Fuck, he was so fucking hot.
And he wanted to make me feel good too. Unlike everyone else in my life, I wasn’t just a means to an end for him. He was rock hard because he wanted me to feel that pleasure too.
"I'm so close," I whispered. I’d been teetering on the edge of orgasm for what felt like an eternity, but the forbiddenness of us, plus the high likelihood of getting caught was too real.
If anyone saw or knew, we’d be done for.
"You're so fucking beautiful," he rasped. "I want to see you come."
"But-," I looked away from him to peer out the window.
"We're not there yet. Come for me now."
His commanding tone gave me no option but to obey. I pressed my hands on his chest for support while I rocked my hips back and forth. The sensitivity and pressure bundled into the nerves of my clit rose to nearly unbearable heights. Gavin never took his eyes from me and supported my hips with a firm, possessive grip.
"Yes, baby. Grind on me just like that," he moaned, digging his fingers into the fabric of my dress.
I bit down hard on my lip to hold back my scream as tiny explosions of pleasure shot off like fireworks within my body. My first ever orgasm in the presence of another person was nothing like doing it solo. My body rocked and thrashed like I was being electrocuted and Gavin struggled to hold me in place.
I didn't know orgasms could feel that good.
The pleasure rocked through me for at least thirty seconds before subsiding into warm, tingling sensations.
Just as I slid off Gavin's lap and felt a tender kiss from him on my forehead, we felt the car slow down to a complete stop.
CHAPTER 14
GAVIN
Stella jumped away from me and hurriedly adjusted her dress moments before the chauffeur opened her door. I understood her reasoning but couldn't help feeling a bit hurt and rejected. She damn well enjoyed that orgasm from grinding on my cock and for the rest of the night, she was going to pretend it never happened. If we had more time alone, I knew she'd be content and relaxed curled up against me.
My rock-hard erection began to subside as the chauffeur walked around to open my door. As I stepped out of the car, the chilly evening air sent the beast back into its slumber.
You'll get yours later, buddy, I thought.
Keeping my face neutral, I came around to Stella and offered her my elbow at a 90-degree angle like she taught me. I even stood at a respectful distance, not too close, but I could just barely smell her come and her sweat. Fuck, what I would do to have my face buried in her pussy as she came.
She looked at me briefly with her big doe eyes and wrapped her small hand around my flexed bicep without a word. Together we walked up the wide steps of a castle that looked like a smaller version of the main palace.
Other formally-dressed people milled about in the entryway, waiting to get in formation for the main ballroom. I recognized some faces vaguely from the news or tabloid photos. Duke and Duchess So-and-So, Lord and Lady What's-Their-Face, and His Grace Whoever-the-Fuck.
All these people who thought they mattered but what did they really do?
I was supposed to do my marching walk and look straight ahead, but couldn't stop looking at Stella in my peripheral vision. Her cheeks still flushed with a pink hue from her orgasm and it made her look even more adorable. I started to get hard again at the thought of what we just did, how naughty and rushed and secretive it was.
None of those powerful people in the room had any idea that I brought the innocent girl on my arm to orgasm not five minutes earlier. Sure I've done far naughtier things in my days, but never with such a sweet girl with royal blood. Plus, Stella was simply special to me. Every word I told her in the car was true and I hoped she took it to heart.
"Ah, there you two are!"
We both turned to see Alex and Scarlett, looking like Cinderella and Prince Charming, coming toward us. Everyone stepped aside and bowed respectfully as they walked past, which reminded me I couldn't bro-hug Alex like any other day in front of these people.
Stella curtsied gracefully and I bowed from the waist, feeling like I was in some damn movie.
"Gavin is that you?! You look amazing!" Scarlett declared and kissed my cheek.
"I clean up nice, don't I?" I said, becoming aware of the stares and whispers from the others in the room. They apparently figured out this nobody was the queen's bastard son in the flesh.
