He looked absolutely pissed at her. She paled under his glare.
“Escorts. To our suite, Adrian.”
“Coming any minute. I’ll have the rest of dinner sent up as well.”
Two dark-suited men stepped into the room.
“Two?” Tristan asked.
“That’s all I have right now. She played with the others.”
Tristan sighed.
“I’ll help,” Sam was coming in.
“No,” Tristan snapped, “back up.”
“No need. I’ve cleared the way, citing early curfew due to a security issue. We’ll move you to a private cottage tomorrow,” Adrian said.
Tristan took Kyla’s hand and Sam side-stepped several paces away from the door so they could pass. He walked fast, holding her hand. They were flanked by the two guards and Adrian wasn’t lying, there was no one around. A few moments later they were back in their suite, alone.
~~~“Do you have any idea how fuckin’ stupid that was?” He roared as the door was slammed and locked.
She backed away from him. The vibe coming off him was frightening.
“I don’t know how…” Kyla started. She had no idea where that strength came from. It was stronger than when Liam had attacked her, even. She hadn’t calculated, only reacted.
“Celia is the second most manipulative, strong, most vicious female vamp I know and you fuckin’ shove her, challenge her, insult her?”
He let out a laugh, not an amused one, either, it was the sound of exasperation and disbelief. It wasn’t a good thing. Kyla swallowed hard.
“Adrian was fucking with us, testing me. Testing you. But what you did?” Tristan moved to the bar area, poured a whiskey and thrust his hand through his hair and then downed it.
“Can I have one?” Kyla softly asked.
He poured her a drink and passed it to her, giving her a death glare.
“What you did played right into his hand. He wanted to see what you were made of, test my control…what a goddamn mess! And with Claude there? He thinks I’ve got no control over this situation and that is not fucking good,” He poured more whisky and downed it.
Kyla drank the shot that he’d poured her but it didn’t help. It never did. She put the glass down and let out a sigh.
“I didn’t know that’d happen. When she said she wanted your cock, I just…I flew into a rage. I lost it.”
“No shit!”
“Who is she? Why does she think she has a claim over you?”
“She’s the vamp who turned me. In the past, all she had to do was snap her fingers and I’d play her game. I enjoyed her game. But the last few times I saw her it started to get old. I still played for the fuck of it and she expected that to continue. She isn’t accustomed to being told No and when that rare occasion happens she does what she needs to in order to see that she gets what she wants. She mesmerizes vamps and she’s got the gift of programming so she programs people and vamps into functional trances. Good thing she has no control over you or you’d have offed yourself.”
Kyla felt her rage rise.
“But she can’t program you?”
“Clearly not. Another benefit of my bloodline. She can only turn unturned people and turned vamps as well as low-level true vamps. No elders, no royals.”
“What’s the difference between entrancing or mesmerizing and programming?”
“Programming continues after a vamp has left. Mesmerizing has a lifespan.”
“Why is she here?”
“Adrian said she was here to help him with a project unrelated to us. Clearly bullshit.”
Kyla massaged her temples.
“You don’t know how dangerous that was. Don’t you ever fuckin’ do something like that again.”
“Uh, I told you, it just happened. I had no control over it.”
“Some good that excuse’d do if it ended differently, huh? You need to get a lock on it.”
“Maybe just don’t put me in that position again, how ‘bout that? Every time you have me around other vamps it goes wrong so how about you learn from that? I’m going for a shower. You aren’t going anywhere, are you?”
“No.”
She headed for the washroom. He caught her by her bicep, “No. I mean, no, you’re not going for a shower.”
He pulled her closer and then his lips were on her lips and then his tongue was in her mouth, forcefully, hungry, dominating. He cupped her cheek.
She whimpered into his mouth.
“Fuck, I want you so fuckin’ bad. That was stupid but it was also hot as fuck watching you get all possessive over me with her. When you threw her across the room? God. I wanted to fuck you on the spot. I wanted to fuck you in that room in front of all of them so they’d know you’re mine. Only mine.”
Kyla was surprised at that reaction. She had a feeling it was more about her body chemistry right now than anything, though. Just smelling him felt like foreplay. He smelled like sex. Sugary sweet sex.