Page 42 of Royal Player
“Donotmake light of your heroic gesture! I will treasure it forever.”
He leans down to my ear. “So now you be the heroine and become the best queen that Beaumont has ever seen.” He guides me back toward the group with a firm hand on my lower back.
“I will do it in your honor,” I vow, unable to take my gaze off him.
“Oh, we’re speaking French?” Anna asks. “Bonjour, ma famille!”
I blink. I wasn’t aware Oscar and I were speaking French. Did I revert to my native language because I was extremely emotional, or did he, knowing it would reach me better?
Anna chatters on in French, murdering the language. Gabriel and Lucas wince. Alice just looks confused.
Oscar meets my eyes, giving me a rueful smile as he continues in English, “I knew you would hear me best that way.”
My eyes get hot. This man. He gets me. I want to throw my arms around him and hug him tight, but I can’t. Not in front of everyone. Besides, royal protocol forbids it; my kingdom forbids it.
For the first time in my life, I’ve met a man tempting enough to risk a kingdom.
And I want to dive into temptation.
~ ~ ~
My pulse leaps with every small sound as I sneak my way through the palace to Oscar’s room in the west wing. It’s the middle of the night, and I waited until I was sure everyone was asleep. No, he didn’t invite me. Anna told me which room was his when I asked. She hopes for a match. Oscar’s bloodlines are royal, but he’s not advantageous to my kingdom, and he’s tied here to the casino. I know better than to hope for a future, but I have now. I found passion and a depth of feeling I never thought to experience. I can’t let this slip through my fingers.
I knock on his door, hoping it doesn’t alert anyone to my presence.
“Oscar,” I whisper.
I knock again. I should’ve asked for his number so I could text and call him. I wasn’t sure if he’d let me in, though, which is why I just showed up. He kept his distance from me at dinner and afterward in the parlor, making sure we were never alone together. And every time our gazes locked, the intensity stole my breath.
The door finally opens to a bare-chested Oscar, and my mouth goes dry. His chest is broad with a light dusting of dark hair, chiseled with muscle from pecs to abs, his hips narrow in loose gray pajama bottoms. My fingers tingle with the need to touch.
He keeps the door only halfway open. “How did you find me?”
“I asked Anna which room was yours. Invite me in.” He told me to invite him in back at the hotel, and it worked then, so…
His gaze searches my features.
“Is it wrong?” I whisper.
He pulls me in and quietly shuts and locks the door behind me. My heart hammers against my rib cage. I wait, desperately hoping he’ll touch me.
“Don’t ask me if it’s wrong,” he says in a husky voice and then pulls me into his arms.
I throw my arms around his neck and kiss him. He cups the back of my neck with one warm hand, his other hand sliding down my back, the heat seeping through the silk of my robe. I’m in heaven. Nothing could be better than this passionate kiss. His hand slides lower, cupping my ass and pressing me against him. Heat pools between my legs.Yes. More.My hips rock of their own accord as his mouth claims mine.
He shifts, kissing a hot trail along my jaw, nuzzling into my neck. His hands slip inside my robe, sliding up my ribs before cupping my breasts, his thumbs grazing my nipples. I moan, my knees weak, raw desire overwhelming me.
“I never thought it could be like this,” I say, breathless.
He meets my eyes with a heated gaze before pressing his lips to mine in a tender kiss that nearly undoes me. My limbs are heavy, my fingers clinging to his shoulders. He unties my robe, pushing it off my shoulders, and dips his head, kissing a fiery trail down the column of my throat to the top of my breast. He stops to slide the straps of my silk nightgown off my shoulders, giving the fabric a tug, letting it fall to my waist.
“Pol.” His voice is hoarse. “So sexy.” He cups my breast, and then he kisses it. Hot, openmouthed kisses, drawing ever closer to my nipple, which tightens into a hard bud. His mouth closes over it, and he sucks hard.
“Oh!” My fingers tangle in his thick hair as he continues suckling, shocking me with the intense pleasure. “Don’t stop.” I can feel it building within me, an intense pressure, a needy throbbing.
His fingers pinch and roll my other nipple, and I moan loudly, slapping a hand over my mouth. He switches sides, suckling my other breast, and my breath comes in short pants. There’s a pulse between my legs that I’ve never felt before; one stroke and I swear I’ll go over.
He lifts his head, grazing a kiss along my jaw before whispering in my ear, “I want to make you feel good.”
