Damon"No truer words have been spoken." Damon cleared his throat. "Why are you upset with him? What happened?""You know how I feel about your brother, Damon. Or rather how I felt. I'm getting over it.""Yeah, of course, I do. You guys would be-""Don't. I'm not interested in hearing it. He came up to visit, and we had a good time for the weekend, or at least I did. I haven't heard a fucking word from him in seven days. Not 'thanks for letting me crash at your place' or 'I really appreciate you helping me with my contract with Jonathan' or better yet, how about, 'thanks for the all-night fuck. I needed that in my life'.""Wow. Shit. He didn't say anything after you guys spent the weekend together? That's more something I would do than Matt." Damon stood up and brushed his hand down his face. She was destroyed by his brother's ignorance. The stupid bastard was walking around, trying to decide what to do with himself, and here Erica thought that he didn't care. How could Matt not know
Damon"Damn, woman. How much stuff can one person shove into a two-bedroom college apartment? Don't they have rules about this type of hoarding?" Damon glanced over his shoulder and smirked at the pretty girl behind him.Bethany cocked her head to the side and put a hand on her hip, drawing his eyes down to the lovely curve. "I told you we could get a mover to come over and help clean this place out, but nooooo... you wanted to do it instead. All the money in the world and we're spending our Saturday cleaning this place up.""I kinda like seeing you work it." He shrugged and turned back to the stack of boxes in front of him."Work what, exactly?" Her arms slid around him from behind, and the soft press of her breasts against his back had his heart rate accelerating a little."Work anything," he grunted and gripped her hands, pulling them down until she cupped him. "Maybe we should lock the front door and christen this place for the next horny college kids that rent it."Beth's laugh w
DamonDamon licked at the corner of his mouth and stifled a growl. "Did he talk to you about him and Erica?""A little. Not much. He's gotta finish patching things up with her, but you know Matthew. He'll win her heart back with his humor if nothing else." She moved around the large boxes in front of him and reached for the tape. "It's weird packing up Krista's stuff. Do you think she's okay?"He took the tape from her. "She's in the mentally insane ward of the prison, baby. I think she's okay in that no one is going to hurt her there, but she's around people who are far gone mentally. How much interaction is she getting? That would be my question."Beth let out a soft sigh as her head dropped. "I don't know. I should go see her.""I'll go with you." Damon leaned in and touched the bottom of her chin. "Next subject. I'm going to get emotional pneumonia. I was ready to fuck in the parking lot; now I feel like I need to find some Kleenex and a bucket of ice cream for us to share."She l
Bethany"Why do you keep watching me like that?" Beth glanced over at Damon as they walked through the grocery store later that afternoon. Everything hurt from moving hers and Krista's stuff out of their old college apartment. She and Damon had finally decided to move in together, and where she was excited, she was a little nervous too. They were just getting back on track with their relationship, but being in each other's space all the time had to help facilitate that bonding faster. At least she hoped it would."Like what?" He ran his hand up her back and gripped the back of her neck as she leaned over the shopping cart."Like you're going to consume me? You scare people with that look." She turned down another aisle and glanced down at the buggy, finding it a little humorous that Damon liked Cheetos and ice cream. He was beyond fit, his body tight and muscular, and yet the snacks were all his idea."I am going to consume you." He released her and reached up to grab a packet of beef
Bethany"Yes." She grasped his hand and tucked herself against his side. "That poor guy wasn't eye-fucking me. He was just being friendly."Damon laughed sardonically. "You're so innocent. I almost want to put you across my knee and spank you for being blind to what the moron was up to. You gotta protect yourself from other men trying to get your attention, lest I beat up the whole damn city.""Protect myself?" She stopped beside the truck, a little weary as she took in all of the boxes piled in the back. Their evening didn't look at all like it was going to be a relaxing meal, good wine, hot bath and love making. It looked like they'd be unpacking her shit for hours."Yes, Beth." He reached for her, tugging her close and capturing her against his chest with his strong arms. "Philip tried to get your attention, Ben, hell, I'm sure Matt or Kendal would have tried if they didn't know you were mine. You're beautiful, baby. Sexy and feminine." He tightened his hold."Can't breathe," she s
DamonSeven Months Later"James, come on in." Damon moved back and smiled at Linda, his secretary. "Hold all of my calls for the next thirty minutes.""Not a problem, Mr. Bryant." Linda returned the smile and glanced down at her desk.She was a beautiful older woman and should have been married. Crazy how many people had been handed a shitty situation in life and yet seemed to still get up and smile in the face of all of it. He needed to give Linda a raise or take her out to lunch soon. The poor woman put up with a lot of shit, his in particular."How are you, Damon? You look good. Last time we saw each other, you were having lady problems if I recall." James unbuttoned his coat and sat down, the CEO of Zarpeth looking much better than Damon had seen him look in months."I'll always have problems if a lady is involved. It's just the natural evolution of things. You know this." Damon sat down and pressed his forearms to his desk. "Beth and I are getting married in a couple of weeks. Di
