Unwind My Resolve: Regal Rights Book #3 Page 5

  With enough money to travel privately, I reached Dallas far quicker than anyone flying commercial. I didn’t want to give myself the opportunity to change my mind. Mother was furious with me, and if I returned home, I doubted she would ever let me out of her sight again.

  This was my last chance to be with Sophia, and I wasn’t about to ruin it because of cold feet.

  The limo driver pulled up to her building. I fully expected to wait around outside or in the lobby of her apartment building until she returned home from work, but as I got out of the car, the woman holding the front door turned around, and my breath caught in my throat.

  Sophia’s face mirrored the shock within me. My feet moved on their own, as if she had a magnetic pull on my heart. I strode over to her, wanting to take her into my arms. The corners of her lips tightened, and I knew this wouldn’t be as easy as I would like it to be.

  We had gone toe to toe before, but I’d royally fucked up by sending her away without an explanation. Well, I had an explanation, but it was a lie. I never stopped loving her, and if she would be with me the rest of my life, I would be the happiest man alive.

  As long as she wasn’t seeing anyone else, I promised myself I would stick around until we could figure something out.

  Her hand tightened on the handle of the door as I approached her. Cautiously, I slowed my walk and waited for her to say something. I wasn’t in the mood to get a bloody nose if she decided to shut the door in my face.

  When she didn’t move or speak, I took the first step, unable to bear the silence between us any longer.

  “Sophia,” I said, keeping my hands at my sides even though I wanted to reach out and cup her cheeks in my hands. I wanted to pull her close and never let go. “I’m sorry.”

  She shoved away from the door and right into my arms. Her arms slung over my shoulders, and she squeezed me closer to her. Her body against mine sent electric pulses through me. I lifted her off her feet and inhaled the scent of her.

  All of my worries went away. I couldn’t believe that she missed me as much as I did her. This wasn’t a hug between friends. There was still a chance for us; I just had to make it happen.

  “Let’s go inside,” she said.

  She took my hand and then noticed something behind me. We turned to see my suitcase sitting alone where the limo had been. I hadn’t even noticed that the driver had left it there.

  I grabbed my bag, not letting Sophia out of my sight. Walking into her building, I felt whole again.

  * * *

  “It’s not much,” Sophia said when we got off the elevator on her floor. We were silent during the elevator ride, but it wasn’t like the dips in conversation that I’d experienced with Saanvi. Sophia and I were comfortable enough with each other to know that sometimes words weren’t needed.

  She didn’t loosen the grip on my hand as we ascended to her floor.

  Though, I did want to express how sorry I was. I would spend the rest of my life doing that as long as she was there next to me.

  “Don’t worry about it,” I said, not caring if she lived in a cardboard box. I was with her, and that was all that mattered.

  “Says the man who has a palace,” she said.

  Before she could open the door, I took both of her hands in mine and drew her close. I wanted to kiss her so badly but not before she knew everything. I would leave it up to her if she wanted to continue being with me after.

  “As long as I’m with you, I don’t care about anything else. Apartments, palaces, they’re just things. I want more out of my life than things. Can you understand that?”

  “I can,” she said and unlocked her door.

  I walked in behind her, and my heart skittered in my chest. Since I had only seen Sophia in England or Qatar, I never seen her in her element or seen what her life really looked like outside of fancy restaurants and palaces.

  The main area of the apartment was an open space with a living room, small kitchen, and breakfast nook. It was tidy, and the knick-knacks and paintings on the walls gave me better insight into her mind. A few framed articles hung on the wall. I planned on taking a closer look at those if Sophia asked me to stay.

  The place was every inch Sophia.

  “So, this is it,” she said, tossing her keys onto the small table near the kitchen. “The bathroom and bedroom are through there.” She pointed to a door across the room.

  I nodded my understanding. “Can we talk?”

  “Sure,” she said. “Let’s sit over here.”

  We sat on the oversized brown suede couch nestled in the corner of the room, facing a small flat-screen television. Before I met her, she worked a lot. I imagined a big screen wasn’t at the top of her list of priorities. I vowed that whatever she wanted for the rest of her life, I would give it to her. She had an opportunity to have it all, but she needed to be the one to make that choice.

  “Do you want something to drink?” she asked.

  I shook my head. Water wasn’t going to quench my thirst for her.

  I wasn’t sure where to start with everything. There was no segue into what I needed to say.

  “How is being the king?” she asked, saving me from starting the conversation.

  “It’s different,” I said, settling into the couch. After my long journey and Sophia not throwing me out of her apartment, my body started to relax.

  She flipped her hair over her shoulder and pulled her legs under her. “I can imagine.”

  “How about you?” I asked.

  “Everything is status quo,” she said. “I just got back from Seattle.”

  My eyebrows knotted together. “Seattle?”

  “Yes, that’s where my friend Matt lives.”

  I noticed she used the word friend. From the way she’d spoken about him in the past, I never worried about his intentions, but it was nice to hear her side of it.

  “Did you have a nice trip?” I asked.

  “Yes, I did,” she said.

  “What about work?” I asked.

  “I quit,” she said without explanation, but I knew it was because of me.

