Royally Mine: 22 All-New Bad Boy Romance Novellas

by Susan Stoker

  Before she could say another word, I had risen, walked to the river’s edge and tossed her in. If she had been pissed before, she was literally spitting mad when she surfaced. I yanked off my boots and was shucking my pants as she sputtered obscenities, her fists slamming into the water with each one. God, she looked like some beautiful water nymph… okay, to be honest, she looked more like a very ticked off, soaking wet, little red hen, but that didn’t matter one little bit. By the time she had to stop ranting long enough to drag more oxygen into her lungs, I had tossed the last piece of my clothing aside and was striding into the river. It was cold but I was so hot that it felt good against my flesh. What felt even better was watching her eyes widen, her mouth open and close as the curses became mewls, and her nipples grow taut against the drenched fabric of her blouse. Sure, that could have been because of the temperature of the water, but I chalked it up to the fact that no matter what she said, no matter that she’d run, no matter how much she denied it, Danielle Connolly had never stopped wanting me… just as much as I’d never stopped wanting her.

  Chapter Eight

  Danielle

  Oh sweet Jesus! Nothing on God’s green earth could have torn my eyes away from the man stalking towards me. Judson had always been a good looking man, but Judd West looked like a Greek God come to life. His face graced posters, billboards, magazine covers, and the silver screen in countries all over the world, and yet, not one did him justice. His eyes were the deepest blue and were fringed by thick lashes. His black hair curled just the tiniest bit where it met his shoulders as he’d let it grow long for the film. His chin was strong, covered by the stubble of a day’s growth of beard. His mouth was not only perfect, I knew the absolute perfection of it when it was on me… on my lips, my flesh, my very core.

  His skin was golden bronze. There wasn’t an ounce of fat on his body that looked as if it had been chiseled from stone. I dropped my eyes from his broad shoulders to his washboard abdomen, every muscle defined. And his cock… oh Lord, his cock was long and thick and my sex spasmed with the memory of being filled. My nipples ached against my clothing imagining his fingers, his lips, his tongue on them.

  By the time I felt the splash his movement through the water caused against my body, it was too late to run. His hands reached out and grabbed my arms, yanking me to him. I knew I should demand he release me. Knew I should hate him for what he’d done to me years ago. Knew I should claw his eyes out for throwing me into the river moments ago. Knew I should do anything except what I did. And that was to bury my head beneath his chin, wrap my arms around his waist and close my eyes, knowing I was weak, but recognizing that I didn’t care. I was tired of running. I was tired of trying to be strong all the damn time. All I wanted was for him to hold me.

  “I know what you think you saw, Dani, but that wasn’t what you really saw.”

  I pulled back, my head already shaking. “I know what I saw, Judd.”

  “No, honey, you don’t.”

  Before I could protest again, he shook his head, releasing one arm to bring his fingers up to cup my chin. “Close your eyes.”

  “What? Why? So you can throw me away again?” I watched his jaw clench but he didn’t tighten his grip.

  “I’ve never once thrown you away, Dani. I’ve come after you every time you’ve run away. I just didn’t find you the first time. I doubt that any threat I made would have convinced any of your roommates into giving up your location.”

  She huffed. “Yes, I bet it is hard for you to believe, but women do tend to stick together when they know a friend’s boyfriend has fucked around.”

  Judd sighed. “Please, don’t argue, and don’t start thinking up responses before you give me a chance. Close your eyes.”

  Figuring I was already drenched, I shut my eyes.

  “Thank you. Now, take some deep breaths and just let your mind go blank.”

  Exactly how he expected me to do that when I knew he was about to spin some unbelievable tale to exonerate himself of guilt, I didn’t have a clue. Still, I did as he asked, taking several exaggerated deep inhales and exhaling loudly. After a few, I realized how ridiculous I must look and simply began to breathe deeply. I could feel the sensation of the current tugging against my legs, the chill of the air against my wet skin but they soon disappeared as I concentrated on the warmth of his arm around my waist and the feel of his fingers on my chin. It was harder to clear my head of all the turmoil, but by the time he spoke again, I was ready.

