Another growl rumbled through his stomach. With one arm extended to steady himself, he rose from the bed and shuffled past the room divider to the main living space.
Still no one, yet, a plate of brown-crusted bread that had lost all signs of freshness lay on a table. Probably hard as a rock. A note lay with it.
Eat this. I’m told it will clear you of any of the virus still lingering and refuel your energy. Not sure how fresh it is, but you’re going to need it as my aide.
Get well,
Prince Deion
Heat flared in Deion’s cheeks and ears. What had Cyrus done? He recognized his friend’s handwriting, but why would he pretend to be the prince? Deion had only asked him to take his place at the ceremony, not to actually be him.
He sprinted toward the door. Ears ringing, he braced a fist on the wall as his surroundings turned black. No matter the confusion Cyrus had possibly caused, he wasn’t ready to confront his friend.
Gaining his bearings again, Deion sat at the table. He ripped off a tiny piece of bread and popped it into his mouth. Best for him to gain some energy before demanding answers. Bite by hard bite, the queasiness in his stomach abated, and when he stood, he did so without his mind spinning like engine blades. Time to set everyone straight and meet his future wife.
Stripping from his sour-smelling Earth clothes, Deion changed into one of the tight full-body suits set aside for him to wear. While the nylon-like material cupped him all over, it allowed him a wider range of movement than he’d expected. Lighter than the scuba suits used when studying marine life after the last war, the outfit even whisked away the moisture on his skin from his fever.
He charged out of the room but paused in the hall, trying to remember his way up to the main floor. No one had told him the people of Minjet built their homes into the sides of hills or on cliff faces, with the majority of the structure underground, but he did remember that much from his fevered trek to his quarters earlier in the day. From such an advanced race, he’d expected flying vehicles, skyscrapers far and wide—the future Earth should have had. Perhaps their technology had been his planet’s downfall. The people of Minjet had used renewable resources—wind, solar, and geothermal—rather than the coal and gas that caused pollution. A situation he could change upon his return to Earth, but first, he had to set the record straight about who the real prince was. He could only hope Cyrus had written the note as a joke and had not in fact introduced himself as the prince who would marry Ro’sa.
Arriving at a set of large steel double doors, Deion assumed it was the elevator and pressed his thumb to a sensor pad to the side. Would he even be on file? The doors skimmed open and he stepped inside, but there were no buttons for him to push to indicate where he wanted to go. As the doors closed, his heart beat faster. Had he entered some kind of storage closet instead? A prisoner containment unit?
The lights flickered overhead, and the unit jerked upward. Gravity weighed on his shoulders. Then the giant box stopped. The doors remained closed. Had he trapped himself inside?
With slow steps, he moved back to the wall then slithered to the floor. Somehow, he had to get out.
The unit jerked once more. Sideways this time, taking him into the unknown. When it stopped, the doors finally did open, and Deion stumbled out into a long hallway. Never would he set foot in one of those contraptions again. He’d thought his stomach had settled, but with the shifting happening in his midsection, he wasn’t so sure. Stairs for the rest of the week.
A roar of laughter echoed from down the hall. Deion straightened his posture and headed toward the giant wooden doors in that direction. Perhaps he’d found the banquet hall. He peeked inside. Had Cyrus claimed to be prince?
Before he could spot his friend, a slender figure dressed in a skin-hugging white dress and a sparkling tiara bustled toward him. A princess—but was she his princess? Bright-red hair contrasted with her emerald-green skin, yet, at the flare of her nostrils and intense stare he stumbled a few steps back. If it was Ro’sa, had his absence caused her to be angry enough to breathe fire? Shoving the door the rest of the way open, she brushed past him without a glance.
He gulped and, taking a chance, spun in her direction. “Princess Ro’sa? Are you okay?”
She turned toward him, her eyes like plazer beams, searching him out and ready to kill. “No, I’m not okay. If you must know….” She pointed toward the room she’d just left. “I hate that guy. My parents could not have picked a worse man as my betrothed.”
