Evangeline wanted to do things herself.
Goddamn if I didn’t love that about her.
I took her hand and tugged her into the kitchen. I sat her down before plating her food. Chicken again, with roasted vegetables and black rice.
“What is that? I’ve never seen it before.”
“They call it forbidden rice, because only the Emperor was allowed to eat it. Not exactly Italian, but I like it.”
“It’s beautiful.”
“You’re beautiful,” I said, scooting my chair closer and lifting my utensils. She looked down and finally noticed that I hadn’t given her any.
“What are you doing, Tony?”
I smiled because she had finally called me ‘Tony’.
“Let me feed you. It’s good practice for the cake.”
She looked startled but nodded. Almost like she’d forgotten about the wedding. Forgotten about what we were about to become.
Tied together. For life.
Lock, stock, and barrel.
For the next ten minutes, the room was almost silent. I stared at her gorgeous lips as I fed her bite by bite. She finally shook her head when I offered her one of the last few forkfuls.
It wasn’t a meal. It was foreplay. Extremely frustrating foreplay that wasn’t going to go anywhere. Not as far as I wanted it to, anyway.
She was breathless. We both were. We were staring at each other’s mouth. The tension was so thick you could have cut it with a knife.
I wanted to kiss her.
I’d never wanted anything so much in my damned, godforsaken life.
“Desert,” I offered without moving my eyes from those pretty lips of hers.
“No, thank you,” she breathed. I couldn’t help it. I practically knocked my chair over I stood up so fast. I had her on her feet and in my arms in an instant. She looked surprised as hell in the split second before my mouth crashed down on hers.
A soft sigh escaped her, and I plundered her mouth with my tongue. I wanted to go slow. To be gentle. But I couldn’t.
I didn’t know how the hell I was going to stop myself from taking her. I had to stop. The thing growing between us was still too delicate. I couldn’t get all dominant on her. Not yet. But for right now, I didn’t care about the long game. I just took what I wanted.
As long as her clothes stayed on, I’d be following her rules. I could do a lot through her clothes. I was feeling extremely creative, especially when it came to how to get as close to the beautiful girl in my arms as humanly possible.
I scooped her up, needing more room to work.
“What are you . . .”
She trailed off, staring up at me as I stalked through my suite.
I rejected the couch. Her papers were spread out everywhere. I carried her into the bedroom instead, kicking the door open.
I didn’t put her on the bed. It was too dangerous. If I had all that room, there was no way I wouldn’t end up inside her. I settled her on the big chair that faced the bed instead.
I leaned over her slowly, breathing heavily. I didn’t kiss her. Not yet. Not until I gripped her knees and pulled them wide so I could settle between them.
We both sighed at the contact. At the perfect way we fit. I looked down at the beauty beneath me, gripping her chin. I couldn’t wait another second to kiss her.
I attacked. There was nothing gentle about the kiss. It was pure want. No, it was pure need.
My hands had a mind of their own, seeking, touching, coming close but not touching anything that would set off alarm bells.
I wanted her aching, not panicking. By the time I touched her anywhere intimate, I wanted her begging for it.
I tore my mouth away from hers, my breathing ragged. Her eyes were wide but not frightened. No, she looked glorious.
She looked invigorated. Excited. Curious.
I was more than happy to satisfy her curiosity.
“I won’t ask if you are having second thoughts.”
“About getting married? Or . . . this?”
“Both. Either,” I rasped out. I wasn’t asking. But I wanted to know.
She shook her head, looking away. There was no right answer. She was a realist, but she wasn’t going to lie to me to make me feel better. We both knew there was only one way out of this.
“I could just keep you here,” I murmured, tracing her face with my fingertips.
“I’m not a pet,” she murmured, but she didn’t sound convinced.
“You don’t know what you are yet,” I ground out, breathing like a freight train, staring down at her in utter frustration. I reached down and dragged a fingertip up her inner thigh. “You might be surprised.”
She let out a soft gasp. I decided then and there that she was getting a lesson in unfulfilled desire tonight. Right now.
She wanted to go slow? I could go slow. I could go so slow it made her scream in frustration. I wanted her to beg for me. I needed it.