Tempting the Crown (The Crown 1)

“Maybe you’d be interested in the royal library.”

“The royal library?” I knew there was a special collection in the city that hadn’t been archived for public use. I had no idea it was housed here. Like The Titan, I thought it was an urban legend. Just a much nerdier one.

“Collected for centuries. It’s downstairs.”

“It’s here? In the palace?”

He nodded lazily. “Would you like to see it?”

“I would love to see it.” The smile quickly dropped from my face.

I wasn’t supposed to stay. I had been given explicit instructions to get the hell out of the fantasy as soon as the sun came up. The contract was clear. No loitering. No stalling. No segue way to the next part of the day. The Titan created a one-night binding contract.

“Something wrong?” He poured a second cup of coffee for me. The china mugs were small.

I looked down at his T-shirt, covering my breasts. The shorts tied around my waist. “I need to leave. I can’t overstay my welcome.” I started to rise from the table. My clothes had to be around here somewhere.

“Sit,” he commanded.

My skin bristled. “But I know I should leave.” The truth was I didn’t want to wait around to be kicked out. I could leave with some shred of dignity if I collected my things and left of my own accord.

“Do you see anyone from The Titan here?”

I shook my head. “No.”

He pulled his expensive watch into the sunlight. He tapped it. “The fucking contract has expired, Molly.”

“What does that mean?” I could feel something in the air changing. “What are you saying?”

“It means, you’re staying.”

I blinked. “But I have…I can’t. Can I?” My head was spinning. This wasn’t part of the plan. It was strictly forbidden.

“You can and you will.” He seemed confident whatever he said was law. Maybe it was.

He rose from the table. “I’ll have some clothes delivered.”

“And the library?” I blurted.

He laughed. “Yes and then I’ll take you to the library.”

He walked inside, leaving me on the balcony to bask in what was an unbelievable situation. Was this happening? The china cup rattled as I lifted it from the saucer. I looked out at the city below. This was a royal view. The king’s view. And in this moment—it was mine.

11

Damon

I shouldn’t have said it. The moment Molly offered to leave, I should have let her walk out the door. It would be easy to send her home. Watch that cute ass take a step on the other side of my residence and never let it cross the threshold again. But I couldn’t fucking do it. I always got what I wanted and I wanted her. Every part of her.

Membership in the society couldn’t dictate what I did as king. Lesage could fuck off if he thought I cared about his code of honor.

This was my country.

My laws.

My way.

I waited in my office while she changed. I needed to review the itinerary for the day. It was delivered promptly at 8 a.m. each morning in a black leather case. It was called the lodestar. It always had been. It sat on my desk.