A Heart For The Heartless

Cassy frowned slightly.

A million thoughts had been going through her head lately. If she didn’t say them out loud now, when would she get the chance next?

“Why?” she finally asked.

Mikhail gazed deep into her eyes. It was a little strange at this point. He seemed to be trying to probe into her, to read her mind.

Was it because he couldn’t get used to not being able to read someone’s mind for the first time?© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

“Would you like to elaborate on that?” he asked silkily.

Cassy suddenly felt her heart skip a beat.

Why was he using that tone on her?

“Why do you care about my well-being?” she asked. “If you want to keep me here for my and your own safety, that’s fine. You don’t need to pay further attention to me.”

Mikhail raised an eyebrow. “I don’t understand.”

“What?”

“The reason you talk like that. Sometimes, it seems like you want me to take care of you. But also, sometimes it’s like you want me to leave you alone.”

He suddenly stepped closer, but she didn’t move an inch. Instead, she looked him straight in the eye, with a fearless gaze unlike any human he had ever met.

“The interesting thing about vampires having human mates is this,” Mikhail said slowly. “Based on real-life accounts, the dynamics vary with each pair. One pair, decades ago, was inseparable. But another pair was not so infatuated.”

She waited for him to elaborate, but he never did. It was as if he expected her to connect the dots on her own.

She fought the urge to roll her eyes. Vampires and their penchant for ambiguous remarks.

“Which means that we have a different dynamic as well,” she concluded.

“Of course, there are some possible reasons why we are not as attached as we should be.”

“Which are…?”

Mikhail looked at her piercingly for a moment. “Hate.”

“Hate…” Cassy tasted the word on her tongue. “Well, obviously.”

There was a hint of amusement in his expression. “It’s not surprising. We were both aware of it the first time we met.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “I doubt the hatred will dissipate anytime soon.”

A corner of his lips twitched upwards. “Pity.”

Then, to her surprise, he took a step towards her.

He reached out and ran a hand through her hair, moving so slowly as if he were combing the strands.

Cassy just stared at him, wondering what his next move would be.

Mikhail looked straight into her eyes. “Aren’t you afraid of me?”

“After weeks of living together? Not so much.”

“You think that because you’re my mate, I would never hurt you.”

“Isn’t that a given?”

Despite her slightly snarky tone, he didn’t seem fazed at all. In fact, he seemed curious about something now.

“There is something peculiar about you,” he said quietly. “It intrigues me.”

“And that is?”

“You don’t behave like other women,” he stated simply.

“Because I am my own person,” she said flatly. “We females have different personalities and motivations. We are not all the same.”

He gave a low hum that sounded like an acknowledgment. “Sometimes it feels like you have an ulterior motive.”

“Why would you say that?”

“I have many enemies.”

“And you think that I’m one of them?”

“Yes. Because you hate me.”

“I despise you and your kind. That’s the truth, and that’s also all there is to it.”

The conversation was a bit strange. It was as if he just asked whatever was on his mind, even if it sounded like nonsense, just to keep the conversation going.

And for some reason, he kept stroking her hair and she did not move an inch. His movements were so gentle that it almost seemed…

‘Seems like what?’ Cassy wondered.

Like… he treasured her.

He gazed at her with those deep red eyes. “Is it because I have not marked you yet?” he mused softly. “Is that why you regard me indifferently?”

She stared back fearlessly. “Why would you mark me? It’s too early, isn’t it? And you don’t even have feelings for me.”

A ghost of a smile played on his lips.

“But do you?”

The question made her freeze and blink.

“Excuse me?”

He didn’t respond. Instead, they stayed there, staring at each other with varying emotions in their hearts. Mikhail studying Cassy as if he were examining a lab specimen, and Cassy staring back at Mikhail as if he had just sprouted two heads.

“I have not felt emotions like this for several decades, and certainly not this strong.” He spoke in a somewhat reverent tone, as if in awe. “You have become an interesting part of my life so far.”

Cassy’s eyes narrowed. “Stop referring to me like an object.”

She made a move to back away, but Mikhail held her in place, grabbing both of her shoulders. The grip didn’t hurt, but it was firm enough to keep her from moving.

Cassy felt her breath catch in her throat.

“What are you doing?” she said.

He leaned forward and pressed his face into her hair, as if taking in her scent. She froze, unable to control her raging heartbeat.

It was the curse of being mates. No matter what, as long as he came close to her, touched her, or did anything even remotely intimate, it would always make her skin warm, as if her body was about to be set on fire.

Her heart would hammer in her chest, and she just knew, judging from the way Mikhail eyed her, that he could hear it. Vampire senses, as expected. He always heard it. He never really said it out loud or said it to embarrass her, but they both knew.

For a moment, she wondered if he felt the same. If his skin tingled at her proximity, if he felt like a nail being drawn to a magnet, if his heart also pounded wildly in his chest…

Wait, no.

‘Vampires don’t have hearts,’ Cassy reminded herself.

‘Vampires don’t feel anything. They’re heartless monsters.’

But even though she told herself that, her body was fighting against her mind. Every inch of her responded, much to her shame. When Mikhail’s head dipped down and buried itself in the crook of her neck, she could barely hold back a moan.

‘What the hell is wrong with me?’ she scolded.

‘Why do I keep responding like this? I hate it. I want it to stop!’

“…Relax.” Mikhail’s soft voice suddenly drummed in her ears, his breath fanning across the skin of her neck. She resisted the urge to shiver. “You’re tense.”

“If you want to bite, then just do it already,” she told him, her voice flat and emotionless.

But her heart was pounding harder than ever.

There was a moment of silence, something akin to hesitation. Cassy, confused, dragged her gaze towards the back of Mikhail’s head. He was still pressed against the side of her neck. He was not doing anything at all.

“I’m not going to feed from you,” he finally said. “I’m going to do something else.”