Ruins of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #3) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,49

my own tent after all. I prefer nightmares to your company.”

“It’s not happening. An unmarked female is fair game, Aria. It isn’t up for discussion. You may have my scent on you, but it isn’t the same without my mark on your flesh. Before, when I placed my scent on you, my mark reinforced my claim.”

“Then have Brander or Killian mark me.” Knox rattled, spinning on his heel to dress before leaving the tent, shouting that he was going hunting.

Within the next two hours, I was fairly sure the forest’s wildlife population had dwindled to near extinction. Meat stacked higher than I could see over, sat in front of the tent’s opening. Peeking around it, I found Lore, Brander, and Killian all glaring at the forest as if it was the offender that had angered them.

“This is fucking ridiculous,” Killian snapped.

“You think?” Brander groaned, turning to where Knox was stalking back into camp, dragging two large animals behind him as he glared at me. “We are going to need more salt to preserve the meat.”

“Try a fucking salt mine if he continues this shit,” Lore joked.

I broke off the leg of one animal, and all the men turned to glare at me. My attention swung to Knox, tossing the newest animals onto the pile, glaring at me. I purred, smiling slightly as his stare slid to the blanket that covered my naked body.

“You’re an excellent hunter,” I said huskily, stalking back into the tent. He growled, and I smiled at the sound of the men’s groans. Knox rattled, the noise leaving camp as he went hunting, to kill more things in his rage at being denied what he wanted most.

Chapter Twelve

We still hadn’t moved, which forced us to rearrange camp as more and more troops arrived to follow the army to the palace. I’d spent hours today playing with the children, arranging flowers in their hair, and teaching them simple things they should have already known, based on their age.

It seemed the basics of witchcraft were no longer taught to our daughters and sons, choosing instead to forego learning any magic or attack and defensive spells by the high king’s order, whoever he was.

I was still braiding a little girl’s hair when Knox’s scent hit me from across the camp. Lifting my head, I searched him out in the crowd. I found him standing with men who had shown up earlier, nodding at me with a soft smile on his lips. Pink spread over my cheeks, and my body heated indecently as if it sensed his need from his scent alone. Swallowing hard, I chewed my bottom lip, returning my focus to the little girl’s hair, or tried.

Knox had a way of reminding me he was here without even gazing at me. I felt him the moment he returned to camp or bed at night. The subtleness of his scent and the gentleness of his purr calmed my fear of another male entering the tent we shared. We’d fallen into somewhat of a routine, and his flirting was contagiously rakish, disarming my defenses.

He had remained distant, though, flirting with me from afar. It was both sexy and endearing, considering Knox could demand it or take what he wanted. If he did so, there was nothing anyone would do to stop or prevent that from happening. Ever since I’d pointed out that I was still processing my assault by Lord Andres, Knox had allowed me to heal, which spoke more about his character than anything else since meeting him.

I moved on from hair to teaching the girls about stones and crystals while Knox continued to observe. I taught the young witches what each stone represented as they held them in their palms, feeling their magic. They laughed and giggled while I recanted some of their uses. I avoid discussing their darker uses, keeping their more sinister and sexual nature from the girls’ innocent minds.

One of the teenage girls argued over a crystal. At least she had until realizing that I was trying to protect their innocence. She settled for making a crude gesture that had us both howling with laughter. The sound drew Knox’s attention, and I laughed harder. I was considering adding some stones to the bed when I finally allowed him to have me. Sucking my lip between my teeth, I stilled the laughter, and heat pooled in my eyes while I took in Knox’s smoldering gaze.

One girl held up a rose quartz palm stone, and I smiled as