Fighting With the Infuriating Prince (5 page)

And with that, she turned and trotted down the barely-there pathway towards the fortress.  She would pack her bags and get away before Tasir came back.  She definitely didn’t want to run into an angry Tasir again.  He’d looked livid a moment ago.

But she still couldn’t ignore the amazing feeling she had as she rode up to the fortress stables.  And to be fair, that feeling was all because of his lovemaking.  If there was any way to be married to the man but keep him from speaking, from ruining that amazing sense of well-being after their sexual interactions, she might consider marriage to him.  Unfortunately, enjoying being in his arms was no reason to get married. 

Okay, so yes, they’d had a very interesting conversation.  But when it came right back down to the real world, he’d reverted right back to being a domineering, arrogant bully. 

A few hours later, she still hadn’t been able to locate her father.  She was packed up and ready to leave, but she needed to explain to him what was going on, to give him an explanation for why she had to leave in a hurry. And every moment that it took her to locate him meant that there was a larger chance that she might run into Tasir. 

Just like this morning, she meant to avoid him.  The more she thought about this afternoon, the angrier she became.  How dare he simply declare that they would be married!  Who did he think he was?  He definitely wasn’t her father!  He was only her lover!  And no longer even that! 

She was practically stomping into one of the salons as she thought about his obnoxious declaration while they were getting dressed.  She had been told that her father was entertaining someone in this room but, once again, he was no longer here.  There was evidence that he had been here at one point but no longer. 

“I’ve been looking for you!” Tasir growled as he walked into the salon, closing the door behind him.  “What the hell did you mean about us not getting married?”

Jalayla swung around, her eyes wide as she watched the man approach.  She had her hands behind her back as she leaned against the table, her eyes looking into those of a very angry, very frustrated man.  “I didn’t think that needed any clarification, Tasir.”

He towered over her, looking down into her nervous, brown eyes.  “You were a virgin.  We’re getting married.”

Her mouth fell open for a moment before she could close it again.  “You want to marry me simply because you were my first lover?”

His jaw clenched at her question.  “I will be your only lover, Jalayla.  Get that through your pretty head.”

She shook her head at his stubborn and unreasonable declaration.  Of course, if he wanted to marry her for other….no, there was no reason for the two of them to ever be alone together.  She just had to get away from him before her confused mind started to convince herself that she had feelings for this man.  Because she didn’t!  They were good in bed together.  That’s it!  “You’re too domineering to even understand why we can’t marry each other!” she came right back.

He shook his head and a slow smiled formed on those normally hard lips.  “You like being dominated.  Want me to prove it?”

Her eyes widened and she felt her body tighten with his words.  Did she like it?  Well, she’d definitely liked everything he’d done to her earlier today.  And if she were honest with herself, she’d been pretty enthralled with the way he’d touched her last night.  But did she like his overbearing manner?  Maybe she just liked his experience, she cautioned herself. 

She glanced to her left, but he was already anticipating her attempt to escape and he whipped an arm around her waist.  “Not going to happen, princess,” he said and lifted her up onto the table she’d been holding onto.  He quickly slid her demure skirt up on her legs as he spread her knees and pressed his hips between her legs.  He heard her gasp and looked down, noticing that her nipples were hard and peaked, pressing against the silk of her blouse.  “I could take you right now,” he growled as his teeth gently bit her ear lobe. 

She liked the thought of that!  How was that possible?  She was a strong, confident woman and yet, here she was, breathing hard because this man was looming over her, the promise of that amazing release so temptingly close. 

“No!” she countered, trying very hard to fight the pull of his body.  She kept her hands flat on the table, her face turned away.  But her head tilted, giving him more access to her neck.  And of course, he took advantage of that. 

His hands were already sliding up her legs, setting off all of those tingling sensations.  “Tell me to stop,” he coaxed but he bit her shoulder right at the edge of her sleeveless top, soothing it with his tongue and lips afterwards.  “Tell me you don’t like this.” 

