by Myles, Jill
“Am I going to have to stay down here all day?” a sharp male voice bellowed below.
Her eyes widened. “Someone else is here?”
The man in front of her gave her an odd look, then shook his head. “Daft, all of ye.” He unslung a pack on his back and she noticed that it held rope.
She leaned over his shoulder, her long hair swinging forward. “What’s that rope for?” He then unslung his sword and in one quick motion, chopped her hair. The locks swung at her waist, a heavy thick mass. Then he re-sheathed the sword and dropped the rope over the side.
Wait, it wasn’t rope. It was a rope ladder. Her eyes went wide and she pushed to the window.
Another man was climbing up. She gasped and then turned to the hottie in front of her. “Who’s that?” The delicious man scowled. “That’s yer prince, woman.”
Oh. Oh shit.
“Well, who the hell are you?”
“His guard.”
Oh, damn it. She’d kissed the wrong man.
Hope stared in shock as a second man climbed to the top of the rope ladder, griping and bitching all the way.
Well, he didn’t actually get to the top of the ladder. More like when he got close enough, he stuck up a hand and the handsome, burly man that she’d thought was the prince had to haul him in to the window.
And now that he was inside, she got her first look at him. Prince Charming wasn’t exactly what she’d imagined a prince to be, not really. His face was long, his hair thin and straggly, and his nose curved a bit too much to one side for his face to look symmetrical. His shoulders were small and the rest of his body lean–almost too lean.
“My darling Rapunzel,” he said, holding his hands out to take hers, and when he smiled, she caught sight of a set of jagged teeth. One particular tooth in front was a shade of yellow darker than the rest.
She glanced back to the guardsman, who seemed to be watching the entire thing with amusement.
Why the heck wasn’t the sexy guy the prince?
She had some serious things to say to Muffin when that woman returned.
The prince wiggled his hands at her. “Rapunzel, darling, what is the matter?” Oh. Hope placed her hands in his, hating that his grip was warm with sweat. His brow was beaded with it, as if climbing the ladder had been far too much effort for him.
Judging from his build, maybe it had been. “I–I’m sorry,” she said slowly. “I hit my head and I haven’t been feeling well this morning.”
And she used that as an excuse to pull her hands from his and rub one of her temples. Muffin had said that the other Rapunzel hit her head, after all. She could use that excuse, too.
“My poor darling,” the prince cooed, moving toward her as if he wanted to kiss her.
Hope delicately sidestepped, closing her eyes and feigning a headache. “Please. I am…confused. It will just take a little time. Who are you? Both of you?”
The prince looked concerned. “You are seeing double of me?”
“I think she meant me,” the guardsman offered, and she could have sworn his mouth twitched with amusement. “Her brains must be addled.”
The prince nodded. “Must be. Darling, you don’t recognize me?”
“Of course I do…Prince…”
“Walter,” the guardsman said helpfully.
She shot him a dirty look. “Prince Walter, that’s right.” The prince smiled. “If you remember me, surely things aren’t so bad.”
“Guess not,” Hope said, forcing a faint smile to her mouth.
“Well, I cannot stay long today, darling Rapunzel,” he said cheerfully. “My father insists on a great many tasks from me at the moment, so I do not have much time to devote to you. I merely came by to remind you of my love and to see if you had made up your mind.”
“That’s very kind of you,” she said slowly. “Made up my mind about what?” He tsked, and she found herself staring at that yellow tooth. “It will come back to you, my dear.” Walter put a hand around her waist and tugged her against him. “Unless you need a little prompting?” Her hands went to his chest in alarm, and she pushed at him. From over his narrow shoulder, she could see the guardsman’s face. He was watching her carefully, eyes narrow.
Did he suspect something? She supposed she should let Walter kiss her, then.
But when Walter leaned in, she caught a hint of his breath. Oh, dear God. At the last moment, she turned her cheek and let him plant his mouth there. “I’m sorry, I’m not feeling well. I must have hit my head harder than I thought.”
