by Debra Kayn
Natalia attempted to smile, but nodded instead. "She's beautiful, isn't she?"
Drake followed the direction of Natalia's gaze. He whistled through his teeth at the sight of Celina throwing her hair back and laughing. "She's more than beautiful."
He raked his hand through his hair and laughed. "I love her."
"You...you love her?"
"I didn't realize it until now. I love her. Jesus..."
"Oh, Drake." Nat squeezed his hand. "Don't hurt her."
"Hurt her? Hell, I could never hurt her. I can't even breathe if I know she's upset. My brain turns to mush when I'm around her, and when I'm away, I want to come back to her."
Not too steady on his own feet, Drake stepped back and leaned against the wall feeling lightheaded. Where did that come from? True, he wanted Celina in the worst way. Hell, who wouldn't? She pranced around in the nude and begged for his kisses, and gave him all her attention in the sweetest way.
The way Celina fought against the desire to duck her head, and instead met him eye to eye with her chin thrust up in the air, made Drake's heart swell each time. He dreamed about her every night, and woke up to find her there, wanting him, loving him.
"My God, I love her," he murmured, talking to himself.
Nat picked up his hand and gave his fingers a squeeze. He turned his head and found himself looking into a pair of eyes he recognized. They were the same shape as Celina's, only a different color.
"I love her, Nat."
"Yes. I do believe you do."
Charles paraded Celina around the room and introduced her to everyone. Celina's cheeks ached from all the smiling she'd done. She couldn't remember anyone's name, but enjoyed herself immensely. Her, a woman from Antaka, who didn't know what a movie had meant or how the women survived living day-to-day around men, was successfully pulling off the party.
"Ah, there's the woman I want you to meet."
With her hand tucked in the crook of Charles' arm, Celina turned and smiled her way across the room. Her stomach growled, and she hoped the chatter and music camouflaged the sound.
"Celina. I would like you to meet the woman I love." Charles stepped away from Celina and wrapped his arm around Natalia. "Nat, this is Celina."
The woman's eyes shone. Celina held out her hand, and was surprised to find the woman's hand trembling in hers. "I'm glad to finally meet you. Charles talks about you all the time."
"It's nice to meet you. Charles and Drake told me how beautiful you were, and now seeing you up close, I agree with them. You're stunning." Natalia squeezed her hand back. "Are you enjoying your party?"
"Yes, very much. I can't believe how nice everyone is to me. I wasn't expecting that."
Drake handed her a glass of champagne. She took a sip and moved over to Drake's side. He always knew exactly what she wanted.
"Drake." Celina leaned over and whispered, "Do you like my dress? My face?"
He kissed her lightly on the lips, bringing heat to her cheeks. She snuck a glance back at Charles, embarrassed over Drake kissing her in public, but he'd turned his attention to Nat and was quietly talking to her. After her day at the spa, she only wanted to show Drake the new her.
"I love your dress. It's almost as beautiful as the woman who went fishing with me."
Celina placed his hand on her heart and held it with both hands. She wanted him to experience the wild passion that flowed within her soul. The desire to have him close, to share her love with him, kept her awake at night.
"Let's get this party started." Drake bowed at the waist. "Do you want to dance, Princess Celina?"
She nodded without breaking eye contact. Her breath came in a desperate rhythm at the prospect of being in his embrace again. She wrapped her arms around his neck. The music played soft, slow. He held her close, pressed against his chest, his legs brushing her thighs. The motion of her silky dress against his stiff dress coat added to the friction sparking within her. Her hips took on a movement all their own, resembling the left, circle, right of the only kind of dancing she knew.
"Celina..."
She lifted her head off Drake's chest. She caught the musky scent of his cologne, and the wildest urge to bury her nose in his neck and inhale the very essence of him hit her hard.
"Will you wait after the party for me?" Drake asked, his words barely audible.
"Of course. I'll do anything you ask of me."
His hold tightened and Celina flinched. Drake stopped moving his feet. She stood in the middle of the room with her arms still around him.
