The Prince's Forbidden Lover (The Samara Royal Family #3) (13 page)

“Are you ready?” Rais asked when she finished the last bite of her pasta.  She looked so beautiful as she sat across the table from him, relaxed and smiling, laughing at silly sibling antics.  He enjoyed her like this.  She was more beautiful without all the stress weighing her down.

“Ready for what?” she asked sleepily. 

“Ready for our next stop on the evening’s agenda,” he explained, smothering a laugh because the wine really had relaxed her a great deal. 

“I think my next stop should be my bed,” she told him, propping her chin up on her raised hands.  “I’m falling asleep.”  She emphasized that point with a yawn, her hand delicately covering her mouth.  “I’m so sorry!” she gasped, but she didn’t look sorry.  She looked sweet and delectable. 

“That’s the stop after this one,” he promised.  Standing up, he took her hand and lifted her out of her chair.  “Come along, sleeping beauty.  This will be quick, I promise.” 

She sighed but allowed him to lead her out of the restaurant and back into the limousine.  “I could really get used to this,” she said happily as he stepped into the back next to her.  “Fighting the crowds on the subway can be brutal!”

“No more subways for you, my little woman,” he told her.  “Not safe for you any longer.”

“Oh, it’s fine,” she said, waving away his worries.  “Women travel along the subways all the time without anyone bothering them.  Besides, I don’t go into any of the more dicey areas of the city.  So I’m pretty safe.”

“Subways are not safe for future princesses.”

He ignored her snort of laughter and nodded to his driver when the door was once again opened for them.  “Come along, princess.  You have a choice to make.”

Joline sighed but allowed him to tug her out of the vehicle.  “You really are a handsome man,” she told him as she looked up into his hard profile. 

Rais looked down into her beautiful hazel eyes, surprised by her compliment.  But he only wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her against him as they walked into the exclusive jewelry store.  The manager had already been informed of their visit and had closed the shop in anticipation.  On the countertop, there was a large black display of diamond rings already laid out, sparkling in the overhead lights and looking more astounding than anything she’d ever seen in her life.  “Pick one,” he said and gestured to the startling array. 

“Pick what?” she asked, leaning her head against his chest. 

Rais chuckled a bit but he was enjoying this softer, more affectionate side of Joline.  Normally, she was pulling away from him, telling him that they shouldn’t, couldn’t and wouldn’t be together.  A tipsy Joline was more malleable, and, in some ways, more honest.  “A ring.”

Joline looked down at all of the lovely rings and gasped.  “Oh my!  Those are gorgeous!”

Not as gorgeous as she was, he thought.  “Which one do you like the most?”

She shook her head.  “Oh, I couldn’t ever afford anything like those rings.”

Rais lifted one eyebrow, ignoring the manager who was standing stiffly behind the counter.  “Choose one, Joline.”

Joline had been up since about five o’clock this morning after having about five hours of sleep.  In fact, she’d only gotten four or five hours of sleep for the past several nights.  Add a few glasses of wine and yummy, cheesy pasta and she’d garnered just enough courage to defy him openly.  “No,” she said simply and crossed her arms over her chest, plopping down onto one of the tufted seats.  “I’d like you to bring me home so that I can get some sleep,” she told him with her most disdainful tone of voice.

Rais could see the dark circles under her eyes and wanted to laugh at how charming she looked as she tried to argue with him.  “Fine,” he told her and turned towards the rings.  He looked over the selection and picked one up, looked down at Joline’s hands and almost chuckled again when she curled her fingers underneath her arms. 

But he was not to be deterred.  He selected another one and took her hand, ignoring the way she tried to hide her hands behind her back.  With very little effort, he slid the diamond ring onto her finger.  “She also needs real diamond earrings,” he told the manager.  He looked down at Joline as he said, “My fiancée is not going to be wearing fake jewelry,” he announced.

Joline rolled her eyes as she shrugged her shoulders.  “No one can tell the difference,” she replied back, yawning again.  “These are fine.”  She ignored the muffled gasp of horror from the store manager with those words as she continued to glare up at Rais. 

He pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head, needing to avoid kissing those red lips at the moment or his mind would shift to other priorities.  And she was getting real diamonds, damn it!  “I can tell.”

Joline started to slide the ring off of her finger but froze when he glared at her.  “Don’t you dare,” he told her with a voice that sent a sliver of fear throughout her body.

And that was the end of her defiance.  That tone and the look in his eyes, a look that promised her retribution if she defied him again, tamped down all of her rebellious tendencies.  “This still doesn’t mean we’re engaged.”

