Immortally Theirs [Legends & Myths] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) by Scarlet Day Page B

brothers, so he was often willing to perform a good deed. Christian found that knowing such beings came with some benefits, though not without perils. Angering the wrong beings could be problematic, even for an immortal.
    Though immortality had provided Christian and Stefan with abilities not shared with other humans, knowing which beings to leave unprovoked made life much more comfortable. He and his brother couldn’t be killed, but certain beings could still make their lives miserable if they so desired. Christian had made the mistake of angering a disgruntled ghost years ago, only to have the disembodied spirit chase away all of his guests at the bed-and-breakfast. They’d managed to call a truce, but it had provided Christian with a lesson in supernatural diplomacy.
    Christian stalked down the hall, fearing Stefan’s involvement with Claire would end in disaster. What if Stefan, caught up in his growing feelings for Claire, provided her with the one thing that would ensure she would never die? Christian feared she would end up hating Stefan forever for cursing her to a future with no end.
    Stefan had always been impulsive, though, so why should Christian have expected that to change? His brother’s penchant for charging into dangerous situations was what had landed both of them in this eternal holding pattern in the first place. If Stefan hadn’t been so determined to rush into battle that night long ago, things might have been so different. And then afterwards, when they realized what their grandmother’s actions had done, Stefan’s impulsiveness hadn’t dimmed. He’d turned his rage and bitterness for having his mortality stolen on the English troops who had taken their lives and burned the city of St. Augustine to the ground. Stefan had hunted many of them down and sent them to their own eternal destinations.
    Years later, when the newly-formed British Empire took control of Florida from Spain and the Spanish residents of St. Augustine had been exiled to Cuba, the rift between the brothers was sealed. Stefan had been furious at Christian for boarding one of the Spanish ships and sailing with the other evacuees to Cuba, rather than joining him to take vengeance on the ones responsible for the loss of their home.
    Christian had faced over twenty years of exile in Cuba, alone and mourning the loss of not only his home, but also his brother’s companionship. Throughout those miserable years, he had held on to the hope that his brother would see the futility in his actions and return to him. But twenty-three long years after their exile, when the British turned Florida back over to Spain and St. Augustine’s refugees were allowed to reclaim their former homes, Stefan had stayed away.
    Christian was glad beyond words that Stefan finally seemed to have put his bloodlust behind him and come to terms with his immortality. He knew the rift between them was not healed, but he hoped, with time, they would regain the relationship they once shared. But bringing another human into the situation was out of the question.
    Stefan had accused Christian of being heartless toward Claire. But Christian knew his heart all too well and it scared the hell out of him. If he allowed Claire to penetrate the wall he had built around his emotions, only to have her hate him for eternity, he feared he would never recover. That prospect darkened Christian’s mood as he rounded the corner. Maybe it hadn’t been such a good idea to offer Claire the opportunity to stay here. Maybe he should have listened to Atticus that first night in the bar and walked away. But then he looked up and all thoughts fled as he saw the scene at the end of his bedroom corridor.
    Claire stood on a ladder, reaching with her paintbrush to apply color to the mural she had been working on for the last couple of days. Or nights, Christian corrected himself. He had noticed Claire wasn’t sleeping well and he had heard her moving around the casa at night, working on her