"What's wrong? Did I say something I shouldn't have?" She ran her hand along his jaw.
"No. It isn't you. I need to know if you understand what I'm asking you. You do want to be with me, right?"
"Of course..." Celina couldn't finish. Drake's finger came up to touch her lips.
"That's not what I mean. I only want you to wait for me if it's what you want to do. Forget about your training and desire to please a man, I want you to come to me because you want to be with me. It's okay to say no."
Celina stepped back. Drake's arms fell to his sides. She cocked her head and frowned. Didn't he understand?
"Drake, I..." She stopped and shook her head. The reality of what she planned broke through all the good feelings and excitement of the night.
"What?" Drake reached out for her.
She stepped back. "I...Oh, Drake, I can't..."
She left him standing in the middle of the room, his hand stretched out. She walked away from Drake, head down, blind to the others in the room. By the time she slipped through the sliding doors, she was gasping for breath and the ground tilted.
"Whoa...I got you. Take a deep breath and hold it." Drake wrapped his arms around her from behind and held her tight. "Let it out. Again."
The ground steadied under her feet, and Celina pushed against the restraints of his arms. Drake didn't let go.
"Please. I'm all right now."
Drake hesitated, but let her step away from him. Already missing his arms around her, she hugged her middle. She kept her back to him. This couldn't be happening. The one thing she feared most in her life...
Drake stayed back, and Celina stood facing the shimmering lights coming out of the pool. She stared into the water, unable to distinguish between her tears and the ripples over the water's surface. She'd gone from living a life she thought she would always have, to life in America. Worse—She'd turned into her mother.
The noise from the party drifted outside. She tilted her head to the sky. How did she fall in love with an American? All her life she'd hated her American father. The man who took her mother away from the life she'd pledged to the prince. Her American mother, who only wanted love, and not a daughter...Now the cycle continued with Celina. She'd lost all control.
Celina turned around and found Drake standing there, his arms hanging useless at his sides. Short bursts of air escaped her upon seeing the destruction she'd made. She'd hurt him.
"My mother..." She cleared her throat. "My mother was stoned to death by the prince for loving an American and getting pregnant with me," Celina whispered into the night air. She owed him an explanation for turning away from him.
"I grew up knowing I was different, not a blood relative of my sisters and brothers." Celina walked over and sat in one of the chairs closer to where Drake stood. "But Papa...I thought Papa loved me."
"He does love you, Celina."
She shook her head.
"No."
She closed her eyes, inhaled through her nose, and gathered enough strength to explain herself to Drake. The burden she'd held on to her whole life became too heavy to carry.
"He killed my mother. He ordered her stoned to death in the courtyard for all the people to see. He humiliated her for loving an American. Prince Joqua made her an example." She rubbed her arms. "She betrayed the prince, you see."
She rocked in the chair from the truth finally out in the open. Drake knelt in front of her, and she whimpered. Vulnerable, a
nd stripped of the barrier she placed around her heart, she forced herself to tell him everything.
"He shouldn't have killed her. I know what she went through, because now, I'm following in my mother's footsteps. I have betrayed Papa, and betrayed myself."
Her sobs came out harsh, and she curled inward. Drake drew her face into his hands. She stopped rocking and looked at him.
"Say it, Celina. Say what you want to say."
Her guttural moan sent tremors from her stomach up into her throat. She took his hands and placed them over her heart. He needed to feel how he affected her.
"I love you, Drake. I didn't plan it. I didn't fight it hard enough."
"Shh...baby, I know. You did nothing wrong." He kissed her cheeks, tasting the salty path of her tears. "Our love is not wrong. It's pure and good."
Drake moved from kissing her cheeks to laying feathery kisses upon her lips. The smoothness of his recently shaved chin teased her, and she captured his bottom lip between hers. He brought out the Antakian princess in her.
She grabbed on to the front of his shirt and pressed herself closer. Under his touches, she found acceptance. His love forced her troubles and past out of her head.
