Angelina’s eyes flashed. If anybody tried to make her into ‘property’ she’d show them a thing or two.
“If it was known that Tommy was my son, though…” He shuddered, then sighed. “Well. I built my media empire up once from nothing. Give it a few hundred years, I’ll be rich again.”
“Again?” Angelina’s eyes narrowed. “Excuse me? What are you talking about?”
“I mean that I’m not going to win tomorrow.” His shoulders sagged, and he looked so utterly defeated that Angelina was torn between hugging him and slapping him.
“What are you going on about? You’re not the kind of guy to just give up! You are ahead in the points. Even if he wins tomorrow, he’d have to get a heck of a lot in order to beat you. You’ve got this.” She grasped his arm and squeezed gently. “You are a good fighter and you’ve been training—”
“I’m going to forfeit.”
Angelina’s jaw dropped. She barely stopped herself from screeching at him that he had lost his mind.
Rainer swallowed hard. “Tomorrow is the final match. Killing is allowed.”
“And… you’re afraid he’ll kill you?”
“No. I’m afraid I will kill him.”
Angelina stared at him, utterly confused.
“Angelina…” Rainer tossed the empty blood bag away and clenched his hands. “Today, when I was alone in the locker room, Marcus came to see me. He said… He said he had an assassin hired to kill you if I killed him tomorrow.”
A heavy ball sank into her stomach. Angelina pressed both her hands to her face, eyes widening.
“If we fight, he’ll be trying to kill me. And in order to defend myself, I’d have to fight back… hard. I’d risk killing him, just keeping him from killing me. And then, if that wasn’t bad enough, he intimated that even if I won without killing him, he might send someone after you anyway.” His shoulders tensed as he straightened, a hard fury coming to his eyes. “I will not allow that to happen, Angelina. I will not let anything happen to you. If I have to lose everything, I don’t care. I won’t let him hurt you.”
Tears sprang to Angelina’s eyes. He was only in this bloody mess to begin with because of her. If she had only been more reasonable and open from the start…
But no. She forced aside the feelings of guilt. It wasn’t her fault. This was Marcus. He had decided to go after her in order to get at Rainer. Rainer had chosen this path to free her. But there wasn’t anything she could have done differently. No. Even if she had stayed with Rainer the night Marcus told her he’d been investigated for murder, it wouldn’t have changed Marcus’ plans. He still would have come after her, kidnapped her. Maybe it would have been a little more difficult, but it would have happened all the same.
“You can’t just give up,” Angelina told Rainer firmly. “Because for all we know, Marcus already knows about Tommy. If he doesn’t, he would find out about him sooner or later. We’re both smart people, we can figure out some way to get around this. He didn’t win when he kidnapped me, he won’t win when he’s trying to blackmail you into losing.”
“It’s not worth the risk—”
“Like hell it isn’t!” Angelina narrowed her eyes. “You’re saying a chance to be together and be happy and figure this all out isn’t worth it? Well, I guess I’ll just have to raise the stakes, then, won’t I?”
Rainer rose a brow. “How?”
“By giving you this.” She looked around for something she could use, then with a cry of triumph, she ripped the elastic out of her hair. Quickly, she dropped to one knee and wrapped it around the third finger of his left hand. “If you win tomorrow, I’ll marry you.”
Rainer’s jaw dropped. He seemed to have difficulty understanding what was happening as he blinked rapidly. Eventually, he cleared his throat and asked, “What?”
“I’ll marry you. But if you don’t win…” She cast about for a suitable threat. “If you don’t win, then I’ll stop taking my multivitamin pills. There. You can’t live with that guilt, right?” She smiled at his smirk but faded to sobriety quickly enough. “I can’t let you lose everything because of me, Rainer. So, you can’t forfeit. You have to fight.”
Rainer looked at the elastic ring on his finger, then up at her with another grin. “So you want me to fight for you, is that it?”
“That’s it,” she murmured fervently.
“Well…” He cupped her head in his hands and kissed her lightly. “I suppose that means we need something to fight for, huh?”
