by CA Quigg
I threw my head back and laughed. "I hardly think she's a terrorist or an undercover journalist, and I'm aware she was in the gardens. No need to get security involved. I have…someone keeping an eye on her. Leave her alone and let me deal with her. I know you have my best interests at heart, but I can take care of this."
"Yes, your highness." Beverly curtsied, something she only did when she was angry and to show how pissed off she was. "Who do you have keeping an eye on her? I have everyone's schedules, and no one's on babysitting duty."
"Drop it. Is that clear?" I rarely raised my voice to Beverly. She had been with our family for a long time and had been my father's right-hand woman for many years. When he got ill, and I took over his responsibilities, I couldn't have done it without her help. Truth be told, I'd be lost without her, but her constant need to know everything about my life private or otherwise often rubbed me the wrong way. The last thing I needed or wanted was her snooping around.
"You do know I only want what's best for you and the royal family. I've dedicated my life to you. Was like a mother to you and your sisters when you needed one."
"You're right. I'm sorry. You don't deserve a tongue lashing." I smiled inwardly. Emma was the only person here who deserved a tongue lashing, and she would get one. "Trust me on this, Beverly. Emma is harmless, and I'm handling it."
"So it's Emma now, is it? Last week she was a money-sucking vampire who was out to extort money from you."
"Those were your words, not mine," I reminded her.
Beverly's eyes sharpened. "What's going on, Kris, and don't tell me nothing. I know you better than that."
"Nothing. Trust me. Stop looking for something that isn't there."
She lowered her eyes in deference, her face full of annoyance. "Then I shall take you at your word. Did you make up your mind last night about a wife? Anyone suitable?"
"I'll discuss it with my father then I'll discuss it with you."
"As you wish, Your Highness."
"I have a few things I need to take care of," I said, irritated enough to dismiss her without being polite. "I'll see you later."
When Beverly left my office, or should I say flounced out, I rolled the stiffness out of my shoulders and yawned. I hadn't gotten any sleep last night because my mind was filled with Emma and what I had instructed her to do in the garden.
I'd never brought a woman there before, or anyone else for that matter. It was the one place on the castle grounds where I could be alone. It was my sanctuary, but I'd needed her so desperately, and it was the closest place we could go to get a modicum of privacy. I could hardly have her suck my cock by the fountain, not when so many dignitaries were still meandering around, that and the grounds had security cameras positioned throughout.
I had to talk to my father about the banquet. Make him understand that none of the women were right for me. My dream woman, the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, would be in sync with me. Our desires would be the same, and we would mutually enjoy each other. I didn't want to be with someone who would grin and bear it and pray for it to be over.
Was it foolish to think Emma could be that woman? Last night, she'd enjoyed every single command I'd given her, and with enough time, I could teach her. Introduce her to more pleasure than she could imagine. She was eager to learn and that mouth of hers…my cock jolted at the memory, but she was a virgin.
Unsullied and unspoiled.
Too good and too pure for me.
Plus, building her up to what I needed her to be would take time and, disappointingly, time wasn't something we had. In the blink of an eye, she would be out of my life. Gone forever and I couldn't risk an attachment to someone who was not going to be there when I needed her.
However, that didn't stop me craving her. I'd had a semi all night and all morning, but I hadn't bothered doing anything about it. What would be the point? Only one person could satisfy me, and I'd rejected her. The look on her face when she walked away last night kicked me in the gut and would haunt me forever.
I shouldn't have acted as cold or as callous as I had, but when I found out she was a virgin, everything I'd imagined for us, vanished. I was a selfish, cold-hearted prick. I'd left an innocent twenty-one-year-old in tears whose only fault was wanting to please me. Please the man who had lied to her about his identity. Please the man who may never come clean about who he truly was.
I should confess. Tell her the truth. That Prince Kristian Ignatius Tandorf had picked her up at the transit station and not Kit Whitehall. But if I did, there was a possibility that she would hate me, and, above everything else, her hate wasn't something I wanted.
On the other hand, revealing who I was meant she would leave the castle and get on with her life, but it also meant she'd leave my life and I wasn't ready for her to leave. Not yet.
What was she doing now? Was she in her room thinking about me? Wondering what she could have done or said differently? Or was she on her hands and knees masturbating?
The intercom on my desk crackled to life. "The girl called asking when she's going to meet you."
I blew out a breath and scrubbed my hands over my face. "I'll take care of it."
There was no point torturing myself by denying what I wanted any longer. I couldn't resist her. Without her by my side, the rest of last night had been long and lonely, and, God dammit, I'd waited long enough for someone like her to come into my life.
I stormed out of my office and strode past Beverly, who sat ramrod straight at her desk pecking her fingernails against her keyboard, and went to the elevator.
I wasn't ready to tell Emma who I was, but I was ready to make up for the bastard I had been and for my reprehensible behavior.
I'd take her from the castle. Bring her somewhere private away from prying eyes. Take her to a place where we could spend some quality time together. Where I could slowly introduce her to my world and to what I wanted and needed. A place where she could scream her head off without the fear of being heard. A place where I could do and be who I wanted without being judged.