  “You didn’t write the article?”

  She stared at her fingernails, flicking at them. I’d hit a sore spot.

  “I couldn’t,” she said.

  “You couldn’t? Why not?”

  “Why do you think, Luke?” she snapped. “I cared for you, and you threw me out of your life like I meant nothing!”

  I deserved that and a whole lot more for what I did.

  “So, when do you want to stop diverting the conversation and tell me the truth?” she asked.

  “The truth about what?”

  “If everything is fine with you and being king, why are you here? I didn’t think coming to some commoner’s apartment thousands of miles away from your palace was on your busy agenda.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. Reporter-Sophia had returned and she was snarkier than ever. She deserved an explanation for me showing up in her life again after I’d been so cold toward her back in Qatar.

  “What’s wrong?” she said, her expression softening. “You can tell me.”

  “I know,” I said. “Seeing you so soon threw me for a bit of a loop.”

  “Okay,” she said, awaiting my explanation.

  “Things aren’t all that great at the palace,” I admitted. “It’s been so tough.”

  “Well, your father did just die, and you had to replace him so quickly. I understand that’s not easy.”

  “It wasn’t,” I said, relieved that she still understood me even after our time apart. “But that’s not the hardest part.”

  “Is your Mother trying to set you up again?” she asked. “I thought you handled that.”

  “I’m having a hard time because of you, Sophia,” I said, laying it out on the table.

  “What do you mean? You were the one who told me to leave.”

  “I know,” I said.

  Her shoulders heaved, and her breathing was heavier. I was fucking this
up.

  I scooted closer to her and took her hands. “I only have myself to blame for feeling like this. I sent you away because I wanted to protect you.”

  “Protect me from what?” she asked.

  “All of it. Mother, the council, the kingdom. That choice to replace my Father was mine and mine alone. I didn’t want to uproot you from your life so that you could hate me for it years from now.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “You didn’t give me a choice. You just threw me out of there like the weekly garbage. You told me you loved me. I know I hesitated, but I wanted to be sure. That morning when I walked into your bedroom, I was sure.”

  “I messed up. I know that now.”

  “You could have called me,” she said.

  “You could have called me when you returned to my life,” I said, taking her hands in mine. They were as soft as I remembered them. I traced the lines of her palms, needing to commit them to memory. I wanted to know every one of her thoughts, and I wanted to know every inch of her body. If only she would accept me back into her life. “I wanted to give you the same grand gesture.”

  “So, what are you saying?” she asked.

  “I’m saying that I want to be with you. Letting you out of my life was a mistake. One that I will spend the rest of my life making up to you if I can. If you will allow me to.”

  Tears filled Sophia’s eyes, and I wondered if I had said the wrong thing.

  It wasn’t until she reached over to me, grabbed my tie, and yanked it toward her that I was absolutely sure she felt the same way. Our lips crashed together, and I didn’t hesitate to take her in my arms.

  We tasted each other, panting between frantic kisses. My tongue darted into her mouth as I deepened the kiss. Sophia was my oxygen, and I breathed her in, tasting, touching, and taking in every single drop of her.

  “I want to be with you, too,” she breathed against my lips.

  I pulled back, still holding her in my arms. “You’re not seeing anyone else?”

  “No,” she said, her eyebrows knitting together. “All I can think about is you, Luke.”

  “That’s good,” I said with a smile. I kissed her again, more tenderly this time, pressing my lips against her soft mouth. She tasted like chocolate and something else. Whatever it was, I never wanted to stop tasting it. I never wanted to be without her by my side again.

  Something shifted inside of me as if a puzzle piece clicked into place. Sophia was the only woman in the world who made me feel whole; I knew that now.

  Now, I had to be the man she needed and wanted.

  From the way her hands roamed my body, I knew that wouldn’t be too hard for me.

  8

  Sophia

  The weight of all the emotions of my downward spiral from the last month lifted as Luke bared his soul to me. He hadn’t come to Dallas to just apologize. He had professed his love for me, just as he had in Qatar. Sure, we had a little bump in the road, but I was certain I wouldn’t allow that to happen again. Not without a fight.

  The moment he reentered my life, I wanted him more than ever. Whoever said absence made the heart grow fonder had been right. My heart, head, and body wanted him, and I couldn’t stop until I had him.

  He seemed to have the same idea as he reached for my shirt. His fingers moved down the row of buttons, and they flicked open within seconds, exposing me to him. I couldn’t remember which bra I wore to the interview, but I didn’t care. It would be tossed onto the floor in no time, either by him or me.

  I hoped it was him.

  His hands cupped my breasts and squeezed ever so lightly. One of his hands plunged into my bra and brought out my taut nipple. His mouth surrounded most of my breast, and he sucked hard, flicking the peak with his tongue.

  A gasp escaped my lips. “Oh my god,” I said.

  His chuckle vibrated against me, and he moved to kiss the other one.

  My head fell back against the couch, and my eyes fluttered closed. Feeling his warm and wet mouth on mine, the dampness down below intensified.

  Luke removed his jacket while still holding me in his arms.

