by Malone, Nana
Sebastian’s tongue slid over mine, and I tried to gain the upper hand, retreating, advancing… teasing him. He slid his hands up my shirt, roughly tugging it as he went. I was no gentler with his shirt, yanking at the soft cotton over his shoulders and pulling up. Then he released me. My feet hit the ground. My boots made a clicking sound.
He dipped again, kissing my neck and that hollow behind my ear. “Start walking. These tunnels are monitored now, and I want you all to myself.”
He picked up my jacket and my t-shirt and my gun and followed behind me, one hand tucking my hair away from that spot on my nape he wanted to kiss. When he pressed his lips there, heat coiled up my spine. He knew exactly where to touch me.
We’d gone no more than fifteen feet, and he gently pushed me through the doors of our quarters. The moment we were in our room he was back on me from behind, unfastening the button of my jeans and shoving the zipper down. He didn’t lead me to the bed though. We went straight to the desk. He kissed my neck, my shoulders. “You’ve been a very, very naughty wife.”
I chuckled low even as I tugged his sweat pants. “Is this the part where you threaten to punish me again?” I had my hand in his sweats in seconds. My fingers wrapping around his cock.
He coughed low. “Do you feel that? I’ve been sitting with that for thirty minutes wondering where the hell my wife was. You should probably do something to make him feel better.”
I laughed softly. “Oh, should I? Maybe he should reward me for coming back.”
“You know what, I think we could probably come to a mutually beneficial arrangement.”
At the edge of the desk in the far corner of the room, he shoved my jeans down to my ankles, and his sweats as well. I could feel the hard length of him behind me, pulsing, probing… gently asking for entry. My breath caught as his lips pressed against my ear. “Don’t scare me again, okay?”
I sighed. He was the last person on earth I wanted to fight with. “Okay. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
His voice went even lower. As he bent his legs, the tip of him grazed my aching slickness. “And I’ll try to give you more freedom, okay? I hate fighting with you.”
“Me too.”
His hands slid up my back, and he pressed me forward into the glass top of the desk.
And when he slid home, I cried out.
“Fuck.” His voice was more of a growl. “So good.”
“Hurry,” I muttered. I was wet, ready, and beyond desperate at that point.
“Oh, you thought I was going to hurry? See the thing is, my wife kept me waiting, so, she can wait a little too.”
I popped my hips back and then deliberately squeezed my inner muscles, milking him. That earned me another muttered curse, a growl, and then a sharp swat on the ass.
I shivered at the burn of heat and the delicious bite. “Sebastian.”
His only response was a chuckle. “Behave.”
“I will not. You swat me on the ass again, you’ll see what happens.” Yep, totally empty threats. The only thing he was in danger of was making me wetter.
He leaned over me. His broad chest pressed in my back. The full length of him pulsed inside me, making me ache, making me need, making me want. “Will you make me pay?”
“Yes. You will pay dearly.”
“I’m looking forward to it.” Then he stood again and planted his palm on my ass once more.
Another sweet bite. My pussy clenched. “Asshole.”
He then slid his hands over my belly, up to my breasts, lifting me gently, all the while slowly sliding home and then retreating. Pleasure in emptiness; pleasure in fullness. And the gentle roll of my nipples had my legs shaking.
“I’m sorry, baby. I didn’t want to hurt you,” he whispered.
“Make me believe it.”
He chuckled even as he branded me with his cock. “Here, let me show you.” Sebastian’s hand slid down my torso as his thick cock teased me with a promise of ecstasy. His fingers slid over my clit. His middle finger rubbed gently, coaxing, bringing me so much closer. And then gently edging off as soon as my hips started to work back toward him, pumping, begging, and needing a release.
I groaned in frustration and squeezed him internally again.
“Fuck, Penny.”
“What? What did I do?”
He laughed into that spot where shoulder and neck meet. “You know what you did.”
