“I don’t like being ignored, Amelia. Especially not by my future wife,” I murmur close to her ear, and shit, I’m this close to biting her earlobe or running my tongue along that delicate neck. The throbbing in my pants is getting unbearable, and I clench my hands into fists.
“Didn’t you want me to be a good little girl and keep my mouth shut? Weren’t those your exact words?” she asks quietly, but her voice sounds strangely hollow and emotionless. I like that even less.
My body automatically presses against hers, and now I’m the one who almost flinches. Because instead of pulling away, she leans into the touch.
“I wanted you to be good, not silent like a fish. So, what was that yesterday?” I try again, and this time, I can’t stop myself from brushing my nose along her neck. A shiver runs through her body, but she still doesn’t back away.
No, she shocks me again by turning to face me, and fuck, when those blue eyes meet mine, I’m lost.
A storm, no, a hurricane rages in them, and I am completely at its mercy. Pain, despair, sorrow. It’s all there. Woven into a wild maelstrom that pulls me under.
The sight nearly brings me to my knees, and it feels as if I’m being skinned alive.
“I just wanted to feel free again. Just once. It was a mistake. A huge mistake, and I paid for it. So let it go, Nicolas.”
The hopelessness in her voice hits me like a punch to the gut. I don’t like it. It’s cruel how submissive, how lost she looks right now, and for the first time, I start to truly doubt my theory that she’s after the throne.
Her eyes, those damn blue oceans that drag me under, that make me feel like I’m drowning, lock onto mine, and I swear, they’re piercing straight into my soul.
Fuck.
The tears shimmering in them are like a blow to the stomach, and I clench my teeth.
She confuses me. Her closeness confuses me. These eyes confuse me, and I do something incredibly stupid. I bring my lips close to hers.
The air between us buzzes, and my body vibrates with tension, being this close to her, and all these fucking emotions overwhelm me. They simply overrun me, and I can’t thinkstraight anymore. Everything feels like it’s narrowing into a tunnel.
“I think you meant Lizzy paid for your stupidity, Goldilocks, hmm?” I whisper right against her lips, and now the storm in her eyes explodes into boundless pain.
Guilt flashes through them, and she recoils as if struck, stumbling away from me. She puts distance between us, and a sob escapes her lips.
She flinches again, as if in pain, before she straightens, and every last trace of emotion disappears from her beautiful face.
Empty. Now her eyes are empty and dull, and my stomach clenches when I realize what I just said.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
“You are right. Lizzy paid the price, of course. Please excuse me, I still have a few things to do. I… I will see you at the meeting.” She evades my gaze and quickly pushes past me to scurry out of the room, and a short time later I hear the door slam. And me? I stand there frozen in place, unable to move or to go after her. Unable to apologize.
I’m a goddamn asshole.
Completely drained, I run a hand over my face and wish I could just disappear. But first, I have to get through this whole shitty farce.
Whether I want to or not.
“You stupid bitch!”
My scalp burns as Henry grabs me by the hair and yanks me out of the car. The moment the gates of Perlington House close behind us, his controlled mask drops. My heart pounds, and the fear, this awful, all-consuming fear, paralyzes me. I just let it happen.
I stumble out of the car, biting back a whimper because I know it would only make him angrier, so I stay silent. My body is flooded with adrenaline, my muscles are wound so tight they feel like they might snap, and I can’t stop the slight trembling in my limbs.
“How dare you walk out dressed like some cheap whore?”
All the air rushes from my lungs as his fist slams into my stomach, and a dull, stinging pain spreads through me. I double over, clutching my stomach, and try to breathe, but it’s hard, and every breath burns.
No. Please, no.
A sob escapes my throat as he grips my upper arm, squeezing hard before striking again.
