The Royal’s Pretend Wife by Sophia Lynn Page A

little tired…” Trinity said. She could hear how hoarse her own voice was. She wondered how he took it.
    “You were clever to get out when you did,” he said with a grimace. “It turned into a bit of a free-for-all, and after Carolina jumped in, things got pretty fraught.”
    She waited, but he simply tossed his shirt into hamper. Even in the dim light, she could tell how powerful his frame was. She longed to touch him, and not just a gentle stroke along the face, or a squeeze of the hand. She wanted to run her hands over him and make him feel as good as he had made her feel in Spain.
    “I thought you would be angry with me,” Trinity murmured. “When you came upon us at the fountain…”
    Apolo made a sound that only the very generous would be willing to call a laugh. “I…may have acted rashly. And after you left, things only continued to heat up. I suppose I'm not as good an actor as you are.”
    Trinity blinked, because of all the things she had been expecting, that wasn't one of them. “I don't think I understand.”
    He shook his head. “Not something for you to worry about.”
    “Apolo…We're out there together, so I think I should know what's on your mind. Please don't keep this from me…I need to know what you need.”
    He had his back turned to her, looking out the tall windows. When he heard her words, however, he spun to look at her, and there was fire in his eyes. With a small gasp, she shrank back, and he stalked towards her.
    “You want to know what I am thinking?” he growled. “You want to know what is on my mind and what I need?”
    She swallowed hard. When she spoke, there was a tremble in her voice that was only partially fear. “Yes,” she whispered. “I always want to know that…”
    The words were barely out of her mouth before Apolo's mouth crashed down on hers. The kiss was brutal, just short of painful. It would have been justifiably terrifying if she hadn't wanted him as much as she did, if she hadn't returned the kiss with just as much fervor and just as much need. With a sound that was more a growl than anything human, he pressed her to the bed, forcing her down until she was flat on her back. He rose over her like some kind of dark god, ready to take what he wanted and needed from his human worshipers.
    She threw her arms around him. She couldn't get him close enough. When his tongue invaded her mouth, she opened for him willingly. She twined her legs around his, pulling him down to her desperately.
    “Every day I see you, it is like running through darkness as you carry a flame,” he said, his voice harsh with desire. “I see you before me, I see what I need, and I can’t have it…”
    “You can,” Trinity gasped. “You can. Come here, please…”
    He dragged her further up the bed until they were both in the center of it, his weight pinning her down. Even now, she could feel the hardness of his arousal pressed against her thigh. She knew that his need hung by a thread, and right now, she would give anything to snap that thread.
    When he pulled back for a moment, she took the opportunity to undo the knot of her robe. Even in that moment of passion, the artist in her was pleased by his sudden shock.
    Over the last few weeks, she had been wearing nightgowns. They were pretty enough, but they were hardly what most thought about when they thought of desire and passion. Tonight, she had dispensed with the nightgowns entirely. Instead, she wore a scrap of black lace that pretended to be a pair of panties, and a light half-cup bra that revealed more than it concealed. Even in the dim light, the contrast against her pale skin was bold, and with a trembling hand, Apolo reached to touch her.
    “Sometimes, I can barely believe that you are real,” he whispered, and she laughed unsteadily.
    “Real enough,” she whispered. “Real enough to hear, to touch, to taste…”
    He lowered his head to her neck, licking and kissing. There was something more considered about his