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  Suddenly, she stepped on a rock and her ankle twisted the wrong way. Sharp pain shot up her leg. “Ow! That’s it. I’m done. Call a taxi because I’m not moving from this spot. I’m tired and dirty. We’ve been walking for hours and I miss my sisters. I need to call them and you haven’t even said a word to me since we left that blue-haired demon’s HQ.” A hot blush crept up her face and she almost looked away from him, but decided he deserved her hateful glare. He looked down at her ankle with little interest and nodded down the street.

  “The hotel’s right there.” His stiff voice was back to being controlled. She wondered if she slapped him across the face would he even flinch. She was about to find out when he said,

  “Do you need me to carry you the rest of the way?”

  “No,” she said gruffly. Okay, it wasn’t particularly sweet what he said, but it warmed her anyways. Honestly the pain wasn’t that bad. She was just frustrated at this whole situation. As they reached the hotel, Chloe’s mood worsened. She’d hoped it’d at least be a Holiday Inn or something but, no, it was some rinky-dink hotel that’d probably make her feel dirtier going into than leaving.

  Tyrian paid for the room which, of course, was the one at the very end of the complex.

  He’d asked for a room ‘furthest from the office.’ Of course he’d prolong the walking torture.

  When she finally got inside the room, she didn’t care that the carpet was fifty years old or that the room was muggy with humidity. She marched straight to the bathroom and turned the shower on. At least the water got hot, she thought.

  She didn’t bother pulling the door closed, just stripped, and got into the steamy water.

  She sighed as the hot water beat across her sore back and leg muscles. When the water ran cold, she rinsed off and got out. She dried her hair and wrapped a white towel around herself as she left the bathroom.

  Tyrian was talking on a cell phone. She didn’t even know he had one. It was odd, but seeing him use a piece of modern technology was just...weird. He should be holding a sword or a mighty hammer in one hand with a goblet of mead in the other. Especially with that jagged scar across his cheek, he looked every bit the old-time warrior. Course, an old warrior probably wouldn’t hesitate to ravage her like she wanted.

  The new moon cycle only lasted for about three days. Soon the moon would be filling brightly again in the sky, and Tyrian wouldn’t have to help her with her little “problem.” She stared at the hard muscles of his shoulders, back and legs, which she’d felt the strength in as he thrust inside her. The man was a machine. And he wouldn’t touch her once her new moon was gone.

  What would happen to her after her moon cycle was over and she reached full sexual

  maturity? From then on she’d require sex every day, just like a human does with food, or a vampire with blood. Her eyes widened as a realization hit her. Who would feed the vampire? He finished with some businessy conversation on the phone and closed it.

  “Tyrian?” She bit her lip, excitement making her heart race. She loved trying new things, and this particular thing she really wanted to try.

  “What?”

  She thought for a moment on how best to approach this subject and decided to go

  outrageous since that always seemed to work with him. Dropping the towel to the floor, she walked to him.

  He heard her coming and turned to her. Chloe smiled when his eyes widened and the

  barest of flushes graced his cheeks. He was the biggest ego stroke she’d ever had in her whole life. With one simple look, a look that he was obviously trying not to show, he managed to make her feel like an irresistible goddess. As if he had to steel himself just to deal with her. God did she love it.

  She stopped in front of him and pressed her palm against his chest. Encouraged when he didn’t pull away, she pressed the other against his heart. Was she finally making leeway with the vampire commander?

  “I want to feed you.” His lip twitched and he looked back out the window.

  “No. Come on,” he said. Not bothering to wait for her, he grabbed her by the hand and took her into the bathroom. He paused then said, “Stay in here while I shower.”

  She couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s not a problem.”

  His words were icy cold when he said, “This isn’t for fun. In case something happens, I want you near me.” Chloe sent him a saucy wink and leaned against the sink. His eyes flicked over her hard nipples before he dragged his gaze away and undressed in quick movements.