Damon"She's got a 4.0, James. Not only is she beautiful, but brilliant as well." Damon reached over and ran his hand down the back of her hair. "And bossy as hell too.""Hey!" She popped him in the chest and extended her hand to James again. "It's nice to meet you. Don't let him tell you any lies about me."James shook her hand. "Something tells me that he wouldn't dare try."Bethany gave a soft laugh and turned, walking out and leaving Damon staring after her. It was weird to feel so many things at once, especially in the middle of his office. It was the only place he was steady, secure, strong. The other parts of his life, it appeared he was that way, but it took a lot of effort to keep up the facade. At the office, he was simply himself. Beth was unraveling that."I like her." James patted him on the back again. "How about when she gets her CPA certificate, we talk about her being my accountant? It's not healthy for you two to work together at M&B, but maybe she can work for me an
BethanyThere was something about James Talling that Bethany liked. He seemed almost like a warm, fatherly figure."What's that smile for? Looks like trouble." Ben glanced up from the large conference room table where he, Philip and Sadie were gathered around his computer."What?" Beth forced her smile to fade - a little. "I just met Mr. Talling. I like him.""Should we inform Damon?" Sadie gave a shit-eating grin. "Kidding."Bethany chuckled. "No, but if we're going to lunch and still trying to make the Accounting Controls meeting at UT this afternoon, we need to get a move on. Who's driving?""Damon coming with us?" Philip stood and twisted his torso as he swung his arms around."No, he's still talking with Mr. Talling, I believe. I'll text him where we are, but he could probably lead the meeting or discussion this afternoon." Bethany reached down and grabbed her purse. "Sadie, you coming with us?"It was almost comical to watch the way the girl's eyes lit up when Bethany spoke dire
LukeWhen a knock sounded on my door a little while later, I glanced at the clock, and my jaw dropped. An hour had already flown by, and I’d checked off several items from my list.“Come in!” I called. Everyone knew that when the door to the study was closed, they were to knock and wait for my approval before entering. It was my sacred space in the palace, and it wasn’t a hard rule to follow. Though, I imagined bending the rules for our child—whenever we got around to having one—since Father had always done so for me.Sophia stood in the doorway for a moment before entering the room.“Hi,” I said to her. “What’s up?”“Do you have a minute?” she asked. Her hands clasped in front of her, as Mother’s normally were. The both of them were turning into clones of each other. I wondered if I should limit their time together or not. The thought made me smile. Neither of them would agree to that. They were two peas in a pod now.“For you? Always.” I stood up and stretched. For the last hour, I
LukeAs I perused the newspaper in front of me, Sophia and Mother discussed some upcoming banquet. Glancing over the top of the paper, I watched my wife of six months calmly eating her breakfast. Tilting my head to the side, I noticed something different about her. I couldn’t quite pinpoint it. I wasn’t sure if it was her outfit; today she wore one of the more traditional outfits of our country. Over the last months, Mother had been an excellent tutor to Sophia, teaching her about our customs, traditions, and the language.Even though Sophia hated when we went full immersion with the language, she loved it at the same time. It worked her brain like her reporting career did. I still felt a little twinge of guilt now and then for taking her away from her passion, but she had a full schedule since we had returned from our honeymoon. We both liked to keep busy, and that wasn’t going to change anytime soon.It didn’t take long for Mother to get on board with the new way of life around the
SophiaHe drove a finger inside of me, and I bucked my hips up to meet him. Falling back against the fluffy pillows, we moved as one, intensifying the pleasure within me. Adding more fingers and that circling thumb, my eyes fluttered closed and moans escaped my lips. If this was what it was going to be like for the rest of my life, I looked forward to every moment spent in this bed with Luke.After the drama that we had to deal with in such a short amount of time, I never felt so relaxed in my life. That part of our struggle was over, and even though there would inevitably be issues with the kingdom and Luke’s reign, there would never be a problem that we couldn’t overcome, especially if we came together like this as much as possible.The idea that I might have missed out on this life with him made me hold him close to me. I sat up, deepening his reach inside of me, and I grabbed his hardness again, thrusting all of my love and appreciation into the movements.His chin lifted, and his
