The Reluctant King

by Rachel Higginson

Page 27

 

  When I kissed her, it was hot. She was hot…. sexy and irresistible. And there would never be another feeling that rivaled her body pressed against mine. But standing in the night air, enjoying a comfortable silence, with her just holding my hand like she was happy to stay there forever…. like she trusted me to let her stay there forever…. was a whole new kind of feeling I had never experienced.

  Ever.

  My magic swelled the longer we stood there, so that it was a shield around us, covering us both. Her magic didn’t stand a chance as mine took hers inside of it, consuming it, melding it to one energy field. She never looked at me, never even acknowledged me standing next to her, save for the easy touch between us. Then she let out a soft sigh, almost quiet enough that I didn’t hear her. But I did hear her.

  I turned to face her, I needed to know how she felt, if she would give me a chance. But then staring down at her, I couldn’t find words to break the moment. And I wasn’t even convinced I wanted to. Hell yes I wanted to know if she would give me a chance. But if she was still so set on denying there could be something between us…. at the moment…. I didn’t know if I wanted to hear it.

  Her face tilted to mine, slowly, tentatively. Her deep brown eyes grew big as our gazes met and the wind was knocked from me in a whoosh of breath. She paralyzed me, there in the dark, in the middle of the country, she immobilized me with that big-eyed stare. In that moment I knew the rejection would be worth it, the chase, the effort, the time I would put in to pursuing her would all be worth it.

  She was worth it.

  “There you two are,” Sebastian huffed from behind us. The spell was broken and embarrassment muddled with fear flushed her face. Amelia immediately dropped my hand and shook hers out like I had burned her.

  Great.

  Damn it Sebastian.

  I turned around and glared at him through the dark. He either couldn’t see that well through the night or he was pretending not to notice me. I swallowed back the “king card” not even sure what reminding him of it would accomplish. Amelia had shrunk back into herself again.

  Damn it.

  “Let’s go ahead and go. Titus seems to be fine now and Eden is still managing things in the house. Kiran says they might be here for a while,” Sebastian explained. “I don’t want mother and father to have to wait for us much longer. ”

  “Alright,” Amelia agreed and walked off with her brother without even giving me a glance back.

  I had planned on riding back with Amelia, but none of those plans included Sebastian. I started plotting as soon as their bags were loaded and we climbed into the car. I decided to take things especially serious when Amelia climbed into the backseat and Sebastian sat down next to me.

  I had no problem with Sebastian. He was a friend, even a good friend at times. But I could more than understand his overprotectiveness for his sister and I really hated feeling empathetic when I had my own agenda.

  Hell, it’s not like I had been Kiran’s biggest fan. In fact, it wasn’t until I saw how far he was willing to go to protect Eden, how easily he would have given up his own life to save her that I even granted the guy the time of day. Those were extreme circumstances though. And I would never be willing to put Amelia in those kinds of dangerous situations to prove my feelings for her to her brother. I would protect her from ever having to go through anything like what Eden went through. Sebastian was going to just have to get over this. I had enough of an uphill battle trying to convince Amelia I was a decent guy, I didn’t have time to woo Sebastian too.

  Or maybe Sebastian had the right idea. Hadn’t Amelia said it? Whoever I chose wouldn’t just be Queen, she would share the burden of living forever with me. I knew I could be a prick, but more than putting up with me, living forever was a hell of a lot to deal with. It wasn’t fair to assume she would want that life even if I did convince her she had feelings for me.

  Still, when we pulled up to the Cartier’s estate in the middle of Paris, after a silent drive from the country I had firmly resolved to let Amelia go, so I was surprised by the instinct that flooded my senses and took over my will completely.

  I pulled up to the drive with the intention of letting the siblings out at the door before I pulled the car around to the back of the house. However, as soon as Sebastian stepped out of the car and became distracted with a Titan that was asking about bags, I slammed the passenger door shut with my magic and took off onto the streets of Paris like I was running from something.

  I smirked at the wide-eyed reflection of Amelia in my review mirror and felt the surge of adrenaline for what I had planned.

  “What are you doing?” she gasped, clutching at the seat around her.

  “I uh, I thought we would…. sightsee,” I shrugged my shoulder casually, whipping out my phone to text Sebastian a half-assed explanation so he wouldn’t worry.

  “Sightsee?” Amelia asked slowly, her eyes still as round and big as ever. “I think you just kidnapped me. ”

  I chuckled. Ok, maybe she was right. Kidnapping was definitely not a smooth way to go about this. And this was in absolute opposition to the argument I had just worked up on the drive here.

  But clearly I wasn’t thinking with my head right now.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Amelia stayed quiet as I drove through the busy Paris streets. I half expected her to jump out of the vehicle at any of the places I had to stop and wait, paused in standstill traffic even this late at night. But she stayed still in her seat. Her magic snapped around her with an irritated edge, but at least she didn’t try to escape the car.

  Which stupidly gave me hope.

  I parallel parked on a side street off the Champs de Elysee, squeezing in between a Mini Cooper and a Smart Car. I shivered at the sight of the Smart Car. So. Ugly. Every male bone in my body rejected the idea of something so weak and powerless.

