-Lydia's POV-
For some reason, I felt a warm softness underneath me instead of the cold hard ground I had grown used to. Blinking my eyes open, I saw a blurry vision of someone laying next to me. I took a deep breath and breathed in the familiar scent of pine after a rainfall. It took but a brief moment for my vision to clear and confirm I was not dreaming. Although, I still reached my hand to his chest just to be sure. He smiled when I looked up into his eyes. "Yes, Lydia, I am real." The tears then flowed freely and I tilted my head against his chest. I felt his arms pull me closer to him, holding me tighter as he let me spill out my emotions. I deeply missed being with him close to me, and though I knew he would find me, there was still a small part of me that feared I would never feel his touch, smell his scent, or hear his voice again. There I was safe in his arms, and my heart was suddenly filled and overflowing with joy and relief.
After several minutes of sobbing, I was able to stop crying and ask Peter what happened. He told me every detail from the moment they realized who took me to hearing my voice call his name, and finally to the moment Jacob breathed his last breath. "So my mother was right," I confirmed out loud. "Your mother?" Peter asked in confusion. I then told him everything that happened with my mom appearing and where we were that my mind came up with in order to protect itself, along with everything she told me. "Oh, Lydia, I am so sorry you lost your family." "It saddens me, but at the same time, it's okay because I know they are in a better place now. A place where there is no more suffering." "I wish I could have had the chance to meet them." "They would have loved you," I told him. Peter lifted his hand to move strands of my hair out of my eyes. I sighed as I closed my eyes, content with the feel of his touch. With his hand on my cheek, I raised my hand to place over his. I looked up into his eyes and confessed how much I missed him.
He smiled and kissed my head. The cool touch of his lips on my skin sent heat waves throughout my entire body. I stared into those gorgeous green eyes I loved so much, wondering what he was going to say or do next. With a sudden pained look on his face, he spoke gently, pleading, "Lydia, please forgive me for not being there when you needed me most." "Peter,... I," I started to say, shaking my head. "No, please let me get this out," he said as he sat up and pulled me up into a sitting position as well. He held my face in his hands as he continued to say, "You never have to worry about Jacob ever again... And I will never leave you again." "What?" "Lydia, the past months, I realized how much you mean to me. I cannot live without you. I need you like a human needs oxygen and I have never felt this way before. I am deeply and overwhelmingly in love with you... I love you, Lydia, more than anything in this world." My eyes filled with tears, I responded in kind. "Oh, Peter! I love you to− Mmm...," I started to say before he captured my lips with his own, interrupting my words with a kiss.
Peter continued to press his lips against mine, which made me moan. I parted my lips and he slipped his tongue in by instinct of accepting my invitation. Our tongues danced together like never before. A moment later, he stopped and whispered, "Oh, how I have missed the taste of your lips." "Peter," I sighed. He kissed me once more and moved his lips down my face to my neck. His touch ignited a fire within me, but then all of a sudden, my stomach growled, interrupting our sweet embrace. We looked at each other and started laughing. "I'm sorry," I said in between giggles. "No, it is fine. You have been asleep for more than a day, so you need to eat. I will order room service for you because I am not sure if your body is strong enough to leave this bed, let alone the room," he said as he stood up. "And besides, Drogo called Sarah yesterday. He says she's dying to hear from you." "Okay, I will give her a call.... Oh, wait! I don't have my phone. Could I borrow yours?" "No need. Your phone was broken when you were taken, so we bought you a new one and had everything transferred from one to the other. We brought it with us, so here...," he stated as he handed me a new Samsung Galaxy S20+ in a purple phone case. Looking at it, I noticed it had a screen protector as well. "Wow! Thank you." He smiled as he replied, "You are welcome." Peter kissed my head again before walking out of the room into the living room suite to inform Nicolae and Drogo that I was awake.
