The Prince's Texas Bride / The Reluctant Princess: The Prince's Texas Bride / The Reluctant Princess. Raye Morgan

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ tried to shake it off, but wasn’t completely successful. She wasn’t accustomed to someone being protective of her. “It didn’t happen often,” she drawled.

      He chuckled. “I bet it didn’t,” he said and chucked her chin with his index finger. “Do you see him often? Your brother?”

      His question slid under her radar, right through her ribs. She rarely mentioned her brother because his absence from her life was still painful to her. “Eli left a long time ago. He had to go. It was the only way.” She took a quick breath and shook her head, hating the fact that Stefan had found her vulnerable spot. “Can we talk about something else?”

      He paused a half beat, then nodded. “Of course. We’re here to celebrate,” he said with his most charming smile and clicked his glass against hers again.

      She took a quick sip but spilled the champagne on the front of her shirt as she pulled the glass away. Frustration prickled through her. “This is why I don’t drink very often,” she muttered, futilely pulling at her shirt.

      “I can see where it would be distracting during a date,” Stefan said.

      Glancing up, she saw his gaze fixed on her breasts. She looked down and was mortified by the outline of her nipples against the shirt. “Oh, great. This is embarrassing,” she said and crossed her arms over her breasts. “See why I’m not big on formal parties? Even a private celebration in the seclusion of a faraway courtyard is not safe.”

      Stefan took her glass and tossed it onto the soft bed of grass along with his, then took her chin in his fingers. “Trust me, Eve. If a man chooses to be with you in a courtyard, he’s not thinking of safety,” he said and lowered his mouth to hers.

      Her heart stuttered in her chest. In another lifetime, she wondered if she could have turned him away. She’d turned so many others away. But she sensed that Stefan was strong enough. Man enough. She paused a heartbeat, then opened her mouth, opened herself to him.

      Something between them clicked and snapped at the same time. If she believed in that kind of thing, she would have said it was electrical. But Eve didn’t believe. At least, she never had before.

      He deepened the kiss, sliding his tongue past her lips, tasting and testing her. She slid her hands upward to his strong shoulders, wanting to absorb his strength and power into her. The kiss turned deeply passionate, almost carnal, making her cling to him.

      He murmured something delicious against her lips, and suddenly she felt the night air against her back as he unbuttoned the bottom of her shirt. His hand on the bare skin of her waist stopped her breath. Seconds later, one of his hands slid upward to her breast, and she pushed against it, resenting the barriers of her shirt and bra. She wanted to feel his skin.

      Part of her was shocked at the force of her desire, but another part of her knew she’d been waiting for this—for him—for years. She felt as if she were riding a tsunami of sensation and refused to fight it. She tugged at his shirt, he pulled at hers, and buttons flung loose. Seconds later, he unfastened her bra and her breasts sprang free. He immediately covered one of her breasts with his hand.

      Her nipple was hard and sensitized to his touch. He swore under his breath as he toyed with her nipple at the same time as he French-kissed her. She drank in the spicy, masculine scent of him and felt as if the world was turning sideways.

      Stefan clasped his hand beneath her hips and lifted her upward. At the same time, he lowered his head to take her nipple into his mouth, she felt his hardness pressed against her.

      Dizzy with want, she slumped against him.

      Stefan groaned, lifting his head and pulling her tightly against him. “We need to be together,” he whispered. “I want you in my bed.”

      A shiver of the need he expressed raced through her. “How? Where?”

      He gave a rough sound of frustration. “If it were up to me, it would be here and now. But I want privacy for the both of us.”

      She sighed and tried to gather her wits. Was this what she really wanted? Was he what he really wanted? Eve was only certain of one thing. She couldn’t miss him. Stefan affected her in a way no man ever had, and she craved the ultimate closeness with him. She wanted him so much it scared her, but she wasn’t going to let her fear keep her from him.

      “Then when?” she finally asked and met his gaze.

      His dark eyes met hers, and she saw the strained passion there. The strength of it reassured her rather than frightened her. “You make it difficult for me not to take you now, chérie. Tomorrow night,” he said. “I’ll make arrangements for you to come to my suite. I’ll work it out tomorrow.”

      A ripple of anticipation and nerves raced through her. “It may not be wise—”

      He covered her lips with his fingers. “It’s beyond choice. We both feel it.”

      She nodded, savoring the heat of his body. “Okay,” she said, then whispered, “But this is totally against all my rules.”

      He chuckled and lifted her hand to his lips. “Mine, too, Eve. Mine, too. Now, before I give into my darker urges, I’d better walk you back to your quarters.”

      “What about the champagne and the glasses?” she asked.

      “Don’t worry. I’ll send a member of my security to collect them,” he said and took her hand. “Let’s go.”

      The next morning, she awakened a little later than usual. Stefan had insisted she take a day of vacation. So she slept until 9:00 a.m. This was the first morning she’d woken up not feeling like she was going to hyperventilate. Not that she would admit that to a soul.

      Stretching her arms, she yawned, then smiled, pleased that the parade had gone off without a hitch. She’d passed her first test. Thank goodness. A sliver of anxiety rippled through her at the thought of Stefan’s plans for tonight. Had she lost her mind? He was not only her boss, he was a prince.

      He was also a man, she told herself. A man she wanted and who wanted her. Taking a deep breath, she slid out of her bed and stepped onto the carpet. Her toes appreciated the soft cushion for her first steps of the day. She realized she’d hit the ground running so much she hadn’t noticed the small comfort.

      Stretching again, she walked to the tiny kitchenette and started her coffee. She peeked inside her mostly bare refrigerator and pulled out cream for her coffee, marmalade for her toast and orange juice. She popped bread in the toaster and wandered toward the door of her quarters to pick up the paper. She’d made double sure she would receive the daily paper. After the incident with the protestors, she’d decided she needed to stay informed even though the Chantaine newspaper read like an odd combination of a scandal sheet and traditional news.

      The front page was filled with photographs of the parade, featuring the royal family and government officials on horseback. The largest photo showed Stefan riding with the young boy on Black. Her heart twisted at the image of him. Lord help her, the man was so handsome. She noticed the way his hand curled around the boy, holding him securely. The boy smiled broadly while Stefan’s mouth lifted in a ghost of a smile.

      Fascinating man, she thought. For a moment she wondered what Stefan would be like if he weren’t a prince. She closed her eyes, trying to imagine him as a Texan. He would be a Renaissance man, she decided, with a huge empire. Obscenely successful, she thought. СКАЧАТЬ