Chapter Nine

With Thalia so upset, I don”t leave for Stonehaven until the following morning. Even then, I”m anxious about leaving her side. She”s hiding something from me, something important. Whatever it is, it”s eating her alive.

That drives me fucking crazy. If she”d just tell me, I”d fix it for her. But I see the fear in her eyes when I bring it up. She shuts down whenever I push for information about her past or family.

They”re the key to whatever is eating at her.

I stop by Samson”s on the way to the castle, knowing I need help figuring it out.

He opens the door, blear-eyed and yawning.

”I need help.”

”Jesus, Troy. It”s too fucking early for whatever battle is brewing between you and your father today,” he groans, rubbing his temples.

It”s been a rough week. Every fucking time I come back, my father and I argue about something. I”ve been avoiding him the last few days. Ever since he informed me that he still hasn”t canceled the marriage contract. We nearly came to blows over that one.

He”s lucky he”s old and frail. If he weren”t, I probably would have wrapped my hand around his throat and shaken him like the bastard he is.

”It”s after ten, Sam.”

”Yes. That”s too fucking early.” He sighs dramatically, shoving the door open. ”Come in. It”s too goddamn bright out here.” He glares at the sun as if he expects it to turn down five notches.

”Late night?”

”Please don”t remind me.” He stomps across the room to the wet bar, rifling through until he finds the vodka. He holds it up toward me, silently asking if I want a glass. He shrugs and takes a swig straight from the bottle when I shake my head. ”Ah,” he breathes. ”That”s better.”

”You know you wouldn”t have to keep drinking all fucking day if you never started, right?” I ask, moderately amused.

He gives me the finger, flopping down on the couch. ”You know, I wouldn”t have to start if they”d find a fucking cure for hangovers, right?”

I chuckle, shaking my head.

”Did you know Darion Avila has twin daughters?” He cranes his head back, eyeing me over the back of his sofa. ”Clara and Zara.” His brows furrow. ”Or maybe Sara and Vera. I don”t fucking remember. It”s not relevant. The point is, he has two gorgeous daughters, and they”re little hellcats.” He groans, scrubbing a hand through his hair. ”They kept me up all fucking night. Vera—or maybe it is Zara—is an artist with her tongue.”

”Jesus Christ, Sam,” I mutter, my lip curling. ”I don”t want to hear this.”

”You”re the one banging on my door at ten in the morning,” he reminds me. ”Why are you here anyway? After what happened the other day, I figured you”d be back in your love nest with your wood nymph, ignoring your responsibilities while you let him stew.”

”She”s not a wood nymph,” I growl, glaring at him, which only makes him chuckle. ”And she”s the reason I”m here.”

”Oh, really?”

”I need help.”

”You said that when you got here.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose, striving for patience. He”s testing it today. Has he always been this infuriating? I”m not sure. He”s always been outrageous, but I think I have less patience for it now. The shit he says about the women he sleeps with—I can”t imagine ever saying any of that about Thalia.

”Sorry,” he says, holding up his hands in a gesture of surrender. ”I”ll stop pissing you off now. What”s up? What do you need?”

”She”s afraid of her father. I want to know who the fuck he is and what he did to her,” I growl.

”Okay, so…ask her.”

”She won”t tell me.”

His brows furrow. ”She won”t tell you? You”re a fucking prince. Command her.”

”We”re not in Stonehaven. I have no authority to command her.”

”You do if you”re doing it right,” he smirks.

I growl wordlessly.

He chuckles. ”Fine. If you can”t figure out the mechanics of that one, bring her back here and then command her to tell you what you want to know. Problem solved.”

”She won”t come.” I pace in a restless circle, thrusting my hand through my hair. ”She”s hiding something from me.”

”Interesting,” he murmurs.

I cut a dark look in his direction. ”This is serious, Samson.”

”I can see that.” He cocks his head to the side, studying me. ”I”ve never seen you like this before. You”re actually worried about her.”

My heart pounds a frenetic beat. ”Yes,” I rasp. ”I”m…Christ.” I exhale a breath, admitting the truth out loud. ”I”m in love with her.”

”Jesus Christ.”

”That”s the other reason I”m here today,” I say. ”I intend to tell my father that I”ve met someone and I”m marrying her. He can marry the princess if he wants to follow through on this contract. I”ll abdicate before I do it.”

Sam”s bloodshot green eyes widen in shock. ”You”re serious.”

I nod, meeting his gaze. ”As a fucking heart attack. I”m not marrying his pawn of a princess.”

That was never an option. But I”ve had a week to consider this from every angle. I”ve thought through every possible scenario. This is the best option. If he forces my hand, I”ll abdicate. I don”t need the throne. I don”t need the kingdom. I have my own money—the inheritance my mother left me and what I”ve amassed from my own ventures. I”m more than capable of taking care of Thalia.

He can say whatever he wants and do what he wants. He won”t win. I”ll exile myself to Fable Forest or some other kingdom if that”s what I have to do.

Whatever it takes.

”Jesus, Troy,” Sam whispers, clearly shaken. ”If you abdicate, the entire kingdom will fall into chaos. You know he”s in no condition to rule.”

”I”m aware.” I shrug. ”But I won”t be his pawn. I won”t play his game. If he insists on following through on this, it”ll be his problem to solve, not mine. I”ve been cleaning up his messes long enough. I”m done.”

Samson eyes me, more serious than he”s ever been. ”Give me a week,” he says after a moment. ”One week before you tell him.”

”Why? If he won”t listen to me, he won”t listen to you.”

