Chapter 29

29

Thala

"We've done it now, Princess."

Hank had me up against the wall. My skirt shoved above my waist.

His mouth crushed my lips while his hand dove inside my panties. I knew what he'd find.

He tore his mouth away. "Damn, you're soaking wet, baby."

I dragged his face back to mine and kissed him. Hooked one of my stilettoed legs over his hip and urged him closer. My mind raced as I replayed our exit from the club. Hank surprised me. The SUV was waiting for us, but he must have already told the driver the plan. He led me to the passenger side, not the second row. Then he rounded the vehicle, the driver stepped out, and Hank slid into the driver's seat.

We sped away amidst the flash of cameras. There was a no-chase paparazzi law in the country, so no one hounded us on our way back to the castle. Hank and I hurried to my apartments. We slammed the door on Ramsay, who had a scowl on his face and apparently had been informed of our abbreviated public outing.

Surfacing for air, I breathed, "I love it when you go rogue."

His chest vibrated with amusement. "And I love it when you go rogue with me."

He sank two fingers into my pussy. "You're so fucking hot, Princess. I've been dreaming about your taste since you left. I'll never get enough."

Then I lost his fingers, but he dropped to his knees. He threaded my panties down my legs, then ran his hands up the back of my thighs. He pressed his nose to my bare pussy and inhaled.

"I fucking missed this." I could feel his glare in the dark, like him missing me was my fault. He tossed my leg over his shoulder and dove in, and showing me exactly how much he missed me.

My back came off the wall with the broad swipes of his tongue. "Hela's hell, I missed your mouth."

He sucked my clit, sending me crying out again. "Just my mouth?" He mumbled the words and I wasn't sure if that was what he said because I was too busy coming.

He rose and gave me a taste of myself, devouring me while a hand went between us to free his erection.

"Princess, you know I worship you, right?" he murmured against by mouth, a finger tracing my lips. His question gave me pause when he stepped back. I had fully expected him to lift me against the wall and drive inside me. His tone was full of warning, and he switched our positions so his back was against the wall. When he pushed me to my knees, I grew wetter. "But I'm about to fuck this face like I don't."

He didn't give me a chance to say anything. With my lips parted, he shoved his cock in my mouth and hit the back of my throat.

Fingers dug into my hair.

"Fuuuuckkk!" he cursed hoarsely and fell against the wall. "Look at you." He yanked me off his cock, so I could twist my head to the side to see our reflection in the mirror. Gods, I could come from that sight alone.

His fingers guided my head back to his cock. "Take me, Princess. Show me just how much you make me lose my damned mind."

Empowered, I wrapped my hand around his thick girth. His big, beautiful cock was in my hands, and I swallowed his length as much as I could. When the tip went past my palate and my gag reflex, his grip on my hair tightened, urging me on. Telling me I was his good girl and I could go further. His cock slid deeper into my throat.

"Holy fuck!" he growled. "That's…Fuuckkk…"

While twisting my fist around his length, I showed Hank just how much I had him at my mercy, even when I was on my knees.

He gave a rumbling order. "That's it. Stop."

Then I was off his cock and lifted against the wall. He drove inside me.

"I want to come inside you," he snarled. "Say yes."

"Yes," I moaned when he hit a sensitive spot.

Hank pumped inside me in ragged, staggered thrusts.

I was afraid the entire castle heard me yell. He hammered into me for a long time until finally, on a shuddering thrust, he exploded. He continued rocking inside me until strength deserted him and we collapsed on the floor.

Spent.

Sated.

Short of breath, with my heart pounding like my galloping horse.

Somehow, I ended up cradled on Hank's lap. His fingers traced circles on my thigh as we both calmed the wildness in our hearts and lungs and thoughts.

"Stay with me tonight," I told him.

He turned rigid. This was a giant step. We were not fake dating; I wasn't pretending to be anyone else. I was a princess who had never slept with any man before. And I was asking Hank to sleep with me in my bed, in my rooms at the castle.

"Go big or go home, huh?" he whispered.

"You got it."

Hank

Thala and I hadn't escaped unscathed.

The queen summoned us to breakfast.

Poor Ginny, her lady's maid, wasn't expecting the trail of discarded clothes and shoes at the entrance of Thala's apartments where the princess and I had fucked.

I was awake when Ginny knocked on the bedroom door and I had to rouse Thala. We'd fucked into the early hours of the morning and I must have worn her out because it had taken a few seconds to wake her. God, she looked gorgeous. Chestnut hair with streaks of gold, all tousled across the pillow. Lips swollen from my kisses. My cock did a little jerk at the memory of the blowjob she'd given me and the way her pussy clenched all over my cock before it was game over.

"Princess." Ginny followed with another rap.

Thala's eyes barely opened but a slow smile curved her lips. "I thought I was back in the cabin."

"Don't you wish."

"Princess, the queen requests your presence at the breakfast table."

