Page 48 of Devilish

So badly I can’t get the words out for fear I’ll say the wrong thing.

Instead, I nodded and kissed Lucien’s thumb, and the sound that vibrated out of him was like that of a contented animal.

“You just made me happier than I can ever remember being,” he said. “But if we do this, if we enter into this kind of relationship, you have to promise me something, okay?”

“Okay.”

“You have toalwaystell me how you’re feeling. That’s the only way this can work.”

I could do that. I was already doing that. Lucien made it easy to talk to him. To confide in him.

“I’ll never lie to you, and I expect the same in return. Don’t ever tell me what you think I want to hear just to please me. You have a voice here with me, always. Use it. Tell me what you like and what you don’t. And Kai?”

“Yeah?”

A shiver of anticipation ran through me as Lucien leaned forward and replaced his thumb with his lips, brushing a wicked promise of a kiss across my mouth.

“I’ll move heaven and fucking earth to give it to you.”

18

LUCIEN

WHEN WAS THE last time I’d felt so fulfilled?

That was only one of the things on my mind as Kai and I walked hand in hand through the busy streets of Monaco. Someone in the crowd had once again handed him a little flag on a stick, and he twirled it between his fingers as I pointed out some of my favorite places in the city. Every time I visited I found something new to enjoy, but seeing things through Kai’s eyes was an entirely different experience.

He was grinning broadly as the roar of cars echoed through the air, qualifying races for the Monaco Grand Prix in full swing nearby. We’d snuck a peek earlier from the top of a hill until Kai’s stomach began to rumble louder than the cars and we’d stopped at a café for breakfast.

“I love it here,” he announced as he watched a trio of kids chase each other with F1 replicas before disappearing around the corner. “It feels different from New York.”

That made my chest tighten. Kai had only ever experienced the shit side of the city I loved so much—and that made me more determined to show him all the great things about it the second we got back.

I stroked his thumb with mine as I led us toward our next destination. “I’m glad you enjoy it here. We’ll come back anytime.”

Kai shook his head, but that smile never left his face. “Why do I feel like you mean that literally?”

“Because I do.” I winked at him. “It’s only a plane ride away.”

“So you just go wherever you want, whenever you want?”

“Is there any reason not to?”

Kai squinted up at me, the sun so bright he had to shield his eyes. “No, I guess not.”

The early morning clouds had dissipated, turning the day into nothing but blue skies, and I veered us off course to grab a couple pairs of dark sunglasses before going back out.

As we headed up toward the palatial, cream-colored building lined with security at the entrances, Kai pulled on my hand.

“Wait, what’s that?”

“The Prince’s Palace.”

“Palace? As in real royalty lives there?”

“It’s the home of Monaco’s royal family, yes.”

“Oh wow.” He took in the expansive estate, making a few admiring comments as we passed. But when I led him up one of the pathways, he tugged again on my hand.

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