Both of them came in to give me a hug before exiting the room to give me some privacy. I called Sarah to tell her I was all right. We talked for a few minutes before she had to get back to class since her time was around the end of the lunch hour at school. I said goodbye and hung up before I stood up from the bed. I tested my ability to walk and was surprised to find I wasn't in any pain. I chose to take a hot shower to rid my body of filth and then washed my hair. It felt so good to be fully clean again. When I finished I dried off and wrapped my hair up in the towel. I then took another large towel off the shelf and wrapped it around my body and walked out to get dressed. I heard a soft knock on the door, so I said for whoever it was to come in. The very person I expected peeked his head in, but averted his eyes when he saw I was wearing just a towel. "Peter Bartholy, are you blushing?" "You said it was okay to come in, yet you are not dressed." "My sweet shy Peter," I said, smiling from ear to ear. "It's okay, come on in and close the door. You're already halfway in anyway." He did as I suggested quickly, so that his brothers wouldn't see me and tried so hard to keep his eyes looking in the opposite direction. I found his behavior so adorable. (I really did miss you so much.) I snickered and put my pants on under the towel and finished getting dressed, turning my bare back towards Peter as I put on my bra and shirt.
By the time I finished, Peter was still facing away from me, looking out the window, so I walked up to him and hugged him from behind. He pressed his arms against mine, but then turned around to hug me face to face. I pressed my cheek to his chest and sniffed my nose as he rocked me back and forth, holding me close. "Hey, look at me," he said as he lifted my chin with one hand. He smiled his gorgeous smile that always melted my heart. "Everything will be all right now that you are safe with me. Also, your food is out on the table if you feel like you can eat out there. We will stay here one more night, and when you are ready we can go home in the morning." "That sounds wonderful. Thank you, Peter." He kissed my head and let go, following me out the door to make sure I didn't fall, which I found very sweet of him. "You know, I can walk just fine, Peter. I am not in any pain." "I am only being cautious," he replied with a smile. Peter sat next to me at the table and watched me eat and drink what he ordered for me that evening.
The next morning, we were walking out of the hotel and climbing into the vehicle they rented to head our way to Inverness Airport. The flight was long, but thankfully uneventful. A few hours later, I stepped out of Drogo's car in front of the manor. I looked up to see Lorie racing down the steps. "Lydia!!" she screamed with excitement. I smiled and opened my arms to welcome her in a hug when she slammed into me and almost knocked me back into the seat of the car. I laughed when she hugged me so strongly. "Lorie, be careful! You are going to hurt Lydia," Nicolae scolded as he stepped around the open door. "I am sorry. I was just so happy when I saw you were home, Lydia," she said to me after letting go. "It's okay, I'm glad to be home, and I missed you too, Lorie." I looked up to see a strange woman, who looked flawless and was obviously a vampire as well, walking down the steps and smiling at Lorie and me hugging. She reached the ground and walked up to Nicolae to give him a hug. "Well, I have never known Lorie to be so attached to anyone else before. Nicky, it must be so refreshing," the woman claimed. "Lydia, this is my good friend, Victoria. Victoria, this is our Lydia who I told you about," Nicolae introduced. She held her hand out for me to take hold of it in greeting. She then placed her left hand on top of mine.
"It is so wonderful to finally meet the woman who has captured the hearts of the Bartholy brothers and little Lorie." "It's always nice to meet a friend of the family," I said in response. The next moment, Victoria locked arms with me and led me up the steps to enter the manor ahead of everyone else. The brothers grabbed the bags and led Lorie with them behind us. Victoria and I had what she told the guys was 'girl talk' and I found her to be charismatic, fun and easy to be around. I got along with her really well. In our conversation, she only mentioned my ordeal once at the beginning. She told me she was sorry to hear what I went through and was glad that I was finally home safe. After that, we just talked about random things while we sat upon the bed in my room. After a while had passed, she and I heard a knock on the door. In came Peter, holding a tray with a bowl of soup and a vase with a single red rose. The soup must have been freshly cooked because I could see the steam rising from the contents inside the bowl and the aroma coming from it smelled delicious.
"Well, look at you having food brought to you in bed," Victoria said with a smile. I smiled as I looked up at Peter and responded, "I am very lucky to have Peter." He returned my smile and Victoria looked from Peter to me and back to Peter, and then spoke again, saying, "And... that is my queue to leave. I will just go and see what Nicky is up to. You two enjoy your evening." "He is downstairs in the study," Peter informed her. "Thank you." Peter came around and placed the tray over my lap and leaned over to give me a light kiss on the cheek as Victoria exited the room. I grabbed the spoon and began to eat as Peter walked around to the other side of the bed and came to sit next to me. "Is it good? Did I make it too hot?" "Mmm... It's perfect! Thank you, Peter, my handsome dark knight." He smiled at my appreciation and at hearing the nickname I gave him what seemed a long time ago now. "I have to admit I missed hearing you call me that, sweetness." "And I feel the same with you calling me your sweetness," I said in reply, smiling at him. Peter leaned back on the pillow and combed his fingers through my hair and rubbed my back as I ate. I loved the added attention he was giving me because I finally was receiving the one thing I always wanted, which was unconditional love from the man I was in love with.
