‘I can control myself.’ Rebellious anger scorched her skin. ‘And I intend to keep the vows we just made.’
He smiled. ‘Of course you do. And so do I. Until the time when we dissolve the deal. It is just a contract, Eleni. Nothing more.’
Her deeply ingrained sense of tradition and honour railed against that declaration. She’d stood in that chapel and she’d meant those vows. But for Damon, this was nothing more than a business proposition. So why had he carried her only a minute ago?
‘But it is a contract with particular benefits,’ he added.
‘And you intend to make the most of those benefits?’ She wasn’t buying it.
‘As much as you do. Or are you going to try to deny yourself because I’ve annoyed you?’ His smile was all disbelief.
‘I’m going to deny you.’ This might be her wedding night but it made no difference. She wasn’t sleeping with him now.
‘I’ve made you angry.’ His eyebrows lifted. ‘You’re very young, sweetheart.’
‘No. You’re very cynical.’ She shoved his chest, but he only took two paces back from her. ‘And I’m not a child. Just because I haven’t slept with half the world, doesn’t mean I’m more stupid than you. Sex doesn’t make you smarter. If anything it makes you more dense.’
‘Come here, Eleni.’
What, he was going to ignore her argument and simply demand her submission just because he knew she found him sexy?
‘Get over yourself.’
‘You’re saying no?’ he asked, his early anger giving way to arrogant amusement. ‘Because you’re the one used to giving orders?’
‘No, that’s my brother,’ she answered in annoyance. ‘I’m the one used to standing in the corner doing what she’s told.’
‘Then why aren’t you doing as you’re told now?’ He stood with his legs wide like some implacable pirate captain. ‘Come here.’
The entrance vestibule of her apartment wasn’t huge but it might as well have been the Grand Canyon between them.
‘You come over here,’ she dared, ignoring the pull of his attraction. ‘I’m tired of being told what to do. I’m doing the telling this time.’
His eyes widened fractionally. For a long moment he regarded her silently. She could see the storm brewing in him and braced. Him walking closer was what she wanted. And what she didn’t want.
‘I’m not yours to boss around or control,’ she said, touching her tongue to her suddenly dry lips but determinedly maintaining her bravado regardless. ‘I’m going to do what’s necessary. And only what is necessary.’
He took those two paces to invade her personal space again and swept his hand from her waist to her hip. ‘This is necessary, Eleni.’
She turned her head away, her heart pounding. ‘Not any more.’
‘Because you’re mad with me.’ His lips brushed her cheek. ‘Because I’ve ruined your belief in fairy tales? There’s only the real world, Eleni. With real complications and real mess.’
‘And temporary desires,’ she ended the lecture for him.
‘That’s right.’
‘And you’re feeling a temporary desire now?’ she asked.
‘Definitely.’
‘Too bad.’ She clamped her mouth shut.
He laughed again. ‘You say you don’t play games.’ He gifted her the lightest of kisses. ‘Say yes to me again, Eleni,’ he coaxed, teasing too-gentle hands up and down her spine. ‘Say yes.’
She glared at him for as long as she could but she already knew she’d lost. ‘You’re not fair.’
‘Life isn’t fair. I thought you knew that already.’ He moved closer still, forcing her to step backwards until she was pressed hard between him and the wall. ‘Say yes.’
She could hold out but it would only be for a little while. She wanted him too much. She had from the second she’d seen him that night. And it was just sex, right? Nothing to take too seriously. She might as well get something she wanted from this ‘contract’.
‘Yes.’ It was always going to be yes.
His smile was triumphant but she swore she saw tenderness there too. Except it couldn’t be that—he’d just told her this was only temporary. He brushed a loose tendril of hair back from her face.
‘Don’t pet me like I’m a good dog,’ she snapped.
He laughed. ‘Definitely not a dog. But very good. And very worth petting.’ He put hands on her shoulders and applied firm pressure. ‘Turn around.’
She met his gaze and sucked in a breath at the fire in his eyes. Wordlessly she let him turn her, surrendering this once.
