Talon

by Savannah Rylan

Teagan smiled and snuggled closer to him, her head resting on his chest. She fit perfectly against him. And he hoped she would never be far from where she was then. He felt like he’d lost her once and he was damned sure to never let that happen again.

  “I think you are a fast learner,” Teagan said. “I take it I do have the job, right?”

  “Well, I am interviewing some other applicants, but I think you are definitely at the top of the people I am considering,” Cort said.

  Teagan slapped his chest playfully. He pulled her closer to him and kissed her deeply on the mouth.

  “So, why didn’t you return my calls?” Cort asked. He hoped he didn't sound whiney, but he had to know what happened. Was she that good at playing hard to get?

  “I was at a yoga retreat out away from civilization for three days, and they took our phones,” Teagan said.

  “Ah, I guess that explains it. You had me a bit worried,” Cort said. “I thought I blew my chance with you.”

  “What? Why would you think that, Mr. Prince?” Teagan said with a giggle.

  Cort rolled his eyes. Busted.

  “I was wondering when you were going to bring that up,” he said.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Being Prince has its advantages, and I love what I do, but it does have its drawbacks. My personal life happens to be one of them. Do you know what it’s like to be with someone and to not know if they actually like you or the fact that you are The Prince? I just wanted to go out and be an anonymous guy for once. I do that periodically. It usually doesn’t last long until someone recognizes me, but when I saw you and you are American, I knew that you were clueless about who I was.”

  “I can understand that,” Teagan said. “But what else did you lie to me about?”

  “I do surf. I love music. I am a songwriter, but I don’t play for anyone. If I ever did play for people, it would be like some kind of a sideshow.”

  “Why? If you have a passion or a talent, then you should follow it.”

  “It’s different when you are Prince. You are expected to adhere to a particular way of behaving and being in the spotlight. And playing guitar and singing is not it.”

  “I guess that makes sense, but I still would love to hear you sometime.”

  Cort smiled. “Ok. I might play for you one day.”

  “That would be nice,” Teagan said. “I’m going to hold you to that.”

  “Deal,” Cort replied. “So, when did you find out who I was?”

  “I saw you on television. The whole marriage thing. I think that’s a pretty sucky way to do things. You deserve to be King. It’s your birthright. You shouldn’t have to be married to assume the throne.”

  “Thanks, but that is the way it’s going to be. I’ve spoken with my advisors and with the Parliament. The Council has made up their minds, and the rule still stands.”

  Teagan kissed him softly and snuggled up closer to his chest. “I’m sorry,” she said.

  He could tell that she really meant it.

  And something about the way she said it told him that she really cared for him every bit as much as he cared for her.

  CHAPTER 17

  Teagan

  As Teagan lay there with her head on Cort’s chest listening to him tell her about how difficult his life was right now, she felt so sorry for him. The internal pain and struggle that he was going through was something she could hardly begin to fathom, but she wanted to. She wanted to know what made him tick, who he really was.

  But there was so much of himself that he kept guarded away. She supposed that was the way he’d been forced to live his life being The Prince. He had to be two people almost all the time. There was the public face of being part of the royal family, and then there was the private him. She felt like she was getting a small glimpse beneath the surface, but she wondered if she would ever know the real him.

  And she wasn’t sure if he would ever really let her.

  “So, if you don’t get married by your birthday then the crown goes to your uncle?” Teagan asked. She’d done some research, and this was about all she’d been able to find out in the news.

  “Yeah. The man is a total moron, and I know he will set out nation back several years if he becomes King.”

  “That’s horrible,” Teagan said. “And the Parliament can’t see what a bad idea this is?”

  “They do. They are smart men who realize exactly what a bad idea it is, but they are also shrewd. With a King like my father and a king like I would be the Parliament knows that I will change things for the better. Our nation will continue to progress, but they want things to remain the old way.”

  “Why? Why are they so against change?”

  “They are against it because they want to remain in control. Even though my father is King, he has to constantly fight with the Parliament to get things done. They cross him at every point. He is a champion of the people, and this goes against what the Parliament is all about.”

  “What are you going to do?” Teagan asked.

  She held her breath waiting for the answer. That was a dumb question to ask. She knew the options were limited, but a part of her wanted to know where she stood. But she was also terrified of the answer. What if he actually asked her to marry him? Would she say yes?

  “I don’t know,” Cort replied. His voice sounded full of strain and worry. It was the first time she’d ever actually heard him sound scared.

  Teagan felt relief at the answer that passed through his lips. What was she really thinking? Lying there with Cort after the passionate love they’d just made she knew that her feelings for him were real. She had never felt like this about anyone before, and even though it sounded crazy, she was in love with him. She wanted to be with him forever, and she wished he would ask her to marry him.

  But was she ready for that life? Could she fathom becoming Queen of a country she barely knew? Did she want that kind of responsibility? She would have to leave everything she knew and loved behind. Her family, her friends, her job—all of that would stay in the States, and she would start a brand-new life here. Of course, she would have the resources at her fingertips to do anything she wanted and have her family and friends visit her whenever they liked, but she would have duties and responsibilities that she could not begin to understand. Cort had lived his whole life as a member of the royal family; she would be a total outsider, an immigrant from another country even, and she would be stepping into a whole new world.