Walter seemed disgruntled at this. “But I came here to see you. Took time out of my day. Do you know how difficult that is for me?”
She didn’t, actually. And she slipped out of his grasp, sliding away a few steps, and tripped over her long skirts. Stupid skirts.
The other man was immediately at her elbow, catching her before she fell, and a flush came over her face.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “My head just isn’t in things today.”
“That’s obvious,” Walter snapped, clearly annoyed with her. “It looks as if I came all this way for nothing.”
She wrung her hands. Was she messing this up? Was she supposed to romance this creep, then?
This wasn’t exactly how she’d planned the grand romance after Muffin had told her about the curse.
She’d thought he’d look more, well, like his bodyguard. And that yellow tooth was bothering her something fierce. “I just need a bit of time. I…so many things are a blur to me right now. I don’t suppose you know how I got trapped in this tower? Or cursed?”
The prince’s annoyance turned to a look of pity. “My poor precious. You must have indeed hit your head very hard. You must be more careful.”
She nodded slowly, giving him her most pitiful look. “I’m sorry.” He chucked her under the chin.
“Don’t be. I’ll be back tomorrow and we can renew our love then.” Lucky her. Hope smiled tightly.
“I’ll be here.”
Chapter Two
Hope waited for the fairy godmother to show up. She had some rather choice things to say to that woman. But Muffin was a no-show, and Hope’s irritation grew with every passing hour. By the time the moon was high, she was exhausted and even more anxious than before.
Maybe she could escape on her own. Hope threw open the window of the tower and stared at the ground below. It was…rather far. And her hair wasn’t growing, thanks to the lack of sun. She could always cut it and save the tail to make a ladder, except that it’d disappear as soon as it was cut.
So, in essence, she was trapped. Damn it all.
She eventually went to sleep in Rapunzel’s narrow bed and woke up the next morning, starving.
Hope ate the last of her food and drank the last of her water, and then sat around and waited.
This kind of sucked. Not only was she bored out of her mind, but she was hungry and thirsty. The chamberpot seemed to be enchanted, though. Every time she used it, things disappeared. That made the tower a lot more bearable, at least. She’d have hated to sit here and sniff her own crap for hours on end. But that didn’t fix the fact that she was hungry and thirsty, and no one was coming by to solve that problem for her.
By the time the long day had crawled past, she was at a fever-pitch of annoyance with Prince Walter.
Didn’t he know she was stuck up here without a way to get food and water? Was this punishment because she hadn’t kissed him last night? If he showed up with a hamburger right now, she’d have kissed him, yellow snaggletooth and all.
Hope clutched her growling stomach, worry eating at her mind. What if he didn’t come back for days and she starved to death? Died of dehydration? That wasn’t much better than dying of heart failure.
Just slower.
“Rapunzel!” a deep voice shouted.
Yes! Thank God. She flung herself to the window, not caring that the skies were orange with twilight.
“I’m here!”
As soon as the light touch
ed her hair, her scalp shivered and the locks began to grow, sliding down her shoulders and out the window. She moved to the anchor bar and quickly looped her hair, and then waited.
As yesterday, the big, delicious guardsman pulled himself up by her hair. Once he slid in the window, he brushed off his plaid and then pulled out his sword, cutting her hair free.
And then, to her surprise, he shut the window.
She gave him a confused look. “Is…where is the prince?”
“Busy,” he said in that thickly accented voice. “I’m here to bring you supplies.”
“Supplies?”
“Aye. Food and drink.” He unslung a bag tucked into his belt and handed it to her, along with a heavy skin of water.
“I could kiss you for this,” she said with relief.
A slow, sensual grin crossed his face. “Ye did yestereve.” So she had. A pulse of desire flared through her body. “Is…that the price today?” He tilted his head, regarding her. “I’ll no’ turn it down if ye’re offering.” Was that a yes or a no? She put her hands to her hips. “I’m not sure what you–” One big hand curled in her thick hair, and then he pulled her forward, his face tilting toward hers. He kissed her hard.