  I flung myself on top of him, not wanting a single moment to go by without us touching. Every lonely day spent without him scrambled to the surface of my mind, and I wanted to make up for every second of it.

  “Sophia, you’re just as soft as I remember,” he said against my neck. He kissed the sensitive spot there, blowing my mind.

  I reached up under his shirt and felt the muscles of his hard stomach as I moved up and pressed my fingers along the lines of his chest.

  Before I could get his shirt off, Luke moved lower, driving his hand into my pants. The button of my slacks popped under the pressure, but I didn’t care. As he drew the zipper down, I knew where he was going.

  Bucking my hips toward him, I wanted to feel his mouth on me. I was hungry for it.

  “Touch me,” I panted. “I need it.”

  He chuckled. “Your wish is my command. But I’m going to do way more than touch.”

  I smiled, licking my dry lips. How could I have ever thought I would have this with anyone else?

  Luke tugged my pants down until they pooled around my ankles. He shoved my panties to the side and got down to business.

  Luke’s tongue circled my clit, and I let out a moan. My legs fell open as I gave him unspoken directions on what I wanted.

  Before I could say another word, he shoved his fingers inside of me. I gasped and then rocked my hips against his fingers. His tongue and fingers alternated, creating a pleasurable numbness between my legs.

  His flicking tongue against my clit spiked my pleasure, and in those quick spurts, I nearly came.

  “I’m not letting you come that easily,” he said.

  I groaned as he drove two fingers inside of me, beckoning me to try and orgasm. I was close a few times, but Luke knew my body and slowed down before I could.

  “You’re a damn tease, you know that?” I panted.

  He moaned against my lower lips, driving me crazy.

  I raked my hands through his thick hair, forcing him to plunge inside of me again.

  My legs wrapped around his shoulders and locked him in place. I wasn’t giving up without a fight.

  His tongue plunged deeper inside of me, and my legs gave out, falling to the cushions.

  “I want you so much,” he said, propping himself up on his elbows.

  I sat up and pulled him on top of me. Grinding my wet and naked body against his clothes, I wanted them all to disappear.

  “Let’s go into the bedroom,” I said, even though I didn’t want to move from that spot.

  “Okay,” he said.

  Scrambling off the couch, I sprinted into my bedroom and kicked off my pants. Now only in my underwear, I locked eyes on my target. My suitcase was still on the floor next to my closet, and I pulled out the three condoms I had left. Having them didn’t feel awkward, now that I had someone to use them with.

  Luke entered my bedroom wearing only his boxer briefs. They fit him so well that they didn’t leave much to the imagination when it came to his arousal. He was hard and ready for me.

  He strode over to me, every inch the man that I needed and loved. He took the condom from my hands, and the rest fell to the floor.

  “I want you to do it,” he said.

  “Me?”

  “Yes,” he said without hesitation. “I want to make sure you want this.”

  “I do,” I said.

  “Show me.”

  He pulled down his underwear, and he sprang free.

  Wrapping my hand around him, I stroked his length. He was so hard for me that my panties got even wetter than they already were.

  He ripped the wrapper open with his teeth and held it out to me. I took it, and his hands rested on my waist as if he were holding me steady instead of the other way around.

  Rolling the latex over him, I shivered with pleasure.

  His hands roamed over me, and my head felt light again as if I co
uld float away at any minute. It was a good thing he was holding on to me.

  He reached around to unclasp my bra, and it fell to the floor at my feet.

  Luke pulled me close to him and kissed me again. I breathed him in as he led me to the bed. I glanced at the unmade bed and held back a laugh. Never in a million years did I think I would have sex with a king on my bed.

  I hopped onto the bed and spread my legs for him. He grabbed my legs and pulled me closer so my butt hung off the mattress. He didn’t waste any time burying himself inside of me.

  I gasped as he filled me to the brim. I was so wet that he slid right in. He pumped his cock into me. His eyes were slits of pleasure, and I reached out to him. I needed to kiss him again.

  He complied with my wishes but continued to push himself inside of me while we kissed. Our kisses grew more frantic as the pleasure intensified.

  He kneaded and squeezed my breasts and flicked his finger over my nipples, making them hard little peaks.

  He groaned into my mouth, and I knew that he was getting closer to climax.

  While I wanted this to go on all night, the need to have him come inside of me thinned my patience.

  My feet were on either side of his head as he continued to fuck me.

  He grunted as the pace of his thrusts sped up. “Damn it, Sophia, I’m going to come.”

  “Me too,” I panted.

  He pushed away from me and grabbed onto my waist, pressing me into the mattress. My toes curled as his thumb reached down and circled my clit. White spots exploded behind my eyes as whimpers of pleasure filled the air.

  “Come for me, baby,” he said.

  He was deep inside me now, moving so quickly that I could barely breathe. As the pleasure exploded inside of me, I cried out.

  He came seconds after. Even though we’d both finished, he continued to push himself inside of me, prolonging the aftereffects.

  “Luke,” I breathed.

  “Yeah?” he asked, peeling his eyes open. His pupils dilated enough that only a sliver of his light brown iris showed through.

  “Come here,” I said.