“Vee, look at me.” It was the first time he’d shortened my name, but it sounded so right on his lips. I turned back to face him. “Why are ye lying to me about the dreams?”
Staring into his impossibly beautiful face, I knew what I had to do. No matter how much it killed me. “Because I know you need to choose Sofia … not me.”
He jerked back as if I’d slapped him.
I rushed to explain. “It’s okay though. I know she’s the right one for you. But it still … hurts.” I stared down at my hands, wishing I could take back the last part.
“What makes ye think you know what’s best for me?”
Doon did no’ call ye here ta become its queen by marrying my son.
The king’s words were perfectly clear. I wasn’t meant to be with Jamie and I knew Sofia would make an outstanding queen. “I wasn’t called—”
“Nay, let me finish. My whole life my father has told me what to do. My mother always wanted to shelter me. Everyone in the kingdom has tried to protect me. Do they fail to notice that I’m no longer a child?”
I certainly hadn’t failed to notice, but I remained silent.
“Verranica, I’ve verra few choices that are mine. But this”—he grabbed my arm, his eyes drilling into mine as he crushed my body against his—“is still one of them!”
CHAPTER 24
Veronica
As if to prove he could take whatever he wanted, Jamie surrounded me, his mouth crushing my swollen lips. A powerful rush of longing swept away the last threads of my self-control when the slant of his lips crossed mine, compelling me to return his kiss with all the love I felt for him. I wrapped my arms around him and moved my fingers into the silky hair at the base of his broad neck as I pushed closer to the solid heat of his body.
Our mouths broke apart, and a growl came from deep within his throat. “Mine.”
He pushed me back on the sofa, following with his upper body, hesitating for a fraction of a second before his eyes glazed over and he lowered his head. His lips possessing mine again.
Out of nowhere, thoughts of Sofia in his arms and the king’s final words swirled in my mind, warring with the need coursing through my veins. I really had to stop. But if I could have this one moment with the boy I loved, shouldn’t I take it?
I closed off my conflicted conscience, melting into the glorious feel of his lips on mine.
With a start, I realized his fingers were moving against the buttons on my shirt. His rough knuckles brushed urgently against the flesh below my throat. The tug and slide of the first button was amplified against my hypersensitive skin. When he arched back to reach the rest, a warning bell began to sound, growing louder by the second. With effort, I stilled his hand with mine.
“Please,” I said against his mouth. “Stop.”
“Did I hurt ye?” he whispered.
I shook my head silently, afraid if I spoke again I might beg him to keep going. Our eyes locked in a soul-piercing gaze as his warm, intoxicating breath mingled with mine. Then his jaw tightened and he squeezed his lids shut.
In the next instant, he was gone.
With a deep, steadying breath, I sat up and adjusted my clothes while Jamie moved to the other side of the room. His fisted hands braced against the window casing as he rested his forehead against the icy windowpane and stared at the wintery landscape. The tension in his posture caused reality to infiltrate my fuzzy brain, and shame washed through me. I was supposed to convince him to be with Sofia. Not make this harder on both of us.
“Jamie?” I whispered as I rebuttoned my shirt.
“Just give me a moment,” he ground out through clenched teeth.
Was he struggling to gain control? Or was he angry that he’d let it happen at all?
He began to pace, running his fingers through the top layers of his hair, causing it to fall in a tangle over his forehead. Even distraught and rumpled, he resembled a Greek statue come to life.