Page 37 of His Stolen Princess

* * *

“Mmmph.” Apollonia rolls over, her eyes fluttering open. “Hi.”

I smile and stroke her dark hair from her cheek. “Good morning, lioness.”

She glances around. “Carter?”

“Sleeping in his room. Safe.”

She snuggles back down and scoots closer to me. “Good.”

When she rests her cheek on my chest, something inside me relaxes, my heart free to beat its own rhythm.

“Wait.” She sits up and stares at the bandage on my side. “Are you okay?”

“All is well.” I pull her back down. “You and Carter are safe. I’ll heal quickly. I always do.”

She sighs and accepts my embrace, her body so warm and soft. I’d watched her sleep until I succumbed, too. And when I woke, she was cuddled against me, her hand on my chest, her thigh slung over mine. Heaven.

“It all seems like a bad dream,” she says softly, then trails her fingers along the edge of my bandage. “But it was real.”

“Yes.” I take her hand and bring her fingers to my lips, kissing them. “It was real, but it’s over.”

“Antony Lantino.” She turns and looks at me. “Did you know he was alive?”

“Yes.” I rest her hand over my heart. “I let him live. He was away at school when your family was killed. I kept up with him as he left for college. After that, I assumed he’d put violence behind him and intended to start a new chapter for the Lantino name. Or perhaps that’s what I’d hoped would happen.”

“They’re rotten. Every last one of them.” Her fierce tone makes my blood pump harder. “I’d kill them again if I could.”

“So bloodthirsty.” I stroke her cheek. “As you should be.”

Her lips quirk to the side just a bit. “He told me something.”

“What?” I pull her higher, her breasts pressing against my chest through her thin top.

She looks away.

“Tell me,” I coax and lean up to nip at her jawline.

Meeting my gaze, she says, “He said we were supposed to be married. That our parents arranged it. Did you know about that?”

I try to gauge why that information would worry her, but I can’t see it. “That’s the first I’ve learned of it.”

She lets out a big breath and rests her head in the crook of my neck. “Do you promise?”

“Yes. I wouldn’t lie to you.” I wrap my arms around her. “Does it bother you that our parents planned our future for us?”

“No, that’s not it.”

“Then what?” I stroke her back and slide my hand under her shirt to feel her soft skin.

“I just...” She shrugs. “I thought maybe the only reason you wanted me was because your father made a deal for me, and you were trying to honor him by--” She yelps when I flip her onto her back and cover her body.

“Apollonia.” I stare down at her. “I want you. I always have. I always will. Not because of honor or duty or anything else. I want you because I feel you in here.” I thump my chest. “I’ve belonged to you from the start. Every twisted, ruined part of my soul is yours. I will never stop loving you.”

“Love?” Her eyes water.

I stroke her cheek and softly kiss her. “Yes, my lioness. I love you with everything I am.”

She twines her arms around my neck. “I love you, too.”

I luxuriate in the beauty of her words. “Say it again.”

“I love you, Cato. I’ve loved you from the moment you saved me that day so long ago. My heart has always been in your hands.”

“I will never break it.” I kiss her again, harder this time. My life is hers. By her word, I live and die. By her word, I kill and grant mercy. I will never give my lioness less than she deserves, and right now, she deserves every bit of pleasure I can give.

---