Within the next few days, I heard from Sebastian that he convinced the dean of the university not to flunk me out of school after he explained to him with vague details of my kidnapping by an abusive ex boyfriend and that I was unable to do the school work during my captivity. The dean accepted and relayed to all my professors that I can make up what I missed during the summer break. I thanked Professor Jones for giving me the opportunity to pass my freshman year. Sarah came by often to help me with the homework and to hang out as well. Things seemed to be back to normal except that my relationship with Peter was even stronger than before. It was close to the end of June when I finished all the required work and could have the rest of my summer to relax and enjoy. Peter stated he wanted to celebrate my birthday since we missed being able to in May while I was held captive. I told him it was fine and that it could go on like any other day, but he wouldn't accept that and insisted on making a big deal out of it. One evening, he took me out to the clearing where the cherry blossom tree stood in the middle of the small lake. It was beautiful to see the area under the setting sun, like dark golden rays desperate to peek through the trees surrounding us. We stripped to just our underwear and went for a swim, having fun splashing each other, as well as holding one another and kissing in the water.
By the time we got out, the moon was high in the sky shining down on us. We dried off and put our clothes back on; me in my dress and Peter in his shorts. I had my back to Peter as I slipped my sandals on, one foot at a time. I then turned around to find Peter holding something out to me and saying, "Happy birthday." I reached up to take what he handed me, only to see that they were VIP tickets to the Mystery Spell Grand Hall stadium to see Nightmareden live in concert. I gasped out loud and asked, "What!? These are real? You're not joking or messing with me, are you?" "Yes, they are the real thing and no, I am not joking," he answered, snickering at my reaction. I squealed with excitement and jumped up and down, holding the tickets to my chest. "Oh, Peter! Thank you! Thank you!" I then jumped into his arms, wrapping my arms around his neck as I hugged him tightly. "I assume by that response that you love my gift to you," Peter surmised. "Are you kidding me?... Oh, yeah! This is the best gift ever!... Mmmm.... I love you so much, Peter!" I said in between kisses. "I love you, my sweetness."
A few nights later, Peter and I were standing in the front row in front of the center stage, watching and listening to the supporting bands perform as we waited for one of my favorite rock bands to come out on stage and perform, being the main attraction of the show. "This is the best night of my life, Peter. Thank you again!" I yelled to him over the loud crowd after the last band finished playing. "You are most welcome, Lydia," he replied as he wrapped his arms around me from behind. Soon after, the strobe lights focused on the big screen projecting the band's name and logo. Everyone in the entire stadium roared with excitement, and then even more so when fire jettisoned up into the air at multiple points of the outer rims of the stage. The lights left the stage in darkness and we saw silhouettes of people walking out with their instruments and beginning to play. Everyone including Peter and myself jumped up and down while screaming when the lead singer, Colin Spencer, started singing and the lights moved to reveal him to the audience. I raised my arms up in the air, holding my fingers in a 'Rock on!' gesture as I listened and sang along to the song, 'Is It Love?'
During the second song, Colin came up to the edge of the stage right above me. He winked at Peter and me and then played his guitar during the solo part flawlessly. When he finished his guitar solo he flicked the guitar pick into the audience and Peter caught it before anyone else could, being so quick and tall as he was. He showed it to me before sticking it into his pocket. The band continued to play several more songs before the concert ended. Afterwards, we were some of the first fans in the VIP group to meet and get our picture taken with the band members. Peter elected to just let me be in the picture without him while he stood off to the side. No one was the wiser as to why since he held his phone up to take his own picture of me with the band. I stood in the middle in between Colin and the drummer, Adam. Doris, who was the bass guitarist, stood on the other side of Adam to his left. Kara, who played the keyboard, stood on Colin's right side. Along with the photo, I got to take home a signed poster, signed copy of their latest album, and a t-shirt. Peter really went all out and I loved every moment of it.
