Page 14 of Love Bites Really Hard (Mated to the King #4)

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ZORA

I couldn’t hear or see Bane. The adrenaline of not knowing where he was only made me move faster.

My heart pounded in my eardrums.

My lips stretched, my smile wide and wicked.

There was a monster chasing me. I should’ve been terrified, but all I felt was excitement.

My bare feet weren’t loving the sharp rocks and branches beneath them, but that was tomorrow’s problem.

I pushed myself harder and took in a deep breath—and then there were arms around me.

A yelp escaped me as I was whisked off the ground in one smooth motion, hauled up through the trees and into the sky.

Bane turned me in his arms, and his mouth collided with mine roughly. His cock stabbed my belly, but I didn’t care.

I kissed him back, my hands on the hard, chiseled lines of his face as we made out.

The steady beat of his wings accompanied our lust until I eventually pulled away, panting harshly as I took in the forest below us.

The world below us.

I could see all of Mistwood. The Manor. The city. The forest. The fog that clouded all of it, making it hazy without hiding it entirely from us.

“It’s beautiful,” I breathed.

“You’re beautiful.” Bane’s mouth met my throat, sucking roughly. He’d leave a hickey, but it would heal fast. “I need you naked.”

A laugh escaped me.

Honestly, I was surprised he’d held back as long as he had. Chasing their mates was notoriously intense for men. Maybe the alcohol made it easier.

Or maybe he just had an insane amount of willpower. That seemed more likely.

“Take me home, then. We can fly again another time.”

He growled his agreement, and his wings snapped out as we changed directions suddenly, spiraling down toward the Manor.

Two minutes later, we landed on our balcony. Bane tugged the string on the back of my bikini top as he set me on the table. They were double-knotted, so they didn’t budge.

His mouth captured mine, and he tore through the string with his claws.

I gasped. “This is my favorite swimsuit.”

“I’ll buy you another one.” He recaptured my mouth, his smooth, stone hands dragging over my breasts after he tore the fabric away.

My bikini’s bottoms suffered the same fate, and he shifted back just before he filled me with warm, human fingers.

I groaned into his mouth.

He worked my clit with his thumb roughly, and I bit down on his lip.

Some part of me heard a nearby security camera start swiveling and malfunctioning.

Bane released my mouth, snarling at the camera. It wouldn’t pick up on noise, but my lust died down quickly anyway.

We both knew who was on the other side of the camera.

Watching us.

“That fucker,” Bane snarled, pulling his fingers from my channel and ripping his shirt over his head. He yanked it over my head and pulled it down to cover me—just as the fire alarm went off.

It was quieter than any other fire alarm I had ever heard, but I figured monster hearing made that necessary. Bane snarled at the camera again.

There was no fire.

We both knew that.

Bane picked me up. He tried the door that led into our apartment, but it didn’t budge. It was locked.

“I shouldn’t have drank the wine,” he growled, shifting back to his gargoyle form. His wings spread behind him, and he carried me down to the concrete path right outside Monster Manor.

“You’re sober enough now. It’s fine.”

“No, it’s not. He knows this will only work once. No one will let him back in the control room after he set off a false fire alarm late at night. He’s going to challenge me.”

My stomach clenched. “He has to know better than that.”

“The imprint overrides everything he knows. He thinks you’re his.”

“It’ll be fine,” I insisted. “You can take him down, even with a little alcohol in your system.”

“I don’t want to kill him, Zora.”

“If he does fight you, I’ll find Sierra and get her to the conference room or something. All you’ll have to do is drag out the fight long enough to throw him in there with her.” I tried to make my voice casual, but my heart was beating rapidly.

If Bane was right and Oscar had set this up, he could be on his way toward us right that moment.

The fire alarm continued to blare.

A few unmated men were already out of their rooms, their expressions drowsy but alert as they started to leave the Manor. They looked at us curiously. When they saw Bane lead me back inside the Manor instead of out, they stopped leaving and watched us, waiting for an explanation.

