Chapter Five

Iwake with a start, reaching for Thalia as my cock throbs, need churning through me.

I find only cold sheets and an empty bed.

A sharp lance of panic pierces through me, the sickening churn in my stomach telling me the worst has happened. While I slept like the dead, at peace for once in my life, my sweet little Thalia ran from me. I pushed her too far, asked for too much, too soon.

No. Fuck no.

My feet hit the floor, my heart thundering like a ferocious storm as I charge across the room, a growl rumbling in my throat. I”ll find her and bring her back. She”s mine. She can”t leave. She promised.

I stumble into the main room, my mind reeling with devastation, only to come to a dead stop at the sight before me.

Thalia.

”Good morning.” She peeks up at me through her lashes, a sweet smile dancing on her lips as she stands in the kitchen. Sunlight streams through the window, crowning her in a halo.

My cock jerks at the sight of her in nothing but my shirt. It swallows her, hitting her at the knees, hinting at the lush curves and ripe softness beneath. Her hair is wild around her face, her lips still bruised from my kisses.

Seeing her like this is an intimacy that grips me tighter than any shackle. I fucking love it. Christ. I”m not supposed to feel this way. She”s supposed to be mine, not the other way around.

So why does it feel more and more like I”m becoming hers? Every fucking second since I discovered her in my bed, I feel like I”m falling under her spell, like she”s bewitching me.

There”s something about her that calls to some primal, primordial part of me. I felt it before I ever told her she was mine last night. Whatever is happening between us—it”s not natural, I know that much. This is magic, potent and raw. Powerful.

I should hate it. I should resent the hell out of it. I”m supposed to be the master of my fate, the one who controls my destiny. But I don”t.

And for the first time in my life, I don”t care.

If she”s my destiny, I”ll gladly bow to fate.

Already, she”s become something vital. Something precious. That matters more than control. I think it might matter more than anything.

”I hope you don”t mind,” she continues sweetly, gesturing to the assortment of food spread across the table. There isn”t much—only what she was able to find in the cabinets. Deer jerky, canned fruit, trail mix, a few crackers, and cheese spread. ”I used what I could find to make us something to eat.”

”Mind?” I stride over, claiming her lips with a hunger that borders on desperation. The kiss is hard, demanding, a silent declaration of everything she”s stirring within me. It”s a complicated tangle of light and dark, of want and need. I want to worship and devour her in turns. ”Never.”

Her soft gasp is my undoing.

I pull her down onto my lap at the table, slipping my hands beneath the thin t-shirt. She trembles in my arms as I explore her body, groaning. She”s so fucking soft, so sweet.

I reach for a bite of peach, holding it out to her.

My cock twitches as her lips close around them, her eyes locked on mine. She draws back, pulling the fruit into her mouth. The mischief in her eyes tells me she knows precisely what she”s doing.

”Thalia,” I warn, my voice strained. ”You”re playing with fire.”

”Maybe I need to be warmed up, Troy,” she counters, her sapphire eyes filled with challenge.

I can”t help but chuckle, despite the battle raging within me. ”You have no idea what you”re getting into, sweet Thalia.”

I scoop up another piece of fruit.

When she leans forward to take it, she brushes her round ass against my cock. Judging by the way she squirms just so, it”s absolutely intentional.

As soon as she swallows the peach, I wrap my hand around her throat, pressing my lips to her ear. ”Keep teasing me, and you”ll be choking on my cock for breakfast while I eat every bit of this off your perfect fucking body, Thalia.”

”Prove it,” she dares.

Jesus. She”s a temptress, naughty and defiant.

”Behave,” I say, chuckling as I press a kiss to her throat. ”And I”ll give you exactly what you”re begging for when I get back.”

”Get back?” Her gaze flies to mine. ”You”re leaving?” Her disappointment trembles on her lips, making me wish like hell I could stay right here, but I can”t. Living off canned fruit and dried meat was acceptable for me. It isn”t for her.

She needs food—real food. She also needs clothes. The dirty dress on the bedroom floor won”t last her forever.

She”s mine now. Mine to fuck, mine to protect, mine to provide for.

”We need provisions,” I say, nuzzling into her neck, inhaling her scent. ”I”ll be back as soon as I get what we need.”

”Promise?” The vulnerability in her eyes strikes a chord deep within me—a protectiveness I”ve never known before now.

Until her, no one mattered. I”ve been in charge of Stonehaven for years, providing for the comfort and safety of the people who live there, but those things didn”t really matter to me. They were obligations, something I was expected to do. This is different. She”s different.

