Princess's Temptation Read online

  He turned around and gave me a sardonic smirk. "You're serious?"

  Realizing what I'd said, I sighed. "Right, got it. I heard that as it came out."

  "Look, if we can get out of here, start making all those phone calls. If they grabbed an heiress, it could be a simple kidnap and ransom, and they'll return her."

  "You don't know her family. It should be simple. Hopefully. Our fathers have made some enemies, but there could be other reasons they want her."

  He groaned. "Excellent. One step at a time, okay?"

  We both grabbed trays of champagne and followed the other waitstaff as we were directed up the stairs to the main deck. I had never been a server in all my life, so I was struggling. One of the girls behind me rolled her eyes and tapped me on the shoulder. "Hey, love, you take these, I'll take those."

  She handed me a tray of canapés, and I smiled at her gratefully. "Thank you."

  "Yeah, well, it was either that, or both of us were going to get wet and not in a good way. I'm right behind you."

  "Well, good looking out, anyway."

  She grinned. "What's that accent? I hear a hint of Islander along with the British."

  "It's a long story," I muttered.

  When I turned back, Gabe was watching me. "Are you okay?"

  I nodded. "Yeah, I guess so."

  No, I was not okay. As a matter of fact, I was terrified. If only I'd stayed at home in the confines of the castle, locked away, bored but still safe.

  Except, Elena still would be out with her useless friends.

  Yeah, she would be. It hadn't escaped me that none of them had even tried to go after her.

  As soon as we entered the party deck, I could hear peals of laughter from the corner. I frowned. One of those girls looked familiar. Had she been with us at the club? I shook it off because the one redhead with us had been wearing something else. But she looked so familiar.

  All around us, there were women in very short dresses and bikinis, dripping in jewels, and the men were in board shorts and yacht-party chic. Where the fuck were we? I wasn't sure if I was more concerned that I was going to run into somebody I knew or that I wasn't. Maybe somebody I knew could be helpful in getting Elena back. But if they were here, then chances were good that they were aligned with somebody not too reputable, which was a problem for me as well. This was why you didn't ditch your security guards.

  Shut up.

  My inner voice couldn't let it go though. My anxiety was spiking, and I could feel my breath shortening. I tried to focus on the broad shoulders in front of me. Just thinking about Gabe calmed me down in one way, but then he also gave me a sense of tingles as if butterflies flapped in my lower belly. The effect was wholly unnatural. His demeanor was all calm authority. And despite only knowing him the better part of an hour, I felt like he was actually help me. He was going to make sure that we got Elena back. But the way he kept checking on me, making sure that I was okay, made me feel safe. And not just as somebody's appendage or a job, but as if I was actually being seen. He was helping a perfect stranger in the wildest way possible.

  I glanced around, and Gabe was at my shoulder asking, "Where is she?"

  I scanned the room. And when I found her, my jaw dropped. "What the fuck?"

  Gabe turned around. "What? What's wrong?"

  I pointed. "That is Elena."

  Gabe turned in the direction I was pointing. On the lap of a very good-looking guy with dark hair, bronze skin, and vibrant green eyes, was my best friend, sitting on her boyfriend, Prince Costas's lap. His first name was actually Prince. Another shipping heir. Since his family wasn't actually royalty, they just named their child Prince.

  "What's wrong?"

  "She wasn't kidnapped."

  Gabe's brows furrowed, and I marched past him as he tried to stop me. "Alix, come back."

  It was then that I realized that he'd heard my name as Alex, not Alix, but I'd fix it for him later. Right now, I had a bone to pick. I marched right up to her, and Elena's eyes went wide. "Hey, there you are. I've been trying to text you. Prince kidnapped me for my birthday. Isn't that a hoot? He had it all arranged."

  I glowered at her boyfriend. "Are you fucking kidding me right now?"

  Chapter Six

  Alix

  I was furious. "Seriously? I got on the back of a motorcycle to find you. What the fuck, Elena?"

  She jumped up. "Oh my God, bestie, I'm so sorry."

