by Vivian Wood
Thora’s brows arch up. “Oh? Well, that’s no good. At least you have Erik, though. That’s certainly better than having some bodyguards on your tail every moment of the day.”
She just glossed over the fact that she didn’t know how long Annika had been back here at the palace. Typical of Thora and Goran, though. The crown just allowed them to parent from a distance, it seems.
Nika looks down at her plate with a murderous expression. “I think that Momse would agree with you on that count, mor.”
I clear my throat. “Everything is running smoothly. Isn’t that right, Annika?”
She shoots me a glare and takes a big bite of her food, chewing it. I send her my stoniest look. But Thora’s attention has already wandered over to her other children. “And Lars, what about you? How is… what’s her name? That lovely redhead that you are always running around with?”
I glance over at Lars, who frowns down at his plate. “I assume you mean Pippa. And she’s fine. She’s actually just taken a new job with a fashion magazine.”
Margot finally pipes up. “Yes, Pippa is going to be a junior editor with a fashion magazine. It’s a huge step forward in her career.”
Thora smiles. “Well isn’t that nice. You know, Lars, it’s really too bad that your Pippa is commonly born. She would make an ideal partner for you otherwise.”
My eyebrows lift. Margot’s face goes a deep shade of crimson. Thora seems unaware of the fact that two of her dinner guests were not born into her same world of wealth and privilege.
Goran clears his throat. “Thora, darling. You’re making Margot uncomfortable. Let’s change the subject.”
I don’t even factor into the conversation. I keep my expression carefully blank, but inside I’m wondering why I’m even here. Finn shoots me an uneasy glance and lifts a shoulder in a shrug. Nika looks at me, her mouth tugging down into a frown.
That’s the worst feeling, in my opinion. Pity for being born poor, coming my way from a fucking princess.
No, not just a princess.
A princess whose hot little body I’ve felt under my hands, whose perfect pouty lips I’ve crushed with my kiss. I can’t stand the fact that she feels pity for me now.
It makes me so angry that I can’t even look at her right now.
“Well… this has been nice…” Lars rolls his eyes, clearly still upset over how his mother talked about Pippa. “But I do have to get up early tomorrow.”
He rises, saying goodbye to everyone before he heads out. For a minute, there is an awkward vacuum of silence. I’m focused on keeping my emotions internal and silent.
Perhaps Nika does have a point with her teasing about my strait-laced, buttoned up personality. I look around the table uncertainly.
Stellan pushes himself up from the table. “I think we should call it a night.”
He and Margot say their goodbyes. I eye Annika, trying to work out my own excuse.
Thora pouts a little bit. “All my children leave me. Stay for a bit, those of you that are still here.” Silence reigns for several seconds, then Thora turns to her daughter. “Tell me Annika, who are you seeing right now? Is there anyone worth mentioning to me?”
Annika eyes widen. She goes still, looking extremely nervous. Her eyes dart to me for the briefest of moments. Then she controls herself, looking at her mother.
“No, mor. There is no one.” Her mouth twists to the side. “I mean, there was someone, but he ruined it.”
She doesn’t even so much as glance at me, but I feel my neck heat anyway. I’m a thousand percent certain that she is talking about me.
“Oh, that’s too bad.” Thora pulls a face. “What did he do?”
Nika tilts her head. “He was obsessed with wealth and class and status… and because of our differences in how much money we were born with, he messed things up with me too many times.” She licks her lips, darting her gaze my way. “You could say that I’m taking some personal space from dating now.”
“That sounds like a good idea,” Goran says, nodding.
I stand up abruptly. “I think I’m going to call it a night. Thank you for inviting me, your highnesses.”
Annika shoots to her feet. “Me too! I mean… I should be getting to bed early tonight.”
I glare at her, but Thora just smiles. “Okay. That’s all right… I wanted to speak with Finn alone anyway.”
Finn’s face twitches almost comically. I feel more than a little bad for him, but I’ve already excused myself.
