THE KISS WAS deep and so tender that there were tears in her eyes when he finally lifted his head.
‘The first thing I remember is your mouth and kissing you in the car.’
‘You were cruel,’ she remembered. ‘And drunk.’
‘Not really, but I do remember that you looked at me like I was the devil so I played it up a bit.’ His eyes darkened as he curled his fingers round her chin and turned her face up to him. ‘But all the time I was thinking about your mouth.’
She swallowed, feeling dizzy, happiness bubbling up inside her. Could this really be happening? ‘Thinking what?’
‘That it was a total miracle and many…so many things I wanted to do to and with it, and I thought of my brother having that mouth and I wanted to—’ His hand fell away and he inhaled. ‘I felt like hell.’ He gave a twisted smile. ‘Because as you probably realised the honourable stuff is not a natural fit for me. Every time I looked at you I wanted to taste you and every time I tasted you I wanted to do it again, but you belonged to Luis.
‘When he dumped you at the altar I was furious with him—for about ten seconds. Then I was glad, because there was nothing stopping me from having you.’
She lifted a hand to his cheek. He turned his face into it and kissed her palm as she stood there, tears streaming down her face as the words poured out of him.
His blue eyes blazed fiercely, bathing her in the love that shone in them as he took both her hands in his and, bending forward, kissed her again. This time the tenderness tipped over into hunger that made her knees give way.
Sebastian reacted by picking her up and carrying her over to the sofa in the corner of the room, and after pulling her across his knees he carried on kissing her.
Then minutes later, breathing hard, several items of clothing on the floor, she pressed her hand on his chest and shook her head.
‘Why…why now? I’ve been crazy about you for weeks and weeks and you…couldn’t you see that I loved you?’
The breath caught in her throat at the look in his eyes. ‘Say that again!’ he demanded fiercely.
‘I love you, Sebastian.’
He smiled, the fierce tenderness in his face making her head spin as he curved a hand around one side of her face, taking his time to taste every inch of her face before pausing, his nose pressed to the side of hers, their warm breath mingling.
‘You were with me out of duty, not choice. I never forgot that, and I have gone through life telling myself that love was a mugs’ game, I didn’t believe in it, but the truth is,’ he admitted heavily, clenching his teeth as the full level of his stupidity was laid bare for her, ‘I was scared of feeling anything that much. I watched the person I cared for most in the world destroyed by love…’
‘Your mother…’ she breathed, her voice soft with sympathy.
He nodded. ‘I judged her and I was helpless to help her. I never wanted to love anyone again and let them down.’ He gave a hard laugh. ‘I really thought that there was choice involved and then you happened. I have learnt so much being with you and I swear that I’ll always be there—’
She pressed a finger to his lips. ‘Don’t swear—kiss.’
With a growl he responded to the imperious little command and, tipping her under him, he gathered her to him and proceeded to kiss her senseless in the process, losing his own sense also.
* * *
As she moved in his arms and almost fell off the narrow couch her eyes caught sight of the clock on the wall. ‘Oh, my God, look at the time!’ she exclaimed. ‘There’s no need to look so smug.’
‘I feel smug.’ He felt…complete.
‘We’ve been here all afternoon, Seb. We need to get dressed for dinner.’
She was about to draw her legs up to her chin when his hand went to the smooth naked curve of her bottom. ‘You look like a little cat when you stretch.’
‘Seb!’ she pleaded, struggling to inject some reproach and not only throaty appeal into her voice. ‘Dinner…’ She felt a little slug of disappointment when he reacted to the reminder and sat upright.
Sabrina followed suit, mentally calculating how quickly they could make themselves presentable for the formal dinner awaiting them and get back to their suite without anyone noticing how dishevelled they both looked.
‘Should I ring down and tell them we’ll be late dining?’
‘Don’t bother. I’ve already dealt with that.’ He stretched to ease the kinks out of his spine, drawing her eyes to the perfect muscular development of his lean torso. Everything about his body delighted her.
‘You’re totally…’ Their eyes connected; emotion rose in her chest, consolidating into a knot of sheer longing. She had never in her life imagined that loving someone could feel like this, that it could be so all-consuming and the physical aspect so incredible.
And he loved her back…it still felt as though she were living a dream.
‘Looking for these?’ He picked a pair of lacy pants from the table on her side of the sofa and tossed them to her, feeling his libido kick in hard as she straightened and raised a hand, causing her firm breasts to jiggle and sway as she caught them.
‘How organised—and when?’
‘While you were snoring.’
‘I do not snore!’
