Margot frowns. “What plans?”
I shrug. “Big life plans. It seems the closer I get to ruling this country, the less freedom I have in my own life. It’s actually a bit funny.”
She tucks a loose strand of her hair back behind her ear. “I see.”
I give a dry chuckle. “No, I’m absolutely sure that you don’t.”
Her hand goes onto her hip, her eyes narrow. “There is no reason to be rude, Stellan. I thought we were getting along today.”
Her posture is rebellious. There is something about the way she stands… no, the way sheis… that calls out to me. My gaze slides down to her mouth.
A half-smile forms on my lips. “I like it when you’re feisty. You know that?”
She gives a throaty laugh. “You’ve gone insane.”
“No.” I shake my head. “I’m just seeing the future in a certain light.”
She gives me an odd look, wrinkling her nose. “What light? What are you?— “
I stop her words by reaching a hand out and yanking her toward my body. Her eyes widen. Her palms fly up and land on my chest, resisting. Her lower body meets mine, pressing into me intimately.
It makes me crazed. I suck in a deep breath and catch her scent, honeysuckle and fresh laundry. My body responds without my brain; my cock grows hard, my skin tingles like it’s about to catch fire.
“Stellan—“
I lean down, brushing my mouth against her gorgeously plump lips. I hear her sharp intake of breath, but I don’t stop. No, I press my lips against hers, working my mouth in a delicate rhythm.
I can feel her heart beating beneath her skin.
For all her protests, she doesn’t push me away. Quite the opposite. She pushes up onto her tiptoes and opens her mouth, letting her tongue dance with mine. She tastes so fucking good, like sugar and cinnamon and most of all, choice.
Kissing her is a kind of freedom, just in this moment. When she pulls away, her brow puckering, and looks up at me with those probing dark blue eyes…
I suddenly snap back to my senses, pushing her away roughly. “Fuck!”
“What was that?” she says, her fingertips going to trace her mouth.
I whirl, shaking my head and pacing back to the window. “Nothing. A moment of weakness.”
My head pounds faintly. What exactly just happened between us?
“Should I—" she pauses, hesitating. “Maybe this is a bad time. Do you want me to come back?”
A laugh bubbles up from deep within. “I don’t want anything from you, Margot.”
A few seconds pass. “I should… I should come back later.”
She turns and flees, her footsteps sounding as loud as gunshots on the hardwood floors. Grimacing, I rub my forehead.
Sensitivity to sound. I know all too well what that means. It’s the first sign that I’m getting a migraine. Muttering a curse, I stalk from the room, heading to my private apartments to pull the shades and lie in silent misery.
Chapter Thirteen
Margot
If this is the palace’s attempt to impress me by introducing me to the glitzy, glamorous side of royalty… I have to say, it’s working. I glance around the palace’s garden, taking in everything: men in dark tuxedos, women in light-colored ballgowns, servants swooping by the guests with silver platters full of champagne. Everything else is a bright, vibrant green that speaks of how many hours the palace gardeners put into their upkeep.
The high hedges in the distance are immaculately maintained. The sun is just beginning to set and a million little fairy lights twinkle from where they have been hidden amongst the leaves. As I move around, the topiaries and fountains sprinkled here and there hide and reveal different groups of people.