A heavy stone fell in the pit of his stomach. “Cyrus? What did he do?”
“No, Prince Deion.” She seethed the words through her teeth. “Besides drinking himself to extreme intoxication, he hasn’t paid any attention to me since our introduction, preferring to flirt with and fondle the servers instead. He’s not behaving at all like a prince, and I refuse to marry him. You can take him back to Earth right now, for all I care.” She stuck her chin in the air and marched away.
Rage closed in on him as he scrambled to understand exactly what his friend had done. Cyrus in had royally fucked up his life.
Instead of confronting his so-called friend, Deion chased after Ro’sa. In a drunken stupor, Cyrus wouldn’t fathom the consequences of what he’d done anyway. Best to fix what he could rather than waste his words trying to deal with what he couldn’t.
Deion darted and weaved along corridors after the princess, finally bursting out of the castle into the pink glow of the setting sun. With no time to enjoy the beauty, he darted past bushes whose thistles scratched their signature into his calves and gigantic leaves that smacked him in the face. Though he heard pounding footfalls ahead of him, he couldn’t catch sight of Ro’sa. Perhaps she’d dodged him, and he followed some kind of beast instead.
He halted at the sudden crash and splash of water ahead. On Earth, it would herald a waterfall, but he had no idea what he might discover on Minjet.
With each cautious step forward, he glanced around and listened for any sounds, but all he could hear were his own guarded footfalls. Deion moved into a clearing, thankful to be out of the savage vegetation. A body of moving water reflected the rosy color of the disappearing sun before plunging over the edge of a steep cliff. A twenty-foot drop, at least. On the bank of the river, stood the woman he’d chased after. She wore nothing but bikini panties and a bra, her dress folded neatly on the rock beside her with her tiara on top. Toes over the edge of the rocks, she glanced down.
“Ro’sa, no!” He couldn’t let her jump, not when she didn’t know the truth. “Please, let’s talk.”
“You shouldn’t have followed me. I came here to be alone.”
“But there’s something you should know.”
“All I know is that I just witnessed my future husband making out with someone else.” She sniffed and wiped her cheek. “He had his hand down another woman’s top, cupping her breast. He was supposed to do that with me, not other people.”
Inching closer so as not to scare her into jumping, he reached out to her. “It’s all a mistake.”
“Yes, it was a mistake for my parents to agree to this betrothal in the first place. I saved myself for him, but I doubt he did the same for me.”
“Yes, Ro’sa, he did. I mean—”
She jumped before he could tell her the truth. He lunged to grab her, but his fingertips connected with empty air. His heart leaped into his throat as she plummeted toward the swirling water below. He’d never forgive himself for allowing his friend to get away with playing prince.
Without giving his fear a chance to stop him, he leapt off the edge. If he couldn’t save her up top, he’d grab her from the water before she drowned.
He sliced through the depths until his body’s buoyancy stopped his plunge. Stroking toward the surface, he sucked in a huge gulp of air, spluttering.
To his left, Ro’sa thrashed in the water before sinking under. Diving in her direction, Deion wrapped an arm around her waist and drew her to him. Though he didn’t mind ha
ving her so close, he couldn’t enjoy their proximity until he had her safely on land. Maybe he’d yell at her, too, for making such a rash decision.
He dragged her up the bank and laid her on the crystal-like sand, panic still clenching his chest. He tilted her chin up and leaned close to listen for her breath.
No brush of air against his cheek. No rise and fall of her ample chest, her breasts perfectly round, though puckered at the peaks. Fuck, even with the urgent situation, his hormones leapt into overdrive.
He fitted his mouth to hers and blew. Three quick chest pumps while resisting the temptation to touch more of her soft emerald skin. He leaned toward her again and caught a giggle before Ro’sa wrapped her arms around him. Her breath passed across his lips, shoving away his worry and igniting flames of desire. “Do you want me?”
Why, the little tease! “You didn’t drown at all.”
Her lips curved into a sultry smile he took as her answer.
