Page 39 of Made for Reign

I can still taste you on my tongue, Princess.

Followed quickly by another one.

I love all the little sounds you make when I’m inside you.

Are you alone?

I pick up my phone and debate what to type. Finally, I respond:

I’m alone.

The phone rings a second later. It’s Reign. A little thrill runs through me at seeing his name on my screen.

“Hey, Princess,” his deep voice fills my ear when I answer. “Did you make it home safe?”

“Yes,” I whisper, suddenly feeling shy despite everything that just happened between us. “I’m home.”

“Good. Are you okay? You seem nervous.”

I sink onto the edge of my bed and pull my silk robe tighter around me. “I am nervous. This is all happening so fast, Reign. I don’t know what I’m doing.”

“I know it’s fast, baby. But you’re mine now, and I’m not giving you up without a fight.”

The possessiveness in his voice sends warmth spreading through my chest.

“I don’t know how?—”

“Let me take you to breakfast tomorrow,” he interrupts. “I want to see you again. There’s this little place on the edge of town. The Piney Creek Diner. Do you know it?”

I smile despite everything. “I used to go there with my dad when I was little.”

“Perfect. Can you get away? Say around eight?”

My mind races through my schedule.

“It’s tough. Lucille has appointments planned, but...” I take a breath, making another choice for myself. “I’ll manage it. I’ll be there.”

“Eight o’clock then.” The satisfaction in his voice is unmistakable. “And Audrey? Wear something I can get my hands under easily.”

NINE

REIGN

I arriveat the Piney Creek Diner twenty minutes early the next morning. The bell above the door jingles as I step inside, and the smell of coffee and bacon grease hits me immediately.

This place is exactly what I wanted. Unpretentious and filled with locals who know how to mind their own business. The kind of place someone like Vega would never set foot in. The kind of place where I can see Audrey without his goons breathing down our necks.

The morning crowd is sparse. Just a few construction workers hunched over plates of eggs and hash browns, a couple of elderly men nursing coffee at the counter, and a young mom trying to corral two kids into eating their pancakes. No one looks up when I enter except the waitress behind the counter, who gives me a friendly nod.

I make my way to a corner booth with a clear view of both entrances. I slide in and face the door. Then I check my watch.

7:44 AM.

Audrey should be here at eight, but a knot of tension forms in my gut at the thought she might not show.

Last night was intense. The way she melted in my arms, the sounds she made when I was inside her. All of it confirmed what I already knew. She’s mine.

But there’s a difference between knowing something and having it, and right now Audrey is still wearing another man’s ring.

---