Chapter 29

Heading straight for the arena exit, Angeni was suddenly yanked into a pitch black dressing room and immediately beginning to fight. 'NO!' She thought it was Mark, wondering how the hell he'd made it back here so fast, breathing heavily as tears stung her eyes. "LET ME-" The scream died on her lips when the light flipped on, a very dim red light and saw Kane standing before her, holding her upper arms in his huge hands. "Kane…"

Relief flooded through her and Angeni reached up, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck as she began crying. She hadn't seen him since that night he clocked Mark with the gasoline can. Wishing she would've just gone with him instead of suffered all the abuse she had, Angeni just cried harder, clinging to him for dear life.

"I-I'm so sorry…" She whispered brokenly and felt his arms wrap around her, lifting her up as her bare feet left the concrete floor.

Kane held her tightly against him, relief coursing through him. When he had seen her taking off on the monitor, he knew she had definitely regretted not going with him when he had clocked his brother with that gasoline can and tried taking her away. When she finally pulled her head away from his neck, he stared down into her face, able to make out the tears in the dim lighting and simply nodded, bending down to touch her cheek with…well, his mask, but it was the gesture that counted.

"Come on." He whispered, knowing right now the entire arena would be in chaos and they could make a break for it.

Nodding, Angeni felt him maneuver to where he held her with one arm under her thighs, the other supporting her back with her face still buried in his neck. Soon, she felt the cold air hit her skin and knew they were outside of the arena, but Kane's body heat was keeping her from freezing. When he set her in a car, Angeni immediately scooted next to him while he blasted the heat, driving away from the arena.

She knew Mark was going to punish her for this, but Angeni had to get away from him, hoping Kane didn't suffer for her insolence. It didn't even matter because she already felt at ease being with Kane than she ever did with Mark, even during the two times they had sex. Kane was comforting and gentle, two things that Angeni could only dream of Mark giving her. She was barefoot and in a dress that definitely wasn't appropriate for tonight's cold weather. Kane kept one arm around Angeni, holding her snugly against him and used the other to steer.

"Sweatshirt in my bag." Kane said finally, nodding his head in a gesture indicating the backseat. Where he had left his bag for the night since changing in the arena wasn't a very wise move on his part, even if he wanted too.

"I'm warm enough right now." She whispered, breathing him in as her eyes closed, for once not being scared that he would fly off the deep-end and strike her.

Angeni was completely safe with Kane and she knew it, her arm wrapped around his midsection to soak up more of his warmth. Kane drove for a little while and finally pulled up to a building that looked extremely rundown. These were the type of places he had to stay though so the Ministry couldn't find him.

Slipping out of the car, Angeni smiled when Kane insisted on carrying her since there was snow on the ground. So she carried his bag on her lap, compromising since he had his hands full with her. Once inside, Kane set her down gently on the bed and took his bag from her before turning the heat on and draped a blanket over her shoulders.

"I didn't mean to betray you that night, Kane." She finally said, breaking the silence between them and lowered her eyes in shame. "I-I didn't want him hurting you, that's why I stayed…"

Kane's shoulders tensed at the memory, recalling that at the time, he could not believe it. That she had WANTED to stay with her abusive, twisted, psychotic husband. When he had finally gotten out of the building, his disbelief had turned to rage and he would never admit it to her, but he had…gone a little berserk. Nobody had been hurt, but he had had a moment.

"I know." Kane said quietly, pulling away from her.

She reached out and grabbed his gloved hand, frowning when she felt how tense he was, a few tears slipping down her cheeks. "I wanted to go with you that night. So help me god I did, Kane. But then I thought about what he did to you and…I was trying to protect you! You don't hurt me the way he does, you don't break my heart constantly. Why wouldn't I want to go with you?"

His hand slipped out of hers again as he continued walking away from her, Angeni wondered if she would ever feel loved again. Everywhere she turned, there was constant fighting and arguing, darkness…she wanted OUT of the darkness for just a little while. Walking back over to the bed, Angeni sat down on it and buried her face in her hands, slumping in defeat.

Kane disappeared into the bathroom with his bag and came out after a brief shower, dressed in light grey sweat pants and a white tank top that hugged his muscular chest snugly, also hiding the scars that chest sported. He had removed his glove, but kept on the mask, his long wet brown hair hanging over it. When he seen that Angeni hadn't moved from her place, her face still buried in her hands. Frowning, Kane walked over to gently settle on the edge of the bed. Hesitantly, he reached out to pull her hands from her face, bending down so he could see her better.

Angeni stared into his mismatched eyes and hesitantly reached up, running her hand over the mask gently. She didn't know what to say to him, knowing he understood why she hadn't gone with him that night. Mark would've just dragged her right back, just like he was going to do once he found her again.

She wasn't going to make it that easy though and decided she wouldn't be leaving Kane's side. Angeni may have loved Mark, but he wasn't the man she married and never would be again. He would continue treating her badly and Angeni couldn't handle it, she didn't deserve to be abused simply for speaking her mind.

"I just want to feel loved." She whispered heartbrokenly, leaning into his touch when he wiped her tears away. "Is that so much to ask for? To be loved?"

"No." Kane whispered back, shifting so he was sitting on the bed properly and hesitantly pulled her towards him, cradling Angeni against his chest.

He stretched his long legs out on either side of her, bent awkwardly at the knee and finally, slowly slid his arms around her slender frame. Out of anyone, he knew what she meant, what she was asking, and it was something he had asked himself time and time again. Hearing it coming from her, so sadly, just seemed wrong.

It was wrong.

