Page 37 of Taken By the King

Sebastian gave me a look that said I should at least try the champagne. I sighed and then took the damn sip.

When we were done with the toast, the man exchanged a few words with my new husband. I was so glad when he finally left us alone.

“How do you even know him?” I asked after I drank some water. I wasn’t going to make the same mistake as when I got wasted and asked Sebastian to spank me.

“Why are you asking questions right now, teacup? Enjoy your food and let me take care of everything else,” he snapped and, in that moment, I was ready to leave. The spell was broken once again.

Sebastian was back to being his annoying self. So much for a romantic lunch together. I wanted to tell him that the food hadn’t arrived yet, but I bit my tongue.

I kept staring at the menu and wondering why he was so hot and cold all the time. I could never figure out what kind of mood he’d be in. That kiss meant something, I knew it did, but right now, Sebastian refused to acknowledge it.

“How long are we going to stay here in France?” I asked, unable to stand the silence. We were married, so we needed to talk to each other. He finally looked at me again, pinning me down with his dark eyes. Then, he took a sip of his drink.

“A few more days. We have a business meeting in Chicago soon, so we need to be back for that,” he replied. “I hope you have been doing for your bit for Jordan.”

“Yes, I have,” I said.

“Good, but you do need to put on a little weight. Russina was a bit fuller than you.”

“I cannot just put on weight. I have never been a big eater, so you may have to tell people that I lost a few pounds,” I said, aggravated that we were suddenly back to behaving like strangers again. All business.

My mind kept reminding me that he was no one to me, that this wedding was just an arrangement and when my time was up, I would be free again.

Sebastian didn’t respond, but I could sense he wasn’t pleased. Well, he needed to deal with it, as I had a great metabolism and I had always been skinny. I relaxed when the owner brought our food in. And oh my, that lobster looked and smelled absolutely amazing. Even better, once I tasted it, I thought it was the best thing I had ever tried in my life.

“This is delicious. I can’t believe I hadn’t tried this before!” I exclaimed with my mouth full. I drank a bit of champagne, just to take the edge off my sour mood and be able to stand grumpy Sebastian. Not too much, only a few sips to keep me on my toes. After all, I’d just gotten married and deserved to have a bit of fun.

Sebastian had ordered spaghetti with mussels, olives, and fresh herbs. He seemed to be a big fan of seafood.

“I’m glad you’re enjoying it. And if you keep behaving like a good girl, then you could go swimming in the ocean later on,” he said after a moment, and I squeaked with excitement. Okay, maybe this was meaningless to him, but I just realized I had never done much for myself before. Our nanny took us to vacation in Florida once a year. Well, our mother used to go with us, but she was absent most of the time, so that’s why I’d explained to Sebastian I had never really travelled with my parents before.

“Oh, I’d like that,” I said as I indulged in the delicate taste of lobster. The atmosphere between us seemed a bit lighter now.

We talked about some trivial stuff just so I could keep the conversation going. Sebastian kept asking me about my studies and I managed to find out that he enjoyed horseback riding. The champagne got to my head, but I didn’t feel drunk. Maybe just a little tipsy. The alcohol helped me release some of the tension I had been carrying inside me up to the wedding.

After the main course, Sebastian ordered me ice-cream. This was cool and relaxing and I wished it could last forever, but soon enough, we all had to get back to normality. I wasn’t sure how Sebastian was going to treat me from now on … knowing well enough that officially, I was his property.

An hour later after we both finished eating, Sebastian’s phone started ringing. He glanced at it and frowned. The spell was broken again. He had to leave.

“Just go upstairs and change into your bikini. I will meet you on the path that leads to the beach,” he said, and I nodded happily.

He took the phone call when I got up and went all the way towards the stairs. My room was on the second floor and I didn’t know what bikinis I had in the bag. I took the black one that looked like it would cover enough skin. I felt self-conscious again because of my cuts.

I stared at it for a little while but then thought to myself that he had already seen everything, so I quickly changed, putting on a light beach dress on top of everything, and ran downstairs with my towel.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t see Pedro or Sebastian anywhere. I was heading toward the exit door that would probably lead me to the beach when I saw the menu with cocktails, so I leaned in to see if I could order one for Sebastian.

His mood would probably take a dive after dealing with some important business phone call, and this might help lighten things a bit.

“Can I help you with anything,bella?” The familiar voice startled me, followed by the body behind me.

I turned around quickly to find myself staring at Alex, who was standing very close to me. Too close.

“Oh, no, thank you. I just wanted to see if I could order something for Sebastian,” I mumbled. Alex was a classically handsome man. Sporting his charming smile, he brushed my hair away from my face. An intimate, bold move. I flinched, but stayed put. I didn’t even know if it was shock, the champagne, or a good mood, but for some reason, I relished the attention. I wished Sebastian were the man in front of me though, speaking to me in that tone. Smiling at me like that.

I flinched and took the tiniest step back.

“Well, you should get him this. I think your husband might need some energetic drink to give such a pretty woman the ride of her life,” he said darkly, and then he reached out to put a hand on my hips. My breath hitched and my body went still. I really didn’t know what to do when he moved his palm over my ass and squeezed it. I felt my eyes go wide and my feet were rooted to the spot.

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