‘This dress is beautiful,’ he said softly. ‘But not as beautiful as the woman inside it.’
Eleni bowed her head, resting her forehead on the cool wall. He undid the first button and pressed his lips to the tiny patch of bared skin. His fingers traced, then teased down to the next button. In only a heartbeat Eleni was lost in the eroticism—of not seeing him, but of feeling him expose her to his gaze, to his touch, to his tongue again, inch by slow inch.
Desire unfurled from low in her belly. Her body cared not for the complications and confusion of her heart and mind. Her body cared only for his touch, only for the completion he could bring her.
He teased too much. Too slow. Until she was trembling and breathless.
When her dress slithered to the floor in a rush he put firm hands on her waist and spun her to face him again. She’d worn no bra beneath the gown, so she was left with lacy panties, stockings, kitten heels and nothing else. His gaze was hot and suddenly she was galvanised, reaching out to push him to recklessness again. She wanted him as breathless, as naked—she needed to feel his skin against hers.
But she couldn’t undo his buttons. She was too desperate for release from the tension that soared with every second she spent with him. His choked laugh was strained and he took over, swiftly discarding the remainder of his clothes until they lay in a tumble at their feet. For a second she just stared at him. And he at her.
Before she could think, let alone speak, he pulled her close again, as if he couldn’t stand to be parted from her for a second longer. He devoured her—with his gaze, then his fingers, then his mouth. He kissed every exposed inch. Somehow they were on the floor and he was braced above her—heavy and strong and dominant. She gasped breathlessly, aching for him. But just at that moment, he lifted slightly away and she almost screamed in protest.
‘What?’ she snapped at him. Why was he stopping now?
His smile was both smug and twisted. ‘I’ve had numerous lovers, Eleni, but you’re the first one to run away afterwards.’
‘Did I hurt your ego?’ She half hoped so; that’d be payback for what he was doing to her now.
‘You frustrated me. You still do.’ A seriousness stole into his features. ‘You know I don’t want to hurt you.’
She understood frustration now. ‘I’m not afraid.’
And he wasn’t going to hurt her—he’d made it very clear that this was only this. Only lust. Only temporary.
‘No?’ He held fast above her. So close. ‘You’re not going to run away again?’
‘Not while I’m this naked.’ She sighed, surrendering to his seriousness. ‘I can handle you.’
‘Then no more hiding either,’ he ordered, cupping her cheek. ‘In this, hold nothing back.’
She was lost in the blue of his intense eyes. He wanted it all his way—acceptance that this was only sex. But at the same time he wanted everything from her. It wasn’t fair. But it was life. And it was just them again.
‘Okay.’ She breathed. A wave of pleasure rolled over her as she accepted his terms. This total intimacy was finally okay.
Less than a second later he drove deep into her body. She cried out as he claimed her with that one powerful thrust. Trembling, she wrapped her arms around his muscular body. Maybe she couldn’t handle him. She couldn’t cope with how completely he took her, or how exquisitely he now tortured her by just holding still—his invasion total.<
br />
‘Easy...’ he muttered.
There was no easy. ‘Please,’ she begged, trying to rock her hips beneath him to rouse him into action. ‘Please.’
She needed him to move—to take her hard and fast and break the terrible tension gripping her. Because this was too, too good and she was going insane with the desire for release.
‘Damn it, Eleni.’ He growled and rose on his hands, grinding impossibly deeper.
Passion washed over her. It felt so good she all but lost her mind in the fire that burned out of control so quickly. She was like dry tinder. With one spark the inferno licked to the bone. But suddenly, blessedly, he flared too. Ferociously he rode her. She moaned with every panting short breath until they bucked in unison. Waves of ecstasy radiated through each cell in her body with every one of his forceful thrusts. Fierce and fast she arched, taut and tight around him.
‘Eleni.’
