Gena Showalter - [Lords of the Underworld 13] Read Free Page B

casually.
    “Yes,” both men replied in unison.
    “Oh, well. Okay, then. Let’s get started, shall we?”
    Kane stiffened.
    “Is she serious?” Sabin.
    “No way.” Strider.
    “I am,” she said. “I really am.”
    Big talk for such a tiny girl.
    A girl who confused Kane in every way.
    She had tended him gently, tenderly, and yet he had hurt from more than just his injuries. And not a good hurt, either, to let him know he was alive, but a sharp throb that rode the waves in his veins, reaching him at a cellular level, like a disease, a cancer, eating at him, demanding he get away from her as quickly as possible. And yet, inside, deeper still, where primal instinct jerked at a flimsy leash, a desire to grab her, to hold on and never let go, consumed him.
    She was beautiful, funny and sweet, and he heard one word every time he looked at her. Mine.
    Mine. Mine. MINE.
    It was a constant stream of noise, undeniable—unstoppable. It was also wrong. His “mine” would never cause him pain. And he didn’t want a “mine.” Any time he’d tried to make a go of a relationship, the evil inside him swiftly destroyed it—and the female. Now, after everything that had happened to him...
    A rise of the disgust, sizzling and blistering, tightened his hands into dangerous weapons. No, he didn’t want a “mine.”
    “You eager to die?” Strider asked, stalking a circle around her.
    “You stalling?” she said. “Don’t think you can take me?”
    The warrior sucked in a breath.
    The girl had issued a challenge—intentional or unintentional?—and the warrior’s demon had just accepted. Strider would do everything in his power to win, and Kane couldn’t blame him. Anytime the male lost a challenge, he suffered in agonizing pain for days.
    Demons always came with a curse.
    Have to stop him . Whether the girl belonged to Kane or not, she wasn’t to be harmed. Seeing a single bruise on that sun-licked skin would unhinge him, he knew it, could already feel the darkness rising, his control teetering at the edge of chilling violence.
    As he again struggled to sit up, multiple footsteps pounded, causing the floor to reverberate. Low growls erupted. The swish of clothing whispered past. Flesh met flesh, bone met bone. Metal clinked against metal. The males would destroy her.
    “Is that all you got?” the girl taunted—a taunt undercut by her heavy panting. “Come on, fellas. Let’s make this memorable, one for the history books!”
    “No,” Kane tried to shout, but not even his ears picked up the sound.
    Strider jumped over him. Another clang of metal echoed.
    “How can this be memorable?” Sabin roared. “The only thing you’re doing is leaping out of the way when we strike.”
    “Sorry. I’m not meaning to, but instinct keeps kicking in,” she said.
    To anyone but Kane, who knew her secret desire, the conversation would have sounded weird.
    The fight continued, the two men chasing the girl around the small room, leaping on furniture, bouncing off the walls, slashing out with hungry blades and missing as she darted out of the way.
    The urge to commit violence sharpened with deadly force.
    “Don’t hurt her,” he growled. “I’ll hurt you back.” He would do anything to protect her.
    Even in this pitiful state?
    He ignored the humiliating question.
    Question. Yes. He had more questions for the girl than he’d already asked—and this time, she would answer satisfactorily or he would...he wasn’t sure what he would do. He’d lost all sense of mercy and compassion inside that cave.
    The threat stopped Sabin in his tracks. The warrior lowered his weapons.
    Strider refused to give up, and finally managed to grab the girl by the hair. She yelped as he jerked, tugging her into the hard line of his body.
    Kane managed to get to his feet, intending to rip the two apart. Mine . He stalked forward, tripped over a shoe, thanks to the demon, and came crashing down. Pain consumed him.
    Before the girl had a chance to