Centuries

~Six~

Daemon

"I can explain." I mutter. Standing naked. Next to me, also naked, is my brother Dmitri. He followed me. I was so out of it, I didn't even notice his wolf at my flank.

"That's fortunate." Arabella's voice is deliciously taunting. Next to me, my brother is the stiffest I've ever seen him. I know we both hate vampires, but he knows we can't hurt her right? "I love entertainment during dinner. Derek fetch some champagne. No, actually. Fetch me Grayson, and make sure to have him drink some champagne."

I glance around. The ceilings are high, the place is sickly pretty. Like a castle. I lock eyes with my brother and he tries to tell me something with his eyes moving between Arabella and himself. I shake my head. Don't attack.

One guy peels away from the group, leaving out a door. I focus on Arabella. She has speed, I'll give her that. She moved me into this big empty ballroom within seconds of my being here.

"Mason, darling, fetch the dinner and bring it here will you?" It wasn't a question. My instincts heat and growl at the word darling. She glances up and down my naked body. Lingering on everything in a way that had me wishing for a cold shower. She makes a noise at the back of her throat that has a growl barely hidden by a loud cough of my brothers. "Cade, go get two pairs of shorts from our room and then come right back as fast as your legs can carry you."

Our room.

I grind my teeth. My body trembling. She casts me a coy look. She knows exactly what she's doing. She's fucking enjoying this.

There's only one guy left now. She looks right at my brother. Leaning into him from the feet between us with a curious look.

So hot.

"Dmitri, so nice to see you." She smiles coldly, but it still warms up places on my body that have no right heating up given I'm naked. She has her blonde brows furrowed. She reaches out a hand and looks about to touch him. My whole body let's off a violent shiver.

"Don't touch him." I bite out. But when she looks at me, I want to add, touch me.

"I will touch anyone I please." There's an edge to her voice that has power backing it. Right now is the time to back off.

Arabella

"I am your fucking mate and you will not cheat on me with my brother!" His voice has a growl running through it. My veins freeze. I can feel the order in it. Alpha blood. If I was a werewolf, I would be on my knees begging to do anything to stop his anger from inconveniencing him.

But I most certainly am not a fucking werewolf.

"Dorian, restrain Daemon." My voice is monotone. "Dmitri come to me."

Dorian moves and captures Daemon's arms. Pulling them back and adding pressure that tells the victim the movement would cause broken bones. Dmitri takes a step forward without thinking. Daemon looks disgruntled. His handsome face twisted thunderously. He is so surprised that his brother is listening to me, even if it's only slightly. He didn't see his brother the moment he walked in. He didn't watch his twin brother's lips shape a word. Didn't see the lovesick smile that had claimed his face.

"Dmitri, it would make me very sad if you didn't come closer." I tell him. My lips forming a pout. My eyelashes batting expertly.

He moves forward without thinking. My hands find his face. I can hear Daemon slurring curses and struggling.

"You feel it don't you?" He asks. A vulnerableness to it that I always found charming on Derek. I hadn't heard anyone else with the kind of reckless love stored in them since Derek. And none before that. I meet his eyes. His eyes are the same shade of the stormy blue his brother has, but his are different. His hold unkempt emotion.

"Yes." I nod. Testing the bond by brushing my index finger along his jawline. He closes his eyes, shivering. I drop my hands and take a step back just as Cade walks through. Derek following closely, a human man following him looking flushed.

"Perfect." I tell Cade as he shows me the shorts. I motion to the two Alpha werewolves. He tosses them. Looking perfectly emotionless. I walk over to the human. Running a finger along his neck.

"He looks a bit shaken. Have him sit down, I don't want him to taste like anxiety." I motion to the cushioned chairs in a corner about twenty feet away. Derek meets my eyes and winks. Then he leads the human away.

Mason walks in with several humans following him carrying a dining table and chairs, along with food and drinks.

Mason hides his limp well. He doesn't look me in the eyes. But he doesn't hesitate standing beside me. His shirt is clean and gray, but it's short sleeved and there are several bite marks along his arms and his neck.

I reach out and pull his sleeve down over his arm a little more. Not touching him, but he recognizes my meaning. He catches my eyes. His are shining with meaning. I turn away and face the two barely dressed werewolves. Dorian reaches my side, along with Derek and Cade. All the humans leaving except Grayson. He is in his midtwenties and is kept as a snack for Derek and occasionally me.

"Sit down, pretty boys. It's time for you to eat and give me a reason to let you leave alive."

Daemon

Of fucking course. He had to be her mate too. I know he's not lying this time. She's his mate, and mine. How am I going to stomach murdering my brother? The alternative is worse than that, it's sharing. The word has my nerves on fire. I can't share her too.

We have to share everything, not her too. She speaks and I realize my arms are freed from that cold blonde vamp dude.

We both follow her words to sit and I ignore the threat.

She kissed me first. I get her, she picked me.

"I was just on a run in the woods," I start. Lie. Lie. Lie. "I stumbled across your scent and my wolf went crazy."

"Interesting." She says. With a condescending edge to it that told me what she thought of my expanation. "How is it," She presses a black fingernail to her chin. Tapping it in thought. "That your brother, sweet Dmitri, found his way here then. You did arrive together."

"Oh yeah." I say weakly. Thinking on my feet. "He came along during my run and I didn't notice him. I was too zoned out."

"Interesting." She does a motion with her hand that freezes me in place. I had seen the move done by another vampire before throats were torn. A young man walks forward.

Does she have to surround herself with guys that arent covered in warts?

He kneels beside her. My eyes widen.

"What're you-"

"I'm reminding you what I am." Then she bites down. The human doesn't react. He smells strongly of alcohol and I shudder in disgust.

"You came to me wanting war." She pulls away from the human after only seconds. Blood dripping down her chin. My brother beside me is stiff and I must be mimicing him. Her little pet vampires are all as far from the two of us as possible. She grins bloodstained teeth at both of us. "My game only just started and it would just be so interesting to see how you bring me discomfort."

Then she promptly kicks us out. Her vamipre whoosh us to the edge of the property. They walk back and I catch one sentence before they are out of site towards the massive mansion.

"I haven't seen her that pissed in a hundred years."