At the elevator, she stopped. “You don’t need to follow me up. You’ve gone above and beyond the call of duty.”
Gaelen moved closer. “I’m walking you to your door,” he told her.
“You don’t…”
The elevator arrived at that moment. They waited while a group of people stepped out, several of them men, as well as the women, eyed him up and down. But they only slowed, not stopping as they proceeded with their evening. It was prime clubbing time, he knew. And most of these people who were out and about tonight would be hitting the clubs.
The elevator was smaller than he’d expected, especially considering how many people had gotten out of it only moments before. As the doors closed, he watched Savannah.
She felt it too. That tension, the awareness…it was there in her eyes. She felt it and was fighting it. But like him, she was losing the battle.
“What floor are you on?” he asked, and glanced over at the numbers, realizing that she’d already pressed the button for the eighth floor.
“Eight,” she replied unnecessarily.
He struggled to find something else to say, but his mind was blank. Probably because he was looking at her lips, noticing the fullness. Her mouth fell open slightly and his body hardened as the awareness intensified.
Nostrils flared as he looked down at her, registering her scent and the softness in her eyes. The hunger.
“We can’t,” she whispered.
“I know,” he replied, understanding her comment even though he didn’t want to. Instead, he wanted to take her into his arms and kiss her, make love to her until they were too exhausted for logic and reason to interfere with their desires.
The elevator doors opened, but that didn’t diminish that sense of awareness. In fact, the narrow hallway intensified that feeling, making him painfully aware of how close they were. The hallway was long, containing lights interspersed with doors, some with welcome mats and others without. The floor was linoleum and the walls merely painted cinderblock, but he barely registered the lack of luxury. He was completely focused on Savannah, on the gentle sway of her hips and the ramrod straight spine as she fought against the sensuous pull building between them.
She stopped in front of a non-descript doorway, her head bowed. All he could see was her whiskey-colored hair and the elegant line of her neck. Someone came down the hallway, necessitating that he step closer to her. Gaelen put his hands on her hips, holding her steady while he moved out of the way for the other person to pass by.
When they were alone once again, he didn’t move away. Instead, he pressed closer, needing to feel her. “I won’t kiss you,” he vowed.
Her head shot up and those chocolate eyes shimmered with hurt.
His hands tightened on her waist and he sighed. “Unless you want me to,” he corrected.
She licked her lips and he groaned. Lowering his head was the most natural thing in the world. He felt as if he’d known her for decades. Just a kiss, he promised himself. A small, short kiss. Just a touch to ease their curiosity about what it could be like between them.
As soon as their lips touched, Gaelen knew that this was a bad idea. She was hurt. She’d been in the emergency room less than twenty-four hours ago. And yet, he couldn’t pull away. Her lips were sweet nectar and he caressed her lips again and again, teasing, taunting, tempting her to open her mouth. When she finally did, tilting her head back for more, he deepened the kiss, feeling her lean into him.
He couldn’t seem to stop. The taste of her filled his mouth, but it wasn’t enough. He wanted more! He wanted to devour her, find each and every place on her body that caused her to make those sexy sounds. Shifting, he aligned their bodies more fully, moving against her, lifting her up and…
“Ouch!” she cringed away from his hands.
Immediately, Gaelen pulled away, cursing himself quietly as he pulled his palm away from the back of her head. Right on top of the lump the other ass had left her with.
“Savannah, I’m so sorry,” he whispered, pulling her against his chest as he checked her head. The bump was smaller, but he still berated himself for being so clumsy.
“Its fine,” she assured him. “I promise, it really is much better than it was only a few hours ago.”
“I’m glad that the medicine helped.” He sighed, his hands sliding slowly down her back to curl around her waist again. “Lock your door and go to bed.” He paused in his orders to kiss the top of her head tenderly. “Call me in the morning, okay?”
“Will do,” she promised, then smiled and turned, fumbling with her key for a moment. Eventually, she succeeded, then turned as she pushed the door open. She smiled wistfully up at him as she stepped into her apartment, then waved before she closed the door.
For a long moment, he stood there, staring at the door, waiting to hear her lock it. He wanted to break it down and demand that she return to his suite with him. This wasn’t a good neighborhood and she deserved better! She deserved to be pampered and cared for!
Unfortunately, he doubted that she’d agree. So, instead of knocking on the door and telling her that she was coming back with him, he forced himself to turn and head back towards the elevator.
When he finally stepped out of the building, he looked around again. The same groups of people were still in front of the building. His Mercedes was still there at the curb, untouched. With relief, he moved towards the vehicle, sending a message to his guards. They immediately responded and he drove away, satisfied that his woman would be protected.
Chapter 3
Gaelen stepped back into the suite and sighed, cursing himself for letting Savannah stay in that horrible building. What if…!
“Gaelen, I was wondering if…?”
He froze and opened his eyes, finding his little sister standing in the hallway. “Talia? What are you doing here?” he asked.
