by Nikki Steele
We crossed to the ornamental garden, stopping to lean on the rails of a bridge over a decorative stream. Xander talked about his memories of his father.
A ladybug crawled over our fingers; I lifted it gently to the ground while I talked about my love of animals, and people. I’d become a nurse to saves lives. I’d seen people like his father in hospital, and was glad that Xander hadn’t.
Eventually our conversation turned to other things, and we laughed and joked as we explored our surrounds hand in hand.
It got cooler when we stepped into the dappled sunlight of the woods. It was lovely; small paths weaving through pretty trees, a movie-set concept of what a real forest might be like. There were delicate flowering bushes, and vines growing up trees, and moss covered stone statues scattered here and there up hidden paths. In the center, the castle walls just visible in the distance beyond, the huge oak I had seen earlier towered over a glade of green grass and bright flowers.
A plank swing hung from one of its thick limbs. I ran toward it and stopped just short. “I haven’t been on one of these since I was a little girl!”
“Why don’t you have a swing?” asked Xander with a smile.
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m too old for that anymore.”
“You’re never too old. Go on—I’ll even push you.”
I looked at the swing, considering. It had been years. Was getting on a swing like riding a bicycle, or could you forget how to do it? I let Xander guide me gently to the ropes, and sat on the sturdy weathered plank. He walked behind to push me. “Um, not too high, ok?”
“Too late!” He gave me a mighty push.
“Xander!” I squealed, knuckles white on the rope as I zoomed forward, skirt flying over my head.
He laughed as he caught me on the backswing, slowing me to something more sensible.
“You are such a S.O.B.,” I growled.
“Is that another of your American words?”
“Yes. And you don’t want to know what it means.”
He moved around to face me. “You know you like it.” He gave me another push.
I had to grin. “Okay, maybe I do. But no higher, okay?”
He pushed me again, pulling a face. “But then your skirt won’t fly over your head.”
I burst out laughing. “You are such a typical man. Is that all you think about?”
He stepped in, easing me to a stop as I swung toward him. I came to a rest with him between my legs. “No, but it is one of the more pleasant things.”
He leaned forward to kiss me. It was a hot kiss, urgent in its need for my lips. A gentle breeze ruffled my hair. We were all alone, and I was suddenly, very, aware of our proximity.
“Step back,” I whispered when we broke apart.
He raised an eyebrow, but did as commanded.
Keeping eye contact, I stretched down with one hand to my legs and—with a wiggle—slid my panties slowly down my thighs.
His eyes flicked down involuntarily.
“Up here!” I commanded. His eyes returned reluctantly.
I smiled sweetly at him, pink lace hanging from a toe and then dropping to the ground. “Now I swing.”
I kicked my legs and, still holding his struggling gaze, swung toward him. My dress fluttered in the breeze. Cool air tickled my thighs. It flattened as I swung away, and then lifted once more on the return, exposing me again. A bead of sweat trickled down Xander’s clenched jaw as his gaze fought to hold mine.
I swallowed, parting my legs slightly, exposing myself further. I had meant to tease him, but suddenly I was feeling this too. The dress flapped back, flat against me. Then with a rush it flew up as I moved toward Xander. He bit his lip as he struggled to concentrate.
“Kate…” he moved forward, catching and holding my swing at the top of its apex. He still hadn’t looked down.
“My, but you do have some willpower, don’t you?” I said thickly. If I felt like this, how must he be feeling?
He shook his head. “I have none, not where you are concerned.” Then, one strong hand still holding the rope of my swing, his other hand went to his belt.
My eyes widened. “Here?”
“You started it.”
“But I was just-”
He cut me off with a kiss as his hand came up, slacks dropping to his feet. He kicked them to one side and then let go of the rope, allowing me to swing back.
My eyes flicked down.
“Uh uh,” he said. “Eyes up here!”
