Page 11 of The Princess and Her Mercenary

She grinned at him and he was glad he was making the effort. She turned and reached for the food containers, pulling them toward her. She opened them and perused the contents. She picked up a strawberry and pushed it toward him, touching it to his lips.

He opened his mouth and bit into the juicy fruit. A burst of sweet hit his tongue. He wasn’t really a fruit guy, but strawberries were about to become his favourite food if she kept this up. Those fingers brushing his lips, that look of concentration in her gorgeous startling dark eyes, it all messed with him. His dick felt like it was made of stone and it only got worse with every touch, every glance, even the way her voice sounded.

“Now try the wine again,” she said softly, her voice taking on a tone that suggested she wasn’t unaffected by all the touching.

He took another sip of the wine, just a small one, and was surprised to discover he liked it better. It took on the flavour of the strawberry.

“See!” she said happily. “It’s so much better to pair wines with food when you’re just learning to appreciate them. Here, try some meat.”

She picked up a pepperoni slice and popped it into Keane’s mouth. Now this he liked. He could live off of chunks of meat if he had to and still be a happy guy. Once he finished the pepperoni, she urged him to drink some more wine. He did as she asked and was surprised to discover that once again the wine seemed to pick up the flavour of what he was eating. Or maybe enhanced it? Or vice versa? He didn’t know how it worked, but he liked it. The wine tasted spicier, heavier, when paired with the meat.

“This is actually good,” he commented, surprise in his voice.

She grinned at him, her straight white teeth sparkling in the late afternoon sunshine. “See, you do like wine,” she said happily, then took the glass from his hand and drained it on one long thirsty gulp, tilting her chin back and giving him a glimpse of her long brown throat and the little dip in it as she swallowed the liquid.

He decided that, when she drank like that, he loved wine. Loved imagining his cock in her mouth and that little dip bobbing as she swallowed his cum down that beautiful throat.

“More?” she asked innocently, lifting the bottle and tilting her head.

“More,” he agreed, his voice taking on a hoarse edge.

When she twisted around to reach for the bottle, he adjusted himself as discreetly as he could.

“So, Linton,” she said, using his first name. It felt good when she said it, intimate. “Why are we out here? What are we hoping to accomplish by spending the night in the desert with nothing to separate us and the predators?” She filled the first glass with wine and handed it to him, then filled another one for herself. He was disappointed that she was done sharing.

“The only predator out here you need to worry about, Princess, is yours truly,” he said with a wolfish grin.

She rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t contain the quick smile that stretched her lips.

“Thought since you decided to go for a walk, we’d take some time to ourselves, just the two of us,” he continued, leaning back on his elbow and sipping slowly at the wine. It wasn’t so bad when he drank it that way, slowly, while watching her lips caress the edge of her own cup. “You had the right idea, wandering out here by yourself, luring me into this situation. It’s just us, this blanket and the stars.”

“There are no stars,” she pointed out.

“There will be.”

“I’m hoping to convince you to take me back before that happens. I don’t think I can navigate using the stars. As it turns out, my education has been woefully neglected.”

He shook his head. “Nope, we’re sleeping out here tonight. Getting to know each other.”

She sighed in annoyance. “Fine, what do you want to know? Let’s get this over with so you can take me back to civilization.”

He gave her a penetrating stare. It was on the tip of his tongue to give her a joking response, to hit on her. Instead, he demanded, “Everything, I want to know everything about you.”

It was true. She was the most fascinating creature he'd ever met. His scarred heart sat up and noticed every time she was near, every time he heard her voice, whether they were in the same room or not. When her brother called her back home, he felt the loss right away. He would look for her everywhere he went, but she was never there. He felt compelled to seek her out, to understand this strange obsession that took hold of him and wouldn’t let go.

“Tell me why your eyes are so dark a man could get lost in them and never find his way out. Tell me what it was like growing up in this place, in a palace with jewels and finery and such. Tell me about all those wild escapades that got you in trouble. I want to know what makes you happy and what makes you sad.” He stared at her, watching her eyes take on a look of curiosity and wonder as she studied him.

She licked her lips, then she made herself comfortable, laying down on the blanket next to him and snuggling into his side. He held his breath as she pressed herself into his ribcage. Then she tilted her head up, rested her chin on her hand and talked, giving him what he wanted. Everything.

“I got my eyes from my father…”

---