"What time is it?" she whispered.

"Six thirty," I told her.

"I'm awake!" Thala called. "I'll be there."

There was no response from Ginny.

Thala got out of the bed and I sat up and leaned against the padded headboard, admiring the line of her back to her shapely ass. I sighed in regret when she covered it with a robe. I pounded that ass last night, and it had scrambled my brain in the process.

She went to the door and exchanged instructions with Ginny. I hadn't understood all that was said, but I heard, "Tell the queen's staff, Mr. Bristow is going to be with me."

Afterward, she returned to my side and sat on the edge of the bed. I leaned forward and clasped her hand. "You sure about that?"

Her lips twitched at the corners, fighting a smile. The gleam in her eyes told me she was quite happy to find me in her bed this morning.

She squeezed my hand. "Never more sure. I'm going to take a shower." She got up and sashayed away, but she paused right in front of the door to the bathroom and threw me a sultry look over her shoulder, made sexier by her messy bed head. "Care to join me?"

I didn't need to be asked twice.

Despite the quickie in the shower, Thala and I got dressed before the appointed time with the queen. Breakfast in the castle was an informal affair. I was thankful for that because I hadn't been presumptuous that Thala was going to let me stay overnight and I only brought one change of clothes.

Jeans and a T-shirt.

Thala was wearing designer sweatpants.

"You're not trying to match my informal attire, are you?" I asked as we walked through the castle to head to the queen's wing. "So I won't be embarrassed?"

She tucked her arm in mine. "No. Amadea probably just came back from her morning ride." Then she drew away without letting go of my arm and angled an inquisitive look my way. "Do you ride?"

"I do. Every beast or machine that is ridable."

"Really? Do you know how to ride a bull?"

I winced, remembering the times I did. "Not very well. They're not very pleasant creatures."

Thala burst out laughing. The passing staff, who tried not to look at us, turned our way as if astonished by the princess's gaiety as though it was a foreign sound to them. I caught more than a few hiding their smiles and not one was scowling.

I took it as a good sign.

"I need to introduce you to Prince."

"I was beginning to wonder when you were going to introduce me to the love of your life."

"After breakfast," she responded.

"Hmm, and you didn't deny that he is the love of your life?"

She paused in her walking and turned to me. Thala had that freshly fucked look. Her cheeks were rosier and her eyes sparkled. She didn't seem anxious to face her sister at all while my chest seemed permanently constricted in anxiety since this morning, like an impending heart attack was in my future.

"I don't know," she said coyly. It was an expression I rarely saw on Thala, and I had a feeling she didn't know she was doing it. "Are you hoping to have that honor?"

Before I could respond, the butler of the queen greeted us.

"Your Highness, the queen is waiting."

Thala checked her watch. "We're five minutes early."

The butler's face remained expressionless. Okay, maybe this side of the house had no sense of humor. I braced myself for the worst.

Thala entwined our fingers and tugged me along to follow the stiff-backed butler through the rooms. We entered an elaborately appointed room surrounded by arched windows. A dome-shaped ceiling with an ancient mural of what could only be their Scythian ancestors commanded my attention.

The room was chilly and drafty. I preferred Thala's apartments with lower ceilings.

I spotted Ramsay by the window, talking to Jed. They turned to watch us enter. We exchanged brief nods. Their expressions were unreadable.

At the corner, the queen was already partaking in a breakfast buffet. She cast us a brief glance. "Help yourself."

"What did Cook prepare?" Thala asked.

"Eggs, sausages. Scones and muffins."

"You should try the scones," Thala told me. "It's better than the ones you fed me."

"Ouch, Princess," I teased. I didn't tell her that came from a supermarket prepackaged variety. "Way to make an impression on your sister."

"I think the both of you have made enough impressions last night," the queen said dryly as she walked to the head of a long, dark wood table that looked to be centuries old. It reminded me of the ones I'd seen in Scottish castles.

Thala handed me a plate. "What's the damage?"

Damage? What damage?

"Get your food. And we'll have a chat."

"That doesn't sound promising," I whispered to Thala. "Did we overdo it yesterday?"

"I wouldn't worry about it."

The calmness in her this morning was making me jittery. Had she come to a decision about us? I scooped eggs on my plate and added a scone. Her demeanor seemed positively skewed toward me, us, our relationship. But she had more to lose than I did, and I didn't want her to make hasty decisions. I was prepared to grit my way through castle life with her and ponder our future.

Methodically.

Weigh the pros and cons.

"You don't like sausage?" Thala broke into my panicking thoughts.

I gave myself a mental shake. Not even dangerous situations took my mind away from food. I managed a quip. "Don't you remember the egg-and-sausage burrito?"

Her eyes sparkled with mischief. "Oh yes, right."

I forked one onto my plate, hiding the grin that we'd shared a private joke. Thankful that we could still be us in the presence of the queen.