”Perhaps.” Samson shrugs, scrubbing a hand down his face. ”But fucking hell, Troy, you”re talking about leaving the kingdom with no heir. You”ve got to let me at least try to make him see reason. Besides, if she”s hiding something from you, don”t you think you should know what it is before you throw the kingdom into chaos to marry her?”

I hesitate for a long moment, not because I think anything he might find would change my mind about her—there”s nothing capable of that. I don”t care who she is. I don”t care what he discovers. She”s mine, and that won”t change.

I hesitate because I”m unsure whether I want to give him or my father another week. That”s seven more days for something to go wrong, seven more days for her father to continue believing he has the right to try to force her into a marriage she doesn”t want. I don”t like it.

”Please,” Samson says softly. ”One week, Troy.”

”Fuck. Fine,” I growl, giving in only because he”s the one asking. ”One week.”

”Thalia,” I whisper late that night, running my hand down her side when I slip into the bed with her. ”Are you awake?”

”No.”

I grin, pressing my lips to the back of her neck. ”Hmm. Really?” I walk my fingers across her hip, heading toward her pussy. ”Are you sure?”

She doesn”t say anything.

My cock stirs, stiffening. I know what she wants. My curvy little angel wants to play.

I flip her onto her back, chuckling at how she lets her body loll as if dead asleep.

Every time I have to go back to Stonehaven, we end up right here—with her pretending she”s asleep while I fuck her. Sometimes I start while she”s still sleeping, fucking her awake.

She loves it. The moment she comes awake, her body clamps around me. It”s the only sign she gives me. Otherwise, she stays completely still, her eyes closed, her body lax.

It”s a fucked-up game we play, but goddamn, we love it.

”I guess if you”re asleep, I”ll just take what I want from this perfect little body,” I growl, leaning down to wrap my lips around her nipple. I suck hard, slipping my hand between her legs.

She”s already wet. Soaked.

She parts her thighs ever so slightly, giving me room. Telling me yes.

”You just stay right there,” I croon, thrusting two fingers inside her. ”You can sleep through it. I don”t need you awake for what I want.”

I kiss my way down her body, obsessed with the taste of her skin and the smell of her arousal. Her scent drives me fucking wild. I slip between her legs, teasing her clit with my tongue as she fights to keep up the charade, to stay perfectly still.

I pull it into my mouth, curling my fingers up to stroke her G-spot.

Her hips buck slightly against my face.

I smile against her pussy.

”Naughty, naughty, Thalia,” I croon as I lap up her juices, my fingers thrusting in and out of her. ”You”re not supposed to move, remember?”

The taste of her is enough to drive me mad. No matter how many times I eat her, it”s never enough.

Her pussy clenches around my fingers, her body betraying the pretense she”s struggling to maintain.

”I can”t…” She breathes, lost in pleasure.

”Can”t what, angel?” I ask, not showing her any mercy. I know how close she is. I feel it.

She gasps but doesn”t answer. A bead of sweat trickles down her forehead, her creamy thighs shaking as she fights to suppress a moan.

Oh, this is too fucking delicious.

I replace my fingers with my tongue, thrusting it into her little fuckhole. Her hands ball into fists, her teeth sinking into her bottom lip.

She can”t keep quiet any longer. A soft whimper slips past her lips, the sound going straight to my cock.

Without another word, I crawl up her body. Hooking one of her legs over my hip, I line myself up at her entrance.

Another little whimper slips past her lips.

I thrust hard, wrapping my hand around her throat and squeezing at the same time.

She shatters like glass, coming all over my cock.

”Goddamn,” I growl, pounding into her as she grips me like a vise, every ripple sending lava through my veins. ”Your sweet cunt has betrayed you, angel. It”s wide awake and begging me to keep fucking it.”

I drive into her harder, raw pleasure ripping through me. Her moans fill the room, delicious and intoxicating.

”Open those eyes for me, Thalia,” I command. I need to see her—need to see those startling blue eyes filled with lust and devotion for me. Only for me.

She obeys with a gasp.

And fuck, what a view. The way her pupils dilate as they meet mine sends a pulse of possessiveness coursing through my veins.

”That”s it,” I breathe. ”Such a good girl for me.”

I claim her lips in a searing kiss, swallowing her sounds as I set a punishing rhythm, fucking her without mercy or restraint.

She claws at my back, her body arching up to meet each thrust, taking everything I give and demanding more. Pain and pleasure meld together, driving me toward the brink.

”Don”t you dare close them,” I growl against her neck when she attempts to shut her eyes again. ”This isn”t a dream, angel. You”re wide awake now.”

She whimpers, looking up at me with wide-eyed innocence, her face flushed, my name on her lips. It”s a sight that drives me fucking insane.

”I”m… I”m…”

”Beg for your orgasm,” I demand, loving the way she blushes at my words, so eager to please me. So obedient.

Does she have any idea that I”d crawl through hell for her? Rip my own heart out of my chest if that”s what she demanded?

I”m hers every bit as much as she”s mine.

”Troy… Please… I need to… Please…” The words tumble out of her in desperate gasps.

It”s all the encouragement I need. I slip my hand between us, grinding my thumb against her clit while I fuck her like a madman, driving into her in ruthless strikes that has my name breaking from her lips again and again.

Her pussy clamps down on me, her body bowing off the bed.

She shouts my name as she detonates this time, her inner muscles clenching so hard it”s like she”s trying to snatch my fucking soul from my body.

I give it to her—willingly. Eagerly.

I bury my face in her throat, groaning as I tumble over the edge with her, so fucking in love, she”s the only thing I see.