Jemma has always known that Cie is cold. Everyone in the Kingdom knows it. She’s Ghazahn-born, after all. Her skin is cool, her eyes cut like ice, there is winter in her bones. Cold and aloof, Lady Cie glitters like diamond – just as hard, just as brilliant.

But Jemma also knows the woman behind the icy facade. The playful tease, the giggling child, the woman who craves the warmth of Jemma’s arm, who melts at her touch.

When an interplanetary conference takes Cie and Jemma to a luxury playground in the frozen south, Cie takes a sudden delight in showing Jemma all the pleasures of a world made entirely of snow, but as Jemma begins to notice Cie’s knives at work during the event, she finds herself wondering just how deep is the ice that runs through Cie’s veins.

The Ice Inside is a short story – perhaps novella is a better word – accompanying my novel The Blood We Spill. I set out to write something short, steamy and playful as a thank you to reviewers, readers and newsletter subscribers who loved the novel. Twelve thousand words later I had to reel myself in. I hope you enjoy it.

Chronologically, this story fits somewhere after the visit to the Tusilia Fair and before the assassination attempt on the Prince at the Fights. Cie and Jemma’s relationship is still young and fun, but cracks are beginning to show.