His hands moved up underneath her blouse to cup her breasts and he pushed her shoulders back slightly so that she had to put her hands behind her or fall backwards.  When his fingers slipped underneath her bra, his fingers teased her nipples.  “You don’t like this, do you?”

She trembled, her legs opening wider for him, that ache starting up again.  “I don’t like you,” she corrected.

He chuckled softly against her ear.  “Yes you do,” he argued.  “You love arguing with me, like we did last night.”  His fingers moved down her stomach, “Right before you came apart in my arms.”  And his hands moved up her thighs, his fingers hesitating at the lace edge of her underwear.  “Tell me to stop and I will.”

She felt his hands move away and grabbed his wrist, her eyes begging him to keep going.  He’d gotten her to the point of no return in only minutes and she thought she might just melt into a puddle of need if he stopped now. 

His eyes showed his triumph but his hands came back to her legs.  “Put your hands behind your back,” he commanded. 

She hesitated and he pulled his hands away.  When she realized what he was going to do, she quickly pressed her palms onto the polished wood of the table behind her.  “Please,” she begged, her knees lifting up to more perfectly cradle his hips. 

“Don’t you ever tell me you don’t like this, Jalayla,” he told her with a harsh whisper.  “You were made for me and I can’t get enough of you.”  With those words, her lace underwear was ripped apart and he stuffed the material into his pocket.  She whimpered when his hands weren’t touching her but he was quick to move them back.  But he teased her, his movements soft and light when she needed firm action. 

Her head fell back against her shoulders when she felt his fingers move inside of her.  Just one at first, but then she felt the second one slip in and she inhaled, trying to make room for his long fingers. 

“Say my name, Jalayla,” he commanded.

She opened her mouth but when she hesitated, his fingers stopped moving.  Her eyes flew open and she almost yelled, “Tasir!  Your name is Tasir!”

With that, his fingers moved again, his thumb coming into play and her head fell backwards again. 

With deft movements, Tasir unzipped his pants and slid his erection in where his fingers had just been, his eyes closing as her heat enveloped him.  Slowly, he filled her up, watching her face to make sure he didn’t hurt her.  He’d been pretty rough earlier today and he was worried about her tender tissues.  But she didn’t seem to be too tender.  In fact, she lifted her legs up, taking him deeper into her body.  His hands grabbed her hips and pulled her closer to the edge of the table.  “Lay back against the wood, Jalayla,” he commanded. 

She immediately followed his order and was rewarded by him moving against her, in and out, his body giving hers exactly what she wanted, what she needed.  He felt the tension in her and knew what she was trying to do, to hold back and not give in to the amazing feelings but he wasn’t going to allow that.  His hand moved from between her breasts, still covered with silk, down over her soft stomach until he reached that bundle of nerves.  With barely a touch, she splintered apart and he quickly followed, feeling it all the way down to his toes. 

They stayed like that for a long time, both of them breathing heavily as they stared into each other’s eyes.  She smiled, her hand coming up to touch his jaw and he smiled back at her before turning to nip at her fingertips.  “You’re beautiful,” he told her. 

Jalayla laughed softly.  “I’m a mess,” she countered. 

He shook his head, but as he did that, his eyes caught on the sunlight coming in from the window behind her.  It suddenly occurred to him where they were and what they’d just done.  He hadn’t even locked the door!

She heard him mumble something under his breath and a moment later, he was gently lifting her up to a sitting position once again.  Jalayla looked around, her eyes focusing once again and she realized where they were, that someone could have walked in on them at any point. 

“Good grief!” she gasped and stepped back from him, straightening her clothes quickly.  “Give me back my underwear,” she hissed as she tucked her silk blouse back into her skirt.

“No,” he replied and moved closer, hindering her efforts to present a calm and sophisticated front. 

“What are you doing?” she tried to step back but he only pulled her closer by wrapping his arms around her waist. 