  “Don’t rush, baby. Go slow. Tease me. Mmm, yeah. Just like that.” He kicked off his boots and glared at her, his icy eyes glittering. She smiled and hopped up onto the sink counter for a better view. “You have one delicious body, Ty.” He reached for the tie holding his hair and released it. Black hair spilled out across the breadth of his shoulders.

  His body didn’t look baby soft or even smooth, for that matter. He had a variety of scars from his arms all the way down to his calves. Some were small gashes like thin cuts and others were deeper, wider and were probably once very nasty. A light dusting of black hair covered his stomach but did nothing to hide the hard muscles he kept there.

  He turned his back to her and in full light, she finally got to see that strange tattoo again.

  He got into the shower and closed the glass door with a bang.

  “Tell me about the tattoo.”

  He started soaping himself and said, “No.”

  Undeterred Chloe said, “Either tell me about the tattoo or tell me about your family. I’d prefer to know it all but I’m nice and will let you get away with just one for now.”

  “No.”

  “If you don’t,” she rushed to think of something, anything that she could use as leverage,

  “then I’ll sleep with Draven, Rayn, and Henry. I mean it. I will. Maybe even at the same time.

  And you know they will. Don’t push me on this because I know that somewhere deep inside you, you really don’t want that.”

  Silence greeted her except for the water sloshing as he created suds and lathered them over his arms and chest. Her stomach tightened at the sight and she really, really wished he’d go slower.

  “Papa raised us different than other succubus families. He didn’t believe that the man needed to be head of household or that he had any right to decide whom his daughters should love or be with. My sisters and I respected that, especially as we got older and really understood what it took for him to do that. Some families ostracized us, criticized my father for breaking the time-honored tradition of creating submissive women. Ha, it was a joke,” she said. Tyrian had slowed his motions and she knew he was listening.

  “Other daughters and even a few mother’s we’d see on occasion secretly told us how

  incredible it was that our father was letting us choose who we’d have at the time of our new moon. You have to understand that knowing one day you could die if you don’t have sex, sounds crazy, even to a young succubus’ ears. You know it’s going to happen but it doesn’t make it any easier.”

  “But Francis left you to me anyway,” Tyrian said.

  “Yes, and I don’t know why. He never mentioned it to my sisters or me. He spent our whole lives making us independent from men. He told us we could choose whom we wanted to mate with, who we wanted to become our Protectors. Then he died so suddenly,” she stopped speaking, her voice clouding with grief.

  Looking away, she blinked away the tears. “I loved him so much, you know. And the one thing I’ll always remember about him, the one thing he stood for, ended up being a lie when he died. He wrote away his daughters to three unfamiliar, strange men as the last thing he did. He left me to you.”

  She took a ragged breath and looked back over at him. He had his hands planted on the shower wall, his head bowed as water poured over the long lean muscles of his back and legs.

  After what seemed like minutes passing, he spoke. His words were carefully chosen as if it was difficult for him to speak about it. His w
ords were icy in their control.

  “I was raised in a vampire clan near what is now Hungary. Only certain men, and

  occasionally strong women, were trained to become warriors. Everyone had their place in the clan. Some were workers who made clothes or weapons. Others were frimars respected highly among all.” Chloe’s eyes widened, her jaw dropping in shock that he was actually telling her about his past.

  “We warriors trained every day. No matter rain, snow, or storm, day or night, we were constantly tested, always fighting. It hardened us, made us good fighters.” He rolled his neck back so the water streamed in rivulets over his face. When he spoke again, his words were muffled from the water. “The seal of my clan was the crow. Crows are intelligent creatures.

  Myths from my clan said the crow was a clever hunter. It would plan before it fought, then attack and kill its prey swiftly. This was what we were taught.”

  “So they tattooed the crow on your back?”

  His back stiffened and she wondered if he remembered getting it. How painful was it?

  “All the warriors have one. It was a great ceremony, a proud celebration to receive the brand. You were not allowed to shed a tear or cry out as it was done or else you would shame your family and the clan. It was the last step to becoming a full warrior.”

