Ulric tossed and turned for hours; he couldn't sleep. He groaned and sat up in his bed. He knew it wasn't out of the normal for vampires not being able to fall asleep as they didn't need to sleep, but he wanted to that night.

He had felt a pulling for the past two weeks that wouldn't budge. He knew it was from the human, Amaryllis, his mate. The word made him cringe in disgust.

He got up from his bed and stretched his large body out. Then after pulling on a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt, he opened his bedroom door and walked out of his king's suite.

Absentmindedly, the King followed the path that his heart was telling him to follow. He soon made it to the top of the dungeon entrance and walked down the stairs into the dark hallway.

Ulric even felt a tinge of guilt at how much colder it was in the dungeon than the rest of the castle.

I'll get her a heater, he thought to himself, not even realizing what he was thinking.

He walked down the hallway until he was standing in front of the door to his mate's room. He quietly opened the door. Even if the King didn't know what he was doing, his actions were instinctively in favor of his mate; to better his mate's life; to protect his mate.

He walked into the room and quietly shut the door behind him. His mate was lying there on the bed. She was laying on her side facing him.

Her eyes were closed, her breathing was deep and even, and her heart rate was down; she was asleep.

Urlic admired Amaryllis as she slept. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her strawberry blonde hair was like nothing he had ever seen before. He wondered what it would be like to run his hands through her smooth, thick locks. Her eyes, though closed, were the most beautiful green shade he had ever seen. A darker green circled the outer part of her iris, while a lighter green took up the rest.

Her curvy frame attracted every part of his being to her. Most women wanted to be as thin as possible, as they thought that was the sexiest body type, but Urlic did not want Amaryllis to change. He thought her body was amazing.

He thoughtlessly walked closer to the young girl feeling that pull pull him toward her. He reached his hand out and slowly inched it toward her face. His pointer finger ran down her soft cheek to her chin.

Unconsciously, Amaryllis moved her face in a way to feel the King's touch even more, but that alarmed the man.

In just a second, Ulric snapped out of his daze.

What the fuck am I doing here?

He snatched his hand away from the girl's face and backed up. He yanked the door open and walked out, but let the door close quietly; he didn't want her to know he was there. Who knows what she would think if she discovered that he had come to visit her in the middle of the night.

Why had I gone down there, the King questioned to himself. He knew there was a pull between him and the girl, but he had never acted on it before.

How could I be so weak? I refuse to be hurt again.

He flew up the stairs to the dungeon and out of the castle doors. He needed to get outside, to be as far away from his mate as possible. He felt as if his skin was burning with the need to be next to her.

He quickly ran away from the castle. He headed toward the wood line and soon broke through it. He didn't stop running until he saw the sun beginning to come up two hours later. The King knew exactly where everything was on his land, so he took a left and headed toward the waterfall that was about a mile away from his position.

When he got to the waterfall he shredded his clothing and jumped in. He welcomed the cold, almost freezing water as he broke a decent sweat while running.

He dunked his head under the water and allowed his body to sink to the bottom. He felt a mix of mud and stone on his back as he laid there with his eyes closed. Now, far away from Amaryllis, he felt as if he could finally breathe, but that annoying pull wouldn't go away.

Ulric laid at the bottom of the pond for over an hour before he felt Thierry trying to contact him through their mind link. He didn't want to, but he let Thierry in just in case something was wrong.

"What?" The King snapped, irritated that his peace and quiet was being disturbed.

"Well good morning to you," Thierry replied sarcastically, but that made Ulric even angrier.

"I said what," Ulric growled.

He heard the man sigh before he saying, "Amaryllis and Kayla are wondering what they should be doing as you didn't leave them anything to do before you took off."

"Thierry, while you are my second, I have no problem ending your life. I am the King, I can do as I please and when I please without being questioned. Do you understand?" Urlic demanded.

"Yes, King," Thierry said. Ulric knew Thierry didn't always enjoy having to bow down to him, but everyone bowed before the King. It was in every vampires' internal instincts to bow before their King, their superior.

"I'll be there in two hours," Ulric said.

He ended their mental call and then swam to the top of the pond. He dried off before putting his clothes on and running back tot he castle.

Two hours later, he walked into the castle and toward the human dining area. Both girls were sitting in the room, both at opposite sides.

When he walked in, Kayla smirked at him, most likely thinking of the night they shared before. He didn't return her smirk, as he did not care. He knew the girl thought that this was going to last forever, but in reality, this was just a fling to him.

He just wanted pleasure and she, as well as several other women in the castle, met his needs for the time being. When she and the others got too clingy, he would move on to the next girls.

As he got closer to Amaryllis, his skin burned to touch her and he felt compelled almost to get closer, but he withheld.

The King saw the young girl look up as he walked into the room. Her cheeks turned a pale shade of pink and she quickly looked down.

He knew she felt the pull too. She must be confused, he thought. No human would know what that feeling was.

Ulric looked over at Kayla, ready to tell her what her task was for the day.

"Good morning, your highness," she purred.

Ulric rolled his eyes. "Go help the servants in the kitchen." He demanded her.

Kayla sighed, ready to complain, but the look on the King's face told her she probably should not.

Kayla got up and left the room, not before glaring at Amaryllis.

When it was just the two of them in the room, Ulric heard her heart start to beat faster. She was nervous.

"Stand up," Urlic said to Amaryllis.

Obediently, she quickly stood up from her seat.

"Come here."

Amaryllis walked toward the brooding man. When she was about a foot away from him, she stopped and wound her hands together behind her back.

The King turned and walked out of the room, hearing the soft pitter patter of the feet following him.

He led the girl through all of the hallways before they got to his wing of the castle. He opened the double doors to his suite and walked in. He saw Amaryllis jump when the doors slammed closed; a small smirk broke out on his lips.

He walked to the second floor and down the short hallway that led to his bedroom. After walking in, he watched the young girl look around his room.

His room wasn't really messy, but it could be cleaned up. He had been busy and stressed out the past few weeks with traveling and other duties of a king, so his tidiness had fallen a bit short.

"Have this room cleaned up before lunchtime. When you're done, you can go down and eat." Ulric said.

"Yes, King Uirc," Amaryllis said timidly.

Ulric nodded and then walked out of his bedroom and out of the suite.

Amaryllis, now alone in his bedroom, looked around in wonder. His room was ginormous and elegant.

Dark, glossy tile made up the floor. Stone covered the walls. Large, black blinds covered the windows on the far wall.

His room wasn't really messy, but she quickly got to work tidying everything up.

Author's Note:

*** By the way, I am not making fun of or saying anyone's body type is better than the rest. I think every person's body type is wonderful and no one should judge someone else based on their weight. However, I myself am not exactly a skinny person, so I find it easier to create characters who aren't skinny either because it is easier for me to describe them and portray their feelings about their bodies. I hope you understand what I'm saying here!!! ***