by Zara Zenia
“Let’s go to bed.” Tia giggled in her Southern drawl. “I want to experience for myself what sex with a Trilyn prince is really like.”
She began petting my chest with one hand and stroking my back with the other. She wouldn’t let go of me, no matter how hard I tried to squirm away from her.
“Maybe we should have dinner and get to know each other before we go straight to the bedroom.” I chuckled apprehensively, already being emotionally pelted with guilt for Rose even though I hadn’t laid more than a platonic finger on Tia.
I pulled away from Tia as slightly as I could without causing her to go into a fit of frustration or expose any clues that I wasn’t even remotely interested in any of her advances.
“I’m only hungry for one thing, darling.” She slid her tongue seductively over her teeth and gave me an eager grin, poking out her ample bosom in the process.
She gave me a triumphant smile as if she were relishing in getting her way and wasn’t used to being told no to anything, ever. She had the flair of a beauty queen, but those things were bogus and held no interest for me.
“Dinner first,” I persisted, this time a little harder with a forceful inflection in my voice.
“Oh, all right.” She pouted out her bottom lip like a sullen, spoiled child. She batted her wide blue eyes at me. “If that’s what my handsome prince wants—”
“Yes,” I interrupted before she could try to manipulate me any further.
Tia’s display of affection was disgusting and sickening, but I tried not to look at her as if I were completely turned off by everything she said or did. She was as phony as her fake tan.
I instructed her to follow me to the dining hall that was elaborately lit with crystal and diamond chandeliers overlooking a twelve-seater mahogany table adorned with the finest china you could find in all of Trilynia. The plates and bowls had real gold ingrained into the rims.
The wall to wall windows provided a panoramic view of the city of Topeka below the hovering palace.
“Oh, my God,” Tia whispered as she floated over to the windows, gazing down with awe and amazement shimmering in her electric blue eyes.
It might have been the first time since our chance meeting that I wasn’t actually seething with resentment and hostility toward her.
“Impressive, isn’t it?” I beamed as I approached her, standing next to her with my hands behind my back.
Tia stared at me with her mouth agape, speechless for the first time since our first meeting.
“It’s incredible . . .” She trailed off, her voice like the wings of a butterfly fluttering through the breeze.
The city lights from the buildings below our feet shimmered like tiny stars off in the distance.
“Your meal is now prepared, Noble Prince.” I turned around as one of my kitchen staff members gave me a polite and professional bow, skirting from the room with a meek and quiet exit.
“Shall we?” I smiled at Tia, wondering if maybe this problematic issue of having to entertain her and pretend to be interested in her shenanigans and conversation wasn’t going to be as horrific as I had earlier assumed.
She held out her hand for me to take, and reluctantly, I did, keeping a loose grip as we drifted back over to the table. I moved her chair out for her before sitting myself, because it had been hardwired into my brain to be a gentleman no matter the circumstances, or in this case, the wretched company.
As soon as we sat down, Tia raised her wine glass. “To us,” she beamed, almost to the point of being aggressively territorial.
I coughed and swallowed hard, nearly choking on the bite of food in my mouth. I hesitantly raised my glass and clinked it against the side of hers. It made a shimmering sound that sliced through the air and raised the hairs on the back of my neck. I didn’t know if it was an ominous omen, but I suddenly didn’t feel hungry anymore.
Tia proceeded to gulp down the entire glass of wine before consuming any food. I stared at her as if she were a zoo animal doing tricks behind the glass. “Are you sure you don’t want to eat something?” I was concerned that she was going to become intoxicated quickly.
She sloppily picked up her fork and plucked a potato from the plate, casually plopping it into her mouth. She chewed it a few times before I watched her visibly swallow. She was still holding onto her wine glass, pouring more from the bottle on the table as it sloshed around inside.
“Is my handsome prince happy now?” she crooned in a teasing, taunting voice.