“Goodnight, everyone.” I bow and then stalk out of the room, feeling immense relief when I am out of the formal dining room.
18
Annika
I follow Erik out of the dining room, waiting until we are in the hush of the hallway to eye him critically. He stops for a moment, throwing his head back and sighing.
“Fuck,” he mutters, bringing his hands up to cover his face.
“What?” I ask, irritated with him.
He lowers his hands and looks at me for a long moment. I can feel his eyes drop to my mouth, to my barely clad breasts, to the thigh high slits in my floor length gown. Then Erik starts down the hallway, shaking his head a little. I have to hurry to keep pace with his long strides.
“You are unbelievable,” he says, looking straight ahead down the long hallway.
A derisive snort leaves my mouth without me really thinking about it. “Me? How about you? Why were you even at dinner?”
He slides me a look as we reach the other end of the hallway and take a sharp right into a small, mostly disused staircase. “I was invited by the king. It’s not something that I could turn down, no matter how annoyed I am with you.”
He steps out of the hallway and stops. We should part ways here, me going upstairs to my rooms, Erik going… wherever he sleeps.
The fact that I don’t actually know where that is sticks in my head.
He nods. “Let’s go. I’ll walk you back to your rooms.”
Shaking my head and rolling my eyes, I head into the service elevator. Erik ducks in after me, pulling closed the steel grating and pressing the button for the top floor. The elevator lurches upward, yanking us along with it.
I bite my lower lip and tilt my head at him. “You know, I thought we were in a good place. Then before I know it, you’re telling my entire family about what it’s like to… to desire me.”
I blush a little as he pins me with his green-brown gaze, but I don’t look away. He steps a little closer, lowering his voice.
“Do you think it was any easier for me to hear you tell your mother about me?” His lips twist. “It wasn’t. It made me feel like a villain.”
He moves a little closer so that we are separated by only a few inches of air. I arch a brow, looking up into his gorgeous face.
A little voice in the back of my head tells me to sass him. I feel the tension simmering, bubbling just below his surface. Something deep inside me is excited by the idea of seeing him lose him cool.
I smirk. “Aren’t you the villain of this story, Erik?”
A muscle flexes in his jaw. His gaze drops to my lips, making my stomach flutter. He very carefully splays one big hand out against my waist, dropping his voice to a whisper. “Is that what you want, Nika? Do you need a villain to complete your fairytale?”
His green-brown eyes bore into mine.
I bite my lip suggestively. “How will I know unless we try?”
Erik presses me back against the elevator wall, a soft growl deep in his throat. “Don’t do that. It isn’t fair.”
I reach my hands up to curl around his neck. His leans against me, his cock pressing into my lower belly. My pulse pounds. My eyes close.
I don’t know if he kissed me first or if my lips found his, but somehow his hot mouth presses down onto mine. I moan as he slips his tongue inside my mouth, curling it against my own. The elevator jerks to a stop.
In the back of my mind, I know that I have to pull the trigger now. The moment is right. If I don’t
make a move now to declare my intentions, we might never get this close to having sex again.
I slide my fingers through the straps of my dress, tugging at them suggestively. Then I break off our kiss, throw my head back, and draw one of the straps down my arm. I can feel his breathing constrict as I expose my right breast. My nipple pebbles in the cool air.
Erik drags in a heavy breath, his eyes glued to my nipple. Trailing my fingers across my chest, I swirl my fingertips around the pouty, rose colored peak.
I expected him to make a noise or maybe to kiss my neck. But he shocks me by picking me up and holding me in place against the wall. I wrap my legs around him. He puts his incredibly hot, wet mouth against the pink tip of my breast, sucking and groaning loudly. The noise is hungry and needy, resonating with me on a soul-deep level.
Erik sucks and bites my nipple, causing heat to ripple outward, gathering and concentrating low in my body. My pussy throbs. He brackets my breast with a hand and takes another pull, forcing strange sounds to come from my throat.
