He stared at her lips as she spoke, but shook his head ever so slightly when she was finished. “I’ll do what I like,” he insisted. “If that means buying you something beautiful and sparkly, I will. If that means taking you into that bedroom and making love to you until you’re hoarse, I will.”
“Sounds like a challenge,” she said.
When his lips met hers, the worries in her mind faded away. Serafia wrapped her arms around his neck and melted into him. The roar of the waves below was the only sound except for the pounding of her heart.
After a moment, he started backing them into the bedroom. Their lips were still pressed together as they moved across the tile to the king-size bed against the far wall. Serafia clung to him, losing herself in touching and tasting Gabriel. No matter what happened each day, she knew it was okay because she knew he would help her forget all her worries each night.
When her calves met with the bed, they stopped. Serafia tugged at his shirt, pulling it up and over his head. She ran her fingertips across his bare chest and scattered soft kisses along his collarbone. His skin was warm from a day in the sun and scented with the handmade soaps they kept in the bathrooms here.
She felt Gabriel’s fingertips on her outer thighs, slowly gathering up the fabric of her dress. Before he could pull it any higher, she turned them around so that his back was to the bed. Then she shoved, thrusting him onto the mattress, where he sprawled out and bounced.
“Are we playing rough tonight?” he asked with a laugh.
Serafia shook her head and took a few steps backward. “I just wanted you to sit back and enjoy the view.”
Pushing aside her self-consciousness, she let the straps of her sundress fall from her shoulders, the soft cotton dress pooling at her feet. She coyly turned her back to him, unfastening her bra and letting it drop to the floor. With a sly glance over her shoulder at him, she slipped her thumbs beneath her cheeky lace panties and slid them down her legs. Completely nude, she turned back to face him.
Gabriel watched from the bed with a glint of appreciation in his eyes. He really, truly thought she was beautiful, and knowing this made her feel beautiful. She lifted her arms to brush the cascading waves of her hair over her shoulders, displaying her breasts and narrow waist. He swallowed hard as he watched her, his jaw tightening.
“Come here,” he said.
Serafia took her time, despite his royal command. She sauntered over to the bed, crawling across the coverlet on all fours until she was hovering between his thighs. She reached for the fly of his jeans, but the moment she was within Gabriel’s reach, he lunged for her. Before she knew quite what had happened, she was on her back and the weight of Gabriel’s body was pressing her into the soft mattress.
He kissed her, his mouth hard and demanding against her own. His fingertips pressed into her, just as hard. She gasped for air when he pulled away to taste her throat. His teeth grazed her delicate skin, almost as though he wanted to mark her, claim her as his own.
She wanted to be his. His alone. At least for tonight. She could feel his desire against her bare thigh, the rough denim keeping them apart. She reached between them, slipping her hand beneath his waistband to grip the length of him. He growled against her throat, leaning into her for a moment, and then reluctantly pulling away before she wore out the last of his self-control.
Slipping off the edge of the bed, he removed the last of his clothes, sheathed himself in latex and returned to his home between her thighs. Without saying a word, he drove into her, stretching her body to its limit. She cried out and clung to his back, her fingernails pressing crescents into his skin.
Their lovemaking was more frantic tonight, more passionate and intense. She wasn’t sure if it was the end of their relationship looming that pushed them to a frenzy, but she happily went along for the ride. Nothing else mattered as he drove into her again and again. All she could do was give in to the pleasure, live in the moment and not let the future intrude on their night together. It wasn’t hard. Within minutes he had her gasping and on the verge of unraveling.
That was when he stopped moving entirely.
Her eyes flew open, her breath ragged. “Is something wrong?” she asked.
“Stay with me,” he demanded.
She wanted to. She wanted to give him her body, her heart and her soul. In that moment, she knew she already had. Despite her hesitation, despite her worries, she had fallen in love with Gabriel Montoro, future king of Alma. But was she good for him? Would she be the queen the country needed?
Those critical articles were just the first of many she was sure would surface. Rumors about her family wouldn’t disappear overnight. She didn’t want to bring scandal to the new monarchy. It was too new, too fragile. She couldn’t risk that, even for love.