SophiaEvery single point where our bodies touched lit me up inside until searing heat scorched every fiber of my being. Touching Luke’s face, feeling the stubble of his chin under my fingertips, added licks of heat to burn through me. I fell into the pools of his eyes, my love for him wanting to burst out of me. My panties were soaked through as his hand moved up the side of my body. His fingers brushed over the side of my breast. After getting out of my dress last night, I changed into a ratty old T-shirt. The fabric was thin and worn, which didn’t offer any protection from his touches. Not that I wanted any.His fingers lightly touched my neck. He put some pressure on my jaw, and I moved my head to the side. I loved when Luke kissed the sensitive part of my neck. It was one of his favorite moves. At least, from what I could tell.His soft lips touched my skin. With each movement of my body, he left a wake of warm invisible kisses along the way. He trapped my earlobe between his lip
LukeJoining her, the two of us brushed our teeth together. It was nice to get the stale taste of food and champagne out of my mouth. I watched Sophia through the mirror as she watched me. Energy crackled between us, and I could have dragged her into the shower to expend that energy. Knowing we were to be joined by several servants as they brought breakfast in the room for us made me kill the urge. For now.Even though it was the simplest of acts, the idea that I would brush my teeth at least once a day with this woman filled me with the most joy I’d ever felt. I wondered if only the birth of our children would rival that feeling.I finished before her and held her against me while she finished. With a shimmy of her ass against my crotch, I glanced at her. She leaned back against me, lifting her perky breasts higher. Slowly guiding my hand along her middle, I caressed the outside of her breasts.That was when I heard the door open from the other room. My hand froze before I removed it
LukeI never wanted my wedding day to end. Even though it was an intimate affair with under a hundred guests, the party went much longer than most banquets that I’d attended. Sophia and I stumbled into my bedroom in the wee hours of the morning.Even though I celebrated, neither of us drank heavily. I supposed we were almost drunk from the music and dancing, so when we arrived in a quiet and sacred space, the both of us passed out from exhaustion.The one thing I remembered as my eyes closed was the way she looked slipping out of her wedding dress. God, I was a lucky-ass man.***When my eyes finally peeled open, Sophia was already up and facing me. She had a big smile on her face, and her left hand propped on the pillow between us. The sparkling engagement ring glittered in the morning light that streamed through the windows. The night before, I’d barely gotten out of my clothes, so there was no chance I had been able to reach the blackout curtains before falling onto the bed.“Good
SophiaGia smiled and reached up to grab my veil. She pulled it down over my face, and the world turned a hazy shade of white. All but two of the servants dispersed, and Gia walked into the room, closing the door behind her.“You ready to get married?” Matt asked me.“Yes,” I said, lifting my chin. For a moment, I felt like Gia. Since I was to take her place as queen one day, it seemed fitting.A swell of music filtered out from under the doorway and the doors opened. It was a good thing the veil covered the surprised expression on my face. We’d planned for the wedding to be small and intimate, but I didn’t know that there would be more than immediate family at the event. Gia had mentioned some close family and friends that she’d wanted there, and I brushed it off, thinking there would be one or two extra people.All in all, there were only about fifty people, but when their gazes turned toward me, there might as well have been two hundred people there.Matt gripped my hand harder. “J
SophiaSince Gia put together the wedding in such a short amount of time, there was nothing Luke or I could say when it came to the night before the wedding. She’d let go of most of her traditional views but chose to hold on to the one that didn’t allow us to sleep together that night.While I wanted to show Luke how appreciative I was about what he’d done for me, we respected her wishes.After a wonderful rehearsal dinner with the people we loved, I took Matt around the palace while Luke and Maddox went off together. Maddox had mentioned something about the bachelor party, and Gia’s face had paled to the color of the tablecloth. I knew Luke didn’t plan on going out to a strip club—I didn’t think they had those here—but he went off with Maddox anyway, probably to defeat his best friend’s urge to flirt.Matt eventually dropped me off in the same bedroom that I’d slept in when I first came to the palace. We said goodnight, and I thought I saw excitement flash in his eyes when he asked w
LukeThe council members shifted in their seats. I couldn’t be prouder of my mother for standing up for me. It was something I always wanted but never knew that I needed. I didn’t care that she commanded the meeting space where I was supposed to reign. We were a family, and treating the kingdom like that would be my legacy.“When Erol and I chose to adopt a son, it was not something we took lightly. We knew we would change a child’s life and possibly be able to choose the successor to the throne.” She looked over at me and smiled, the way she used to when I was a child. When things seemed much simpler. When had I lost touch with that?“We picked a boy that we felt, in our hearts, needed us as much as we needed him. You all worked with my husband and the previous king. You saw how big of a heart he had for this country. You trusted his choices. Why are you turning your backs on him now? He wanted Luke to become king in his stead. What would you say to him right now, face to face, if yo