I writhe against him, flexing my hips. He answers by rocking his own hips against me, his rigid cock making its presence known.
His free hand comes up to my bare thigh, skimming upward from my knee to my hip. When his fingers reach around to shape my ass, he grunts.
“No panties?” he husks.
I bite my lip, shaking my head.
He smirks. “You are such a bad girl, Nika.”
I tilt my head. “Are you just going to tell me about it? Or are you actually going to fucking do something this time?”
His gaze narrows on my face, almost heated enough to be called a glare. He skims his hand up my arm, catching the strap of my dress and pulling it up. My breath catches.
Erik puts both of his hands on my kneecaps and lowers me to the ground. I stand on shaky legs, not really understanding what he is doing. Then he spins, sliding the elevator grate wide and pressing the button to open the door.
For a moment, I’m crushed. Is this his way of shutting the door on the growing heat between us?
But when the door slides open, he grasps my arm and starts hauling me out of the elevator. I look at him with a bewildered expression.
He grits out. “If you don’t want to lose your virginity standing upright in a shabby elevator, start walking. You have exactly one minute to get in your bedroom and get this fucking dress off. Then I call the shots, wherever we are.”
My eyes widen. I hurry along the hallway toward my rooms, trying to keep up with his decisive pace. As soon as I hit the doorway to my living room, I start thinking of just how I’m going to get out of this dress. Truth be told, putting it on was kind of an elaborate production.
I glance up at Erik, swallowing. He doesn’t look at me; his gaze is fixed on my bedroom door. The second we walk through it, he slams the door closed behind me and pushes me toward my elegant four poster bed. I stumble toward the crisp white linens, kicking off my shoes as I go. He grabs me from behind, nuzzling my ear.
“Time’s up,” he whispers. He draws my hair back from the side of my neck and bites me hard.
It feels so good, having him dominate me like this. The breath leaves my lungs. My eyes roll up in my head.
I hear a loud moan, but it’s several seconds before I put it together that the sound comes from somewhere deep inside me. He walks me over to the side of the bed, taking a step back and ripping my dress down the back. I shudder at the feel of my sudden nakedness, especially when he roughly strips the dress from my body. He shoves his knee between my legs and bends me over the bed. The sheets feel coarse against my face and my sensitive breasts.
When he grips my hips and grinds into me, I moan. “Erik…”
He flips my golden mane off of my neck, running his hand from my nape down my upper back. “Mm. Do you know how long I’ve wanted this, princess?”
I tremble, shaking my head. Turning my head to the side, I can just make him out. “No.”
His lips lift at the corners. “Longer than I would like to admit.” He skims his touch down my spine ever so slowly, drinking the sight of me in. “And now, here you are.” Both of his hands shape the curve of my ass. “All naked and spread for me.”
He thrusts his hips against me roughly, letting me feel his hardened cock. Then he steps back. He starts unbuttoning his shirt.
“Get on your knees, princess. Face down, ass up. Let me see your pretty pussy.”
My face instantly starts to glow as red as a hot coal. While he undresses behind me, I crawl onto the bed and present myself to him.
He climbs on the bed, only wearing his boxer briefs. He slaps my ass, which surprises me and makes me squeal. I can feel the stinging outline of his palm on my ass.
Then he bends down, kissing and nibbling the back of my right thigh. I make a strangled squeaking sound. He doesn’t pause for a second, though.
Pushing my backbone down to bow my back, he brushes his clever fingers over my slit. I gasp, feeling a fresh wave of moisture leak from my slit.
He looks at my ass and my pussy, waiting and ready for him to touch them. “Your pussy is getting ready for me, princess.” His fingers brush my slit again. “I’m going to fucking stretch you out and make you call my name. That is, if you’ll be a good girl.”
I shudder. Yes, I think. I’ll do anything you ask.
He dips a finger the barest inch inside my entrance, making my whole body tighten with need. He moves down, trailing his kisses down my left ass cheek to the back of my thigh. I clench subconsciously as he showers kisses over my thighs, my ass, and the very outside of my pussy lips. It feels incredible, but… I know that there is more.
