Page 59 of In Love with a Ruthless Man

“You know I do—-”

“But only as long as we’re lovers behind his back!”

“Yes. I do only want you that way, but at least I am not lying about it.”

Tension broke out between them, the silence only defeated by the sound of her still-ringing phone.

“If I do this,” she heard herself whisper, “—-will y-you really be able to promise it won’t...hurt?” Her voice caught in the end as an unexpected sob threatened to escape her throat.

The prince clenched and unclenched his fists.Goddamn you, Bennett.How could that asshole find it in him to hurt someone like Fawn? When her weary gaze sought his, the prince had to fight against the urge to simply haul her into his arms and tell her he was not giving her a choice. He would take care of her, fuck her, and kill Bennett for having the sheer audacity of hurting her. It wasn’t necessarily in that order, but those would be his top priorities.

The prince took a deep breath. “If you trust me, I can promise he won’t be able to hurt you anymore.” He offered her his hand. “Be my lover,parthena mou.”

She took it. “Yes.”

“DO WE REALLY NEED TOhave to do this?” Fawn asked uneasily ten minutes later. As soon as they had gotten back inside the prince’s limousine, the prince had automatically reached for her, saying that they had something to do before she could talk to Grant.

And by something, the prince meant that he wanted her on his lap, which was beyond embarrassing.

So of course she started to babble.

“I don’t think it’s proper. Or advisable. I mean, it might not have escaped your notice, but I’m not exactly light as a feather even though I’m stiff as a board. I could be too heavy—-”

“No.” The prince didn’t even look up as he spoke. “You’re not.” He was too busy arranging her limbs, and she found herself responding in a strangely docile manner as she allowed the prince to place her arms around his neck. After, he lifted her hips up and pulled her forward a few inches, causing her skirt to swirl as he pressed her down—-

Oh!

Her skirt settled around her, leaving Fawn’s bare legs to scrape against his pants as she found herself straddling his lap.

Holy sweet Jesus—-

And Fawn started babbling again.

“Y-you must be lying. I have to be heavier than what you’re used to. I’ve seen the girls you’ve taken to bed, and no offense, but they make Thumbelina look fat, and I don’t know if that’s like a fetish, or maybe you’ve got a Lolita complex—”

“Fawn.”When she stopped speaking mid-sentence, the prince said very pleasantly, “Shut up.”

“B-but—-”

“I’m not lying. We need to do this before you talk to Grant.”

“How can I talk to Grant,” she mumbled in protest, “when you made me turn my phone off?” She tried moving away, but the prince retaliated by pulling her more firmly against him. It caused her to slide forward on his lap, and she jerked when she felt something harden under her.

Her gaze flew to him.

Oh my God—-

It!

Was!

Still!

Getting!

Harder!

“Prince,” she gasped.

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