Kaylee had mentioned to Rafe more times than she could count that she wanted him to stay with her. She hadn’t been specific about what exactly she wanted of him, but the longing inside of her was a burning flame, her core ached, and she wanted him to know how deeply she cared about him, even if they were only together for one night before they had to say goodbye.
“I want to stay,” Rafe admitted. “I just... .” He wasn’t looking at her again. “I’m afraid to, Kaylee.”
“You’re afraid you’ll hurt me?” she asked.
He nodded. “And I’m afraid I’ll hurt myself.”
“What do you mean?” She couldn’t even hazard a guess at what he meant by that statement.
He cleared his throat and looked away from her again. “Kaylee, I do not think that your parents would ever approve of me as a proper suitor for you.”
“What?” Now, she was truly having difficulty believing the words he was speaking to her. “Certainly you aren’t serious, are you?” she asked. “I’ve already told you, my parents have told me my entire life that I may do as I wish when it comes to whom I marry.”
“Yes, well, that’s all fine and good in theory, but when one is actually faced with accepting someone such as myself as a son-in-law and heir to a throne, well, other factors must be considered.”
“Other factors?” she repeated, sliding her hand down his chest so that it was resting just above his navel. “What do you mean?”
“I mean… not only is it a known fact amongst all of the other royals that my family is full of tyrannical lunatics, but there’s also the fact that I’ve all but abdicated the throne, practically leaving the kingdom to those same lunatics.”
“Your sister isn’t a lunatic,” Kaylee pointed out.
“No, but she’s horribly bitter. Not only does she hate my mother for taking the life of our sister, but she’s also angry at both of us for the way we handled her abduction.”
He had mentioned that several times. “I’m not clear on that, Rafe. Please, tell me what happened.”
He shook his head, but not in a manner that made her think he was refusing to tell her. After all, he’d already disclosed what had to be the most difficult story he could possibly ever tell. “When Angelica was originally taken, I wanted to fight. I ignored Leopold’s request for ransom and led our army up the mountain to attempt to free her by force. My mother and all of our counselors said I may as well just go ahead and bury over half the men in the ground right then and there, that there was simply no way I could take the castle. And as I’ve already explained to you, they were right. I couldn’t take it. I lost thousands of men. I had to come back and scrape together the ransom. We had enough in our coffers to pay it, but Mother didn’t want to. She requested that the people pay to ransom their princess. That took far longer than it would have if we’d just opened our own purses and pulled out the money. Even if she would’ve raised taxes to reimburse us, we would’ve had Angelica back much more quickly if we would have just paid it ourselves.”
“How long was she gone?” Kaylee asked, wondering if her father and King James would elect to pay or to go in and hunt Leopold down. She had a feeling she knew the answer already.
“Months,” he said, which wasn’t specific, but it was the best answer she would get. “And the entire time that she was gone, she was in danger of losing her life or of being mistreated by those unscrupulous men.”
Kaylee remembered what Angelica had said about Leopold protecting her from the others. It seemed ironic that someone so evil would treat his prisoner with such respect when it came to her virtue.
She prayed Jenna was just as lucky when it came to that. At least her cousin had only been gone a few days and not months as Angelica had been.
“You believe that my father would hold that decision against you?” Kaylee asked. “Why would he? I’ll be stunned if he doesn’t make the same decision himself.”
“Yes, but your father’s army is known to be the strongest in the world, so chances are, if he decides to attack Leopold’s holdings, he’ll be able to break through and be successful.”
“I highly doubt that your army is so much more incapable than my father’s that he would have such a drastically different outcome than the one you experienced,” Kaylee argued.
Rafe shrugged. “I haven’t had nearly the military experience that your father has. Nor did I have anyone to train me. My father knew nothing of war, and my grandfather was always off fighting them. Everything I knew about waging war up until that point had come from reading books--often about your father’s campaigns, but never experiencing them myself.”
Kaylee wasn’t sure what else she could say. She felt as if she were begging him to give her a chance so that she could prove her feelings for him and show him that they could be happy together, but it seemed pointless for her to continue to do so, almost ludicrous, if she was honest with herself. “Rafe, I know my parents, and I know that they say what they mean, and they mean what they say. If you don’t have feelings for me, that’s one thing. But if you honestly are afraid to act on feelings you do have because you think that my parents will reject you--or that I will--that simply will not happen, I assure you.”
He turned and looked at her then, and she could see the question in his eyes as he tried to determine whether or not what she was saying was accurate. Kaylee opened her mouth to say something more, but she didn’t get to finish as Rafe’s mouth came down on hers.
He took her breath away; Kaylee let him. Her hands slid up to tangle into his hair as he turned to face her, pulling her close to him. His hands trailed from her waist up to her ribcage and slightly higher. The need she’d felt flaming in her core for so long flared up again; how badly she wanted him. She couldn’t even express how desperate she was to throw herself backward onto the bed and drag him down on top of her.
