Page 16 of Kiss of Embers

“This is unacceptable!” He wagged a finger at me. “Put him down or I’m throwing you out of the Games.”

Irritation prickled through me. Queen Isolde needed that elixir. Like it or not, the demon had the power to kick me out of the competition before it even began.

Struan moved closer. “Finn,” he said quietly.

I flung the werewolf to the ground. He landed hard and then immediately sprang to his feet. He coughed, clutching at his throat as he recovered. His blue eyes shot sparks as he swung his gaze to the demon. “You should toss him out regardless! Both of them! They threatened to cut off my hands.” The werewolf gave Struan a contemptuous look. “This one wanted to rip out my tongue!”

Struan took a menacing step toward the werewolf. “Those weren’t threats, dickhead. They were promises. You touched our woman.”

Gasps echoed around the clearing. On the platform, the goddess clasped her hands under her chin. “Ooh, this just got interesting.”

The bespectacled demon frowned. “What? Which woman?”

I looked at my female, whose brown eyes flared wide. A pulse fluttered in her neck, and the color drained from her face. It did nothing to diminish her beauty. With her cream-colored hair and doe eyes fringed by long, thick lashes, she was as lovely as the goddess. Leanly muscled and cloaked in power, she was also clearly something of a warrior.

In other words, she was exquisite.

“Her,” I said, pointing to Zara. I jerked my head toward Struan as I let my gaze roam the crowded clearing. “This female is ours. Try to keep her from us, and your blood will water this jungle.”

Chapter

Five

ZARA

My stomach dropped as I stared at the dragon.

No,dragons. Plural. They mated in threes, and they were ruthless when it came to their women. Everyone knew that.

And two had just declared me theirs in front of everyone competing in the Games. All at once, I became aware of hundreds of pairs of eyes on me. The clearing was utterly still and silent—and I stood in its center, chills coursing through me as the pair of dragons stared me down like they owned me.

Like they wanted todevourme. A shiver went down my spine. At the same time, panic fluttered in my chest. I needed the elixir. How was I going to win the Games with two dominant, powerful men dogging my steps?

Brader turned to Bolveg. “This isn’t fair. If these two really believe Zara is theirs, they won’t let anyone get near her. It’ll give her an unfair advantage in the Games.” Brader looked around, appealing to the crowd. “They’re trying to rig this competition. All three of them should be expelled at once.”

My jaw dropped. Was he fucking serious? “You meanyou’retrying to rig it,” I said, but my response was lost as muttersrippled through the gathering. Competitors nodded their heads, clearly agreeing with Brader.

“Ashcroft is right, Bolveg!” someone shouted. “The female will have an unfair advantage.”

I whirled, struggling to find the naysayer in the crowd. “That’s not true! I’m competing on behalf of my pack, and I’ll accept no help from anyone. I reject the dragons’ claim.”

A deep growl had me spinning back around. The dragons stared at me—and now there was no mistaking them for anything other than predators. Muscles bulged under their clothes. An aura of danger swirled around them like the smoke forms they were rumored to take when they wanted to move quickly.

The black-haired dragon stepped toward me, his blue eyes glittering like sapphires. “You can’t reject fate, lass,” he said in a lilting accent. “None of us can.”

My senses tingled as I held his stare.Werewolf, my instincts murmured. His mother must have been one. It was hardly an earth-shattering revelation. With the sole exception of their king, all dragons carried blood from one of the other Firstborn Races. But the blue-eyed dragon wasn’t kindred. My instincts told me that, too. And even if they hadn’t, I’d grown up hearing stories about the dragons at my father’s knee. Tales abounded of them kidnapping women and carrying them off to castles in the Scottish Highlands against their will.

The dragon beckoned to me. “Come, woman.”

Speech deserted me as my temper flared. Had he just summoned me like someone might call a dog? My hand itched for my sword. I plastered what I hoped was a menacing smile on my face. “Would it be easier if I sat at your feet? Maybe I’ll roll over so you can scratch my belly.”

A few of the men around me chuckled. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw one nudge his neighbor and murmur, “This should be good.”

The dragon lowered his hand. Understanding spread over his face, and he nodded. “You’re angry. This must be a shock for you. But you’ll get used to it. Whether you will it or not, you belong to us. All that remains is for us to woo you.” His eyes glittered. “Rest assured, we’re up to the challenge.”

Breathtaking arrogance. I could almost admire it. But I’d experienced it far too often as the sole female on the Council. Most of the alphas were closer to Brader’s age than mine—and their attitudes about women matched their birthdates. After a year of absorbing their bullshit, my tolerance for male posturing was at an all-time low.

“I belong to myself,” I said, holding the dragon’s blue gaze. “It appears fate has led you astray. Because I feel nothing for you.”