Damned by Him

Chapter 47: Care for him.

Rosaline’s eyes opened directly onto Xandros’ face.

For one dangerously silent second...

neither of them moved.

Moonlight spilled softly across the room while silver feathers rested against the blankets around her body. Xandros still sat beside her on the edge of the bed, one hand near her shoulder after adjusting the blanket moments earlier.

Rosaline blinked once slowly.

Then suddenly...

she shot upright.

Fast enough to nearly smash directly into his face.

Xandros leaned backward instantly with vampire reflexes, avoiding the collision by barely an inch.

A silver wing smacked into the headboard loudly.

Rosaline gasped in horror.

"Oh gods..."

"You attack strangely for someone who just woke up."

His voice remained calm.

Far too calm.

Rosaline stared at him with wide eyes while clutching the blanket against herself. Her hair had become slightly messy from sleep, white strands falling across her cheeks while her wings twitched behind her in embarrassment.

"I almost hit you!"she acknowledged.

"You did hit the bed."

"That is not the point!"

A faint smirk touched Xandros’ lips before disappearing again.

Rosaline narrowed her eyes immediately.

"You are laughing at me."

"I’m considering it."

"That means yes."

Xandros leaned back slightly afterward, resting one arm lazily against the chair beside the bed while watching her recover from nearly committing accidental murder with her forehead.

The room remained quiet for a moment.

Comfortably quiet.

Rosaline noticed it immediately.

And strangely...

she did not dislike it.

Her grey eyes drifted toward him again carefully.

He still wore the same dark clothes from earlier, though faint traces of exhaustion lingered beneath his eyes now. His coat remained slightly dusted from travel while the scent of cold forest air still clung faintly to him.

Rosaline’s expression softened slightly.

"You came back late."

"Mm."

"How did the investigation go?"

Xandros looked at her silently for a moment before answering.

"It’s handled."

Simple.

Short.

Very Xandros-Duke mode like.

Rosaline studied his face carefully afterward.

She had already begun understanding something important about him.

The less he explained...

the worse the situation usually was.

But she also knew pressing him too hard would only make him retreat further into silence.

So instead...

she nodded softly.

"Okay."

That response visibly surprised him.

Rosaline noticed immediately.

"What?" she asked.

"You didn’t ask further questions."

"You would’ve avoided answering them."

"...True."

Rosaline shifted slightly on the bed afterward, folding one wing closer around herself while lowering her gaze briefly.

"The less I know sometimes..." she murmured quietly, "...the safer it probably is for me."

Something unreadable crossed Xandros’ face at those words.

For several seconds, he simply looked at her.

Then slowly...

his hand lifted.

Rosaline stilled immediately when his fingers brushed lightly against the top of her head.

Soft.

Careful.

The gesture startled her more than it should have.

Xandros rarely touched people gently.

But now his fingers moved slowly through the soft strands of her pale hair while his expression remained quieter than usual.

Rosaline’s breath caught slightly.

"You think too much," he murmured.

Her chest tightened strangely.

The room suddenly felt warmer.

Rosaline looked down quickly, pretending interest in the blanket gathered around her lap.

Unfortunately...

Xandros noticed everything.

"You blush often around me."

Her head snapped upward instantly.

"I do not."

"You are now."

"I don’t account for your eyes."

A low sound escaped him then.

Not quite laughter.

But close.

Rosaline stared at him suspiciously afterward.

"You are definitely laughing internally."

"I might be."

"That is evil."

"I’ve been told worse."

Rosaline tried not to smile.

She failed.

Xandros noticed that too.

His gaze lingered on her face a second longer than necessary before the atmosphere around them shifted quietly into something softer.

Closer.

The silence no longer felt awkward now. freeweɓnovel.cøm

Only heavy.

Rosaline became painfully aware of how near he still sat beside her.

How his voice always became lower at night.

How his grey eyes looked almost silver beneath candlelight.

Dangerous observations.

Very dangerous.

She looked away first.

Bad decision.

Because the movement only drew attention to the curve of her neck where pale moonlight rested softly against her skin.

Xandros’ eyes darkened slightly.

Rosaline felt the shift instantly.

Her wings twitched behind her.

The room suddenly became too quiet.

Too warm.

When she finally looked back at him again...

he was already watching her.

Closely.

Her heartbeat stumbled.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked softly.

Xandros did not answer immediately.

That somehow felt worse.

Then quietly...

