Page 29 of The Most Unsuitable Prince (Another Arranged Marriage #8)

The only way to get past the nerves is to jump in with both feet.

Rupert was surprised by just how intensely attracted he was to Winter.

Admittedly, when he’d been half-heartedly picking a princely husband in the past, the men chosen were more for their small stature and submissive nature.

In a nutshell, Rupert hadn’t wanted anyone who was going to cling to him or try to change him in any way.

The joke’s on me. Rupert preferred pretty to brawn, he always had.

Winter ticked those boxes. He could appreciate someone with delicate facial features and a slender build.

Winter met those requirements as well. But in everything else, Winter was in a class of his own.

He was a strong man with firm ideas, and he wasn’t afraid to voice them.

He knew what he wanted and went out and made things happen.

Not traits Rupert usually preferred, he always worried a partner like that would overshadow him.

Winter didn’t do that. For some reason, and Rupert didn’t know why - but he was going to thank any higher power that would listen that it had happened - Winter seemed to like him and wanted to help him. Even to the point of offering to share his bed.

In matters of intimacy, Rupert hadn’t had a flicker of performance anxiety since he’d gotten through his first time.

But he couldn’t deny he was wading into uncharted waters with Winter, and Rupert knew if he didn’t dive in, he’d likely not even get his toes wet.

Why am I thinking about toes or water? Rupert focused on his husband – the man moaning under his lips.

The business with the bed was surprising, but as Rupert thought about it, he realized it was another way Winter was outlining his expectations and setting his boundaries.

In a strange way, rather than being put off by such behavior – something that would’ve happened with anyone else – Rupert was grateful Winter had made his decisions for him.

He didn’t have to think – he just had to do.

Like the kiss – a kiss that shocked Rupert with how arousing it was.

Winter was a willing partner, pushing up from the chair, trying to get closer.

His moans set Rupert’s blood on fire…although, damn with the angle he was standing, he was getting a crick in his back. Not conducive to happy intimacies.

Deciding to take the initiative, Rupert wrapped his arm around Winter’s back, and as he stood up, he pulled Winter up with him.

The angle was still awkward. Winter was considerably shorter, but the clever man just jumped, so he was standing on the seat he’d just been pulled out of, leaning forward and resuming their kiss.

Even with his eyes closed, Rupert could never mistake his husband for any woman he might’ve kissed in the past. Winter’s lips were full, but there was a hard pressure behind them. It wasn’t just the shape of the lips either – it was the confidence in how Winter was kissing him back.

Rupert pushed away a sudden pang of jealousy at the idea of his husband sharing his kisses with other people. That wasn’t his business, and as Rupert didn’t want to discuss his sexual history, he was hardly going to ask Winter about his.

“Is it time for you to invite me to your bedroom now?” Rupert panted as they broke apart long enough to take a breath.

Winter’s response was a strong hand running down Rupert’s torso, before cupping the bulge that was evident under his robe. “I really think I’d like to see you naked, so I’m guessing that’s a yes.”

Rupert wasn’t concerned with how he looked out of his clothes.

He was a physically imposing man, no matter what he wore.

While he rarely stripped off entirely with other people, he wasn’t concerned about showing Winter the man he was married to.

In a sudden fit of mischievousness, he swept Winter off his feet, cradling him in his arms, as if he were a damsel in distress, crossing the outer chamber floor and stopping at the door of Winter’s bedroom.

“Once I step over this threshold,” he said, studying his husband’s face, aware of how husky his voice was. “I promise I will stay until morning.”

“That’s all I ever wanted from you.” Winter’s smile was wicked and promised so much. “I want to know for sure that we’ll have more together than anything we’ve shared with others in the past.”

Romantic words deserved an equally romantic action. Rupert’s plan was to sweep Winter into his room and place him on the bed before the clothing removal part of the evening started.

Unfortunately, he was thwarted by the door handle. With Winter in his arms, Rupert was banging his knuckles on the wood of the door, searching for that damn handle. I can’t even see the damn thing.

It was Winter who reached down and grabbed the handle, opening it and then clinging to Rupert as he carried his husband through to the bedchamber.

Rupert could sense the difference in the room immediately.

Winter had redecorated since he’d moved in, clearly having bought some things from home.

There were soft cushions on the window seat and a chaise lounge along another wall.

Rupert could imagine Winter reclining on there in next-to-no clothes.

He suddenly wished he could paint so he could capture what his imagination had carved out for him.

Setting Winter on his feet, Rupert went back to the door, closed and locked it. “Will your team, Sigmund and that Pippin of yours, respect a locked door? Will your brother?”

“August isn’t even in the castle at the moment.” Winter winked as he pulled his robe off and chucked it on the nearby chair. Rupert had seen Winter’s chest before, but it was so much more enticing when it wasn’t covered in shetherin rash and the marks left by a gryphon.

Winter wasn’t stopping at his robe, however.

He bent down, kicked off his boots, and then slid his pants down his thighs.

“I am getting close to naked,” he said, “because I want what might happen between us to occur naturally. I fear that fumbling with clothes, buttons, fasteners, and all that other carry-on tends to ruin the mood, don’t you agree? ”

“I’ve never been naked with someone in an intimate setting before, but I can see the appeal,” Rupert agreed. Taking his cue from Winter, he quickly shucked off his robe and then bent and got rid of his pants and boots, just as Winter had done.