My eyes met his once more, but not before I’d seen him standing hard at attention; legs covered only by his rapidly lengthening shadow. I reached the apex of my backward swing, and then my dress was blowing up once more on wide legs. He caught me, and kissed me, and then let me go, stepping forward as my swings slowed. Our hips got closer each time he did.
On the fifth kiss I was barely moving. I’d long since given up trying to meet his gaze. Instead, I was drinking in his body greedily, watching and hoping each time that this would be the one where our hips would finally connect. Everything about him was beautiful; from his lightly stubbled jaw to the hint of abs I could just see at his shirt’s hemline. And of course that part of him—enlarged and waiting just for me—that was beautiful too. Our hips met—just the briefest of touches—and I shivered. A trail of goose bumps sprang across my arms and thighs.
On my next rock forward, I caught the back of his head, pulling him into a kiss. He caught my buttocks with a hand, and I felt his hard erect member push, just ever so slightly, against my slick center. We groaned in unison.
Gosh it felt good—like coming home, except home was some fantasy land where I’d found the man of my dreams and never wanted to leave.
He let go, and the touch of his member between my legs disappeared with a loss that made my eyes bulge. Then he held himself, and as I swung forward once more I realized his intent. Time seemed to slow. My legs widened. And suddenly I was aching to be penetrated. We connected lightly and I felt him enter me with the force of the swing. I slid halfway along his length in helpless pleasure before gravity pulled me—agonizingly slowly—off him once more.
I arched my back, intending to swing more forcefully. Xander stepped forward instead, catching me with a hand. “Enough teasing,” he growled.
My legs turned to jelly as he slid all the way in. I had to grip the swing tight to keep from falling. I was on a pendulum of pleasure, and as he began to rock back and forth my whole world narrowed until it was just him, and I. An exquisite excitement drove through my body with each increasingly powerful thrust. It wasn’t long before I cried out from the pleasure.
“Am I going to have to spank you like last time?” Xander growled. “We don’t want the guards to come running.”
My legs clenched, causing Xander this time to groan. “This is so wrong, Xander. What if someone sees?”
He didn’t slow down. “We should make it fast then.”
I nodded, eyes rolling back as I felt him deep inside, over and over again. I was a plaything at his command, helpless to do anything but groan as he controlled my every movement His hands moved upon the swing, pulling it back and forth faster and faster.
I leaned back, and in the movement discovered that I did have some power. The change in angles made him rub differently, inside. The pleasure was exquisite. I had to bite my lip to keep from crying out.
I looked in his eyes to see the same thrill there. It seemed I wasn’t the only one who was enjoying this angle.
His motions became faster; our hips meeting in firm slaps as he braced his legs beneath the swing. There was an electricity to my heartbeat—a tingling that the nurse inside knew were endorphins tearing through my body. It was getting stronger with each thrill, shooting up from just above the rough swing seat, where his strong legs met my quivering ones, all the way to my scalp.
A sob escaped me. I bit my lip. I wouldn’t cry out. I wouldn’t.
The swing couldn’t move fast enough. It was Xander’s body that was moving no
w, holding me still as his beautiful buttocks ground into me over and over again. We were both breathing heavily of the cool garden air, our bodies hot at their connection.
One of his hands reached up to clutch my breast. My mouth buried into his neck—the only way I could keep from shrieking. I could feel myself cresting, the surge of pleasure he was generating too much for me to keep inside.
His hand found a nipple through the cloth of my dress. He squeezed, and I gasped. The sting was a counterpoint to the sweet union deep within, driving ecstasy through my hips with the force of a hurricane.
I couldn’t help it. I wasn’t going to last. I couldn’t hold on-
I entered the eye of the storm. For a moment, everything was calm.
And then suddenly I was out the other side and being swept away by the force of my desire, crying into his neck as my legs clutched his hips and I contracted upon him.
Xander stiffened. I felt him brace beneath me as I convulsed. And then he was exploding within me too; head thrown back as his body jerked reflexively over and over again.
