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“You’re keeping me hostage until I get my period? Seriously?”
For the first time since he walked in the room, his cheeks flushed, and readjusted his stance against the wall. “Yes.”
“That’s…that’s…” Barbaric. Stupid. Ludicrous. “Illegal.”
He rubbed his chin and stared at her, somehow making her insides melt without even trying to. So not fair. “Actually, when it comes to the possibility of royal offspring, I have every right, by Randovian law, to detain you until we’re sure. And since you’re not Randovian, we thought it would be best to have you stay here, with me.”
“God.” She reared back, staring at him. “What happened to you?”
His brow wrinkled. “What do you mean?”
“What made you so…so cold?” she asked slowly.
“I’m not cold. I’m fairly certain I showed you that last night.” He pushed off the wall and stalked toward her. She swallowed hard. He didn’t stop until she was in his arms and his skin was burning into her like a roaring fire on a cold night. He gripped her hip, holding her in place as he lowered his mouth to her ear to murmur, “When I touched you, made you come, I wasn’t cold. When you screamed, your body tensing around mine as I was buried inside you, that wasn’t cold. It was fucking hot, and we both know it.”
She pressed her mouth into a thin line, trying her best to focus on her anger instead of the blazing hunger he brought out in her with his hand on her hip and his hot breath in her ear. “And now you’re abducting me to make sure I’m not pregnant with your baby.” She pressed a hand to his chest, keeping him at a safer distance. “Do you realize how crazy this is?”
“Not just any baby.” His nostrils flared. “The future ruler of Randovia.”
Her belly clenched, her face heating at the idea of his baby inside her belly.
No. So wrong. So very wrong. And still…
“Like I said, we used protection. There won’t be a baby.”
“And you’ll be free to go, once that’s certain.” He ran his knuckles over her cheek. She flinched away, so he dropped his hand to his side, fisting it, and stepped back, finally letting her breathe. “Until then, you stay.”
“Or, instead, I could text you or call you when I get my period.” She lifted her chin. “I’ll let you know when a baby is out of the equation.”
“I’m sure you would, but there have been times where women have lied, so it’s become custom to play it safe. That way there are no little princes or princesses running around unaware of their heritage.” He shrugged, not meeting her eyes. “We simply can’t risk it. It’s a law in my country.”
“So, what, every time you sleep with a woman, you kidnap her?”
He laughed, but it didn’t sound like humor at all. More like a rehearsed imitation of the real thing. “Most women consider it an honor to receive an invitation to stay at the palace. But for the record, I don’t make it a habit to sleep around, for this very reason. If I have sex, it’s with a woman who fully understands the situation, and what comes after. Last night was…special, in more ways than one. When I saw you, I broke my rules.”
“Yay. Lucky me,” she said.
He sighed again. “I understand your frustration, but—”
“I don’t think you do.” She uncrossed her arms and poked him in the chest again. Prince or not, she wasn’t going to tiptoe around him. And if he didn’t like that? Well, he could let her go. “You live in your pretty little castle.” Another poke. “Wearing your pretty little suits.” Again. “And wave your pretty little hand to order me abducted out of a coffee shop before I could so much as finish my croissant.”
He caught her wrist, his grip firm. “Would you like another croissant brought to you, my lady?”
“What? No.” She growled in her throat. “That’s not the point.”
“I know.” He cocked a brow again, not even a hint of anger, embarrassment, amusement—heck, anything even remotely resembling emotion—crossing his face. “That was my attempt at a joke.”
She wrenched free. “Well, I see why you don’t do it often, then.”
He let out another laugh. “Touché.”
She glared at him, not speaking.
“Is it so bad to spend a few nights in my castle?” He reached out as if to touch her again, then pulled back. “I, for one, would like to get to know you again. I’ve always regretted not staying in touch with you.”
If he’d taken literally any other approach to this…and if he hadn’t broken her heart and his trust like he had…maybe she would have liked that, too. But instead, he took what he wanted without asking for it. Instead, he played with the emotions of the people around him, like a puppet master and his marionette.
“I know all I need to know about you,” she said, crossing her arms. “And I have no regrets over how you acted after you left New York. It showed me your true character.” Brushing past him, she yanked the door open. Sure enough, there was a guard standing there, waiting for her escape. It was the same man who had ridden in the car with her on the way here. “Please show me to my room.”
