Back To You

Chapter 20

"You are terribly late," Emilia said to Mathias in a petulant accusing tone the moment he stepped out of the portal and into the bedroom of her family manor.

They were seventeen this year and had physically outgrown the small cave by the sea. What had once seemed cavernous when they were children had turned out to be seriously lacking in height, forcing Mathias to drastically stoop when standing or risk bashing his head on the cave ceiling. Without fail, Emilia took the opportunity to laugh her heart out at the sight of the tall vampire crawling on his knees every time he emerged from the portal.

Even Emilia could no longer squeeze herself through the cave mouth and had somehow sweet-talked Mathias into meeting in the most hostile place for vampires on Earth, the Feronia family manor right in the heart of the witch's administrative capital, Onirique.

It was a terrible, terrible idea, but one he had impulsively agreed to simply because Emilia had fluttered her lashes at him, begging with wide grey-blue eyes and an adorable pout. Although this was his third time visiting the manor, he was still on edge.

Emilia was glad her father was away on business. Emilia loved her father, but even she knew how he coveted the position of Witches Committee Leader to the point that it consumed his every thought and determined his every action. It became the only focal point in his career drive and dictated all life decisions. It was the reason Emilia had grown up in the witches' administrative city here on Earth, the only child among dull, uninteresting adults. It was Paul's way of showing dedication to his work; by showing his voters that he was willing to stay off-world, he portrayed himself as a hands-on leader who walked the talk.

Her father's intentions were never to hide his pompous ambitions but to showcase his matching skills, meaning that he made multiple public appearances throughout the year, on Earth and back at the witch's homeworld, Zandlana, to drum up support from the voters. There was no denying that he was charismatic and confident, faring well among the younger generations, although his opponents were critical of his overly bullish, risk-taking nature and penchant for warmongering.

Right now, he was travelling through the Earth territories, canvassing votes for the next Committee Election. After all, voters needed to be reminded now and then of who their Committee members were, including their achievements in the last decade or so. Emilia was secretly thrilled because it meant she had the whole mansion to herself, having given the rest of the staff the day off.

"I could not excuse myself from that dreadful meeting," Mathias said apologetically as he closed the portal and walked over to her, "but now my time is only for you." Unfortunately for him, Gaius and his generals had chosen to have a long-winded discussion regarding troop deployment just as he was about to come to visit Emilia.

Mathias reached out to hug her, and she offered no resistance, immediately melting into his arms without hesitation. Sighing deeply, Emilia said, "I have missed you."

It was getting harder for them to enjoy moments such as this together, she thought a little sadly. Mathias was the future ruler of his people. His time was hardly his own. Emilia did not wish to imagine what the future would be like once he ascended to the throne.

They stood in the middle of the room, locked in each other's arms, unwilling to break the peaceful moment. The prince nuzzled his face into her hair, enjoying the silky softness against his cheek. Her hidden pleasure was listening to the steady thumping of his heartbeat, the only sound amidst the overpowering silence of her empty home.

Without warning, there came the sound of footsteps outside the door. The unlocked door. Caught off guard, they quickly pulled apart to stare in shock and panic at each other. The house was supposed to be empty! Mathias realised in dismay that there was no time for him to form a portal. "Hide!" Emilia hissed, even as Mathias frantically looked around the room, still panicking away, and ended up diving at vampire speed under the bed.