CHAPTER FIVE
NIESHA BARELY ACKNOWLEDGED the magnificently appointed private suite she’d been so in awe of the handful of times she’d visited the King’s bedroom as a chambermaid.
Her every sense was focused on the searing clasp of his fingers against hers. Their palms were glued together, the heat from his branding her, imprinting on her skin the same way the royal crest was embossed on the flags that fluttered along the driveway leading to the palace.
Her heart hammered loud enough to drown out any other sound in her ears, so much so that she was terrified she would hyperventilate if she didn’t find a way to calm down. But how could she? How could she remain serene in the face of this earth-shaking set of events unfolding in her life?
This morning she’d woken up believing her day would be ordinary—save for the momentous event of the royal wedding, of course—but here she was on the verge of giving her virginity to the King.
Did she have to tell him? Would he know? What was the etiquette? The flurry of questions reeled through her mind, adding to the turmoil seething inside her.
As if he sensed her unsettling thoughts, Zufar stopped abruptly. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘I... This is going too fast,’ she answered truthfully.
She expected another one of his thunderous frowns, but was surprised when he studied her for a moment and then nodded. Without releasing her, he raised his other hand and gently brushed his fingers down her pale cheek. ‘Do not fear, little one, I will make this memorable for you. We will endeavour to go as slow as you wish.’
A swell of relief bloomed through her apprehension. In the next moment, it all evaporated when he cleanly swept her off her feet.
‘What are you doing?’ she squeaked.
‘I believe this is the tradition?’ he replied.
He wasn’t moving. He stared down steadily, waiting for an answer. Only then did Niesha realise that they were poised outside the doors to his inner bedchamber. Beyond that, the immense emperor-sized bed waited, covered with the exquisite gold and blue coverlet she herself had laid on it only a few days ago. The insane, whirlwind journey from then to now seemed like a hallucination.
A quick swallow later, she redirected her gaze to him. ‘If you believe in that sort of thing, I guess,’ she murmured.
One eyebrow slowly lifted. ‘Do you not believe, Niesha?’
It wasn’t the first time he’d said her name, but this time the effect of the deep baritone curling around her given name sent tiny bursts of fireworks from deep in her belly, radiating outwards. She watched him track her blush, a small smile curving his lips, drawing her eyes to the sensual outline of his masculine mouth.
‘I believe I have my answer,’ he said.
With that, he stepped over t
he threshold and calmly walked her over to the bed.
Slowly he set her down on her feet, his hands trailing her upper arms to settle on her shoulders. Then his gaze raked her from head to toe, lingering at her breasts and her hips in a very frank, masculine appraisal that sent a flare of awareness over her skin.
Her nipples began to pebble, her breasts growing sensitive as he lifted eyes turned molten gold to her face.
‘Beautiful,’ he pronounced deeply.
No one had ever called her that. Not even close. She shook her head. ‘It’s not me. It’s the dress and...the make-up.’
‘It is also the woman wearing those things,’ he declared haughtily.
Recalling that he’d been responsible for the gown she was wearing, she looked down at herself. ‘Thank you for this. You didn’t have to but—’
He cut her off with a shake of his head. ‘You were not given a choice in your wedding gown. The situation needed to be remedied for what followed. I couldn’t be so distasteful to ask you to wear another woman’s clothes on your wedding night.’
A knot she hadn’t even been aware of eased inside her. Consideration where there needn’t have been touched a place inside her that sent prickles to the back of her eyes. ‘Thank you,’ she said again.
‘You’re welcome, but I’m afraid it’s time for the dress to come off.’
Just like that the atmosphere shifted again. The purposeful heat gathering in his eyes sent similar flames surging through her body. His hands slowly drifted up her shoulders to the pulse fluttering in her neck. There he paused, his fingers lazily caressing her skin until a helpless moan drifted from her throat.
‘Do you like that?’ he demanded, his gaze a little too incisive, as if he was intent on learning her body language.