The Prince's Bride (Modern Fairytales) (10 page)

Thank God you did.

Wait. What?

She exhaled, slightly out of breath, watching him with a hunger that couldn’t be denied. “And you broke all your rules for a stranger in a mask.”

“Yeah, but only because I knew who you were.” He skimmed his finger down her bare arm, leaving a trail of goose bumps in his wake. His gentle, featherlight touch sent shivers down her spine, and even though she shouldn’t, she swayed toward him when he dipped his head down, his gaze locked on her mouth. Her heart sped up, and her limbs grew weak and shaky, and she knew, she just
knew
, he was going to kiss her, and she was powerless to stop him.

Thank God.

She bit down on her lip, placed a hand on his bare, hard, hot chest, not even bothering to pretend to push him away. His chest hair felt so crisp against her fingers, and she ached to close her fist over it and tug him closer until he did it. Until he
kissed
her. “Leo…”

His lips stopped a mere breath from hers, and he tensed. Slowly, oh so slowly, he pulled back, no longer on the verge of kissing her. Relief and disappointment warred within her for control. She declined to say which of them won.

But she kind of wanted to punch him.

Chapter Thirteen

That had been a close call. He’d been so careful not to press her, not to try to sweep her away in his arms again, with kisses and broken promises. He’d done that to her once, and he refused to do it again. She’d been clear when she’d agreed to spend time with him that all she wanted from him was friendship.

And he was okay with that.

But if he wanted any chance at something more than a night in bed together, he had to play his cards right. Time was running out, and she’d be going back to America soon, but that didn’t have to be the end of their relationship. Not this time.

This time, he’d fucking write.

And text.

And call.

If he had his way, this friendship was the start of a lifelong commitment of some sort—though he wasn’t sure what type of relationship he was looking for yet.

Just…something
more
.

But if he kissed her, all of that would be ruined. Because if their lips met, there was no way in hell he’d be able to stop there. He’d need to kiss all of her.

Every damn inch.

And then she’d push him away after.

Leo was trained to be rational, level-headed, smart, cautious, and kind in all things. His father taught him to never take unnecessary risks or hope for the impossible, and to always think of others’ wellbeing before his own. When it came to Alicia Forkes, though, he was the biggest fool to ever walk on this side of the planet. Rational decisions didn’t exist with her.

There was just
hope
.

Stupid, foolish, ignorant hope.

He was determined to keep her in his life this time.

If only he had a magic carpet he could take her for a ride on. That would fix everything. She’d fall in love with him and never want to leave.

“So, ice-skating.” She cleared her throat and averted her eyes, clearly not wanting to admit they’d almost kissed, and he knew why. She wasn’t ready. “I haven’t done this since that day we were together.”

He forced his mind back to the present. “Why not?” he asked, sitting on the bench next to the skates to undo the laces of his black leather boots.

She sat down next to him, letting out a breath as she ran her hands over her pants, up and down, as if trying to warm herself up. It took all of his control not to wrap his arm around her and pull her in close to share his body heat. Reluctantly, she said, “Dad died, and I moved, and all those things I did for fun just…stopped.”

He wanted to ask, so fucking badly, where she went. But just like he knew she wasn’t ready for a kiss, she wasn’t ready for him to press her for information about her past—especially since she was convinced he already knew it all. “I’m sorry.”

She side-eyed him. “For what, precisely?”

“Everything. Not writing you, for never going back to the city to find you, and for taking you in that hallway like I did.” He took a deep breath. “Also, for my actions afterward, in bringing you to the castle. I’m sorry for it. All of it.”

She turned to face him, her lips parted, so close to his own that all he had to do was lean in and they’d be touching. He didn’t move a fucking muscle. “That’s a lot of apologies in one breath.”

“I’ve messed up a lot.” He shrugged, hanging his hands between his spread knees, to keep them off of her. “I can see that.”

She remained silent, lifting a shoulder in a half-shrug.

For a few moments, she didn’t speak. It was as if she couldn’t figure out what to say to his apology, and maybe that was a good thing. But, knowing his luck, it was probably bad. She’d open her mouth, tell him to fuck off, and he would—

“I stopped skating because I went into foster care, and it wasn’t a good home.” She pulled off her left sneaker, and then her right. “After that, everything went downhill.
Everything
.”

He swallowed hard, biting back the questions that came, questions about exactly how bad it had been for her, and where she’d gone after it got bad, but instead he focused on the other side of her confession. The unspoken one. “And that’s when you wrote to me and ‘I’ told you to go to the airport?”

