Seduced by a Demon King

by Heaton, Felicity

  He had to go to her.

  No. He had to remain where he was. He had no commanders to replace him and they were close to leaving the garrison, just minutes from heading to the frontline to meet the dragon’s army.

  He lowered his head and his eyes landed on Bleu where he was making his way towards the female dragon. Perhaps speaking with the elf about the battle plan would take his mind off Suki.

  He cut across the courtyard and stepped into Bleu’s path.

  Bleu snarled at him.

  It died away when the male lifted his violet gaze to meet Tegan’s.

  Tegan raised an eyebrow at the elf’s threat and then looked over his shoulder at Taryn.

  Rage burned through him as the reason for the male’s behaviour hit him.

  The pair had mated.

  It was written all over the female as she blushed, and all over Bleu as Tegan slowly turned back to face him, catching the flare of anger in his eyes as Tegan stood between him and his female, blocking his path to her.

  Tegan narrowed his eyes on the male, his blood on fire, seething with a need to fight as a mocking voice rang in his head, telling him everyone but him had their mate, and the phone he gripped in his hand felt as if it was searing him. He didn’t care who gave it to him, not right now. Friend or foe, it was fine with him. As long as he got to fight and unleash this pain ripping him apart from the inside.

  Bleu spread his feet shoulder-width apart, adopting a fighting stance that only goaded Tegan into following through and attacking him.

  A heavy hand slapped down on Tegan’s bare shoulder and pain pierced him as dark claws pressed into his muscles.

  “Perhaps it is best we leave the little elf to his business, King Tegan? I am sure Prince Loren would be more than happy to answer whatever question you desired to ask the commander.” Thorne’s rough deep voice rumbled in Tegan’s ears, penetrating the thunderous rush of his heart, and Bleu flicked a glance at the Third King.

  Thorne’s chiselled features softened into a smile as Tegan looked across at him. The elf loosed a breath and relaxed on Tegan’s senses as Tegan gave a curt nod and allowed Thorne to lead him away, because he no longer wanted to fight.

  He wanted advice.

  When they were far from the crowd, near the thick wall of the garrison, he broke free of Thorne’s grip and paced, his boots loud on the cobbles and packed dirt.

  Thorne’s steady dark crimson gaze tracked him as the male tugged on the burgundy leather cuffs that protected his forearms, checking them. Tegan had donned similar ones in black, a rigid pair of vambraces that had steel running through them, strong enough to block a sword blow.

  The male swept his unruly russet hair back from his face and waited, his expression placid as he continued to track Tegan.

  Tegan swallowed. He was building up to speaking. It was just difficult to find his voice and to know where to begin. He had never really asked for advice before. Ryker normally just threw it at him whether he wanted it or not, and his advisers rarely bothered to check whether he wanted their advice, and he had definitely never asked for it.

  He wasn’t sure where he was meant to begin.

  Asking for the male’s advice was probably a wise place.

  He stopped and faced the male. “I need… your advice… on a delicate matter.”

  Thorne’s eyebrows rose and then he nodded. “Of course.”

  Tegan wrestled with the words, grimaced and looked down at his feet.

  Perhaps it was best just to purge it all at once, get it all out there rather than doing it in pieces.

  “You have a female… a mate,” he started and clenched his fists, gripping the phone tightly as he thought about Suki. “I had a female. She means much to me… but I was told I did not mean as much to her and now she has shown me I meant little to her.”

  “Okay, I have serious doubts Thorne can help you with this. What on Earth does he know about women?” The sharp feminine voice startled Tegan, and he lifted his head, horror sweeping through him as he met the golden eyes of Thorne’s mate as she tied her black hair up into a neat ponytail. He had been so caught up in trying to rush everything out that he hadn’t sensed her approaching. She grinned, her eyes glittering as if she was going to enjoy counselling him. “Let me get this straight. You found a nice girl, she may or may not have been playing you… and how did she show you that you meant diddly-squat to her?”