Didn’t matter. He stared into her eyes, captivated by their warmth. If not for the grit of sand under his fingernails, he would have sworn he was dreaming, playing out one of the many fantasies he’d had of his first time with the princess. “Yes, I want you.”
She drew him closer and kissed him, her lips like velvet against his. Synapses fired from head to toe, and he was numb to all but the passion of their kiss.
He straddled her waist. Oh, what it would be like to make love to her on the shore. Tracing her swollen lips with his tongue, he sought entry, and she granted it, tilting her head slightly. He’d known nothing of women until now, only what he’d heard from Cyrus, but he refused to trust that man’s advice ever again. He would let Ro’sa control what happened between them. Splaying his palm across the soft skin of her stomach, he stifled a groan, his cock straining against his wet pants. She was total femininity, yet exuded an aura of danger. Why else would she think nothing of jumping from a cliff?
His pulse spiked, the cool breeze doing nothing to lessen the raging fire inside. She nuzzled into his neck, her heated lips heightening his arousal. For some reason, she knew what set him off, as if she already understood his body inside and out.
Deion gripped her shoulders, grinding against her. The woman he was meant to be with. Finally, he had his betrothed in his arms. Princess Ro’sa was his. He cupped her heaving breasts, yearning for a taste. The hunger in her eyes sent his lust into overdrive. He couldn’t concentrate on anything but his longing. Taking her like this was completely out of character for him, but he craved completion, yearned to take everything she offered.
He nudged her thighs apart, reaching between her legs, inhaling the musky scent of her desire. Her erotic growl urged him on, her body so responsive. Brushing Ro’sa’s underwear aside, he ran a finger between her slick folds. How he wished to be buried deep inside her. All his life had led up to this moment. With his arms around the princess, his most precious treasure. His one and only, yet she didn’t know he was the real prince.
Jerking away, Deion struggled to catch his breath. This wasn’t him, taking a woman under false pretenses. He had to tell her right away.
Ro’sa scrambled from underneath him, her cheeks flushed. Standing, she adjusted her clothing and wiped the sand from her skin. “I’m sorry. That should have never happened.” With a lopsided smile, she spun on her heel and bolted.
He sped after her. “Ro’sa, wait! I’m not who you think I am.”
“Please don’t tell my father,” she called, not giving him a chance to explain.
He scrambled to follow, but she knew the woods better than he did. By the time he reached the castle grounds, darkness had fallen. If not for the solar-powered lanterns along the path, he never would have found his way. Ro’sa had left him behind to fend for himself.
Yet, she had kissed him. Faked jumping to her death and drowning merely to tease and tempt him. He still ached from the passion in her kiss, the way her luscious body reacted to his touch. All the while, she believed him to be someone else.
He had to set her straight. In the morning, when Cyrus could corroborate his story, he would tell her, and then he’d locate a quiet place with Ro’sa and continue what they’d started.
Chapter Three
Ro’sa bounced from one foot to the other, waiting for Ka’lyn to answer the door. Her friend’s feline, a gift from Earth, rubbed alongside her legs, purring and demanding attention. She leaned down to pet the furry creature. “Where is your owner? She told me she’d be home today.”
A lock clicked open. Ka’lyn opened the door a crack, enough to peek out and for her feline to sneak in. “Hey, I didn’t think I’d see you today.”
“I kissed him!” Ro’sa couldn’t contain the news any longer. Needing to tell someone, she’d barely slept all night. That and fighting the urge to sneak from her quarters for another private meeting with the man she’d almost let take her virginity. She wanted to see what other sensations he could make her feel without giving him everything.
“Who? The prince?” Her friend opened the door a bit more, revealing her mussed hair and disheveled clothing. Her husband came from behind and wrapped his arms around her.
Ro’sa’s cheeks heated. “I... I’m sorry, I’ll come back later.”
“No, tell me who you kissed,” Ka’lyn said.
“That’s my cue to leave.” Ry’der kissed the top of her head and squeezed past Ro’sa. “I hope it was a good one, Princess.”
