Page 73 of Royally Wed
You already have, she thought as he undressed her and her breath grew shallow with anticipation. She’d shown him parts of herself that she’d never shown anyone. Not the perfect,regal exterior, but the hidden, messy parts that so often got lost beneath the luster of the crown.
She’d been real with Asher. From the moment they met, there’d been nothing but brutal honesty in their eyes. He’dseenher that night in the Abbey. Before she’d even shown him her face, he’d known her. His music had resonated with her in a way that made her feel more connected to a living soulthan she’d felt in a long, long time. Perhaps ever.
“My God, Amelia. You’re stunning,” he groaned when she was fully exposed, bared for him. “I want to kiss you everywhere, touch you everywhere.”
She nodded and inhaled a shuddering breath. She wasn’t sure how long she could bear the searing heat that had begunto flow through her—thick and sweet, like honey. She needed to take him inside, tohold him tight. To know him as thoroughly as he’d known her.
Asher bent to kiss her again, and as her eyes drifted shut, his hand found her center. He slipped a finger inside her, and she cried into his mouth.
“Shh,” he whispered against her lips. “Slow down, love. I want to do this right. We have time.”
Did they though?
Did they really?
Don’t think about that now. Don’t think about whatcomes next.
She moved her hips in time with Asher’s hand, seeking relief to the chaos inside. She loved the way he touched her—like she was a precious instrument and he knew all the right ways to draw out her most soulful harmony. As he did... as he played her to perfection and she slipped into the dreamlike rhythm of his melody, she forgot about the time they didn’t have. She let it go, alongwith everything else, and made the most of the moment.
ASHER WASN’T GOING TObe able to wait much longer.
He was doing his best to draw things out, to take Amelia right to the edge and then gently, slowly, bring her back again... to keep the crescendo just out of reach. He wanted this to be good for her. Perfect. He wanted her to remember him once he’d gone, because even if she didn’t marryHolden, Asher knew good and well there was no real futurefor them.
She was a princess.
If she didn’t marry the duke, another man would come along. Not a man with a cello, but one with a crown. That seemed important for some reason. Necessary.
Asher harbored no illusions. He wasn’t even British. He knew he wasn’t necessary to the monarchy, but he wanted to be necessary toher. To Amelia. Hewanted her to remember this night for the rest of her life. He wanted her to think about him years from now when her prince touched her. He wanted her to picture his face and wish it were him.
He wanted her to remember.
Maybe that made him a selfish prick, but he couldn’t help it. He couldn’t think straight where Amelia was concerned. If he’d been capable of rational thought, she wouldn’t bein his bed, writhing so beautifully as he stroked her and whispered how badly he needed his cock inside her. He would have never kissed her, much less grazed her nipples with gentle bites of his teeth until her supple spine arched like a bow.
He wanted her in ways he’d never conceived of. He didn’t know who he was anymore. Sex had never been this intense for him. But everything about his lifeseemed to be shifting lately. He was experiencing some kind of sea change, and Amelia was part of it. She was the deep end of the ocean, and he was hell-bent on drowning.
“Now, Asher. Please.” He undressed in a frenzy and his entire body sighed with relief when he lowered himself on top of Amelia and they were finally skin-to-skin.
No barriers. No protocol. Just the two of them.
Amelia tookhim in her hands to guide him to her entrance, and he groaned his pleasure. In the moment before he pushed inside her velvet heat, he whispered, “This, my love. We’ll always have this.”
No matter what happened come morning.
AMELIA WOKE IN Apanic, with her head on Asher’s chest and her legs wound deliciously with his. Sometime during the hazy hours right before dawn, she’d had a revelation.It might have come to her in a dream, or her subconscious may have been working overtime trying to come up with a way to cancel the wedding and still save the crown. Somehow she’d done it. She’d figured it out, but there was something very important she needed to do before it was too late.
She needed to get the pocket watch back. The watch was the key to her freedom.
Amelia sat up and scannedthe darkened room with her gaze, searching for her clothes.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Asher murmured, reaching to run a hand through her hair.
She closed her eyes and dipped her head back, leaning into his touch. She could stay right there in his bed all day long. Maybe they could barricade the door and lock themselves inside until the hour of the wedding had passed.
No. That wouldn’twork, obviously. It was time to face the music.
“I need to go talk to my mother,” she said.
Asher grew very still. “Does this mean what I hope it means?”