Hell, after he shocked me by going down on me at CURVE, I have been waiting for this exact moment. It’s just… he’s killing me with his slow kisses on every single place except my dripping wet slit.
Finally, I moan out of frustration. “Erik… please?”
He pauses, his lips on my inner thigh. When he speaks, I can feel his lips move against my flesh. “What do you want, Annika? I want you to tell me.”
I tremble, feeling very exposed. “I—“ My face burns. I close my eyes. “Eat my pussy, Erik.”
He chuckles and I feel the reverberations against my skin. He grabs my hips and presses his face in, licking my slit up and down. It feels so damn good, but I want more.
I can just tell him that… right?
“Erik? Please do that more,” I whisper. My face burns anew at the begging tone of my voice. But he did say that I should be vocal…
He immediately starts licking and sucking my clit, making me give a pleasured hiss.
I grab onto my comforter, needing something to hold onto.
I freeze up a little but before I can protest, he slides his hands over my thighs. Holding me down, he licks my clit in slow, lazy circles.
I am desperate for him, moaning and clenching my hands into fists in the sheets. He takes full advantage, easing his fingertips against my lower lips. I am so wet and excited that I don’t need any lube. As he presses his fingertips against my pussy, entering me with a shallow thrust, I make a sound, a kind of whimper, and he takes his mouth away again.
I can feel my body weeping for him, feel the sheets beneath my body growing damp, clinging to my knees.
“Are you going to be a good girl and be quiet so that I can finish eating your pussy?” he murmurs against my bare flesh. “I really hope you are, because I can’t wait to hear you call out my name.”
I nod, feeling my face grow hot pink. I shut my mouth and go still, willing him to continue.
He presses against my pussy lips again with his fingertips. Then he kisses my pussy again, withdrawing himself from the bed. To my surprise, he grabs a robe and puts it on, leaving the room. He’s gone for a while, a couple of minutes at the very least.
I frown and sit up, not quite knowing where he’s gone. Then he returns, holding a small black silk drawstring bag and looking immensely pleased with himself.
&nbs
p; He sheds the robe again and comes to kneel on the bed, a knowing smirk on his features. He reaches inside the bag and brandishes a six-inch-long piece of smooth, polished glass. It is the size and shape of a cock.
My eyes widen. “What… is that a dildo?”
Erik gives me a heated smile. “Lay back. Let me pleasure you, Nika.”
I’m so hot for him that I bite my lip, relaxing to lie down on my back. He teases me by touching the outside of my thighs with the cold glass. I gasp, shivering. But the dildo soon warms up in his hands. He eases my legs to open again, widening them until he has a perfect view of my pussy.
He looks at me, his excitement evident as he bites his lip. “God, you are so beautiful, Annika.”
Erik drops a kiss to my inner thigh as he presses the tip of the dildo to my pussy lips. I am so wet; it slides in partially with no resistance. God, the pressure of the dildo feels good, almost like his cock.
He withdraws it, kissing my clit once more. I couldn’t be quiet, so I groaned softly. He doesn’t pause, he just moves the dildo in again, licking my clit.
“Oh god,” I gasp. “Fuck!”
I grab the sheets, knowing that I am going to come soon. I feel my thighs shake as he French kisses my clit. As he moves his tongue, he gently pulls the dildo out of my pussy, and moves it to my ass instead.
I am shocked enough by the contact to make a noise, but luckily this time he doesn’t stop licking. He turns up the intensity of his French kiss as he gently presses the dildo against my ass.
Erik pauses, and I groan. When he returns, he moves the little dildo against my rear entrance once more, and I feel the slipperiness of the lube he has added. I bite my lower lip and close my eyes.
It feels so naughty but so fucking good. He slips the dildo into my ass while he kisses my clit. The sensation of being very full and very fucking ready to come washes over me.
“Oh god… please…” I beg him.