The fraying soldier backed away from them, then turned and hurried down the hallway in the other direction. Breicher assessed his nephew. “Thanks.”
“No problem. Try to stay out of trouble, Your Highness.” Jaden gave him a mocking smile before he resumed whatever mission he’d been on, leaving Breicher to continue searching for the queen.
Caroline draped herself across a chaise, positioning the fabric of her gown so the right amount of her legs would peek out. Lying her head against a pillow, she shut her eyes. Footsteps sounded, then her husband cleared his throat. She started, then made to stretch further, exposing her skin. Between her fluttering lashes, she caught his eyes lock on her legs, but his arms were still firmly secured across his chest.
“You were fast asleep when I left you last night.” Breicher smirked, eyeing her suspiciously. “How are you still tired?”
The truth was, she was tired. She hadn’t slept a wink in two days. Caroline supposed she could have left the dark circles that were forming under her eyes, but that wasn’t sexy, and she had the power to remove them, making herself look as fresh as a babe.
“I’m not used to worrying so much about someone else, husband. It’s exhausting.” Did he just flinch?
“Thanks for the shadow,” he said, changing the topic.
“Where is he, by the way?” Caroline asked, blinking as she surveyed the wary man.
“Jaden rescued me.” He gave her a sly smile.
“Of course, he did.” Caroline sat up, digging her toes into the plush carpet. She leaned forward on her hands so her slight chest would swell against the silky fabric covering it. Everything between them would be a seduction until he was hers again. “You could lock the door and come sit down and tell me what happened.” Her fingers slid over the smooth velvet of the chaise in a lazy circle.
Breicher’s mind and body were at odds. Every impulse in him was screaming, begging him to take what was so plainly being offered before him. His traitorous eyes marched the path of her pearls down her chest and into her cleavage. The taste of her skin as he’d kissed her there a few days earlier was fresh in his mind.
A little voice urged him to calm down. Get ahold of himself. But images of raw earth in mounds scattered across the expanded cemetery wouldn’t leave him. And he didn’t want them to—ever. He clung to them, trying to see that instead of the picture of innocence the queen was painting for him. The picture was a lie.
In his mind, it was her first miscalculation. He’d have to be an idiot not to see what she was trying to do, how she was trying to manipulate him. He wouldn’t have it and he’d make sure she knew he would not be toyed with.
“Fine,” Caroline said, standing, oblivious to his racing thoughts. “If you won’t come to me, then I’ll come to you.”
Watching her sway across the carpet snapped something in him. If she wanted to play the lamb, then he’d play the wolf.
Caroline winced as he slid his hand into her hair and gripped, jerking her head backward, exposing her neck to him. Her hands flew to his chest, and his mouth dragged a line of fire from her earlobe to her collarbone, kissing, biting, and sucking. Grabbing the dainty little strap with his free hand, he tugged it off her shoulder so hard the fabric ripped down her breastbone, exposing one of her peaked nibbles. He fisted her breast, squeezing and pinching until she gave a pleasured cry.
That’s it. You like this.What a waste. He tore himself away from her long enough to grab the slit of the dress and tear it across her front, exposing the sheer panties she was wearing. His arm wrapped around her waist before she could protest, and he gripped her thigh, pulling it around his waist. Her eyes were triumphant balls of fire, and he experienced enough of her to know she was drenched for him.
Edging over to the chaise, he tossed her on it none too gently, then climbed over her, pressing himself onto her, pawing at every bit of flesh he got his hands on. He was going to get her so worked up, then douse her flame with an artic blast. Maybe then she’d think twice before she put on that pretty little act of hers, trying to lure him in again. Caroline let out a moan, pulling his hips into her own, and he relished the sound. It had gone on long enough to have the desired effect. Time to rip the bandage off.
He was aggressive and rough, and Caroline relished in it, greedily running her hands up his firm chest. Never had she imagined being handled like this and liking it, but it turned her blood into a fiery chariot, blazing through her, desperate to be extinguished by what only he could give her. “Take me,” she cried into his neck. She didn’t think she could stand another moment without him inside her.
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” he asked, his lip raising in a snarl as he ground into her most sensitive area.
Her body arched toward him on its own accord, even as a fearful thrill sent her heart skipping. “Yes,” she said. “Gods, yes!”
“Too bad,” he growled. “I’ll be your king. Nothing more, so don’t expect it.”
Breicher pushed off her and stormed out of the room, not sparing her a glance, and muttering something about a she-devil. The door clapped loudly behind him. Caroline laid there for a long moment, thunderstruck. Her clothing was in tatters, and she was trembling, trying to catch her breath. Dead gods, her need for him was becoming goliath, and she had felt his own.What just happened?
“Am I interrupting something?” Jaden asked, searching the room for whoever had the queen in such a state. Her dress was torn down the front, and a rosy nipple stood at attention. Someone had partially ripped away the skirting, exposing her scant undergarments. She didn’t even budge as he approached, a leg still dangling off the chaise, putting her on full display.
Caroline opened her eyes and stared blankly at the ceiling. “I’m going to murder your father.”
Jaden didn’t blink. He shrugged, then picked a blanket from a nearby basket and tossed it to the queen.
He practically smelled her arousal. How could a man walk away from that and all that pink and heaving skin? The Gods had crafted his uncle from stone. Caroline took the blanket and wrapped it around herself, covering the ruined dress. Thank the Gods she did, because he was about ready to finish whatever somebody else had started—consequences be damned. Instead, he asked, “What happened?”
“Go ask your father. Cell fifteen. I care not to relive it.”
Jaden raised a brow. “I see.”
The queen was unmoving, and she was clearly done talking.
