Free His Darkest Salvation by Juliana Stone

away and snarled.
    “When your boyfriend puts on some clothes and leaves us alone.”

Chapter 7
    I t took a considerable amount of energy to control the darkness that tickled along the edge of Julian’s mind. And it was fierce . . . the need he felt to crush Nico in such a way that maximum pain would be involved.
    The warrior stood proudly, his naked body a testament to his hard past. His skin glistened with sweat, and the heavy muscles were adorned by several jagged battle scars.
    Nico bared his teeth and took a step toward him as Julian clenched his hands, a vicious smile sweeping across his face.
    “You will show her respect, Castille,” Nico snarled.
    “Respect needs to be earned,” he said silkily, “then kept.” Julian nodded, his voice matter-of-fact, “something you know firsthand, no? Crazy Nico, isn’t that what they call you?” He stood loosely, with his hands at his sides, waiting for the warrior to strike.
    “For fuck sakes, I don’t have time for this.” Jaden turned to him, her chest heaving and skin flush with heat. His eyes ran over her, and his gut tightened as she licked her lips and exhaled.
    “You need to shut your mouth because I’m this”—she pinched her fingers in his face—“close to kicking your ass but good.”
    Damn but she was fearless.
    “I think I might enjoy that,” he whispered, surprised to find his thoughts falling from his lips so readily. His words were soft, meant only for her ears, and her skin darkened in response. It gave him perverse pleasure to know he was the cause of it.
    “Move away from her,” Nico growled, and Julian glanced at the warrior, hating the way he looked at Jaden as if he owned her.
    “You couldn’t protect your woman. What makes you think you can do any better with Jaden?”
    Nico’s face whitened, and the air stilled, thinning, as if it were sucked away into a black hole of nothingness. It was a low blow, and he knew it, but Julian didn’t give a flying fuck. Truthfully, he just wanted to hurt, spread that lovely sensation wherever the hell he could.
    They should all experience the hole that was inside him.
    His eyes fell back to Jaden’s, and he snarled before turning away.
    “You’re an asshole,” she spit at him.
    “Yeah, that’s the second time he’s been called that today,” Declan interjected, his tone light. Ever the comedian.
    Jaden snapped, “You don’t get to talk to me, not after what you’ve done.” She shot a look of such loathing toward the sorcerer that Declan closed his mouth and remained silent.
    Declan glanced at Julian, his face screwed up into a caricature of what the fuck?
    Julian looked down at the pile of clay and instinctively knew the piece had meant a lot to Jaden.
    “Nico, take Cormac’s spawn down to the hub; I’ll be along in a bit.”
    Nico’s eyes never left Julian’s. The warrior flexed his muscles yet remained silent. Julian saw the pain there; it was something he recognized and knew intimately.
    He fucking lived with it every day.
    He cracked a smile and raised his chin in invitation. He sensed the jaguar was on the cusp, and Julian stood lightly, ready for battle. Inside, he felt his animal stretch, the power within him flex, and he reveled in the sensation.
    It told him that he was still alive even if part of him was cold and dead.
    “Nico, he’s not worth it,” Jaden said softly as she moved toward the warrior. She put her hand on him, and Julian’s skin burned with a need that was foreign.
    “It’s all right, I’ll be fine. I need you to contact Finn and get him down there, too.” She glanced back to Julian, her eyes narrow, her lips thin with anger. “Castille and I need a few minutes.”
    Nico remained quiet but didn’t move. The air was charged with things unsaid, acts undone, yet the woman between them pleaded for calm.
    “Nico, please,” Jaden said softly, “I don’t have time for posturing. Just go.”
    Julian studied the way the warrior looked at Jaden, and it