Dante smiled faintly, and the expression made him look dangerously handsome. "They'd be jealous," he said. "But not a very. Though they might demand equal time."
"Equal time?" Lilian repeated.
"If you kiss one of us, you should probably kiss all of us," Dante explained. "Otherwise, someone feels left out and sulks."
"Lucien sulks?" she asked, amused.
"Like a spoiled child," Dante confirmed. "It's pathetic actually."
Lilian laughed. It was strange, talking about kissing a few men with one of them should have made her uncomfortable, and instead of guilty, she felt strangely light and happy.
"I should let you sleep," Dante said, even though he still hadn't let go of her hand.
"I'm not sleepy," Lilian said, which was true. Her mind was too active, and Dante's closeness made her far too aware of her own body.
"Then what would you like me to do?" he asked.
"Talk to me. Tell me about your human life, before you were turned."
Dante's expression shifted, becoming distant. "That was a very long time ago."
"Please?"
He was quiet for a long moment, his thumb brushing her hand slowly.
"I was a physician," he finally said. "During a plague outbreak in London. I tried to save as many as I could, but the disease moved faster than we understood. I watched hundreds die, including my own family."
"I'm sorry," Lilian said softly, squeezing his hand.
"I was dying of the plague myself when a vampire found me," Dante continued. "She offered me a choice. Die as a human, or live forever as a monster. I was delirious, barely conscious, but I remember thinking I couldn't die yet. Not when there were still people to save, still knowledge to discover, still too much left undone."
"So you choose to become a vampire."
"I choose to survive," he corrected. "She was a physician too, fascinated by vampire biology. She taught me everything she knew about our species, then released me to pursue my own research. That was over three hundred years ago, and I'm still learning."
"Is she still alive?" Lilian asked. "Your sire?"
"She was killed by vampire hunters about a century ago," Dante said quietly. "Losing your sire is like losing a parent. It felt like being orphaned all over again.
Lilian's heart ached for him. "I'm really sorry."
"Loss is part of immortality," he said. "We don't feel it less. We just learn how to carry it."
He looked at her with those intense eyes. "Which is why I'm so determined to keep you safe. I've lost too many people I cared about, and I'm not going to lose you too."
"You barely know me," Lilian whispered, feeling her throat tightened.
"I know enough," Dante replied firmly. "I know you're brave, intelligent, and compassionate. That's more than enough."
He leaned close enough for Lilian could feel the coolness of his breath. "I know you bite your lip when you're thinking. That you hum without realizing it. And I know you take your coffee with too much sugar and prefer fiction to non-fiction."
"You've been paying attention," Lilian whispered, feeling her cheek warmed.
"Always," he said quietly. "And I'll say it again. You are mine."
The certainty in his voice sent a thrilling shiver to her. This time, she didn't even try to fight it.
"Dante..."
"Tell me to stop, and I will," he said, leaning his face even closer to her face. "Tell me to go back to my chair and I'll do it without complaint."
"I-I won't..."
"Then I'm going to kiss you," Dante whispered. "Because my self control is already failing."
Lilian knew she should have been setting the boundaries more strictly. She had been responsible of everything in her life, following every norms and rules set by human, always doing the right thing.
And it hadn't saved her. Attacked in an alley when she was responsible on her daily works and went back home without hanging out uselessly, and turned into a creature of myth.
Maybe it was time to stop being careful.
"Kiss me..." she whispered.
His eyes flashed, and he exhaled softly in relief. "Thank God," he muttered, and then his mouth was on hers.
Dante's kiss was firm and claiming, very much different with Adrian's. His hand came up to cup her face, angling her head exactly where he wanted it, while his other stayed tangled with hers.
Lilian kissed him back with everything she had, her free hand gripping his arm, pulling him closer. Yet she could feel the way he was holding himself back from taking more than she was ready to give.
"Dante..." she breathed when they parted for air.
"No," he said hoarsely, then kissed her again, his control slipping.
His hand slid from her face to her neck, his thumb stroking it in a way that made Lilian shiver. When his fangs grazed her lower lip, she made a sound that was half gasp and a half moan.
"If you keep making sounds like that, I'm going to forget all my good intentions about taking things slow..." he warned quietly, pulling back.
"...Then forget..." Lilian said, emboldened by desire and the way he was looking at her like she was the only thing in the world that mattered.
"You don't mean that," Dante replied, though his hand was now tracing the line of her collarbone through her sleep pajama. "I won't take advantage of you."
"No... I want~"
A sharp knock on the door made them both freeze.
"Time's up," Adrian's voice called from the hallway. "My shift now."
Dante closed his eyes and took a deep breath, clearly fighting for composure. When he opened them again, the heat remained, but it was controlled again.
He stood, smoothed his shirt, and picked up his book from the chair. He looked thoroughly disheveled in a way that Lilian found the sight deeply satisfying.
"Try to behave yourself with Adrian," Dante said lightly with a hint of humor in his voice. "Though I doubt that's realistic."
Lilian only watched him walk to the door, unconsciously licking her own lips at the part where he had bitten it.
"Ah. And Lilian?" he said before opening the door, his hand was resting on the handle. "The Council is delaying their summons. Likely until next month. We convinced them the rogue threat takes priority."