‘I shall invest in a set of earplugs.’ His eyes were warm as he levered himself lazily from the tumbled bed, reaching for his boxers.
Sabrina watched the play of muscle gliding and bunching under the golden skin of his back as he stood with his back to her pulling his jeans on over his narrow hips.
God, but he was beautiful!
Hand in hand, they walked up the rear staircase that led to their bedroom suite; the sitting-room door was not closed. Inside two maids bobbed curtsies as they entered before one pushed a trolley with a cloth thrown over up to one of the sofas in the room and the other plugged in the large flatscreen TV that rested on the second trolley.
‘We’ll serve ourselves, thank you.’
The maids nodded and vanished.
Sabrina watched as Sebastian lifted the cloth with a flourish to reveal silver domes, which he lifted to inspect the food underneath, filling the room with smells that made her realise how hungry she was.
‘We are going to eat on trays and watch television?’ she said, thinking, How crazy is this? She was feeling the sort of excited incredulity that most women would if their husband said that he’d arranged for them to eat food created by a Michelin-starred chef served on antique china sitting at a table loaded with silver and crystal.
But in her world this was a treat.
‘Isn’t it what people do?’
She nodded, thinking that Sebastian was a billion miles from other people; he was extraordinary!
‘I thought you might like a night off.’
She nodded vigorously.
‘Movie’s your choice, so kick off your shoes—’
She looked down, a smile tugging at her lips as she realised she had walked barefoot down the corridor. ‘I’m not wearing any.’
They had just sat down when the door opened; without warning a figure scanned the room before the King walked in.
When he saw the TV and the trays he could not have looked more shocked had he walked in and found them rolling around on the floor naked. Half an hour earlier and he might have, she thought, hiding a grin.
‘Father.’ Sebastian got to his feet slowly, his casual attitude thinly masking his anger. Seeing it there just below the surface, Sabrina felt her heart sink like a stone. ‘Sorry, if we’d known you were coming we’d have saved you some.’
‘You would possibly have dressed for dinner too?’ The King took a deep breath and shook his head. ‘No, it is none of my business. I accept that things change. I have come to apologise,’ he said stiffly. ‘Some…most of the things you said were right. You are doing a good job. I should have said it before but I… It is hard not to feel needed.
‘Your brother—if he and his family wish to come to the reunification ceremony then I will be glad to see them as my guests. And, Sabrina, I have no objection to you working, and, yes, I agree it will be a good example to set to your daughters and the young women of our country.’ He inclined his head. ‘So I will say goodnight.’
* * *
‘What,’ Sabrina gasped as the door closed, ‘was that?’
‘That, my dearest darling, was hell freezing over—with style, to give the devil his due,’ he added wryly. ‘Now, where were we?’
Sabrina shook her head and pushed him away as he leaned in to kiss her. ‘Luis? Me working? What was all that about?’
‘When I went to Paris it wasn’t for a meeting—I was seeing Luis.’
She drew back, startled. ‘Luis?’
‘Do you mind?’
‘Why would I mind? I would actually love to thank him for dumping me at the altar considering how things have worked out.’
Sebastian grinned. ‘So you’d have no problem with him coming to the reunification ceremony next year?’
‘And your father agreed?’
‘That was quite a climb-down. And quick,’ he admitted. ‘But I think it is the idea of a baby—’
‘Luis is having a baby?’ she exclaimed.
‘Well, not Luis—but, yes, and I think that might be the swing vote. I’m starting to think that Father is getting a little soft in his old age.’
Sabrina gave a sceptical grunt. ‘That is only one part of the mystery. What about me working?’
‘I think he has decided that to have talent in the family firm and not utilise it is a waste—especially when the research is so important.’
‘He has decided?’ She shook her head. ‘What have you been up to, Seb?’
‘Me?’ he said, looking innocent. ‘I had nothing to do with it except to mention the need for further research into dementia and expertise right here.’
‘Oh, my God—truly? Me, work?’ She began to bounce excitedly.
‘I expect you’ll be running the university in a few years.’
‘If having those daughters he was talking about doesn’t get in the way.’
‘What can I say? He’s keen on grandchildren.’
She smiled and looked at him, eyes gleaming through her lashes as she straddled him.
‘And how do you feel about children?’
‘Pretty damn good so long as you’re the mother.’ He let out a low growl and tugged her down onto him. ‘How do you feel about starting now? I’ve heard it can take a while.’
‘In that case, less talk more action, hmm?’
‘Shut up, woman, can’t you see I’m dynasty-building?’
There was very little talking for some time, but a lot of communicating.