Page 78 of Hostile King

“You’ll smash it, Carina. I have so much faith in you. You can do anything you put your mind to. Money only opens doors and resources can get you a place at the table, but your potential and proficiency are what make you a success.”

He kisses my temple and starts to read a passage. The sultry cadence of his manly baritone reverberates through me in glorious waves. They coax me to his sundrenched sandy shore where fresh blue water laps over my daring toes and dazzling rays give me warmth. He’s my safe place and my happiness.

A prismatic butterfly, full of intrigue, perches on a soft green corrugated leaf by the edge of the decking. It’s equally as entranced by his gesture, lulled under the same spell as I am.

Large plops of water drip from above to create a metronome beat to match the rich gravelly flow of his speech. Not only do I love his power over me, I adore how he pronounces every word, how his eyes light up when I challenge his authority, how the proud vein in his neck thrums when I unintentionally lick my lips, but most of all, I’m privileged to meet the compassionate, warmhearted side of a man who has no limits.

“I’ve been thinking…” I reach for his fingers, threading them with mine. “How about I rent an apartment closer to my campus? That way—”

He doesn’t let me finish. “Is this some roleplay fantasy thing of yours? Where I sneak into your dorm at night to fuck you in a single bed while your half-naked roommate watches me rail you against the headboard.”

My skin flushes from my neck to my scalp. I hadn’t thought about it in that context, and now the idea of it could quite possibly be a new thing. I ignore the clench of my arousal. “It would give you space and me time to study.”

It happens in a flash. A strong arm around my waist, the other scooping under my knees. Then weightlessness and a growl so savage that the colorful butterfly takes to the air in haphazard zigzags, vanishing in the thickset foliage.

“You’ll have to try harder than that to get rid of me, baby.” Tomás carries me indoors, his back rigid and posture predatory. “Perhaps I haven't made myself clear.”

He bows forward and plonks me on the disorderly bedsheets, staring at me until I can’t breathe properly. He stretches his broad shoulders and hisses a little from the niggle of pain he must be ignoring. There’s no attempt to cover the firmness of his erection, the satiny tip of his dick bobbing against his navel as he steps back to quietly assess me.

Then he confidently strolls to the other side of the room, slides open a drawer and lifts out a maroon velveteen box. It’s not a trinket-sized box either, the base of it covers his entire palm, and then some.

I don’t know where to look. I’m intrigued by what he’s presenting me with and finding it hard to stop my mouth from watering at the sight of his toned physique.

He brushes a strand of hair free from my lashes and smirks. “Happy birthday, Carina Ferreira.”

My brows pinch together, tentatively accepting the gift from him. “Wait…it’s my birthday?”

His sultry chuckle reaches places within me that aren’t used to feeling so much radiance and peace.

“You were so focused on nursing me back to health in our private sanctuary that you've lost track of the date.” The look he gives me steals the air from my lungs and causes my heartbeat to falter. “Open it.”

Tomás’ dark gaze swirls brighter, waiting for me to lift the lid. With a shaky inhalation, I crack open the box and stare down at the most exquisite crown I’ve ever seen. Finely woven spindles of gold twist and turn around hundreds of cherry red jewels.

For a second, I stay perfectly still, in awe of it, a rare treasure unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.

“You’re my queen, Carina, with or without that thing, but I thought it would be a fitting present for your birthday.” Then he reaches out and gathers the delicate headpiece from the silky lining and positions it on the top of my head. “I’ll enjoy watching you suck my dick while you wear it.” The husky grunt he offers is pure sin. “What I’ll enjoy most of all is having the woman I love sleep beside me every night of my life in our bed, in our new home—with her new name.”

Tomás drops to one knee and spears me to the mattress with a feverish gaze. “Look under the silk.” He nods to the box.

The moment I peel back the satiny material, a feminine vintage-styled ring glints in the rising sun streaming through the vast windows. A solid black gold band encrusted with a layer of matching dark jewels sweep upwards to a rare blood red oval diamond. It’s gloriously unusual and looks as though it was made just for me.

“My wife won’t rent an apartment near campus, so she can pretend she’s free of me.” His eyes narrow, hinting a squall.

“That’s not what I meant—”

“You’ll livewithme, in the house we’ll pick out together, and I’ll personally deliver you to the door of every single class, for as long as it takes you to understand how much I can’t—and won’t—live without you.”

My pulse goes crazy when he cups my face with firm hands. Our skin sparks on contact. The sensation of his touch a flaming rope tying our demons together now and forever.

I swallow hard as his mouth lowers to mine and pauses. “I’m in love with you, Carina and if at all possible, my love will grow even stronger when you become Carina Souza. My wife. Mine. Now get on your knees and show me how my good girl behaves.”

“I haven’t said yes, yet.” I witness his pupils flare.

“What will it take?”

“Ask me to be your wife—officially.”

His beautiful lips curve to offer me the rarest of smiles. A smile no other woman will ever witness.

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