“I don’t understand what just happened.” Her voice emerged like the whisper of a ghost.
Blyad.She could’ve been truly harmed.
“It seems pretty clear to me.”
It made perfect sense that the Sheikh’s brother was the cause of that shootout. He would have access to his itinerary and his movements. But he’d gotten bolder in his attempt to snatch Roya, going after her in broad daylight at such a public place and with her father in attendance. Unless I’d just foiled an assassination attempt. In which case, maybe I should’ve let it play out.
Not at the risk of Roya’s life.
No more words were spoken between us. At the hotel, I parked, loped to her side, escorted her out. Konstantin waited at the elevator, holding the door open.
“It’s all clear here,” he murmured before leaving the elevator to us.
He’d get a full debrief from the team that had accompanied us to the Autodrome, and I’d expect more intel later.
Now, I whisked Roya to the penthouse, needing to make sure she really was safe.
As soon as we stepped into the vestibule, I led her to the sofa. “You need a drink.”
I brought her both water and the whiskey she seemed to prefer, shooting back some vodka myself.
Instead of sitting, she paced around, nursing the alcohol. Nursing fear and fury too, it turned out.
After slamming her tumbler onto an end table, she stomped over to where I stood gauging her every reaction.
“How could you?” she snapped.
I barely had time to put my drink down before she punched me. On my shoulder, my upper arm, then a pretty decent hit to my midsection.
None of which hurt me.
I let her hit me one more time—a ringing slap to my face that finally engaged my equal rage—before wedging an arm around her waist. I drew her to me as she continued to struggle.
I sneered at her. “How could I what? Save your life? Again?”
“I probably wouldn’t have been in danger if it wasn’t for you in the first place!”
“That is bullshit,” I bit the words out harshly, and maybe they sank in because she quieted.
She leaned into me, her whole body shaking, whether from shock or anger or something else I didn’t know.
Rubbing a hand between her shoulder blades, I dropped my chin to the top of her head. “Poor girl—”
“Don’t call me that.” She recoiled with a vengeance. “I am a grown woman.”
“Yes. You are. And Daddy has never let you use your brains and talent, has he?”
“Neither have you,” she hissed, those bright sparks of light in her otherwise black eyes.
Blyad.She was magnificent.
I much preferred this fiery, tempestuous woman to the meek thing she became in the Sheikh’s overbearing presence.
“I have kept you locked up only to keep you safe,” I admitted in a gravelly undertone.
My cock had started getting hard for her the moment she lit into me with her little fists. Now my erection ached, my fingers itched, my nostrils flared.
Getting aroused came easily with Roya.
She provoked me like none other. Featured in my nastiest fantasies.
I’d wanted her for revenge.
Now I just wanted to fucking claim her. With my body. My scent. My cock.
“So you say.” Her hair whipped around her face as she snarled beautifully.
“Because you’re so savvy, I’m going to give you three chances to guess what I’m going to do to you now, prinkípissa.”
But before she could make her first attempt, I pulled her into my embrace.
I dropped my mouth over hers with no ceremony, the blatant urge to conquer taking over any pretense at civility.
After carrying her to the bedroom, I lowered her to her feet. I dragged my lips away, lastly touching the tip of my tongue to the corner of her mouth.
Then I circled her neck with my whole hand to let her feel the strength of my touch on her, and her lids dropped low as a ragged breath expelled from her.
“What do you think I’m going to do to you, Roya?” I felt her pulse jump beneath my palm. “I want you to look at me when you tell me. Always look at me.”
Glowing irises lifted although her eyelids still drooped heavily. “Probably spank me. You seem to have a fondness for that.”
I grinned, dropping my palm to one breast that I cupped softly. “Wrong. Unless you mouth off too much, that is.”
When I tweaked her puffy nipple with my fingers, she swayed.
“Guess number two?” I moved my hand to her waist, hauling her to me so she could feel the enormous hard-on pressed against her belly.
Her lashes fluttered, but she held my gaze. “Gag me? So I can’t get too mouthy.”
Arousal spiked hard inside me, but I couldn’t contain a laugh. Her fierce wit, her fighting spirit were everything.
“Incorrect.” I lightly bit her bottom lip before tracing the flesh with my tongue. “One more guess, Roya.”
“Are you . . . are you going to fuck me?” she asked haltingly.
Pivoting her around, I grinded my cock into her thick ass. “Do you want me to?”