  The car was uncomfortably silent after the engine died and I wasn’t exactly sure what to say. Honesty seemed to be the best policy here, but I didn’t want to scare her off either.

  “Avalon…?” she broke the silence, her tone calculating and questioning. “What are we doing?”

  “Sightseeing? I repeated my earlier excuse but it sounded weak out loud and in the open.

  “So you said,” she mumbled. “You didn’t want to ask me first? See if I actually wanted to go with you?”

  “Uh…. ” I stammered. I turned around in my seat so that I could look her in the eye. It took practically all my courage to meet her gaze, but I forced myself to do it. I made this bed, now it was time to lie in it. Hopefully she would keep me company though. “Would you have said yes?” I asked.

  “I’m not sure,” she mumbled through teeth that were biting at her bottom lip thoughtfully.

  “Are you going to get out of the car with me?” I pressed my luck.

  I noticed the slight twitch to her lips and confidence grew like wildfire in my veins.

  “I’m not sure,” she repeated.

  I believed that she wasn’t sure, but I also believed that she wanted to spend time with me more than she would admit. Swallowing back insecurities that had been nonexistent until Amelia showed up, I reached for her hand that played with a loose string on her kneecap. I picked up her fingers gently in mine, sliding the pads of my fingers against hers. The barely there touch was so intoxicating, my body rushed with heat. Amelia’s eyes darkened into depthless pools, her gaze flickering between our hands and my eyes from underneath those thick lashes.

  “Please?” I asked through a thick voice.

  She nodded her affirmation with the smallest tilt of her chin, her teeth still punishing her bottom lip. I stared at her for a full minute more before talking myself into letting go of her hand.

  And when I did pull away, I had to fight feelings of emptiness. Without her hand in mine I felt lessened and incomplete. I swallowed roughly against everything that could mean and settled with taking her hand i
nto mine as soon as she crawled from the back seat and her feet were firmly on the pavement.

  She didn’t hesitate.

  I smiled like an idiot.

  Progress.

  The breeze was cool the further toward the middle of the night we got, but neither of us noticed as we walked along the Champs hand in hand. Paris was one of those fantastic cities that were always alive no matter how late the night got. We walked through crowds of noisy tourists and past street vendors painting idyllic portraits or peddling delicious smelling food.

  The wide street was lined with expensive, designer shops and cafes that flowed onto the sidewalk with tiny tables squashed together. The scents of cigarette smoke and strong coffee drifted around us and I felt like sighing with contentment.

  I didn’t. But I felt like it.

  I hadn’t felt this alive in a long time…. possibly ever.

  My hand instinctively tightened around Amelia’s, afraid she would let go, afraid this moment of perfection would dissolve around me and I would be left struggling to breathe, the emptiness of an endless future looming over me.

  “What’s the plan, Avalon?” Amelia asked in a smoky voice, pulling me back to the present, back to her. I looked down at her, noticing that she was actually relaxed and at ease with me.

  “I don’t have one,” I admitted. “I just wanted to get you alone. ” I laughed after the honesty fell out of my mouth before I could stop it or grapple control of my mouth.

  “I see,” she laughed too. “And now that you have me alone…. ?”

  She was flirting with me? She was flirting with me! I knew no woman could withstand my irresistible charm. Nervousness I didn’t even notice coiling my insides tight dissipated as I decided to unleash the full caliber of my charisma.

  I paused on the busy sidewalk, pulling her forward with the hand that was held in mine. “Have my wicked way with you, of course,” I whispered in a gruff, intense voice.

  “Of course,” she murmured back, heat flashing in her eyes.

  My hand slipped to her waist, and I yanked her forward against me. Pedestrians had to move around us since we stood in the middle of the sidewalk, but my focus was completely narrowed on Amelia. She swallowed, her pretty throat working with the effort.

  I bent down to her slowly, giving her plenty of time to pull away. I hoped we were beyond all that, but I couldn’t pretend to understand how this girl thought. My lips brushed against hers just barely, her soft lips teasing and torturing my will power. I told myself I would respect her here, in the middle of all of these people, but I felt my resolve tumble out of my control the minute her breath heated the air between us.

  I allowed myself one more feather light kiss. My hands tightened on her hips, revealing a desire that I refused my mouth. Her tongue swept out and across my bottom lip sending a shiver, a real, honest to God shiver, down my spine.

  I stepped back, putting space between us. I sucked in a deep breath while the world tilted and spun around me. My heart hammered in my chest, beating a rhythm that seemed to include more than my heart…. more than my life.

  “Can I take you to one of my favorite restaurants?” Amelia asked in the most beautiful, breathy voice.

  I nodded my approval, not trusting my voice to be strong enough to answer. She slipped her hand into mine and pulled me down the street after her. People moved around us, by us, bumping into us or talking loudly near us, but I missed it all. My world shrunk and narrowed to include only one other person, and the realization was surprisingly contenting. There was a grin plastered to my face and I tried to wipe it off, I tried to not do the whole stupid, foolish smile thing, but I couldn’t…. She…. Amelia…. was something so incredible, so meaningful, I wondered if I’d ever be able to think straight again.