Later that evening, Peter had made a candlelight picnic for me out in the woods behind the garden of the estate grounds. It was so beautiful, I had to choke back tears. The food he prepared for me was also delicious. As I finished my last bite, he poured me a glass of red wine and a glass of what looked like blood for himself. He then raised his glass to give a toast, saying, "To us." "To us," I repeated and clinked my glass against his before taking a couple sips. Peter then took both glasses and set them down off to the side before we finished drinking. He sat facing me, taking both my hands in his. "Lydia, I love you and.... Actually, I want us to stand for this," he began, still holding my hands as we stood up together. He began again, saying, "Lydia, you are the most important and beautiful person in my world. My life is complete with you in it." Peter let go of my hands and reached into his back pocket and pulled out a black velvet box as he knelt down on one knee. I gasped and covered my mouth with both hands at realizing what Peter was doing. "Lydia, I want to spend forever with you. Please accept this and be my wife for eternity... Will you marry me?" he asked as he opened the box to reveal the most beautiful ring I had ever laid eyes on. It was a sterling silver band with a design of interweaving diamonds and three petal flowers on either side of a large emerald held in place at the top.
"Oh, Peter!" I began to say as tears of joy flowed down my cheeks. "Yes! A thousand times, yes! I will marry you," I answered willingly, holding my left hand out for him. Peter smiled brightly and took my hand in his and slipped the ring on my finger. He then picked me up and swung me around. I held onto him tightly, burying my face in his neck and feeling so happy. He set me down and moved my hair out of my face, so he could kiss me gently. After a few seconds, our kiss became more passionate and we dropped to our knees where we stood in the grass. Feeling my body lit with fire, a moan escaped my lips into his mouth. I moved my hands up his chest over his shirt and slid them under his jacket to remove it from his shoulders. Peter stopped and pulled back, saying, "Lydia, wait! We shouldn't..." "Peter, I don't want to wait. I want to give you all of me." "Are you sure this is what you want?" he asked me. "Yes, I want you. Take me!" I said softly. "Lydia, I don't know if−," Peter whispered as he held his head against mine. "Look, I... I can't have my recent past come between us. Please?" I begged him, confessing how I really felt.
"There is one way," Peter whispered. "What are you talking about?" I asked. "You once told me you had Celtic blood in your ancestry, right?" "Yes, that's correct, both Irish and Scottish." "I learned a long time ago about an old Celtic tradition of marriage through natural law called Handfasting." "I think I've heard of that before. Some couples, who wanted to be joined together, were handfasted before they were married in a more spiritual ceremony. That is if they wanted to have both a Pagan and Christian wedding." "You and I can recite the vows right here right now," Peter offered. "But it won't count since there is no one here to witness it." Peter reached for his phone and called Nicolae. His brother answered and accepted to perform the ceremony by entering our minds while we uttered the words, without him having to be physically present. He also linked his mind to Drogo and Victoria, so that they could be witnesses as well.
Nicolae spoke to the both of us, using telepathy, to begin the binding ceremony. Peter and I each spoke our vows, one by one as we held each other's hands. Speaking once more, Nicolae announced, "Now that the binding ceremony has been completed, it is time to seal your bond with the exchange of rings. The ring has a special significance within the Celtic culture, a symbol of unbrokenness. It is also a symbol of completion as you two are now complete." I didn't have a ring for Peter like he had one for me, so he twisted a tiny twig from a leaf and handed it to me to place on his finger. Repeating after Nicolae, we both vowed, "I promise on this day to share your pain, your joy, your burdens, and your dreams, and to help you navigate the maze of life together as our love grows with us." Finally, Nicolae said, "Peter and Lydia, having proclaimed the bond of your souls together in the presence of these witnesses, and based on the strength of that bond, and the power vested in me, I now pronounce you married." We kissed to seal the bond and then thanked Nicolae. He then separated his mind from ours, so that we could have our privacy.