“I don’t want you risking yourself,” Bane told me, ignoring the other monsters entirely.

“You’re the one who’s going to be fighting. Finding an unmated chick is hardly dangerous.”

“I don’t care. I don’t want you in any amount of danger.”

“What’s going on?” someone called out.

Someone else swore, and Oscar pushed past two people as he stepped out of a hallway.

He looked like shit.

There were dark circles under his bloodshot eyes. His shirt had multiple burned holes in it, like he’d grabbed it a few times while his hands were on fire. His pants were disheveled, and he was missing a chunk of hair that had fallen into his eyes during the masquerade ball. The strands around it looked like they’d been singed unevenly.

My stomach clenched.

I was the reason he looked like that. It wasn’t my fault he’d imprinted on me before I even said a word, but I definitely hadn’t helped anything.

“The siren belongs to me,” Oscar said. His entire body trembled with anger as he shifted forms so horns spiraled out of his head. Flames danced over his skin, too, gathering over his hands.

The fire wouldn’t help him against a gargoyle, but he didn’t seem to care.

Bane set me down and moved me behind him. “Smith, protect my mate,” he said in a low voice.

Oscar snarled, but only took one step forward when a guy I didn’t know carefully grabbed my arm and led me to the side of the hall.

Bane’s voice was deceptively calm when he spoke again. “You want to challenge me for the woman who bears my mark on her throat, Oscar? The one who marked me? The one wearing my clothes, and my scent?”

He bared his teeth. “You forced her into it.”

“She chose me.”

“I challenge you for her. To the death.”

The people around us seemed to inhale as one.

No one thought Oscar could beat Bane. Even if he’d been in good shape, he was no match for the gargoyle king.

Oscar surged toward Bane without waiting for confirmation, and my king’s eyes met mine for a heartbeat before he jerked his chin.

He didn’t like it, but he agreed with my plan.

He pulled my phone from my pocket and tossed it toward me just before Oscar collided with him. My heart shot into my throat, but the demon may as well have crashed into a stone wall.

Bane took him to the ground with ease as my phone hit the floor in its beefy case.

Oscar didn’t stand a chance against my mate.

And if I was going to save the demon’s life, I had to move.

I grabbed my phone off the ground. Smith, whoever he was, tried to stop me. When I hit him with some of my magic, he released me instantly.

The men on the floor both snarled at me.

Guess neither of them wanted me using my magic on anyone else.

I didn’t have Sierra’s number, so I hit the button to call Layla as I slipped into the crowd gathering in the hallway. Though I wanted to look back, to make sure Bane was still alright, I didn’t let myself.

There wasn’t time, and he wasn’t going to lose.

Layla answered immediately. “Hey, what’s up?”

“Oscar just challenged Bane. We need to get Sierra into the conference room right now,” I said quickly. “Bane’s going to drag out the fight as long as he can to buy us time to lock them in there together. There’s a bathroom connected to it, so as long as we throw together some food, they should be fine there.”

“Shit. Okay. Where are you?”

“Heading toward you.”

“I’ll grab her and meet you there. I’ve seen a map, and I think I know where to go. Is it the one where you guys screwed?” Layla asked.

“Yeah.” I didn’t think that particular story would ever die. Having sex in a conference room wasn’t the best thing to be known for, but I guess it could’ve been worse.

“Alright. We can deal with security and get out quick. Can you handle the food?”

“I’ll take care of it,” I agreed. “See you soon, and thank you.”

“Good luck.”

I called Lex as soon as I hung up. His voice was groggy, but he answered. I could hear commotion on his side of the line already, and assumed he was also on his way out, thanks to the fire alarm blaring. The hallways were more packed by the minute.

“Hello?”

“Oscar challenged Bane. He’s going to drag the fight out as long as he can, and throw Oscar in the conference room afterward. Layla’s bringing Sierra, so we can lock them in there together, but they’ll need food.”

“Fuck. I’ll get some guys to fireproof the door, and I’ll get a few boxes for food that demon fire can’t burn through too. Did Oscar set off the alarm?” Lex checked.

