Page 15

Chapter Fifteen

THEODORE

Last Kingdom PPV

Charleston, South Carolina

S weat is dripping down my brow as my back crashes into the mat again. Hext stands above me as the crowd cheers, thinking that this is the moment the hero of this story finally dethrones me. Maybe anti-hero would be more apropos. Hext isn’t the type to play the knight in shining armor.

Hext is on top of me, raining down punches. None of the punches actually hit me. Wrestling would be an entirely different sport if he were actually punching me in the face repeatedly. Together, we sell it to the world. We tell them the story of a villain getting the beatdown that he’s deserved for so long.

When it’s my story though? The villain always wins.

The punches come to a stop. Hext takes a step back from me, taking the time to gloat to the audience. He plays up the cheers as he signals that he’s going in for his finisher. That’s the opportunity that I need. While he’s distracted, I roll out of the ring to a chorus of boos .

Now comes what none of them are expecting.

Aurora’s been ringside for most of the match, playing up that budding mentorship she has going on with Jules. She’s supporting her friend, who’s supporting her mentor. During the right moments, the girls are huddled together in panic, looking shocked. Whenever I knocked Hext down, Aurora banged her hand on the apron to rile up the crowd to cheer for him to get back up.

You’d believe that the pretty redhead isn’t on my side.

My feet hit the ground outside of the ring, and I begin to walk up the ramp. My right hand grips my left shoulder, selling the idea that I’m hurting. To some extent, I am. My body is sore. It’s been a fifteen-minute high-intensity workout. Just because the fighting may not be real doesn’t mean that it hurts any less.

Hext comes storming up the ramp to grab me and throw me back into the ring. His hand rests on the back of my neck, guiding me back to the ring. For a moment, my eyes meet Aurora’s and I wink.

Jules’s face contorts in disgust at the gesture, but Aurora looks back at me wide-eyed before I roll back into the ring. I know I should be on my back, but I want to see how this all plays out. I’m hopeful that it looks even better than I’ve imagined, so I roll onto my stomach, keeping my head low but eyes open.

Hext goes to get back into the ring and finish it up, but Aurora grabs his arm. Jules is shouting, asking what she’s doing. Hext pushes her away from him, making her stumble backward.

“What is your problem?” he shouts loud enough for the microphone to pick up what’s going on, for the people in the front rows to hear it.

He turns to get back into the ring. As he climbs up onto the apron, Jules cries out his name, “Hex!”

A crack rings out as Aurora brings a steel chair down on his head.

Hext’s body slumps as he sells the hell out of that chair shot. Taking the opportunity, I scramble up to my feet. My eyes meet Aurora’s and I try to sell the moment—the eye contact, the realization. I want everyone to see how I look when I realize what she’s done for me . She looks up at me and drops the chair, taking a step back and holding her hands up in front of her.

Not wanting to waste the opportunity given to me, I grab Hext and pull him into the ring. It takes me seconds to hit my finisher with a snap. My arms slip underneath his, lifting him into the air, rotating slightly, and then slamming him back onto the mat. The referee counts the pin as the boos rain down.

One, two, three .

Jules scrambles into the ring, worrying over Hext as the referee raises my hand in the air. I don’t care how goddamn scripted it is. Nothing feels better than winning.

Aurora climbs into the ring. She looks down at Jules and Hext, the former too worried over her mentor to acknowledge the betrayal by her friend.

I take the opportunity to observe how gorgeous Aurora looks today. Her makeup is all dramatic. Her hair is pulled back, showing off that angelic face. She’s wearing a dress that makes her look like a goddamn goddess. It’s black, off the shoulders, and flowy…except there’s a very high, very suggestive slit up her thigh.

All I want to do right now is follow that slit up with my tongue.

She looks at me before she drops to her knees in front of me. It takes a solid five seconds to remember that we’re live on TV right now and in front of a crowd of thousands. My cock twitches and I’m so damn thankful for my cup. Even I don’t want to get a hard-on on TV. I don’t need the internet fussing over my dick.

I get exactly what she’s going for, though once the blood stops rushing south. She’s under my spell, here to worship me. Reaching down, I run my fingers through her ponytail in an almost affectionate way before they slide down to cup her cheek. My calloused fingers splay along soft skin, stroking it gently as the camera gets the shot.

That’s the last shot before the PPV goes off the air. The world sees Aurora on her knees for me as I treat her like she’s my pretty little pet.

Gotta admit, it’s a lovely sight.