"I knew you would," she beamed before embracing Stella. "And you look beautiful as always, my dear!"
"Not as beautiful as you, Your Highness," Stella said robotically.
I frowned. Stella had retreated into her Do and Say All the Royally Correct Things mode. If that was her attempt to not draw attention to herself, it was far too obvious.
Scarlett caught onto it too. "Oh, hush, there's no need to talk like that! We're closer friends than that, silly."
While the girls bantered, Alex delivered a brotherly slap on my shoulder. "I'll be damned, Gav. If I dye my hair and put in contacts, we could be fucking twins."
"Our good looks come from the same genes, apparently," I mused.
"No shit." He leaned in closer to me and whispered, "Are you ready to meet your egg donor?"
"Ready as I'll ever be," I muttered.
After my lonely drunken outburst last night, my feelings were oddly neutral about meeting my birth mother, the queen. I honestly didn't care either way and certainly didn't care for a relationship with her. That ship had sailed years ago in my mind.
If anything, I only felt mild resentment that my future was at her whim. Not just for myself, but a future with Stella.
But after tasting that beautiful mouth I'd do whatever was necessary to be with her, social status be damned.
"That's the spirit," Alex said with another clap on my shoulder. "You're a special guest tonight so you and Stel will be announced last, right after me and Scar."
I nodded while observing his mannerisms. He wasn't normally so touchy. He seemed a bit jumpy and nervous. "Anything else going on, Your Highness?" I asked.
He exhaled a huge breath like he'd been holding it all night. "Well, you didn't hear this from me but I'll be making an unexpected announcement. It'll take the pressure and eyeballs off you a bit, that's for sure."
I cocked an eyebrow. "What kind of announcement?"
"You'll see, Gav. Hey, you really look great. Stella and Marie really did great work on you. See you inside, eh?"
He walked off to mingle with some other people, leaving me to wonder what kind of drugs he was on.
"Gavin, it's time." Stella's voice and delicate hand on my arm brought me back to focus.
We lined up at the entrance to the main ballroom behind several other pairs of important looking people. I glanced down at Stella who looked straight ahead, avoiding my gaze and chewing her lips nervously.
I leaned down to whisper in her ear, "I can't wait to make you come again."
"Stop." She said it loudly enough for other people to hear.
Like I gave a fuck.
I leaned closer until my lips brushed against her ear and I heard her breath catch in her throat.
"I know you loved it. I know you've never come like that before. I want to make you feel that good and a thousand times more every single night."
"Stop it, Gavin," she hissed through clenched teeth and I relented, standing up straight just as Alex and Scar ushered to stand in front of us.
I knew Stella wanted to keep up appearances and I had to as well, for her sake and my own, but I couldn't help wanting her, teasing her. Seeing her come was hands down the hottest thing I ever saw any woman do, and I’ve seen a lot.
Someone in the main ballroom started bellowing names and titles and the line moved forward. I felt a small tremor of nervousness in the pit of my stomach.
This was it.
This was the reason I met Stella in the first place and why she came over every day for two weeks. It was all to get me ready for this.
> CHAPTER 15
STELLA
I felt like a lamb walking into a slaughterhouse.
My heart hammered in my chest as we slowly moved forward. If anyone found out what just happened in the car, I was done for.
I would go down in history as a royal slut, a poster child for why royal society advocated staying a virgin until marriage.
I was still a virgin, technically, but no one would believe that.
And Gavin didn't seem to care. He kept whispering dirty things in my ear like I was some girl he just hooked up with at a bar!
It was infuriating and yet... I enjoyed it? Not just physically, but for the first time I felt sexy and desired. I had no idea how it felt to be wanted with such rawness, such animalistic need. He treated me like a woman, not a child to be sheltered from the world.
But would I dare to hope for more than that? Gavin indicated he wanted a future, wanted us.
"The Crown Prince of Amberfall and heir to the throne, Prince Alexander and his sister, Princess Scarlett," bellowed the announcer.