She loved the way he ground her name through his clenched teeth. Over and over he stroked her. She clenched her fists as the shuddering rush of pleasure started. Gasping for breath, she revelled in the floods of release as he shouted and thrust hard that one last time, pressing her flat against the wooden floor.
Her emotions surged as the waves of her orgasm ebbed. It was shocking how good he made her feel. How shattered. She didn’t think she could possibly find the energy to stand, let alone smile. And she wanted to smile. More than that, she wanted him again. Already. She struggled to catch her breath before it quickened, but there was no reining in the rapacious desire that he’d unleashed within her. Only then she felt him moving—away.
* * *
Damon winced. Every muscle felt feeble. He’d meant to go more gently and ensure she was with him every step of the way. Hell, he’d meant to make her come first and more than once. But she’d provoked him, and he’d wanted her too much, until he’d taken her like this on the floor—unstoppable and unrestrained and so damn quick all over again.
He rolled onto his side to see more of her lithe, passion-slick, sated body. And this time she turned her head to look back at him. Letting him see her. Her green-blue eyes were luminous. His mouth dried as he read the craving within them. For all his teasing, he understood how much she wanted this. As much as he did. Something shifted inside—a warning that this was far too intense. But it was too late.
If he was any kind of a good guy he’d have wed her and then left her right alone, because, as he’d told her, sleeping together again would lead to complication and she was so inexperienced he didn’t want to mess with her emotions. But he wasn’t a good guy.
Not a prince, remember?
Fortunately he’d recovered from the whim to carry her into the apartment. That action had turned her soft skin pink, so he’d had to remind her of the reality of their situation. His words had snuffed the starry-eyed look from her face. Now all that remained was the flush of raw desire. Because that was all this was. Romance wasn’t real. Love didn’t last.
So, better him to be doing this with her than some other jerk, right? At least he was the one she wanted.
He was determined to please her. The sound of her sighs and the fierce heat of her hold were his ultimate reward. The intensity of their chemistry both angered and enthralled him. Now his exhausted body roared with renewed energy. He scooped her into his arms and stood. He’d ached to have her this close. To have her unable to say no to him, wanting and welcoming him—and only him.
He walked through the ornate lounge room, going on instinct to find her bedroom—a surprisingly simply decorated room. He was just so glad to see the bed. He placed her in the centre of it, gritting back the primal growl of victory. His skin tightened as his muscles bunched. Now they’d solved the problem of their immediate future, they could thrash this attraction that burned between them. An understanding of pleasure was the one thing he could give her. The enjoyment of what their bodies were built for, with no shame, no reticence and no regret. Just passion and play.
Satisfaction oozed as he started to tease that wild response from her again. He loved finally having her on the bed with all the time in the world to explore her properly. Her cheeks flushed, her eyes gleamed—dazed, passionate, willing.
He’d had her. He’d have her again. But something ached—something that was missing despite the almost intolerable ecstasy of the last orgasm they’d shared.
‘Eleni.’ He uttered a plea he hadn’t meant to let free.
He’d coerced her into this marriage, but while she’d finally agreed—and accepted that it was only a contract—somehow he wasn’t appeased. Not yet. Not even when he made her writhe uncontrollably. Not when she moaned again or when her hands sought to hurry him. Because he refused to be hurried. Not this time. He was slow and deliberate and determined to touch and taste and tease every last inch of her. But even when he’d done that, the nagging gap still irked.
Finally he allowed himself to invade her body with his own again. Helplessly groaning at the unbearable bliss, he locked into place. The driving need to get closer consumed him. He craved her heated softness and tight strength.
‘Eleni.’ He strained to stay in control.
‘Yes.’ Her sweet answer rasped over his desire-whipped skin and he drove deeper into her fire. Every muscle tensed as he fought the urge to give in already.
Too soon. It was too soon.
‘Damon.’ She tracked teasing fingers down his chest until he caught her hand and held it close and she whispered again. Sheer lust vocalised. ‘Damon.’
