CHAPTER TEN
Saturday, 12.24 a.m.
FELIPEDIDN’TLEADher back down the corridor but took her deeper into the medieval part of the palace that had once been an impregnable stone fortress. It still was. As the path narrowed he battled his conscience. He wanted her. But that there would be no consequences?
‘Is this a short cut?’
Her impatience and defiance made him want to kiss her—to soothe the hurt he knew he’d inflicted. But he couldn’t. Yet. ‘No.’
He’d tried to resist. But touching her was all he could think about. Dancing had made it worse. He’d asked her to say no, fearing that if she said yes, he wouldn’t cope. He hadn’t. That kiss had destroyed him. He’d almost taken her hard, against the wall, all control gone. He’d had to slam on the brakes because he was a damned runaway train and he had to make sure she was on board with him. But he’d phrased it poorly. She’d thought he was pulling back. Another miscommunication. When she’d first blown, he’d been awed by her spirit—her fight for him. But her hurt had turned inward, he’d seen the snap in her eyes. He knew she’d felt unworthy and unwanted, which was the absolute opposite of his intention and his truth. She’d stopped mid-fight as if she’d suddenly remembered she had no right to ask for anything. That wasn’t the surrender he wanted. Giving up? No. She had every right to ask for what she wanted. He wanted to hear it, wanted to enact her demands... His own desire shocked him.
Surely the intensity was a reaction to the relentless preparation and coronation pressures. He just needed a release valve. And they’d had this physical attraction from first sight.
Two silent minutes later she stopped, forcing him to turn and face her.
‘Where are you taking me? The dungeon?’
Heat blasted, short-circuiting his brain, and he stepped back into her space. ‘Why do I get the feeling you’d like that, Elsie?’
Her eyes widened. Oh, she would. With that one flash of desire she damned any lingering good intentions to hell. There was no way he wasn’t having her tonight. For all her flightiness, her flashes of temper at his demanding nature, she also craved the dominance he offered. And it worked both ways—the fact was they were imprisoned together by desire. He watched her lift her chin in that show of strength. But they were in thrall to each other. He ached for her submission every bit as much as he ached for her to take him in hand and school him. Released from hesitation and doubt, he knew she’d give him both.
‘I’m taking you to my room,’ he informed her bluntly. ‘Once there, I’m going to kiss you. Only this time I’ll not stop until you ask me to.’
Her eyes glazed. A haze of heated colour washed over every inch of her skin that was visible. ‘Promise?’
The husky command almost felled him. He wanted nothing more than to satisfy her. ‘I promise.’
He took her hand and led her for another minute along the winding corridor—deliberately taking this route to avoid any courtiers. There was an inevitability about this. He pressed his palm to the security system and opened the door. He released her hand, watching with amusement for her reaction as she stepped into the suite. The sight of Elsie trying to conceal her very obvious emotions brought him immense pleasure. She couldn’t, of course; he could see the response in her expressive eyes. She didn’t try to hide usually, but this time—was she trying to be polite? Aiming to spare his feelings?
‘This is your bedroom?’ She turned on the spot, taking it all in until her gaze eventually settled on the large bed. ‘Did you decorate it yourself?’
‘No,’ he replied softly. ‘It’s been like this for the last century or so.’
She wrinkled her nose. ‘Those curtains are over a hundred years old?’
‘They’ve been refurbished, but the decor is as it was originally designed by my many greats grandmother.’
‘Was she a performer?’ She shot him a look, her smile bubbling when she saw his amusement. ‘Honestly, that’s like a proscenium arch at the back of the bed. And what’s with all the curtains?’
He leaned back against the door and laughed. Elsie’s expression was everything. He studied the surroundings—trying to imagine seeing it for the first time. The room was dressed in navy, black, gold—the colours of Silvabon. Twin candelabras stood either side of the massive bed, making the ornately carved, gilded headboard gleam. Heavy velvet curtains in midnight blue hung behind in gold-fringed swathes. Layers upon layers of the things. Another large crystal chandelier was suspended above them while beneath their feet was thick, intricately woven carpet.
‘Has it always been your bedroom?’ Elsie murmured.
‘It was the most convenient room to take when Grandfather became unwell.’
Right now only the candelabras were lit—with warm bulbs; candles had been phased out a half-century ago. But the effect was undeniably theatrical and lush. For the first time he truly appreciated it because Elsie, dressed in that navy column dress that hugged her curves, fitted perfectly in the centre of the vast, darkened space—like a pearl nestled in an iridescent shell. He wanted to keep her here. Her head was tilted back, exposing the luscious pale skin of her neck as she studied the balcony that ran around the top third of the room.
‘Is that for the audience?’ she asked. ‘Did the royal couple have to...have to do it in front of people to make sure the pregnancy was legitimate or something?’
He watched the colour building in her cheeks. There was a hint of shyness in her stumble over the words, a bigger hint of sensuality in her response to the thought.
‘You think they were exhibitionists?’ He glanced at the curved wooden staircase that led up to that small mezzanine walkway. ‘I’ve never thought about it. I’ve never brought a lover back to this room.’
He didn’t know why that admission had felt so imperative. No one but his valet came in here. He didn’t pay much attention to the room—it was as it had always been. But now as he took in the carved elements of the bed and the balcony, infinite tempting possibilities stirred in his mind.
‘You haven’t?’ Her pale eyes widened. ‘Why now?’
It took him a moment to parse the reasons that were bound so tightly with the bare drive of desire. ‘It’s the safest place we can be together tonight. The room assigned to you is on a relatively busy wing. There’s the danger we’d be seen there.’