Page 34 of Prince of Demons
How was he meant to do this? He couldn’t fucking think with the maddening scent of her arousal in his nose.
“You’re going to be the fucking death of me.”
“I-I’m sorry.”
Another fucking apology. He bared his teeth at her, and instantly regretted it when the bitter taste of fear intensified on his tongue and she shrank deeper into the mattress.
Aaaand there went his gut, clenching with regret. Great. Fucking great.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he murmured, voice softened despite his urge to scream with frustration at the clashing roil of instincts warring somewhere south of his ribcage. Fucking. Breeders.
“What… what are you going to do?” Her voice was tiny and pulled on his maddening urge to coddle and coo like an overgrown mother hen. “You say you’re going to brand me… and… train me. I don’t know what that means.”
They’d made a deal. He’d spent a great deal of power on healing her useless brother in return for her cooperation. The main reason he’d agreed was so he wouldn’t have to do this—coddle and explain and take his time when he had none to give. But as she lay beneath him, her bewitching scent thick in his nostrils and that scared look on her pretty face—the one that pulled on everything primal and stupid in him—he realized he’d been a fool to make that bargain. His experiences with his infuriating sister-in-law should have taught him that one breath of a Breeder’s manipulative pheromones would make him bend over backwards to ensure they had whatever they wanted. He’d thought Georgia would be different, that the fact she wasn’t a Pure Breeder would help him keep his mind focused. But clearly, that wasn’t how this was going to go.
With a deep—deep—sigh, Kesh pushed himself up to kneel between her splayed thighs. One glimpse of her flushed pussy and bared clit and he made sure to yank the silk skirt down to cover her before he lost his ability to focus again. “All Breeders are given a blinding mark—a brand. It takes away your ability to see through our human disguises. We find that it makes it easier for a woman to accept a mating and settle into her new life.”
She blinked up at him. “So I’d… see what others see when they look at you? Just a regular human?”
“Yes.”
She frowned, eyes darting to his horns for a long moment before she asked, “Um… so… why are we…?”
“Why am I getting you off?”
Georgia flushed a deep red, and he rolled his eyes. Considering she’d been begging him for more only minutes ago, embarrassment at stating the obvious was pretty fucking ridiculous. Humans.
“Your innate resistance to our magic is at its weakest during a climax. For the brand to take, you need to come. Hard.”
“Oh.” Her blue eyes flicked briefly to his mouth, and he knew exactly where her mind went—to the bathroom where he’d pushed her up against the vanity and sucked her clit to orgasm. Heat coiled low in his abdomen in response, and when she looked up at his eyes and blushed even deeper, it took all his willpower not to push her dress back up and wrap his lips around her clit.
“So…” She hesitated for a moment, then seemingly found her courage. “Why aren’t you…?”
His face darkened. “Because, Breeder, your pussy is fucking crack, and if I lose control for even a second, my magic will enter you and you will die. Horrifically.”
“Oh.” She paled, knees curling up to close his direct access to her hallowed core, survival instincts finally kicking in.
“Yes. Oh.” He rubbed the bridge of his nose. “This is such a fucking nightmare.”
Slowly, she sat up, eyeing him cautiously. “And we can’t just… pretend you never met me and send me on my way…?”
His hard stare made the red flush return to her cheeks.
“Right, okay, yeah, that was probably… a bit optimistic,” she muttered. “But then what? I don’t want to die. Does this… this brand really need to happen?”
Kesh sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You tell me. Look at my face, Breeder. Can you see yourself settling into domestic bliss with a man whose mere features make you quiver with fear? Could you nurse children who look like this?”
Georgia’s eyes roamed over his face. As expected, the truth was written all over her features.
“Yeah. Didn’t think so,” he growled, inexplicably irritated with her natural fear of his appearance. “So yes, Breeder. I need to brand you.”
A short moment’s silence fell between them as Kesh tried to figure out how the hell he was supposed to get this girl branded. It was interrupted when Georgia quietly asked, “I’m supposed to birth your… children?”
He scoffed. “No, not mine. As I said, if my magic enters you, you will die. But yes, you will birth your future mate's children. You are a Breeder, after all—this is your job.”
Horror slashed across her face. “What… what will you do to… to my babies?”
Kesh stared at her. “What do you mean, ‘what will we do?’ Your mate will protect them, just as he will you. Bringing our sons to adulthood is one of our most sacred obligations.” He frowned when it dawned why she looked at him with such horror. “You thought we’d eat our own children??”