"You looked lonely earlier."

The words caught her off guard.

Rosaline blinked.

"What?"

"When you spoke about Everbloom."

His gaze did not leave hers.

"You looked like someone carrying grief alone."

The honesty in his voice nearly undid her.

Rosaline swallowed softly before looking down again.

"I don’t really have anyone there anymore."

The confession came quieter this time.

More vulnerable.

Her fingers tightened slightly against the blanket.

"My mother is gone. The palace never truly felt like home and now..." she laughed weakly, "...I don’t even know if the memories inside my own head belong to me anymore."

Silence followed.

Then the bed shifted slightly.

Rosaline looked up again just as Xandros moved closer.

Not much.

Just enough.

Enough for her breath to catch.

"You are not alone," he said quietly.

Simple words.

Yet they struck harder than they should have.

Rosaline stared at him silently.

Something warm spread painfully through her chest.

Xandros’ hand lifted again afterward, this time brushing lightly against her cheek.

Her entire body went still.

His thumb traced slowly beneath her eye.

Gently and Carefully.

Like she was something fragile despite the wings and magic and chaos surrounding her existence.

Rosaline’s lips parted slightly.

"Xandros..."

He leaned closer.

Slowly enough for her to stop him.

She didn’t.

The tension between them snapped all at once.

Rosaline closed the remaining distance first.

Their lips met softly at first.

Tentatively.

Like both of them were still learning what to do with this strange thing growing between them.

Then the kiss deepened.

Warmth exploded through Rosaline instantly.

Her fingers gripped the front of his shirt while one silver wing spread instinctively behind her. Xandros’ hand slid against her waist, pulling her closer until the distance between them disappeared completely.

The kiss became heated quickly.

Hungry.

Days of tension and confusion and restraint finally collapsing all at once.

Rosaline could barely think anymore.

Xandros kissed like he fought.

Controlled at first.

Then devastating.

Her heartbeat spiraled wildly while his hand moved against her back, fingers brushing lightly against the base of her wings.

Rosaline gasped softly against his lips.

That sound alone nearly destroyed the last remains of restraint inside him.

The air around them shifted faintly with unstable magic.

Silver feathers trembled across the bed.

Xandros suddenly pulled her closer...

then froze.

A sharp cough tore violently from his throat.

Rosaline startled immediately.

The kiss broke apart.

"Xandros...?"

He turned away slightly as another harsh cough hit him harder this time.

His breathing had changed.

Too uneven.

Rosaline’s eyes widened instantly when heat suddenly rolled off his body in waves.

Not normal warmth.

Burning.

His skin temperature rose unnaturally fast beneath her touch.

And for the first time since she met him...

Xandros looked genuinely unwell.

Rosaline grabbed his arm immediately as another violent cough tore through him.

The sound alone frightened her.

Not because it was loud.

But because it sounded wrong.

Weak.

Xandros braced one hand against the side of the bed while breathing slowly through the heat burning beneath his skin. His dark hair fell slightly across his forehead now, and Rosaline could feel the unnatural temperature radiating from him even through his clothes.

Her green eyes widened further.

He was burning up.

Panic rose instantly inside her chest.

"You have a fever."

"It’ll pass."

Another cough interrupted him immediately afterward.

Rosaline stared at him in disbelief.

"That does not look like it will pass!"

Xandros closed his eyes briefly.

The poison burned through his veins like molten metal, though his expression barely shifted despite it. Most creatures would already be dead from the amount currently inside his body.

But vampires older than kingdoms did not die easily.

Especially him.

Still...

the witch had been clever.

Very clever.

The poison had entered through contact inside the illusion.

The moment he allowed her to touch him freely within the false memory, the curse transferred itself directly into his system.

A dangerous move.

One that only worked because he had lowered his guard for the briefest second.

Because she had worn a familiar face.

His jaw tightened slightly at the realization.

Annoying.

Rosaline moved closer quickly afterward, placing her palm carefully against his forehead.

The heat nearly startled her backward.

"Oh gods..."

Her voice came out softer this time.

Genuinely worried.

Xandros slowly opened his eyes again afterward.

And then he saw it clearly.

Fear.

Not fear of him.

Fear for him.

That feeling did something strange to his chest.

Rosaline looked completely focused now, her brows furrowed while her fingers remained lightly against his skin as though trying to understand how his body could possibly feel this hot.

"You’re really sick," she whispered.

