"That depends."
"On what?"
"On whether you want me to."
I thought about the sabotage, the uncertainty, the dozen reasons this was complicated.I thought about the person who wanted me gone, the political implications of everything we did, the fact that this marriage had an expiration date I was still trying not to think about.
And then I thought about the way he'd looked at me when I'd come down those stairs.The way he'd said "my wife" like it was a vow.The way he'd spent the entire evening watching me with an expression that made me feel like I mattered.
"I don't want you to walk away," I said.
"Then I won't."
He kissed me, and there was nothing tentative about it.His arms came around me immediately, pulling me flush against him, one hand sliding into my hair while the other pressed against the small of my back.I gripped the lapels of his uniform jacket and kissed him back with everything I had.
"Inside," I managed against his mouth.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
He reached past me and opened the door, and we stumbled through together, still kissing.He kicked it shut, and suddenly we were alone in my sitting room with no more audiences, no more interruptions, no more reasons to hold back.
Except he did pause.He pulled back just enough to look at me, breathing hard, his hands still framing my face.
"Betty."
"If you're about to give me an out, I don't want one."
"I was going to say that I'm falling for you.That this isn't just attraction or convenience or whatever we're supposed to call it."
I turned my head and pressed a kiss to his palm."I know.I'm falling for you too.It's inconvenient and terrifying and I don't care."
"Good."He kissed me again, slower this time but no less intense."Because I've been thinking about this since the library.Since you told me I was less intimidating when I laughed."
"For me it was the dinner at Giuseppe's.When you told me about the panic attacks.You stopped being Prince Archibald and started being just...you."
He smiled against my mouth, and I felt it all the way down to my toes.This wasn't a seduction scene from a movie.This was us, being us, except with significantly fewer clothes in our immediate future.
"Bedroom?"I suggested.
"Bedroom."
We made it about halfway there before he stopped to unzip my dress.His fingers fumbled slightly with the clasp at the top.
"This thing has a hook," I said."And then a zipper.It's a two-step process."
"Who designed this?"
"Someone who hates spontaneity."
He figured it out, and the silk slid down my body to pool at my feet.I stepped out of it, suddenly very aware that I was standing in my sitting room in nothing but underwear and heels.The cool air raised goosebumps on my skin, or maybe that was the way he was looking at me, his gaze traveling down my body with open hunger.
"You're staring," I said.
"I'm appreciating."He traced a line from my shoulder down my arm, and I shivered."You're beautiful."
"You're overdressed."
