Chains of Frost: The Bellum Sisters 1 (25 page)

“You are clean,” he announced. He
didn’t meet her eyes as he scooped his arms under her and started to lift her.

“Wait!” He hesitantly turned to
her, his face mere inches from hers. Her heart fluttered, stomach clenching
with desire. Chloe licked her lips and said, “I need something else from you.”
Ice froze over his eyes.

“No. I shall bring Draven or Rayn
or anyone else you wish here for you. I will not be doing that with you. I
advise that you find a partner to secure your daily needs. I can’t do it.” He
sounded almost desperate.

Honestly baffled, Chloe ran her
hands over the wisps of hairs that fell over his cheek. “Why?” He closed his
eyes as if in pain then set her back in the tub. Her stomach tightened with
that alarming feeling and quickly she added, “And don’t lie. Please.”

He stood completely and walked to
the door. She thought he was leaving but he turned back at the last second. “A
warrior does not tell his secrets to those who could use them against him.”

“But I would never hurt you.”

He looked away, a haunted look
coming over his face. “One doesn’t always plan to hurt, but does anyway.”

“Please, tell me what you’re
talking about. I wouldn’t hurt you. I told you…I care for you.” She hoped it
was as simple as that, because with the way her heart was beating it was
telling her a different story.

“Some men are only so strong,
Chloe. I’ve experienced my limit. By taking the responsibility of you on, by
doing what you want me to do…I just can’t. What you ask of me is impossible.”

Water sloshed as she pulled
herself out of the tub. “What are you talking about? Is this about your family
and that, that
room
down the hall? Tell me about it; because whether you
like it or not, I’m not going anywhere.”

Jaw twitching, he shook his head,
hard and brief. Chloe marched up to him, blood coming to a boil. “Tell me,
dammit! I have a right to know what the heck is going on here. I was uprooted
by strange men from my hotel. I have been taken from my life. I had a job with
customers I adored and who loved me. I had a nice life, but now I’m here with
you, with some crazing demon thing after me, and you can’t even tell me why you
won’t sleep with me!” She was fuming, her chest heaving, and hands curling into
shaking fists. She realized one fatal flaw in what she said. He had slept with
her. Several times, in fact. But he’d only shared one thing about himself with
her. That was what she wanted. To know about him.

Tyrian stared at her, his eyes
the coldest she’d ever seen. He turned on his heel and strode out of the
bathroom. Chloe’s jaw dropped and she padded on wet feet after him, uncaring of
the water dripping over the floor.

“Stop right there, vampire!” She
had no idea why, but he actually did. He turned around to face her and she saw
the stress lines forming around his eyes and mouth. Her heart almost melted.
She didn’t want to fight with him. She just wanted to know.

“Enough with the vague allusions.
Just tell me, please, what your problem is. Tell me why you have a child’s room
over there and a woman’s room with a painting of you in it. Explain to me why
sleeping with me is so horrible. Don’t you see that I don’t want anybody else?
I don’t know anything about anyone else here except your damn
frimar,
and
I don’t swing that way. Just tell me, please.” Chloe folded her arms across her
stomach, feeling hopeless and dejected.

The longest minute of her life
passed and she shook her head, close to tears, when he finally spoke.

“Maria and I married before The
Great War, when demons roamed the earth next to vampires and shapeshifters, and
used magic to blend in with humans. There was no such thing as an Atal Warrior
then. My father married a loose woman named Akiro. She had a litter of children,
but only me with my father. I don’t think he loved her so much as was
infatuated with her. She had this way of stringing men along, always desiring
her, always needing her,” said Tyrian in icy tones.

He walked to the window and
looked out at the sky, his hands pulled behind his back in that familiar way.
Chloe sat on the bed and waited, listening.

“I don’t know when the affair
started, or perhaps it just never stopped, but when my father found out he was…furious.
He might have killed her if she hadn’t left. And she did leave, with her demon
lover. My father started the war after that.” Chloe gasped, her eyes huge in
her face.