Because on the way to the dining table, I felt like we were about to face the judge, jury, and executioner. But I was reminded of Jim's mistakes when he was ambivalent about dishing out advice to my parents. I needed to support Thala with what she wanted. Not be like my dad, who wanted to please the Buchanan family instead of concentrating on making Mom happy.

Thala took the seat beside her sister and I sat to her left. It was weird as fuck having Ramsay and Jed hovering close by while I was behaving like I was already a member of the House of Targen.

"Did you enjoy your ride this morning?" Thala asked.

"It would have been better if my phone wasn't constantly blasting," Amadea muttered.

"I turn mine off when I'm on Prince."

"Unlike you, I don't have that luxury."

That pissed me off, but I didn't have to worry that Thala was just going to take it.

"Sure you do," Thala said. "You have Ramsay to screen your calls and he rides with you. Let him determine if it's urgent or not."

The queen put her fork and knife down and stared at Thala. "This morning, I had not one, not two, but five calls from members of parliament, berating me about my sister's blatant disregard for protocol."

"Let me guess, are they the same five dinosaurs of parliament that should have resigned decades ago?" Thala responded, unperturbed. Venusstea currently had thirty members that comprised their legislative body.

From the queen's heavy sigh, Thala was correct. "They pointed out that we were supposed to be a society who puts women above men but yesterday you allowed yourself to be led by a man."

"We're the most feminist nation in the world," Thala told the queen. "But I'm finding out, it's not about going against the world's patriarchy. It's not constantly having to prove that we are better than men. Do we have to be ballbusters to prove that we can lead? No. History has already shown that female leaders succeed because they have compassion. We've been trained to be stoic, but I'm finding it's okay to show feelings instead of hiding emotions. The world is moving on, Amadea. People respond more to the humanity of their leaders than to them being a robot."

"I understand that. And I did tell you to follow your heart, but we were supposed to ease the public into the idea. Not throw something in their faces, like what the both of you did last night."

It was fascinating to watch the two sisters duke it out.

"Replay the video from last night. All I felt was being cherished by a man who respected me."

Damn right, baby.

"I have nothing else to prove, Amadea," Thala continued. "And neither do you. We have both risked our lives for our country. Is it wrong to find happiness outside the rules? Rules that have been in place for centuries. Our mother followed the rules and married a weak man who couldn't stand her power, but only basked in the wealth that came with it."

"There might be pushback after the display yesterday."

"I'm not waiting to be happy," Thala said. "I could have lost my life or been enslaved by human traffickers. Traffickers, I might add, Hank and his team are trying to bring down. My path is clear."

"You will lose your title and all the financial support that comes with it." The queen shifted her gaze to spear me with a frigid stare. "Do you know what she's giving up, Mr. Bristow?"

What do I say? Thala turned to look at me. She wasn't outraged by her sister's question, but a challenging glint entered her eyes. She wasn't going to interfere. To be with her I had to be able to put her first and not give in to pressure from the queen. I could also sense Ramsay and Jed straighten from their positions by the window.

I sipped water from the goblet to lubricate the words that seemed to have been stuck in my throat. "I don't care about Thala's title, the prestige, or money. I may not have a castle like this waiting for her, but I will provide her with a house she'll love. It won't be a billionaire's mansion—"

"I don't want one," Thala softly cut me off, finding my hand under the table. It gave me the courage to go on.

I looked into her eyes and addressed her directly. "But I will make damned sure that there'll be enough land for you to ride Prince. Maybe have more horses."

"Or mules."

"More Edgars."

"I don't think anyone can replace Edgar." Thala turned to her sister. "You should meet Edgar. He's worthy of the royal emblem."

The queen huffed. "This is not a laughing matter. You will be—"

"I don't care," Thala cut in stubbornly.

"I'll be a good provider," I spoke up. In all things, including the endless orgasms she deserved.

"And what will you do?" Amadea ignored me. "Be Bristow's dependent?"

"I can put her to work," I said, determined not to be ignored because this time it was my future with Thala we were talking about. Fuck, did that mean we were engaged?

"Excuse me?" Amadea was outraged.

"Oh, chill, sister." Thala laughed. "There's a world outside of here I want to be a part of. I may not be the protector of one country, but of the world. Protect it from greedy people like Sokolov. I know being queen is your duty, but it's time to enact change. Whether you see it or not, it's up to you. I'm not waiting to be happy." She lifted her gaze and stared at Ramsay. "And neither should you."

A few days later, Venusstea's news headlines read:

With parliament split on whether to abolish the Argent law and finding no resolution, Princess Thala of the House of Targen has renounced her title and all the benefits that come with it.

She gave no interview and has flown back to the U.S. with Holden Buchanan, but our source inside the castle said she told the queen, "I'm not waiting to be happy."

We applaud the princess. The public agrees with her. The archaic law needs to be abolished, so our queen can also find her happiness.