Angelina frowned. She started to ask him what he meant by that, but then he was kissing her again and she suddenly understood. They were building something here, something that was worth fighting for. His hands started to roam her body and she greedily explored his, wanting to know every inch of him. Her skin was on fire, everything heightened, and then he was laying her back on the couch and that was all she cared about.
***
Angelina chewed her lip as she stared down at the arena. She was seated with Morticia again, who was once again snacking on delicacies with an appetite that rivaled a blue whale’s. Below them, Marcus and Rainer were facing off. Marcus swaggered with a proud step, and Angelina wanted to shout at him that just because he cheated that didn’t mean he was going to win.
“I do hope Rainer wins,” Morticia sighed as she licked BBQ sauce off her fingers. “I’ve got quite a bit of money riding on him. I think he had the better motives… don’t you agree?”
“You helped Marcus kidnap me and are directly responsible for this because of it,” Angelina snapped at her. “What makes you think that I’d want to have a friendly chat over whether Rainer or Marcus is going to win this?”
Morticia sighed. “So sensitive! Oh, look. They’re going at each other. Ooh, I do like watching a good fight.”
Angelina did not respond as Rainer and Marcus clashed. Fists flew and she had to stop herself from screaming out. Both her hands pressed to her mouth.
Rainer, she thought, praying that he’d be safe and successful. Don’t give up. Whatever happens, don’t give up!
***
Rainer’s head was clearer than it had been the previous day. He let Marcus come at him, waiting until the last minute before he sidestepped; Marcus tried to turn but Rainer slammed a palm between his shoulder blades, sending him flying past him. He followed it up with a kick to his lower back. Marcus fell to the ground, groaning.
He quickly made his way back to his feet and faced Rainer, looking more wary now. There was a hint of confusion in his eyes, though. Rainer could have grinned, except for the seriousness of the situation. Clearly, he had been expecting that Rainer would just turn over and let him win this fight. Well, he had another thing coming.
“I’m going to kill you,” Marcus hissed between his breath, too quiet for the crowd to hear. “I’m going to tear your head off and harvest your blood. When I turn your little human mate into a vampire, your blood will be the first she drinks. Do you think she’ll be able to sense your last moments?”
“You’re trying to provoke me,” Rainer replied, keeping his voice even and just as quiet. “I haven’t decided yet whether I’m going to try to beat you or not. But we have to give the Elders a good show, don’t we?”
Marcus considered for a moment, then smirked. He inclined his head, then charged again. He tried to hit Rainer in the face, but Rainer dodged—only to step right into the fist coming at his left side. Marcus shot in punch after punch. Rainer deflected them, protecting the ribs that had been broken twice yesterday. His fangs glittered in the lights while the crowd cheered and hollered. Marcus’ face was a mask of determination, his attack so frenzied that Rainer was forced to back up again and again.
He finally found an opening and punched at Marcus’ side. Marcus caught his wrist and, in the same move that Rainer had used the previous day, threw him over his shoulder. His arm wrenched and Rainer screamed, but he managed to twist his body enough that his shoulder did not break or dislocate.
He kicked Marc
us’ hip, then his ankle. Marcus’ leg fell out from under him. He used his momentum to elbow Rainer in the face. Pain blinded him and he knew Marcus had been telling the truth. If he got the chance, he’d kill him.
And then everything would belong to him.
And Angelina would have no one there to back her up, to say they didn’t belong to each other.
Would Marcus want to keep Tommy with them, or would he force Angela, with threats and blackmail, to give him up?
Would Marcus hurt her?
Would he kill her?
A defiant roar echoed from Rainer’s throat. He could not lose! There was too much at stake. Not only Angelina’s life, everything she loved, everything she cared about. He could stand losing everything that was his, but he would not let her lose anything else! As Marcus came at him again, fangs bared, Rainer rolled away. He caught Marcus’ wrist, twisted him around. Sprang to his feet, shoved Marcus toward the ground and, with a tight grip on his hand, stomped on his neck.
“Surrender or die,” Rainer hissed.