  “Keep your eyes closed, and tell me what you saw that night.”

  Irritation replaced the calm I had begun to feel, and I stiffened. “No, Dani, relax. Remove the emotion and see the truth. What do you see?”

  “I see you and Vicky. I heard—”

  “No, not what you hear. What exactly do you see?”

  My answer was the same. “I see you and Vicky.”

  “And what is Vicky wearing?”

  “Shorts and one of the t-shirts…” My eyes flew open to find his staring down at me.

  “Close your eyes,” he said, and I gratefully slammed them shut. “Go on. What kind of t-shirt?”

  “One from our plays… the one with the box on it… Pandora’s Box.”

  “That’s right. And what was I wearing?”

  My eyes opened again. “Nothing!”

  His fingers left my chin to skim across my eyelids, shutting them for me. “Look again, Dani.”

  I didn’t answer for a few moments. I couldn’t as I was so hurt that he’d been with Vicky, who was supposed to be our friend… my friend!

  “What was I wearing, Dani?”

  “Noth…” Suddenly a new picture bloomed in my mind, and I gasped.

  “Tell me what you see.”

  “Boxers. You… you had on a pair of boxers… the ones with the lips all over them.” I moaned wondering how I could have been so wrong until I remembered that clothing was easily removed. Hadn’t I just seen him shuck far more than a single pair of boxers?

  His arm tightened, and I realized I’d been attempting to step away. “Not yet, Dani. Not until you hear what really happened that night. You just admitted that while you thought I was naked, that you thought Vicky was naked, that wasn’t the truth, was it?”

  “No, but that doesn’t mean—”

  “I didn’t fuck Vicky, and I didn’t fuck her sister, Michelle. That’s who you heard in the bedroom. I didn’t cheat on you. I loved you—”

  “God… I wish I could believe you.” I could feel the sting of tears behind my closed lids, surprised I had any left at all.

  “All you have to do is open your eyes to see the truth. It’s right in front of you.”

  I kept my eyes closed, not trusting myself anymore. Wanting so desperately to believe him and yet so unsure if I could.

  “Open your eyes.” He released my chin and loosened his hold, not enough to let me go, but enough that I knew he’d stepped back. “Open them and see the truth.”

  I opened my eyes and instead of seeing his face, I saw the broad expanse of his chest. Confused, I was about to lift them when I gasped. How could I not have seen it as he’d walked into the river? Lifting my finger, I reached out and touched him, traced the tattoo on his chest, right over his heart. The tears fell to join the river as I ran my fingertip over the ink of the key. It was a simple skeleton key except for the bow. The part you’d hold in your hand to turn the key was intricate and beautiful. Through the sheen in my eyes, I realized that the lines and shadow formed a capital ‘D.’ His fingers took my chin again, tilting my head back to lift my eyes to his.

  “Vicky designed the pattern, and her sister is a tattoo artist. That’s why they were there that night. I wanted to surprise you. I wanted you to know that you held the key to my heart.”

  He scooped me into his arms when I collapsed against his chest, carrying me out of the water as my hand pressed over the key. I’d been so wrong… had ruined not only our love, but a gift from a man that was the most incredible honor
I’d ever received. He should hate me and yet he was once more holding me on his lap, cradling my head against his chest, stroking down my back.

  “God, I-I… I’m so sorry. I know that’s not enough… will never be enough, but, I am. I’m a fool—”

  “Shhh, you’re not a fool. Not now, and not then. You are the most incredible woman I’ve ever known.”

  “How can you say that? I treated you like dirt. I hated you! You-you had to have hated me. You did such an incredible thing and I-I didn’t even give you a chance. I-I took the coward’s way out and ran away. God, how could I have been so stupid? How could I have just thrown it all away?”

