Arianna & Finn (Royals of Valleria #3)

by Knightly, Marianne

  “It’s charming,” she said as she turned in a circle and watched the light play through the windows. “Completely charming and romantic. I can see why women have wanted to get married here.”

  She turned to Finn, who had taken a seat in one of the pews. His face looked stricken. “What is it?” she said as she rushed the few steps to him. “What’s wrong?”

  Finn shook his head, and his face seemed to clear. “Nothing. Sorry. Nothing’s wrong.”

  “Are you sure?” she asked and he nodded. “Well, can you tell me why this place is so special to you, besides the obvious?”

  “I come here to think sometimes.”

  “Oh? Well, everybody has a place like that.”

  Finn nodded. “We royals need to have a place like that, don’t we? This has been mine since as long as I can remember. My father or mother would come here, too.”

  “Henry?”

  “No, he never came. He’s been here, of course, but this place doesn’t mean as much to him as it does to me.”

  “Because of your parents? I’m sure you must feel close to them here.” She felt close to them, and she’d never even met them before.

  “Yes, that’s part of it. Soon after the car accident that took their lives, I came here. I had my own funeral for them here even while they laid in state at the palace.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said as she took a seat in the pew next to him. “I can’t imagine losing my parents, and so young.”

  Finn took her hand and she let him; she sensed he needed the comfort. “It’s barely been ten years now. I’ll never forget it.”

  Who could? “Would you like to talk about it?”

  Finn shrugged. “There’s not much to say. Drunk driver drove through a crowd. He killed several citizens before he rammed our convertible.”

  “What do you mean? Were you in the car with them?”

  He nodded. “Henry and I both were. My parents and Henry were thrown from the car, I was thrown across the seat. Henry had injuries but he managed to survive.”

  She squeezed his hand. “I’m sorry, Finn. I imagine that no matter how many years go by, you’ll still miss them. There’s no shame in that.”

  “No, there isn’t,” he said as he lifted their joined hands to his lips for a kiss. “Thank you, Arianna.” He kissed her hand again.

  Tingles of warmth spread from her hand and coursed through her body. Without breaking eye contact, he pressed a kiss to the inside of her wrist. Could he tell her heart was beating faster because of him?

  He stood and tugged her up with him. He wrapped his long arms around her and brought her close. His musky scent, undimmed by the crisp lake air, filled her senses.

  “I need to kiss you, Princess.” Needed, not wanted. Was there a difference right now? She shook her head, unsure of what to do.

  “Please, Arianna,” he said bringing her closer. She gasped as his arousal pressed against her and she fisted her hands in his shirt. “Please let me kiss you.”

  He sounded almost desperate, and so was she. In a haze of increasing lust, she breathed out, “Yes.”

  He moaned and his lips fell to hers, a swift clash of needs ensuing. His tongue demanded entrance, and her mouth - which remembered only too well how talented a tongue it was - opened without hesitation. As their tongues explored, her hands shifted to his back and roamed lower to his ass. God, he had a fantastic ass. When she squeezed it, his foot slipped and he stumbled.

  Instead of falling, however, he used the momentum to move them, and soon she found her back pressed against a wall.

  “Finn,” she whispered on a gasping breath.

  “Yes, Princess?” he asked as his hands delved underneath her layers of clothes. Her jacket was easily pushed aside, and one hand delved into her hair while the other undid her jeans.

  “Finn,” she said again as she grasped his shirt so tightly that two buttons popped off. She gasped when she saw what she’d done and time seemed to stop. Though Finn didn’t seem to mind - his look was one of amusement - she pushed away from him.

  God, how could she be so stupid again? She was falling for the wrong man again. Physical chemistry wasn’t enough for her, not anymore. She ran a frustrated hand through her hair, which now hung loose, thanks to Finn. The flower the little girl had given her that morning had fallen to the floor.

  “What’s the matter, Arianna?” he asked behind her. “Did I hurt you?”

  She zipped up her jeans and turned to face him. “No, of course you didn’t.”

  “Then what is it?” he said as he took a step towards her. He didn’t try to touch her again, and while her head was happy with that, her heart wasn’t. Why couldn’t they get on the same page?

  “We shouldn’t be doing this, anything like this.”

  “Why? Is there someone else?”

  She didn’t respond right away. How should she tell him?

  “There is, isn’t there?” he said resigned, and ran a hand over his face. “Someone back in Valleria?”

  She shook her head. “Do you know why Alex and I are really here in Brazenbourg?”

  “What? No, not really. Henry doesn’t involve me in those types of discussions. What has that got to do with you?”

  “I’m not sure how to tell you.”