“Yeah, it started when we were making out in front of a camera.”

“Then I’ll get someone to shut it off, too. Meet me at the kitchen.”

“Where’s that?”

“Two doors down from the entrance into the dining room. It won’t be locked. Just keep trying doors if you don’t find it right away.”

“Alright, I will. Hurry.”

He grunted in confirmation, and hung up.

I booked it down a few hallways, passing a bunch of unmated guys I didn’t recognize on my way to the kitchen. Most of them ignored me, but a few followed.

I only opened one wrong door—it was a maintenance closet—before I found the right one.

“What are you doing?” an unmated guy asked from the doorway.

There was a whole crew with him, and they looked suspicious.

Shit.

I didn’t have time for that, but I guess I was going to make time. If any other men touched me or threatened me while Bane was fighting Oscar, there would be carnage. My mate was reasonable, but not that reasonable.

“Oscar challenged Bane. We’re trying to save the demon’s life. Lex is on his way right now.” I made my way through the kitchen, looking for a pantry of some kind. When I found it, my head tilted back.

Hot damn, it was massive.

Monstrous, even.

“What do you mean, you’re trying to save his life?” one of the guys growled, stepping into the doorway of the pantry to trap me in. He was clearly trying to threaten me.

I shot him an exasperated look. “We’ve been trying to break his imprint so Bane doesn’t have to kill him, ever since we mated. It hasn’t worked, so we found a woman who’s willing to mate with him. We’re going to lock him in a room with her until he imprints on her instead. Apparently, the unmated chicks used that method when this happened a long time ago.”

The guy blinked.

A few behind him did, too.

“I can’t reach most of this stuff.” I gestured upward. “Help me make a pile of things a demon guy and a gargoyle lady can survive on for a week or two.”

Silently, a few of the men stepped inside and got to work.

“So you weren’t trying to rub your bond in his face?” the guy still halfway blocking the doorway asked.

I rolled my eyes at him. “Of course not.”

“And Bane’s in on this?”

“Yes. He’s going to throw him in the conference room instead of killing him.”

“We can help him herd Oscar toward it. Where are they?” another guy asked.

I explained their location, and a big group of them jogged away.

One of the guys brushed against me on his way out, and another growled at him. “Careful. If the king actually likes his mate, he’s going to skin you if you touch her.”

The fact that it was an “if” for them was probably enough to make Bane want to skin him, but I didn’t say that.

We had bigger problems.

Lex showed up when we had a sizable pile of food, and he immediately started throwing it in bins made of a strange-looking material. I joined him, loading the boxes.

“Does the king actually like the siren?” one of the guys asked, as he started throwing food into the bins with me.

Lex snorted. “She’s the first woman he’s ever even wanted to imprint on. What do you think?”

A few of them cursed under their breaths.

“He’s going to be pissed at how much people hate her,” someone warned.

“He already is,” Lex agreed. “It’s a miracle he hasn’t killed any of you yet.”

“We’ll spread the word,” someone said.

“Clark, pack the last box full of produce,” Lex ordered, grabbing one of the massive tubs in his arms while other guys grabbed the remaining two that were full. “Meet us at the conference room. Let’s move.”

“The conference room where…”

“Yup.”

I ignored the warmth creeping into my cheeks as we all headed down the hallway. I didn’t feel very useful, but I would tag along anyway, to make sure everything happened the way it should.

“Does the king know his siren isn’t wearing pants?” someone muttered to Lex.

“You should ask him,” Lex drawled.

The guy grimaced and shook his head.

I fought the urge to roll my eyes. My sisters and I walked around in a lot less than the large shirt I had on, much of the time. We were in swimsuits more often than we weren’t.

“Can you grab the door, Zora?” Lex asked. “We need you to make sure Sierra has clothes on. If any of these young, horny bastards screw this up, we’re in trouble.”

“Sure.” I jogged ahead of them and opened the door, peeking inside before I slammed it shut.