  She wanted to be with Cort more than anything, but she just wasn’t sure she could go through with it. She was afraid. She was afraid that she would fail in her duties, that she wasn’t strong enough to be that kind of a leader. It was all too much to think about, it was just too much to take in.

  She just needed more time. And time was something Cort did not have a lot of. Teagan tried to rest and breathe easy, enjoying the company of the man she loved, but there were now too many things weighing heavily on her mind. If he’d asked her right then to marry him, she knew that she would have to say no.

  It was the right decision. If Cort decided that he wanted to be King badly enough to choose a bride and make that kind of a rush decision Teagan realized that she would say no and step back while he chose someone else. It was heartbreaking to think about this man she had fallen in love with being married to someone else, but there was far more at stake.

  “I just never knew that it would be so complicated,” Cort said. “I’ve known my whole life that one day when my father stepped down as King, the duty would fall to me. I heard about this rule before now, but I never knew how firmly etched in stone it really was. I always figured it was just an old tradition and tradition can be swiftly changed. I can’t believe how wrong I was,” Cort said with a laugh.

  “If you’d known the whole time would it have changed your situation? Have you ever been in love before? Was there anyone special enough in your life that you thought could have been the one?” Teagan asked the question carefully, arranging t
he words in her mind to have just the right effect.

  Cort paused a moment. Was he trying to think of the right answer to not hurt her feelings? Or was he really thinking about the question?

  Finally, he said, “No. There has been no one that I’ve ever loved like that. At least not until now.”

  Teagan felt like the air had just been sucked out of the room and she forgot how to take in a breath. What was he saying? Was he asking her the question now? Oh, my God…

  The silence in the room was now deafening and getting awkward. Unless it was just all in her mind. She might have just been reading way too much into what Cort was saying to her, but she didn’t want to poke at it. She was willing to let his words hang heavy in the air and keep them from finding their mark.

  Teagan kissed him softly on the lips. As she started to pull back finishing the kiss Cort grabbed her tightly and pulled her close again, kissing her hard and deep. As the kiss ended, he rested his forehead against hers and held her body close to his.

  “Wow, this feels amazing,” Cort said. “I’ve been looking forward to getting you back in my arms since the night we met.”

  Teagan smiled, feeling the warmth spreading over her body.

  “Me too,” she whispered.

  “I want to take you out to dinner tonight,” Cort said.

  “Really? You aren’t afraid the paparazzi will be everywhere? Or maybe you enjoy that more than you let on?” Teagan teased.

  Cort laughed. “I sometimes do, but tonight I just want us to have some alone time. The paparazzi might be around, but the restaurant I’m taking you to won’t allow them to come in or bother us. I and my family dine there often as well as a lot of celebrities. It will be fun.”

  “Ok,” Teagan said. “That sounds awesome.”

  “Great,” Cort replied.

  “I guess I should leave now,” Teagan said. “People are going to wonder why the yoga lesson is taking so long.”

  She started to get up, and Cort pulled her back to him.

  “Let them wonder,” he said with a naughty smile.

  He quickly lifted Teagan back on top of him and entered her before she even realized what was happening.

  Her dripping wet core opened widely accepting his thickness with pleasure.

  It would be another forty-five minutes before she left.

  CHAPTER 18

  Cort

  “How is the pasta?”

  Cort watched as Teagan twirled a large clump of the fettuccine around her fork and took a big bite. He had rarely seen a girl eat like she did. She had a very healthy appetite, and she was not afraid to really chow down. It was pretty sexy. Most of the women he’d dated were always concerned with being totally prim and proper and afraid to touch much more than a salad. This was refreshing.

  “It’s wonderful,” Teagan said. She took a sip of her red wine.

  Noticing that her glass was almost empty, Cort took the liberty of refilling it.

  Teagan laughed. “You aren’t trying to get me hammered, are you?” Teagan asked.

  “Maybe,” Cort replied. “There is no sense letting the perfect wine go to waste.”

  “Merlot is my favorite,” Teagan said.

  “Mine too. I’ve never cared much for white wine,” Cort said.

  Teagan nodded in agreement. “Yeah, it feels like it’s missing that extra something.”

  Cort glanced around the restaurant. It was nice and quiet tonight, but busy enough to keep things interesting. The paparazzi had been just as wild as he’d expected when he arrived at the restaurant after picking up Teagan at her hotel. He hoped the vultures didn’t start stalking her there, but it was probably unavoidable. Besides, he figured she’d never really had the star treatment before and she might take a bit of a shine to it.

  Plus, he had something special planned tonight, and he doubted Teagan would be sleeping in her hotel anyway. If all went well anyway.

  He’d been wrestling with a decision all day long, ever since the fantastic afternoon he’d spent with Teagan in the gym. The lovemaking, just being together, and the conversation that just flowed so perfectly between them—it was all magical. That was the only word he could actually use to describe it. It was beautiful.