And…oh. She melted in that rough embrace, her legs becoming like putty. Her fingers curled into the thick fabric of his clothing as the kiss deepened, his tongue sweeping over her lips, coaxing them to part.
And when she did part them, his tongue thrusting into her mouth in a way that made her shiver deep in her body. She moaned in response to his kiss and felt her nipples harden against his chest.
God, this man knew how to kiss.
He tugged at her hair again, eventually pulling his mouth from hers, though she was reluctant to break the kiss, sucking on his lower lip.
“That’s what I thought,” he purred.
“Hmm?” she said dazedly.
“So, lass, who are ye?” He studied her for a minute. “Because ye’re not Rapunzel.”
“I’m not?” Hope’s eyes went wide in feigned ignorance. “You know a lot of women with cursed hair?”
“None but Rapunzel, but ye’re not her,” he repeated. “Because I’ve seen Rapunzel kiss her prince, and it was no’ like you kissed me.”
That poor woman had to kiss that guy? Ugh. “No?”
“No,” he said flatly. “And I doubt very much that Rapunzel even knew I was alive.” Oh. Poor Rapunzel. She was missing out on a visual treat. “She must have terrible taste in men, then.” A hint of a smile curved his mouth, before he fisted a hand in her hair. “Yet ye wear her face, and ye’re cursed like her. So tell me what is going on, and give me a reason not to kill ye.” Kill her? Hope slapped his hand away and glared. “Like I chose to be here? I’ll have you know I was dropped into this situation.”
He leaned back, eyeing her skeptically. “Were ye now?”
“Yes, I were,” she said, emphasizing the words. “I don’t expect you to believe me, but I was dropped here by my fairy godmother, thank you very much.”
“Fairies?” He snorted. “Children’s stories.”
She threw her hands up in the air. “I give up. Okay, fine. I hit my head on the chamberpot really hard and it scrambled my wits. Is that better?”
“That does no’ explain your kiss–”
“It scrambled my wits and turned me into a wild, shagging minx. Happy?” His gaze dipped to her face and his fingers stroked her cheek. “And did it turn ye into a wild, shagging minx?”
A hot flush crept through her body. “No one here to shag…except you.” Good God, was she flirting with this man? He’d threatened to kill her just a moment ago. Studying him, she realized that it was just a bluff. He’d no intention of killing her. If anything, he looked amused by her.
Puzzled, but amused. Like he couldn’t figure her out but wanted to.
And that was fine with her, because she wanted to know all about him, too. A twinge of guilt reminded her that Muffin had put her in this fairy tale and in the fairy tale, Rapunzel married the prince.
But…she’d worry about that later. Right now, she had a gorgeous man in front of her, with big, lickable, brawny arms, and a tanned, taut body. A divine face and thick hair. Great teeth.
And here she had a delicious, healthy body of her own and a rapidly rising libido.
And she wasn’t about to waste all this on the prince.
So…why not take what she wanted? Her hand flattened on his chest and she stared at it, at the broad expanse under her fingertips. And she slid her hand lower, to his waist, brushing over the fabric. The muscle underneath was flat. She bet he didn’t have an ounce of flab anywhere.
“What are ye doin’, woman?”
But she’d noticed his breath had quickened and he wasn’t exactly pulling away, was he? “I’m hitting on you,” she told him softly. “Are you interested?”
He said nothing.
A bold idea flashed through her mind and she dropped her hand lower, cupping him. He was erect already, hot and hard even through the fabric. “Looks like you’re interested.” Was that purring voice hers? How…delicious.
“Are ye seducing me, then?” His hands went to the shoulders of her dress and stroked down them, as if he were waiting for a signal to start touching her in better, more exciting places.
She gave a little shrug of her shoulders, enchanted by the thought. Her, a wanton seductress. How fun.
“We don’t have to tell anyone,” she said, and bit her lip. “Or are you turning me down?”
“I’d be a fool,” he said, his hand moving to tilt her chin up. He lowered his mouth towards hers, and whispered, “And I am no fool.”
