As the fire crackled softly in the hearth and the last of the wine was poured, a comfortable silence settled over the table, broken only by the occasional scrape of forks against plates. Elena's fingers tightened around Victor's under the cloth, her pulse quickening with the weight of the secret she had carried all evening. She glanced at him, catching the quiet warmth in his eyes, before turning to his parents with a gentle smile that belied the flutter in her chest.

"I have something to share," she said, her voice steady yet laced with quiet joy. "Victor and I... we're going to have a baby." The words hung in the air for a moment, and then his mother's face lit up with delight, her hands clasping together as she leaned forward. His father nodded slowly, a rare grin breaking across his features, while Victor's hand squeezed hers in silent affirmation, his gaze softening with a tenderness reserved only for these moments.

The room filled with their murmurs of excitement, the scent of rosemary still lingering as questions about names and the future began to flow. Elena felt the tension she had held ease from her shoulders, the family's embrace pulling her deeper into their circle, and Victor's thumb traced circles on her palm, anchoring her in the promise of what lay ahead.

Elena felt the tension she had held ease from her shoulders, the family's embrace pulling her deeper into their circle, and Victor's thumb traced circles on her palm, anchoring her in the promise of what lay ahead. Later, after the plates were cleared and goodnights exchanged with his parents, Victor led her upstairs to the guest room overlooking the moonlit hills, the door clicking shut behind them like a seal on their private world. The air there was thick with the scent of aged wood and lavender from the linens, and as he pulled her close, Elena sensed the shift in him—the way his broad shoulders tensed beneath her touch, the faint scar along his jawline catching the lamplight as she cupped his face.

"You've carried so much alone for so long," she whispered, her fingers unbuttoning his shirt to reveal the hard planes of his chest, the ridges of old wounds mapping his battles. "Let me in, Victor. The baby, our future... it doesn't have to be another weight you bear in silence." His icy eyes softened, vulnerability cracking through as he admitted the fear gnawing at him—the dread of his empire's dangers touching their child, the ghosts of his ruthless choices haunting the tenderness he reserved only for her. She drew him down onto the bed, her lips tracing his, and soon their clothes fell away in a whisper of fabric. His hands, calloused yet reverent, explored her body with aching slowness, palming the swell of her breasts before dipping lower to part her thighs. He entered her gently at first, his thick cock sliding into her slick pussy with a shared gasp, filling her completely as she arched beneath him, her walls clenching around his length in rhythmic welcome. Each thrust deepened their connection, his tenderness evident in the way he kissed her neck, whispering her name like a prayer while she rocked her hips to meet him, her clit throbbing against the press of his body as waves of pleasure built and crested, her moans mingling with his low groans until they shattered together, his release pulsing hot inside her.

In the afterglow, sweat-slicked and breathless, Victor held her close, his voice rough with devotion. "You are mine, Elena—now and always, this child and every moment after. I vow to possess you eternally, body and soul, shielding you from every shadow while you light the darkness in me."

Owned by the devil, loved by the king.