Chapter 156

Byron washed another dish and put it on the rack to dry. He tried to ignore the screaming and the fighting in the background. He was tired of cooking and cleaning and disciplining his children. Five sons in nine years were enough to make anyone irritable.

“Hello, lover,” Kory put his arms around him. He shoved him away. Lately he’d grown to hate it when Kory was in an amorous mood. Sex led to pregnancy which led to more children and more work for him. Kory was great about playing with the children and even disciplined them when needed, but he refused to pick up so much as a dirty sock.

“What’s wrong, Byron?” Kory turned him to look him in the eyes.

“N-nothing,” he muttered, turning back to the sink full of dirty dishes.

“You’re lying. I can always tell. Something is wrong.” Kory kissed him on the back of his neck. Byron couldn’t help the shiver of pleasure that ran up his spine. The man certainly knew which buttons to press to arouse him.

“S-stop it. I’m n-not in the m-mood.”

“I can get you in the mood,” he whispered sliding his hands under Byron’s shirt.

“I s-said, s-stop it! I d-don’t w-want t-to have s-sex with you r-right n-now,” Byron said with gritted teeth. The vampire behind him went really still.

“You really don’t mean that, Byron,” Kory said in a low voice.

“I r-really d-do. I’ve b-been s-slaving away all d-day t-to c-care for the b-boys and I’m t-tired.”

“Then sex is just what you need to make you feel better.”

“N-not t-tonight. B-besides won’t your ‘f-f-friend’ m-miss you?”

“What friend?” Kory asked menace in his voice.

“The one with r-red hair who l-left her lipstick on your c-collar.”

“Oh, that. That’s just sex. It doesn’t mean anything. I get lonely when you’re pregnant.”

“Then why k-keep m-me p-pregnant if you g-get so ‘l-lonely’?”

“Byron, Byron, Byron, I have needs. You can’t always satisfy those needs, so I find someone who can.”

“How d-do you know I c-can’t s-satisfy your n-needs? You’ve n-never even asked m-me,” Byron accused. “I’m n-n-not having s-s-sex with you unless you wear a c-c-condom and I want t-t-to g-g-go on the P-p-pill.”

“No.”

Byron stared at Kory in shock. He thought it perfectly reasonable to go on the Pill to reduce the odds of another pregnancy. Kory had said he wanted lots of children, but Byron thought five was enough for now. The vampire looked adamant about his refusal. For the first time in a long time, Byron felt a chill run down his spine. The way Kory was looking at him reminded him that vampires were predators and humans were their prey. Blade had never looked at him that way and Ice had done so only rarely.

“I-I-I m-m-mean it. N-n-no m-m-more ch-ch-children f-f-for n-n-now.”

Kory smiled at him, a slow, predatory smile. “I said ‘No’.” He gently stroked Byron’s cheek and trailed his fingers down his arm to encircle his wrist in a firm grasp. “You seem to have forgotten that I brought you here for only one purpose, if you are no longer willing to fulfill that purpose, I have no more use for you. If I have no more use for you, I’ll dispose of you, permanently.”

“Y-y-you n-n-need m-m-me t-t-to t-t-take c-c-care of th-th-the ch-ch-children,” Byron whispered.

Kory shrugged. “Not really. Caesar’s old enough to be weaned. I can hire a nanny for them and a housekeeper for the rest of the things you do around here. I’m certainly capable of finding a sex partner. You’re not indispensable.”

“Wh-wh-what w-w-would y-y-you t-t-tell th-th-them?”

“Oh, probably that you fell and unfortunately died. Most of them are too young to know any better.” Kory replied carelessly.

Byron felt cold. His husband had obviously thought about killing him and how he would explain it to the children. As an old and powerful vampire, he could certainly make them believe it…