My fists clench at my sides, my fingers twitching with the urge to reach for her again.
As the haze of lust clears, her eyes fly open wide and her cheeks flush a delightful shade of pink. I’d hoped it was attraction toward me, but the scent of her embarrassment tinges the air between us.
“Forgive me,” I rasp, voice rough with barely leashed need. “I misunderstood. A cultural difference, I apologize.”
“Wait!” Elana cries out as I whirl away, fleeing the temptation of her room. If I stay any longer, my fragile restraint will snap. I’ll claim her as mine, worship her body until she screams my name in ecstasy, until her body surrenders to me completely.
I press my back against the cool hallway wall, my chest heaving as if I’ve just emerged from battle.
“Bloody idiot males,” I hear Elana mutter through the door. I tense, half-expecting her to chase after me. If she does, there will be no stopping my rampaging desire.
Thankfully, I relax as I hear the shuffle of bedsheets, imagining her burrowing back into the nest of blankets. “Gives me the best kiss ever then runs off. I’ll never understand men. Men must really be from Mars. In his case, probably literally.”
My chest swells with masculine pride and warmth spreads through me. The best kiss of her life? I thought I’d crossed a line, but she wanted more. I ache to return, to show her pleasures beyond any kiss. But I know I must be patient, gentle. She has no idea of the passions I long to unleash.
I start my nightly patrol of the hotel, a now familiar route I’ve walked many times. I secure exits and entries. The primal part of me wants to trap my woman here with me, keep her safe. No one will reach her without going through me first. She will be protected.
Of course, Prince Rist comes wandering around the corner, grinning as he sets his eyes on me. He tracks mud down the pristine hallway—good-natured but oblivious as always.
“So, is she the critic?” he asks.
I hesitate, unsure how to explain Elana’s mysterious presence. She dresses and acts nothing like a professional critic, yet was quick to accept the role I offered. A tantalizing puzzle I’m determined to solve.
Rist sighs dramatically. “Shall I take over then? I’ve never met this human before. I can attend to her...”
“No!” The word tumbles from my lips before I even have a chance to think. A growl rumbles in my chest at the thought of him touching what belongs to me. Elana has no idea of the beast she’s awakened within me, but soon, I vow, she will.
Prince Rist’s eyes widen as he stares back at me, blinking slowly. It’s the first time I’ve ever said those words to him, I realize. It’s the first time I’ve ever truly refused him.
“Are you—“ he starts.
“I have everything under control,” I interrupt, waving off the prince’s concern. I force myself to walk away from Elana’s room, gesturing for the prince to follow. My next words are spoken with feigned brightness, trying to dispel the tension that lingers between us. “Is there anything else we need to do before the grand opening?”
“Just hire the staff,” Rist replies, eyeing me curiously.
“It’ll be difficult to find someone willing to work with us, so you should concentrate your efforts there. Let me handle the critic,” I tell him.
Elana is mine. I’m not ready to share her with anyone yet. Maybe ever.
I move to my usual perch on the balcony that overlooks the guest wing of the hotel and the grounds beyond. I’ll stand sentry tonight, eyes peeled for trouble, and tomorrow I will confront Elana with everything I’ve got. I’ll unravel her mysteries, then put her back together, piece by piece, thoroughly claimed. In the end, I always get my prey.
ChapterSix
ELANA
Twice now, I’ve woken up away from my home and the familiar lumpy mattress. I have no idea how long I’ve been missing from Earth, but somehow the thought isn’t as terrifying as I thought it would be. Maybe it’s because I was stuck in a dead-end, low-wage job? I didn’t have many friends or family who would miss me, either. Heck, I can’t even claim a boyfriend anymore.
Everything seems like an adventure—a terrifying one, but an adventure nonetheless.
Awakening surrounded by bedsheets softer than silk, white like those in hotels back home that I used to clean, I sink deep into a plush mattress. The sensation feels straight out of a fancy resort.
A knock interrupts my peace as I blink open sleepy eyes. Sutek pokes his bright crimson head through the doorway, his inky black hair swaying around him.
I had hoped my exhausted, disheveled state would excuse last night’s reckless behavior and sudden lust. No such luck. If anything, Sutek looks even more appealing this morning. His ruby-red skin has an exotic, otherworldly allure. Last night, I felt his surprisingly soft and supple skin beneath my eager fingers—thicker than a human’s but with a buttery smoothness I yearn to touch again.
To confirm he’s real and not a product of my lonely imagination, that is.
He flashes me a grin, revealing his gleaming pointed teeth. They don’t look threatening, like the dragon-man’s angry snarl. Instead, Sutek’s smile sends warm tingles through my body, reminding me of the way those pearly whites grazed my lips last night, hinting at barely restrained arousal.