  “Just give it to me straight.”

  “It’s Henry.”

  “Henry? What about Henry?” Realization dawned on his face. “The other man is Henry?” She nodded. “Jesus. How long have you been seeing him? He’s kept it very quiet. So have you.”

  “It’s not like that,” she said shaking her head. She sighed and sat down in a pew. “Henry wants to marry me.”

  “What? What the hell are you talking about?”

  “He told Alex he wants to marry me. He won’t help us, that is, Valleria, unless I do. Or maybe he won’t think about helping us until I do.”

  “And you’re marrying him?” he asked, his body stiff with tension.

  “I don’t know.”

  “That means you’re thinking about it.” He ran an impatient hand through his hair. “Then why didn’t you stop me today? Or even last night? I wouldn’t have -.”

  “I know,” she said, interrupting him. “I wanted it, Finn. I wanted you.”

  He sucked in a breath, then let it out slowly. “But you don’t want me anymore. You want Henry.”

  “I don’t know about Henry, but I do know that I still want you. I can’t seem to help it,” she ended quietly, the admission surprising even herself.

  “Arianna,” Finn said gruffly as he sat down next to her. He tilted her chin up to face him. “I’d never push you to do anything you didn’t want to do.”

  “I know. I’m just afraid that I’ll end up pushing myself instead.”

  His hand fell away. “And regretting it? Do you regret what we did last night?”

  Her lips quirked in a half smile. “As I recall, you didn’t do much of anything last night. You made me do a lot of the work.”

  He returned her smile. “You have no idea, do you?” he said in a husky voice. “You have no idea just how fucking sexy you looked last night.”

  “You shouldn’t say things like that in a church.”

  Finn huffed a laugh. “People have done worse here. One of the rooms over there actually had a bed so the bride and groom could consummate their marriage before they headed to the palace for the formal wedding.”

  Arianna’s eyes widened. “Well, still though.” She cleared her throat. “Besides, I think it’s you who doesn’t know how sexy he looked last night.”

  “Is that right?”

  She nodded. “I was practically naked and you were dressed in that lovely suit, ordering me around.”

  “You liked that, didn’t you? When I told you what to do?”

  “I didn’t think I would, but I didn’t feel like I was losing control. I felt powerful.” She hadn’t felt like that in a long time.

  “Good,” he said as he brushed her hair back behind her ear.
“You are powerful. Even last night, you were telling me what to do.” He dropped a kiss just behind her ear. “And it was fucking amazing,” he whispered.

  “Finn.”

  He sighed and pulled away. “Sorry, Princess. Let’s get out of here. All I can think about right now is being with you, and that’s not an option, so let’s go.”

  She put a hand on his arm to keep him from standing up. “Why isn’t it an option?”

  “You just told me you might marry Henry.”

  “Might being the key word there.”

  “But you’re still considering it. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you since we met. It’s not a good idea for us to be together.”

  She understood how he felt; didn’t she feel the same way? But she also liked the way Finn touched her - like she mattered. She hadn’t felt that for a very long time. “I know what you’re saying Finn, but Henry and I haven’t even spent any time alone together. I’ve barely spoken to him beyond the meals we’ve share with you and Alex.”

  “Arianna,” he said, and she could sense his resolve wavering.

  “Kiss me again, Finn,” she said as she cupped his face. “Kiss me like you mean it.”

  “I always mean it with you. But I can’t. We can’t.”

  “It’s my choice,” she said as she straddled him. “These are my lips and I want them to touch yours again.” She rested her forehead against his. “Please?”

  After a few moments, he groaned. “God help me,” he said and crushed his lips to hers.

  Unlike last time, this was a hard crash of their mouths against each other. Both of them taking and taking more, then giving back to the other. Her hands buried themselves in his dark brown hair while his hands gripped her ass and brought her against his erection.

  Moans filled the small space and her hands shifted to find skin. She slipped her hands through the portion of his shirt she’d ripped open and sighed at the feel of his chest hair covering a toned, masculine chest. His hands slipped underneath her jeans, cupping her ass and sliding his finger through the cleft to find her wet in the front.

  Her lips broke free on a cry and she arched her back. “Do you like that, Princess? Do you like it when I touch you?”

  “Yes. God, yes,” she said as she shifted against his probing fingers. She groaned in frustration when he pulled his hand away. “Why did you do that?”

  “This isn’t the time or the place, Princess,” he said and coated her lips with the moisture on his fingers. “Open,” he ordered and she took the fingers into her mouth, sucking her juices clean from his talented digits.

  He pulled his fingers out and she licked her lips, too. He groaned and pulled her in for another deep kiss.