For the first time, I want to be responsible for someone else. Her wants, her needs, her comfort and security matter. Not because they must, not because it”s required, but because when she closes her eyes at night, I don”t want her to have a single fucking worry.

What is she doing to me?

”I promise, sweet Thalia.” And I mean it. Because leaving her side feels like tearing out a part of my soul—one I didn”t even know existed until she came into my life.

Instead of going directly to Stonehaven, I drive into the town of Fable Forest. Everyone here knows who I am, but if anyone wonders why I”m buying women”s clothing, they don”t dare ask. I feel their stares, though. I hear their whispers following me.

Fuck.

How long until my father hears about this? Until he knows about Thalia?

The thought grinds in my chest, sending anxiety clawing through me.

Instead of heading back to the cabin, I turn the SUV toward Stonehaven. I avoid the castle and anyone connected to it, instead pulling up outside of Samson”. The sun is a bright ball directly overhead. I”ve already taken far longer for this errand than I intended.

The door swings open before I can rap against the wood a second time.

Samson”s green eyes meet mine, surprise flickering across his face. ”Jesus. Did you burn the cabin down already?”

”I only left to pick up provisions.” I brush past him into the living room. My boots thud heavily on the floor, each step echoing my racing heart.

His place is a palace of opulence, with rich leather sofas, gleaming hardwood floors, and modern art adorning the walls. It”s a bachelor”s dream, a place where luxury is the norm and extravagance is celebrated.

”Provisions?” Sam chuckles, pulling the door closed behind him. ”It”s a hunting cabin, Troy. It says right there in the name what you”re supposed to do to provide for yourself.”

I pace in circles, anxiety still clawing at me. Do I tell him? Do I keep my secret? I trust him with my life, but I”ve never had a secret worth keeping before now. I”ve never had one so fucking dangerous. If my father thinks Thalia may interfere with his plans for my future, he may very well tear the kingdom apart searching for her.

”I found a girl in my bed in the cabin,” I blurt, knowing I may need Samson”s help. I may not have a choice. If my father comes for her—if he tries to take her…

Jesus.

We”ve been at odds for years, but I”ll wage all-out war if he tries.

Sam”s laugh erupts, crude and unfiltered. ”What, did some woodland nymph decide to grace your bed?” he teases. ”I hope you”re putting her to good use, Troy. God knows, you need the distraction.”

”Don”t,” I snarl, spinning to face him as fury rises hot and fast. He won”t talk about Thalia that way. No one will.

He blinks, taken aback. ”Wait. You”re serious, aren”t you? You really found a girl in your bed?”

”Serious as a heart attack,” I admit, pacing like a caged lion. ”I want her, Sam. I… Fuck. I told her that she”s mine now.”

”Yours?” He leans back against the wall, head cocked to the side as he studies me. ”What do you mean she”s yours?”

I hit him with a hard glare. ”What do you think I mean? She”s mine. My prize. My… Christ.” I rake a hand through my hair, tugging gently. ”My captive. Mine to have.”

”Ah,” he finally says after a moment, amusement glinting in the depths of his eyes. ”I see.”

Does he? Can he?

I”m not so sure. Life is a joke to Samson. No responsibilities, no obligations. He fucks who he wants to fuck and moves along. It means nothing to him.

This isn”t like that. Thalia means something. At this point, I”m pretty sure she means everything. And I”m fucking worried that the darkness clawing at me is too much. I”m not a gentle man. I haven”t been gentle with her. I”ve been demanding and crude, taking what I want. Saying what I want. Giving her every single part of me.

And God help me, I don”t want to stop.

But I”m betrothed to another woman, for God”s sake. I have no intention of following through on that marriage. But the contract still exists. Until it”s dissolved, I can”t give Thalia everything she deserves. I can”t marry her.

Do I let myself keep falling deeper under her spell knowing that? Do I let her have all of me—every dark, jagged piece—when I can”t give her my name? Or am I a fucking monster for taking what I want knowing that I”m still bound by my father”s machinations?

”You aren”t wed yet,” Samson says quietly. ”If you want the girl, take her, Troy. Maybe she”s there for a reason. Maybe she”s the clarity you were seeking.”

His words aren”t the absolution or condemnation I thought I needed. But they steady me, grounding me in reality and sending fire coursing through my veins.

He”s right. She is there for a reason. I feel it in my fucking soul.

This thing between Thalia and me isn”t wrong, not to me. It”s too fucking right.

The plans my father made for my future are his goddamn plans, not mine. Thalia is my plan. One way or another, she”s my future.

***

By the time I make it back to the cabin, it”s late afternoon. Thalia isn”t in the main room. I shove the important shit into the fridge and drop the remainder of the groceries on the kitchen counter, eager to set eyes on my curvy little temptress.