I saw him blink when he finally regained his senses. He withdrew, making me quiver. “What is the word? S.O.B.?” he asked.
I laughed. “I think you mean OMG. And yes, it’s very appropriate right now.”
CHAPTER THREE
Xander shook me awake before sunrise, stating with excitement that he had to leave for a little while.
I rubbed sleep from my eyes. Baxter was whuffling little puppy snores on his back beside me. He squirmed into my warm spot as soon as I sat up. “What’s wrong?”
“An informant called the castle, claiming to have information about the Star of Succession.”
Now I was wide awake. “What did they say?”
“Only that it was in France, and I’d be given a location when I got there.” He took my hand, hope in his eyes. “Kate. You know what this means, don’t you?”
I nodded, as excited as him. But then I frowned. “This is awfully suspicious timing.”
He grimaced. “I agree. But you know I have to investigate every possibility.”
“Could someone else go?”
“It has to be me,” he said, “for the same reason that the tip-off has validity in the first instance—this isn’t common knowledge. Only a handful of people in the world even know it’s missing.”
He squeezed my hand tight. “But I’ll return as soon as I can.”
“How long will you be gone for? Can I come with you?”
He shook his head fondly. “The answer to the first question is, I don’t know. Several days, at least. The answer to the second is no. Stay here, where I know you’ll be safe.” He kissed me goodbye. A long kiss, but edged with excitement. “I’ll be out of contact until I return. But I hope at the end, I’ll be back with very, very good news.”
* * *
I was feeling unwell, and if I was honest just a little miserable, when I re-awoke to find Xander not beside me. Part of me had hoped his leaving had been a dream. Yet another part, a much larger part, hoped Xander would return with a rare blue diamond the size of a golf ball; the answer to all our problems.
He’d been promised to the daughter of the king of Zurenstein because the gem had been lost whilst in his father’s possession. It was Zurenstein’s crown jewel; the centerpiece of an amulet the King had volunteered to repair.
And it was important because of a very peculiar aspect of the Zuri constitution. Whomsoever held the Star of Succession bore the right to ascend the throne.
It was infuriating. But that look in Xander’s eyes when he left—as if suddenly, maybe, there was a chance for us after all. For the first time, I let myself hope.
I decided to take a stroll through the palace garden. I’d hardly been able to keep breakfast down, and the fresh air would do me good. Baxter yipped excitedly as soon as I picked up the leash. He raced straight for the kennels and, with a smile, I decided we would collect his German Shepherd friend on the way. When we reached the gardens, the two of them began chasing their tails madly around and around on the open expanse of lawn.
I made my way to the old oak Xander and I had visited the night before, sitting in the swing with a smile. I thought about Xander’s father, wishing I could have met him. He had passed away, somewhere in the garden. I hoped it had been peaceful, like it was now.
Would he have approved of the love between Xander and I? From everything Xander had told me about him—what little he could remember—I thought that he would. He had been a kind king. Surely he would have wanted his son to be happy.
My hand went to the diamond necklace around my neck. I wished he were still alive. If he hadn’t died, the Star of Succession wouldn’t have gone missing. Xander wouldn’t have been promised to a Zuri Princess. And he wouldn’t be away from me now. I whispered a silent prayer to Xander’s father. If Xander could find it after all these years….
Baxter broke me out of my reverie. It seemed he had lost his friend briefly, as little dogs were sometimes wont to do, and was sniffing around the trunk of the grand old oak instead. He cocked his head, then began scrabbling through the dirt and leaves at its base. He picked up a pretty stone, trotting over to place it, covered in saliva, in my hand, then returned to the tree base to dig again.
It seemed he’d found something that had really caught his interest. His ears perked up, and then he was digging at the hard dirt, back legs braced, front legs a blur of movement, his whole body slowly tipping forward as dirt flew body lengths behind him in excitement.
He’d be good at finding truffles, I bet. Though then I’d have to get someone to show me how to cook them.
A twig snapped on the ground behind me.