“Your father started The Great
War because his wife left him for a demon.” The rumors were true then. The war
wasn’t started because the demons were violent. It was one man’s vengeance.

Tyrian looked at her with a
bitter smile on his face. “Yes, he did. See, father was charming. He could get
anyone to do anything he wanted except, of course, my mother. Before I knew it,
I was one of the highest generals in the newest organization, the Atal
Warriors. We started a war with the demons, pushed every last one of them back
into the rift.”

“What happened if they didn’t
go?”

“We killed them,” he said simply.
“The demons grew to hate the Atal Warriors, understandably. Some sought revenge,
specifically on my family. They succeeded in killing my father, but not me.
Instead, they killed my wife, Maria, and my son, Aidan.”

Chloe gasped and at the sound,
Tyrian rounded on her, towered over her, and said, “I keep their rooms as a
reminder. See, you are but a child, an infant in my world. You just turned 29
years old.” He laughed, the sound bone chilling. “I have had to live for nearly
fifteen hundred years. If I didn’t have those rooms to remember them by, I’d
have nothing. I’d forget, as all beings forget with time. And I can never
forget them, Chloe. Not even for you.”

Chloe came to a stand, grabbing
on to his shirt. “But I don’t want you to forget. I just wanted to know why,
Tyrian. I want to know more about you.”

“Why, because you care? People
who care are just setting themselves up to be hurt. Just leave me alone, Chloe.
I don’t want you.” His cruel words were a slap to the face. She blinked and
felt the wetness escaping her eyes. He walked away and was nearly out the door
when she ran after him, grabbing his arm and spinning him back around.

“You’re just trying to hurt me.
You’re trying to push me away, but it won’t work.”

“And you have silly, romantic
notions in your head.”

She didn’t know what to say to
that, because he was right. So she went on her toes, pulled his head down to
hers, and kissed him. He struggled against her, trying to pull away, but she
held tight. Her lips clung fervently to his, desperately trying to tell him
that it was okay, that she wanted him still, no matter what.

He snapped. His tongue parted her
lips and thrust inside, tasting her and filling her over and again. Chloe
moaned and tore the knot free from his hair so she could grab fistfuls of it.
He tasted decadent, like some sexy concoction that shouldn’t be natural.

Suddenly, hands grabbed her naked
ass and lifted her, spun her so she slammed into the door. Her legs scrambled
to wrap around his strong thighs, her core thrusting toward him, needing him.

“I should turn you around and
fuck you like a dog. Is that what you want? My cock to appease your appetite?”
Chloe saw the anger in his eyes, hot and smoldering.

“I want more than that and you
know it. There’s more between us.” Tyrian slammed his hand against the door by
her head. She didn’t jump.

“There is nothing between us but
this.” His hand reached between them to cup a breast, his fingers naturally
latching on to her nipple. Chloe couldn’t stop the moan that left her, didn’t
even want to.

“There is more, Tyrian. And there
could be a lot more, if you let yourself go with me.” She cupped his face
gently, trying to show him how much she wanted him.

“There will never be more between
us, Chloe.” He reached between them and fumbled at his pants with quick, jerky
movements. In seconds, his zipper was down and his cock sprang free. “Nothing
more than this,” he said, then plunged inside.

She moaned and wrapped her arms
around his shoulders, bringing them chest to chest. He took her body hard,
ruthlessly. Her ass beat against the door and she didn’t even care how loud
they were being. There was no stopping the cries that left her throat or the
savage grunts he made as he hit deep inside her again and again. Harder, then
quicker.

“This is all there can ever be,”
he said in her ear.

“Feels so good,” Chloe gasped,
feeling him pistoning through her wet sheathe. “If this is all you’ll give me,
then I’ll take. I’ll take you anyway I can get you, baby.” His hold tightened
on her ass, gripping each cheek like they were some anchor that kept him
leveled on earth.

“Chloe,” he whispered, raggedly.
The word held so much meaning, so much pain, that she pulled his mouth back and
kissed him.