  Tegan wasn’t sure what diddly-squat meant. He guessed it meant ‘nothing’ in her strange language.

  When he lifted his right hand and revealed the phone, she arched an eyebrow at it. He woke the device and found the picture, one he wanted to burn, but that meant burning his phone too.

  “She sent me this photograph a few minutes ago.” He revealed the image to Sable and Thorne.

  Sable’s black eyebrows shot high on her forehead. “A few minutes ago? Did you pop to the mortal realm or something?”

  He shook his head. “I was here in my quarters.”

  Her eyes widened. “Wait. Wait. Wait… wait… wait… wait! You’re telling me that thing works in Hell?”

  He nodded this time.

  “Phones that work in Hell!” She turned to her mate, grabbed his arm with both of her hands and bounced on the spot. “I needs it. I neeeeeds it. My precious.”

  Tegan was beginning to wonder if all females from the mortal realm were strange. “I will procure you one if you help me.”

  “Oh, that’s easy.” She jerked her chin towards his phone. “It’s a payback picture, dumbass.”

  That dumbass word again.

  She meant to insult him.

  She continued before he could warn her against doing such things. “You obviously made her mad or something, because that right there is a classic revenge snap. She wants to wound you and make you jealous, and make you see what you’re missing out on now.”

  Suki had certainly accomplished all those things with the photograph.

  “So be honest. What really happened with her?” Sable flicked her black ponytail over her shoulder, planted her hands against her hips over her black top and leathers, and stared him down in a way that said she wasn’t going to help him until he answered that question.

  “Things were going well. I had to take her home to the fae town, the one near Fort William, and after leaving there, I was visited by the mistress of her clan who claimed Suki had been using me to prove her worth to her family. I was apparently nothing more than a game to her.” He huffed and pushed the hurt back down inside as it tried to well up again, forcing himself to continue. “I was upset, and I had her brought to me so I could banish her.”

  “That is bad.” Sable frowned and looked up at Thorne. “I’d probably castrate you if you act like him.”

  Thorne shrugged. “I am not that stupid, Little Female.”

  Tegan growled at both of them. Neither looked at all afraid.

  Sable folded her arms across her chest. “I’m guessing you didn’t give her a chance to explain?”

  She sounded more and more like Ryker every passing second.

  When he didn’t answer, she shook her head, looking as if she was astounded, but at the same time not surprised.

  “Why must demons always come on so strong? It’s always black and white with you guys. She’s a…” She leaned forwards and frowned at the phone, scrutinising the image.

  He offered, “Succubus.”

  Her eyebrows shot up again. “Well… I can’t imagine how she feels… queen of playing the field and suddenly there’s a big demon demanding she be his mate?”

  “I demanded nothing,” he snapped and straightened to tower over her. His attempt at intimidating her did nothing. She just glared up at him, as if daring him to attempt to put her in her place. He huffed and glanced at Thorne where the male stood behind her, glowering. “She does not know she is my mate. I never said to you that she was… and I am not even sure of it.”

  The huntress rolled her amber eyes.

  “Oh, com
e off it. You damned well know she’s your mate. You’re just in denial because you got your delicate feelings a little trampled. I’ll never understand demons.” She shook her head on a sigh and shrugged. “You got what you deserved I’m afraid.”

  She wasn’t going to help him?

  Rage curled through him and he took a sharp step towards her as he barked, “Tell me what to do. She will sleep with the male!”

  Thorne snarled at him and stepped in front of his female.

  She peeked around her mate. “See. Demanding! It’s a payback picture. She probably won’t sleep with him. It’s a blatant attempt to provoke a response. She wants you to contact her.”

  Oh.

  Tegan angled the phone towards himself and looked down at his beautiful female, feeling lost and hopeless. He had no experience of this sort of thing.

  He looked at Sable. “What sort of response might be preferable?”