Marcus squirmed, unable to get out of Rainer’s grip. “You wouldn’t dare! Your precious human will die if you kill me!”
“I can protect Angelina,” Rainer replied, his voice almost casual. He hoped that he could back up his claims. He had the money and means to hire protection… His voice grew stronger as he pressed his foot down on Marcus’ neck; if he wanted to, he could snap his spine right now. “If you don’t surrender, I will kill you. What will it be?”
Marcus hissed. He attempted to break Rainer’s hold on his wrist but couldn’t. The crowd had gone silent, watching with bated breath. After several seconds, each one ticking by with Rainer putting more pressure on Marcus’ spine, the other vampire went limp.
“I forfeit,” he snarled, low, almost too low to hear.
Rainer wasn’t going to let him go until he’d said it loud enough for the crowd to hear. “What was that?”
“I forfeit.”
Cheers burst through the air. People hang over the sides of the stands, clapping, stomping their feet and otherwise expressing their delight at this turn of events. Rainer eased off Marcus, backing away when the other vampire rubbed his neck and stared at the ground. His free hand clenched into a fist as his lips moved in a series of unheard curses.
Rainer lifted a hand, quieting the crowd. “What I did,” he called loudly so his voice would carry, “was merely to protect the human woman I am dating.” My mate, a voice whispered in his mind. “It is her that gave me the strength to do what I had to do today. And so, I relinquish whatever prize I might have gained from my victory. I don’t want it.”
Marcus’ head jerked up. His eyes widened; was it going to be enough to stop him from coming after Angelina again?
“So, you’re going to humiliate me like that?” Marcus snarled, stumbling to his feet. “Take pity on me?”
Well, that didn’t exactly go as he had planned. Rainer shook his head, broadening his stance as he read the anger in Marcus’ eyes. He looked like he was about ready to launch himself at Rainer again. There was a group in the stands chanting ‘Kill him!’ but Rainer didn’t know if they were talking to him or Marcus, or if they didn’t care and just wanted to see some blood.
“I’m not taking pity on you,” Rainer snarled back at him. “I just don’t want your stuff. And why would I?”
Marcus let out a furious caterwaul and threw himself forward. Rainer dodged, lifting his hands to defend himself. Before either of them could lay a finger on the other, though, there was a rush of footsteps around them. The regulators pounced on Marcus, bringing him down while the crowd laughed and jeered.
One of the regulators jerked his head at Rainer, indicating that he was supposed to leave now. Rainer was only too happy to leave the arena, going back to his locker room. There, he waved off the doctor and grabbed his clothes then phoned Dane Hemmerick; the dragon shifter had been trained to protect people since he was a kid, and there was nobody else Rainer could trust with Angelina.
“Dane,” Rainer greeted as the doctor started cleaning out the cuts he’d sustained. “Remember when I loaned you that money last year? Well, I have a job for you so we can call it even.”
***
Rainer winced as Angelina helped him out of the car. Even if the fighting didn’t last as long today as it had yesterday, he hurt more. Maybe it was because the adrenaline had worn off enough. Maybe it was because the exhilaration of winning was dampened by the fact that Angelina was still in danger. He wasn’t sure, but if he was honest, he didn’t really care, either. What he wanted was to get Angelina safe, to make sure that Marcus couldn’t touch her.
Dane was already waiting, and he stalked over, his hand on the pistol at his side as his gaze roamed around the area.
“We need to get you inside quickly,” he said, his voice tight. “This place is way too open for snipers.”
“Miss Williams,” a vampire behind Dane nodded his head. “Pleased to see you again.”
Angelina blinked in surprise at the two of them. “Isaac? Dane? What are you doing here?”
Right. He’d forgotten that Angelina would have met them when she interviewed Isaac for that article. Rainer nudged Angelina toward the door as he explained. “I hired their protective services since Marcus made a threat against your life. Now, let’s get inside, quickly.”
“Yes.” Angelina wrapped her arm around his waist, trying to take some of his weight. “You need to lie down and rest.”