I let out a gruff sound, originating deep in my throat. That was the only response I could muster. After another few minutes of Tia buzzing about the plans for the wedding, I felt like I was going to vomit up the food I’d just swallowed. I just couldn’t hear another single word about it.
I tossed my cloth napkin onto the table beside my plate. I propped my elbows up on the surface and rubbed my aching temples, which were pounding with irritation. Did this woman ever shut her mouth?
Eventually, Tia began to notice my discomfort. She shoved her chair back and jogged over to my side of the table, her perky breasts bouncing through her revealing dress along the way.
“Oh, my goodness,” she breathed as if she were playing the lead in a play. “What is wrong with my big, strong, handsome man?”
Tia did her best to attempt to sit on my lap, but I wouldn’t scoot my chair out enough to make it possible for her to fit.
“I’m fine,” I grumbled as she started to stroke my back again.
“You don’t seem fine,” she protested in a sultry voice. “Let’s get you to bed.”
There she went again, trying to seduce me. Hell would freeze over before I would agree to have sex with her.
“I’m feeling tired tonight.” I glanced up at her, locking eyes. I grimaced, bracing for impact from the tantrum that was sure to follow.
“I know how to wake you up,” she whispered devilishly into my ear, making me internally cringe.
“That’s not necessary.” I chuckled politely, swatting her hand away.
“What’s wrong with you?” she sulked, borderline shouting.
“Nothing is wrong with me. I’m just tired, that’s all. There have been a lot of stressful things on my mind lately.”
“That’s nothing a little lovemaking can’t fix,” she cooed into my ear as she pushed my chair back and finally made her way to straddling my lap.
“No.” My tone was too gruff.
Tia’s eyes looked wounded and her mouth pursed in shock. She immediately jumped off my lap, visibly seething with clenched fists. I was like a deer in headlights, unable to move until I saw what she might do next.
“You can’t say no to me. I’m your bride,” she hissed through a locked jaw. Her cheeks were pink with frustration.
My tongue was sharp. I got myself in trouble too often with my loose mouth. “You aren’t my bride yet.”
Tia gasped, clearly appalled by my brazen denial of her requested love affair. Did she think she could just get me into bed that easily, without any effort? She picked up my wine glass, still full to the brim because I had yet to take even a sip.
She clutched it with white knuckles, her expression furious. “One way or another, you are going to be mine.” Her tone was both malicious and victorious. Then in one swoop, she raised her arm still clutching the wine glass. She slammed her fist down, and the wine glass plummeted to the glass bottom floor below us, shattering into a million pieces.
I stood up in shock, pushing myself back. “What the hell was that for?”
She picked up another wine glass, this time an empty one that had been set at the table by accident. “I’ll do it again,” she warned, determined to get her way.
“Tia . . .” I trailed off, giving her a pitying stare as if she were deranged and needed professional therapy.
She threw the wine glass against the wall this time and again achieved the same effect. The glass shattered in a millisecond.
This task was going to be more complicated than I had initially expected.
I wasn’t off to a fantastic start either. This was going to take more work than even I could have imagined.
Chapter 16
Rose
“It’s going to be okay, Madam.” Davon sympathetically smiled in my direction.
I tried to give him a feeble smile in return. “Thanks . . .” I trailed off, glancing out the window as the rain began to fall and splatter against the edge of the window, leaving trails of translucent water droplets that slid down the pane.
I was mesmerized by the liquid pouring down in heavier sheets as the minutes ticked by. I didn’t know how to entertain myself or distract my rabid emotions. Davon had returned several nights later to check on me.
I had yet to hear from Darbnix, even though he had promised to keep me abreast of everything that was happening during his compromising time with Tia Teller. The goal was to obtain insider information on whether she might be directly involved in a hacking heist. Both Darbnix and Davon suspected Tia to have some kind of role in the computer system infiltration, and unfortunately for Darbnix and myself, he had been their prime target.