“That was later.” She pushed her foot into a skate. “Much later.”

“I see.” He slid into one skate and then his other before asking, “How much later, exactly?”

“Two months after I ran away.” She finished tying her second skate and held a hand out for him. “Ready to skate?”

He stared at her hand, since it was the first time she’d ever willingly initiated bodily contact with him, and slowly ran his eyes higher until he locked gazes with her. She looked so guarded, yet so vulnerable, that it physically hurt him not to stand up, pull her into his arms, and promise with a kiss to protect her for the rest of her life.

But she didn’t want protection, and she didn’t need him.

And that was a promise he wasn’t sure he could keep.

Once upon a time, he had fallen in love with the girl she had been. And now, facing the woman she had become, despite all the odds stacked up against them, there was no doubt he could easily fall in love with her all over again, if he let himself.

And if he did, he would never let her go.

Was that what he wanted from her?

Love
?

But she’d made it more than obvious the feelings weren’t mutual. She was sexually attracted to him. Her body gave that away. But more than once she’d said she didn’t like him. It was difficult for him to admit that he couldn’t have what he wanted. Stupid, since he wasn’t really sure what that was.

If he seriously wanted to make this something more than a tentative friendship on her part, he’d have to continue working to regain her trust, and there was a good chance, even after he did everything he could to show her he wouldn’t let her down again, even after he tried his damned best to make her believe in him again…that she wouldn’t.

His father’s comment about her possibly being the woman to be his queen, flashed through his mind.

Was she?

Damn if he didn’t want to find out.

That
was a risk that was well worth the reward.

But it was important he tread carefully. No matter what, he wouldn’t be the one to hurt her. Never again.

“Leo?” she questioned, looking confused.

Shit. How long had he been lost in thought?

“Yes, I’m ready.” Reaching out, he entwined his fingers with hers, not waiting to see if she would pull away or not. “You probably don’t like this, but don’t read too much into it. I just want to make sure I don’t fall flat on my ass and embarrass myself.”

She glanced up at him through her long, thick lashes, and smiled, her eyes dancing with laughter. “Now that’s something I’d pay to see.”

“I’m sure there are quite a few people who—” He stepped onto the ice, and sure enough, he did it. He fell flat on his ass, and took her down with him. They hit the ice hard, and he pulled her on top of him in an attempt to keep her from getting hurt. She ended up sprawled on top of his chest, with her legs between his, and she slammed down on him so hard that the breath came right out of his lungs. “
Oof
.”

She lifted her head, eyes wide, and stared down at him with parted lips—lips that were so damn close and kissable it hurt to not take advantage of that. Her hair cascaded over her shoulders and on either side of his head, and her cheeks were as pink as the tip of her nose. “Oh my God. You hit your head. Are you okay?”

Her hair tickled his nose, and her knee had come uncomfortably close to jamming his cock, and he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to walk without limping, but he’d died and gone to heaven, so none of that mattered anymore anyway. Her body was pressed against his in all the right places, she was in his arms for the first time since that night in the hallway when she hadn’t even known who he was, and she smelled like roses.

So right now, he was pretty damn good.

“Leo.” She waved a hand in front of his eyes. “Hello?”

He blinked and framed her face with both his hands, unable to resist touching her when she was
lying
on top of him. “You’re so beautiful.”

To his surprise, she didn’t pull away, or stiffen, or even look annoyed. She slowly traced the line of his jaw, her focus on the spot she touched. He didn’t dare to so much as breathe, in case he scared her off, or ripped her out of her thoughts. “Why didn’t you come to the airport like you promised? Everything would be so different now.”

“I would have come, if I’d known,” he said, running his thumb over her lower lip gently. “I’ll come from now on, no matter how far away you are, or how many years pass. If you call me, I’ll be there for you. I promise.”

She licked her lips and shook her head slightly, her eyes solemn. “It’s too late for those types of promises.”

“It’s never too late to make a promise you intend to keep,” he said slowly, running his thumb over her lip again. “And I swear to you, here and now, that I’ll keep that promise, as surely as I’m going to kiss you right now, because, damn it, Alicia, I
need
to fucking kiss you.”

Without waiting for a reply, he tugged her head down to his, closing the space between them, and captured her lips. She moaned into his mouth, her palm pressing more firmly to his cheek, the other one resting over his heart. His pulse raced, and he slid his tongue inside her mouth, tasting the pure sweetness that was Alicia Forkes.

