CHAPTER 10
Christina’s Choice
Boulder
It was impossible not to stare!
In front of me on the floor sat a flesh and blood woman with nothing but a thin layer of silk between me and her nakedness. I don’t think she was aware that when she bent down and leaned forward her dress shaped her ass perfectly.
Swallowing hard and fisting my hands, I told myself not to touch her, but everything about her lured me in. Her feminine scent was strong, her hair looked soft and inviting with the sexy curls falling down her back, and when she first walked out from the bathroom I had seen her from the front. Fuck! I knew she was pretty, but the woman was curved in all the right places and had the cutest freckles.
Next time I go to a sex-center I’m getting a sex-bot with freckles and curly brown hair, I thought to myself.
I watched in wonder as she tried on the shoes and I automatically moved forward to support her when she almost fell.
“They’re much harder to walk in than they look,” she said and held on to me.
My heart was pounding harder than when I fought that prick Nelson. It was her strong grip on my shoulder and the closeness between our bodies that was messing with my head. Any time now we would have to go down to the ceremony and she would marry another man.
The thought alone made it hard to breathe. I’d been so close to becoming her champion and protector – if only that fucking sack of shit hadn’t broken my arm. A bit of rage welled up inside me and I regretted not killing him for coming between me and the chance to spend more time with Christina.
“Christina,” I said in a solemn voice, and unsteady on her feet she turned her head and looked up at me, her hand still holding on to me.
“There’s something I should explain to you before we go down.”
“Yes?”
“It’s just that, once you’ve chosen your champion, I can’t speak to you unless he allows it.”
“Why?”
“It’s a rule that helps the protectors. Imagine if any man could strike up a conversation with you. It would be incredibly stressful for him to keep you safe from that much male interaction.”
“But, you’re the only friend I have here,” she said, her voice dripping with sadness.
I closed my eyes and clenched my jaw, regretting even more that these were my last minutes with her. “I just want you to know that if I see you again and I don’t look your way, it’s not because I wish to ignore you. It’s how things must be.”
I was surprised to see Christina’s eyes grow moist. “You’ll ignore me?”
“I’ll have to.”
“But what if I speak to you?”
“You shouldn’t,” I said. “It would upset your… champion.” I almost slipped and said husband and felt heat rise in my cheeks.
I wasn’t sure how Khan thought this was going to go down peacefully. Christina would surely refuse to marry an Nman once she understood what Khan’s plan was. And even if he somehow convinced her to go through with the ceremony, he couldn’t keep her here against her will. The council would request her return to the Motherlands and most likely enforce strict sanctions on our trade if he failed to return her.
Had he informed the other winners of the games that the marriage was only temporary?
I didn’t think so. In fact, I was convinced that every winner in that room was already planning their wedding night in detail.
It enraged me to think that Christina might be pressured into having sex against her will. There wasn’t much I could do about it except maybe speak to the man she chose and ask him to go slow with her.
Christina blinked away her tears. “I’m sorry that I’m being emotional. I know you don’t like that, but it’s just that we’ve been together night and day for three days and I feel like I know you. That you’re my friend.”
An invisible iron band formed around my throat and I looked away, uncomfortable with the emotions she brought out in me. “I did my job and kept you safe; I’m glad you consider me a friend but I’m afraid this is where our friendship ends,” I said, low.
“Can I hug you?” she asked with a sad expression and looked down on my arm. “I’ll be careful.”