Alex and Scar marched out into the bright light of the ballroom while Gavin and I stepped up to where they stood moments earlier.
We were next. This was it.
Please behave, I silently pleaded with Gavin, looking straight ahead and refusing to meet his eye. There was a time and place for these things and this was neither.
"Finally our special guest, Her Majesty's natural born son, Gavin Telleshire, accompanied by Stella Lundenberg."
Onto the chopping block we stepped.
I plastered a sweet smile on my face as Gavin and I walked together into the vast, glittering room.
Wow, Scarlett wasn't kidding, I thought. The queen really did go all out with lavish decorations— a live band, tons of wait staff with trays, and elegant tables and chair that probably cost a year's worth of Gavin's shipwright salary.
Large cameras following us down the carpet reminded me that this event was being televised. My family was probably watching at that very moment.
A stab of guilt hit me in the gut. They were probably so proud of me, never imagining for a moment that I just had my dressed hiked above my waist and the man next to me had his mouth and hands all over me.
We reached the end of our entrance walk and accepted glasses of champagne from a waiter on a tray as we approached our table.
Gavin took a cursory glance around for cameras before gulping down his champagne flute in one swallow.
"Slow down. You don't want to be sloppy tonight," I urged.
"It'll take a lot more than expensive bubbles to get me sloppy, baby." He shot me a challenging grin and crept his fingers along the bare skin of my back.
Damn, why did I have to choose an open back dress? No. A better question was, why did a simple touch make me want to jump into his arms right then?
"Stop. I mean it," I said, hoping I sounded firm. "No pet names and don't touch me. We're already off to a terrible start."
"Sounds like someone needs another orgasm to relax." His tone was infuriatingly calm but he withdrew his hand, brushing his fingers along my waist as he pulled away.
"No, that's what I'm talking about," I said, lowering my voice to a whisper. “That never should have happened, especially not right before this event.”
"If I recall correctly," Gavin said as he leaned in closer. "You kissed me. You got into my lap and rubbed up on my cock. You used me to get off, not the other way around."
"You started it," I retorted, knowing I sounded childish but he was right. I couldn't believe I got so carried away. If I didn't, it would've stopped after he kissed me and we wouldn’t be in this mess.
Gavin merely chuckled, relaxed and amused while I stewed in my panic.
"So which one is the queen?" he asked, scanning the wide room.
"She's not here yet," I answered. "You won't miss her when she arrives. She always has a later and grander entrance than everyone else."
I tried not to show it but I was extremely anxious for her arrival. Half of me never wanted to see her, the other half couldn't wait. How else are you supposed to feel about the person who holds your family's future in her hands?
"Why am I not surprised." Gavin took two more champagne flutes off a nearby tray and placed one in front of me.
"Are you kidding? I'm not even through my first one."
"I forgot you're not a drinker." He threw back his second glass just as quickly as his first one and abruptly stood. "Dance with me," he said, offering his hand.
I glared at him while staying glued to my spot.
Shit.
A nearby camera zeroed in on us and I reluctantly placed my hand in his.
"I'll be good, I promise," he said through a dashing smile.
"A likely story," I muttered as I rose and followed him to the dance floor.
Several other couples took their places as the music cued up for our traditional ballroom dance. We would be switching partners several times and the Ladies next to me were already eyeballing Gavin like a piece of meat.
Jealousy gripped my heart like a fist.
Most of them were already married but a few were single. If Gavin became a Lord, a marriage to him was a surefire way to secure one's future.
Get a grip. It's just dancing, I told myself.
The music started and the men bowed and stepped forward. I curtsied with the other ladies and placed my hand in Gavin's as we began the dance. As promised, his fingers barely touched my waist as he kept a respectful distance.
"You're the most beautiful woman in this room," he said as we moved together, his eyes never leaving my face.
"Will you stop? You're constantly on thin ice here," I hissed, although my stomach did a celebratory flip over the compliment.
