“And it feels good,” Conrad said.
Aidan laughed, his chest feeling lighter. “Yes, yes it does.”
Conrad fell silent for a moment, and then hesitantly said, “You don’t plan to let her go, do you?”
He could almost hear the twinge of hope in his fellow soldier’s voice. “No, certainly not.” He and his men had been without a woman for a very, very long time. He wouldn’t let his fortune idly walk away now. The question then was what to do with her. There was only one of her and twenty-one of them. The men might share for a while but it wouldn’t take long for possessiveness to flare. That, Aidan could do without. The last thing he needed amongst his men was rivalry over a single female. It’d be inevitable if he didn’t plan this carefully. “I’m thinking a challenge.”
Conrad’s grin faltered then transformed into a wide smile. “Excellent idea.”
Aidan nodded. “There will still be some problems. Whomever doesn’t win will feel it surely. This will create tension among us.” Especially since Aidan planned to keep her for himself. He wanted to be the first to feel the naked skin of a woman pressed against him, the first to slide hard between her welcoming thighs. His cock hardened at the thought.
Conrad nodded grimly. “True enough. Mayhap if she’s shared at some point, it could give all the men a chance to relieve themselves.”
In thought, the idea worked out wonderfully. However, in Aidan’s past a woman didn’t exactly like to be shared without her approval. The thought of force did not sit well with Aidan. He knew all about being forced to do things he didn’t like, and he wouldn’t do that to a lovely woman.
“We don’t want to lose her favor, Conrad. We do that and she won’t accept any of us. No, we have to find a way around that.” He knew by looking at her that the thought of taking on more than one man at a time wouldn’t appeal to her. She had an innocent sexual allure to her. He wondered if she even realized it.
Conrad sighed and took a seat beside Aidan. “I hadn’t thought of that. What will we do then?”
Aidan thought on it for a long while. His gaze moved from the flames licking at the wood to the prone woman lying in front of the fireplace. “I think we’ll go ahead with the challenge. Whoever wins will keep her but in a few weeks’ time we’ll hold another challenge with the previous winner not participating. This will eventually allow everyone a chance to win her.”
“What if she refuses to accommodate the winner?”
Anger flared in Aidan. “Then we’ll make her.” He wouldn’t physically force her, but there were other ways. An idea struck him—maybe even pleasurable ways. A seduction. The pressure in his groin grew nearly unbearable.
A commotion started around the great hall’s fire jerking Aidan out of his sultry thoughts. He went to his men. They wore expressions ranging from excited to wary. He didn’t blame them. Having a woman here could prove a change for either the better or the worse.
One of his men, Drekk, caught him coming towards and nodded to the woman. “She’s waking, sir.”
A flash of excitement flickered in Aidan. He couldn’t help it; he was just as excited as the rest of them. “Make room,” he ordered. His men parted around the woman and Aidan came through to see her eyelashes fluttering open.
Greed filled him just looking upon her. What he would do to keep her for himself...
The woman sat straight up, her gaze darting around the men hovering around her. She started breathing fast in fear, pushing a pair of gorgeous breasts up tight against the snug, strange shirt she wore.
He stopped in front of her and her gaze flew to his. He watched recognition hit her eyes. Good, she remembered him from before.
“Who are you?”
She spoke strangely and he and his men looked at her in confusion. This wouldn’t do.
Aidan turned to his men. “Get Gabrick here now.”
No sooner than he made the order did Gabrick push his way through the crowd. The older demon had the greatest magical abilities among all of them. It was largely due in part to his abilities that they were able to keep their small castle invisible to the prying eyes of the world. They used to be out in the open, but in the past year idummi attacks had become more frequent. So, they’d pooled their magic and spells together to cast a protective spell over the castle. If all of them left for too long the spell would eventually fade and reveal their home.
“Can you make it so we can understand her and her us, Gabrick?”
The man nodded slowly, his eyes devouring the woman. A spark of possessiveness straightened Aidan’s spine, but he ignored it. It wouldn’t do getting revved up in front of his men over the woman, even though he planned to keep her for himself.
“It sounds like a strange version of the English human’s spoke long ago. Let me see if this works.”
Gabrick opened his palms and spoke a chant in Demonish. The spell weaved words of understanding, learning, and listening around his brain. Warmth surrounded Aidan and his men and then like a switch being thrown, the woman’s words rang clear.
“What the hell is going on here? Who are you? Where’s Alrik?”
All the men paused at the woman’s words. She had a soft, pretty voice. A woman’s voice. He could have groaned at the sound. Something that hadn’t gifted his ears in so long.
Aidan took a step closer and once again captured the woman’s gaze. “You speak to the king by his first name? Just what are you to him?”
The woman froze, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. “Tell me who you are first.”
“Leave us,” Aidan ordered in Demonish. His men did so, but slowly. After they had some space, Aidan knelt down by the woman. “I am Aidan and these are my men. We are outcasts from the shahoulin kingdom.”
“Are you their king?”
“We have no king here.” The very thought made Aidan’s gut clench. Yes, he led his men but he was no king. His word wasn’t law here and they all wanted it that way. The rulers had ruined their lives. They chose a more democratic approach with Aidan acting as a tentative leader. At any time, they could overthrow him if they chose and he’d easily step aside.
“What do you want with me?”
Aidan looked away as an image of her body naked and what it would look like flashed in his mind. “That’s a harder question to answer. Why don’t we start simpler? Why are you with the king?”
She smirked, the corner of her full mouth curving up. The sight transformed her face into something captivating. “He isn’t the king anymore.”
Aidan nearly gave a double take. “What say you?”
She shrugged. “He’s no longer the king. He said we were coming this way to find some rogue demons, I take it that’s you. He said we needed some supplies.”
Aidan stood and stared off into the fire. The king wasn’t the king anymore and he thought to find help from those he’d marked as outcasts after wrongfully imprisoning them?
“He’s mad,” Aidan muttered.
“True enough.”
Aidan felt a smile cover his lips. Not only was she beautiful but humorous and wise as well. She’d make a fine companion for him and his men.
“Your name, woman.”
She bit her lip as if unsure whether to tell or not. Eventually she sighed in defeat. “Abbigail.”
He rolled the name around in his mouth. He liked the rounded sound of it, feminine. It fit her. “Abbigail, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am Aidan.” Aidan and Abbigail. The sounds rang well together.
He held his hand out to her and she hesitantly gave it to him. Her hand was soft compared to his own and much smaller. He hadn’t held a woman’s hand in so long he’d forgotten what it felt like, the slight weight and the soft texture. He ran his thumb over it and pressed a kiss to her fingers. Her eyes flashed with surprise while something dark and hungry stirred inside him. He’d wanted to wait until he announced the challenge, but now he knew he couldn’t wait. He needed her for himself, needed to see her flashing blue eyes at him, smiling up at him as he thrust between her soft thighs.