Page 119 of Modern Romance Collection May 2024 Books 1-4

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

JULIUSSATINa lounge chair by the window, the curved back cradling him as he watched the storm stir the sea into crashing waves, the peaks made jagged by wind that ripped across the ocean.

It was glorious in its fury. Lightning forked across the sky. For a moment, the Atlantic was lit by a brilliant white light that would have delighted even the most curmudgeonly of individuals.

Julius noted the beauty. The uniqueness of the landscape.

And found it wanting compared to Esmerelda.

She slept a few feet away on her stomach with the sheet pulled just up to her waist. His eyes slid over her bare back, the toss of curls that partially obscured her face, her arms clutched around a pillow.

He raised his glass to his lips, sipped the rich whiskey and savored the slight burn down his throat. She had asked for nothing more than tonight. How many men in his position would have been thrilled at a night of pleasure with no strings attached?

Yet a hard stone had settled in his stomach at the thought of only one evening, perhaps a few if he took her up on her offer of continuing their affair until he left Grenada. He didn’t want this to be the end. There had been something there between them from the beginning of this whole adventure. Something that had made her, and only her, stay in his memory. The more he talked to her, spent time with her, the more he couldn’t begin to fathom how his former self had let her walk out of his life.

His eyes drifted toward the wall safe hidden behind a painting of one of Grenada’s waterfalls. Every time he thought of the ring, he thought of Esmerelda. He’d bought it for her.

But had he? What if he had wanted to, was experiencing the desires he’d silenced in order to fulfill his duty to his people?

He sighed and let his head drop back onto the chair. He’d reviewed the laws of Rodina, along with the marriages of the past five generations of royals dating back to the mid-eighteen-hundreds. The heir apparent had always been bound by expectations and the best interests of the country.

All his speculation brought him, repeatedly, back to the one truth he didn’t want to face. He had not found a way to strike a balance between his duty to his country and his feelings for Esmerelda.

Another bolt of lightning dove down toward the churning sea. Thunder followed less than a second later, roaring as if to let the whole world know of its immense power. It rumbled across Julius’s skin, a not unpleasant feeling, and slowly he let his eyes drift shut.

The dream came to him, vivid and detailed.

Esmerelda naked beneath him, her body dotted with freckles. He kissed them, each one that he could, thrilling at the throaty sound of her laugh.

“There’s too many for you to kiss them all.”

“I don’t mind trying.” He kissed one on the curve of her hip, savored the hitch in her breath as his lips trailed to the fiery red curls between her legs. “Besides, we have all night. And as you like to point out, I’m very thorough.”

Her laugh turned to a moan, her fingers threading through his hair as he made love to her with his lips.

“Julius...”

His heart twisted in his chest. He’d been denying it for months, telling himself he was mistaking appreciation for something more.

But as he moved up her body and covered her with his own, he knew it wasn’t indebtedness or gratitude. No, he—

“Julius?”

She sat on the ottoman opposite him. Possessiveness gripped him at the sight of her in his dress shirt, her long legs shown off to perfection. The glimpse of freckled thigh that nearly made him groan out loud.

“I’m sorry to wake you.”

“It’s all right.” He held up his glass. “Care to join me?”

Her eyes flickered to the whiskey.

“Yes.”

Surprised, he tilted his head to one side. When he reached out for her hand, she placed her fingers in his grasp without hesitation.

“Is everything all right?”

The storm nearly drowned out the sound of her soft sigh.

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