'll excuse me, I will send Gwen with his bathwater and attires."

He turned to leave, eager to escape being close to either the baby or the woman, but her displeased voice stopped him in his tracks.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but men are big fools, and you are a bigger one," she scoffed. "If you're going to pretend to be a father, then make it convincing. It's not only a mother's job to look after a baby. He's not even your son, and yet you avoid the responsibility like a plague, running away with your tail between your legs.

"You know what? I don't even need you around. Just go. I will do my best to convince the people of Aragonia of what a good mother I am. I don't need another senseless man around me. Get out of my room." She spoke in a calm voice that somehow carried more authority than if she had shouted.

It was already a disaster that she would have to pretend to be a wife, a role she had come to despise after what Josh had done to her, the way he had hurt and broken her heart. But to make matters worse, the man she would be pretending was her husband seemed to have something against an innocent baby and believed it was solely a woman's responsibility to do everything when it came to raising a child.

Josh had carried that exact mindset. He had only wanted a son to carry his name because his father would not allow him to inherit the family wealth without one. She had overlooked all the things he had said about her being the one to do everything for their unborn child when it arrived, because she had loved him then, and had thought he didn't actually mean it when he made comments like:

"I will hardly be in that baby's life when he's born because of my busy work, but I will expect you to teach him to carry our family name on his sleeves and to respect me. Start learning to be the woman of the house from now on and a mother by spending less time with friends and attending tea parties. Your place is with your husband and son, it's your responsibility."

How unfortunate that she would now have to be a pretend wife to another lunatic. Men, Evenly thought with disgust, were the worst beings in the world. She would never be foolish enough to trust such kinds ever again.

"I said get out," she gritted when Rav hesitated at the door. The look in her eyes finally made him turn and leave.

___

By the morning, when the people in the Duke's castle were preparing for their journey tomorrow, words had spread of rogues attacking three noble homes in Nightbrook, killing every single person in the houses. Normally, the rogues had attacked common houses and humans; this was the first time in a year they had attacked the elite vampires who were pure-bloods.

The news put fear in many's hearts, as it was a clear sign they were no longer safe from these creatures anymore, like they had believed. However, the ones most affected by the deaths of these vampire families were Cordelia, who had relied on them to do her bidding since her rise to power, and Mr. Clifton, who came to her house that morning to break the news to her.

Cordelia did not appreciate being disturbed early in the morning, especially before she had woken up. Mr. Clifton had dared to send one of the maids to wake her from her beauty sleep when he was informed she was not yet awake. Knowing she was not a morning person, particularly after spending all night at her tea party, he still insisted she be disturbed.

Cordelia came out angry, fully intending to deal with the stupid human for having no sense or consideration for her rest, but when she found him pacing worriedly in her parlor, her anger eased into irritation.

"What are you doing here, Mr. Clifton? You know how much I need my sleep in the mornings to regain my energy and—" she had begun to say as she walked into the parlor with a frown, but he turned around and said,

"They are all dead, Cordie!"

Not understanding what he meant, who was dead, and why the hell it should concern her, and since when she had started to care about who lived or died, Cordelia moved to sit down on the sofa.

To show just how little she cared about other people's lives, she called for a servant and ordered her morning blood tea to be brought. Only then did she turn to face Mr. Clifton and, with a bland tone of disinterest, inquire, "Who died?"