  I pointed to Gabe. "He is very attractive, so fair enough. But goddamn it, you couldn't text me? You couldn't call and let me know you were okay? I called Evan. He didn't answer."

  Someone from the far back called up. "That's because I was here. Sorry, I didn't see your text."

  I whipped around to glower at her younger brother. "Wait, so everyone was in on this except for me?"

  Prince shrugged. "Sorry. You're kind of a buzzkill with your rules and shit. We thought you'd kill it. I didn't know you'd crash the party, which by the way, well done."

  "I… Are you… I cannot believe…" I turned to Gabe. "The fuck? Can we just go?"

  He shook his head. "So there was no need for a rescue then?"

  I lifted a brow as I shook my head.

  He chuckled low. "I'm sorry. That's really shitty."

  "I don't even care about the fact that no one wanted to invite me to the party. I only cared because I was worried. And this is bullshit."

  "You need better friends."

  "You're starting in on me now, too?"

  He followed me out. "No. It's shitty and they absolutely should have told you what the hell was going on.”

  From behind me, I could hear Elena's heels clicking on the polished mahogany of the deck. "Fuck. Alix, wait. Wait, wait, wait, wait." She grabbed my arm. And despite her being tiny, she managed to halt me.

  "What do you want, Elena?"

  "Don't be like this." She turned to Gabe and grabbed his arm too. He just looked down at her hand with a lifted brow. "Look, I didn't know anything about this, or I would have told you. Because despite my idiot boyfriend thinking you're a buzzkill, I think you're amazing. And you needed a night out. Hell, a couple of days. Take the weekend and stay here with us."

  "I'm not staying, Elena. This isn't what I wanted to do. You ditched your security. It's like you knew this was going to happen."

  "I didn't ditch them. Okay, fine, I did ditch them, but I did not know what Prince was going to do. And I wouldn't have done this to you. I know with everything that's happened to you, that you'd be sensitive to this. I wouldn't do that. I honestly didn't know."

  "I just… Fuck, I was worried about you, Elena."

  She wrapped her arms around me, and Elena, when she hugged, was like a very tiny spider-monkey. And she hugged surprisingly hard. I wasn't used to a lot of affection, and it always made me uncomfortable.

  Gabe nodded. "Whatever you want to do, I'm here for you, since apparently, we don't have to rescue her."

  She grinned at Gabe while still holding tightly onto me. "And you, a knight in shining armor. You really threw her on the back of a motorcycle? God, I could kiss you." She eyed him up and down. "I mean, would you be into that? Because Prince won't care."

  Gabe shook his head. "Uh, no, thank you."

  She shrugged. "Ah, you are the guy from the club. I already saw you checking out her ass. She is amazing. If you don't snap her up, you're an idiot." And then she turned her gaze back to me. "Forgive me. I'm sorry."

  I shook my head. "If you didn't know, you didn't know. But now that I know you're safe and not in danger, I'm going to go."

  She shook her head. "Come on, stay." Without turning to him, she said to Gabe. "Gabe, you too. Make her stay."

  "I don't have any of my stuff. I can't stay the weekend. You know everyone will freak out," I argued.

  "Call them. I'll call them. I'll tell them exactly where you are. You're on a boat. What's the worst that could happen?"

  "Really? You're not supposed to be asking that question."

  "Okay, fine. That 365 shit was wild, but she enjoyed that. And every other true crime thing that you've seen where someone dies on the yacht, gets thrown overboard, I mean, that only happens to really rich—" She shook her head. "Okay, fine, I heard that. But nothing's going to happen. It's a yacht. Let's go have fun."

  I turned my attention to Gabe. "Let's go."

  He inclined his head. "Look, why don't you stay and at least have a little bit of fun? You didn't get to have your night out, and I will personally make sure you get safely home."

  I blinked at him. "I hijacked your night. You called in favors for me. Why would you want to stay?"

  "Because I can see you trying not to hug her back, even when you want to, and you are obviously really worried about her. So spend some time with your friend. I don't mind hanging out."

  Elena turned around and wrapped her arms around Gabe. "I don't know you, but I love you already. Stay, both of you."

