Page 104 of Reign of a Billionaire

“No more ice princess?” I asked, tremor lacing my voice.

Tension radiated from him, every muscle in his body pulled taut. His fingers trembled as they brushed over my hair. “No more.”

I felt his lips against my forehead, the gesture so simple after the earlier encounter, but it had every fiber of me trembling with so many feelings. My fingers traced over his ink, his muscles flexing under them.

I loved how big and strong he was. I even loved that he was a morally gray man. It was exactly what I needed. His gaze touched me everywhere, like he was seeing me for the first time. I couldn’t wrap my head around it, but I loved his attention.

His hands brushed over every inch of my skin, then he shifted and I let out a soft protest. “Don’t go anywhere.”

He let out a sardonic breath. “Nobody, not even God himself, will tear me away from you,” he rasped as he reached for my left wrist and hooked the bracelet around it. “This is yours.”

My brows knitted, studying the delicate jewelry made of teeth dipped in real gold. It didn’t bother me though. In fact, it felt as if it belonged there all along.

“It’s a weird gift, Kingston,” I murmured softly. I brought my wrist close to my chest and cradled it, that familiar throbbing there. “But I like it. A lot.”

I nuzzled into him, my eyes locked on the shining metal. Why did it feelrightto have it on?

“I still can’t believe it,” he whispered so low that I barely heard the words.

I lifted my head. “Believe what?”

He shifted us over, his body covering mine. I slid my arms around him, those scars that his ink hid rough under my fingertips. The truth was, I loved them, because they screamed he was a survivor. It made me feel safe with him.

“That you’re here with me.”

Bliss hummed beneath my skin as his weight covered mine. “So you won’t be leaving me anymore after we… kiss?”

There was vulnerability in my voice, and I was sure he was able to see it in my eyes.

He ran a rough palm across my cheek and his lips brushed mine. “I’ll never leave you again.”

The promise seared through me like a romantic song and my heartbeats slowed to nothing.

“Ditto,” I vowed, realizing I fully meant those words.

It might have been wrong, but my possessiveness over this man roared to the surface, and I’d hold on to him until my last breath.

His mouth trailed over my neck before he buried his head in my nape.

That night, we held each other all night.

Chapter 50

Liana

The skin on the back of my neck itched as the cries of torture traveled through the castle. I looked at my twin and reached for her hand, interlocking our fingers while my other hand gripped the bracelet. It gave me strength. It kept me safe.

He’d given me a new one for every birthday. My twin didn’t like it. She found the hard enamel and rugged dents gross, but she appreciated the strength I drew from it.

My twin squeezed once, then pulled away to rest her chin on her knees and wrap her arms around her legs, staring into the fire. Winter months in the Siberian manor were brutal, especially when Ivan Petrov was here. I shouldn’t complain, especially knowing that I wasn’t the only one suffering. Mother and Ivan’s prisoners had it worse—alotworse.

My legs shook while my mind chanted over and over again, “Where is he?”

I pressed my eyelids together as “Born To Die” by Lana Del Rey played in my head on repeat. I’d started to wonder whether our finish line would be death. It would seem ourentire lives had led us to this point. To die. Our road to freedom had been unending. It couldn’t fail us now… Could it?

I pushed at my temples with closed fists. Everything about the lyrics made me want to cry, and I knew there was no time for tears.

My palms pressed into my skin, my fear a white-hot current. He wouldn’t hurt us. Mother was here. She wouldn’t let him. But then where was she? Where was Kingston?