She smiled in greeting. “I’m here to attend that series of meetings on innovations in social services I mentioned last month.” She moved closer. “Are you okay? You look really angry.”
He straightened, dropping his hand from the bridge of his nose and giving her a welcoming hug. “I’m fine, honey. How are you doing?”
She pressed against him, but only for a moment. It had been like that for a while now and he wondered why Talia kept pulling away from any sort of affection. “I’m fine. I was just…” she sniffed and he looked down at her.
He quickly sifted through the possible issues. “Are the twins okay? I thought they were improving. Are they…?”
“Elsa and Ellora are fine,” she assured him, referring to their five year old twin nieces, who had been devastated recently by the death of their parents, their oldest sister. “In fact, Tarin is taking them to the mountains for a few days, giving Amit and Harper some time to themselves.” She grinned, crossing her arms over her chest. “I really like Harper,” she said, referring to the woman who had come into their oldest brother’s life at a time when they were at their lowest. Amit had fallen head over heels for Harper and the two were planning their wedding.
“She did wonders for all of us after the death of Orella,” he replied. Orella had been the oldest sibling in their family. She’d been…adventurous. Some might say rebellious, but Gaelen didn’t like to think of his older sister in that light, although…to be perfectly honest, Orella had been stupidly rebellious and self-centered to boot.
Talia’s features fell and that terrible sadness washed through her face. “I know that I’m not supposed to hate Orella. She was my big sister. But…” she sighed and turned around, heading back into the suite. “Well, to tell you the truth, she wasn’t around much. And when she was around, she didn’t like talking to me. She’d shoo me out of her room, then go off on some wondrous adventure somewhere.”
Gaelen shook his head. “That last ‘wondrous adventure’ she took off on also took her life,” he reminded his sister. They both moved to the bar and he poured her a snifter of brandy as well as one for himself. “I loved her t
oo, Talia, but she was a selfish brat sometimes.”
They sipped the brandy in companionable silence. Talia was the first to break the silence. “Was she ever different?”
Gaelen led her over to one of the long sofas and they sat down. Talia curled her legs up underneath her and he pressed a button, lighting the fire instantly. “I don’t know,” he admitted honestly. “She was always going off, doing her own thing. Mom and Dad argued with her most of the time, then she’d storm out of the palace and…well, we’d find out where she’d gone by reading about her latest exploits in the tabloids. They cut off her credit cards and wouldn’t give her money, which is why she married that ass.”
Talia sighed, the sound tinged with sadness and regret. “She was so beautiful though. How could he resist her?”
Savannah appeared behind his eyes, leaning in for that kiss. A simple kiss that had turned not-so-simple. “Yeah, I’m starting to understand Orella a bit more lately.”
Talia sighed and leaned her head against his shoulder. Years ago, Talia would have simply crawled onto his lap, but they were older now and, hell, she was a woman. He turned and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “Is there a special man in your life?” he asked, his tone teasing.
But when she didn’t respond immediately, he pulled back, dislodging her head from his shoulder. “Talia?” he prompted.
She grinned up at him. “Seriously, Gaelen, if there was a man in my life, don’t you think I’d bring him to you or the guards for a security check?” She snorted and shook her head. “I think I learned my lesson with Orella’s husband, the money grubbing bastard!”
He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in close again. “Hey, don’t condemn him for marrying Orella, thinking that he was marrying into money when she did the same thing by marrying him. It just happened that they were both shooting pretty low in the ethical barrel and both came out wanting.”
“I really hope that the man I fall in love with isn’t a bastard,” she whispered.
He chuckled and squeezed her affectionately. “I’ll make damn sure that he isn’t!”
With a sigh, he looked at his watch. “Speaking of bastards, I have an early morning meeting with one tomorrow. I should really get some sleep.” He turned and looked down at her. “What are your plans? I wasn’t expecting you, but there’s plenty of room here.”
She grinned up at him. “I know, which is why I came here to surprise you.”
He looked at her and noticed the haunted look in her eyes. “Are you really okay?”
Her smile vanished and she didn’t say anything for a long moment. Then she replied, “I don’t know. I know that Harper said we should be talking about our feelings more, but every time I think about Orella, I get angry with her. I wanted to know my older sister, but before that could happen, Orella went and did something stupid. I feel as if I’ve lost out on something really important.”
He nodded. “Tomorrow, I’ll tell you stories about her. I’ll find something good for you.”
They turned and headed towards the bedrooms. “I don’t want just the good stuff though. She was human, I know that. So tomorrow, tell me some bad things too. I only have vague memories of her and how mean she was to me. But I’d like to know who she really was.”
He tilted his head thoughtfully. “That goes against all of my instincts,” he replied, “but for you, I’ll come up with good and bad stuff.”
He left her at the door to one of the guest rooms and proceeded on to his own room. Stripping off his clothes, he thought about his older sister who had died in a car crash. Her husband had been going too fast through the narrow, winding mountain roads of the Italian Alps and they’d crashed into a cliff wall, dying instantly. In the aftermath, his sister had left behind two darling little twin girls, both of whom had been devastated by the death of their mother, despite the fact that she’d left them with nannies most of the time, even before her death.
