Page 33 of Tall, Royal Hater
“Are you okay?” Esmeralda asked.
“Yes,” he said, his timbre low and gravelly. Esmeralda narrowed her gaze at me. Knowing the mischief was showing on my face, I quickly thought of something to distract her with.
“Wait, I didn’t show you the picture.” This time when I pushed away from Shehryar, he let me go with ease, and my triumph increased two-fold. I dug my hand into my pocket and pulled out the white square photo frame. “It’s so damn cute.”
I handed it to her, and we cooed over it while Kai blushed next to her.
“Do you have any film left?” Esmeralda said, slipping the picture into her purse. “We should take some group pictures too.”
Lifting my wrist, I turned the camera to check. “Crap, no. That was my last one. But we can take some on my phone too, and I’ll print them out with my photo printer for you.”
She grinned. “I love you, Mar.”
I winked. “I know, but you’re gonna make your dear prince jealous if you say it like that.”
She grinned up at Kai, leaning into him as he smiled shyly and tugged at his ear. “I’m not jealous.”
Esmeralda and I laughed. Then I whipped out my phone.
“Let’s get Rocco to take them,” Esmeralda said.
I handed the giant ex-marine my phone when he happily agreed. He moved to stand a couple of metres away and I positioned myself on one side of Esmeralda, while Kai stood on the other. That left Shehryar to stand next to me.
I felt a jab of irritation poke through me when he stood unnecessarily close, leaving the back of my upper arm pressed to his broad chest.
“Ready?” Rocco called.
Esmeralda answered, but my parted lips couldn’t form a single word.
Because Shehryar shifted behind me. And shifted again. Or rather adjusted his arm, and I…
My breath and heartbeat stilled.
Something brushed across the silk of my skirt, over my arse. The lightest of touches. More so a heavy presence I was overly aware of. It spread wide over my left arse cheek, ever so slightly skimming it. Once. Twice. My heart headbutted my rib cage when I felt a faint third touch.
I took a split-second glance at Shehryar across my shoulder.
He wasn’t…touching me, was he?
Shaking off the absurd thought, I smiled at the camera as Rocco took a picture, but…
The presence returned against my arse, and my belly snapped up like a rubber band, shooting pulses in every direction. This time, it was a definite brush of fingers across the left side. Up and down. Then the scrape of blunt nails up again, making the pulses echo harder.
My head whipped to Shehryar. He was looking ahead, the smile on his mouth giving nothing away.
“Sorry, Mariyah.” I nearly jumped when Rocco spoke. “Could you look this way, please?”
“Sorry,” I croaked and forced myself to grin.
The grunting sound Shehryar made was quiet, but the taunting ring to it was loud in my ears. Black lava paved a furious path through me as I realised he was doing it on purpose.
I’m going to murder the fucking dickhead.
Unable to say anything, I swallowed down my rising rage and edged closer to Esmeralda.
But as Rocco announced he was taking several pictures in one go, Shehryar spread his huge, rough palm right over my arse. Not hovering but pressing unashamedly against it.
My airway closed in on itself. Ire exploded through my veins. And the back-and-forth pulsing from my chest to between my thighs turned into a sprint.