"Just being honest." He winked and bowed as we separated, moving onto other dance partners.
"Ah, Miss Lundenberg!" my new partner proclaimed.
I looked up from my curtsy to see a handsome older gentleman smiling at me with his hand extended.
"Lord Alverdeen," I greeted, accepting his hand. He worked with my father in the Royal Cabinet before our exile.
"I haven't seen you since you were a child! You've grown up into such a lovely young woman."
"Thank you, my Lord." I tried to smile and enunciate clearly but my mind was distracted. I heard Gavin's voice float across the room, and then a woman laughing uproariously. My jealousy grew and I willed myself not to turn my head and look for him.
"Looks like you've done well with the young chap," Lord Alverdeen observed as we twirled around.
"Thank you, my Lord. I certainly had my work cut out for me."
"He's a handsome lad. The Ladies will surely be fawning over him should he accept his role." Lord Alverdeen gave me a pointed look. "Perhaps you'll be one of them."
I smiled politely. "One thing at a time, my Lord. First I must become a Lady once again."
"I have no doubts of that," he assured as he stepped away and bowed. Time to switch partners again.
When I looked up from my curtsy, Gavin was in front of me again. I blinked, confused. We weren't supposed to be partnered again this soon.
"I switched spots with that fellow," he said, nodding at a Duke further down the line. "I couldn't dance with that broad, her perfume is way too fucking strong. I can still smell it from here."
"You can't be serious right now," I groaned. If my hands didn't have to be in place for the dance, I would have smacked him.
"Why are you so negative? It's no big deal. Lighten up, Stella. I'm actually having a great time."
"Oh, you are?" I said sarcastically.
Leave it to Gavin to have a great time while I’m fucking miserable.
"Yes." He smiled and my frustration softened. I could never stay mad at him for long.
"Especially now that I'm with you again." His grip tightened on my waist and he pulled me closer.
"Gavin," I pleaded, but couldn't tell him to stop again. He could not keep bending th
e rules and risk being thrown out for inappropriate behavior. That would be suicide and all our hard work would amount to nothing.
But I also didn't want him to let go of me. I didn't want him dancing with anyone else but me.
"I love how you say my name, Stella," he growled as we twirled around. "These other Ladies don't hold a candle to your elegance and your beauty, but I know you can be a dirty little girl, too."
"I'm not! I never have-," I stammered, feeling flustered and panicked. He was really pushing boundaries that could get us in trouble. And I had just all but completely admitted that I was a virgin.
He said nothing but stepped back and kept his eyes trained on me. I couldn't read his expression and it was time for us to switch partners again.
Just then, the announcer called our attention to the front of the room.
"Ladies and gentlemen of the Royal Court of Amberfall, may I have your attention please!" Everyone turned to face him and I felt my heart speed up, anticipating who was about to walk through.
"I present to you our sovereign ruler, Her Majesty the Queen, Valencia the First of Amberfall!"
Every woman dropped to her knees in a curtsy as the men bowed from the waist and the band played the Royal Anthem of Amberfall.
From where I knelt, I looked up for just a moment to take a peek at the woman who would be my judge, jury, and potentially, executioner.
CHAPTER 16
GAVIN
I kept my head low as the music played and the faintest swish of fabric brushed across the floor. At my sides, my hands clenched into fists.
I couldn’t say why I was suddenly so tense. I felt like I was on the verge of a bar fight.
It wasn’t just me, either. Everyone’s mood shifted the moment Queen Valencia entered the room. The floor became eggshells that no one wanted to break.
“Arise, good citizens!”
Slowly, I rose my head to gaze upon my birth mother for the first time in the flesh. Her round blue eyes, identical to Scarlett’s, gazed upon everyone in the room as if we were all lower beings. She’d undoubtedly been naturally beautiful at one point, but many plastic surgeries gave the appearance of her skin stretched tightly across the bones of her face and neck.
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