He was wearing an undergarment, just a small set of briefs. He found that it was more comfortable if his private parts were contained rather than chaffing against the material of pants or tights. Those briefs were now tight, though, and there was no hiding his arousal.

“You look as handsome and sexy as I thought you would,” Winter said, holding out his hand. “Leave your briefs on if they make you feel more comfortable. I will, too, for our first night.”

Although if Winter thought for a moment his briefs were actually covering his private bits, Rupert felt his husband was being optimistic.

The material that was cupped around Winter’s skin looked silky and even sheer in places.

If Winter was looking to preserve his modesty, he hadn’t succeeded.

Rupert felt a twitch in his nether regions as if his length was looking for a way out.

“Join me on the bed,” Winter suggested as he climbed onto the mattress and lay down. “I don’t know about you, but I love the feel of skin on skin. I believe, if we start there, we can see what else might come up between us.”

“I don’t think anything coming up is going to be an issue," Rupert said with a nervous laugh. Climbing on the bed, he sprawled out next to Winter, not touching – not yet – but close enough he imagined he could feel the heat of Winter’s skin.

“I’m just not quite sure how we’re going to go about getting these appendages to go down. Put bluntly, I don’t know how it is between men when we both have the same bits .” Rupert flicked downward, indicating their groins.

“I’m aware, Rupert dear. Don’t worry. We’re not in a rush.

” Winter’s eyes were twinkling. Rupert had no idea what his husband thought was so amusing.

He was telling his truth. He had no idea what was going to happen.

No man had ever touched his shaft before.

Although the state Rupert was in, he wasn’t likely to care if the hand touching his genitals was male, female, or a furry glove over a mechanical hand.

“Roll toward me and put your arm around me.” Winter’s voice deepened.

“That’s it,” he added as Rupert did what Winter said.

Winter’s arms curled around Rupert’s neck, his fingers getting entangled in Rupert’s hair.

“Now, if you felt inclined, you should probably kiss me, and this time our bodies will be pressed together completely.”

Couldn’t you just play with my dick? Honestly, it felt like forever since Rupert had someone handling him the way he liked.

Rupert had never shared penetrative intimacies with a female.

After a particularly graphic tutorial from his tutor when he was fourteen, who taught him about the possibility of pregnancy and the social ramifications of something like that happening – that was enough to give him a droop for life.

Winter couldn’t get pregnant. But then Winter didn’t have an orifice designed specifically for royal members to push into either. So that wasn’t going to happen. But if that was the case…

“Rupert dear, you’re overthinking this.”

Rupert would’ve replied, wanting to defend himself because thinking about a situation thoroughly didn’t sound like a bad idea, or even chatting about a few ideas.

But the moment he opened his mouth, Winter’s lips were on his, fingers tugging at strands of his hair, and Winter’s body was moving against his in a way that could only be described as…

incredible. That’s what it was. Incredible.

His brain shut down. Winter was demanding his attention, and Rupert couldn’t refuse.

Thinking wasn’t an option when Rupert was feeling so much.

It wasn’t just the way Winter’s lips were dominating his mouth – Winter’s body was warm and smooth against his own, teasing his skin, sending Rupert’s arousal to new heights.

Instinct kicked in. He needed to thrust, so he did, his covered cock rubbing against Winter’s crotch bump, but it wasn’t enough.

Unwilling to stop kissing his husband, Rupert’s hands slid down Winter’s back, grabbing hold of his pert butt cheeks, using that pressure to press Winter’s hips against his own.

Rupert heard a groan. By the goddess, that was me.

But it was impossible for Rupert to remain aloof, to have that slight disconnect he’d always had with previous partners.

Winter wasn’t giggling, flirting, or patting his cock.

His arousal seemed as intense as Rupert’s.

His kisses had moved on from lips, and Rupert’s whole face was being kissed and licked, as Winter’s fingers were massaging his scalp – and his body never stopped moving.

It was more than physical sensations, too – and there were plenty of those.

It was as if Winter was projecting his arousal, his desire, his need for Rupert into the air around him.

His body was reacting instinctively to Winter’s need and before Rupert was aware of what was happening, he felt the heavy sensation in his lower gut, and his balls tightened.

“My gods,” he yelled as he pulled Winter toward him even tighter.

Winter nipped his neck, and then he froze, and let out a long groan, his breath skating across Rupert’s skin. “Oooh, yes.” Winter’s body went limp. It was clear he had reached his release as well.

“How…? What…? You didn’t even touch my cock.” Rupert felt like an idiot the moment the words left his mouth, especially when Winter chuckled.

“We’ll do that next time,” he said with a contented sigh. “Believe me, Rupert dear, there is still so much more we can explore together. In the meantime, we may have to get rid of these briefs. I don’t know about yours, but mine are sticky.”

Rupert looked down. There was a definite mess – not the sort of thing he could call a footman to come and tend to. “I’ll go and get a washcloth.” He made to move, but Winter was still holding onto him.

“Kiss me first. The mess can wait.”