CAPTIVE by the Prince

Chapter Five

"Now what?!" Ana demanded when Ivan finally faced her in the dimly lit corridor a few meters away from the throne room entrance. He said he wanted to speak with her. But all he did was to stand there in front of her with a murderous look in his eyes. She crossed her arms across her chest and tapped her foot. "I'm waiting."

"Don't you ever disrespect me in front of the elven king and queen," he grated.

"Well, you started it!" Ana answered back. "Weren't you the one who declared to the entire world how you find me lacking? And there was no need for you to announce to everyone that you don't want to marry me because, frankly, I don't want to marry you either!"

"We have no say against what was made and agreed on hundreds of years ago."

"Oh, now you're telling me that?! And besides, if everything here is for real and those people are my family then that makes me a vampire. And where have you ever encountered a vampire marrying an elf, huh? What will happen to our children? Half and a half? Half-vampire, half-elf? And what do we call them? Vampelf? Elfire? Fangs with pointy ears?!"

To Ana's astonishment, Ivan's scowl turned into a smirk. Gone was the murderous look in his eyes. Instead, he was wearing an expression that Ana had never expected the elf to wear. The corner of his lips tilted to one side. This was not how she was expecting the elf to react.

Ana took a step back. Ivan took a step forward. She stepped back again and realized she made a mistake when cold hard marble met her back. He stepped forward and braced an arm on the pillar behind her, just above her head. He then looked at her and said, "A while ago you said you don't want to marry me. But all this time you were thinking of making babies with me."

"I am not thinking of having sex with you!"

"I don't know what you meant earlier by 'awesome abs' but do you really think I'm not man enough for you?" he said softly, his voice making her heart quicken its beat. Damn this heart!

"Yes! Now move!" she said, shoving him away in the chest with her palm.

Only what Ana did was a mistake. Ivan didn't even move an inch and he easily caught her hand. "I think I am man enough for you." He pressed her palm across his hard chest, covered her hand with his, and slowly slid her palm down to his hard rock abs. He was still staring intently at her eyes while he continued to guide her hand to explore his abdomen.

Ana could feel the heat coming from Ivan. And all she could do was to stare back into the elf's amber eyes and feel the warmness of his body through her palm. She tried to remove her hand from his body but his hold on her was too tight. And Ana was starting to feel something she had never felt before—a feeling she was afraid to feel for it might rule over her mind and body.

With Ivan guiding her hand, her palm slid down further, lower still, until she felt his sword belt, and still, he was guiding her hand lower. This was not right. Not at all. If this continues... Ana shook her head and used all her energy to force herself to escape her trance. Once she succeeded, she pulled her hand away from him. Ana was about to shove him away from her again when Ivan pushed his body against her, trapping her between the cold pillar and his massive wall of a body. He lowered his lips near her ear, and she felt his warm breath that sent a shiver down her spine.

"I could be more... more than what you needed me to be," he whispered in her ear. He traced the lines of her ear with his lips and all Ana could do was to stand there and savor that incredible feeling that made her knees queasy. His tongue darted into her ear making her feel another pool of sensation right there down below her belly. And she let out a sharp gasp when she felt something bulging hard pressed against her belly while his lips roamed down her neck.

Before she could give in to that incredible pleasure arousing from deep within her, she shoved him forcefully on his chest. He staggered a little backward, giving Ana enough access for escape. She stepped away from him and tried to glare at him. "You—you fickle-minded elf! Yesterday you wanted to murder me, a while ago you hated me and now, you're trying to seduce me? Make up your mind, will you?!"

Ivan gave her a smug look. "Were you seduced?"

Yes, she was. She definitely was. "No!"

"Liar. Your body tells otherwise."

"You can't just do those things to me! You hate me, remember?" she said.

"My heart and soul might hate you, but my body doesn't. In fact, it's been reacting strangely to you since I saw you in the meadow."

"You creep! You've been lusting after me all this time? You disgust me!" It was a lie of course. Ana wasn't repulsed by Ivan. As a matter of fact, she enjoyed having Ivan's body near her, but she would never admit that to him.

Ivan squared his shoulders and looked at her as if seeing her for the first time. "I think I'm going to have you as my wife, just to spite you and Kristoff."

"Oh no, you won't! I'm out of here," she said then turned around and stormed away from him.

"Where are you going?" he demanded, following her from behind.

"To my family; away from yo—ahh!" her sentence was cut off when Ivan slung her body unceremoniously over his shoulder, her buttocks pointing upwards, her face on his back, and her feet dangling across his chest. "PUT.ME.DOWN!" she exclaimed while she sent her fist hitting his back.

When she flailed her hands, he swatted her buttocks hard. "Seize it vampire!" he commanded.

"That hurts you freak!" she said as she massaged her buttocks. Really now, he slapped her behind so hard it felt like steel hit her.

When they were in the throne room, Ivan settled her on her feet. Ana was mortified that everyone, including her parents and Kristoff, witnessed the way Ivan carried her as if she was a sack of rice to be delivered. Her face even went deeper red when she saw the throne room was now occupied with several elven court ladies and gentlemen, giving her an insulting smile.

Ana stepped near her mother and Ivan strode towards the dais and faced the vampire delegates. "I have spoken with your daughter. I will accept her as my wife. However, I'd advise you to convince her to take her part in the betrothal."

"Excellent!" the elven king said. "Now my servants will show the princess her new chambers."

"We will bring her home to our kingdom now," the vampire king stated.

Ivan scowled at the vampire king. "She will not leave the elven kingdom. Not now. Not ever. Not until we have been wed. I don't trust you to bring her here back in time for the wedding. She stays here." He pointed his finger on the floor for emphasis.

Ana was stricken to realize all this animosity and heated arguments were because of her. Her mother gently grasped her hand and said soothingly, "It's alright my dear. You have nothing to fear. Your family will protect you."

All Ana could do was to give her mother a nod and make a silent prayer for her to keep her sanity. She was a vampire about to marry an elf. This news was enough for any normal female mortal to break her sanity.