And he kissed her hot, wet, and deep. She moaned in response. God, this man could kiss like a demon.
Her fingers curled tighter around his cock and she felt him jerk in response.
This was so wicked of her. What was she doing?
Who cared?
She was in someone else’s body–someone else’s very healthy body. She could do what she wanted, and right now, she really, really wanted to have sex.
Moreover, she wanted to have sex with this man. Why not take the car out for a test drive? Kick the tires a little? See what she could do?
Of course, they didn’t have condoms. At least, she was pretty sure there were no condoms around here.
Did it matter? Maybe she’d get Muffin to magic her some if she ever showed up again. For now, she’d take her chances.
Hope had a second chance at life and she was all about taking chances at the moment.
His kiss deepened and she felt him thrust into her hand, and her own thighs quivered in response. A little moan escaped her throat.
“Yer sweet,” he told her. His hand closed around her throat. “But how do I know this isn’t a trap?”
She stared up at him, ignoring the hand wrapped around her throat. It wasn’t tight, wasn’t menacing.
Just a warning. “You don’t,” she said honestly. “I’m trusting you, too. If you tell on me and say that I’m coming after you like a sex fiend, how do you think that’s going to look on me?” He considered this, staring down at her with suspicious eyes. “Ye’re asking me to make the prince a cuckold.”
“He can’t be cuckolded if we’re not married,” she pointed out. “And we are most definitely not married.” Her hand rubbed up and down his cock.
“Not a trap,” he repeated slowly.
“If you think this is just a trap, I wouldn’t be wet, would I?” Oh Lord have mercy, why was she saying such forward things? This wasn’t like her.
But she had his attention now–his gaze was riveted on her. Her hands went to her skirts and she began to pull them up. “If this was just a trap to get you into trouble then why not…test me?” He raised an eyebrow at her as if she were crazy.
Yeah, she was pretty sure she was crazy, too. But she was also having a lot of fun.
She raised an eyebrow back to him.
He moved forward, then, sliding a
hand to the front of her sex, and she gasped in shock at the sensation.
Oh, that had been more intense than she’d expected. The feel of his hand sliding there startled her.
And when his fingers parted her sex and slipped against her pussy, she whimpered.
“You’re wet, aye,” he rasped. “Very, very wet.”
“Does this mean we can be friends now?” she panted, trying not to squirm on his hand. She wanted to ride it, but forced herself to remain still.
“Lass,” he said slowly, a smile curving his mouth. “We’re gonna be a lot more than that.” His hand fisted in her long, silky hair and he tilted her head back, taking her mouth in another hot, slick kiss.
When she was dazed and clinging to him, he pulled away. “Ye sure you want this?” Oh God, did she ever. “Yes,” she breathed.
He leaned in to kiss her again.
“Wait,” Hope said, pressing her hands to his chest. “What’s your name?”
“Callum. My clan is Kincaide.”
“I’m Hope,” she said softly. “Not really Rapunzel. Just stuck in her body.” He gave her a suspicious look.
She waved a hand. “Never mind. Oversharing. Just kiss me again.”
“An’ where shall I kiss ye?” he said softly, and his hand went between her legs again. “Here?” Hope felt weak at the thought. “That sounds…awesome.”
He raised a brow at her words.
“Like a good idea,” she amended. Clearly she was going to have to be careful with what she said.
There was a difference between being Rapunzel and freaking the guy out, and she definitely didn’t want to freak him out.
She wanted to freak him.
“Then take o’ yer dress,” he whispered, kissing her mouth lightly again. “And I’ll kiss ye wherever ye like.”
Her eyes went wide and she clutched the neck of her dress close, thinking hard.
Strip down? Right now? In front of this stranger? He was delicious and sexy and inviting, but still a stranger. “You first.”
“Does that mean ye’ll kiss me wherever I like?” His eyes gleamed at the thought.
Oh…she rather liked that thought too. “Maybe,” she said, a hint of teasing in her voice. “If I like what I see.”