Leaning back against him, Angeni closed her eyes at the sound of his heartbeat, which is where her head came to his chest. His arms felt so warm and comforting, yet held power that could destroy her if he so desired. Somehow, Angeni knew Kane wouldn't harm her and felt his chin rest on her bare shoulder, moving her hair to the side so his face wasn't buried in raven. She went from being in the arms of the devil to the devil's brother, his opposite brother who was a gentle giant and probably wanted the same thing she did.

"Have you ever loved, Kane?" Angeni asked in a soft voice, running her nails lightly across his forearm soothingly.

His eyes widened behind the mask, darting down first to his arm, which was breaking out in goose bumps as she gently raked her nails back and forth. Kane couldn't really see her face, mostly her profile and cleared his throat. "Once." He slowly, cautiously splayed his palms against her ribs since his arms were wrapped around her, instead of keeping them in the fists he had adopted.

Angeni felt a wave of warmth rush through her at the feeling of his hands on her ribs, melting further against him. Nobody else had made her feel this way besides Mark, though it wasn't as intense. She didn't love Kane the way she did Mark and didn't understand why.

It just made her want to die because Mark didn't love her. She was in love with a monster and in the arms of his brother, her brother-in-law…and she shouldn't be feeling butterflies erupt in her stomach at the feeling of his hands on her body. What the hell was wrong with her?

"Do you mind me asking what happened?" Her curiosity was going to get her in deep trouble one day, Angeni simply knew it.

Kane chuckled quietly, his lips, revealed thanks to the mask he had switched to, turning upwards into a sardonic smile. "I'm a man in a mask, Angeni." He said softly, no anger or underlining of malice in his tone. It was a fair question and one he, surprisingly enough, didn't feel awkward answering. "And sometimes…it is hard to…remove it." Remove the mask, which was also a metaphor for letting someone in, behind the mask and the monster he supposedly was.

Angeni read between the lines, nodding. "You let me in though." She gently extracted his arms from her to stand up, turning to face him with heartwarming violet eyes, moving to stand between his legs, his arms once again wrapping around her waist. "Let me in, Kane." She pressed her forehead against his, her hands splayed on his broad muscular shoulders, feeling her mouth go dry. "Let's love each other for one night and have what we both want." Her voice dropped to a whisper and, with a trembling hand, took one of his to move it to the zipper on her dress, her eyes never leaving his. "Love me, Kane, please…"

His heart stopped for the briefest of moments, unsure if he was awake or dreaming. It was when she began guiding his hand down, pulling at the zipper, that he shook off the semi-trance he had slipped in. His long, nimble fingers gently tapped her forearm, feeling her letting go of his hand and took the zipper between his fingertips.

Pulling his head back, he stared down at her, watching her face as he slowly slid the zipper down. His eyes dropped lower, watching as the dress began to slide down her body agonizingly slow. Stepping out of the dress, Angeni moved her hands from his shoulders up to his mask, bending forward to brush her lips softly against his, barely touching them. Her hands moved from his mask to the straps that kept it on, feeling him instantly stop her, a frown marring her face.

"Trust me, Kane. I want to see all of you."

The honesty in her violet eyes told him all he needed to know and Angeni kissed him again while continuing to undo the buckles. Her head fell back when his lips moved to kiss down her chest, his hands moving to the clasps of her bra. Undoing it with a flick of his wrist, the strapless material fell to the floor along with her dress. When she pulled back, Angeni took the mask with her, also dropping it to the floor before kissing him again, this time a little deeper.

Kane's eyes remained open throughout the kiss, surprised that hers were too, meeting his. When he felt her hands moving up his chest and to his face, he tensed again, only to feel her holding his head in place, never breaking the kiss. She didn't care about the scars, and that realization swept through him, unlocking something he hadn't even known had been locked.

Tightening his hold on her a bit, he lifted Angeni right off the floor, feeling her legs wrapping around his waist. A moment later, he had her on the bed, lying right in the middle of it. He pulled away long enough to peel off his tank top, muscles flexing with every movement, before bending back over her. Trailing his lips down her throat, over her collarbone and further down, his muscular hands caressed her skin.

Everything he could reach he touched, palms skimming flesh hungrily. Angeni arched into his caressing, drinking all of it in completely, not believing this was happening. She was about to have sex with her brother-in-law, but Angeni didn't care.

Feeling loved the way Kane was making her feel now was incredible and Angeni never wanted it to end.

His lips trailed fire from her neck to her chest, taking one of her nipples in his mouth. After he paid attention to both of her breasts, Angeni pulled his face back up and moved his hair out of the way. The dim lighting of the room showed her the man behind the mask.

"You're beautiful." She whispered, trailing her fingertips over the scars on his face, which weren't that bad and added to his character. She smiled and passionately kissed him, feeling him remove her panties and Angeni used her feet to start pushing his sweatpants down. "Oh god Kane, love me, make me yours…" She moaned out uncontrollably, completely surrendering to him in every way possible.

A hand between her legs, caressing her intimately, told him that she was more than ready for him to take her, to make her his. But Kane didn't, not immediately, wanting to prolong this, make it last. He planted a trail of spaced out, open mouthed kisses down her body, smiling against her warm skin.

When he felt her trembling before settling himself between her legs, his strong hands spread her thighs, baring her to his view. He tossed his hair back from his face before bending down, running the tip of his tongue along her slit. He would make her his after he had tasted her first.

The things Kane did to her body that night would be forever etched in Angeni's mind, something she would always treasure. How he made her feel, how she made him feel, what she did to him in return. Scars or not, Kane knew exactly how to please a woman and proved it repeatedly that night with Angeni, taking her to heights not even Mark could.

He made her scream out his name and made her forget Mark temporarily, the only man on her mind was Kane. By the time they finished, it was dawn and Angeni finally fell into a content sleep wrapped up in Kane's strong arms, his face in her neck, their perspired bodies completely spent. They didn't even need to cover up, their combined body heat was more than enough to keep each other toasty warm.