  Chloe looked at the etched pattern of short and longer lines that formed the pattern of the crow. “It’s not like any tattoo I’ve ever seen,” she admitted. “How was it done?” His fingers reached back as if to touch the marking, but then he pulled away.

  “A very sharp knife. You laid on your stomach. One person specialized in creating the brand. He sharpened the blade for hours until it was perfect, then as everyone gathered around, he started cutting.”

  Chloe grimaced at the sheer size of the brand. It covered him from each shoulder blade and down nearly to his waist. It must have taken quite some time to do that with such meticulous, straight cuts.

  “Do vampires not regenerate skin back?”

  He grabbed the soap and lathered the rest of his body before answering. “We do but not very quickly. Within a few days or even a week depending on how bad the injury is.”

  “How did they get the crow brand to stay, because it’s not very deep looking. Wouldn’t it have fixed itself?”

  He shook his head. “After the final cuts are made, the blood is rinsed off with water, then dried. The salt is the final test. If you cry out, then they will clean off the salt. Your skin will grow back and you will not be a warrior. They pack the salt on it in heavy clumps.”

  “You never made a sound,” Chloe said in wonder. He shut the shower off and stepped

  out. He wasn’t modest about his nudity but grabbed a towel from the wrack and wrapped it around his waist. He started past her, but Chloe grabbed his shoulders.

  She gasped. “You’re cold! You took a freezing cold shower this whole time? You are

  such a bastard.”

  He flashed her an angry look. “Excuse me?”

  Chloe shook her head at him quickly hopped onto him from the sink, wrapping her arms and legs around his icy cold skin.

  “Shit, baby,” she said, her teeth chattering.

  “God dammit let go of me, Chloe.” He tried to push her away but she locked her ankles together.

  “Not until you’re warm. Besides, I like this.”

  He took a deep, angry breath, then marched out the room with her on him. Chloe grinned when he started pulling back the bed covers. He sat down and pulled them both under.

  “You’re really sweet sometimes, you know.”

  “I am your Protector. It’s my duty to see to your comfort.”

  Chloe burst out laughing and pressed kisses over the stubble on his jaw. She pulled back and looked at his scar. His eyes watched her, but she ignored him. The growth of beard coming in spread over his neck, chin, and jaw but not in the crevice of his scar, making it stand out even more.

  “How did you get it?”

  “It doesn’t matter.”

  “Of course it does,” she insisted.

  “Why?” He sounded sincerely confused.

  “Because I want to know.” His skin was warming up nicely against hers, making her feel all kinds of sexy.

  “In the Great War, I was fighting a group of demons and another came up on me by

  surprise. His sword flew at my neck and I never saw it coming. Francis kicked the demon back and killed him. The blade only nicked my skin.”

  Chloe’s jaw dropped. “Francis as in Frank Bellum? My Papa? He saved your life in the war?” Tyrian shifted his eyes away looking uncomfortable. “Oh my God, that’s the debt you owe him, isn’t it?” She couldn’t keep the excitement out of her voice.

  In her excitement, Chloe wiggled her hips against him and felt an unmistakable, hard press. Her eyes popped open and she looked down between their bodies to find his cock a massive pole between them.

  “Oh, baby, why didn’t you say so? she purred.

  “No,” he said, already denying her. His hands grabbed her hips and started pushing her to the side.

  Chloe squealed with laughter as she fought against him. She ended up on top of him. She didn’t waste any time placing her hips in just the perfect way, then quickly pushed down on him.

  He entered through her soft wet pussy on a hot, hard glide. His hands stopped pushing her away and instead held her there, his hands gripping and squeezing her.

  “Wow, it feels...different like this,” she said, her voice breathy. Chloe leaned onto his chest and watched as pleasure tightened his face, made his breathing labored. “I didn’t know.”

  She lifted herself partway then lowered. The motions were shallow but repeatedly hit her in some deep spot that drenched her in pleasure. “Tyrian,” she gasped.

