“Thanks.”
“Not a problem.” She’s never getting that passport back and there’s no embassy in this village. She’d have to travel for hours to get to one. Looks like Tsarina’s stuck here. How inconvenient. “Tsarina?” I say and she tilts her head.
“Yes?”
I clear my throat. “Tonight, I want you to join me for dinner.”
“I’d love to,” she smiles. “As long as you don’t mind me coming as I am. Got nothing else to wear.”
I raise a brow. That’s not entirely true. She could always go naked.
CHAPTER FOUR
Balthazar
“You’re looking at me like that again,” Tsarina breathes and I avert my gaze. I wonder if she can tell how much desire I still have for her. The years did nothing to dampen it, it only grew bigger and bigger and now it feels like it’s going to explode right in her face.
“I’m not looking,” I mutter and she replies in a low tone,
“Yes you are but I don’t mind. I like it when you look at me.”
Does she really or is it just something that she says? I don’t trust Tsarina. I know her devious ways. Know that she has the ability to rule over my heart like a queen only to then toss it aside as if I was just a mere beggar to her all along.
My fists clench. I’ll never let her turn me into a beggar again. This time I will rule over her. Crossing my arms over my chest, I rasp, “Open up that closet.”
“What for?”
“Just do as I say,” I snap impatiently and she scowls, putting her hands on her hips.
“You know, you’ve grown so rude I hardly recognize you anymore.” She shakes her head to herself, stomps over to the closet and yanks the door open only to let out a gasp as a waterfall of garments fall into her chest. “What’s this?”
The excitement in her voice is unmistakable and I clear my throat. “Clothes you may choose from for the dinner tonight.”
A grin widens on Tsarina’s face, her annoyance regarding my manners forgotten and she lets out a pleased laugh. “This is amazing. You’re full of surprises, Beastie.”
“Don’t call me that.”
Her body jerks, her skin paling and there’s a flash of hurt in her eyes but then she shrugs. Digging through the garments, she picks up one after the other before declaring she wants to wear a sleek pantsuit.
Pantsuit sounds pretty businesslike and it makes me feel like she’s trying to keep me at an arm’s length. As if she’s trying to turn this into something sterile or casual, as if we’re two acquaintances just catching up. As if she has a boyfriend back home that may get upset and she doesn’t want to cross any boundaries.
It makes aggravation boil in me and I throw her a heated look. “I want you to wear a dress,” I say and she lifts a brow, before giving me a lopsided smile.
“That feels so old-fashioned to me. I hardly ever wear dresses these days. They’re not as practical as pants.”
As if I care about practicality. I care about feasting on her with my eyes when I can’t be feasting on her flesh and I growl, “Choose a dress or you’ll be going naked.”
“Damn, you’ve become bossy!” she cries, looking at me as if she doesn’t know who I am anymore but then she gives me a glare before picking up a couple of dresses and she jerks her chin. “Alright, I’ll wear a dress but I’ll have to try some on before I choose, so could you...”
She jerks her chin again and I cock a brow.
“What?”
A tint covers her face. “You know, get out so that I can undress.”
“There’s a screen in the corner. You can undress behind it,” I simply say, walking over to her bed and I sit down on the edge. She gawks at me, clutching the dresses to her chest before slowly shaking her head.
“Are you going to stay and watch?”