His heart pounded. That was what he wanted. His name on her lips. Her eyes on his. Her body drinking his in. Her whole focus only on him. She arched, willing and sultry, and suddenly her enchanting smile was broken by her release.
‘Damon!’
His name. Screamed.
A torrent of triumphant energy sluiced through every cell as the last vestige of his self-control snapped. He could no longer hold back, growling his passion as he furiously pounded his way closer. To her. To bliss. His world blackened as rapture hit and satisfaction thundered.
He had won.
CHAPTER TEN
DAMON QUIETLY PACED about the lounge in Eleni’s apartment within the palace. His bags had been delivered before the ceremony yesterday and he drew out his tablet now.
The number of emails in his inbox was insane even for him and it wasn’t yet eight in the morning. He clicked the first few open and grimaced at the capital letters screaming CONGRATULATIONS! at him.
Rattled, he flicked on the television, muting the volume so he couldn’t hear the over-excited, high-pitched squeals of the presenters as they gushed about the surprise nuptials of Princess Eleni. A ticker ran along the bottom of the screen repeating the amazing news that she’d married a commoner—one Mr Damon Gale.
The piece they then played was about him. His business interests got a brief mention while his personal ones were explored in depth and all but invented. They focused on his upbringing, his family, his illegitimate half-sister...
He winced when he saw the media crews camped outside Kassie’s small apartment in the village. But the horror show worsened in a heartbeat as his father flashed on the screen. Damon automatically iced his emotions—the response had taken him years to perfect. But the sensation of impending doom increased and he flicked on the audio to hear his father in action. Apparently John Gale was ‘thrilled’ that Eleni and his son Damon’s relationship was finally public. His father didn’t use her title as he talked, implying intimacy—as if he’d ever met her? But he wasn’t afraid of using anyone to push himself further up the slippery pole of success; Damon knew that all too well.
He could hear his father’s avaricious glee at the coup his son had scored.
‘You must be very proud of Damon,’ one reporter yelled.
His father visibly puffed up. ‘Damon is brilliant. He inherited his mother’s brains.’
* * *
Damon gritted his teeth. His father’s false praise poked a wound that s
hould have long healed. His parents were anything but normal. Narcissistic and concerned only with image, neither had hearts. Truth be told, nor did he. That was his genetic inheritance. No capacity for love. No capacity for shame. All his parents had was ambition. He had that too.
But he’d learned to define his own success. To make it alone, be the one in control, be the boss. His parents had been uninterested and absent at best, and abusive at worst, and they’d taught him well. Yeah, now he had the burning ambition not to need them or anyone.
‘What about your daughter, Kasiani?’ Another reporter jostled to the front. ‘Is she also a friend of Princess Eleni’s?’
His father didn’t bat an eyelid at the mention of the daughter he hadn’t seen in years and the reference to the women that he’d abandoned entirely—not just emotionally, but financially as well. Damon had actually been jealous of Kassie until he’d learned his father was truly fickle and incapable of any kind of decent emotion.
‘I really can’t comment further on Eleni’s personal relationships.’ He didn’t need to comment further when the smug satisfaction was written all over his face.
Damon watched as his father walked past the reporter. But as the cameraman swung the camera to keep filming, Damon realised just where the interview had taken place—outside the terminal at Palisades airport.
Which meant his father was here. Now.
Damon muted the sound on the screen and strode from Eleni’s private apartment. He needed to speak to the palace secretary immediately.
‘Mr Gale.’
Damon stopped mid-stride down the hallway as Giorgos’s private secretary called to him.
‘It’s your father,’ the secretary added.
‘Please take me to him,’ Damon said quietly.
John Gale had been shown to one of the smaller meeting rooms very near the entrance of the palace. Damon’s appreciation of Giorgos’s secretary increased and he nodded at the man as he stood back respectfully.
Drawing in a breath, Damon closed the door and faced the father he hadn’t seen in five years. Not much had changed. Perhaps he had a little more grey in his hair, a few lines around his eyes, but he still wore that surface-only smile, neat suit and non-stick demeanour.
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