Cold Hands Warm Heart (A Vampire Fan Fiction) - Harry Styles

Chpater 5• Holy Heart

Carolina's POV

I turned to him, my eyes meeting his. "I am glad that you have not met anyone like her," I confessed, "for it is a shame to say that I have." His brows furrowed in a charming show of pure adoration, even as he was lost in a fog of confusion.

"Who is it, my love?" he asked, his voice a gentle, familiar song. My heart swelled at the sound of his term of endearment. It had only been two days since our estrangement, and yet I had missed him so. He was my last, my final piece to complete the intricate puzzle of my heart. A foolish doubt crept into my mind—had I been too demanding? Had I asked for too much, and had he grown weary of me, a mere princess with no life outside her gilded cage? I banished the thoughts at once. This was no time for foolish doubts.

But a whisper of a voice in my mind answered: So simple that he hurts you so much you just want to die right then and there.

I answered him anyway, "You." The word hung in the air, a final surrender. At once, he pushed me gently against the wall, his hands finding purchase on my waist. His delicate fingers began to trace a path up and down my sides, a careful, deliberate touch even through the thick fabric of my ball gown. It was a silent message, a promise that he would never leave me for that other girl. It was a simple touch, but the feeling it evoked was more than I could bear.

His emerald eyes, now more vibrant than ever, bore into my own. He licked his lips, and I bit mine in a rush of nervousness. "The things you want me to do are more sinful than my unwitting mistake, Carolina. Your innocence gives me the power to make you feel as though you have been touched by the sun," he said, his voice a low, husky whisper.

My chest heaved. "W-We cannot," I reminded him, a sudden embarrassment seizing me.

He smirked. "Oh, we shall not be doing that today, my love. I respect your decision. But after our wedding..." My heart soared at his words. My arms found their way around his neck, pulling him closer until our lips were but a breath apart.

"Please, come back to me," I whimpered.

That was all it took. He kissed me then, a slow, passionate kiss that I had only dreamed of. "I want you to know that I need you so much," he said, breathless, his voice filled with a desperate longing. "I love you so much." Our lips moved in sync, our arms and hands tightening around one another, our clothes the only barrier between us. When we could no longer breathe, we pulled apart, our foreheads resting against one another.

I opened my eyes and saw that he had been waiting. "J'taime," he murmured. The words, so familiar, brought me back to the night we had first met. It was a cherished memory.

"J'taime," I said back, a soft smile on my face. It had become our word. And I would do nothing to change it.

We laughed at the sight of ourselves—our disheveled clothes, our breathless states. We were back together, a puzzle once more made whole.

~

The peace did not last. We descended the stairs to a scene of absolute chaos. The furniture was overturned, the drapes torn, and scattered upon the floor were the four gentlemen, bruised and bloodied. "What in God's name has happened here?" I gasped.

Harry rushed to Liam's side, demanding to know what had occurred, but Liam would not answer. I called for Aunt Colette to bring the first-aid kit, and she returned at once. I knelt beside Niall and Zayn, my hands trembling as I tended to their wounds. Harry did the same for Liam and Louis. When all of their injuries were bound and the room had been put back into some semblance of order, we settled them upon the couches.

"Could you please tell me what on earth has happened here?" I asked. I received only a groan of pain from Liam, who sat up.

"With all due respect, Princess," he said, "I have my own will to speak." I pursed my lips, but I felt Harry's hand settle on my lower back, his fingers moving in a soothing circle. I gave Liam a small nod, and he offered a weak smile in return.