Still inside me, he turned us around and shuffled us over to the bed. When he gently slid out, I whimpered, missing him already. I needed that promise of release. “Sebastian, please—”
“Sshh… I’ll be right back.” I heard the shuffling as he closed in behind me, assuming he was stepping out of his sweats, then he tugged my jeans off my ankles.
Then he pulled one of the pillows from the bed and shoved it under my belly, tipping my ass up for him. And without any preamble, he slid home again. His lips kissed the little hurts of the tiny nips his teeth made. He whispered the words I’d wanted to hear. “I love you. I love making up with you too.”
I laughed. And then his fingers found my clit again, circling softly. “Shit, oh God.”
With his free hand, he pulled me gently back to my knees, changing our positions slightly. “You know what I’ve been missing?”
His thumb gently pressed over my ass and circled softly as his finger teased my clit and pressed. I shuddered. “Oh fuck, so good. So, so good.”
“I’ve been missing this. Right now, though, I need you too much. I won’t be gentle enough.”
“I don’t care about gentle. I don’t—"
“Sshh… I care about gentle. I don’t want to hurt you.” And then he picked up his pace. His cock slid inside me. His thumb teased over my asshole as his fingers worked my clit, and I knew any second, I’d be a goner. Flying.
And then he pushed his thumb inside me.
Full. So full, oh my God. And he picked up the pace with his fingers as his dick slid inside me. “I know you love this Penny. I can feel how much. The way you’re gripping me. With your pussy and your ass. All you have to do to come is to let go. I’ll catch you. I always do.”
I could feel the twitch of him inside me. He was waiting for me. Holding out for me. Determined.
With a cry, I broke apart, my body convulsing. And then he sank deep. His thumb still pressed inside me, gently, his fingers never letting up on my clit. He expanded inside me. He cursed, and it was part swear, part reverence. “Fuck, Penny.”
With another press of his fingers, I was flying again. He sank his teeth into my flesh, expletives muttered into my skin as he exploded deep inside me.
“So was this my punishment?” I muttered, my body limp. Too tired to move. “Because keep that up, and I’m likely to misbehave again.”
I could feel the vibration of his chuckle. “Something tells me that was your plan all along.”
* * *
Bryna
“Hey, Bryna, there’s someone here to see you.”
I looked up from the pile of contracts I was reviewing. The new singer I’d found in Antigua last week agreed to do a sample demo with us of her own work. We would just distribute it to see if we could get any interest, and I would move forward and see if she should be a full-time artist with us. It was for a management deal, so it was really from the ground up, and I was excited about it. “Hey, what’s up?”
“Someone’s here to see you.”
I frowned. “Uh, who?”
Marie shrugged. “She said her name was Eliza. She’s older. Really well put together though.”
I groaned internally and forced myself to take a deep, steadying breath. “Thanks Marie. You can show her in.”
Marie was our receptionist. We went to lunch together every now and then. Technically, she was supposed to make me coffee and be my gal Friday, but I preferred to do a lot on my own.
Marie gave me a bright smile and nodded before strolling out of my shoebox of an office.
I never minded my office befor
e. I was just shocked that I even had one. I’d assumed I’d be in a cubicle. But something about my mother being in my space, being here, made me feel a little bit of shame. As though I was doing something wrong or didn’t have something right.
Stop it. You’ve done nothing wrong. And you love your job. It’s a solid job. You’re proud of it. You do work that’s important to you. Own it.
That was true. And if my mother didn’t like it? Well, she could feel free to bite me.
My mother walked in wearing, of course, Chanel. Her gaze quickly scanned my office. It might have been small; it might have been a little cramped and cluttered. I had a lot of contracts to go through, mostly our standard let’s-see-how-it-works-out, then-move-forward kind of stuff. I stood. “Mom, what are you doing here?”
She sighed. “Is that any way to greet your mother?”
Fantastic. Already off to a stellar start. “What do you want? I have a lot of work to do.”