  “I’m sorry,” he said when they broke away.

  “What for?”

  “I shouldn’t have let it get that far.”

  “I wasn’t complaining, Finn. We were both at fault, if you want to look at it that way, but I don’t.”

  “But you might marry someone else.”

  “Listen. Somebody has asked my brother a question meant for me. That somebody has not spoken to me directly about it, or even asked me that question. Until they do, I don’t think we’re doing anything wrong.”

  “Who are you trying to convince?” he asked as he rested his forehead against hers.

  “Both of us, I imagine.”

  Finn sighed. “I want you. I’ve never wanted anybody like this before.”

  Her brows shot up. “Really? But you have, well, quite the reputation.”

  “It’s mostly just gossip, and you can’t trust most of that.”

  Arianna briefly wondered about the things she had overhead earlier that day, and decided to dismiss them. If there was one thing she knew as a royal, it was that you couldn’t trust everything you heard.

  “So none of it is true then?” she asked.

  “I’m not saying I was celibate or anything. I have a past, but I’m not person anymore. Rumours of my prowess have been greatly exaggerated.”

  She chuckled. “From what I’ve seen, perhaps the quantity was exaggerated but the quality seems to be on point.”

  He smiled. “Glad it’s to your liking.”

  They spent the next few minutes just wrapped in each other’s arms in the quiet room, listening to the sounds of the lake crashing gently against the shore outside. Eventually, Finn sighed again. “We should get going if we’re going to make it to dinner on time.”

  Arianna’s gut clenched. “Dinner. Right.” She stood and Finn followed, both of them fixing their clothes as they did. Arianna fixed her hair and picked up the fallen flower on her way out.

  After locking up, Finn pulled her against him for the walk back to the car. Their security agents, who had been stationed outside, also prepared to leave. Arianna blushed as she wondered if they had seen or heard anything. Since Finn didn’t seem too worried, she decided not to be, either.

  She had enough to worry about with dinner that night.

  ***

  Finn was lost in his own thoughts all the way back to the palace, and so, it seemed, was Arianna. He’d been honest with her about his past and what he felt. Hell, when he’d seen her in the church, a smile on her face as she took it all in, it had been only too easy to imagine her as his bride, and it had thrown him for a loop. However, in the end, what he felt may not even matter.

  Now there was the possibility that Henry was the groom in that vision, not him.

  He couldn’t believe Arianna was thinking seriously about the proposal. If she was only marrying Henry to help Valleria, perhaps there was something he could do. But, if she was marrying Henry for some other reason, and he sensed she was, then he may have to let her go. He wasn’t sure he would be able to, if that time came.

  The way she fell apart at his touch, the way she smelled, the way she moved, the way she seemed interested in what he had to say - he felt needed and wanted by a woman for the first time in his life. He’d been with women, sure, but they had wanted to be with a prince.

  She was the first who seemed to want to be with him.

  He dragged his hand through his hair as the capital came into view. A few minutes later, he was working his way through the various palace security gates. A few minutes more, and they stopped in front of an entrance.

  Arianna waited for him to open the door this time, and gave him a long look and a soft smile when she stepped out.

  “Thank you for the lovely day,” she said.

  “You’re very welcome, Arianna. Believe me, the pleasure was all mine.” Finn kept the car door between them; it was the safest thing to do. Otherwise he’d be tempted to kiss her hard against the car door and there were too many eyes watching them now.

  “It’s about time you two made it back,” Alex said as he walked casually towards them. He gave Arianna a pointed look. “Dinner is in an hour.”

  “So it is,” Arianna said smoothly. All signs of the passionate woman that had been in his arms earlier had disappeared, and the polished princess was now in its place. “Walk me to my room, Alex?”

  “Of course,” he said. “How did you enjoy sightseeing?”

  “Oh, it was wonderful, Alex,” she said. “Brazenbourg is a beautiful country.”

  “I’m glad to hear you enjoyed yourself. I’m only sorry I couldn’t join you.” Before Alex and Arianna walked away, Alex turned to Finn and said, “Your brother would like a word with you, Finn.”

  “I’ll go straight there. Thank you for telling me.”

  Alex nodded. “See you at dinner.” As Alex and Arianna disappeared into the palace, Finn finally shut the car door and took a deep breath as he walked inside. How was he going to make it through dinner? And what the hell did his brother want?

  A few minutes later, Finn found himself at Henry’s office door. After a brisk knock, Finn entered without waiting for Henry to respond. As Finn usually did, he strolled over to take a guest chair and propped his feet on Henry’s desk. Henry, who was stand
ing near the window, scowled.