Page 62 of Royal Hottie
He kisses me. “Now thank me for your screaming orgasm.”
I huff and lie back on my side.
His fingers slide between my legs, and I moan. “Was that a thank-you I heard?” he teases.
“You will pay,” I growl, and then I gasp. He owns my body, and I love it.
A long while later, I melt into the mattress, spent. He’s dedicated himself quite thoroughly solely to my pleasure. “Thank you.”
“There it is!” he crows, lifting his head from between my legs. He shifts to sit next to me on the mattress. “I knew I could get it out of you if I just put my mind to it. And my lips and tongue—”
I prop up on my elbows and glare at him. “Shhh!”
“You still haven’t learned your lesson? No inhibitions because of the guards.” He sighs. “We’ll have to start again.”
I sit up and tackle him. He lets me, falling to his back. Then I kiss him all over his scruffy face.
His cheeks curve against my lips. “That’s more like it.” And then he just holds me, his arms wrapped tight around me.
I rest my head on his chest, listening to the steady thump of his heart. I’m exactly where I want to be, where I was meant to be, surrounded by love.
Epilogue
The following week in the royal dining room…
Phillip
I’m bursting to tell my family the big news of our engagement, but I have to wait. We’re gathered at my sister Emma’s rehearsal dinner with her fiancé, Abdul, who is from a small kingdom in Southeast Asia. Their wedding is tomorrow at the chapel here, and Emma will go to live with him after their marriage. He’s rather bland, very proper like our Emma, and seems nice enough. His dark brown hair is neatly parted to the side, and he’s wearing a navy blue suit with a rose-colored tie and pocket square. Emma matches him, wearing a modest long-sleeved rose dress with a string of pearls. Her long dark brown hair is neatly parted down the middle, her big hazel eyes downcast, her demeanor subdued and rather stiff, her full pink lips pressed into a tight line. I really thought she’d look happier on the occasion she’s waited so many years for. Maybe she’s nervous. She and Abdul were an arranged marriage set up by our mutual kingdoms. She accepted him as her future husband when she was sixteen and had to wait until she turned twenty-five to wed, according to my parents’ wishes. She turned twenty-five last week. The fact that she rarely indulges in alcohol and has definitely had some champagne should’ve relaxed her.
Maybe it’s because our mother isn’t here. She’s become a recluse, taking her meals in her room. She says she’ll be at the wedding tomorrow, which will be her first public appearance since my father died. Ruby and I visited her in her suite and told her our big news earlier. She gave us her blessing, though she didn’t seem excited. Not much can penetrate the thick cloud of grief that surrounds her. I understand. She’s lost the love of her life.
As soon as the meal is finished, I stand and walk around to where Emma is seated next to her fiancé. Abdul’s parents and his two sisters are here, as well as all of my siblings. “Congratulations to you both.”
“Thank you, Phillip,” Emma says in a near monotone.
I check her eyes. She’s not drunk. I’ve never seen her drunk, but her behavior is so at odds with the happy occasion I wondered if alcohol has a subduing effect on her. Actually, she looks like she checked out. Her eyes are blank.
“Thank you,” Abdul says in perfect English. “I’m pleased we can finally move forward now that Emma has reached the proper age.”
“Yes, happy birthday, little sister.” I was away at the time.
She barely inclines her head.
I give her shoulder a squeeze. “Would it be okay if I shared some good news with our family, or should I wait for a different occasion? I don’t want to take away from your celebration.”
“Oh, no, please go ahead,” Emma says.
I turn to Abdul, who gestures for me to go ahead.
I head over to Ruby, lean down, and whisper, “I’m going to tell them our news.”
She smiles and nods.
I clink a spoon against a glass and the room quiets, my brothers and sisters all turning their attention to me. Gabriel and Anna are here too. She’s not quite herself after losing Mike last week. He died within an hour of her arrival. It seems he’d been hanging on just to say goodbye. She arranged for a quiet funeral, as he’d wanted, and returned home.
I take everyone in. “On this most happy occasion, I want to extend a warm congratulations to Emma and Abdul.”
Everyone applauds and murmurs their congratulations. My siblings are less than enthusiastic. They think Emma took the proper princess thing too far, agreeing to an arranged marriage. It was an option my parents broached for all of us. Only Gabriel and Emma would even consider it. They’re two peas in a proper royal pod. I could see it with Gabriel, the heir, but Emma is fifth in line for the throne. She just believed it important to carry on tradition, probably because my proper mother emphasized the point. Those two were always very close. Emma was the daughter my mother hoped for after having four sons.
