Veronica

I stepped forward and slid my hand up his arm. The light brush was enough to leave a thin line of goose bumps wherever I touched. His hard edges melted a little, the suspicion over catching me with his daughter slowly ebbing away, leaving only naked yearning behind.

Tomas wanted me. Bad.

I smiled and leaned forward, letting him get an eyeful of the cleavage at the top of my corset. His gaze moved down, and his eyes widened, a small gasp leaving his lips.

“Like what you see?” I purred.

He gulped, a light blush painting his tan skin pink. How could a lover as talented as he was be so innocent? It only made him more attractive. “I thought I made the answer to that clear the other day.”

“I’m surprised that old bathroom sink didn’t fall off the wall from how…vigorous you were,” I said casually, almost innocently as I let my fingers wander up to his bicep. The muscles there were deceptively large. The loose sleeves of his shirt hid just how strong and well-built he actually was. He could make the ancient marble sculptures that lined the main halls weep with jealousy. “I must say…you’re quite talented. No man has ever made me feel quite like that before.”

Tomas’s cheeks flared from pink to red. “You made it quite easy,” he mumbled, bashful. “I couldn’t have done it without your…vocal guidance.”

“Well, I’ve been all over the map, and I must say what we share is rather rare.” My fingers tiptoed down the length of his broad shoulders and came to a rest over his heart. I could feel it pounding frantically underneath the cotton weave of his shirt. Heat radiated from him, as if I was holding my hand up to a blazing fire. “It has me thinking if we may be compatible in other ways as well.”

He raised his brow. “How so?”

“You have connections to royalty, and I have enough money to buy royalty… Some would say we’re a match made in heaven.” The words you are royalty were on the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed them back. It wouldn’t do to spook the prize fish before I’d secured him on the line.

Tomas, on the other hand, seemed to have something else on his mind. Something entirely more carnal. “Why don’t we discuss this somewhere private?” he asked, his eyes gleaming with mischief. He raised his voice, calling out to Lucy, who was still waiting in the room behind them. “Darling, I’m stepping out for a little while. Daddy has to do something first, but I’ll be back to read you a bedtime story later.”

A blonde bullet came rushing out of the room and attached itself to Tomas’s leg. “No!” Lucy wailed. “You’ve been gone all day! You promised to play with me! You promised!”

“I promise I’ll come right back,” he said, but I could tell he was wavering. I couldn’t say I blamed him. Who could say no to those big blue eyes?

“No! It’s bad enough you only come visit me for a bit during the day—”

He reared back, looking a little hurt. “I come visit you whenever I can, you know that. It’s hard on me too.”

“You’re always with Bennett!” She pouted and stomped her little foot.

A flash of pain flickered across his face. I could only imagine how hard it must be, to be so close to his child day in and day out, only to have to ignore her for most of the time to take care of his dismissive, condescending, asshole half brother.

I forced out a laugh, trying to lighten the mood. “It is not my intention to argue with the lady of the house.”

Lucy crossed her arms over her chest, her bright eyes glittering with triumph. “That’s right!”

Tomas glanced back at me. “I’m sorry, I don’t think I can leave her yet.”

“So don’t,” I said with a smile. “I’ll wait out here until you’re done.”

He raised his brow. “Really? I’m not sure how long it’ll be…”

“Take your time.” I gestured toward the empty halls. “I don’t have anything else to do anyway.”

He ventured a shy grin, then slipped his hand into Lucy’s as they headed back inside her pink palace. “A few bedtime stories. That’s all. I’ll be out right after.”

I waved him off, then sat on the window ledge to wait. A servant rounded the corner just a few short minutes later, his eyes widening when he saw me.

“There you are, my lady! I was looking for you.”

“For me?”

“I have a message for all the merchant guests staying under the roof of the royal family.” He bowed, panting a little, his cheeks red. He must’ve been running up and down the corridors, stopping anyone he could find. “A storm is on its way. All the merchants are being asked to prepare to depart earlier than expected so they don’t get trapped at the castle when the roads become impassable.”

After the servant left, the hallways grew quiet again. I settled back onto my little perch and listened to the quiet rumble of Tomas’s deep voice as he told some sweet story about a princess who saved a prince. It felt warm and sweet, as if he held the feeling of home in the mere sound of his voice.

“The princess lifted up the treasure box that she had stolen from the mean old dragon and shouted, ‘I can do anything!’ From that day on, she was known as the Princess Who Could Do Anything. The end.”

I giggled quietly to myself. I couldn’t help it. Both the story and the man telling it were too charming to resist. As the fairy tale came to a close, I listened hard for Lucy’s squeal of delight. A demand for more, more! But there was nothing but the sound of something rustling, and the squeak of a door gently closing.

Tomas emerged from the dark room, squinting at the bright light of the lantern and holding up his hand to shield himself from its glare. “Sorry that took so long, she wouldn’t go to be—”

I was on him before he could finish his sentence. He let out a muffled sound of surprise but wrapped his strong arms around my waist without any hesitation. He tasted delicious—like vanilla and clean soap and his own special type of musk that I was quickly getting addicted to.

He stumbled backward, pulling me into the room next to Lucy’s. I could tell it was his just from the furnishings—everything was tastefully chosen, but there was practically nothing in it but the bare essentials: a chair, a desk…a bed. He pulled me onto the expensive covers. The silk felt like a cool caress against my heated skin.

Tomas’s touch was sure and confident. He undid my corset with the ease of a seasoned valet, peeling it off of me in no time at all. His breath caught in his throat as I was laid bare for him, an animal need erasing the good-natured gentleman I had come to know.

“If you see something you like…go ahead and take it,” I growled.

He needed no further encouragement. His lips were on me in an instant, and I groaned, sinking back into the soft pillows. His touch was just as good as I remembered, if not better, now that we had an actual bed to work with. Tomas was an intoxicating mix of dominant conqueror—refusing to let me rest for even a moment as he explored every inch of my body—and gentle lover—always pausing, his eyes flicking up as if to check to make sure I was still okay with his touch.

A sound of desperation ripped out of my throat as his ministrations reached between my legs. Oh god, yes. How could anyone not be okay with this?

After bringing me to the edge with his teasing, Tomas pulled away suddenly. The scream of disappointment I managed to muffle with one of his expensive silk pillows was soon cut short as he brought his body to mine and we were joined at last.

My head fell back, my mouth stretched into a silent scream. I tensed as my vision whited out, and a feeling so euphoric made my entire back lift off the bed. Good lord, this wasn’t run-of-the-mill lovemaking. This was…they would have to create a whole new word for what this was.

The pleasure was carrying me away. I closed my eyes, gasping as I spiraled closer to the edge until Tomas and I went over it together. He whispered my name reverently, as if he was in awe, as if he couldn’t believe that I was in his bed.

When I finally came back down to earth, I found myself tucked into Tomas’s side. He had one muscular arm wrapped around me, the other hand slowly stroking my hair.

“I was being serious earlier. We could be really good together, you know.”

And I wasn’t being manipulative either. There was a part of me—a part that wasn’t thinking about Bennett and my family and the land that had been so cruelly taken from us—that was really starting to believe it. “I’m not like the other merchants you might have encountered in the past. I have no interest in bedding and forgetting you. As a matter of fact…” I let my finger trail down the fine hair of his chest, tracing the ridges of his hard muscles. “I’d like to do the exact opposite.”

Tomas was quiet, but his eyes were wide and alert. He waited with bated breath for what I had to say next.