I straighten up and take a step back just as Tabitha appears out from the row of trees. Her face is red, and she pushes a strand of hair out of her eyes as she hurries over.
“I think my time is up,” I say, looking back to Alena. Her eyes are wide, and her lips are slightly parted. I can’t help but wonder what her tongue would taste like with the words she wants to spit at me on the edge of it. “Goodnight, my princess.”
As I walk away, I feel Vlad come up behind me. He matches my steps as I walk around to the front of the house.
“You should bring the sister with Alena when she comes to the palace. It’s tradition for her to bring someone,” Vlad says as my mother says her goodbyes to Alena’s mother and we get into the limo.
“It’s done,” I say, wanting to give Alena anything to make her happy.
As we pull away from the curb and I stare out the window, I swear I feel a pair of soft blue eyes watching me.
5
Alena
Tabby practically drags me away from where I’m standing. She doesn’t even give me time to think about what’s happened. The swirl of emotions is still bouncing around my body. By the time we make it back to my bedroom, I have no idea if I’m breathing heavy from practically running here or from the things Roman said to me.
Tabby throws herself on the bed, and it’s then I realize her face is lit up with a smile. I go to the window and pull the drapes back, unable to stop myself from watching Roman pull away. I should be happy his cocky ass is leaving, but something doesn’t feel right about it.
“He said I can come, Al!” When I turn around, Tabby is jumping on the bed like we did when we were kids. Her long dark hair is bouncing all around her. “I’m coming with you!”
She keeps jumping, but it takes a second for me to understand.
“But how?” I take a step toward her, wanting it to be true. She stops jumping, but her giant smile remains in place.
“Got the big guy to say he’d get your king to do it.”
The words your king do something funny to me, but I push that away, not wanting to focus on it right now.
“Tabby!” I half-scream at her because she won’t spit it out.
She wiggles her eyebrows. “He tried to kiss me.”
“What?” I say too loudly, then throw my hand over my mouth.
She nods. “Oh yeah. He grabbed me and pulled me into him and said he was taking my mouth,” she says in a dreamy voice, and I’m confused. It’s a voice I’ve never heard her use before. This is getting weird.
“But before he could kiss me, I kicked him in the shin.”
“Oh. My. God. You kicked a royal guard?” I don’t even have any other words. Who does that? Right. My sister. Of course that’s who. I guess I did kind of yell at a king tonight, too. Crap. “What did he do?”
“He laughed and told me I was only turning him on. And he was going to spank me. Then he kissed me anyway.”
I stand there with no response. I’m completely shocked, but Tabby looks like she’s going to combust with excitement.
She jumps off the bed and runs to me. “I told him he could kiss me if he gave me something.” My eyes widen in shock. “He told me he’d give me anything I wanted.”
“And?” It’s like pulling teeth.
“I said I wanted to come with you, and he said it was done.” Her eyes go all dreamy as if it was as easy as that. “Then he kissed me. Like, crazy kissed me.” She starts jumping up and down while holding my hands, and I laugh at how goofy she’s being. I know we are always a little goofy, but this feels different.
“Then what happened?” I want to know everything.
She licks her lips, and her cheeks go a little red. “He smacked my ass and said that I better get back to you. Or he’d take me right there on the ground.”
“You seem really happy about that.” I knew Tabby was into the whole caveman thing, but I never really thought she would go for it if it actually happened to her.
She sighs and falls back dramatically on the bed. “It was incredible, Al. Like everything I ever wanted. No manners and rules. He wanted me and just took me. No care for anything else. It was like he didn’t even care how much trouble we both could get in.”
I bite my lip, looking back to the window and thinking about Roman. He made me so mad one second, then made me feel other things the next. I still can’t believe I snapped at him. I couldn’t help myself. I may have to marry him, but I won’t let him push me around. Somehow, though, that seemed to backfire. I think he liked me talking back to him. Something lit up in those dark eyes of his, and something lit up in me seeing it there.
“Al, we get to be together.”
I turn to look at her, hoping what she’s saying is true. I see the hope in her eyes, too. I’m not sure how much pull this guy really has, but I know one thing’s for sure. I’m going to ask Roman. Maybe I can do like Tabby. Negotiate with a kiss. The thought makes my cheeks warm. They get even hotter when I think about how he said I’d be under him in a week—something that both excited and scared the crap out of me.
“I knew you would make it happen,” I confirm, making her smile get even bigger.
“How’d it go?” She slides to the side of the bed, swinging her legs back and forth.
“It was okay.”
“Okay? That’s all you’ve got?”
“I don’t know. He’s so intense. Sometimes I think he doesn’t even like me. Then other times I feel like he wants to eat me whole.”
“I’m thinking he’s into you,” Tabby says immediately. “He couldn’t stop looking at you. He got asked multiple questions and didn’t even answer them because he didn’t know people were talking to him. He was too busy staring holes into you.”
“Really?” I ask incredulously, feeling myself tingle all over. No one looks at me like that. They’re always looking at Tabby.
“Hey.” She jumps off the bed. “You kinda like him, don’t you?”