When she parted her lips and pressed her tongue to his before slowly circling it, he growled and explored her body, slowly learning all her curves with new hands. Cupping her ass, he pushed his hips up, pressing his erection against her softness. She held on to him tightly, rolling against him wantonly before spreading her legs and resting her knees on either side of his hips.

Every single reason he had for not touching her flew out the window, because there was no stopping this. No stopping the tidal wave of need crashing over his head, dragging him under until all that was left was
this
.

Alicia.

He lifted his hips, arching them up so he thrust against her as he took command of the kiss from her. She gasped when he gripped her ass hard and rolled her onto the padded floor beside the rink, settling between her legs before she could so much as gasp at the change. The second she wrapped her legs around his waist, he rocked against her, cursing the clothes between them.

Closing his palms over her large breasts, he skimmed the sides of his thumbs against her hard nipples. She moaned and ran her hands down his back, digging her nails into the skin through the thin cotton shirt he still wore, before bringing them around front to his bare chest. As she spread her fingers through his chest hair, he broke off the kiss and licked a trail down her neck, right over her racing pulse.

“You have no idea how many times I’ve dreamed of this, of having you in my arms, naked and writhing and
mine
.” He twisted her nipples a little roughly, biting down on her shoulder at the same time. “After all these years, and all that time, the dream is back, and you’re in my arms, and there’s no way in hell I’m letting you go. Never”—he slid his hand over her smooth stomach and then under the waistband of her leggings—“again.”

“We shouldn’t—” She gasped and arched her back, her eyes drifting shut before popping back open with alarm. He ran his finger over her before thrusting two fingers inside her warm, wet heat. “Oh my God,
yes
.”

He buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling her soft, floral scent and memorizing the way she felt, pressed up against him, straining against his fingers. And his memory chose that awful moment to come crashing back into him. He wasn’t supposed to be doing this, damn it. But at the same time, he couldn’t leave her wanting and hungry and frustrated. So he’d make her come…

And then he’d stop.

Gritting his teeth, he quickened his strokes. “You have no idea how hard it is not to take you right here, right now. But it wouldn’t be playing fair, and I refuse to play dirty with you ever again.”

She arched her back and let out a small moan, clearly past the point of caring, but he kept talking anyway because it was the only way he would remember why he couldn’t take her like he wanted to. A small gasp escaped her when he rolled his thumb over her wet, swollen flesh. He ached to close his mouth over her, to bring her to pleasure with his tongue, but he couldn’t do that here and now.

It would have to wait.

But
she
wouldn’t.

She screamed and lifted her hips, struggling to get closer to him than she already was, her body shaking and straining for release. “
Yes
.”

As he slid two fingers into her again, he buried his other hand in her hair and tilted her face up to his, and kissed her again, his teeth digging into her bottom lip. As he fucked her with his hand, bringing her higher, he drank of her sweetness, knowing he’d never get enough of touching her, kissing her, having her. There was no such thing. She was an addiction he couldn’t kick.

Her skates slid on the floor, poking his thigh and ripping through the thin fabric. “I—I—” She broke off when he thrust into her hard, crooking his fingers just right. She arched her neck back, closed her eyes, and screamed, “
Leo
.”

Just like he asked her to.

He groaned and dropped his forehead onto the floor next to hers. His whole body ached with the desire, the
need
, to bury his cock inside her wet, pulsating heat. His fingers were still inside of her, and she rocked her hips against him, riding that last wave of the orgasm he’d just sent her on, and fuck, he wanted to hop on that wave, too.

Lifting up on his elbow, he wiggled his fingers to send another pulse of pleasure racing through her, and kissed her one more time before pulling back and saying, “It’s taking all my control not to rip your pants off, flip you over, and slam into you. Just so you know.”

“What’s stopping you?” She licked her lips, but didn’t open her eyes, almost as if she didn’t want him to see her yet. “Why don’t you want to?”

“Oh, I
want
to.” He smoothed her hair back, and she slowly lifted her lashes and stared up at him. The hesitance, the fear, he saw in those bright blue eyes of hers took his breath away, but he forced a smile for her anyway. “But you don’t trust me. Once I change that, and once you know I’m not the type of guy to leave you standing there alone in an airport, then you’re all fucking mine. And I’m not losing you this time.”