Chapter 10 Leila #2
“Is it so hard to believe a nobleman would find You desirable? If so, Your Artist isn’t tending to You properly.”
She hadn’t yet realized how near to Flynn She sat. Their hands were a whisper away, his sheer proximity enough to suffocate. She set Her jaw. “Stop it.”
“You’re of royal birth. I’m of titled birth. You’re The Savior. I’m the Champion. Hell, we’re already friends.”
“We’re not friends, Flynn.”
“Of course we are.” Flynn smiled. “We’ve had so many good times together.”
“Like when you offered up My cunt to Tobias as a parting gift?”
“I was only joking.”
Leila could’ve sworn the walls had crept closer, the room more tomb than chamber. “I choose Tobias. Each day, I choose him again and again. And one day, I’ll choose to marry him, to rule My realm with him, to make love to him—”
“Wait.” Flynn let out a cynical laugh. “You haven’t fucked yet? God, see? This is what I mean. If You and I were together, I wouldn’t leave You pure for so long.”
“Is that supposed to appeal to Me?” Leila said. “You forcing your cock My way? Am I supposed to swoon?”
Flynn shrugged. “It’s a royal decree. The decision is already made.”
“Is there something you’re missing? Have you not been rejected by a woman before?”
“Certainly no woman of sound mind.”
Leila rolled Her eyes. “Because if a woman rejects you, she must be mad.”
“Exactly.”
Flynn’s shameless smirk mocked Her, steadfast and without a hint of irony. She straightened Her dress and stood. “I’m done here. For the sake of our alliance, we’ll pretend this never happened.”
“I want You.” Flynn trailed Her toward the door, hovering far too close for Her liking. “I won’t pretend that isn’t true.”
“For God’s sake, you want to be sovereign, that’s all.
” She pressed a hand to his chest, and a brownish fog clouded Her touch—a muddy mess of filth and fire stirred with a wooden spoon, but the distinct lack of vibrancy was all She needed.
“See?” Sighing, She dropped Her hand. “You’re not even attracted to Me. ”
“Says who?”
“I’m the Savior. I know things.”
Flynn scoffed. “Clearly You don’t know much. Besides, my attraction for You is here.”
He planted Her hand against the bulge beneath his pants, and She ripped Herself free, slapping him across the mouth.
Her lungs heaved while Flynn massaged his jaw. “No need to be sensitive.” His voice lowered, nearly a growl. “I was playing.”
“I belong to Tobias,” Leila said. “He belongs to Me. You know this.”
“Where’s Your promise?”
“I don’t need a promise. Does My word hold no value to you?”
“Of course it does. You’re The Savior and my betrothed. Remember, we’re to be wed.”
She clenched Her jaw. “I said, stop it.”
“According to Thessian law—”
“Fuck the law.” She leaned in close, hatred rippling beneath Her skin. “Let Me speak plainly. I don’t want you. Even if Tobias weren’t mine, I still wouldn’t want you. No matter the situation, the circumstance, or the bloody law, I will never, ever choose you, Flynn.”
Flynn’s throat flexed. “Calm Yourself. You’re being emotional.”
“And you’re being the ignorant ass I’ve always known you to be.”
A thunderclap echoed off the walls, and a sharp pain spiked through Leila’s face. She cupped Her cheek, gaping at Flynn. He stood like a soldier, hard and barricaded, and his hand was still raised, ready to strike again.
“I told You to calm Yourself,” he said.
Violence flickered in Her chest before it was snuffed in an instant.
Vermillion billowed through the air, fresh blood born of untapped rage.
Flynn loomed within its center, a vision of unabashed hatred, and the darkening of his eyes carried vicious intent.
She’d seen that look before, knew it far too well. She wanted no part of it.
“I have to go,” She said.
“We’re not finished.”
He grabbed Her wrist, and his fingers burned as red fury surged from his touch. She winced beneath his grip, stifling a cry. “Let go of Me.”
Another hard smack, and Her knees buckled, Her feet doing a dizzy dance across the floor. Before She could right Herself, Flynn thrust Her against the wall, his forearm digging into Her throat.
“You’re mine,” he growled. “Do You understand? You owe me that much.”
She spat in his face, and he went rigid, eyes wider than She’d ever seen. He slammed Her against the wall, then grabbed Her arm and twisted it behind Her, nearly wrenching it out of place.
“We had an agreement.” Flynn snarled into Her ear, though She could barely see him. The red had become consuming, stinging Her eyes until tears streamed down Her cheeks. She wrestled within his grasp as he tightened his hold, his full frame pressed against Hers. “We had an agreement.”
Another blow to the jaw sent Her vision blaring white, the assault a wound to Her body and pride.
She’d fought traitors like him before, had ended them swiftly, but as soon as Her sight cleared, She froze.
Flynn was gone. Another man had taken his place, an eye-patch wrapping his skull and a crown nestled amid his curls, and instantly She was ten years younger, a child at his mercy.
“I earned this.” She wasn’t sure who had spoken those words, Flynn or Her father, as the red around Her was undulating, filling the chamber with loathing.
The creature before Her roared, and a spark of light swirled in Her chest, called to action.
Get out. It was the only order She could muster, the only instinct to take hold.
The room disappeared behind a blinding flash, and suddenly it wasn’t Flynn’s chamber anymore. She stood in another room entirely, with faded walls and a familiar bed dressed in stark white linens. Tobias sat at his desk snacking on olives.
“Leila,” he said. “I didn’t expect to see You so soon.”
You owe me that much. Flynn’s words repeated in Leila’s mind, taunting Her.
Tobias’s face dropped. “Leila?”
Breathe. She fought to steady Herself, willing Her hands into fists only for them to tremble at Her sides.
In Her mind’s eye, vermillion still surged around Her, an ocean She’d nearly drowned in many times before.
She closed Her eyes, but the color remained, and when She opened Her eyes, Tobias stood before Her, fear ripe in his gaze.
“What’s wrong?”