She kissed him hard and long.
When she pulled his tongue into her mouth and sucked on it, she started coming.
Tyrian tore his mouth away so she could scream. And scream she did. His name,
over and over again as her body shook and exploded into a million pieces all
around him.

His hips slapped against her
faster. His fingers dug like sexy points into her ass and kept her still for
his thrusts. As the last ripple of her orgasm faded, his began. He cried out,
the sound magic to her, a sound she would never forget. So precious was it to
see him lose control. He started shooting hot jets inside her and she wiggled
closer on a moan, not wanting it to stop, wanting him to fill her deeply and
forever.

When he was done, he pulled out,
breathing hard. His hands were shaking as he put his cock back inside his
pants. He didn’t look at her as he moved her away from the door.

“Tyrian?”

“Get dressed. I’m sending Lily
up. We have to go see Telal.” His voice sounded dead, empty. Chloe had a
feeling she’d just pushed him even farther away.

As the door closed, she wanted to
curl up and cry.

* * *

“So how do you feel knowing
you’re about to meet
the
demon, as in the demon you’re supposed to be protected
by?” asked Chloe. Her previous argument with Tyrian, if that’s what one called
such a thing, still lingered over her like a dark rain cloud. But at seeing her
sister, she perked up immediately. Lily had that effect on people.

Lily always had the ability to
smile and make everyone around her feel lighter, happier. Maybe it was her
passive, daydreamy-type personality or the way she smiled at you like you
delighted her silly.

It was hard to feel serious
around Lily when she was wearing a long billowy skirt with large purple flowers
on it, and a strappy shirt that tied behind her back and showed off all of her
bare skin. It was also bright pink. Her white flip-flops topped off the look.
And they were in a chilly castle in Norway, yet she acted like this was Palm
Beach.

Her sister was a curvy woman with
a fuller figure and her arms and back were sexy enough to show off. Chloe
totally wasn’t jealous. Even her hair looked wilder than usual. She’d inherited
the wild, curly mane from their mama. And hers was dark, too, like Papa’s.

Lily kicked her feet out and
swung them off the edge of the bed. “Ecstatic! I can’t wait for my 29th
birthday. Why do you think I chose this shirt? Demons are known for their
sexual prowess, you know.” She wiggled her eyes brows.

Chloe laughed. “So what, you’re
eager to seduce the demon, then?”

Lily arched a brow. “I did some
research into him after I got Papa’s will. I’m interested to say the least. I
don’t think I’ll have to seduce him. He’ll see me and what’s not to like?”

“True,” Chloe agreed.

“So, what’s he like anyway?”
asked Lily, her eyes wide.

Chloe bit her lip, trying to
think of the best way to word it. “He might not be how you imagined. He’s kind
of a stiff.”

Lily’s nose wrinkled. “Stiff as
in a corpse or the business kind?”

“The business kind.”

“Dammit, I knew something like
this was going to happen. I guess I’ll just have to loosen him up a bit,” Lily
said with a wink. Chloe had forgotten how good it felt to be around her sister.
She missed them both so much.

“Have you heard from Willow?”

“Yeah, she called me once to say
she was headed off to Russia and that the shapeshifter was hot on her trail.
Don’t tell her I said so, but she’s totally into him.”

Chloe snorted. “Oh, come on. An
Alpha? No way. You must have been talking to someone else.”

“I know, right? Trust me. She
didn’t have a nice word to say about him. She
hates
him. I also know
she’s already slept with him, and judging by how adamantly she denied liking
it, I’d say she
loooved
it. Probably even wants a few thousand
do-overs.”

“Wow, in a way it’s almost a
cruel fate. She’s so stubborn, I don’t know how she’ll be able to put up with
him.”

“She’ll find a way. I had a dream
about her a few days ago. I think she and the Alpha will do fine, once he
catches her that is. She’s playing the extreme version of hard-to-get. Though
he probably likes it. It’s a good challenge for them both.”