Chapter 24 Selma
Selma
Neither demon paid her any attention as she crawled back to the near side of the cage. Their eyes were locked on one another instead.
They were more cautious than previous bidders had been, slowly circling each other rather than jumping straight into the fight. She could see them sizing each other up as they looked for weaknesses, the coils of muscle on each man tensing in anticipation.
Naharan sprang into action first. With a roar deep enough to vibrate every bone in Selma’s body, he pulled dark energy from the air and slung it at Kain, who raised his own magic just before impact.
Snarling, he returned it with a flurry of black sparks. The scent of singed flesh and ozone mixed with overwhelming male musk.
“You think you can conquer the Prince of Demons?” Naharan hissed as they drew apart to reassess each other. “I will tear you apart for your insolence!”
He attacked again, and Selma flinched away from the bars when they half-disappeared in a cloud of magic.
It spread through the arena in long, terrifying tendrils.
They enveloped her cage, and though nothing penetrated between the bars, it shielded her vision of the fight.
She could only see shadows moving in the fog and hear their snarls and roars as they fought.
Her heart was pounding in her chest as she tried to peer through the darkness.
Kain. He was here, fighting for her.
For the first time in weeks, wild hope rose within her. If he won, she’d…
Selma frowned. If he won, she’d still belong to a demon. She would still be his to do with as he pleased, but the thought of Kain keeping her…
It made her womb soften and something pleasant that wasn’t connected to the hellish magic in her ring spread through her body. He might have been a demon, but he wasn’t like the others. He was here despite his reservations about claiming a mate, which meant he was here for her sake, not his own.
A howl of pain cut through the mist and she froze. If something happened to him—
It was a strange thing, suddenly having something left to lose. Not only would her newly sprouted hope be crushed, but she’d also be forced to the ground and fucked against her will while he may be in need of help, wounded and bleeding from the fight.
And she’d never get to see him again.
Her hormones and fear were way too overpowering to let her ponder on why the thought of never seeing him again filled her with even more dread than the idea of belonging to the brutal Prince.
Yet as she clung to the cage in a desperate attempt to see the two contestants through the dark magic, she knew without a shred of doubt that she needed to be with him.
When the cloud finally cleared, both males were breathing raggedly from exhaustion, and blood was splattered over both their bare torsos.
Kain had a long, shallow gash running the length of his abs, and Naharan was bleeding heavily from his chest and a split eyebrow.
Growling menacingly, completely lost in primal fighting instincts, they circled each other, ready to leap at the first sign of weakness.
This time, it was Kain who attacked first. The blood from the Prince’s split eyebrow dripped down, making him blink—and that was all the advantage Kain needed.
Moving so swiftly Selma’s human eyes couldn’t follow, he threw himself at his opponent. Naharan failed to evade, and Kain struck hard enough they both toppled to the ground, the Lord Protector on top.
While Naharan fought to throw him off, Kain snarled viciously and brought both fists down hard over the other male’s face.
A sickening crunch echoed across the arena, followed by absolute stillness.
For a moment Selma thought he’d killed the Prince, but then she saw him move weakly in the sawdust. Blood covered his entire face.
“Kain wins!” Maell’s voice boomed through the silence.
At that, the Lord Protector got up from the ground, leaving his opponent in the sawdust before turning toward the cage—toward her.
His black eyes locked with hers through the bars, and though the wildness in them was clear, her body only responded with throbbing lust. There was no fear, no terror of what he was underneath the facade of strong muscles and angular features—only pure and overwhelming need.
Kain turned his head back to the crowd, cutting their eye contact and leaving her with a pathetic sense of longing. She needed him, needed his closeness, his touch, his hard body against and inside of her own.
“This Breeder is mine!” Kain’s deep voice boomed across the circular room. “Any of you step foot in this arena, and I will make sure you regret it!”
Maell, who’d managed to get Naharan up, moved toward the center of the arena again. “You certainly have made your interest in claiming her known, brother, but the auction isn’t over yet.”
Kain’s head whipped around, his profile pulling up in an animalistic snarl as he growled at the other demon and his shoulders tensing with unbridled fury.