Drake pulled away, fighting to catch his breath. Celina laid her forehead on his and delighted in the warmth of his breath washing over her face.
"We are going to have to go back to the party." He ran his hands around her neck and into her hair. "They will start to wonder where we escaped to."
She swallowed. "I know."
"Let's just get through the rest of the night. There's food to eat, and afterward you can say your goodbyes. When it's safe, I'll come to your room."
She nodded before kissing him one more time, in a desperate attempt to hurry the night along. She knew where she belonged, and that was with the man she loved with all her heart.
Inside the house, the guests chatted in intimate groups, and a few more couples had joined the festive mood and danced to the music. Celina walked into the living room alone, leaving Drake to follow her after he composed himself. She knew exactly why he waited, and the heat between her legs intensified. She wanted him.
"There you are. Everything okay?" Charles handed her a drink.
The cold refreshment slid down her throat with ease. "Yes, everything is perfect."
"Great. Why don't you go ahead, make your way to the buffet, and I'll announce for everyone to go ahead and fill their plate."
Mrs. Stevenson worked at setting out the platters the caterers prepared for the party, but took the time to give Celina's hand a squeeze. "Here Celina, eat before you fall over."
"Thank you." Celina took the plate.
"You look beautiful, dear. I also think you're doing a little magic when it comes to our Mr. Drake too." Mrs. Stevenson winked. Nothing got by the beloved housekeeper of the Randall house.
"Thank you, again. For the dress. For being my friend." Celina placed her plate on the table and gave Mrs. Stevenson a hug. "I couldn't do all this without your belief in me."
She wandered from the buffet and found Charles' girlfriend sitting by herself in the corner of the dining room, an empty chair beside her.
"Would it be okay if I sit down by you?"
Nat patted the chair, and Celina sat down. She directed her attention to the pile of food on her plate. Bless Mrs. Stevenson.
"Would you like to share my food? I couldn't possibly eat this much myself." Celina turned and offered her plate to Nat. "Sometimes I think Mrs. Stevenson believes I eat the same amount of food as Charles and Drake."
Natalia picked up a cracker topped with chives and shrimp. Celina took a bite of rye bread and smiled with closed lips.
"Good. My favorite girls are eating." Charles came and stood beside Natalia's chair.
Celina turned in her chair, fixed her gaze on the doorway to the kitchen, and left Charles and Nat to converse in private. The moment Drake walked in, she blushed and sent him a knowing smile of what would come later. The love they shared, all their own...He blew her away with how he understood her feelings.
The truth about her parents, about Prince Joqua didn't disgust him or frighten him away. He understood and accepted her life for what it was.
Celina admired the way Drake stood in line waiting to fill his plate. So proud, he stood straight and confident without the insecurities she battled in herself. I love him.
The plate of food on her lap tipped, and Celina caught it before it spilled. Nat reached over and fingered her wrist.
"Your bracelets are beautiful." Natalia toyed with one particular silver ring. "Were they a gift?"
"Yes. Every birthday I receive a silver bracelet from the prince. I would wake up in the morning and a box sat on my pillow." Celina raised the side of her mouth and winked. "It makes my sister Nari quite jealous, because the other girls have never received such a gift like this, year after year."
Charles squeezed Natalia's hand. "I believe we will go grab us a drink and let you two eat." Charles laid his hand on Drake's arm. "See that she eats more than a few nibbles."
Nat hesitated. "You are a very lucky woman, Celina. I'm sure Prince Joqua is very proud of what a beautiful person you have become. I bet he misses you terribly." Nat straightened Celina's bracelets and walked away on Charles' arm.
Drake sat in the open seat left by Natalia. "Are you okay?"
"I think so. How would Nat know about Papa?"
Drake cleared his throat. "I imagine from my dad. You know how he talks."
"I suppose." Celina set her plate down beside her on an empty chair and turned.
"Is it almost time?" She laid her hand on his thigh.
