Nicholas shook his head. “I’m protective of you and Elva. Those instincts have nothing to do with whether or not I trust you.” I wanted to believe that, but if it was true, then why did he hesitate? “I’ve been alone a long time, and I’ve gotten by just fine.” The words emerge from a place of
“Everyone knows you are capable, especially Prince Nicholas. But wanting and needing are different,” Susie said. “You are allowed to want things, Piper, even if you don’t need them. You are allowed to want to be taken care of once in a while. No one should have to stand alone all the time.” “I d
“Nicholas? What are you doing here?” Crossing his arms, he tilted his head to the side. “Mark told me you asked him to teach you self-defense, but his duties are too essential to allow for the time to teach you. But, I do think it’s valuable for you to learn. So I’ve decided to step in instead.”
“It’s like you aren’t even trying,” he teased, and he wasn’t entirely wrong. At this point, I didn’t want to be away from him, I wanted to be closer. In my movements, I inched my ass backwards. It rubbed against the front of his pants, and I felt the hardness there. Nicholas grunted. Oh,
Julian started by placing down a queen of hearts. To his left, Veronica immediately lowered four cards. I watched her face closely, but she revealed nothing. Her emotionless façade seemed like it could even rival Nicholas’s. I decided not to call her a liar. If I did so, and I was incorrect, all
“Piper?” Julian was waiting for my question. “Okay.” I prepared myself with a deep inhale. Then I asked, “Why did you and Prince Nicholas never seem to get along?” Julian’s smile didn’t as much as twitch, yet I still felt a tension seep into the room. Maybe it was my fault. I knew I was aski
Did I know about Nicholas’s past? I thought I did. A tiny voice whispered in my head, Maybe not as well as you think. No, I couldn’t let Julian sow doubt inside of me. No matter what he thought, there had to be a logical explanation for whatever happened. Nicholas wasn’t the type to just ste
“If we just ask Julian, is what you mean to say,” Julian cut in. He sauntered closer and cast Nicholas a dagger-sharp glare. “Since I’m the only one with an evil-enough brain required for truly investigating the underground.” “You aren’t evil,” I said at once. Julian’s gaze softened somewhat