The obvious display of aggression made Maell pause, his eyebrows creeping up ever so slightly. Without taking his eyes off Kain he said, “Does anyone wish to make further bids on the Pure Breeder? I remind you, this is your only opportunity to claim her.”
Only silence met his statement—silence, and the unwavering growl from the ebony-eyed demon staking his claim.
“Very well. At the price of three hundred million dollars, the auction has ended! Lord Kain, you may claim your mate.”
Kain kept his eyes on the auctioneer for another moment. Then with a slow and deliberate scowl, he let his gaze slide over the spectators—his beaten opposition.
And then he came for her.
Selma scrambled to the cage door just as it swung open—undoubtedly at the behest of Maell’s magic—and stumbled out into the arena.
She’d barely taken more than a step before he was in front of her—so big she had to crane her neck back to see his still battle-fierce face, and so amped up on adrenaline and testosterone that he didn’t even seem to notice his bruised knuckles or bleeding stomach.
“Selma.”
Even his voice was rough and filled with the fire that had been drawn from him during the fight, but it was still not fear that made her shiver in his presence. Just the sound of him, of her name on his lips, made her feel… safe. Even naked and surrounded by demons.
Even knowing what had to happen next.
Arms corded with muscle so thick they were practically the width of her torso wrapped around her waist and pulled her the last bit of the way into his embrace. His body burned against hers, but it only made her melt against his powerful form as tension drained from her.
Safe.
She pressed her nose into his chest and greedily inhaled his intoxicating scent. It was so much stronger than she remembered, so much richer.
“You came for me,” she choked out over the appreciative noises her throat seemed to be producing without her consent. “You came.”
“I promised to protect you.” Strong fingers threaded through her hair, pulling her head back gently, but insistently.
Obediently she tipped her head to look up at him.
“Forgive me.” It was a hoarse whisper, so unlike the bellowing roars he’d met the other demons with.
Selma blinked in confusion. Nothing about his behavior had suggested that he was anything but completely and irrevocably grappled by the power of his instincts—and the rock-hard bulge she felt against her stomach now, along with the unmistakable fire in his eyes, made it very clear that he was more than ready to claim his prize.
And yet… he asked for forgiveness? For what?
Before she could ask, his scorching mouth and achingly soft lips closed over hers.
She moaned and clutched at his biceps. The kiss was rougher than his words had suggested, but Selma was not even close to being capable of protesting.
She simply clung to him and let his hot tongue dance with hers as he tasted and teased her in ways that went straight to her nipples and clit.
When he finally released her lips, she was panting, and her head spun with the onslaught of sensation.
The demon grabbed her by the hair again and pulled firmly enough to crane her neck back.
His teeth grazed her exposed throat, causing her breath to explode from her as more liquid trickled down her thighs.
“Kain!”
He growled at her cry. Then he brushed his fingers against her clit, teasing the already painfully tight ring encircling it.
“Kain…” Even through her need for him and the delightful things he was doing, she felt a sliver of unease. Every time someone had touched that cursed ring, they’d done it to control and abuse her.
“I promise.” The whispered words sent more shivers through her. “I will always protect you.”
Then he pressed his mouth against her forehead, against the mark blinding her to what he was, and twisted the ring sharply.
Her world went white as agony tore through her pelvis, and she screamed. But heat followed the pain, and the need she’d been battling for so long rose like a tidal wave.
This time, it would be sated. He would sate it.
Her next scream wasn’t from pain. She tore at his shoulders, his chest, and his pants, throwing herself back against his arms to try and get enough leverage to make any sort of impact on his hulking mass.
Growling deeply at her sudden attack, Kain pushed her to the floor. She landed on her backside in the sawdust, but before she could launch herself at him again to make him fill that horrible, empty void inside of her, he was on top of her.
The heavy feeling of his body was just what she needed, and she keened desperately, spreading her legs wide to try and encompass his hips.
But Kain had other plans.
He grabbed her by the waist and flipped her over onto her hands and knees, and something in her brain clicked into place.