He couldn’t quite answer why that was. The truth was, he hadn’t even attempted to consider it. He just knew that he liked himself when he was with her, and more and more, he was grateful she’d accepted his proposal. He shuddered to think what he might have become if she’d stuck to her original no.
“Just how, pray tell, do you plan on servicing your wife tonight, oh wise king?”
“Every possible way my depraved mind can think of.”
He undressed her quickly, too hungry to take his time. He burrowed his face in the crook of her thigh, loving the heady scent of her there. He needed inside her in the worst way. Before he allowed himself to take her, he would first make certain she was satisfied.
His lips kissed around her folds, waiting for her to spread her legs and make space for him. It didn’t take long. He licked her seam, thrilled to find her arousal coating her skin and now histongue. Too eager to please her, he continued to lap at her clit as he slipped one and then two fingers inside her. The way her muscles were rippling around his digits, he could tell she was right where he wanted her, so close to the edge that a soft wind would push her over the cliff.
“Come now, Treasure. Don’t keep me waiting. Give me what I want.”
She mewled so prettily it was almost his undoing. Later, he’d have to decipher why her acquiescence made his dick so hard. Presently, however, the only thing that mattered was watching her splinter at his command.
Regina would be beautiful in a burlap sack. But lying on the sofa with her legs spread and her glorious braids fanned out on the arm of the chair, she was the epitome of wanton need that had him ready to come in his pants like a schoolboy.
He gently lapped her sex, allowing her pleasure to ebb. He unzipped his pants, pulling them down just far enough that he could take his wife without causing damage to himself.
He coaxed her onto her knees and positioned himself behind her. Her bump was just large enough that him rutting against her in the missionary position wasn’t comfortable for her any longer. Since then, he’d made sure to have her in every position that she could tolerate. This, with her head down and her ass in the air, had become their favorite.
“Brace yourself, Treasure.”
She held on to the arm of the chair as he entered her from behind. It was as if her body were made for him. Her sex molded to the exact shape of his length to give him the perfect amount of friction against his sensitive skin. As a reward, he angled his hips to hit that spot she adored, and together they surrendered to this unrelenting need they couldn’t seem to quench.
“Treasure,” he huffed. “You feel like silk wrapped around me.”
That garnered a needy moan from her, signaling that she was close to another climax. He sped up his pace. Having her come while he was buried inside her was only ever outmatched by when they came together. As if on cue, her body began to tighten as he stroked her hard and fast, racing to meet her at the finish line. When she clamped down on him as the first wave of her climax came, it was as if she were drawing his release out of him.
That first jet inside her was sheer bliss, pulling him into nirvana right here on earth. He stroked them both through their mutual orgasms, holding on to her as a lifeline in this sensual storm they’d created.
She was his and he was hers. He knew that as well as he knew his own name. What he didn’t know was where this invisible thread that made him want to be with her every moment of every day had come from. He didn’t understand what it was. There was only one thing he knew with absolute clarity concerning this matter.
He liked it.
He held her next to him, breathing in the calm that seemed to rise from her skin. Just being next to her settled every demon inside him. It especially settled those demons he wasn’t completely free of.
He knew he should tell her what those demons were. He was ninety percent sure he would feel better if he did. Living like he was torn between two worlds, those of the living and the dead, made it impossible for him to settle completely in either space. Five years ago, he’d thought he’d deserved to be one of the walking dead, still alive but numb to anything that made life worth living.
Now that he had this woman in his arms, and she was growing their baby inside her, for the first time in five years, he felt hisheart beating again. So what was holding him back? What was keeping him from opening up to her?
Fear. It was the only truthful answer.
What if she blames you the way you’ve been blaming yourself for years? What if she takes away the new warmth flowing through you whenever you see her or think about her? What if your confession sends you right back to the abyss you were trying so hard to climb out of?Or worse, would she think his inability to move beyond his past was connected to whatever feelings he possessed for Farah? Would telling her the truth make her feel like she was living in someone else’s shadow yet again?
The mere thought of that last question made him wince. He could never knowingly put that kind of doubt in her head, not when he’d seen firsthand how such thoughts impacted her.
The questions ran through his mind on loop every time he thought about speaking his truth. As selfish as it was to keep things from her, the alternative, the risk, it was unthinkable.
Jasiri’s warning about someone else telling her echoed through his head, and Aléx had to bite his lip to keep from saying,impossible. His sister and Jasiri were the only two people on his side who knew who Charlie was to him. His former head of security was the one who’d dug up the information and made Aléx aware that he was a father. Trusting the man with his secrets and his life, Aléx had sent him to collect Farah and Charlie and bring them home. He’d carried Aléx’s secrets to his watery grave.
The only other people who knew were Farah’s immediate family. They’d assisted her in keeping Charlie a secret from him. They’d gone as far as secreting her out of the country before Farah’s pregnancy could be known or documented on Obsidian Island. They would never betray her by telling the world she’d given birth to the king’s illegitimate child. Well, most of themwouldn’t. There was one among them who was mercenary enough to completely disregard Farah’s desires. But even this individual had to know Aléx would use his considerable power to make them regret that miscalculation for the rest of their life.
Comforted by his assessment of the chance of Regina finding out from someone other than him, he pulled her tighter into his embrace and welcomed the familiar sensation of her body snuggling into his. This woman was his lifeline, and he couldn’t gamble with that, not for anyone or anything. Not even for her.
Chapter Seventeen
Regina stood beforethe mirror in awe. She’d had glam teams work their magic on her before, but this was next-level. She was seven months pregnant, and all her natural curves were deeper and more profound. From her pregnancy boobs, to the swell of her belly, to the deep curve of her hips, everything was on display.
She wasn’t at all distressed by the changes in her body. Her pregnancy boobs were a thing of beauty, and Aléx hadn’t been able to keep his hands off them. She’d gloried in his attention and her body’s ability to both build a human and keep her husband’s tongue wagging. Her voluptuousness notwithstanding, the idea of shoving all these goodies into a formal evening gown gave her pause.
