Ruins of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #3) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,90

hand simply holding my hair back until I forced my eyes on his.

“You said to submit,” I swallowed past the fear he created.

“Have I earned your respect? Have I earned your submission?” he asked, releasing me.

“No,” I whispered through trembling lips.

“Submit!”

I dropped to the floor, returning to the pose. Brander snorted, reaching down to yank me back up.

“Why the fuck are you on your knees?”

“You said to submit,” I cried, fighting the fear that filled me until tears pricked my eyes.

“Yet I have not earned your submission, have I?”

I shook my head, and he shouted it yet again. I dropped, refusing to bow my head. He kneeled, lifting my chin with his finger. Smiling cruelly, he slid his hand around my throat and yanked me up by it, forcing me to walk back until he slammed me against the wall. His hands collected mine, pushing them above my head.

“You don’t fucking submit to anyone unless they’ve earned it,” he whispered huskily. “Are you afraid, or are you excited?”

“Both,” I admitted, watching as he leaned closer until his mouth was a hairbreadth away from mine.

“You’re body reeks of need and fear. You’re wet, and yet you tremble with terror,” Brander growled, clasping my bottom lip between his teeth. Releasing it, he crushed his lips against mine, pushing his other hand down my body. Lifting my dress, he slid his hand against my apex.

I moved against him, kissing him with a hunger I’d never felt before. He growled against my lips, pushing my panties aside, slipping his fingers through the wetness between my thighs. Knuckles brushed against my clit, and I whimpered my need for him. All at once, he stepped back, watching me with a sinful smile on his seductive mouth.

“You don’t submit to anyone ever again. You don’t fuck anyone else, you understand? Turn around and face the wall.” I swallowed, spinning to do as he ordered, spreading my legs for him. “Did you just fucking submit to me?”

“No, I turned around because I wanted to see what you would do with my body if I obeyed,” I swallowed, placing my head against the wall, daring him to play with the chaotic darkness that lived within me.

“Not until I earn your respect, woman,” he whispered, and I turned as his footsteps moved across the floor, and the door closed behind him.

I didn’t move, holding my pose until the door opened once more, causing my lips to upturn into a smile. I turned, and Siobhan tossed quartz around me. Stepping into the circle, I tilted my head.

“Spit out whatever it is you want to say,” she demanded. “You have less than five minutes before they sense the crystals and realize we’re both not who they think we are.”

“Why the fuck are you telling him to marry Aria?” I demanded, watching her eyes narrowing on me.

“I’d rather he entertain the idea of marriage to that girl than extinguish her fire. For goddess’s sake, she danced with orphans in front of a bonfire and carried them on her, uncaring that they weighed her down and discomforted her. If Aria is stronger than Ilsa, we may survive this war yet.”

“You saw what she did, Siobhan. She can undo the darkness and rain down fire from the sky,” I said while holding her stare.

“She failed. We can’t know if it would have worked without having seen the witch afterward. And Knox took her head. Brander is an excellent lover, but he’s a one and done kind of guy, as are the others. They like to show us they’re alphas. If I were you, I’d keep my distance. Now, who the fuck are you, and why are you here, Soraya?” Siobhan demanded, and I swallowed, canting my head while studying her.

Aria wasn’t just any witch. She was the promised witch, the one that Ilsa feared being born into the Nine Realms. I’d heard her speaking to the shadows, demanding we hunted down those with higher volumes of Hecate blood in their veins. Now I knew why. Aria would set the Nine Realms on fire, and I intended to be right beside her when she did because she was the key to freeing Julia from Ilsa.

I’d planned to release her by murdering her. I couldn’t stand the idea of Julia being an eternal power source for Ilsa. No one deserved to be, but without another witch strong enough to face her, we were all forced to deal with the reality that it was inevitable. No more. My