Both Sierra and Layla were in their pajamas. Sierra’s nightie looked exactly like one of those tiny silk numbers you’d see in a movie. It was sheer, too.

Layla was wearing a t-shirt, like the one I had on, but she was significantly taller than me so it covered a lot less of her. Her outfit wasn’t outright sexy, but for an unmated monster who could imprint at the drop of a hat?

That was a no-go.

“If you’re not mated, leave the boxes in the hallway,” I ordered.

The guys exchanged glances.

“The queen gave a command. Follow it,” Lex barked.

They dropped their boxes.

“Go find the fight and help everyone herd Oscar down the hall. We’ll be done here quickly,” Lex added, dismissing them immediately. Some of them looked annoyed about it, but they didn’t dare argue.

Layla pulled the door open as soon as they were gone. “We’re ready. Come on.” She waved me inside, and I followed her in.

Lex hooked his foot on a second box and dragged it in with him. He stacked both of them against the wall.

“Some mated guys already stopped by and coated the doors with something fireproof. They went to find something else to block the doors with from the outside. They’ll close the hallway entrance into the connected bathroom, too. Sierra will be able to break through if she needs to, but Oscar will be trapped,” Layla explained, barely glancing at Lex.

He went back to the hallway for the other boxes, and I heard him exchange a few words with an unmated guy out there before he came back in, alone.

“Thank you for doing this,” I said to Sierra, meeting her gaze.

She was sitting in a rolling chair with her blonde hair tucked behind her shoulders, helping her dress hide absolutely nothing. “I’m not doing it for you. I’m doing it for the good of gargoyle kind.”

“Right.” I nodded.

I didn’t give a shit why she was doing it. All that mattered to me was that she was doing it, and Bane and I would finally be able to find some semblance of normalcy because of her.

“Alright, that should be enough food,” Lex said, stepping back from the boxes and turning to face us. “It’ll buy you about two weeks, so—shit. Wow. Fuck.” His gaze fixed on Layla. “Hi.”

“Hey.” She looked at me, lifting an eyebrow.

I shrugged.

“Layla?” he asked.

“We’ve met before.”

“You were…” he gestured to his face.

“Wearing a ski mask. There wasn’t time tonight. You’ll survive,” she said drily.

He cleared his throat and took a step backward. “You’re going to have to do this without me. I’ll find Bane.”

“We’re done, remember?” Layla gestured to the boxes he’d stacked by the door. “We can all go find Bane, except Sierra.”

“I’ll wait here for my mate,” she announced.

No one replied to her.

We were too busy watching Lex back out of the room.

“You need your ski mask,” he said, his voice strained. “Or that hat. The big, ugly one. Your personality is too fucking good to be walking around looking like that.”

She scowled at him.

He stopped suddenly in the doorway and clenched his jaw. “Bane’s going to kill me.”

My forehead creased. “For what?”

He stepped forward, and suddenly, I understood why.

His eyes had changed. One was the same color as Layla’s.

“Don’t even think about it,” she warned, holding her hands out in front of her. “It’s been one minute. Don’t even?—”

He crossed the room in the blink of an eye and tossed her over his shoulder.

I groaned.

He carried her out of the conference room, and I hurried after them.

She lifted her head away from his body so she could look at me. Her face was flushed, but she was fighting a smile as she called out, “Deal with Oscar, then come rescue me from this bastard’s apartment.”

“Don’t bother,” Lex called back. “She’ll be naked in my bed by then.”

She smacked the back of his head, and his laugh carried through the hallway.

Shit.

That was…

Yeah, it was going to have to be a problem for later. No one’s life was in danger.

At the moment, Oscar was the priority.

I looked back at Sierra. “You’re sure you’re ready?”

She flashed me a coy smile. “He’s going to be on his knees, worshipping me, by the end of the night.”

I had to respect that confidence, even if I didn’t particularly like the woman. I nodded at her, and jogged down the hall in the direction the guys had gone earlier.

It was time to end our Oscar problem for good.