The nightmare had been terrifying. Rogues breaking through her window in the estate, breaking glass windows and walls like the house's protections were nothing, before tearing into her flesh with hungry teeth. They pinned her down and drained her blood while she screamed for help that never came.
Lilian woke up gasping, her heart beating wildly, sweat soaking through her pajamas, and tangling her hair to her neck. For a second, she didn't even know where she was. Her body was stiff with fear, and she could still feel the phantom pain where dream-fangs had pierced her skin and the smell of her own blood.
"Hey, hey, you're okay," a voice said.
Lucien was there, kneeling by her bed. He looked worried, his hands hovering over her shoulders as if he wanted to touch her but wasn't sure if he could. "It's just a dream, okay? You're safe. I'm right here."
Her breath still came in short and panicked gasps that hurt her chest. Her brain knew it was just a nightmare, but her body was still stuck in that moment of death, convinced she was being hunted.
"I... can't... breathe..." she managed to choke out.
"Yes you can," Lucien said firmly.
His hands came down on her shoulders to ground her to the present. "Look at me, Lilian. Focus on my face."
She forced her eyes up to him, to his sharp features and worried green eyes, and the familiar scar on his eyebrow. Seeing him brought her back to reality.
"Good," he said. "Now breathe with me. In through your nose, out through your mouth. Come on, baby. You've got this."
He exaggerated his breathing, deliberately slow, making it easy for her to follow. In. Out. In. Out.
Slowly, the panic started to let go. Lilian's breathing matched his, and her chest no longer burning with each inhale. The world finally stopped spinning.
"That's it. You're doing great. Just keep breathing with me," Lucien encouraged.
After several minutes, her heart rate finally slowed down to normal. The terror receded, leaving her exhausted and shaken, but she was finally okay.
"Sorry," she whispered, her voice hoarse as her throat feeling dry. "I didn't mean to wake you."
"I wasn't asleep," Lucien said. "I'm on watch, remember? That's literally my job right now, keeping an eye on you."
He was still kneeling there with his hands on her shoulders, close enough that she could see the worry on his face. At some point during the night, he had taken off his shirt, and the sight of his bare chest, with the tattoos on his arms was unexpectedly distracting, even after a nightmare.
"The nightmares are getting worse," Lilian said quietly. "Every night, it's the same thing. Rogues attacking, me dying, my family getting hurt because of me."
"Your mind is just processing trauma," Lucien explained. "The attack, the transformation into a vampire, everything that's happened in the past few weeks. It's a lot for anyone to handle, especially since you're only being a vampire for a week.""
"Does it get better? The nightmare?" Lilian asked.
"Eventually," Lucien answered, smiling warmly now
The smile softened the hard lines of his face, made him look less like a dangerous vampire and more like someone who cared to deeply to hide it.
"But time along won't fix it," he continued. "You need to accept what happened and make it part of your new life. Running from the fear only makes it stronger.""
He sat back on his heels, finally releasing her shoulders, though he kept his eyes on her. "Want to talk about it? Sometimes saying it out loud helps."
Lilian pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them, trying to feel safe.
"In the dream, a dozen rogues broke through the window, and I couldn't fight them all. They tore me apart while you, Adrian, and Dante watched, unable to help. And then they were after my family, my best friend, and everyone I care about."
"That's not going to happen," Lucien said firmly.
"You can't know that," Lilian protested. "What if they attack this place? What if someone gets hurt protecting me?"
"Then we'll deal with it," Lucien said simply.
He shifted, moving from kneeling to sit on the edge of her bed, still close enough that she could feel his body.
"Do you want to know the truth about vampire life? It's dangerous. We have enemies, rivals, political bullshit that can turn deadly in a heartbeat. But we fight, we fuck, we love, we exist as boldly and completely as we can because the alternative is cowering in fear."
"That's easy for you to say," Lilian retorted. "You've been a vampire for centuries, powerful, experienced. I'm just~"
"Just what?" Lucien cut her off. "Just a divine hybrid with more potential power than most ancient vampires? Just a woman who has three of the most powerful vampires in Europe willing to kill or die to protect her?"
He chuckled softly, reaching out to brush her cheek with his fingers. "You're not weak, Lilian. You're extraordinary. The only one who doesn't see that is you."
His words struck her hard. She felt a wave of emotion, and before she could think, she lunged forward and hugged him.
Lucien stiffened for only a second in surprise before his arms came around her, pulling her against his bare chest. He was cool to the touch, his skin smooth, and Lilian pressed her body closer to his, seeking comfort in his presence.
"Thank you for coddling me," she whispered against his shoulder.
"I don't coddle," Lucien said, one hand coming up to stroke her hair. "That's Adrian's job."
Lilian laughed softly against him, the sound muffled. They stayed like that for a long moment, his hand continued to move slowly and soothingly through her hair, until the last remnants of the nightmare finally faded.
"Better?" Lucien asked eventually.
"Yeah," she replied, but didn't pull away.
"Lilian. You should let go now," Lucien said, his voice sounding a bit strained.
"Why?"
"Because I've been sexually frustrated for a week, and I don't have Dante and Adrian's level of self-control," Lucien said bluntly.
She still didn't let go, and his eyes got darker.
"I've been fantasizing about touching you for weeks, and I'm not sure I can stop at just a kiss right now," he said roughly.
Driven by her hormones and lingering adrenaline, Lilian leaned in and kissed him. Her hands exploring the bare skin of his chest, tracing inch by inch.
And Lucien kissed her back like he was starving, demanding and rough. All his restraint just snapped.
"Fuck..." Lucien gasped, pulling back for a second.
Lilian didn't give him a time to talk, she just pulled him back for another kiss.