  His hips started pumping then, working his length into her with a vigorous passion that stole her breath away and left her gasping. His hands curved around to her bottom and urged her faster against him.

  Oh God, it was so good. She couldn’t breathe fast enough. He was so deep inside her.

  Every downward push pressed her core against him and threatened to send her toppling over.

  “Chloe,” he said, his voice hoarse and hot. Chloe’s eyes fluttered open to see him staring with hunger at her breasts bobbing near his face. “Bring them to me.” She was mindless with pleasure as she leaned forward and brought her breast to his mouth.

  He made a growling noise, then her breast was in his mouth. One hand came up to

  squeeze it, putting delicious pressure on it so that he could suck her nipple into his hot mouth.

  His raspy tongue circled her nipple then rubbed over it again and again.

  Chloe’s rush to release came swiftly. Her body came to a boil, blood rushing like a waterfall through her body. She threw back her head and screamed as his thrusts became faster, harder inside her. He kept going, sucking as her body quivered and jerked against him, her breaths sawing in and out.

  Suddenly he pulled his mouth away from her breast, tugged her head to the side. She had only a glimpse of sharp, white fangs before they sunk into her neck. Instant heat built at her neck and pleasure again built in her sex as he thrust faster, sliding in and out of her wet core. He drank from her with greedy pulls, his tongue licking at her with swipes.

  Languid euphoria swept through her like a fog, closed her thoughts off to everything but the next climax rushing inside her. She concentrated on the feel of him tunneling inside her so thick and long. Each drugging pull at her neck, brought her closer, but it wasn’t until she felt him become lost that she finally came apart.

  She felt the change in him, like a switch being thrown. His mouth firmly latched onto her neck with a growl and he sucked hard as he started pumping faster. Her tissues tingled, his cock landed against that spot so deep inside her. He let out a half-shout against her neck.

  Hearing him lost sent her body shooting apart like a supernova. Her arms came around his shoulders to hold on
to something from this earth as she screamed with the force of her release. He didn’t stop growling. She felt him shooting inside her even as he continued to thrust over and again.

  She heard something and realized she was chanting his name. He slowed his thrusts to a lazy rock then pulled away from her neck. Chloe followed his head down to the pillow, kissing his wet lips. His hands came up to her face, cradling her as he kissed her back. A warm, satisfied feeling settled in her heart, made it feel bigger, happier than usual. Even as it terrified her, she reveled in it.

  He pulled back and looked at her, his eyes tracing over her features then down to her neck. His eyes pulled tight and then he was pushing her aside and heading for the bathroom.

  “What’s wrong now?” He didn’t answer but he did close the bathroom door. Sighing, she tampered down the anger, not wanting to ruin the incredible, floating feeling inside her. She closed her eyes, could smell his clean scent against the pillow, and quickly fell asleep.

  Chapter Eighteen

  “Get up!”

  Chloe jerked awake at Tyrian’s yell. She had only a moment to blink before he was

  yanking her out of bed and shoving her behind him.

  She blinked again as she saw the giant double-bladed axe he wielded one-handed. Was this a dream? Where the hell did he get that thing? It’s not like she wouldn’t have noticed it.

  A terrible shriek boomed through the air. Whatever made the sound had to be massive.

  Not even a second later, something crashed into the window, sending sharp shards of glass exploding into the room.

  Holy shit. The demons had found her. “They can fly?” she said, stunned at the demon lumbering to its bony green feet.

  “Some can. Looks like your demon has gained some extra followers.” The demon locked eyes on them, screeched, and launched at Tyrian.

  Tyrian swung his axe in a wide, arching sweep just as the demon moved, clipping a wing off with a meaty sound. The demon screeched and rounded on Tyrian as something hard started banging on the front door. The keychain rattled violently against the door, the frame splintered and shook. Chloe frantically looked around for a weapon, anything, but saw nothing she could actually use. She didn’t have some magical axe to fight with.