Total pages in book: 130
Estimated words: 121008 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 605(@200wpm)___ 484(@250wpm)___ 403(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121008 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 605(@200wpm)___ 484(@250wpm)___ 403(@300wpm)
“My sister would never allow me to fight in this tournament,” Dante shoots back.
The big vampire, who looks like he might be taking steroids, laughs. So do all his friends. They seem to be having a laugh at Dante’s expense. “Big sister doesn’t want baby brother to get a boo-boo?”
“Big sister knows it’s stupid to fight the warrior half of symbiotic twins.” Dante’s face twists into a smirk. “Besides, I would never fight my cousin.”
It seems like the entire arena suddenly falls silent. The vampire named Palgrave goes even paler than before as he stares up at his rival.
“Beckett Finn is here?”
Dante points toward the back of the arena, and there’s Beck. There’s confidence in his easy gait as he strides into the arena. The rest of the males sink into the sand, but Beck seems to almost glide above it. He’s graceful. He is a shark, and suddenly everyone else looks a little like guppies.
“They’re scared of him.” I can sense the anticipation in the crowd. The minute Beck steps out, the crowd falls silent and the whispering begins. Every eye in the arena is on the big, dark-haired man with the stormy gray eyes.
“He’s the greatest warrior of his generation.” Dante sits back down. He opens his jacket and pulls out what looks like a tablet computer. He pushes the screen a few times and then touches his ear. I hadn’t noticed it before, but there’s a small device there. “Yeah, give me my sister. Hey, Susie, you gotta dump all the stock we have with the Palgrave funds. No, I am not out drinking. Listen to me. Kinsey Palgrave is about to fight Beck. Yes, that’s what I said. Even if Beck lets him live, he’ll be out of commission for weeks. His even dumber brother will be acting CEO. Dump it now before the price goes down. You’re welcome.” He smiles smugly my way. “That will teach them to call me a screwup.”
“How many does he have to fight?” This is really happening. These men are going to fight. The one left standing will expect me to go home with him.
“Stop panicking.” Dante leans back negligently. “It’s all going to be fine. You’ll love Beck, and you’ll be crazy about Cian. No woman can resist Cian when he’s on his game. They’ll treat you like a princess. This is going to be a piece of cake for him. There’s only twenty-five, no, there they go…fifteen to fight. Wow, they must be desperate. I was sure we’d get it down under ten.”
A group of men shake their heads in disgust or fear and walk out of the arena.
“They don’t want to fight the great Beckett Finn,” Reeve explains. “He’s a legend across the planes. The vampires will stay because of pride. If the word got out that they paid for an entry and then wasted the money by walking away, they would bring their families shame.”
Dante nods, agreeing with the gnome. “Vamps are damn serious about corporate funds. The Fae can walk away because there’s no shame in surrendering to the king.”
“King?” I heard Beck referred to that way, but now it seems serious.
Dante’s arrogance is gone, and in its place is an earnestness that makes him almost angelically attractive. “Yes, Beckett Finn is the rightful King of the Seelie Fae. A pretender sits on his throne and has since Beck was seventeen years old. Beck lost his mother, father, sister, home, and kingdom all in one day. He’s been on the run ever since. He’s been forced to live as a peasant, barely getting by. He sells his sword to put food on the table. All he has in the world is his brother.” Dante sits forward, placing his hand on mine. It’s slightly cool to the touch. “You can change that for him. You can make his life worth living. I love my cousin. He’s more like a brother to me. If Cian makes a comeback, it is entirely possible I can get my sister to back them financially. Once the money starts flowing, Beck’s loyalists will come back.”
Well, I knew there was more to this than simple lust-at-first-sight. Beck has ambitions, and I figure into them. “He wants to take back his throne?”
“Yes,” Dante replies, as though it should be blatantly obvious. “He wants to overthrow his murdering uncle. I know that you intend to run at the first opportunity. Don’t try to deny it. I would do the same thing in your place, but I’m asking you to give him a chance. Is there anything you could do on your home plane as important as freeing an entire population from tyranny?”
Well, put like that, getting home so my TBR doesn’t fill up seems self-absorbed. What do I have to go back to? When I don’t show up at work, the district manager will fire me and put another in my place. I’ve been told on more than one occasion that I’m a dime a dozen. There are overeducated morons everywhere who need a job. My parents divorced years ago and started new families. It will be months before they even realized I’m gone.