  “You were young. Hell, we were young. People make mistakes all the time. The secret is to learn from them.”

  His words from the saloon came back to me and I felt shame like never before. “Oh, God, you were right. I-I was punishing you. No matter how perfect you performed, it was never going to be good enough. Never make me happy because—”

  “Because you didn’t want me to go after Haven, you wanted me to come after you.”

  I lifted my head to look at the tattoo again. “I’m an awful person and yet you… How can you not regret scarring your body for someone who didn’t deserve it? Why have you not had it removed?”

  He smiled down at me. “I’ve never regretted knowing that no matter where you were, I had at least a part of you with me.”

  I would never be able to accurately describe what those words meant to me, so I did the only thing I could think of. I bent down and kissed the key before laying my cheek over it. I could hear the beat of his heart beneath it and let it and his gift fill my very soul.

  ***

  Judd

  For the first time in years, I felt at peace. I didn’t want to move, didn’t want to chance breaking the spell, but I could feel Dani shivering. She was still soaking wet, and the temperature had dropped several degrees as evening fell. Giving her a hug and dropping a kiss on top of her head, I set her back a bit.

  “I need to get you back.”

  “No… I mean, I don… don’t want to g…go. Why can… can’t we just st… stay a lit…tle longer?”

  I smiled. “Because your teeth are chattering so hard that you can barely speak.” When she opened her mouth, white teeth beating a tattoo against each other, I shook my head. “I promise we can come back.”

  She nodded and didn’t protest as I stood up and finally set her on her feet. She didn’t even protest when I began to remove her clothes. The only thing that protested was my cock which had instantly gone straight to attention at the sight of her body, her pink nipples tightly puckered, and the thatch of reddish gold curls at the apex of her thighs. When I looked down, she was smiling.

  “I… ca… can tak…take care of th… that if we st…stay.”

  “Babe, you can take care of that when we get somewhere warm,” I said, not about to reject the best damn offer I’d had in years… and that included any contract I’d ever signed. When she pouted, I chuckled and reached for the vest I’d discarded, grateful that I’d been dressed with far more clothing than I normally wore. Briskly rubbing it over her, I dried her off and hopefully warmed her a bit as well. Dropping it, I picked up the white shirt and held it open while she slid her arms into the sleeves. She was so small that the cuffs hung off her fingertips and the hem brushed across her knees. After buttoning it up, I rolled up the sleeves so that she had her hands free.

  When she spoke without a stutter, I knew she was much warmer. “You promise?”

  “Promise what?” I asked, pulling on the pants.

  “That we will make love when we get back?”

  The question had my cock fighting against confinement as I worked on the buttons of the fly. Glancing up, I loved the look on her face as she realized she’d been caught staring at my crotch. Sitting on the log again, I began to pull on a sock. “I guess that depends.” I had the first boot on before she spoke.

  “Depends on what?”

  “The contract.”

  “Judd, I never was going to fire you…” She stopped when I quirked a brow.

  “Uh-huh, if you say so. Anyway, I know I said I read every word of the contract, but need to double check something.”

  She handed me the second boot, a quizzical look on her face. “All right.”

  Pulling the boot on, I stood and took her into my arms, not the least bit self-conscious about grinding my hips into her, wanting her to feel my cock, wanting her to know how much I wanted her too. “I just want to make sure you didn’t add any additional clauses. You know, something like a morality clause stating it’s against the rules for an actor to engage in sexual congress with one of the studio executives.”

  The sound of her giggle was one I’d sorely missed. This Dani was the one I remembered. However, when her hand dropped down to cup my cock, I knew that Dani had grown up a bit. “You’re right, Mr. West. I did add a clause.”

  “You did, Ms. Connolly? And what exactly does this clause say?”

  “It states that the only reason the star of the film could be fired is if he fails in his duty to satisfy the screenwriter.”