She nodded absently. “I wouldn’t have come over if I’d have known. I’m really sorry I interrupted—”
Ka’lyn ushered her inside to sit on the couch. “No interrupting. We’d already done the deed and were cuddling after.”
“Ew, I didn’t need to know that.”
Her friend giggled from the kitchen, dispensing food into her feline’s dish. “So, how was your first kiss with the prince?”
“I didn’t kiss the prince.” And she wouldn’t ever, if she could get away with it. She’d probably catch something from him with how willing he was to kiss anyone.
Ka’lyn poured two tumblers of molem juice then joined her in the lounging room. “What do you mean? Who did you kiss?”
“His aide.” Ro’sa covered her mouth. Why had she believed that a good idea? Kissing the aide wouldn’t stop her marriage to the prince, only get her in trouble with her father, and if he learned what else she’d let Cyrus to do her, she’d be locked up forever.
“Whoa, the guy with the sultry lips?” Ka’lyn leaned toward her. “What was it like? No, wait. What about the prince? Tell me the whole story, every last juicy bit.”
“There’s not much to say about the prince.” Ro’sa sipped at her drink. “He’s a puckhead. After we were formally introduced, he sat at the opposite end of the table and didn’t speak another word to me. But he had plenty to whisper to the servers he coerced to sit on his lap. Kay, he was feeling them up in front of me. Wouldn’t surprise me if he had several of them in his quarters last night, too.”
“What a canine! What did your parents say?”
“Absolutely nothing.” She crossed her arms with a sigh. “You know how Dad is when he’s been drinking. He took my mom to the dance floor and spun her around without worrying about anyone else. Shortly after they left, I did, too.”
“And where did the other guy come in? Did he chase after you?”
“Not exactly.” Ro’sa petted the feline who’d curled up on her lap. “He wasn’t at the ceremony. The prince said he was sick right before they landed and needed to rest. His name’s Cyrus. Anyway, when I ran out of the banquet hall, he was there.”
Ka’lyn slammed her cup on the side table. “And you kissed him to make the prince jealous.”
“No, I didn’t kiss him then.” Though the thought had crossed her mind. “I ran out of the castle and to the falls. He followed me all the way.”
“Why?”
“Starsnatchers if I know. I just wanted to be alone. When I saw him, I panicked and dove into the water but didn’t expe
ct him to follow me in.”
Ka’lyn’s eyebrows lifted so high on her forehead, Ro’sa expected them to disappear into her hairline. “Oh stars, he drowned and you had to resuscitate him.”
“More like the other way around.”
Her friend scowled. “But you’re an excellent swimmer.”
Ro’sa smirked. “And a great faker, too, apparently. I’m not sure what he thought, but he tried to save me, and I played along.”
Ka’lyn giggled and shook her head. “Now who’s the canine?”
“Hey, Prince Deion started it.” She refused to overlook his actions because they weren’t yet married. If he did that in front of her when they weren’t married, he might do worse behind her back after they exchanged vows. Nothing wrong with having a little fun, gaining some experience first.
“So, what was it like?”
“Amazing.” She moved the feline from her lap to the cushion beside her. “Better than I imagined for my first kiss. He embraced me and it seemed like we were floating. Went even further, too. I thought we were going to do the deed, as I’d fantasized, but when he drew away, I realized the mistake I’d made.”
“Mistake? You think so?”
Ro’sa raised her hands. “I know what you’re thinking, but my dad worked hard for this alliance. I can’t go around getting frisky with every sultry-lipped guy.”
“No, but you can’t marry a guy who’s not going to be faithful. I don’t care where he’s from.” Ka’lyn crossed her arms. “I know what your father wants from this union, but as your friend, I want you to be happy.”
Ro’sa leaned back and sighed. “I know, but I have no idea how to get out of the betrothal.”
“Get caught with the sexy Cyrus.” Ka’lyn pursed her lips. “Where is he now?”
“Out with my father. He took Cyrus and Prince Deion to the harbor for some fishing. I saw them depart on my monitor. Though, he seemed to be arguing with the prince about something.”
The Star Princess (Beyond Fairytales) Page 2