Ruins of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #3) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,183

cock into me, mercilessly.

Knox pulled back, staring down at me with a longing I couldn’t quite grasp, burning in his oceanic depths. He smiled, kissing my throat as he brought my body back into the pool, then walked me toward the stairs, slipping his large hand around mine.

I stared at his firm backside, smiling until the room flooded with feminine scents. Women moved into the room with Knox standing naked, grabbing towels to dry his body. I rattled loudly, my teeth slipped from my gums, and the sound escaping my lips wasn’t friendly in the least bit. I watched the women through narrowing slits as they dropped the clothing and drying towels and ran from the room.

Inhaling the air, I scrunched my nose at their offensive odors and turned to find Knox smiling like an idiot. I reached down to the pile of towels, smelling them, unable to stop myself. Once I’d found one that didn’t reek of their scent, I moved toward him and frowned.

“I guess I will dry you off, since I was offended by their scent.” Knox’s smile grew, and he leaned over, kissing my shoulder as his body shook with laughter. “It isn’t funny, Knox. I was very rude to them, and I couldn’t stop myself.”

“It’s basic instinct, Aria. You’re young, and your instincts drive you during your heat cycle. I was over six hundred years old before I met my mate. I responded the same when any male was near Liliana.” I shoved the towel at Knox before grabbing my clothes and towel, stomping off to put distance between us as his stare burned a hole in my spine.

Drying my body, I dressed into the blood-red dress I’d chosen to wear. Slowly brushing my hair, I worked it into a braid, carefully tucking it into a bun to leave my neck bare. Turning, I found Knox standing next to me, silently watching as I did my hair. He didn’t apologize, nor did I expect it from him.

He offered me a tight smile before he led us out of the bathing room and back to the bedroom we’d barely left since arriving.

My heart squeezed with the idea that Knox’s men had buried Aine and that she was probably very much aware of that fact. I’d brought up the need to see her body as an excuse to get her exhumed from the ground, but Knox had explained that she wouldn’t even be aware that they buried her for a few years.

We entered the bedroom to find Bekkah naked and sitting inside the sheets I’d spent all morning arranging. My body trembled, watching as she pushed her curves out, turning to smile shyly at Knox.

“I am here as requested, My King,” Bekkah whispered, running her hand down her abdomen as I fought the urge to rip her apart.

Blood pounded through my ears, deafening her words as she continuing speaking. Claws pushed through my fingertips, and my teeth shot through my gums. My body vibrated with anger, causing Knox to turn and stare at me before his eyes moved back to Bekkah.

“Get out,” he demanded, moving to the bed to toss her clothing at her.

Bekkah rubbed her body again, touching the bedding before slowly bending over, exposing her apex to Knox’s gaze. My nails slid through the flesh of my palms as my vision filled with rage. Bekkah’s eyes lifted, holding mine with a victorious smile, as she slipped the dress on and moved to the door.

“I am available whenever you desire, My King,” Bekkah said huskily, sliding out of the room before my rattle exploded, and I rushed to the bed.

I ripped the bedding up, sniffing it as tears pricked my eyes. I pulled it from the bed, slicing through every blanket and then the bed itself until feathers exploded into the air. I sobbed at the wrongness of the bed, the contamination of the space I’d created for us. Bekkah defiled it with her sickening scent, ruining what I’d built. Voices sounded near me, but I couldn’t stop as violence echoed through every fiber of my being. The need to destroy what Bekkah had tarnished and tainted, drove me into a murderous rage.

Once everything was in tatters, and nothing remained of the bed or the sheets, I stepped back, meeting Knox’s worried stare through the feathers that still wafted in the air. I inhaled deeply, tilting my head before I wiped away the tears and huffed.

“What did the bed ever do to you?” Lore asked, and