  “That’s not a new clause—”

  “You didn’t let me finish,” she said. Her fingers somehow having found their way into my pants, were now stroking along the length of me. “You, Judd West, have to satisfy my every sexual desire, my every fantasy…”

  She squealed when I slid both hands beneath the shirt and squeezed the naked globes of her ass before slipping one hand between her legs. She was sopping wet and I almost changed my mind, almost laid her down in the dirt to take her, but I didn’t. Though I’d used the radio to call the others the moment I’d stopped the bike, climbing off to follow on foot once I knew I was on her trail, and again when I heard her not far ahead of me, it had been over two hours ago. They were bound to be worried, and I had no intention of someone stumbling over us in an attempt to rescue the rescuer. Still it was incredibly hard to only give her slit a few strokes of my finger, the hard button of her clit already pulsing beneath my fingertip.

  “That, Ms. Connolly, is a clause I not only accept, it is one I will demand be required every single day.”

  “God, that won’t be a problem,” she said, lifting her face to mine.

  I bent down and kissed her, the heat flaring between us, the sorrow of too many missed opportunities forgotten with the promise of countless ones to come.

  She didn’t make it easy either. Though she readily climbed on my back so I could better see where I was going, she kept running her fingers over my chest, plucking at my nipples and tracing the key. With my hands full keeping her safe on my back as I made my way down the slope, I had no choice but to let her play. Once I reached the bike, I transferred her from my back to the seat, settled the helmet on her head, put mine on and then straddled the bike behind her. She was petite enough that I could easily reach around her to drive. With a grin, I pulled her tightly against me, her ass snuggled against my groin, and turned the key.

  “Oh!” she squealed. With the vibrations against her naked sex and my cock pressing into her from behind, I was willing to bet that the little tease would never ever forget her first ride on my Harley.

  Chapter Nine

  Judd

  Weaving around trailers, I smiled. It was obvious that Cheryl, and most likely Aaron, had made sure that, unlike the scene this morning, there weren’t a lot of witnesses to see Dani’s return. I saw only a small group sitting at one of the tables, the three of them standing and coming forward as I glided to a stop, but kept Dani in place with my arm around her waist.

  “Thank God,” Cheryl said, coming over and wrapping her arms around both of us before stepping back. “What happened to your clothes, and why is your hair wet? Oh my God, did a bear chase you into a river?”

  “No, I threw her in,” I said without hesitation. Dani giggled, and Cheryl’s incredible smile was back on her face.

  “I see,” she said. “Needed
cooling off, did she?”

  “Hey!” Dani protested.

  “You know her well,” I said, bending down to kiss damp, red curls.

  “I do, and I’m glad to know that what I told you earlier came true.”

  I nodded, but knew she wasn’t as glad as I was. “Thanks for everything. We’ll see you all in the morning.”

  “I’ll bring Dani some clothes. We can chat while you’re in makeup and wardrobe.”

  Aaron stepped forward and clapped me on my bare shoulder. “Considering everything you two have been through today, I feel we can adjust the schedule just a bit.” He didn’t give me time to thank him before he said, “Instead of 6:00, make it 6:30.”

  “Gee, thanks,” I said, as he bent to kiss Dani’s cheek and then walked away. “Do you have anything to add?” I asked Evan.

  “Nope, if you’re good, I’m good,” Evan said, grinning.

  “Spoken like a great agent and friend,” I said, finally giving the bike some gas. It was time to take Dani to fulfill that clause in my contract.

  I’d never been more grateful for the people who worked in craft services as I was when I carried Dani into my trailer. Not only was there no evidence of the strippers and my night of play, there was a huge thermos on a tray with two mugs on it and an envelope. Reluctantly setting Dani on her feet, I watched as she reached for the note.

  “How sweet,” she said, handing it to me. The note said that we’d find a plate of sliced lemons and a pitcher of cream in the fridge along with some food. At the bottom, Jamie had added a heart and stated, she was so glad that Ms. Connolly had been found.

  “She’s a good kid,” I said, setting the note down. “Would you like a cup of tea and something to eat?”