Page 135 of The Devil’s Lair

What the heck have I married into?

This is incredible. Saskia will be royalty. A princess. It’s like a fairy tale.

“So, that’s why you needed the bad press about The Lair to go away,” Tobias murmurs.

Charles nods. “As I told you at the time, negotiations have been delicate.”

Negotiations? Makes their wedding sound like a business arrangement, which is when it hits me. It is exactly that. This is the world I’m in, where marriages are arranged with a hope that love follows. It’s worked for the men around this table. There’s no reason it can’t work for Saskia. She’s clearly thrilled, and that’s all that matters.

As the shock recedes, excitement kicks in. Chairs scrape against the wooden flooring as they’re pushed back and everyone waits in line to hug Saskia. Charles calls for champagne and, together, we toast the happy news.

“When’s the wedding?” Vicky asks.

“November 13th. I’d have preferred a late summer wedding, but Luis’s schedule doesn’t allow for it. We’re having an engagement party at Buckingham Palace on October 16th. There’s a formal announcement tomorrow at three at Windsor Castle, which I’m begging all of you to come to. The press don’t know why they’ve been summoned, but there will be a gazillion of them, and I’d appreciate it if you were all there for moral support.” She grimaces. “I’m terrified, and considering there isn’t much that scares me… well, that tells you how big of a deal it is for me.”

Alexander drapes an arm around his sister’s shoulders and kisses her temple. “Mum would be so proud.”

Saskia nods, then turns away, and I’m sure I see her dash away a tear or two. It can’t be easy for her to know her mum won’t be there to watch her get married. Especially now the truth has come out that she never chose to leave them, which the family believed for so long.

My mother never made it to either of my weddings, but that was a blessing not a curse. She’d have turned up drunk and made a scene. On occasion, I do think about looking her up from afar, just to see if she’s cleaned up her act. Those thoughts are fleeting. I know in my heart I’ve made the right decision to cut all ties. I don’t need her. Tobias and Isla are all I need. They’re more than enough, and I get this amazing extended family, too. I’m more fortunate than most, and I’ll never take that for granted.

“You’re doing that thing with your face when you’re thinking deeply about something.” Tobias nuzzles my neck. “What’s wrong?”

I turn to him, my rock. My safety net. My incredible husband. “Nothing’s wrong. Just thinking about how lucky I am to be your wife.”

Our eyes lock, and for a few moments, the excited voices fade away, leaving only me and Tobias and this crazy connection we’ve built.

“Want to get out of here?” he murmurs, tracing my cheek with the back of his hand.

“Isn’t that rude?”

He shrugs. “I don’t care. I want to be alone with you. Besides, my family will understand. They know what it means to be in love.”

“Then, let’s go,” I whisper.

His hand closes around mine, and we slip away quietly, without fanfare or fuss, and head upstairs.

Chapter Forty-One

REBECCA

Candles adorn the edges of the bathtub, their light flickering against the crisp white walls. The smell of lavender and rose fills my nostrils, and bubbles lazily drift across the surface.

Tobias turns to look at me, his eyes soft and warm. “Isla okay?”

“Yeah. She’s fast asleep clutching that toy rabbit you bought her last week.” He bought it because he thought she’d like it, and he was right. He’s always right when it comes to Isla. Sometimes I think they’re closer than we are—two peas in a pod. They may not share genetics, but lately, I’ve started believing in a higher power that somehow knew he was destined to be her daddy.

I reach up to take the pins out of my hair. It’s not often I find the time to put it up, but I made an effort tonight for Charles’s impromptu dinner invitation. Now I know the reason, I’m glad I did.

“Here, let me do that.” Tobias moves toward me, his touch gentle as he removes each pin. My hair falls over my shoulders, and he runs his fingers through it. “Turn around.”

I do, and he unzips my dress, letting it fall to the floor and gather around my ankles. One hand rests on my hip, the other brushes my hair over my shoulder, freeing my skin for the kiss he places there. Unhurried, he unhooks my bra, peels my lace thong over my thighs, and hangs them and my dress over a chair nestled in the corner of the oversized bathroom.

I pivot to face him as he begins unbuttoning his shirt. “Let me.”

He nods, dropping his arms to his sides, watching my every move as I undress him. My fingers dance over the faint dusting of hair on his chest, moving lower, lower. I cup my hand around his cock, giving him a single, sweeping tug. He groans, his forehead falling to my shoulder.

“Feels so good,” he murmurs. “I never thought I was capable of feeling like this until you, Wren… beautiful, amazing, you changed all that.” He cups my face and kisses me like we have all the time in the world.