Lilian already noticed that she was still dressed in the shorts that showed most of her legs and a light tank top that left little to imagination. The cool morning air made her nipples visible through the fabric, and she watched Dante's jaw tighten slightly as he forced his attention back to her face.
'Didn't they saw everything within few days ago?' Her mind wondered.
"Where are the others?" she asked, diverting the thought while taking a sip of coffee. The flavor bloomed on her enhanced taste buds, and she could almost identify the origin of the beans and the faint trace of cinnamon blended into it.
"Adrian is preparing the training room. Lucien is handling some business with the Council. They're asking for updates on the newborn," Dante explained, emphasizing on the word newborn made it clear they were lying about her true nature to the outside world. "We need to figure out exactly what you can do today so we know what story to tell them."
"And what story will that be?" Lilian asked, setting down her coffee cup.
"That you're just a standard newborn with adequate strength and speed, manageable bloodlust, progressing normally."
Dante moved closer to take the coffee cup, and Lilian caught her breath as his scent washed over her. It was cool and clean with an underlying darkness that called to something in her hybrid blood. "The truth stays between five people. You, me, Adrian, Lucien, and Mrs. Hemsworth."
Now he was standing close enough for her to feel the coolness radiating from his body, to notice the way his chest didn't rise and fall with breathing he didn't need. Close enough for her to realize that if she just leaned forward an inch, she could press her mouth to his neck where she could see his pulse thudding slowly under his pale skin.
The sudden urge to bite him was sudden and overwhelming, not just from hunger, but from something else. Her thighs clenched together and heat spread through her with unexpected desire.
Dante's eyes darkened and his nostrils flaring slightly, clearly sensing her reaction.
"Lilian," he said, his voice dropping lower an octave now, becoming rougher. "Be careful with thoughts like that around vampires. Especially around us."
"Why especially around you," she whispered, surprised by the breathiness in her own voice.
"Because we're already drawn and attracted to you," Dante said bluntly, no longer bothering to hide it. "You're beautiful, unique, and we spent days touching you, caring for you. It's becoming very difficult to ignore."
He stepped back, putting distance between them. "But you're our responsibility. I won't take advantage of you while you're still figuring out what you are."
"What if I want you to act on it?" The bold and shameless words came out from her mouth without her mind told it to say it.
For a brief second, Dante's composure cracked. His hands balled into fists, his haw tightened, and his eyes flashed with a raw hunger driven not by the blood. Just as quickly, he forced himself back under control with visible effort.
"That's your hybrid nature speaking," he said, though his voice sounding strained. "Lucien found that hybrids tend to have stronger sexual drives than humans. It's part of the divine bloodline as they are creatures of intense passion and desire. When you combine that with vampire instincts, which is already highly sexual… you're going to feel powerful urges, Lilian. Especially toward potential mates."
"Potential mates?" Lilian repeated, latching onto the phrase immediately.
"Vampires who are compatible with you. Who could actually handle your energy."
Dante ran a hand through his dark hair, a gesture she was starting to recognize as frustration. "Adrian, Lucien, and I… we're all compatible with you. We felt it during your fever. That's why we're all losing our minds over you, and why you feel it for us."
"All three of you?" she asked, her jaw slightly dropped. She never knew vampires had this kind of bonding before as she didn't even bother to search the knowledge about the creature before she got bitten. "Is that even possible? Is that normal?"
"For a divine hybrid such as you, it's not just possible. It's expected."
Dante moved back to his chair, deliberately placing space between them. "Historically, your kind took multiple vampire mates. Your power is too much for just one of us to balance. It takes two or three to handle that kind of divine energy."
He looked her straight in the eye. "But that doesn't mean you have to chose us. Or any of us. You're free to find your own mates once you're ready, after you understand what's happening to you."
"And if I already know what I want?" she challenged, her gaze met his directly.
"Then you wait," Dante replied firmly. "Until the hybrid hormones settle and you can make rational decisions. Right now, you're newly transformed and you're relying on us for your life. That's not the time to make permanent choices about mates."
He stood up, signaling the conversation was over. "Get dressed. Training starts in thirty minutes. There are workout clothes in the wardrobe that Adrian picked them out in your size."
Dante left before Lilian could get another word in, and she sat on the bed for a long moment, processing everything he had told her.
Hybrid vampires.
Multiple mates.
Divine bloodline.
It sounded like a fantasy plot from a cheap novel book, but her body was telling her it was very, very real. The restless energy was humming inside her, of her need that made her want to chase after Dante and to see just how much his control could withstand.
But his words echoed in her mind. Was he right about all this hybrid hormones taking over her? Or did she truly want all three of them at once?
Lilian shook her head to drive the thought away, and walked to the wardrobe, finding the workout clothes Dante had mentioned, and one of her eyebrows rose. All in her exact size. They definitely had her measures during all stages of her transformations.
She changed quickly into the sport bra, fitted tank top, yoga pants that hugged every curve, and athletic shoes. Lilian was right, everything matched her measurements perfectly, and all of these were in high quality.
Her reflection showed her transformed body. More toned than before, her skin had a luminous glow, and even just standing in front of the full-length mirror in the room, she looked more graceful. She looked like a fitness model, all lean muscle and feminine curves.
She almost didn't recognize the girl in the mirror. No wonder the princes were attracted to her.