There was a quiet pause between us. Davon was lanky and awkward, but there was a peace in his demeanor that made me feel relaxed and calmed me down a few notches. I glanced at him as he lingered on the edge of the couch as if he were waiting for me to instruct or direct him to do something. His hands remained poised in his lap. He fleetingly glimpsed at me and then posed his gaze back to his feet.
“Do you want something to drink?” I offered. “Tea? Water?”
“Oh, no, Madam.” Davon fervently shook his head in denial. “I assure you, I am not thirsty.” His tone was professional, almost robotic.
“Okay.” I sighed, cradling my head in my hand as I continued to gaze out the window. I absentmindedly began to stroke my long red braid with my other free hand. “Just let me know if you change your mind.”
“Might I ask you something, Madam?” Davon proposed.
I turned to glance at him with a smile. “You can call me Rose.”
“I’d prefer to call you Dr. Rand, if something other than Madam,” Davon said as if we were opening up a debate on how to address me.
I shrugged, too mentally exhausted to argue the point. “Sure. Dr. Rand is fine.” I shifted my feet in front of me in my seated position. “What do you want to ask me?”
Davon paused as if he was afraid to breach a subject that might be none of his business. “You seem . . .” he trailed off reluctantly.
“What?” I pressed in a nervous tone, narrowing my eyes and locking them on his dark features.
“I don’t know,” he started. “Suffering?” His voice inflected that he was merely guessing.
I swallowed hard and turned away so that the truth of his bold statement wouldn’t be revealed through the expression in my eyes.
“It’s hard to imagine Darbnix with another woman,” I admitted after some hesitance. Davon seemed trustworthy and honorable, so I didn’t see any threat in confessing that private frustration to him.
“I’m sure it must be difficult,” he said as he craned his neck to look suspiciously out the window. I followed his action, turning back around with confusion. “What is it?” I asked. “Do you see someone there?”
“No.” Davon frowned. “I just enjoy watching the rain.”
I smiled, feeling a connection we had in common. “Me too.”
“I find it relaxing,” he added with a casual smile.
“And cozy,” I mentioned.
We made eye contact and it was like something clicked. We understood each other, and we both had the same motives and purpose in life. He was intelligent, a computer crimes expert. I was also intelligent, a veterinarian trained to take care of and save exo-livestock farm animals. The similarities regarding our background and our histories blended together in a natural way.
I started laughing, but it came out sounding more like a bitter scoff.
Davon gave me a perplexed expression. “Is something wrong?”
I stood up, ready to pace the room until my mind was satiated, until the turmoil stopped shouting at me via my own thoughts.
“I just can’t stand it.” I shook my head and pinched the area above my nose and between my eyes.
Davon still stared at me with confusion marking his features. “I don’t understand.”
I wanted to shout and stomp my foot and cry. I wanted to whine that it wasn’t fair that the terrible Tia Teller got her way. She was the one entertaining Prince Darbnix when I loved him. I could take care of him. We could have so much fun together, making memories as we went along. But she was the roadblock I hadn’t expected, the one who’d sent my joyous foundation crumbling to the ground.
Instead of throwing a tantrum and making a huge scene, I decided to take a deep breath instead and close my eyes for a few moments, pausing before answering Davon and explaining the complicated fragments of emotions within my mind.
I shook my head as an ironic smirk stretched across my lips.
It took me a few minutes before I was able to gain enough strength to look at Davon, because I knew he would be able to read the pain and frustration lingering in my heart.
“Just . . . imagining Darbnix there with her.” I spat the world out as if it were sour on my tongue. “It’s crazy.” I shook my head again. “I’m sorry. I’m just thinking out loud.”
“You are venting,” Davon said.
“Yeah.” I shrugged. “I guess you are probably right.”
“It’s okay to vent every now and then.” He gave me a kindhearted smile that made me feel warmer than usual.