Beverly rushed after me, her heels clacking along the parquet floor. "Where are you going in such a hurry?"
I stepped into the elevator. "Cancel all of my engagements and appointments for the next two days. If you need me call my cell phone, but unless it's life or death, don't contact me."
"What about the girl? What would you like me to do with her?"
"Don't worry about Emma. She's coming with me."
Shock drained Beverly's face of all color. She opened her mouth to protest, but before any words left her mouth, the elevator doors whooshed shut.
Rhias wouldn't fall apart without me. There were enough people to take care of any eventuality that arose. After my two days alone with Emma, I'd reveal myself to her, and by then, I hoped she'd be so enamored with me she would forgive my dishonesties.
****
I used my private tunnels beneath the castle to get to her rooms in the unused part of the palace, and when I reached her door, I knocked.
I heard her move behind the door and the sound of the peephole latch sliding to one side. "Go away," she said.
"We need to talk."
"You said enough last night. Leave me alone."
The quaver in her voice hung a noose of shame around my neck, and I hammered my fist against the door. "Emma open the bloody door. If you don't, I'll knock it down."
The door flew open. Emma's eyes were dark and ominous. Like a cloud filled sky right before a lightning storm. She looked as if she'd gotten as much sleep as I had.
"What do you want, Kit?"
"Can I come in?"
She stood back and crossed her arms. "It's not like I can stop you, is it?
"But you can, sweetheart. You can stop me anytime you need to. I'm not a monster."
"I didn't say you were, but you seem to think you can take what you want when you want it and then dispose of it, dispose of me, when you've had your fill."
I stepped into
the sitting room. The lightly spiced air smelled like her, and I drew in a deep breath. "I'm sorry for my behavior last night. What I said and the way I acted was unforgivable, but, please, allow me to make it up to you."
She closed the door and pressed her back against it. Her entire stance from her crossed arms to the thunder on her face shut me out. "Screw you and your big-ass dick. I don't want anything made up to me. As soon as I talk to Prince Kristian, I'm out of here."
Her fury was intoxicating, and I felt a wave of want. I expected her rage. Accepted it even, and I would do what I could to harness her anger and passion so we could both get enjoyment from it.
I reached out wanting to touch a lock of hair, which lay over her shoulder in shiny black waves, but she jerked away.
"I can't stop thinking about you, sweet Emma. You're there when I close my eyes. You're there when I open them. I don't understand how a woman I met less than a day ago has done this to me. I'm not used to feeling like this and I don't know how to handle it."
Her usual cat-green eyes were dull and weary, and her lips were pressed into a tight line of pissiness.
She dropped her arms to her sides. "What are you talking about? Are you on drugs? Look at you. You could have any woman you wanted. Women probably throw themselves at you all the time. I'm nothing special." She rubbed the heels of her hands over her eyes then clasped her head in her hands. "I don't understand any of this. My brain feels like it's going to explode."
"The only thing you need to understand is that I want you." I strode toward the window and surveyed the sprawling kingdom of Rhias miles below the palace. A kingdom that would soon be under my complete rule. "Please believe me when I say I've never felt this way about anyone. The minute I saw you I recognized you as the woman I needed to be with. I don't know why that happened, but I'm not going to fight it. I shouldn't want you like this, but I do." What in God's name was I doing? Saying? I didn't know Emma, and yet I did.
She came to me and laid her head on my shoulder. "Kit, I don't know what to say. I…"
"You don't have to say anything. You're coming away with me for a few days."
"I can't leave. Beverly will have a shit fit." She lifted her head from my shoulder and looked set to stomp her foot like a child who'd just been told no. "And I'm not going anywhere until I meet Prince Kristian."
Shame and guilt surged inside of me, but now wasn't the time to tell her who I was. "The Prince has been called away on urgent business. He asked that I entertain you in his absence. When he returns, he'll take the time to sit down with you and talk."
Her beautiful green eyes flashed then hardened. "He doesn't want to see me, does he? He wants to get rid of me."
I gathered her in my arms and held her tight. "He does want to see you. I promise, but you must understand, he's a busy man."
"So busy he can't take five minutes from his schedule to walk across the lawn and see me?" Hysteria laced her voice.
I soothed her by brushing a hand over her silky hair and spoke quietly. "He's very apologetic, but right now is a hectic time for him. His father is ill and is putting pressure on him to find a wife." My lies would send me straight to hell, and when Emma found out, she would never forgive me.
"I'm such a selfish bitch. I've only been thinking about myself and no one else."
"There's not a selfish bone in your body."
She looked up at me, her breath fanned my lips, and my dick throbbed, desperate to feel her touch, her warmth, but I'd wait. I would deprive myself until I got her alone. Until the time was right. The wait would be worth it.
"Where are we going to go?" she asked.
"The prince has a chalet in the French mountains. He's given me access to it. It's secluded and private. No one will know we're there."
