She could feel him lower their speed and allow the boat to drift slightly.
‘This firework display is not one to be missed, trust me.’
‘There’s no need to stop just for my benefit,’ she said quickly.
‘Consider it part two of my apology.’
He guided her to the sun deck and pulled two cushions from the built-in sofa, laying them on the cold tiled floor. It was slippery with mist, and just a little chilly, but as a cascade of golden lights began to spread across the inky black sky she knew she wouldn’t have changed the night for anything.
After the final booming red spinning wheels had faded into the air, she turned to see he was watching her intently. She took in the heat in his gaze and knew he was battling with the aftermath of that kiss just as she was. She had never wanted to be kissed again more in her life.
‘We should be getting back,’ he rasped, his eyes not leaving hers.
‘I’m really tired of doing what I should do all the time.’ She licked her lips, silently urging him to give in one more time to the madness between them.
‘Olivia...’ He shook his head a fraction, lowering his eyes from hers.
She reached out to lay her hand just under the collar of his shirt, knowing she was being brazen but needing to do something. To show him in definite terms what her mind was struggling to convey with words.
He took her hand in his, lowered it back to her lap. ‘You’re not the only one who has to live by the rules,’ he said quietly. ‘Sometimes they are there to stop us from getting in too deep where we don’t belong.’
‘I am a grown woman, Roman. If I decide to take a leap into something unknown, you’d better be sure that I’ve got my reasons.’
‘You might think you know what you want—’
Olivia stood quickly, looking down at him. ‘I told you that I won’t be spoken for again,’ she warned him, feeling her temper bubble to the surface as she alternated between wanting to hit him and wanting to beg him to take her into his arms.
‘Speak, then,’ he said plainly, sitting back to look up at her. ‘What is it that you want?’
‘It’s more what I don’t want,’ she said. ‘Being here—away from the bubble of royal life—being with you...’ She took a breath, urging the words out, needing to say them even if he simply walked away.
Roman shook his head, not giving her a chance to continue as he jumped to his feet and moved back downstairs to start up the engine once more.
The rest of their journey back to the island was silent and tense, unspoken words heavy in the air between them. She wanted to ask him if he still planned to take her back to the palace tomorrow. If he still believed that she should go ahead with the marriage.
The Jeep ride was bumpy, and all too quickly they were standing in the dim empty hallway of the villa. Jorge must have closed up for the night and headed off to his quarters on the opposite side of the island.
‘Goodnight, Olivia.’
Roman’s voice was dark and final as he made to walk away from her.
‘Wait,’ she said quietly. ‘I’ve realised something.’
He turned around, crossing his arms over his chest as he waited for her to speak.
Olivia cleared her throat, suddenly feeling very much on show. ‘I’ve realised that I don’t want to walk away from my kingdom, and if marrying a stranger is the way to keep it safe then perhaps that’s what needs to be done.’
She took a deep breath, wondering if that was relief or disappointment that flickered momentarily across his features. She couldn’t tell in the dim hallway.
‘You are quite the sacrificial lamb,’ he said quietly, with not a hint of emotion in his tone. ‘So you plan to return to the palace and accept the marriage?’
‘I’ve decided to return, yes. And face the situation like an adult, at least.’ She met his eyes, challenging him in the darkness. ‘But I can’t fully commit to the marriage knowing there is one thing I have yet to experience in life.’
‘I thought you ran away because there were many things you hadn’t experienced?’ he said, sarcasm dripping from his tone.
‘There is only one that truly matters to me. I cannot agree to an arranged marriage without allowing myself to experience one of the things I truly have control over.’
His gaze was pure heat as he moistened his lips with one smooth flick of his tongue. She felt heat spread down through her veins and pool in her stomach. If a simple look could make her feel this way, she needed to know what else he could make her feel. It was suddenly the only thing she wanted.