“Just picturing him faking being with her, pretending to love her or cuddling up to her . . .” I trailed off because my stomach was doing flips, inverting on itself.
“He doesn’t love her,” Davon reassured me. “He’s simply doing a performance in order to expose the truth. It’s the one compromise he can’t get out of because if he doesn’t pull it off, the entire foundation cracks. We will never be able to track her or nail her for this crime if he doesn’t succeed.”
I met Davon’s gaze. There was an intensity blazing in his eyes that scared me, but I fully understood what he was trying to explain to me.
“I get it,” I whispered humbly. “He has no choice in the matter.”
“Oh, he has a choice,” Davon chimed. “He’s just making the smart one that will reap the most benefit, whether it’s uncomfortable to think about or not.”
I finally caved and gave Davon the smile he deserved. “Well, when you put it that way . . .”
“It’s purely a job,” he explained. “Nothing more.”
I made a soft humming sound as I wandered back over to the window, planting myself in the same chair. I lifted the curtain again so I could stare outside and picture something else besides my vivid imagination torturing me.
He wouldn’t sleep with her. He promised me, and I had no choice but to believe him. I trusted his love. It was pure, it was divine, it was noble. There was magic that sparked around us when we were together. If I could just cling to that energy, that chemistry, then maybe I wouldn’t drive myself absolutely nuts while awaiting his promised return.
I yawned and stretched. I was getting exhausted. I needed to shut my mind off for a while. Sleep would do me some good. It would heal my soul and help me recharge my batteries. Besides, it was still raining. What better sound to listen to while you tried to lull yourself to sleep? The factors were aligning in my favor.
I glanced over at Davon, whose eyes were fluttering closed.
“Do you want to stay here overnight?” I offered.
He glanced up at me. “Hmm?” He looked surprised by my suggestion.
I shrugged. “It’s getting late, and it’s still raining in sheets out there.” I pointed out the window. “You should stay.”
Davon frowned. “Do you feel like you need the protection?”
I mentally debated this scenario. “Maybe.”
Davon squared his sh
oulders proudly. “I would be honored to serve you tonight with protection to make you feel safer.”
I smiled. He was so lanky and awkward, but at the same time, he was perfectly sweet and knew exactly how to charm me. “Thank you,” I whispered softly. “You can stay in my guest room if you’d like.”
Davon’s eyes gleamed. “That sounds very lovely. I promise not to bother you unless you need my services.”
I chuckled. “Come on.” I gestured for him to follow me down the hallway.
I already knew that Davon wouldn’t lay a finger on me. He was too pure, too innocent in certain ways when it came to being around women.
“Here’s your room.” I flicked on the light switch and moved aside to allow him access. “I always keep fresh sheets on the bed.”
My dogs had been sleeping in the room, and as they heard my voice, they began to rouse and stretch, yawning and looking bleary-eyed as they tried to sniff at Davon’s pants with curiosity.
“They won’t hurt you,” I promised. “In fact, if they had any kind of inkling that you were a dangerous person, they would be snarling at you and barking like crazy.”
Davon smiled. “I enjoy animals. I know that Darbnix is fond of them too. He has so many back at his farm in Noor.” Davon spoke with a sad nostalgia crackling in his voice.
“Yeah, I know.” I bit my bottom lip and smiled. “That’s just one of the many things we have in common.”
“He’s lucky to have you,” Davon said as we locked eyes.
“Thanks.” I blushed at the compliment.
If only he were here with me now. He should be here with me. He was supposed to be. I had to be patient. I had to wait out the storm because the dawn of a new day would bring sunshine and warmth just waiting for me across the horizon.
I harbored the strength and resolve within my spirit to wait for him. Patience was a virtue. My mother always loved that saying, and it was my reality, at least for now. I had to exercise trust. I could always daydream about him lying beside me, protecting me with his strong and sturdy body. I craved to feel his muscles and his body pressed up next to mine. I would have to remain stoically positive that the outcome would lean in my favor.