  I shook my head. "No, I don't—"

  Gabe unwrapped Elena from him easily, as if she weighed no more than a feather. "Whatever you want to do, I'm here for you."

  "Look, I don't do this. I'm not the girl who throws caution to the wind and gives no fucks about consequences or protocols or anything that needs to happen."

  He squeezed my hand. "Okay then, how about I get you off this boat and we still hang out for a while? Because I didn't get to ask you to dance at the club."

  I lifted a brow. "You were going to— Can you dance?"

  He laughed. "Well, I guess there's only one way to find out. We can go somewhere."

  Elena shook her head again. "Oh, come on, you two. Please, stay."

  I chewed my bottom lip. Now that the adrenaline was fading, I was just so goddamned relieved.

  "Fine. We ca
n leave a little later."

  "Oh no, we're undocking in ten minutes."

  I groaned. "Elena."

  "What? Come on, it's a yacht party. You're twenty. Live a little."

  "I live plenty."

  "Do you, really?"

  I glanced at Gabe. I didn't want him thinking that I didn't know how to have fun. "I live."

  He nodded. "Sure, you do." There was no judgment in his voice, but there was a slight hint of teasing.

  "I have no clothes."

  Elena grinned. "Well, my cousin Tamsin is here, and she's about your height. You have bigger boobs than she does, and a much better ass, but most of her stuff should fit you. At least a bikini."

  Gabe grinned. "When is the boat supposed to come back?"

  Elena laughed. "Uh, I was told tomorrow afternoon, so it's just for one night. Stay. Stay, stay, stay."

  I sighed. "Fine. But I do need to at least text someone at home and let them know where the fuck I am."

  Elena squealed and clapped. "Always the responsible one, but this is going to be so fun."

  Gabe took my hand. "You're going to be okay."

  "You don't have to stay."

  "Are you kidding me? A chance to spend more time with you? I'm in."

  Chapter Seven

  Gabe

  “You’re so solid,” she told me between kisses.

  We’d left the others to their partying on the decks above. I told myself all I wanted was a little privacy to kiss her and to talk to her more. But I was kidding myself. I was walking around with a steel rod in my trousers, and he was begging for release.

  I liked this girl. So I was determined to take it as slow as she needed. Because left to me, I would have fucked her on the back of my motorcycle already. Not exactly the picture of restraint.

  I bit her jaw as we walked over the threshold into the room we’d been given. “You’re so damned beautiful.”

  She groaned, and I stopped walking, because I needed to touch her again, to taste her again. Right now.

  I set her on the bureau by the bed, dropping my forehead to hers, and I whispered, “We can take this as slow or as fast as you like.”

  Alix moaned and slid her hands into my hair. “I always go slow. I want to be reckless for once.”

  “I think I can manage that.”

  My hands scooped under her ass to lift her so I could tug at her skin tight leggings. Her knickers came with the leggings and all I could do was be thankful as I dropped to my knees. “Open them wide for me love.”

  Her pussy was right where I wanted it and bared to me. My breath caught as I had to mentally remind myself that tonight called for restraint.

  She was pink and slick and ready for me, and I loved being able to see her silky, dark curls. I didn’t warm her up. I didn’t kiss my way up her thigh. Instead, I dove in like a starving man and clamped my hands over her hips to keep her still as I stroked into her with my tongue.

  She was so sweet there, so very Alix. And it was a taste I was worried I’d never get enough of, given the rock-hard state of my dick.

  She tried to arch as my tongue flicked over her clit, but I wouldn’t let her. I held her fast and started going in earnest—fluttering, caressing, sucking—full-on burying my face into her. My nose was in her curls, and my lips were wet with her, and when I chanced a look up at her face, her lips were parted and her eyes glassy as she slid her hands into my hair and held me right where she wanted me.

  “Gabe,” she whispered.

  I carefully worked two fingers inside, keeping my mouth at the swollen bud above her opening, feeling her thighs tense around my head. She was getting close, her body practically thrumming as she got wetter and tighter—and wetter and tighter still.

  Fuck.