“You say you don’t like being dominated.”

She glared up at him, her palms laying flat against his chest.  “You’re right.  I don’t.”

“Okay, then come to my room tonight.  You can be in charge.”  He bent down lower and looked into her brown eyes.  “And in the end, you’re going to admit the truth, understand?”

She had been trying to wiggle out of his arms but when he threw out that tantalizing offer, she stopped and looked up into his darker eyes.  “I can be in charge?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper as she thought about all the things she would like to do to him.  Just like down at the creek, she could have the freedom to explore, to tantalize to her heart’s content? 

“After dinner,” he told her, bending down and kissing her hard.  “Come to my room.  You know the way.”

With that, he walked out of the salon, leaving Jalayla to stare at the open door but she didn’t really see anything.  She was so intrigued by the suggestion that she could barely think about anything else for the rest of the day.  She didn’t unpack, but neither did she find her father and tell him that she was leaving. 

Dressing carefully for dinner that night, she chose a simple cocktail dress instead of a longer, more formal outfit.  And she only put on diamond earrings, trying to keep things unfussy.  Her black dress was made of silk, which added a bit of a sheen to the outfit, and she wore a pair of heels that gave her confidence as well as a bit more height. 

She wanted to look sophisticated and elegant.  Definitely not like she was anticipating a night of wickedness in a man’s bed.  But the moment she stepped into the drawing room where her father, Tasir and Tasir’s father were having a pre-dinner drink, she knew that she wasn’t going to be able to pull it off.  As soon as she looked up into Tasir’s dark eyes, she could feel her cheeks turning pink.  She wasn’t even sure if the blush was caused by anticipation for the night to come, or embarrassment at all that they had done earlier in the day. 

And her discomfiture was made even more pronounced when he looked down at her, even while he was flanked by her father and his, and had the audacity to wink at her!  The damned man knew how much she was anticipating tonight! 

It didn’t matter.  She couldn’t even rouse up a bit of anger at his wicked glances. She was just too excited. 

And dinner lasted forever!  There was a long, drawn out and almost angry discussion about some sort of shipping contract that the older men were arguing about.  She didn’t understand most of it, but it sounded like a simple solution would be to compromise on the shipping routes although neither parent was willing to do so.  It was an odd conversation and one in which neither Tasir nor she participated. 

When the main course was taken away by the ever-efficient servants, she excused herself, saying she was exhausted from the day. 

The men all stood as she walked out but she only felt Tasir’s eyes on her back.  She carefully closed the doors to the dining room and made her way to her own room.  Once there, she slid out of the dress and pulled on another silk nightgown.  None of her nightwear was of the flirtatious style, but she had several that made her feel pretty.  And he hadn’t seemed to mind what she was wearing last night. 

But when she’d finally dressed and was pacing her room, she wondered what in the world she was doing!  She looked down at herself, clad only in a thin, silk nightgown and her body obviously was primed for yet another sexual encounter with Tasir. 

She pushed her hair back off of her head, trying to get a grip on what she was planning, what she anticipated.  How crazy was she?  She should have just left this afternoon and sent her father a message.  She was absolutely not going to do this tonight! 

She paced back and forth, her brain telling her to stop thinking about going to his room tonight, to simply go to sleep and forget about the whole challenge.  But her body wasn’t going to allow her ignore the pull of the dare. 

It was almost eleven o’clock when she sighed and sat down on her bed.  Did she want to do this?  Yes.  Was it a horrible idea?  Absolutely!  Was she going anyway? 

Yes. 

She stood up and took a deep, calming breath.  Once she saw him, she wouldn’t be this nervous.  Right? 

She slipped through the secret hallway, her hand shaking as it held the flashlight.  With each step, she told herself to go back, to run away and ignore the pull that was Tasir.  But she didn’t follow her brain’s orders.  When she felt the click on the door to his room, she took a deep breath and slipped through.