“We’re engaged.  I proposed, you have a ring, it is a done deal.”

The manager already had several sets of diamond stud earring sitting on the counter.  Rais’ eyes skimmed over the choices and pointed to one of the medium sized studs.  “Those will do.”  He looked down at her.  “Anything larger and she’d look ridiculous.  You’re too tiny,” he told her but it wasn’t a reprimand, especially since his eyes were skimming over her now, and there was definitely appreciation in that look.

Joline wasn’t sure if she was bristling at his words or trembling at the promise in his eyes.  Either way, she felt the need to correct him.  “I’m not too small.”

Rais was finished arguing with her.  He nodded to the jeweler who vanished, coming back moments later with a box and a receipt.  “Thank you,” the man gushed after Rais had signed the sales slip and ushered them to the door. 

Once back in the limousine, Joline sighed and leaned her head against the back of the soft leather seat.  “I’m so tired and you’re not helping me get any sleep.” 

Rais looked down at the woman and grunted a moment before he pulled her onto his lap.  “You’re too soft, too,” he mumbled, but knew that she was pretty much asleep so she wasn’t going to argue any longer. 

He held her until his chauffeur drove into the underground parking garage of his building.  He had the top three floors of this building, preferring to have his own place here in New York instead of staying at a hotel since he was here on business so often. 

He carried her to the elevators and then up the stairs to his bedroom.  She slept through the whole process, only grumbling slightly when he stripped off her clothes.  She stopped and fell back to sleep when he tucked the blankets around her and she rolled over, curling up and tucking her hands underneath her cheek.  Just that quickly, she was asleep. 

Rais went into his office and made several phone calls.  She was going to get the help she needed, whether she liked it or not, he thought as he told his assistant to get several people lined up for interviews over the next few days.  Until then, his own staff would step in and help Joline out with whatever needed to happen.  He also called Keith and got the name of the building where they were negotiating for the London store, then the property management company informing them that Jesek Designs wouldn’t need the space.  If Joline wanted to open up a London store, she damn well was going to do it in his building.  And she was going to take the terms that he would give her.  She wasn’t going to like it, but she’d deal with it. 

When he was done with his phone calls, he went back into his bedroom and stripped off his own clothes, pulling the bedcovers away and wrapping his arms around her.  When she was once again curled up against him, only then did he fall asleep. 

“Where in the world…?” she whispered as she woke up to the sound of a shower going.  Looking around, she realized that she was once again in Rais’ bedroom.  Pushing her hair out of her eyes, she realized that her hand was heavier than it should be.  Looking down, she gasped when she saw the enormous diamond ring on her finger. 

That’s when things started coming back to her.  Piece by piece, the night before filtered into her brain. 

“This isn’t happening,” she whispered to the empty bedroom.  “No more wine!” she vowed.

The water shut off and Joline knew that she had to move quickly.  But it was only at that moment that she realized that she wasn’t wearing any clothes!  Nor could she see where her clothes had gone.  “I wasn’t that drunk!” she said, looking around.  She remembered batting Rais’ hands away last night and then falling asleep again but surely she hadn’t been so tired and inebriated that she would miss making love with Rais. 

A moment later, the man himself came out of the bathroom with a towel tucked around his lean waist and another rubbing his hair.  When he noticed her sitting up, he dropped the towel from his hand.  “You’re awake,” he said and started walking towards her. 

Joline knew exactly what he was about to do and scooted back on the bed, pressing her back against the pillows.  “Stop right there!” she ordered, lifting her hand.  But the diamond on her finger distracted her and she looked at that instead of judging his distance.  “I can’t keep this ring,” she told him. 

“Yes.  You can,” he countered.  He took her hand in his and started nibbling on the tender pads of her fingers.  “It looks good right where it is.”

She shook her head.  “No.  Don’t…” but then he was right there, taking her hand and pressing it against his chest.  “Oh my,” she whispered, her eyes following her hand as her fingers moved over his skin.  Hot skin.  Smooth, fascinating skin! 

“Damn I love it when you touch me,” he ground out. 

And she loved his voice, she thought.  Her other hand came up and started touching his chest as well, moving along the surface and exploring all of those muscles that she’d felt before but hadn’t had the courage to investigate. 

“You’re hard everywhere,” she commented, her breathing changing from smooth to labored and she felt her body heat up just from this simple touching. 

“I am,” he told her and pulled the other towel away, proving how right her comment really was.

Joline stared at that part of him, amazed at how large it was.  And how fascinating.  Her fingers moved lower, following the trail down from his chest to…lower.  “Can I?” she asked, not able to say the words.

