Page 39 of Claimed By her Alien Prince

I rose slowly, taking deep breaths, swallowing more bile.

"Lilith, let me help you," Seth offered.

I shook my head and stared him down, too shaken by everything that had happened. Judith stabbed a man. Granted, I hadn't known Judith before all this, but still… she stabbed a man to help another one she had just met.

I stared at Seth, would I have done it if he had asked me?

Never mind that he wasn't the type who would have, but just assuming for a moment he had asked me. What would I have done?

Cold sweat broke out all over my body. I would do anything to see Seth left standing as the victor. Anything.

I swallowed as spit accumulated in my mouth, but more built up, faster, threatening to choke me, and I heaved again into the corner.

"Lilith?" Seth sounded worried.

The simple truth was that I would do anything for this man I had just met. Anything. I could never watch him get hurt or, worse yet, die.

What the hell was happening to me? Was this some kind of spell? It had to be. I considered myself a rational person, and here I was, contemplating the most irrational things one could possibly consider.

"I'm okay," I told Seth and began walking down the corridor that led back to our chambers.

Silently Seth followed me, giving me space and time, and I appreciated it.

"Here," Seth halted me as I almost passed by our door. He opened it and I pushed by him without a word.

Servants had left domed dishes with food on the table while we were out. The thoughtful gesture, however, only reminded me of the breakfast that didn't happen and turned my stomach even more. But I did accept a glass of water Seth held out to me.

"Lilith," He tried again. "I understand this is a bit much."

"A bit much?" I laughed meanly. "A bit much he says." I shook my head and crumbled into the same chair Seth sat in earlier this morning, when the world hadn't been quite as fucked up. Well it had been, but it had actually been a pretty good morning compared to what followed.

Seth knelt in front of me, taking my shaking hands in his. "Lilith, I promise I won't let anything happen to you. You are safe with me."

"Safe?" I snorted. "Safe? Nobody is safe here, this is… a nightmare, crazy, sick."

"I know," he kissed the knuckles of my hands and I felt some of the tension, outrage and anger drain. I took a deep breath and let it out with a loud sigh, already feeling better.

Him sitting there, in front of me, holding my hand seemed normal, made me forget about everything that was taking place outside these doors and again I wondered at the power this man held over me.

"Is this some kind of spell?" I asked out loud.

"What do you mean?"

"What if what we're feeling for each other is the result of some spell? What if what we are feeling for each other isn't real?" I theorized, trying to explain my irrational emotions, the power of them and the willingness I felt deep inside me to do anything for him—anything he would ask of me—which was honestly frightening the crap out of me.

"Lilith," he took my chin into his hand to force me to look into his eyes. "I know my feelings for you. There is no spell or magic in the entire universe that can make me feel something I don't or make me not feel something I do. I don't know what it is between you and me, but it's strong."

Tears welled in my eyes. What could a girl say to something like that? Especially coming from a man like him?

Silently, we stared at each other for a while, until I had an idea. "Can't we just stay in here, in this room, until the others have killed each other?"

Seth smiled sadly up at me. "That is not how this works. Behlial will order us to have breakfast or dinner or whatever with him. He will order us into the throne room, and we will have to accept."

"Or?" I asked, even though I had a pretty good idea of what would happen.

Seth tilted his head, his red eyes telling me exactly what theorwas. Behlial would use us against each other to get us to do whatever he wanted.

"So we have to make sure none of your brothers kills you," I decided.

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