  He’d hinted at his plans when they were together. She was asking him about his past love and how he felt about her and his situation. He had to give her credit that she was probing in a very roundabout way. The woman was so wicked smart. That was one of the things he loved most about her.

  Now that he thought about it he knew that he was going to ask Teagan to be his wife the moment he saw her standing in the gym. There was no other way about it; he loved her. He knew that his feelings or this realization had nothing to do with the stipulation he was facing if he wanted to succeed his father and become King. That would be an added bonus of course, but he wanted to marry Teagan either way.

  He was nervous as hell about what she would say. What would she think? It was pretty obvious that she would wonder how he really felt and if he was asking her to marry him just because he wanted to become King. He would have to convince her that his love for her was real and he had no other ulterior motives whatsoever. He just wanted to be with her. He would give up everything to be with her if that was what it took to convince her.

  If he had to, he would renounce his family and stop being Prince.

  “I have to admit that this is the fanciest meal I’ve ever had,” Teagan said.

  “Really? Well, I think you should get used to it,” Cort replied with a smile.

  Teagan blushed. “Oh, I’m sure you will be tired of me soon enough,” she teased.

  “That’s impossible,” Cort said. Teagan locked eyes with him, and he hoped she could tell that he was dead serious about that.

  “What was it like dating as a teenager for you? I mean I imagine it must have been hard being with people your own age then. Did you go to regular school?”

  “I did,” Cort said. “I didn’t have to. I could have just worked with tutors, but I wanted to experience a normal childhood. And for the most part, I did. I mean, when you are six years old your peers don’t care that you are Prince. They don’t really even get what that means. And by the time they did understand I was just one of them, so it wasn’t really weird.”

  “That’s awesome,” Teagan said.

  “Yeah, it was difficult though because the hours of a regular school day cut into my other training. When I was old enough, I basically had to start sitting in on meetings and learning about what it means to be Prince and what my duties would one day be. But I still think I made the right decision.”

  “Wow, I can’t even begin to imagine what that must have been like.”

  Cort smiled and took a bite of his steak. It was cooked to perfection.

  He glanced over at Teagan and watched her eating her pasta. She dribbled a bit on her chin. Before she could wipe it off with her napkin Cort swiped it with his finger and tasted it, bringing it up to his mouth slowly.

  “That’s delicious,” he said.

  “I know, right?” Teagan replied.

  “I meant you.”

  Teagan smiled. “Ah, that is smooth.”

  “I know,” Cort agreed. “I have skills.”

  “I have a few sexy moves too,” Teagan said. She had a naughty look in her eye that was turning him on like crazy.

  And suddenly her hand was on his crotch, pushing gently against his groin feeding his growing erection.

  He inhaled slowly allowing the sensation to move through him, trying not to draw attention to himself even while he wanted to release a pent-up moan. Her hand stated to move up and down his shaft, pressing just firm enough against his sack. Teagan was giggling as quietly as she could, but she was massively enjoying herself.

  “Well, this is not fair,” Cort said with a smile.

  “Oh, this is not a game baby,” Teagan said.

  Baby. Oh, that sounded so sexy when she called him that, those syllables floating off her beaut
iful lips. He loved the affection behind it.

  It had been so long since someone had called him that and meant it.

  He moved his pelvis forward slightly increasing the pressure. It felt so good to have her small, dainty fingers moving against his growing hardness. And added to that she was now licking her lips discreetly but all the while seductive and giving him the “take me” eyes.

  Cort wondered if he could get away with the same. He casually moved his hand under the table, and glanced around to make sure no one was paying attention to him. You never knew when some paparazzo was disguised as a waiter just to take some indiscriminate pictures of the Prince being a messy eater. He didn’t notice anyone, but if they were there, they were going to get more than they bargained for tonight.

  He slid his hand swiftly up Teagan’s legs and right under her skirt. The look of shock on her face was priceless, especially the moment his fingers pressed against her sweet mound. He could feel a bit of moisture after a few moments of his fingers doing some moving through her panties. Cort felt his pant get tighter and adjusted himself slightly underneath the table.

  It was ready to go. And Teagan could tell.

  “Wow, now who is not playing by the rules,” Teagan said.

  “I think we are inventing the game as we go along,” Cort replied.

  His hand was working its way harder against her, feeding her lust. He could see the desire growing wild in her beautiful eyes.

  Then she pulled a game changer.

  Teagan carefully reached under the table. He wasn’t sure what she was up to until he felt her panties sliding past his fingers and moving down her thighs. With the pressure, his fingers were now sliding into the sweet, succulent wetness between her smooth, sexy thighs.

  Teagan inhaled deeply, her face showing the expression of a woman who was being turned on past the point of no return. He was going to satisfy that lust soon; she didn’t have to worry about that. But he was going to play around and have some fun first.

  She was now moving against his hand, placing her body just so his largest fingers would enter her at just the right spot. At the same time, she was pushing against his rock-hard shaft, and he felt that he might blow at any moment, but he didn’t want to finish yet. He did not want to finish here.