“Was there anything in the contract my lawyer gave you that said you’re allowed to touch me?”
“No, but . . .I . . .”
I don’t even wait for her to finish. I walk off to find Jazmina, who’s disappeared, looking like she was ready to murder someone.
Chapter 23
I rush down the yacht’s stairs with no idea where I’m even going.
I’m such an idiot.
Even knowing he’ll soon be engaged, I got dressed for the party thinking about him, and for a moment, when we were alone on the deck before the guests arrived, I let myself believe Rodrick had brought me for another reason besides watching me.
I step through the first door I find, but before I can close it behind me, a foot blocks the way.
“What happened?” he asks, and I’ve never wanted to hit someone so badly in my life.
What happened? Oh, I don’t know, maybe the fact that you followed me down here when the woman you’re about to marry, or at least one of them, is upstairs waiting for you?
But my pride won’t let me expose myself.
“Get out! I’m a princess. I can’t be alone with a man.”
He looks at me like he’s trying to figure out whether I’m being serious. “You didn’t mind being alone with me when you slept in my arms.”
“I was barely conscious. I don’t remember what I asked for.”
Now he looks angry. He steps inside the cabin and closes the door behind him.
My heart pounds so hard I’m afraid it might break through the dress.
“Liar.”
“What? How dare you!”
He steps closer. “How dare I what? Call you a liar, princess? I don’t have another word for that level of hypocrisy. We both know you were awake that night in my bed. You knew it was me holding you.”
His words drag both of us right back to that moment, pulling us into the intimacy of that dawn.
The air changes, becoming thicker, heavier, but in a delicious way that makes my knees go weak and a line of sweat trail down my spine.
“Deny it, Jazmina. Say you didn’t know it was me in that room with you. Say you didn’t ask for me. Say you didn’t curl your body against mine.”
My back hits the wall, and we’re practically skin to skin. I can feel the heat radiating between us.
His mouth grazes the side of my neck, so faint I’m not sure it’s real.
“Deny it, Jazmina.” His voice is a whisper now. Hoarse. Intense.
I turn my face toward him, our mouths separated by barely an inch. “I can’t, Rodrick. I knew it was you. And I wanted you to hold me because it felt like the right place to be.”
“You can’t say that to me, girl,” he growls, pulling me against him. He brushes our mouths together, and I wrap my arms around his neck. “You shouldn’t say that.”
This time, when he kisses me, I’m ready. Eager. Starving. And I give myself over completely. My hands slide into his hair, caressing the back of his neck, my mouth and tongue boldly following his lead without shame or hesitation.
I tremble in his arms, and even though the kiss sends me spinning out of orbit, it still isn’t enough. I want more of everything. His hands on me, his hot, demanding lips dominating me, his teeth teasing my skin and making me melt in his arms . . .
Nothing feels wrong. Just the two of us here, kissing, his fingers stroking the bare skin of my back.