  She stepped around Thorne and slapped a hand on Tegan’s bare chest, so hard it knocked the air from his lungs, and grinned. “The sort that comes from in here, big guy. Prod and poke those delicate feelings that got hurt and see what bleeds out of them. What do you want to tell her?”

  He looked down at the female and considered the answer to that question. When it hit him, he tucked the phone to his chest and frowned at her.

  “Private things.”

  Disappointment flashed across her eyes. “Fine. Keep it to yourself. But you owe me a phone.”

  He looked down at the image of Suki, studying it more closely now that his anger had ebbed. There was pain in her striking green-to-blue eyes. Hurt he had caused. The light he had always loved seeing in them was gone.

  “Whatever you need to tell her, now is a good time.” Sable took her hand away from his chest. “Probably the best time. Don’t leave for this battle with things unsaid. Let her know how you feel. Win her heart… don’t demand it be given to you. And you’ve got some serious sucking up to do if she does take you back. Like… centuries of apology flowers, chocolates, wine and presents… although she is a succubus, so it’ll probably just be centuries of hot sex.”

  He groaned and rubbed his free hand over his mouth. He could do that.

  He frowned at his phone, flexed his fingers and fought through a reply that seemed to take forever to type because his thumbs were too big for the fiddly device and he had to correct words several times.

  He pressed the button to send it as he read the message back.

  I must speak with you. Do not do anything with the male. As soon as the war in the elf kingdom is done, I will come for you. I am sorry. I miss you. Yours always, Tegan.

  The phone rang.

  He fumbled with it as her image flashed up on the screen, trying to swipe the stupid circle to make it answer the call. He managed to do it and lifted it to his ear.

  It was still several inches from it when she screamed down the line. “How the hell are you going to come to me since I can’t bloody get near you!”

  A chill swept down his spine and over his arms. She couldn’t get near him.

  She couldn’t get near him!

  She had tried to reach him, and the spell had repelled her.

  She was his fated one.

  A very angry fated one as she hollered abuse down the phone line, slurring a few words in a way that had him worried. Had she been drinking? He had recognised the location in her picture. She was at Underworld.

  Or at least she had been.

  Had the male taken her somewhere private?

  “Do not do anything with that bastard!” he shouted down the phone so she would stop berating him and listen to him, because he needed to know she would wait for him. “I am sorry. I should have let you talk. I should not have acted so rashly.”

  “Well you bloody did and it fucking hurt, and I’m sorry too! It was real… it was real to me… and I think… I think I might vomit.” Suki’s voice grew more distant and he heard her retching. She muttered something about Hellfire.

  “Tell me you are not with that male.”

  She screamed down the phone. “No, I am not with that male… because your dumb ass is the only one I want. I know what you are… he told me. Incubus-vampire told me. Took one look at my miserable ass and announced a verdict. You have shadows.”

  She hiccupped.

  “You’re my bloody mate.”

  He reeled, blinking hard as all the tension that had been building inside him over the weeks he had known her, born of a fear of how he was going to break it to her that she might be his fated one, suddenly rushed out of him.

  Sable’s brow furrowed as she looked up at her mate, a sweet look on her face that made it clear she was melting over what Suki had said. Tegan scowled at her and waved her and Thorne away. He didn’t need them listening in on him. This was a private conversation and there were things he needed to tell Suki that he didn’t want anyone hearing.

  When they were gone, he held the phone closer, heart thumping hard against his chest as he ached to have Suki in his arms again, to kiss her and tell her that he loved her, that he would do all in his power to make it up to her.

  Across the courtyard, Prince Loren summoned everyone.

  Tegan cursed.

  “I have to go… but wait for me, Suki. Please. The witch who cast the spell on me is here and I will get it undone once the war in the elf kingdom is over. I swear it.”

  Although, he had the feeling he really would have to wrestle Prince Vail while naked to make it happen and the male was liable to kill him, or at the very least injure him. Or he might die from the embarrassment of having Rosalind and her friends all watching them as she had promised.

