“Some of these buildings are really old and you can feel the history. They were built with hope and dreams.”
Rhydian looks unconvinced.
I take a deep breath and start again. “Eight million people call London home. People come from all over the world, with the hope of making a better life for themselves and their loved ones. And yes, there is some violence, but the vast majority live happily side by side. The tube and buses are crammed. Everything is horribly expensive, but most people just get on with it, because they have hope that it will all be worth it.”
He stares at me intensely. The carriage falls silent again. The streets of London flow past the windows, but all I can see is Rhydian, looking at me as if he is trying to catch a glimpse of my soul.
“What did you hope for, Jamie?”
Goosebumps spring to life all along my arms. The tone of his deep voice, the sound of my name upon his lips, the fact he used past tense, acknowledging that any dreams I once had are now dust because he has stolen those future possibilities from me.
I shrug awkwardly. “I didn’t have lofty dreams. I just wanted love. And a family.”
Another flinch that I can feel from him but cannot see, even though I am staring deep into his eyes.
“Love is the loftiest of all dreams,” he says.
“Yeah, well,” I say as I turn away and blink tears from my eyes. I don’t know what to say to that. It was a ridiculous dream. Now it is an impossible one. But it was mine.
Chapter nineteen
Ican’t believe Rhydian has dumped me back in our rooms. I thought our day out had been productive. I thought he was beginning to see me as a person and not a mere pet.
A heavy sigh escapes me as I drift over to the bookcase. Rhydian is a prince. He probably has tons of work to do. Places to go, people to meet, and all that. Even if he does now see me as more than a possession, he can’t take me everywhere with him.
I stare blankly at the bookcase. My current reads have magically made it back from Rhydian’s office, but I’m not in the mood for any of them.
As my eyes idly scan the shelves, a plastic rectangle catches my eye. It’s on the middle shelf, in front of the books. It’s a radio. An old-fashioned radio. My heart races as I pick it up. My mum had one of these in her art studio when I was a kid. I think I can remember how to work it.
A few minutes later, it springs to life, and music pours out. Actual music. An Arianna Grande song. Oh my goodness, I hadn’t realised how much I had been missing music until this moment.
A radio is going to be subpar to all my Spotify playlists, but it is so very much better than nothing. Rhydian has found another way to make my life more bearable. He can’t give me a phone or a laptop, captives can’t have access to the outside world. I understand that. But books and a radio are a fantastic compromise.
Rhydian has stolen my dreams, my future, and my world from me, but he is trying to make amends. In what small ways he can.
I turn the volume up, and I dance.
Time drifts away. It is only me and the music. I’m lost in it. I’m free and it feels so damn good. The radio host isn’t talking much and keeps playing bangers. There is not one word about fey or the conquest, and I love it. Everyone deserves to escape somewhere and pretend it never happened. Even if that escape is one, slightly crackly radio station.
My eyes are closed. I’m imagining I’m in a club, and not in the sitting room of a fey prince. Suddenly, a strong arm wraps around my waist. I shriek. My eyes fly open and reality comes crashing down. Rhydian scoops me up into a bridal carry. I cling onto his neck for dear life. Where is he taking me? What is going on?
He kicks the bedroom door open and dumps me on the bed, where I bounce a little. I stare up at him as he looms over me.
Oh. This is what’s happening. And judging by the way my stomach is swooping and my heart hammering, not all of me hates this idea.
“Strip,” he orders, as his amber eyes flash.
I hold his gaze as my hand goes to the intricate knots at my waist. My body wants to obey him. I fiddle for a moment, but it is pointless.
“I can’t,” I admit in defeat.
He shakes his head at me and climbs onto the bed. His clever fingers make quick work of my ties and he unwraps me deftly. Opening up my clothes like a bathrobe and revealing my naked body. His gaze slowly trails down, drinking in the sight of me. His eyes flare again, and I swallow audibly.
Inside its silk prison, my cock has hardened. Just from him looking at me. His gaze lingers on the outline of my cock, and the treacherous thing swells even more.
“Roll over,” he says in a deep rumble.
I pull my arms out of my sleeves and roll over onto my stomach. Then I grab a pillow, stuff it under my hips and spread my legs. I know how this goes.
