How The Warrior Fell (Falling Warriors series Book 1) (30 page)

In the far corner stood a group of men who were engaged in a game of throwing knifes at the makeshift target carved out of tree bark. A short distance away, Leawyn could see men gathered around in a broken circle, cheering on the two opponents as they traded blows with each other with their fists.

After a particularly hard punch thrown by a fellow Izayges tribesman to the face of his Siraces opponent that made him instantly crash to the ground unconscious—which made the Izayges men roar—Leawyn grimaced and turned her attention elsewhere.

She had to do a double take, barely managing to keep her mouth from dropping open in surprise with what she saw.

A girl that couldn’t have been much older than her, had her head thrown back, eyes closed in pleasure, as her bare breasts bounced from the force of two men thrusting into her. A group of men stood around them, watching. It was as if seeing a dead body for the first time. She knew she should look away, but couldn’t because of the morbid fascination and curiosity of the ordeal.

When another man stepped forward—undoing his breeches as he did so—and the man who was thrusting into the woman from underneath grabbed a fistful of her hair and yanked back until her neck was arched, Leawyn looked away.

Her eyes met her husband’s, who was watching her. They stared at each other silently for a moment. Xavier looked over at the trio again, smirking at what he saw before he turned his attention back to Leawyn.

There was a challenge in his eye when he did so.

He dared her to look again. To watch.

Leawyn’s eyes narrowed against his, causing his smirk to widen. Xavier leaned forward, the scruff of his beard scratching against the top of her ear.

“Are you ashamed?”

Out of all the things Leawyn thought her husband would say—that was not one of them.

She tilted her head towards him, as he whispered in her ear again.

“Does it make you uncomfortable?” Xavier lips brushed Leawyn’s ear, which caused her to tense up as he said his next words. “Seeing the pleasure on their faces?”

Xavier looked at her calmly when Leawyn flinched away from him, glaring.

“All I see is the men’s pleasure as they take that poor girl between them,” Leawyn snapped. She resolutely kept her gaze down at her half-empty plate of food when her husband crowded into her space again.

“Look again,” Xavier cupped her chin and turned her head toward the public display. “Look at them, Leawyn, closely, and tell me what you see,” Xavier encouraged against her ear softly.

Leawyn’s body grew more tense, trying to yank her chin away from his grip, but she knew it was in vein.

He had her.

Leawyn had no choice but to watch.

There was a different man behind the woman now, his breeches around his ankles, ass flexing with each thrust his pelvis made against the woman’s behind. The man underneath the woman had both of her breasts in his hands, tugging at them as they swayed in front of his face.

“I only see—”

“Look closely, Leawyn,” Xavier interrupted, lowering his head so his bearded cheek meshed with her smooth one, keeping his hold on her jaw.

“Look at her face. Watch her.”

Leawyn’s lips pressed together, but she did as he bid and watched the woman who was being taken by the two men. Though her black hair was still being clutched in a tight fist by the man behind her, it didn’t seem he was forcing her head back. Her dark features were flushed, her eyes closed, her mouth hanging open in . . .

Leawyn gasped.

“You see it now, don’t you?” Xavier asked as he chuckled huskily, turning so his lips brushed her ear with each seductive word he spoke. “You see the pleasure on her face.” Xavier gave her chin a gentle shake, reminding her to keep watching. “You see the men’s expressions, as they thrust into her tight, greedy body?”

Leawyn’s breath grew ragged as she watched them, taking everything in. Both of the men had grimaces on their face, as if they were in pain, but Leawyn knew otherwise. If she sat closer, she was certain she would be able to hear their skin slapping against each other.

“See how they fill her up?” Xavier whispered in her ear. “How she cries out in passion as they do?” His voice was deep and hypnotic, and Leawyn felt that somehow, with Xavier whispering words in her ear as they both watched the joining, he made it more erotic.

Made it more daring.

Arousing.

Both of the men kept a steady rhythm, when one thrust in, the other pulled back. Filling her with perfect unison. “They both want her, and she loves it.”

The two men started to thrust faster into her, each holding some part of her body as they did. The woman reached up behind her, wrapping her hand around the neck of the man behind her, while her other hand clawed at the chest of the man below her. It was moments later when the women screamed her release, shuddering against the two as she did.

“Sex can bring more than pain, Leawyn,” Xavier dropped his hand away from her chin. Leawyn watched as the two men pulled out of the spent woman, the one below her holding her close to his chest as he stood up with her in his arms, uncaring of his nakedness. “It can bring pleasure too.”

Leawyn tore her gaze away from the couple and looked into Xavier’s eyes.

There was a message there in those dark orbs of his. For her.

A message Leawyn wasn’t ready to accept.

Leawyn broke first, looking back down at her plate. She ignored Xavier’s chuckle of amusement and instead focused on finishing her food.

She couldn’t get the girl’s expression out of her head though.

It can bring pleasure too.

Leawyn shook the thought out of her mind and ate.

“You seem to find something over there awfully interesting, cousin,” Tristan commented lightly.

Leawyn paused, the goblet in her hand poised at her lips as she shot a look at Tristan. Noticing Tyronian’s scowl and Tristan’s amused smirk, she looked to the area where they were both staring at. It didn’t take long for her to find what they were focusing on so intently and what had Tyronian so riled.

Namoriee, as promised, was serving the first half of the feast. Leawyn noted she looked beautiful wearing her deep blue dress embroidered with light browns and golds that complimented Namoriee’s caramel skin and hazel eyes. It also seemed Leawyn was not the only one to take notice of the young girl’s beauty.