He kissed her upturned nose. Celina raised her lips, but Drake took a bite off his plate.
"Let me eat my food. You eat too." He winked. "When we're done we'll dance a couple songs, and you can say your goodbyes."
"I can't wait." Her hand stroked his leg. "I've wanted you since you gave me a lecture at the dining room table my first night here."
The mushroom on Drake's fork fell off and tumbled down his shirt. She giggled and covered her mouth.
"I guess I didn't need to eat anyway. Let's go dance."
Chapter Thirteen
Celina swung the door open to a surprised Drake. He stood there with his arm raised, ready to knock, but she'd been listening for footsteps since she came to her room. She reached through the opening and grabbed his shirt.
"I thought you would never get here." She giggled.
With the lamp beside the bed covered with a scarf, the darkened room cast a sensual atmosphere over them both. Celina walked her fingers up Drake's shoulders and around his neck. She'd trained her whole life for this one moment to become a woman.
"It looks like I came overdressed," he murmured against her throat.
She'd greeted him naked, except for the bracelets she kept on her wrists. Stepping away, she backed toward the bed to let him see there was nothing holding her from making love to him. She sat on the edge of the bed and arranged her hair to cover her nakedness.
"Stand back up." Drake stood in front of her in only his trousers, his shirt long gone.
She stood, her body heated and more than ready for him. She stepped toward him, but he held up his hand.
"Do you want me upside down?" She raised one of her eyebrows and waited for instructions. She knew the moves, but without him telling her what he wanted, she wasn't sure what the next step should be.
"Upside down?" He unzipped his pants.
She nodded. "It's rated the favorite position for most men. Don't American men have knowledge of what positions are best for their satisfaction?"
Drake's Adam's apple jumped. "I don't know about all American men, but this man wants you to have pleasure too."
"Oh, I will, Drake. Just being around you gives me butterflies in my stomach and makes me want to rub myself all over you until I explode."
"Then let's start there." He lay on the bed. "Later, maybe I'll have you upsid
e down."
He was unexpectedly tender. He heated her up with exquisite touches and sensations in such a lazy way, not to rush her. She arched toward him and he'd leaned back, leaving her on the brink of ecstasy, before giving her more attention.
Again and again, he caressed her body, until it seemed as if time stood still. He taught her how to touch him, how to build the fire in his body and then deny him his pleasure. She moaned with frustration, and he'd grin that sexy way he did with his eyelids half closed and his mouth pulled up at the corner.
"Wait for it..." He moved against her rubbing the hard parts of his body against her heated softer ones. "When it happens, we'll both be ready."
She shuddered, throbbed. She raised her hips and met his downward motion, pleading with him to put her out of the blissful torture of wanting him.
"D-Drake...I need..." she whispered.
"Hang on. Not yet." His breath came in little pants beside her ear.
He shifted his hips, his hardness sliding along her wetness. She cried out and clung to him, clenching his arms with her fingers.
"Good?" He continued caressing the sweet spot to her core.
She sobbed. Her whole body pulsed. She expanded, tensed, and it left her frightened. Surely, she was going to die from pleasure.
"Don't stop. Never stop." She closed her eyes.
He pressed his hardness upon her opening, and tenderly, slowly, slid into her body. She stilled. A tiny cry leaked out of her tight throat. The bold intimacy shocked her, yet had her heart overflowing with love.
She relaxed and gave in to the sweet sensation rebuilding in her body. A sense of satisfaction came from having him inside her as her body warmed and pulsed around him.
He held himself above her, locking his gaze on her, his brow drawn down in an almost fierce appearance. The smooth, quick, deep plunges were like nothing she'd ever experienced. She ground her teeth together. The tension in her body rose to unbelievable heights. With the last ounce of strength remaining in her body, she convulsed underneath him. Pure pleasure exploded throughout her lower body.
Drake let out a harsh groan and mirrored her shudder. She reached for him, and rolled into his arms as he let himself fall on the bed beside her.
