Page 18 of Palace of Betrayal

“Jesus, Bebe. What are you doing to me?”

“The same thing you’re doing to me.”

Her admission pushed him over the edge, and he slanted his mouth over hers, holding her still as his fingers tightened along her scalp, making pleasure zing through her body. A whimper fell from her lips as they duelled for control. Hands explored wildly as if they couldn’t get enough of each other fast enough.

The barking of a dog pierced her lust-induced delirium and Bebe pulled back, leaning her head against León’s forehead as she tried to catch her breath and get her bearings.

Turning, she angled her face into his neck and spoke. “Perhaps we should calm this down before we put on a show we hadn’t intended.”

She stroked his face when he bit back a curse, his body practically humming with the same energy invading her own. Leo gripped her hips and gently lifted her until she was sitting beside him.

He didn’t push her away though, instead, he pulled her to his side and kissed her cheek. “I lose my head around you.”

She could tell by his tone that the idea wasn’t one he liked but she admired his honesty and gave him the same respect. “I know the feeling.”

He cocked his head toward her and smirked before he stood and offered his hand. “How about that tour?”

Bebe smiled and nodded. “That sounds wonderful. I just need to freshen up and give my hair less of a just-fucked look.”

Leo growled as he drew her closer and dropped a kiss on her lips before gently pushing her away. “Go before I change my mind.”

Bebe laughed and walked toward the bedroom, putting a little extra sway in her hips. As she looked over her shoulder, she saw him watching and winked. “Back in a sec.”

Once inside the bathroom, she splashed her face with cold water before fixing her mussed hair. Meeting her eyes in the mirror she found a woman who looked the same but different from the one who’d arrived the day before. A feeling that everything was changing crept over her, and it had a lot to do with the man in the room next door.

Smoothing her blouse, she grabbed the tiny bugs and cameras from the secure compartment of her luggage and slipped her gun into her thigh holster. She had a garrot in the underwire of her bra and hoped she wouldn’t need either of those things tonight but being prepared was second nature to her now.

‘Trust no one except her team’ was a mantra she lived by, yet she instinctively trusted Prince León Cataleya, and that in itself was unsettling and dangerous. It was time to get this mission kicked into the next gear and uncover who was entering the auction and, more importantly, the details of when and where.

Roz and the girls who didn’t work missions anymore were handling the ‘what’, and she knew they’d have intel soon.

Her mind turned to her friends who were working this same case in different countries, and she wondered how they were getting on with the men they were undercover with. She hoped they were safe, her heart clenching at the thought of anything happening to them and not being able to help them.

She knew her desire to save the world was because of her guilt for letting her sister down but that didn’t make the urge any less potent, no matter how hard she tried.

Seven

Her hand felt small in his much larger one as they walked down the wide staircase of the palace that was his home. His eyes darted all around looking for danger, which he knew was a very real threat and that saddened him beyond belief. The home where he’d grown from a boy to a man, where he’d mourned his mother and followed his father around like a shadow, was now marred with danger and uncertainty.

Everything felt off as if things were shifting beneath him and he couldn’t stop the tide no matter how hard he tried. Glancing at the woman who looked radiant and fearless beside him, he knew it had something to do with her. She’d only been in his life for twenty-four hours and she’d upended his control like nobody ever had.

His nickname in the military was Granite because he never got flustered or lost control. He was always the solid, stable force everyone could rely on. Now, when he needed it more than ever, it was slipping away from him.

“So, tell me about these people. Who’s this?”

León tilted his head to the portrait of his ancestor and began to explain.

They’d followed a similar routine as they wandered around the palace, hand in hand. Bebe would stop to ask questions, and with more discretion than he’d ever seen, plant a bug or a camera, often using the ruse of a kiss or an embrace to hide what she was doing. Not that he minded having his hands or mouth on her in any way at all.

Bebe was highly efficient and skilled from what he’d seen of her. She was also a beautiful distraction. The thought that she was as deadly as she was captivating made the pulse pound in his neck and other, more inconvenient, places. Confident women were his weakness, but this particular woman could be his downfall if he wasn’t very careful.

Sliding his arms around her as he stood at her back, he pulled her close and loved the way she leaned into him, giving him her weight and trusting him to have her back. Her scent was stronger as if she’d sprayed perfume before they left the room, and it teased his senses.

“That’s my great grandfather. I never met him, but I’m told by my father that he was a kind man who ruled this country with a fair hand and a lot of love. His wife, my great grandmother, was the true strength behind him though. She was his most loyal advisor and would attend every meeting of his council with him. Which as you know, wasn’t the norm in those days.”

Bebe angled her head until she was facing him, her lashes long and sultry surrounding those smoky eyes as she blinked up at him. “Sounds like they were truly in love.”

“I think they were, and my grandparents were the same way.”