“I see your dog makes just as big a mess as you do.” It was the Queen. She was accompanied by guards on either side.
“Your Majesty!” I hastily clambered to my feet and dropped into a curtsy. “I didn’t realize you were here.”
She arched an eyebrow. “And I was hoping you wouldn’t be.”
“Well. That is…”
“Save it. I’ve spent the last two days covering up my son’s mess on that plane. I’m not in the mood for platitudes.”
I looked at her. “What plane?”
“The commercial airliner that my son saw fit to re-route mid-flight back to Alonia. Two days paying off each and every passenger who heard that ridiculous conversation between you two.” She picked at an imaginary speck of fluff on her spotless dress, then looked at me from under lidded brows. “It turns out it was all an elaborate prank by a television station and a lookalike.”
I frowned. “Why would you do that? Why would you say that?”
“People will believe anything a royal tells them. You obviously have. Do you really believe that my son would give up his kingdom for you?”
I froze. She knew.
“Do you really believe that I would let him?” she continued.
Finally, I found my voice. “I believe that’s his choice, Your Majesty.” My voice grew cold. “I haven’t told him to do it. You can’t tell him not to. He wouldn’t have had to, if you hadn’t made that arrangement all those years ago.”
The guards stepped forward at my tone. Baxter began to growl. We both waved our respective protectors back.
“What’s done is done,” the Queen sniffed. “At least in the case of Zurenstein. But I must ask you, one final time, to leave my country.”
I shook my head sadly. “Your Majesty, I understand your situation, I honestly do. But I’ve already tried that, and it failed. Can’t you see? We love it each other.” I took a deep breath. “I’m not saying abdication is the answer. But I won’t leave. Not again. Not when Xander has asked me to stay. In fact, even now Xander is following a tip-off that might lead to a solution...” My voice trailed off as something in the Queen’s eyes changed. They’d become harder, somehow. Lost some of their humanity.
“I already have a solution to this problem,” she said. “Believe me, I don’t like it. But s
ometimes being a queen isn’t about doing what’s best for an individual. It’s about doing what’s best for the country.” She looked toward her guards. “Take her,” she commanded.
The guards leapt to obey, catching me by surprise. At my scream, Baxter charged forward, nipping at a guard’s leg. A boot sent him flying back into the tree behind. He hit it with a yelp.
That’s when I began to struggle. “You bastard!” I screamed at the guard who had kicked my dog. My fingers raked across his cheek, drawing blood, before he caught me.
Baxter came flying forward once more, the little dog making up in ferocity what he lacked in size. But the guard was prepared for him, this time. He caught him by the scruff of his neck, lifting him as he struggled helplessly by the collar. Baxter turned his head to snap at a gloved hand.
The guard looked to his Queen, and the Queen looked to me. “Call off your dog. This does not have to be any worse than it already is.”
I stared at her, aghast, and then I slumped. “Baxter,” I whispered. “It’s okay. Be a good boy for mommy.” Baxter quietened with a whine.
I turned to the Queen. “How could you?” I asked, voice low but quivering with anger. “You timed this, didn’t you? So your son wasn’t here to stop you.”
I was rewarded with a brief flash of remorse, and something else. Guilt.
I narrowed my eyes suspiciously. “Xander’s off looking for the Star of Succession, but you knew that already.”
Another look was all the evidence I needed. My fury came raging back. I struggled to control myself, for Baxter’s sake. “Only a handful of people in the world know that jewel is missing. And suddenly now, of all times, a mysterious phone call leads Xander off on a chase to try and find it?”
It all made sense. “It’s a setup, isn’t it? There is no mystery caller—at least not one you aren’t employing.”
Her eyes were hard. “It’s for the good of the country. By the time he returns, you will be back in America with half the contents of the royal vault ‘stolen,’ and the blame firmly on you. He’ll think you were only in it for the money, and in his grief will agree to marry Fredrick of Zurenstein’s eldest daughter.”
