Page 164 of Sinful Desires
I stayed there. Frozen. Her body against mine, her breath brushing my collarbone.
It felt like my fucking soul was pressed to hers.
And I fucking needed it.
Because once we stepped off this boat, I knew she’d never look at me the same.
And maybe after what I had to tell her, she wouldn’t ever let me touch her again.
“I love you, Scarlett.” My voice cracked, rougher than I wanted. “More than you can fucking imagine.”
Her eyes softened, lips parting as she raised a hand to my cheek. “Théo?…”
She didn’t say more, her fingers digging into me instead.
I grabbed her hand, holding it there against my face.
“You need to know it before I show you what I am. Before I rip it all open.”
The boat rocked hard. Metal shrieked as the anchor dropped and rattled into the sea.
We were here. No going back now.
“Come on.”
I pushed the glass open. The air hit like smoke in my lungs. She stepped out behind me, barefoot and silent, her cardigan clinging to her shoulders in the wind. The dock groaned under us as the bridge lowered again. I took her hand, holding it too tightly. Helped her down until she was on solid ground.
She stopped short. “Oh my?…” Her voice caught somewhere between awe and disbelief.
I didn’t look at her. I looked at the thing that had haunted me for years.
There it stood—jagged and silent, rising out of the rocks.
Le Château LeRoy.
Its bricks were blackened at the edges, sea-bitten and scorched by time. The windows were glassless scars. Vines crawled up the stone like veins choking what was left of its heart.
“A castle,” she whispered. “In the middle of the sea. How?…?what is this?”
“Family blood,” I said quietly. “One of my ancestors was a Duke. Got it as a gift from some King. Don’t ask me which, I don’t fucking know.”
Her eyes snapped to mine, hands braced on her hips, breath caught somewhere between awe and shock.
“Are you saying your family was part of the French aristocracy?”
I shrugged. “Yeah.”
She blinked once. Then again.
“Wait, wait, wait—you’re telling me you’ve got noble blood? Should I be bowing?”
“My blood’s anything but noble, Scarlett.”
She took a step back, hand dragging through her hair.
“Well, if I had that in my lineage, I’d tattoo it on my forehead and demand a parade every morning. I’d be insufferable.”
A rough laugh clawed up my throat.
