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‘What do you think you’re doing?’
‘The waltz is over. Let me go, please.’
In contrast to her demand, his hand tightened on her waist. ‘We’re under scrutiny, Maddie. This isn’t the time to make a scene.’
‘Oh, really? I...’
Her words trailed off as his head dropped in a slow but inexorable descent that announced his intention to do precisely as he pleased.
She had time to move away...time to place a hand on that broad chest and stop him from doing something that she knew in her bones would intensify the cyclone tearing through her. She didn’t do either.
Her breath strangled to nothing, she watched Remi Montegova’s imperious head lower until his lips were a scant centimetre from hers. Her gaze locked on his and she waited, felt his breath wash over her face as he stretched out the moment until her every sense screamed with a rabid, alien hunger, before slanting his mouth over hers.
As kisses went, the hard but brief imprint of his mouth over hers shouldn’t have made such a stomach-churning impact. It shouldn’t have rooted her to the spot, made the music echoing in the ballroom or the people within its walls seem to disappear.
But the ferociously intense look in his eyes and the searing brand of his kiss made Maddie experience every nanosecond of it with a vividness that promised she wouldn’t forget or dismiss it any time soon, and the eye contact he maintained as he delivered the searing kiss electrified her to her very toes.
As slowly as he’d commenced the thrilling assault he retreated, giving her time to absorb the shivers rolling through her, the flames flickering insistently in her belly and the wild tingling between her legs.
It was that last damning sensation that pulled her up short, helped her fill her lungs with much needed oxygen as she attempted to make sense of what had happened.
‘What...what are you doing?’ she whispered under her breath.
The overwhelmingly male figure before her smiled, and a hand she didn’t recall releasing hers joined the other at her waist in a firm hold. ‘Extending the parameters of our association,’ he said.
‘I don’t recall agreeing to...this.’
He stepped back, his face tightening a touch. To everyone else the Crown Prince would be a picture of elegant royalty and sophistication. But she was catching glimpses of the man underneath. Beneath the façade there was ferocious determination. An iron will. And a dark anguish.
It was too overwhelming.
Before she could recover her thoughts, he settled his hand on the small of her back and led her out of the ballroom, not stopping until they were outside.
CHAPTER FIVE
OUTSIDE, A LIGHT DRIZZLE was falling, creating puddles on the pavement.
Maddie gathered the hem of her evening gown, preparing for a quick dash to the limo. But she froze as Remi stayed her with his hand, and watched, a little stunned, as he shrugged out of his tuxedo and draped it over her shoulders.
The enfolding warmth and intimacy of his body heat heightened the already surreal atmosphere, so when he stared down at her for a moment before laying a hand in the small of her back and nudging her gently towards the waiting limo, she didn’t protest.
The driver hurried towards them with a large umbrella. Remi took it from him, holding it over her head as the drizzle intensified.
She attempted to tell herself the chivalrous act was for show, but the idea wouldn’t stick. Unlike his half-brother, Remi exuded magnetic charm, as well as other larger-than-life characteristics, some of which set her teeth on edge. But every single one commanded attention, focused on the simple fact that he was head and shoulders above others. A man who did exactly as he pleased.
Which circled her racing thoughts back to the fiancée he’d mentioned. She was still attempting to throttle that curiosity when the limo pulled away.
The shift of air shrouded her in his scent once again. More than a little agitated, she sat up and started to shrug off his tuxedo. ‘Take this back.’
He shook his head. ‘No, keep it on. Your temperamental English weather is out in full force,’ he quipped, nodding out of the window to where rain lashed the windows.
For a moment she watched the hypnotic diagrams the rainwater drew on the glass. For as long as she could remember she’d loved storms. She loved watching the rain wash the world clean. Now, ensconced in the limo with Remi, watching the rain fall felt almost too intimate.
She cleared her throat and turned to find him watching her. ‘Can we talk about what happened? And, more importantly, can we agree that it’ll never happen again?’ she stressed, relieved when her voice emerged briskly.
His eyes gleamed in the dark. ‘You find what I did so objectionable?’
There was a peculiar throb in his voice that sent tingles down her spine.