Peter devoured my lips with his own a moment later. He held me with one hand as he unbuttoned my blouse with the other. We stopped only for me to lift the shirt over his head and we joined our lips together again as I felt his gorgeous sculpted body, tracing the outline of his abs with my fingers. A body so defined and hard, he was like a Greek god in the flesh. The light of the moon shined down on his skin, which made his aura look so amazing, giving off a glow with how happy he was in that moment to be with me. Peter unhooked the strap of my bra and slowly slipped it off and let it fall to the ground as he eyed me. Feeling shy in the silence, I went to cover myself as I asked him to say something. He pulled my arms apart to prevent me from hiding, and replied, "Oh, Lydia, you are so beautiful." He then laid me down on my back and I shivered as he moved his fingers down my stomach to undo the button and zipper of my jeans, pulling them off along with my lace panties. Peter placed his hands on my feet, and with deliberate slowness, he moved them up my legs, making me arch my back in pleasure at his touch. I opened my eyes to see him straighten up and undo his belt and unbutton his pants. I bit my lip after he removed them to reveal the large bulge behind his boxer briefs. He smirked at my reaction as he removed the last bit of clothing that could separate us. He laid himself on top of me and I bit my lip again with anticipation, bending my knees and lifting my legs up on either side of his incredible body. He massaged and kissed my breasts, licking my body up and down and igniting the fire in me even more.
Peter stopped to look at me and spoke so compassionately, saying, "The moonlight enhances your beauty, my love. Your skin feels like silk and you taste so sweet. I am so much in love with you right now, I cannot resist you any longer." I lifted one hand to his face and said in reply, "Peter, I feel the same." He captured my lips with his once again and moved them down my jaw and neck. I gasped in pure ecstasy the moment he finally penetrated me. Each thrust he made with steady controlled slowness and his hands explored every inch of my body as he made love to me. "Oh, Peter...," I breathed out his name as I moaned and tightened my legs around him. He groaned with pleasure, which turned me on even more. I moved my hands up around him and dug my nails into his back, triggering another pleasing groan from him. The longer our bodies moved together as one, the closer I came to having an orgasm willingly. Peter stood up on his knees as he continued to thrust himself in and out of me. I looked into his darkened eyes as he watched my reaction while he reached one hand over my belly and down to my core. The moment I felt his fingers touch my most sensitive area while feeling him make love to me at the same time, I closed my eyes and tilted my head back. I squealed and arched my back as I felt myself about to reach the peak of desire. Peter leaned over and whispered in my ear the words, "Lydia, your wetness is so warm, it feels amazing. Being inside you feels so good, I don't want to stop." His words pushed me over the edge of that peak and I screamed as my body reached climax.
He continued to pleasure me with his entire body past that point, and over and over again, giving me multiple orgasms. Interlocking our fingers together, he held my arms down on either side of my head as he moved his lips and tongue across my entire upper body. Suddenly, Peter grabbed my hips with both hands, and with slower movements, he rammed into me harder. I screamed out his name and he growled and groaned at the sound of my voice. I soon felt him explode and release inside me. He leaned over and kissed my lips while continuing to move back and forth a little longer before coming to a stop and relaxing his body on top of mine. I wrapped my arms around his waist and felt him quiver inside me, which made me release once more from how good it felt. Our breathing still heavy and fast, he removed himself and rolled over to lay on his side next to me. Reaching out, Peter pulled me up against him, so that our bodies could still touch. With our legs intertwined and our arms holding each other, we laid there in blissful peace. "Wow!" I acknowledged our love experience out loud, breaking the silence. "That was incredible for me as well." "You must have had lots of experience over the past two hundred years for you to be that good," I guessed. Peter pulled away slightly and confirmed the opposite when he said, "I have never laid with anyone but you, Lydia." "What!?" I asked, surprised by what I just heard. He combed his fingers through my hair as he repeated having been a virgin until that night with me. "My sweetness, I was waiting for you, and now that I have found you, I am never letting you go. You are the only woman for me." I kissed him immediately after hearing his beautiful confession.
The two of us continued to bask in each other's embrace under the blanket of the stars. We held one another as we laid there naked in the soft grass. I sighed happily, knowing Peter truly loved me, with everything he said and did. It was the little gestures like brushing my shoulder gently with his fingers back and forth that really made me feel loved. His emerald eyes sparkled as he looked at me and it made me love him even more. "Peter?" "Yes?" "This truly has been the best night of my life." He smiled, reciprocated my feelings, and then kissed my forehead. "Are we going to go back up to the manor?" I asked after a little while longer. "We do not need to. No one will be disturbing us, so we can stay like this if you want," he informed me, bringing me closer to him with his arms around me still. I snuggled up against him more as I yawned, feeling exhausted. "You should rest your eyes. I will remain here with you all night, so sleep, my love," Peter offered. "Good night, Peter. I love you." "I love you too. Good night, my sweet Lydia." I grinned with contentment as I felt myself drift off to sleep and dream of the man I loved whose arms embraced me in sweet comfort.