Her brows furrowed, and she eyed the seat across from me as if it were going to jump up and bite her in the ass. After a long hard inspection of my perfectly serviceable chair, she eased herself into it. “I had to hear that you were back from Jinx’s mother. How long have you been here?”
“A month.”
Her eyes went wide. “A month? I know we have our differences, but I would have at least expected a call.”
“Really, Mom? Do you want a call? Because I feel like I was pretty clear the last time I saw you in New York.”
She waved a hand. “Are you still angry about that? I thought we’re going to let bygones be bygones.”
I sat back and stared at her. “Are you really that delusional? You’re going to just sit there and say ‘let bygones be bygones’ and act as if nothing happened with us? Act as if you didn’t steal money out of my account? That you didn’t attempt to control my very existence? We’re just going to pretend that none of that happened?”
“I swear to God Bryna,” she took a deep breath. “I just hoped that maybe, with the dust settling, you would see that we were only looking out for you.”
“Sorry, I don’t see it that way. And I won’t see it that way, so you’re wasting your time.”
My parents were used to me just doing what they wanted and were quite accustomed to me caving, giving in. But not this time. No way in hell. “If that’s all, I have a lot of work to do.”
“Bryna, are you well? You’re okay? I love you. You should know that.”
“Sure, Mom. It’s just that how you show it is not how I want it shown, which is neither here nor there.”
“Look, I just—I heard about the unpleasantness with Lucas.”
“Oh, you thought I’d been licking my wounds. Depressed and despondent that I’d been abandoned?”
“Sweetheart, you can’t possibly think that I would want you upset or anything like that. When I heard, I thought it might be a good idea to go see you in the city. I was making plans when I saw Jinx’s mother. And she said how wonderful it was that the two of you had moved in together. It was horrifying to be the last one to know that information. My own daughter, and you didn’t even tell me.”
I sighed. “Okay, if we’re done here, you can go.”
“Oh, Bryna, come on. How do we get past this?”
I studied her closely. She looked sincere. Like she actually wanted to fix this. Like she actually wanted to make this in some way better.
“Honestly? Stop trying to control me. Just stop. I make lots of mistakes.” Mistake number one, Lucas. “But, they’re mine to make. In an ideal world, you would just sit back and be my Mom. Give me a hug when I’m upset, talk me through it when I ask for your advice. And maybe if you actually have to offer some sincere advice, you could consider what’s best for me and what I would actually want. You have to get to know me, who I am. Not who you want me to be. You know, that would be a great first step.”
“Ugh, Bryna, you really think we don’t know you? Every decision we’ve ever made has been because we know you so well. We know what you need.”
I put my hand up. “See, that’s the problem. You just don’t listen.”
“I am listening. I just came to talk to you because I heard about the unpleasantness. I mean, he’s a thief, Bryna. Prince or not, I mean—"
My brows snapped down. “What did you just say?”
My mother sputtered. “I don’t know. What in the world do you mean?”
“You said, ‘Prince or not.’”
Her face flamed. “I—"
“Dad told you? That’s tantamount to treason. I know for a fact you’re not supposed to know.”
She swallowed hard and settled back in the seat. “Well then, how do you know?”
“Well, Lucas told me. But it’s not treason for him to talk to me because it’s his information to tell.”
She rolled her eyes. “Those rules are antiquated. It’s not like there haven’t been rumors.”
“Sure, there have been rumors, but no one knows. You know because Dad told you.”
“Okay fine. Your father may have let it slip. But really, the last thing on earth we can allow is for someone like that to be confirmed. Honestly, such a scandal, the whole mess to vote to allow illegitimate children. How are they ever supposed to know who is actually royal and who isn’t? You know, from the rightful lines?”
“Mom, have you forgotten that King Jackson wasn’t actually from a royal bloodline? It’s not like it’s some pre-ordained nonsense. He became king on the battlefield. So this whole idea of royal blood is nonsense. Luck of the draw. He’s the prince, like it or not.”
“Well, I don’t have to like it.”