Rafe’s mind seemed to be flowing in the same direction. His mouth slid from hers to her neck as his hand finally raised to her breast. She was wearing entirely too many layers of clothing, but as his thumb pressed against her most sensitive area, even with her dress and all of her underclothes on, the tingling sensation of pleasure he generated caused her to groan softly into his mouth.
Clothing began to come off. He took his time; she wasn’t sure how much longer she could last, but concentrating on every touch, every sensation stoked the fire within her. Unhooking her dress and removing it, as well as her boots and his, all of the layers she wore beneath her gown, his belt, and vest… it all took too long. With every passing moment, Kaylee wondered if he’d change his mind.
He had her down to her shift, and he was only wearing his breeches. Kaylee ran her hands across his chest. Chiseled muscle tapered down to sculpted abs and a perfect V that formed just above the waistband of his white undergarment. His skin was smooth except for a few places where scars told stories she had yet to hear. Kaylee wrapped her arms around him, running her palms along the rock-hard muscle of his back.
With her shift still on, Rafe guided her back on the bed so that she was lying on the pillows. The anticipation she’d been feeling for days mingled with nervousness. She’d never been with a man before. It had never even crossed her mind to want to be with any of the men she’d known before Rafe, but with his mouth on her neck and his hands roaming her body, she had no doubt in her mind that she wanted him inside of her now.
Rafe’s hips were between her knees, only the thin fabric of her lifted gown between the two of them, and she could feel his hardened manhood between her legs with only his breeches and her skirt between them.
He lifted his head to look into her eyes. With her heart hammering in her chest, she met his gaze. He asked her a question without words. Kaylee had no doubt what her answer was. She slid her hand down his chest, flittering her fingers across his abdomen and lower.
The length and hardness she found there was both exhilarating and intimidating. Would she even be able to fit someone of his size inside of her? She had no idea, but she was ready to find out. The ache in her core was unbearable, and she could feel a wetness on her thighs she’d never experienced before.
Rafe lowered himself back down but off to the side a bit. Her legs were still spread, but he wasn’t between them, nothing but his hand. He ran his fingers along her thighs, one and then the other. Kaylee closed her eyes, willing him to touch her where that deep ache had formed.
He had to have anticipated her longing. The feel of his fingers on her most intimate place left her gasping. At first, he only touched her between her folds, but then, he slid a finger inside of her. Kaylee bit down on her bottom lip, wanting more. He slid in and out of her, stretching her, lifting his hand to rub against her nub until she was moving her hips against his hand, panting and moaning. If his hand was capable of leaving her so breathless, what could he do with his cock?
With his other hand, Rafe moved the top of her shift down, exposing her breasts. His lips clamped down on one of her nipples, and she let out an ethereal moan. Her hands wrapped around the back of his head, and she pressed down, urging him on. He had more fingers inside of her now--two or three, she wasn’t sure--and Kaylee felt her mind going fuzzy with the waves of pleasure pulsing through her. Rafe lifted his head from her breasts and kissed her deeply before he removed his hand, leaving her feeling empty.
He wasn’t finished, though. She could tell by the way he was kissing her. He lifted off the bed, and she imagined he had to be removing his breeches. Letting go of her mouth, he pulled her shift up and over her head. They were naked together, and more than anything, Kaylee wanted him inside of her.
He lowered his head to her ear and asked, “Are you certain, Princess?”
Forming words was not as easy as one would think, but she managed to gasp out, “Ye-yes.”
He accepted her answer. His hand on her cheek, Rafe kissed her deeply and lowered himself on top of her, swiveling his hips between her knees and plunging inside of her.
A pain shot through her as he pushed through her barrier for the first time, but after a moment, as he began to move his hips, thrusting in and out of her, the pleasure replaced the pain, and Kaylee found herself moving with him, lifting her hips and rocking against him.
The two of them continued to create a rhythm together as wave after wave of pleasure washed over Kaylee. Her thoughts became fuzzy, and all she could think about was the intense feeling of euphoria radiating all through her body. When she couldn’t handle it anymore, she cried out, holding onto Rafe’s broad shoulders and trying to keep the air in her lungs. A few seconds later, he joined her, grunting and groaning as he filled her with his seed.
Once he was finished, Rafe removed himself from between her legs but didn’t move away from her. He brushed her hair away from her damp forehead. Beads of perspiration dotted his brow as well. “Are you all right, Princess?”
Kaylee nodded. “Yes, Your Majesty. I’m… wonderful.”
Rafe smiled at her and kissed her. Kaylee never wanted to leave his embrace. He pulled the blankets from beneath them and wrapped her up in his arms. Kaylee nestled her head onto his shoulder and closed her eyes, hoping that this wasn’t the only night she’d fall asleep in Rafe’s embrace.