Rainer could have rolled his eyes at that. Didn’t she know that the concern was whether or not she was going to be okay? It had nothing to do with him! He didn’t say that, though, not wanting to get into an argument out here on the street and delay getting her to safety.
Once in the apartment, Isaac and Dane closed all the curtains, grilled the babysitter if there had been any packages dropped off, phone calls made, or people who came to the door. Dane said he’d take her home (to avoid the potential assassin from nabbing her and using Angelina’s bond with her to get at Angelina) and Isaac let Angelina and Rainer go to the bedroom.
Angelina eased Rainer onto the bed, looking greatly concerned. Rainer grinned as he lay back, enjoying the attention even if it wasn’t strictly necessary. “I’m fine, you know. I’m fine.”
“I’ll believe that when your face isn’t all red and purple.” Angelina huffed loudly. “I can’t believe that you would do this! It would have been much simpler just to withdraw from the king election. I know that you are all into the idea of being a king and you do want to help others, but what is wrong with what you already have?”
Rainer frowned at her a moment, uncertain if she was being serious or if she was just stressed out. “Angelina—”
“I’m going to get Tommy. We were gone again before he was up this morning.”
She swept out of the room, but Rainer had seen tears on her cheeks. He leaned back, considering her question. What is wrong with what you have? He wasn’t sure how to answer that. There wasn’t anything wrong with what he had… He just wanted more… didn’t he? All his life, he never felt like he’d had quite enough. Enough for what, though? When he was human, it wasn’t enough to eat, to sleep, to have anything to actually thrive. Now? Was it because he didn’t have enough to help others?
But I do, he thought, frowning. I am a billionaire. I could give away millions of dollars every month just from my passive streams of income.
He shuddered as he realized he couldn’t give a proper answer to that. Angelina returned to the room quickly, Tommy with her. He climbed onto the bed and started to grin, but it quickly became wide-eyed horror. “Ouch!”
Rainer touched one of his bruises and had to agree. “Yeah, I got a little hurt, but I’m okay. Did you have fun with the baby sitter?”
Tommy stared solemnly at him. “I made finger paints.”
“Finger painting?” Rainer grinned at him.
His heart started to go a little fast as he studied the little boy; now he could see, m
ore than ever, similarities between the two of them. Their eyes were the same shape, their ears. Their noses. And now, gazing at him, he could see echoes of Matthew. His heart clenched even as his smile softened at his son. This was his little boy. And this time, he wasn’t going to lose him. He couldn’t.
“You make finger paint, too.” Tommy settled down and frowned at him. “No nap.”
“No, no nap,” Rainer agreed, glancing over Tommy’s head at Angelina, who still looked nervous. Rainer smiled at her, trying to reassure her. “But since I’m not feeling good, I’m going to just lie here. Why don’t you and Mommy snuggle here? It will help me feel better.”
“Okay,” Tommy agreed readily. He tugged on Angelina’s hand, then threw himself down on the pillows, his little feet sticking in Rainer’s face. Rainer flinched but waved off Angelina’s concerns, since it wasn’t that bad.
She laid down on the bed as well, with Tommy snuggled between them and chatted more about the day. Angelina’s eyes were still worried. Rainer gazed at her, trying to memorize every feature. He had won, Marcus could not claim her…
“I love you,” he whispered, quiet enough that he didn’t think she’d be able to hear.
But a smile crossed her face and she whispered back, “I love you, too.”
Chapter Thirteen
Several days passed with Angelina not leaving the apartment. Between Rainer, Dane and Isaac, Angelina would have thought that there were a bunch of snipers hiding in the air vents waiting for her to step into the hallway so they could take her out.
It wasn’t as though she wasn’t worried. She was. This was a legitimate threat, and she didn’t fight them on it. After being kidnapped, she wasn’t going to take any chances. That didn’t mean that staying in the apartment all day wasn’t boring. She was just glad that Rainer had a treadmill and that she was able to work on a few of her articles while she waited for them to track down whoever it was Marcus had hired to kill her.
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