“Fair enough. You don’t. That’s true. But if you think you’re going to walk in here and change my mind about him, or get me on your side against him, or in any way get me to side with you and Dad, you couldn’t be more wrong. It’s not going to happen. No, no. Good luck with that.”
“So you’re siding with him? Over your father?”
“I don’t know what’s going on, all I know is that he’s gone. If you’re in here, asking me to choose sides without even knowing the full situation, I’ll side with him. At least he hasn’t made a life choice out of lying and manipulating me.”
No, he just lied that one time. Either way, I wasn’t buying what she was selling. She was wasting her time. Even if he didn’t love me, even if it had been a game of some sort, I knew him. There was no way he would have stolen from his brother. That just wasn’t him.
That’s if you even knew him at all.
17
lucas
I knew the drill. Whenever I arrived on the main island, security protocols were in place. We had to deal with the diplomatic access route, and someone was waiting to get me into the car to whisk me straight to the palace. The few times I’d been to the islands that was always the way it went. But this time when I got in the car, I leaned forward and introduced myself to my driver. “What’s up bro? What’s your name?”
He blinked at me, wide eyed. I was always friendly and said hello, introduced myself, asked some questions, but I’d never gotten quite so close. “My name is Errol, sir.”
He didn’t know I was a prince. All he knew was that I was a VIP for the king. That’s all anyone knew.
Being the king’s VIP came with certain perks and pitfalls. Like people wanted to get close to me. They thought being close to me would get them access to Sebastian. Not this guy. He looked genuinely confused with his wide eyes, furrowed brow, and gaze shifting from left to right.
“Listen, I know your instructions are to take me straight to the palace, but can we make a stop first? I swear, no funny business. One stop before we go to the palace.”
He frowned. “I—I don’t know. My instructions were very clear.”
“Listen, I know.” My Blake Security guards were in the following car. Once I’d been put safely on the plane, I’d arrived with Weller and Mueller. But they would head back to New York tomorrow, and I would be under full
-time protection by the Royal Guard. “Okay look, I sort of fucked up with my girlfriend, so if you can do me a solid and take me to see her first, I might be able to smooth things with her. And then we can go straight to the palace. I’ll make it fast.”
His lips twitched at that moment. “Begging your pardon, sir, but if you make it quick, won’t that make everything worse?”
I blinked. Then I blinked again and let loose a laugh. “You know what, you make a good point. I’ll be brief, but not too brief. There’s a good chance she won’t want to talk to me anyway. So, I don’t have to worry about being not brief.”
He sighed. “Very well then.”
“Listen, if you’re worried about getting in trouble, I’ll take the heat. You’re just doing your job. I’m making a request and you’re just complying. It would be no different than if I said I was desperate for Johnny Brookman and you took me to a stand to get some.” Johnny Brookman was basically baked plantain and nuts. It was a little island thing carried over by some of the former slaves from West Africa. Then there had been that whole resurgence where a lot of people had gone back to their roots. A lot of people in the islands came from Ghana. They went to visit and brought some of their favorite snacks with them.
“Yeah, all right. Let’s go. Do you have the address?”
In anticipation, I’d already asked Matthias for where she lived.
I had to give him credit. He hadn’t given me any shit about it either. No doubt he already knew the whole extent of my and Bryna’s relationship. That was a bit unnerving, having other people know every detail of my life, but right now, it came with the territory.
The moment we started to drive, I rolled down my window and let the scents, the smells, and the sounds of the island welcome me home. Somewhere in the distance, I heard bongo drums playing Calypso.
The beat infused my soul. I had no idea why the music called me, but I’d always loved Calypso. Which was silly, because I’d never been here before I met Sebastian. But still, all of this felt like home. After I was told I was King Cassius’s son, I often wondered if there was such a thing as genetic memory. The tropical flowers that had once been exotic were now familiar. Hibiscus, gardenia, and white ginger lily. Their scents mingled, making a heady perfume in the heat. And tomorrow, I was as sure as shit going surfing. After you find Roone.