A faint smirk almost touched his lips despite the poison currently trying to burn through his organs.

"Sick is dramatic."

"You are literally boiling."

"That’s slightly dramatic too."

Rosaline looked genuinely offended.

"This is not the time to joke!"

Xandros watched her silently for a moment longer.

Then another cough hit him harder.

Rosaline immediately supported him before he could lean too far forward, one hand against his shoulder while worry flooded every part of her expression.

The concern looked painfully natural on her face.

And something darkly selfish inside him immediately wanted more of it.

How unfortunate.

He had spent centuries surrounded by fear, obedience, and blood.

Yet this...

this small trembling concern in her eyes affected him far more than any battlefield ever had.

Dangerous...ery dangerous.

Rosaline looked ready to panic now.

"What do I do?"

"Nothing."

"No."

The answer came instantly.

Firmly.

Xandros blinked once.

Rosaline rarely used that tone with him.

"I am not doing nothing while you cough up your organs in front of me."

"I still have all my organs."

"That is not reassuring!"

Despite himself...he almost laughed.

Rosaline pulled away from him quickly afterward before suddenly freezing.

Her wings.

They still rested openly behind her.

If anyone entered...

Her eyes widened immediately.

"Wait."

Before Xandros could respond, Rosaline hurried toward the chamber doors while awkwardly dragging her silver wings behind her. She slipped behind the wall near the entrance, carefully hiding the white feathers from view before opening the door only slightly.

Outside, the butler immediately straightened upon seeing her.

"Your Grace?"

Rosaline lowered her voice quickly.

"I need a bowl of cold water and clean towels immediately."

The butler blinked once.

"At this hour?"

"Yes."

Concern crossed his expression instantly.

"Has something happened?"

Rosaline hesitated briefly before answering.

"Xandros has a high temperature."

Silence.

Complete silence.

The butler’s face changed immediately.

Shock.

Real shock.

The man had worked inside this mansion for decades.

And in all those years...

the Duke had never once been ill.

Not once.

The older man stared at her carefully as though trying to determine whether he heard correctly.

"...His Grace is unwell?"

Rosaline nodded quickly.

"He keeps coughing."

The butler looked genuinely unsettled now.

That reaction alone worsened her anxiety immediately.

"What?" she asked nervously. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

The man recovered quickly afterward and bowed.

"My apologies, Your Grace. It’s simply..." He hesitated carefully. "I’ve never seen the Duke sick before."

Rosaline’s stomach tightened.

"Oh."

The butler glanced briefly toward the closed chamber doors before lowering his voice slightly.

"Should I summon the physician?"

"No."

The answer came instantly from inside the room.

Rosaline turned to look in his direction as the Butler looked at her.

Xandros had already stood from the bed.

Though barely.

One hand rested against the nearby wall while shadows stretched heavily beneath his eyes now. His breathing remained steady despite the visible heat radiating from his body.

The butler straightened immediately.

"My Lord."

"The water," Xandros said calmly. "Nothing else."

The older man bowed deeply without argument.

"Right away."

The moment the butler disappeared down the corridor, Rosaline quickly shut the door again before turning back toward Xandros.

And immediately frowned.

"Why are you standing?"

"I have functioning legs."

"You are impossible."

Xandros moved back toward the bed slowly afterward while loosening the top buttons near his collar slightly. The movement exposed pale skin marked faintly by dark veins beneath the surface.

Rosaline noticed instantly.

Her worry deepened.

"What happened to you?"

For several seconds, he said nothing.

Then finally—

"Poison."

Rosaline froze.

"...What?"

"You were poisoned and you said it would pass casually?!"

Xandros sat back against the edge of the bed carefully.

"It won’t kill me."

"That is not the point!"

His eyes lifted toward her again quietly.

"It normally wouldn’t matter."

Normally.

The word lingered strangely between them.

Rosaline moved closer again afterward, kneeling slightly in front of him while studying his face anxiously.

"Then why does it look this bad?"

Xandros watched her silently for a moment.

Because he let his guard down.

Because for one brief second, he allowed himself to step back into memory.

Because he had been careless.

But strangely...

he did not regret breaking the illusion anymore.

Not after returning here.

Returning to her.

Another cough tore from him suddenly.

Rosaline immediately grabbed the jug from nearby and pressed it carefully into his hand.

Her movements remained clumsy.

Unpracticed.

Yet painfully sincere.

"You should’ve told me sooner," she muttered softly.