I push open the door to the bedroom, my chest tight with a mix of anticipation and something darker, needier. The sight that greets me stills every frantic thought.

She”s sprawled on the bed, her chest rising and falling in the quiet rhythm of sleep. The sheet has slipped, exposing one perfect breast. Her long blonde hair fans out like a golden halo against the pillow, her full lips slightly parted.

Memories of her sobbed confession flood back, stirring the beast within me. Did she mean it when she said she wishes I had woken her with my dick in her mouth?

I”ve been worried about pushing her too far…but what if I”m not pushing her far enough? She”d been so eager, so obedient, offering herself up without reservation. She wants to be pushed. She wants to be played with.

She likes the dark.

I strip silently, letting my clothes fall to the floor as I watch her sleep. My muscles tense as I move toward her, a predator closing in on his precious prey.

The mattress dips under my weight as I crawl onto the bed with her, pulling the sheet from her, but she doesn”t stir. My eyes rake over her curvy body. It”s quickly become my obsession, an ache that won”t dull.

She”s so fucking beautiful.

I position myself above her, my dick hard, throbbing with the urge to claim every inch of what”s spread beneath me.

”Thalia,” I breathe, reaching out to circle her nipple with my fingertip. I slide between her legs, pressing against her, feeling the slick heat of her pussy against my cock.

Her body responds even in her sleep, or perhaps it”s feigned, a game that stokes the fire coursing through my veins.

A low moan whispers from her lips, and I know. She”s awake, aware of what I”m doing to her, yet she keeps her eyes closed, allowing me this moment, surrendering to twisted desire coursing through me. Her trust is a heady thing. Her submission coaxes the beast closer to the surface.

I spread her pussy lips apart, pressing the head of my cock against her clit. And then I push her lips together around the sides of my dick. They”re so wet, so warm.

”Good girl,” I murmur, rocking against her, each movement designed to tease, to see just how still she can be for me. My lips find her neck, tasting the salt on her skin, moving lower to capture a nipple between my teeth, drawing out her pleasure as much as mine.

She shifts subtly beneath me, her body awakening fully to my touch. Yet still, she plays her part, the sleeping beauty lost in dreams while I take what I want from her delectable body.

”You can”t stop me, Thalia,” I whisper softly, my voice rough with desire. ”Let me feel how much you love knowing I”m going to take what I want from you.”

She does, arousal dripping from her little hole to soak my cock, dragging me closer to oblivion.

Fuck, she”s perfect. We”re perfect together, a wicked prince and his not-so-innocent captive, bound by desires darker than the night sky.

In this moment, we are everything.

I thrust against her, the head of my cock grinding against her clit with every shift of my hips. The friction builds an inferno inside of me. She”s drenched, her arousal coating us both as I thrust harder, faster, claiming what she”s so willingly offering.

”Thalia,” I growl, pressing my lips to her ear to make sure she hears me. ”You belong to me. Every perfect fucking inch of you is mine.”

My words send her over the edge. She shudders beneath me, pleasure wracking her perfect body. Her pussy grows wetter as she writhes against me. Her movements, the flood of arousal dripping from her, the sweet way she whimpers—everything about her works together, sending me catapulting over the edge with her.

I bury my face in her throat, groaning as I make a mess all over her pretty little pussy. The sight of my cum right there sends possessiveness churning through me.

My fingers are slick with her juices and my cum as I press them into her, ensuring every drop I spilled goes inside her tight cunt where it belongs. It”s a primal act, me marking my territory.

Her eyes flutter open, heavy with sleep and satisfaction as she watches me do it, her eyes locked on my face. When I”m finished, she hits me with a smile that”s pure sunshine, pure bliss.

I respond instinctively, crashing my mouth down on hers in a kiss that”s all-consuming. I want to devour her, leave my taste behind so I”m on her lips years into the future.

”Oh, sweet Thalia. I”m going to have so much fun with you,” I breath, my voice a low rumble. My cock throbs at the thought of all the ways I”m going to torment her with pleasure, pushing her to the very brink of ecstasy and then beyond.

Her arms wind around my neck, drawing me closer. ”I missed you,” she murmurs against my lips.

It feels like it”s been lightyears since anyone or anything has pierced the walls I erected around my heart when my mother died. But those three words do it with ease. She slips into place there, claiming entire sections of it.

This mysterious, curvy little goddess isn”t simply a prize to be claimed. She”s becoming the axis on which my world spins.

For a long moment, I say nothing, simply holding her, overwhelmed. Terrified.

Then, in a hushed whisper, I admit the truth, ”I missed you too.”