  I used my free hand to hold her hip even tighter—and just in time, too, because as her climax broke against my mouth, her hands tightened in my hair as she rode my face.

  “Gabe,” she sighed dreamily, resting her head against my shoulder.

  “Rest up. That was just the beginning.” Picking her up easily, I carried her to the bed and laid her down in the middle of it before divesting myself of my clothes.

  Looking at her made me feel like I’d been kicked in the chest. Those pert sweet tits, her flat, toned stomach, her pussy. . . Those dark eyes, looking up at me with hunger still.

  Leaning forward, I kissed her thoroughly as I reached down to sweep the head of my cock through her seam, rubbing her up and down with my tip until she started moving underneath me and chasing it.

  I kissed her neck and then a soft breast as I finally nudged myself inside—just the tiniest amount. Just the tip.

  I held my breath. Christ, she was tight. And warm. And so slippery wet.

  Fuck. Condom.

  Jesus that was too close. I reached for my wallet and found the pack of three. I tore one off and sheathed myself in seconds before I was between her legs again. She stiffened underneath me, pulling in a breath, and I bent to take a taut nipple into my mouth, sucking and working it until she relaxed again.

  And then I pushed all the way home. Holy shit.

  Alix’s lower lip was caught between her teeth, and my name was a whisper on her lips.

  My balls were already drawing up to my body, eager to release into her, and I had to clench everything in my stomach and thighs and ass to keep from blowing my load right then and there.

  With my thumb, I reached down to gently massage her clit as I pushed in a little bit more, my entire body trembling with the restraint.

  “God,” she breathed. “So big.”

  I almost laughed, and the noise came out as a pained growl. I bent down to suck on the firm berry of a nipple. “Relax. Let me make you feel good.”

  There was no word for how that velvet grip felt around my dick, for how slick and hot she was, for the way her silken walls caressed me. I gritted my teeth, clenched my jaw—I even closed my eyes.

  Little by little, she started to move. She started to fuck herself on my erection, chasing the pleasure, circling her hips and rocking against the pressure on her swollen bud.

  “Oh God,” she whispered, her hands pushing back into my hair and pulling tight. I hissed in response, only barely able to keep from coming then. “Oh God, Gabe—it’s like—it feels so—”

  What it felt like I never did learn, because she shattered beneath me with a long, delicious cry that had my hips churning between her thighs before I even realized what was happening. Her body went tight and quivery around me, squeezing me, milking me, and it was as if her body was trying to pull the orgasm right out of my cock, like it was yanking it clean out of my soul.

  This woman was going to kill me, and I didn’t even know her last name.

  Chapter Eight

  Alix

  I'd been trying to answer some charity emails on my phone on the upper deck when Elena found me. "Wow. Slutty much?" she giggled.

  I lifted a brow. "You know, just a little more than you.”

  “If anyone's a slut, it's me. Let's not tell Prince about Aiden, okay?"

  My jaw dropped. "Jesus Christ, you're still sleeping with him?"

  She shook her head. "Would you hush your mouth? And no, I am not still sleeping with Aiden. I just, occasionally, accept gifts from him… in exchange for nudes. What's the problem with that?"

  All I could do was shake my head. Elena, on a good day, was a free spirit. On a worse day, she could be manipulative and deliberately annoying. But she was my friend. "Are you happy? Did you have a good birthday?"

  "The best. And check this out. Prince said that he fake-kidnapped me and dragged me out of the club because of all the romance novels I read. He knew that I am obsessed with 365 DNI. He wanted to give me that whole experience, and did he ever."

  I shook my head. "Please don't give me details."

  "Fine. I won't fill you in. But what I do want is for you to tell me all the Gabe details. Honey, that man is gorgeous."

  I tried to contain my smile, but I couldn't because my skin was still tingling everywhere. And since I didn't have any of my own things with me, I couldn’t find makeup to cover the hickey he'd left on my collar bone. And it was far too hot to wear anything that remotely covered it up. So, fuck it. I was sitting there in a bikini, flaunting my hickey as I tanned. "He's nice."