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What a royal wants…
Prince Hafiz devotes his days to his people and his nights to indulging his desires with his stunning American mistress, Lacey Maxwell. But duty requires him to marry a “suitable” bride.
In her deepest secret fantasies, Lacey naively hopes to one day wear Hafiz’s ring, until her dreams are shattered and he chooses someone else.
Faced with the reality of a passionless union , Hafiz realizes the years spent with Lacey have done nothing to slake his hunger for her. Instead he’s determined to turn his only vice into a virtue for the sake of his country…and each other!
“Hafiz, we’re outside,” Lacey reminded him, her voice hitching with scandalized excitement. “You shouldn’t be this close.”
He knew it, but it didn’t stop him. She was his one and only vice, and he was willingly addicted. He had already risked everything to be with her. Each day he made the choice to risk everything for her. But now the choice was taken away from him, and it was all coming to an end.
He bent his head and stopped abruptly. He should pull away. Hafiz remained still as he stared at Lacey’s mouth. Their ragged breathing sounded loud to his ears. One kiss could bring him peace or could set him on fire. One kiss would lead to another.
Royal & Ruthless
The power of the throne, the passion of a king!
Whether he is a playboy prince or a masterful king, he has always known his destiny: duty—first, last and always.
With millions at his fingertips and the world at his command, no one has dared challenge this ruthless royal’s desire…
Until now.
CHAPTER ONE
HER LOVER’S PICTURE was on the front page of every paper in the small newsstand.
Lacey adjusted the dark sunglasses that concealed her bright blue eyes and squinted at the newspaper on display. Although the headline was in Arabic, the print was big and bold. She could tell that something important had happened. Something that could explain the jubilant attitude that shimmered in the marketplace. No doubt Prince Hafiz had made his countrymen proud again.
She wondered what he had done this time as she requested the daily English paper in halting Arabic. Did he add a fortune to the royal coffers? Convince another industry to make the Sultanate of Rudaynah their headquarters? Win an award?
She decided it would be best to wait until she got home before she read the paper. Lacey took another glance at the pictures of Hafiz that covered the stall. His expression was solemn, but it didn’t stop the secret thrill sweeping across her heated skin. It was unnerving that Hafiz could elicit that kind of response through a photograph.
The photo was an official head shot the palace systematically offered to the press, but while the image was familiar, it always grabbed the reader’s notice. No one could look away from Prince Hafiz’s mysterious dark eyes and harsh mouth. He was devastatingly handsome from his luxuriant black hair to his sharp bone structure. Women watched him from afar, too awed of his masculine beauty.
Or perhaps they sensed his raw power beneath his sophisticated manners. Lacey had instantly recognized the sexual hunger lurking below his ruthless restraint. His primitive aura was a silent warning that most women heeded. But for Lacey, it drew her closer.
She had found Hafiz’s relentless self-discipline fascinating. It had also been a challenge. From the moment they had met, she had been tempted to strip him from his exquisitely tailored pinstripe suit and discover his most sensual secrets.
Just the thought of him made her impatient to get back home. She needed to return before Hafiz got there. His workload would crush a lesser man, but he still managed to visit Lacey at nightfall.
The blazing sun began to dip in the desert sky, and she didn’t want to contemplate how Hafiz would respond if she weren’t home.
He never asked what she did during the day, Lacey thought with a frown. At first his lack of interest had bothered her. Did he think time stood still for her until he appeared?
There were moments when she wanted to share her plans and ideas, even discuss her day, but she had always held back. She wasn’t ready to reveal the work she had done. Not yet. Lacey wanted to show Hafiz what she was capable of. How she could contribute. She wanted to show that she was ready to make his sultanate her permanent home.
