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The second I realize whose lips are against mine, I swing. My fist lands against Dramon's cheek so hard that I feel the violent vibrations in my mouth. It doesn't seem to be enough, though, because he stays where he is. Seeing that he won't disengage, I swing again.

He has me pinned against him by the hips, and no punch seems to be strong enough to push him away. He still kisses me, feeding the pain I inflict to me.

I turn my face away and snarl, "burn you, Dramon. Get off me!"

"Come back," he breathes against my temple.

He's clinging to me. Not only with his hands, but with his words. I seek the darkness of the night for escape.

"Don't call for him," he whispers.

A Rider King whispering? It's a rare thing. They speak up for the world to hear them.

"For him? You mean you don't want me to call for Rexon? Why would I do that when I can kill you myself?" I push up with my good leg to stand and kick the back of his knee so he goes down. Although he lowers by a foot, he doesn't let go. We end up stumbling forward and diving into the pond in front of us.

I'm soaked instantly. My clothes become plastered to my skin, just like my rage.

"Why do you want me to come back when you have Salina? What do you need me when you have the woman you chose? Why are you bent on making me your backup?" As I rant, I'm swatting, punching, and pushing. Dramon tries to dominate me, but we're both slippery, blinded by mud and water, and determined.

This reminds me of the day of our wedding, when the last challenge was to swim to the bottom of the lake while fucking me. I feel just as breathless as I did then.

"It can't be her," Dramon says. "It has to be you."

Those words have me stopping, and Dramon uses the oppotunity to straddle me. He lowers his forehead to mine, and I'm pinned. The heaviest weight on me, though, is the one on my chest.

"You chose her," I glare at him, although I can't see his irises. "You chose her over your wife. Past over present."

"I did not."

"Then why did you run to her?"

"Because I broke her!" he finally snarls. "I destroyed her. It was all my fault. I couldn't let her sit in misery. Rider Kings protect with duty and honor."

How? How did he destroy her? What could he possibly have done?

Does any of it matter at this point?

"I don't care," I declare. "You didn't listen to me, so you will get the same treatment."

"Venus," he calls for me. "I want no female other than you. I know you felt my eyes on you every meeting with King Centres."

I laugh bitterly. "You got what you wanted! You fucked me, so now you can crawl back to your Queen."

"You are my Queen. That is why I'm here," he fights me.

I thought I lost this man's child when I was bleeding in a feverish haze. I chose to face death over facing him. He pushed me away so many times; he made me forget who I was. And now he's trying to take my sanity with his words.

"Get off her!"

I hear a crack in the air, and then I feel Dramon sink into me when a whip slashes his bare back.

Rexon is there, whip in hand, and he swings again.

Dramon presses his forehead against mine and takes the blow of the second swing. He was prepared for the third strike. He raised a hand and wrapped it around the whip to pull Rexon forward.

Rexon let go, and soon they're a nest of fists. This fight is even more violent than Zoro versus Dramon.

Three of Rexon's people stand with torches, but they don't step in to separate the men. I can see, hear, and practically feel the Rider Kings colliding. This is senseless. They're fighting over a woman that isn't ready for either of them.

I'm the only one insane enough to jump between them, so I do. I duck under one meaty fist before it hits me square in the face, and I palm their chests ans do my best to shove them apart.

I can feel their hearts drumming in their chests. From what I can see, Dramon's arm ring lays shattered on the floor, and Rexon is bleeding from his lip. Within seconds, they nearly devoured each other.

Dramon sweeps an arm around my waist to hook me off to the side, but I dig my heels into the ground, grit my teeth, and groan from the extension it takes to keep them apart. Eventually, it becomes too much. My bad knee gives in, and I fall.

Each male holds onto my bicep to hold me up, and then they start to shout at each other because they can't swing while I'm between them.

"Get off my territory!"

"Get off my female!"

"Leave, Dramon, or you'll be removed."

"The only way I'll leave is if you remove me from this world. And judging by your weak punches, you'll fail."

"Judging by the fact that your woman ran from you, you must be as bad at fucking as you are at leading."

"Silence!" I interject. "Both of you! You are grown men! Let me go and act right!"

They release my biceps, and I stand to shove them further apart before they start fighting again.

"Leave, Dramon. You've done enough."

"No."

"Can't you see that you're making it worse?" I explode.

He shuts up for a minute, never looking away from Rexon, and dips his chin. "I'll be on the edge of the territory. But I'll return. Again and again. Night after night. Until you follow me."

I'm angry. I'm so burning angry at his declaration. I hate that he's trying to take my will. I want to hurt him, but a punch won't be enough.

"Fires!" I snarl, before jumping, throwing my arms around Rexon, and kissing him in front of my jealous husband.

Three of Rexon's men jump forward to tackle Dramon when he dove for us. I lick my lips as I watch him rabidly try to shake the men off.

It's satisfying knowing that I've hurt him after all he did to me.

"I'm going to my tent," I say over my shoulder. "It's too loud here."