Charm Of Sensuality

Chapter 16

Before her stood Kane. He smiled down at her, his grin sensual. The tingle in his eyes sexual.

There was a carnal set to his stance.

She stared openly, the tingling between her legs growing at the sight of the man she wanted.

She turned on the stage, her eyes searching for Kane in the audience but to her surprise everything was painted in a blur of dark colors, no face was distinguishable. All sounds were muffled and strange, all except for the man before her.

"Eden," the man said. His voice was clear and deep and sounded so much like Kane's. She took a step back, this wasn't right.

"Don't fear me." The man said, "You see me as the man you desire. I, for one night, will fulfill the fantasy you lust for. The man you love will hold you tonight, the man you want will pleasure you beyond imagination. Come to me."

Her body ached but she didn't want to be held by a copy of Kane. She shook her head, feeling dizzy with the moment. "No. You're not... Kane."

He took a step toward her, "But I am. You wish me to be and so I shall be. I am nothing but a manifestation of your deepest wantings. Why deny yourself what you want, Eden? In yours for the taking."

"This... is wrong." She said breathily.

He opened his arms, "Sweetheart, I just want to make you feel good."

His words were like a sirens song, she staggered forward, falling into his arms. He held her close before leaning down to kiss her. She became ravenous in his embrace, her arms wrapping around his neck, her body rubbing against his.

His hands ran down her body, groping, roughly squeezing at her delicate skin. In the back of her mind... she knew something wasn't right but her body ached for this, ached for this man.

Kane stood, watching with his teeth grit, and his fist balled to his sides. To think that her ceremony was so open seemed wrong. She deserved to be made love to, not fucked.

Something in him ached at the sight of her lost in a haze of need, kissing the man before with nothing but abandon.

Seeing the man's hands on her body made him clench his fist tighter. He could smell the thick scent of the spells of enchantment wafting from the cauldron. They had enchanted her senses, awakening the sexuality in her.

He was sure that he had never been so angry. He had witnessed several of these ceremonies before and yet none of them had every made him feel anything.

But this was Eden. Sweet, gentle, kind-hearted Eden.

His Eden.

He cursed underneath his breath, chastising himself for even claiming her in his mind. She wasn't his to have.

But still, rage and jealousy exploded inside him. He was a mage knight. He was a protector, he was a soldier. He wasn't supposed to feel.

"Don't do it, Kane."

He turned swiftly on his heel, realizing that he had been making a beeline for the stage.

Abril stood before him, several other knights on either side of him. "Don't do this, Kane. You can't."

Kane's heart was pounding, his chest rising rapidly. He hadn't even realized that he was moving, he had been so focused on Eden, so focused on wanting to get her away.

"This is wrong, Abril."

Abril shook his head, "If you try to take her, it won't end well. You know what happens when knights go rogue. God, snap out of it. Let her mate tonight. After tonight, if you want to fuck her, fuck her but you can't claim her. And you can't be her mate. You know that."

Kane stared at Abril, shaking his head. He knew for a fact that this wasn't going to end well. Knights who went rogue were punished with a branding and stripped of their titles and knighthood. He knew that, he had seen it happen only once. But in this instance he didn't care.

Eden was his.

And he would be damned if he just stood and watched while she was held by another.

"I have to do this. She's mine, Abril. And I'll be damned if anyone will stop me from taking her."

Kane made a beeline for the stage, hopping up onto it with ease. As he neared Eden he froze when he heard her whisper his name to the stranger. Her desire for him spurred him on. In her enchantment she desired him.

He was who she saw through her hazy wanderlust. He grabbed her, snatching her away from the man groping her.

He pointed a finger at the man, gritting out angrily, "Vade." The man flew backward across the stage.

Suddenly all chants and songs stopped. All eyes fell on Kane. Eden was shivering in his arms, her eyes wide as she stared up at him, knocked out of her trance.

"Kane?" She barely managed to whisper.

"What the hell are you doing?" One of the women on stage snapped, pulling her hood down.

Kane held Eden close, his arms tight around her. "If anyone is going to complete Eden's ceremony it will be me."

The woman screeched, "Enough! This is out of protocol! You will be stripped of your knighthood for this! You have no right to claim her! You have no right to interrupt a ceremony of awakening!"

"Do what you must, but Eden, is mine and mine alone."

"Get him! Get him now!" The woman screamed.

Several people moved toward them, all with the hopes of doing her bidding. He raised a hand and with a swift flick of his wrist a portal engulfed them, "Circumscribit includitque nos."

Angry faces were gone, the sweet, overwhelming scents were gone. And suddenly they were falling through the sky, fast moving wind whipped past them. Eden screamed, realizing that they were free falling. Her body twisting this way and that as the wind whipped past her. Eden's screams were barely audible with the intensity of the wind around them.

Strong, warm, familiar hands grabbed her, pulling her close. "Shhh... you're okay. I have you, relax, Eden. It's just an illusion. We're not really falling."

She leaned into him, her face buried into his neck, her hands gripping his shirt in her hands. She screamed again, unable to stop the sheer panic she felt.

He rubbed a hand down her back, caressing her gently, "I promise, you're okay. Relax."

His voice was soothing, gentle, and reassuring. She relaxed slightly in his arms, breathing him in.

After a long while she opened her eyes, looking up at him. He ran a down her cheek, his fingers caressing her skin.

She leaned into his hand before looking around, blinking back her surprise.

"Where are we? What happened?"

Kane sighed, "I just broke every rule known to my protocol."

"What?"

He cupped her face in his hands, "I thought I could give you up but damn it if you didn't get underneath my skin, sweetheart."

He kissed her softly on the lips before pulling away, and grabbing her hand. "We're in the underground of San Francisco. Think of it as a kind of mirror world. I know someone who can keep us safe for the night."