Which was the problem.

Namoriee currently was in polite conversation whilst pouring ale in the cup of a man Leawyn never saw around the village before, which made her assume it was a visiting warrior from the other tribes.

Judging by his dark hair, brown eyes, and the armor he wore, he was a Siraces.

“Who is that?” Leawyn asked, finally taking a sip of her drink.

“Cantos,” Xavier said shortly, his eyes flashing up briefly to look before turning his attention back on the half-eaten leg of boar on his plate.

“What’s she even doing serving food and drink anyways?” Tyronian grumbled with a scowl as he watched them with narrowed eyes.

“She insisted. Said it was her ‘duty,’” Leawyn quoted, glancing at Tyronian from the corner of her eye when he scoffed around his mug of ale. “I finally managed to convince her she would only serve the first half of the feast.” Leawyn shrugged, breaking a piece of her bread and popping it in her mouth.

Leawyn gave a Tyronian a weary look when his fists clenched. She looked back to Namoriee.

Cantos had his hand wrapped around Namoriee’s wrist as he smiled flirtatiously up at her. He said something to her that made Namoriee shake her head in refusal, turning away from him. Cantos grinned, and with a quick tug, an unsuspecting Namoriee was spun around. She stumbled, sprawling across his lap.

Yes. Cantos was definitely Siraces, Leawyn mused.

She gave a startled jerk in her seat when Tyronian stood up abruptly from his chair.

Three pairs of eyes followed Tyronian as he marched over to where Cantos and Namoriee sat. He stopped in front of them and reached down, and with one sharp tug, he yanked Namoriee off Cantos’s lap and pushed her behind him in one smooth motion. Cantos shot to his feet.

Tyronian and Cantos exchanged heated words before Tyronian shoved Cantos back down into his seat. The two men glared at each other a moment more before Tyronian escorted Namoriee away with a hand on her lower back.

Cantos went to his feet again and said something to Tyronian’s back.

Leawyn gasped, eyes shooting up in shock when Tyronian spun around and sent his fist sailing into Cantos’s chin.

The men cheered when the force behind Tyronian’s punch caused Cantos to stumble back into the table, holding his hand against his now bloody lip.

Without another glance at the fallen man, Tyronian spun about and made his way back to them at the table, his hand clasped around Namoriee’s wrist as he hauled her resisting form with him.

The men cheered and whistled in their approval.

The table was quiet save for Tristan’s amused chuckled when Tyronian righted his chair and plopped down into his seat, pulling Namoriee onto his own lap. He made a show of tucking her securely into his side, and calmly resumed his eating.

“Come with me,” Xavier ordered, standing from the table and offering a hand down to Leawyn.

She glanced nervously around them. “What about our guests?” she asked, placing her hand in his and rising up from her chair.

“They’ll be fine,” Xavier dismissed, impatiently tugging Leawyn with him.

He nodded to Tyronian, who simply grinned after them, his arm thrown casually but possessively around Namoriee’s waist to keep her close to him. Leawyn frowned at Namoriee’s wide-eyed and uncomfortable expression, shooting her disapproving glare at Tyronian.

She rolled her eyes when Tyronian simply winked at her in response.

Leawyn had to quicken her steps, practically jogging to keep up with Xavier’s long and determined strides.

“Xavier, I can’t walk as fast as you,” Leawyn panted. She narrowly avoided colliding into Xavier’s back when he twisted around to face her suddenly. Leawyn squawked when Xavier dipped his shoulder until it met her stomach. He quickly scooped her up and stood, gripping her around her thighs, and continued his walk as if she were no more than a sack of potatoes.

“Xavier!” Leawyn yelped, resting her hands against his lower back and pushing herself up. “Put me down!” She hit Xavier’s back, her face blushing furiously at all the catcalls and whistles being thrown their way.

“Everyone is looking at us!” Leawyn hissed at Xavier in embarrassment. She squawked again when Xavier slapped her bottom.

“Quiet,” Xavier ordered.

“Xavier—” Leawyn yelped again when Xavier’s palm smacked against her backside once more. This time harder.

“Ow!” Leawyn complained. “Stop doing that!”

“Then be quiet,” Xavier said smugly. He chuckled when Leawyn just growled in annoyance at him in return.

Opening the door to their hut with one hand, Xavier ducked down and kicked the door closed. He flipped Leawyn over his shoulder and tossed her onto the bed in one smooth motion. His smile was dark with male intent as Leawyn scooted backwards, wide-eyed.

“Take off your clothes,” Xavier ordered, already in the process of unbuckling the straps of his leather shoulder guards. His chest was bare when he reached for the ties of his breeches.

Leawyn’s eyes followed the movement of his hands. The fabric around his waist fell to the ground in a heap. She stared when his erection sprang free and slapped lightly against his defined abdominals.

“Clothes, Leawyn,” Xavier reminded, placing one knee down on the bed and boxing her in with his arms, surrounding her as he looked down to catch her blue eyes with his brown.

Leawyn let out a shaky breath as she slowly reached up with both hands and unclasped the dress behind her neck. Heat flowed through her, traveling up her chest and neck when Xavier’s eyes stayed fixated on her as the dress opened and spilled her breasts free for his gaze to devour.

His head dipped, and Leawyn let out a startled gasp when his tongue flicked out against her pebbled nipple before he took it into his mouth.

Her eyes fluttered closed at the sensation. His tongue continued giving attention to her nipples while his mouth continued to suckle her mounds with soft, sure, pulls.