As they both caught their breath, Reanna looked at the portraits that lined the other side of the hall. She and Xander had been close to going all the way in front of generations of his ancestors. Reanna tapped Xander’s shoulder. “That’s embarrassing. I thought we were alone.”
“We’re not?” Xander demanded, breathing raggedly. He lowered her to the floor and adjusted his clothing while moving to shield her from anyone’s view.
Reanna closed the front of her dress then laid her hand on Xander’s tense back. “I was referring to the portraits.” She bent and lifted the one she’d knocked to the floor. The woman in the photo was a stunning brunette with Xander’s blue eyes. Well, not exactly Xander’s. There was an expression in her eyes that Reanna had never seen in his, an anger that ran so deep it had shone even while sitting before the painter. Reanna read the plaque on the wall where the painting had been. “Queen Stephanie doesn’t look pleased with us.”
Xander turned back toward Reanna slowly. He lifted the portrait and replaced it on the wall. “I don’t remember her ever being happy. Not one day of her life.”
Reanna shimmied the skirt of her dress back into place. “Was she your mother?”
The passionate man from a few moments earlier was gone. Xander’s expression was hard and distant. “Biologically, yes. She died when I was ten.”
“I’m so sorry. I lost my parents at a young age, too. Do you remember her? Do you still miss her? I try to remember every moment of being with my mother, but I’ve already forgotten so much.”
A cold expression darkened Xander’s eyes, and for just a moment, he truly had his mother’s eyes. “I do not speak of her. Ever.”
“I understand, I think. But she was your mother.”
“That is enough. You will respect my wishes on this matter. Is that clear?” he snapped.
Reanna stepped back in response to his angry tone. “Crystal.”
His anger seemed to dissolve the instant he realized the reaction Reanna had to it. He held out a hand to her. “Come. We traveled a long way today. You must be tired.”
Reanna hesitated. She was beginning to wonder if following him blindly had been a wise choice. She didn’t want to worry about anything when she was with him. She wanted to give herself up to the experience, but she felt the tone of the trip changing, and she didn’t like it. She’d been in too many situations in her life where she hadn’t felt in control of where she would go or how she would be treated. She decided right then and there she wouldn’t put herself in that situation ever again. If necessary, she was finally ready to fight for what she wanted and for how she knew she deserved to be treated.
He stepped closer to her, but he still sounded impatient as he said, “Reanna, there is no reason to fear me. I’m tired, and because of that, my temper is shorter than it should be.”
Still she didn’t move. She met his eyes boldly and said, “I’m not afraid of you. I said yes to coming here because I want to be with you, but you need to respect me, or I won’t stay. I’m not one of your subjects. If I do something that upsets you, tell me and I’ll try to never do it again. But I’m not a child. Don’t use that tone with me again.”
They faced each other for a moment — a standoff of sorts. His expression was unreadable at first, then a slow smile spread across his face. “I knew there was fire inside you, Reanna. Seeing it makes me want you all the more.”
“I’m serious.”
“So am I.” He touched her cheek lightly. “You’re stronger than you know, Reanna, and I find you more attractive each time you prove it.”
She put a hand on one of her hips. It was hard to stay angry with him when his eyes were burning with desire for her. The knowledge of how attracted he was to her was an aphrodisiac like none Reanna had ever experienced before. She didn’t feel helpless when he looked at her that way. She felt invincible. “Then you’ll find me drop-dead gorgeous when I slap you the next time you speak to me the way you just did.”
He pulled her roughly to him. “I am trying to make it to my bedchambers before ripping your dress off, but you’re pushing me to my limits.” He kissed her deeply then lifted her into his arms. “I’ll listen to the rest of your lecture, but I’d prefer you naked as I do.” He carried her down the hall and into his suite. Without putting her down, he closed the door and carried her to his bed. He dropped her down onto it and said, “Strip, Reanna.”
Reanna propped herself up on one elbow. There was a playful smile on his face, and Reanna found herself enjoying the game. “And if I don’t?”
His smile widened, and he quickly disrobed, then rolled onto the bed beside her. “I don’t mind persuading you.” He lay close to her, but not against her, mirroring her position. He traced the neckline of her dress with one finger. “How would you want it tonight, Reanna? Slow and tender? Or rough? Tell me what you like.”
Reanna opened her mouth to say something, but closed it with a click of teeth when she couldn’t form a coherent sentence. He ran a finger across her collarbone and down one of her arms. She glanced down. The evidence of his arousal stood straight and proud between them.
He tapped her nose in light reprimand. “Where is my bold vixen who threatened to slap me?”
Her mouth was suddenly dry. “I’ve never actually hit anyone in my life.”
“I’m not into pain, Reanna, I prefer pleasure. However, the passion I saw in you when you threatened me is what I want to taste here in my bed.”
“I don’t understand.”
He traced the line of her jaw upward and buried a hand in her hair. “Sex and dancing have many commonalities. I had to study ballroom dancing for formal events. When I was younger I thought the man always led, but experience taught me the emptiness of that. The beauty of any dance is in the intimate partnership, the physical give and take and the trust it requires. When you learn to trust your partner, you can fully give yourself to the dance, and it takes it to a whole new level.”
Reanna gazed into his eyes and said the first thing that came to her. “I don’t dance.”
“Would you like to learn?” he asked softly.
She nodded, never taking her eyes away from his.
“I only give naked lessons.”
Reanna’s eyes widened, then she saw the flash of humor in his eyes and burst out laughing. “You’re wicked.”
He leaned forward and kissed her smiling lips. “And you are adorable. Now, are you ready for your first dance lesson?”
Reanna teased, “I thought you were tired.”
Xander rolled onto his back, and moved backward until he was sitting against the headboard of the bed. “No man is too tired to watch a beautiful woman dance.”
Sitting up beside Xander, Reanna said, “Watch? What happened to this being a partnership?”
“Some pleasure can be found in dancing alone. Stand up, Reanna.”
She hesitated, then stood on the bed. She’d lost her shoes somewhere along the way, but like her common sense, she wasn’t worried about finding them until after she’d given herself time to enjoy this particular dance fully.
“Take off your dress.”
Reanna pulled her dress over her head and stood there in her red silk panties and bra.
“And those,” he instructed.
She unsnapped her bra and threw it across the room, then stepped out of her panties and threw them at him. He caught them easily in one hand and smiled.
“Now, stand above, straddling my hips.”
She stepped over him so she had one foot on either side of his hips. She licked her lips nervously. “Shouldn’t there be music? Or something?”
His hands closed over her ankles. “Close your eyes, Reanna. My voice will be all the music you need.”
She closed her eyes and her arms automatically folded protectively in front of her chest. “I’ll try, but don’t laugh.”
He rubbed her calves with his strong hands. “Reanna, I’ve never seen a more beautiful woman. Let yourself trust me, trust the
dance. Forget about everything else and just feel.”
Reanna lowered her arms by her sides.