“I think I might just die if you don’t,” he told her.  His eyes closed when her fingers wrapped around the length of him.  She was tentative at first, but when his hands closed over her fingers and he showed her how he liked to be touched, she pushed herself up onto her knees, wanting to learn more, to experience more.  She’d read about how women would take that part of a man into their mouths and Joline didn’t hesitate.  Bending down, she let her lips close over him and almost laughed with delight when she felt his hands bury themselves in her hair.  “Ah love,” he groaned. 

She loved the way he sounded right now.  Unfortunately, he didn’t give her enough time to truly enjoy her newfound freedom.  One moment, she was tasting him and the next, she was on her back and he was spreading her legs.  “My turn,” was all the warning she was allowed before he was reciprocating.  And goodness, he knew what he was doing far better than she did! 

Perhaps it was because she’d slept in his arms or maybe it was his voice or even how she’d pleasured him, but it took only a few moments of his tongue laving at her core before she was exploding in a mind-drugging climax that made her throat sore from her cries.  She’d barely recovered from that before she felt him press into her heat and the whole storm started up again, slower this time but still insistent.  All she could do was hang onto his muscular shoulders as he moved and shifted inside of her, filling her with so much pleasure she thought she would happily die in his arms. 

When she screamed out again and held onto him as he found his own release, she thought she really had died and gone to heaven. 

When it was all over, he collapsed down on top of her and she wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him close to her, afraid that letting him go would mean never experiencing this kind of bliss in his arms again. 

Joline sighed as she held Rais close, wondering what was going on inside of her.  This man was so complicated and yet, he was simple in some ways.  He enjoyed sex and was open and aware of his tastes, not afraid to show her what he wanted.  Which made it easier for her to react to him, release inhibitions that had been brewing for years.  But at the same time, she had no idea what he was thinking or feeling towards her other than sexual desire.  She couldn’t read his features, didn’t understand his motivations and she really wanted to!  She wanted to “get” this man on so many levels.  She wanted to feel comfortable with him, but suspected that would never happen. 

The diamond ring sparkled in the sunlight streaming in through the large windows and she lifted her hand, looking at the ring. 

Rais lifted his head and realized how much weight he had on her.  Rolling over, he knew that she was looking at her new ring.  “It looks perfect on you,” he said, kissing her neck and enjoying the way she wiggled against him. 

Joline wasn’t sure what to say.  The idea of marrying this man was both terrifying and thrilling. 

But he had a strange look on his face and all thoughts of marriage and his complex personality dissipated.  “What’s wrong?” she asked, not sure if she really wanted to know. 

“I’m sorry, Joline,” he commented, hesitating as he looked down at her.  “I didn’t use protection.” 

He felt her freeze in his arms and knew that she was coming to the same realization as he was.  That she could be pregnant. 

“You didn’t…?”

“No,” he shook his head.  “I didn’t do it on purpose.  I promise,” he said to her, his thumb rubbing against her shoulders as he held her close. 

Joline did a quick calculation in her mind, trying to count the days to her next cycle.  When she did the math, she relaxed slightly and gave him a tentative smile.  “I think we’re okay,” she told him.  “It is pretty late in my cycle so the chances of pregnancy are slim.”

Rais wasn’t sure he liked that news.  “Would you be upset if you were pregnant?” he asked softly.  Rolling over, he shifted on the bed so that she was on top of him.  His hands went from her shoulders down to her waist, his thumbs resting on her stomach.  He was obviously picturing her body swelling with their child and he liked the idea. 

Joline shrugged.  “A pregnancy should be something that we both agree on and are excited about.”

“You’re not answering my question.  Would you be upset if you are pregnant?”

She thought about it for a long moment.  “I don’t know,” she told him honestly. 

Her answer revealed more than she’d anticipated telling him.  “You have feelings for me, don’t you?” he asked, his fingers teasing her sensitive skin.  “You’re falling in love with me.”

Joline rolled her eyes.  “You’re making a huge leap.  All I said was that I don’t know if I would be upset about being pregnant.  I could mean that I wouldn’t care if I was pregnant, but that could be with any man’s child.”  She smiled smugly with that response, thinking that she’d effectively put him in his place. 

Little did she know!

His retaliation was swift and intense.  One moment she was straddling his stomach, the next, she was flat on her back with his mouth attached to her breast and the heat was furious.  She arched her back even as her hands grabbed his head, trying to pull him away from that kind of extreme pleasure. 

“Take it back,” he commanded as his head moved to her other breast, suckling and driving her crazy with a need so intense she could barely see straight. 

“I take it back!” she cried out, trying to wiggle out from underneath him.  “I promise, I take it back!”