The twins, Elsa and Ellora, were beautiful, sweet, and very sensitive. Also, overly observant. In the aftermath of their sister’s death, the four siblings, himself included, had stoically faced the world’s press at the funeral, not saying anything to the reporters or showing any emotion that the photographers could capture.
The small girls hadn’t understood their stoicism and had simply imitated their aunt and uncles, not showing emotion as they watched their mother and father’s funeral procession. Afterwards, they’d refused to speak until Gaelen’s older brother, Amit, brought in an expert child psychologist. Doctor Harper Ross was a beautiful, intelligent, and intuitive woman who had explained that the girls were only a symptom of what was happening in the family. All of the siblings were pretending that their sister’s death hadn’t happened, moving along with their responsibilities, and not showing a crack in the strength of the ruling family of Izara. The girls were emulating their Aunt Talia and their three uncles, Amit, Gaelen, and Tarin.
The twins finally admitted that their last words their mother spoke to them were, “You’re going to kill me with your chattering!” Orella had stormed away. Hence, the reason the small girls had stopped speaking. They’d been terrified of killing someone else.
The combination of their mother’s hurtful words, plus their confusion over the lack of visible grieving, had left the two small girls confused and scared.
As soon as the aunt and uncles started talking to the girls about their grief, talking about the life of their older sister, the twins had started to come out of their shell. It had been a slow, painful process for all of them, but over the past year, Elsa and Ellora were starting to heal. It was still a wound in his soul whenever he thought about Orella and the waste of her life, but he was starting to put those issues into perspective.
With a sigh, he turned away from the view. It was over, he told himself. It was time to move on. Not to forget Orella, but to move on. He hadn’t realized how many feelings were churning inside of him until he’d met Savannah. Her smiles had lightened his heart and he’d laughed! Damn, he hadn’t realized how long it had been since he’d genuinely laughed until she’d brought him that ridiculous drink the other night.
Turning out the light, he slipped between the sheets. But instead of falling asleep as he should, Gaelen stared up at the ceiling, thinking about how many ways he would make love to Savannah.
Chapter 4
Gaelen walked briskly down the hallway towards Savannah’s apartment the following morning. That bastard, Santo, had pushed their morning meeting back to the afternoon. He’d offered some lame excuse, but Gaelen suspected that the bastard just didn’t want to face him this morning.
Pushing away his frustration over the delay, Gaelen stopped in front of Savannah’s doorway and knocked. When there was no response, he became worried. Had her head injury not healed enough? Should he have insisted that she stay with him again last night? Or had his clumsiness last night hurt her more than he’d realized?
Damn it, she should have called him if there was a problem! And damn, he should have taken better care of her. Every instinct inside of him had rebelled at leaving her here last night, so why hadn’t he simply hauled her back to his car, then driven away so that she’d been safe?!
“She’s not there,” someone called out.
Gaelen spun around, searching for the speaker. When he spotted a woman, heavily pregnant with a child on her hip and another walking beside her, holding her hand, he was startled.
“I’m sorry?”
The woman hitched the toddler higher on her hip impatiently. “She’s not there,” the woman repeated. “She left early this morning. She has a job over at a diner somewhere in the fancy part of town.”
With that, the woman moved off down the hallway, the boy walking beside her turned his head to look back at him while he followed his mother.
Gaelen muttered a curse, wishing that he could help the woman as well. Here he was, furious that Savannah lived in this place, and yet there were probably hundreds of women who were in wor
se situations than her. At least Savannah didn’t have a baby to care for. That woman had two with another on the way.
Walking out of the building, his thoughts immediately turned to his own country of Izara. He wondered how many women were in similar situations and what he could do to protect them from the harsh world and the difficult realities of being a single mother. Yes, he knew that his overly protective instincts towards women were a sign of his sexist attitude, but he didn’t give a damn about that. He’d been raised to respect and care for women, to protect them. Plus, his natural instincts…and deep down inside, Gaelen knew that he was a warrior to his core…was to protect. Not just women, but everyone.
He couldn’t just ignore that instinct. Nor would he ignore his anger over Savannah going into work today. She should be resting and taking care of herself. Instead, he suspected that she was waiting tables and probably in pain. Had she taken her pain medicine this morning? Or was she trying to be brave and ignore the pain?
Unfortunately, he didn’t know her well enough yet to anticipate what she might have done. Hell, he hadn’t even anticipated that she’d go to work today. He needed…wanted…to get to know her better. He wanted to know her secrets and hopes and dreams. He smiled as he slipped into the back of the SUV. That was his plan. As much as he could over the next couple of weeks while he was here negotiating with that ass Santo, he’d spend time with Savannah, get to know her, and…yeah, make love to her.
Chapter 5
Entangled with the Prince Page 5
