Broken Crown (Mafia Royals 5)

It’s not fear.

It’s not dread.

It’s complete and utter devastation.

The door clicks shut behind him as he stands on the balcony, probably freezing his ass off but giving me privacy.

I call Roman back as fast as my fingers let me.

“Hey…” His voice is sad. “I just wanted to make sure you made it.”

I roll my eyes and smile. “You knew we made it, Roman. We have like a billion security people here.”

“I just wanted to hear your voice.”

“Well, here it is. Satisfied?”

He barks out a laugh. “Not even close.”

The line goes quiet. I glance out at the balcony again and see King leaning over it. Funny how we’re literally at what was built to resemble a castle, and he looks like a predator gazing over his kingdom. And here I am, the queen waiting for the king to make her his while talking to his right hand—oh, shit…

“What? What’s wrong?” Roman’s voice holds all the panic mine isn’t currently able to express because… holy shit.

I’m Guinevere.

I’m staring at my King Arthur.

And I’m talking to my Lancelot.

“I’m fine,” I say quickly, my tongue thick in my mouth. “I just— sorry, I thought I saw a bat.”

He’s quiet, and then, “A bat? Aren’t you indoors?”

“Outside.” I gulp. “You know… flying.” I squeeze my eyes shut and inwardly groan.

He laughs. “Yeah, that’s typically what bats do. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Perfect.” I lie. “I should probably get going soon anyway…” You know, since I’m about to give myself to your King—to mine.

“About that.” Roman curses under his breath. “Just remember, it’s only a week. Once all of this is over, we’ll figure it out, the three of us. The whole point is to align the families in an archaic way that your uncle came up with. Once that’s done… I guess once that’s done, why would King want to even sleep in the same bed as you? When you’re in love with someone else? I mean, no offense to him, he’s tough as hell, but who wants to deal with that sort of rejection every day?”

Him, I almost say. Because he’s strong. Because he puts everyone first but himself. “I don’t know, Roman. Let’s talk about it when I’m not ready to pass out.”

“He’s a guy.” Roman’s rasp sounds annoyed. “Besides that, he knows you’re with me; the last thing he’s going to do is to draw this night out. You’ll probably be watching TV in fifteen minutes.”

King’s forearms flex as he leans over the balcony; his muscles are visible and well-defined even from here. Something tells me he’s not going to be a one and done sort of guy or that he’s going to last thirty seconds and roll over and start snoring.

My body shivers. I lie. “You’re right. I have nothing to worry about.”

“Just try to enjoy it,” he says. “And think of me.”

“I love you,” I say.

“I love you more,” he says it right back. “Just shower afterward, and you’ll feel better. You’ll smell like you again; you’ll feel clean.”

So why is my first thought that I want to stay dirty? “Yeah, you’re totally right.”

“Goodnight, princess.”

“Queen.” I correct him with a smirk.

“Wow, you’re going to be tough to live with, aren’t you?” He laughs. “Thanks, I needed that.”

“Yeah.” I’m still smiling when I hang up minutes later and approach the glass door that leads to the balcony.

I take another sip of champagne, set down my phone, and hold my head high, ready to serve my King.

Body.

And soul.

Chapter Fifteen

“Sometimes I’m terrified of my heart; of its constant hunger for whatever it wants. The way it stops and starts.” —Edgar Allan Poe

King

I want to punch something. I imagine how good it would feel to have blood dripping from my knuckles after punching this stupid building over and over again.

The pain would release my suffering.

But I don’t want to scare her.

So instead, I stand. I stare. I breathe. And I don’t turn around because I know what I’ll see. Her cheeks will be bright with excitement. Her smile wide. And she’ll finally be relaxed. And then I’ll have to watch her smile drop, her eyes too, and I’ll know it’s because she was staring at me instead of him.

I’ve done a lot of shitty things, lived through hell over and over again with my family, and I’d suffer through all of them for an eternity just so I don’t have to see the sadness on her face and the utter disappointment that I’m the wrong guy.

Fuck, I don’t even know how to do this.

I send a quick text to Junior, Maksim, Ash, Valerian, and Tank.

Me: I’ve literally forgotten how to have sex.

Of course, Valerian responds right away, the shit.

Valerian: Slot A goes into Slot B, rub a dub dub, thanks for the grub, yay God!

Me: The fact that you even get laid is staggering to me…