Some of the mischievous humor I'd grown to love returned to her eyes. "Are you taking me up to the mountains to kill me and then dispose of my body?"
"If anything were going to happen to you, I would've taken you to the dungeons and fulfilled my wicked needs."
She pressed her breasts against me and rubbed her palm against my crotch. "Tell me more about your wicked needs."
"How about I show you instead?"
Her brow wrinkled in confusion. "You're going to take me to the dungeons?"
I planned to take her to the dungeons before she left the castle, but I wanted to keep that a surprise.
"I don't need the dungeons to show you. I need to take you somewhere we won't be disturbed, and the chalet is the perfect place."
She flung her arms around my neck and pressed a deep searching kiss against my lips. There was a demand in her kiss that I didn't miss, and my dick pleaded and wept begging for playtime, but I'd resist. I'd wanted many things in my life, and had gotten them, but I now realized they were worthless because nothing compared to the desire and want I had for Emma.
She stepped back, her eyes emerald bright and her cheeks flushed a pretty shade of pink. "So the whole virgin thing doesn't bother you or freak you out?"
I tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "I'm not bothered or freaked out. I was surprised. You're twenty-one and live in the original Sin City. Besides, there are plenty of things we can do without taking your virginity."
"But," she paused and nibbled on her lower lip, her eyes downcast, "what if my virginity is something I want you to take?"
The Neanderthal inside me roared and demanded I throw her to the floor and take what she so willingly offered. But I calmed him down by promising him an endless number of blowjobs. When and if I took her virginity, it would be somewhere better than in a dusty old apartment in an unused wing of the palace. I'd do everything I could to make it memorable for both of us.
"Your time here could be very pleasurable, but promise me something, don't ask me to take your virginity again. I won't do it."
"But—"
"Promise me."
"Fine." From the way she said it, it was anything but fine.
Chapter Nine
Kristian
Powdery snow covered the roads to the chalet. It'd been a while since I had been to the mountain house, but the place was well maintained, was always prepared for visitors, and was stocked with provisions in case of a snowstorm.
During the short drive up, Emma chatted about her family and her hopes and dreams. She confided in me about her mother and what had become of her. Both of our mothers met their deaths in accidents involving water, and the coincidence wasn't lost on me.
Sadness nudged at the edges of my consciousness, tugging back memories of the never-ending days when the Navy dredged our private cove for my mother's body, of my father broken and desolate, of my sisters screaming for their mama, of me having to grow into a man overnight.
Sorrow threatened to pull me down to the depths of grief, but I wouldn't let it. I focused on the happy times I'd had. For ten years, my days were filled with laughter and hugs, which was more than Emma had ever experienced. She'd been a baby, not even six when her mother had died. All of her memories had been colored by time and by what other people had told her.
Emma had grown up in poverty, but she brushed off the hardships she'd faced and said her grandmother always made sure they had enough. She deserved more than enough. She deserved everything she desired. Her heart was huge and her compassion deep. Her dreams were proof of that. She wanted to be a champion for children. To help them realize where they came from didn't reflect who they were or what they could be. The man who ended up with her was a lucky fucker, and I was already jealous of him.
When we pulled to a stop in the courtyard, Emma's jaw dropped, and she looked around in awe. The house had that effect on people. Tucked away in one-hundred acres of protected land and nestled between snow-covered pine trees, it was visually breathtaking and extremely private. My grandfather built it as a place for our family to come together. A place where we could shut out the world.
The mountain range was one I'd explored and climbed many times over the years during both summ
er and winter
"By chalet, I thought you meant a small house. I didn't realize you meant a mansion on top of a mountain. Who looks after this place? It's too big to be abandoned for months on end."
"The royal family employs several caretakers year round. There live in cabins at the edge of the land. They take care of the ski slopes and the house." After calling the royal staff to ready the house for my arrival and to remove all personal items such as photographs from view, I'd given them the next two days off. The last thing I needed was for anyone to come along and address me as Your Highness in front of Emma.
"Holy hell does this place have its own ski slopes?"
"Yes, my fat—the Prince's father and grandfather were avid skiers. Skiing is—was—a passion the prince shared with his father, but since King Sebastian's illness, Prince Kristian hasn't been up here." Melancholy at my father's infirmity choked me up, and I quickly looked out of the car window so Emma wouldn't see the pain so clearly painted on my face.
Her hand reached for mine, and she squeezed. "You love your king very much don't you?"
Not trusting myself to speak, I swallowed hard before answering. "We all do. He's been a good king and loving father." Needing to change the subject before she wrenched any more emotion from me, I asked, "Do you ski?"
"If by skiing you mean sitting by the fire and drinking hot cocoa, then, yes I do." She gave me a playful push. "Vegas is the driest state in the US. It's mostly desert. We don't get snow in the desert."
"There are lots places to ski near where you're from like the Sierra Nevada area."
"Places I could never afford to go."
"Would you like to learn?"
"We have two days. I'm sure there are plenty of other things you can teach me in two days. Skiing not being one of them." She winked and stepped out of the car.
