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A breeze stirred the bare branches of the trees overhead. A shiver racked her body, although whether it was the cold or her internal struggle, she couldn’t say. Alaric moved behind her and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back against his chest. She banished her frightened thoughts and sank into his embrace, focusing on the weight of his arms, the dull thud of his heartbeat against her back, the lingering scent of pine she’d come to know so well.
They stood there until the tips of their noses had turned red with cold. They returned to the house as the sky dimmed. When he paused at the bottom of the stairs, she reached out her hand. He followed her up the stairs and into her room. He kissed her slowly, undressed her even slower. She returned each caress, pressing her lips to the sensitive skin of his wrist, savored the hiss of his breath at her touch.
When he laid her back on the bed and covered her naked body with his, she parted her thighs and arched into the thrust of his hips as he slid inside her. He held her in his arms as they matched each other’s rhythm, deep languid movements that slowly carried them up to the peak of pleasure.
After, he tugged her into the curve of his body, his chest pressed against her back. She listened as his breathing deepened and he slipped into sleep.
But every time she closed her eyes, sleep eluded her, chased away by the memories of that awful night when she’d yanked the wheel out of her husband’s hands and sent the car careering off the road.
Would she ever escape her past?
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
BRIONY’SMOUTHDROPPEDopen as she walked into the lake house.
“This looks like something from the coast of Maine!”
Clara smiled. “I’ve never been to the States before.”
“You’d love it,” Briony assured her. “Little coastal towns with houses just like this. Big windows, wood interiors, porches galore.” She enveloped her big brother in an enthusiastic hug. Clara watched as he returned her embrace, a smile teasing his lips.
As much as Clara had been enjoying her time with Alaric, it was good to see Briony and Cass. Briony had called asking if she and Cass could drop by on their way back to Linnaea from their own honeymoon. She’d missed her big brother, Alaric had said, the roll of his eyes belying the affection in his voice.
Clara had been apprehensive when Cass brought Alaric’s long-lost half sister to the palace three months ago. Her concerns had lain primarily with Cass and what she saw as his manipulative attempts to get his family back into Linnaea. She’d been right, except that Cass had done something unexpected. He’d fallen in love with Briony.
Briony had been even more unexpected. A bartender who had paused her education degree to care for her stepfamily after her mother’s unexpected death, she’d taken to royal life like she’d been born into it. She’d pursued the rebuilding of Linnaea’s education system with a passion that had impressed even her stalwart brother. In just a few short months, she had proven to be what Alaric desperately needed: family.
Something he needed now more than ever Clara thought as Briony bounced over to her for a hug. Alaric had considered cutting their honeymoon short after Daxon’s health scare. But the doctors had assured him that Daxon was stabilized. Having Briony’s visit to look forward to and knowing she would be going back to Linnaea had helped him relax once more.
They started off most mornings with breakfast in the kitchen. Unlike the first morning when she’d come down to the professional spread laid out by the cook, Alaric cooked most mornings while she sat on a high-top chair at the counter and read. Mornings were spent tackling palace business. Even though Alaric had hired a new official executive assistant, she was performing many of the duties she had before.
Except this time, she thought with a smile, those duties were occasionally paused as she pulled the skirt of her dress up and straddled his lap, or Alaric lured her into the shower for a sensual rinse as he wrapped her legs around his waist and took her against the tiled wall. That afternoon on the dock seemed to have ripped away the last of their reticence, at least when it came to sex. They couldn’t get enough of each other.
Aside from their romantic encounters, afternoons had become her favorite. They’d walked through the winding corridors of Geneva’s old city center, explored the shops in Carouge shopping district and sampled fondue brought in by an exclusive restaurant in the coziness of the lake house’s family room. They’d even spent one blissful afternoon planning out their new apartment at the palace, right down to the nursery decorated in a woodland theme that reminded her of the forest behind the castle.
And nights...nights they made love in her bed, falling asleep in a tangle of limbs.
It was the happiest she’d ever been in her life. So why, she asked herself as her sister-in-law wrapped her in a hug, couldn’t she just be satisfied with what she had? Why was she wanting more when Alaric had made it clear that he had no interest in deepening their relationship emotionally? After his confession on the pier, there had been no more intimate talks, no more unburdening of feelings. There were times she caught him glancing at her with a slight smile, felt his touch linger as they made love.
And then there were the wedding photos. Meira and the PR office had done a spectacular job with the press release, releasing “exclusive” materials to some of the most reputable publications across the world.
The formal portraits after the ceremony had been lovely. But it had been a candid shot right before their vows, when Alaric had kissed her hand as she’d thanked him for arranging the more intimate details of their day, that had made her breath catch. The way he looked down at her, his gaze appreciative and warm as she’d smiled up at him, had confirmed the truth she’d been trying to avoid.
She’d fallen in love with her husband. She’d fallen in love, and she didn’t know what to do about it.
As if she’d summoned him with her chaotic thoughts, Alaric came up behind her and slid an arm around her waist. She relaxed into his embrace.
“Dinner is ready,” he announced, his voice a rumble against her back.
“Great.” Briony bounced on her toes. “We barely ate on the flight over.”
Cass shook his head as he smiled indulgently at his wife.
“I barely ate. Briony ate everything in sight.”
Briony playfully swatted his arm. “Well, I am eating for two.”
It took a moment for Briony’s words to register. When they did, Clara’s jaw dropped.