  “I’ll wait. Just… be careful.” As Suki’s sweet voice curled through the phone, warming him and easing his heart, he realised something.

  If it meant having her back in his arms, he would gladly naked wrestle every damned male in the garrison.

  Because it would be worth it.

  CHAPTER 35

  Suki stared down at the lump of rock dangling around her neck, nestled in the modest cleavage her black leather corset gave her. She had tried to wait. She really had. But it was too hard. Patience never had been her strong suit, and Tegan had said he was going to war.

  War.

  She shuddered at the thought of him in the midst of a battle, fighting for his life. What if he fell? She would never see him again. She had to at least try to reach him. She wasn’t sure how wide an area the spell covered but maybe she could get near enough to him to keep an eye on him until the battle was done.

  Or maybe she could find the witch who had cast the spell and get her to undo it.

  She looked at herself in the mirror of her vanity, checking her hair as she smoothed her violet plaid skirt she had paired with her favourite thick-soled black leather boots. She had picked them because they had looked the most kickass. Just in case she had to fight.

  Gods, the thought of fighting terrified her, but she would do it if she had to in order to protect Tegan.

  Suki clutched the fragment of basalt, closed her eyes and focused on the black castle.

  Cold swept over her and receded, and she stiffened as she sensed males nearby.

  A lot of them.

  She opened her eyes and offered the group of eight demons a sheepish smile.

  Good point, she had successfully teleported to the imposing black castle that apparently belonged to Tegan. Bad points, that meant he wasn’t home just as he had said and she had eight guards who all looked ready to attack her.

  She teleported as the first of them lunged for her, saying something in the demon tongue. Two more hollered what sounded like orders and the remaining five attacked at once. She teleported again, swiftly dodging them as they launched at her, evading their attempts to catch her.

  Her heart lodged in her throat as more men poured from the castle and the arches in the wall that enclosed it.

  Maybe she should have thought things through and considered all the pos
sible scenarios before popping in uninvited.

  She had been banished after all.

  She doubted Tegan had explained why he had tossed her out of the kingdom, or maybe he had and that was why the guards were so furious.

  She kept teleporting, pinging around the courtyard until she was exhausted. As she landed on the wall and the demons rushed her, bellowing and growling what she imagined to be obscenities, a spot near the main arched entrance of the castle opened up.

  Needing a break, even if it was only a few seconds without a demon attempting to grab her, she teleported there.

  And smashed straight into the bare chest of a male.

  She hissed and leaped back, ready to teleport again even when it would drain the last of her strength.

  Familiar dark eyes looked down at her and the urge to flee dissipated.

  “Ryker,” she breathed, relieved to see a friendly face.

  She leaned forwards and planted her hands on her knees as she struggled to catch her breath.

  “For gods’ sakes female,” Ryker snapped and grabbed her arm, pulling her upright. He scowled down at her. “My brother would kill them all if he knew what you had just done.”

  She looked over her shoulder as she realised all the demons had suddenly stopped trying to capture her.

  Every male had frozen in place, their eyes on her backside.

  She scowled at them as she held her skirt down. “Freaking perverts.”

  Ryker pulled her into the castle, barking something over his shoulder at the demons. His horns flared, the golden tip of his right one curling past his cheekbone as he glared ahead of them.

  “You have some nerve showing up here,” he growled and pushed her into a side room.

  “I never betrayed your brother,” she snapped as he slammed the door and rounded on her. “Well, maybe I did. No, I didn’t. When I first saw Tegan, I wanted to use him to prove myself to my clan… it meant everything to me. Then I came to know him and… well… then I fell in love with him.”

  Ryker’s black eyes softened, losing their sharp hard edge. “You are his fated one.”

  “I know.” She braved a step towards him. “That’s why his aura is shadowed to me and I can’t control him. I need to see him and explain. He told me to wait but I can’t. The thought that he’s in a battle… it’s killing me. I need to see him.”