Immortal Rider_ Lords of Deliverance Series_ - Larissa Ione [50]
Thanatos called for Atrius, who appeared immediately. “Take her to the great hall. Put the succubus in my bedroom and give the Guardian tea. I’ll be right there.”
Atrius took the female, and though Than shouldn’t have looked… he did. He watched the sway of her perfect ass as she walked away, and then he had to wait for his erection to subside and his fangs to stop throbbing to join her. He really didn’t give a hellrat’s ass if she got an eyeful of boner, but he’d kept his canines under wraps since the day they’d dropped and demanded blood.
He considered showering, but fuck it. She’d interrupted his workout, so she could put up with his sweaty, smelly self. He did throw on a sweatshirt, though.
She was waiting for him by the fire, hands behind her back as she studied the portrait over the mantel. “You like looking at yourself, huh?”
That voice. Damn, he could listen to that voice all day. “It was a gift,” he said,t,p>< but didn’t elaborate.
His vampires had commissioned the painting a couple of hundred years ago, and he hadn’t wanted to insult them by not displaying it. Granted, he’d originally placed it someplace a lot less noticeable, but someone kept moving it here. It had become something of a game now, and every couple of years, he’d move it and see how long it would take them to notice it was gone, find it, and return it.
She turned to him just as Atrius arrived with a pot of tea and a single cup and set them on the narrow oak table against the back of the couch. “I was kidding about the tea,” she said, but she poured it anyway.
“I didn’t want you to think I’m a terrible host. Now, tell me why you’re here.”
As if he hadn’t spoken, she blew across the steamy surface of her tea. “Mm. Smells good.”
Of course it did. He only bought the best. “Where is Kynan?”
“Dunno.” She regarded him over the rim of her cup. “It’s not my day to watch him.”
Infuriating human. “Why isn’t he here? We’ve been dealing with him.”
“You’ve been dealing with him because he’s the only one of us who can travel through Harrowgates. He’s the one who brought me here, actually. And can I just state for the record that I hate being knocked out for the journey? Gave me one hell of a headache.”
“I’m not going to ask you again. Why are you here?”
A slow, secret smile curved that sensual mouth, and she gestured to a suitcase near the entrance. “Because,” she said silkily, “I’m moving in.”
Regan had never been as terrified in her life as she was right now.
The disbelief on Thanatos’s face had veered sharply to fury, and now there were shadows flitting at his feet. The shadows they’d discussed back at Aegis headquarters… souls of the demons, animals, and humans Than had killed. Shadows he could release to do more killing.
Deep inside, her forbidden ability stirred.
“You are what?” His voice was as cold as the snowstorm she’d battled to get here. Kynan had gotten her through the Harrowgate, but she’d had to ride the rest of the way on one of the several corralled snowmachines Thanatos kept near the gate and at the keep, which would be her getaway vehicle if her scheme went as planned.
Or, more importantly, if it didn’t.
She inhaled, seeking the calm outer shell she’d had in place since she arrived. She took another sip of tea, which really was wonderful. And she didn’t normally like the stuff.
“I’m moving in. The Elders discussed it, and we decided that one of us should hang out with you full time. I drew the short straw.”
He practically sputtered, his face turning red. “You discussed it? The Aegis discussed it without talking to us first?” He spat out a dozen curses. “You people have always been too full of yourselves. This wasn’t discussed with any of us. So get out.”
“Look,” she said calmly, even though inside she was quivering, “this isn’t about us being full of ourselves. It’s about repairing the bad blood between The Aegis and the Horsemen. So just show me to my room, and