Rais pulled her hands up over her head as his mouth eased up.  He didn’t move his mouth away, but he kissed her nipple, teasing it now.  He would have smiled at the way she whimpered, but feeling her like this, all stretched out and helpless to his pleasure was driving him crazy.  And the need he could feel in her was only adding to his need to take her and find fulfillment with her body.  He was amazed that this woman could so completely drive him wild in so short a period of time. 

“Tell me you love me,” he coaxed as his hand moved lower on her body.  His mouth followed the path that his hand had taken. 

“No!” she gasped, trying to release her wrists from his grip. 

He laughed softly at her efforts and continued on his downward journey.  “I want to hear those words, Joline.”  And with that, his mouth once again latched onto that part of her that he loved so much.  Well, he actually loved every part of her delectable body but the sight and smell of her here, just like this, drove him mad. 

He wouldn’t let her have her release though.  Every time he knew she was coming close, he would pull away, kiss her thighs or her stomach. 

“Aaaahhh!” she screamed when he did that for the third time.  “Fine!  I love you!” she cried out, desperate for him to let her climax.  “I love you, okay?”

With those words, he moved up her body and, after putting on protection, he slid into her heat, watching her beautiful eyes light up as he deliberately filled her once more.  Slowly, ever so slowly, he started moving inside of her. 

“Tell me again,” he commanded, releasing her arms.  She immediately grabbed his shoulders and lifted her legs, taking him deeper inside of her.

“I love you, you brute,” she sighed and enjoyed the way he filled her, the friction his enormous body created as he moved inside of her.

Rais accepted her words and reached down, helping her over that cliff.  He loved watching her climax like this but her body’s convulsions pulled him over the edge as well.  Holding onto her as gently as he could, he let the waves of pleasure sweep him away until he collapsed next to her, pulling her against his side as they both tried to get their breath back. 

He was leisurely running his fingers up and down her spine, smiling as she shifted against him, when she gasped and sat up.  “What time is it?” she demanded.  Grabbing the sheet, she scooted over to the bedside table where his watch was resting.  “Oh no!” 

She pulled herself off of the bed but since he was still lying there, she couldn’t keep the sheet this time.  She dropped it and hurried into the bathroom.  “Why didn’t you get me up earlier than this?” she demanded as she turned on the water for a shower.  “I’m so late!  I’m usually at the store...”  She stopped and her hand slapped over her face.  “I’m supposed to be at the airport!  I have a ticket to London!  I’m supposed to already be through security by now!”

Rais walked into the bathroom, arriving just in time to see her step under the water.  “You’re not late,” he told her, crossing his arms over his muscular chest as he enjoyed watching her in the shower. 

“Oh yes I am!  I can’t believe I let you hijack me last night!  I should have been working and yet…” she didn’t finish that statement and she pushed her face into the water so that he couldn’t see her blush. 

“You’re flying to London with me today, Joline.  And we’ll leave as soon as we’re ready.  No need to get through security.”  His hands soothed her as he explained, “You’re going to take a look at your new store there and interview managers who will set it up and run it for you while you’re not there.”

Joline looked over at him, blinking back the water droplets that attached to her lashes.  “London?   We’re not ready for a London opening.  I only just narrowed down the possible sites!  I’m meeting with a realtor tomorrow morning.”

Rais stepped into the shower, taking the soap out of her hands and finishing the job.  “You are ready.  You’re just too nervous to follow through on anything.  Take the risk.  Dive in.  I’ll help you with any advice you need.”

He was right!  She’d been searching the internet, scouring the various real estate markets for a London store.  She’d finally decided on the site she wanted, but hadn’t followed through on finalizing the contracts…because she was afraid of the increased risk. 

“The first time I saw you, I wanted to ask you questions about business,” she told him, looking up into his strong features.  He was rubbing the soap all over her body and being so sweet and gentle.  “But I thought it would have been rude.  I didn’t know anything about you except for your reputation in the business world.”

He smiled slightly as he winked at her.  “Now you know me a bit more thoroughly.  Ask me anything.” 

Relaxing against his body, Joline smiled up at him.  “I probably will.”

“And you’ll come to London with me?”

She thought about it for a moment.  She didn’t want him to think she was weak in business.  Not moving forward with the London store, even though she had decided on so many of the details, would be a weak path.  She was going to be strong and confident.  She’d researched all of the details, now she needed to just follow through on her decisions. 

“I’ll have to call and cancel my ticket, but yes.  I’d like to go to London and check out some of the possibilities.  There's one in particular that I was looking at that might work.”