nder'

a frustrated hand through my hair. I leaned back, sipping the whiske

d it was eating at me. She was crossing lines, testing my patie

her delicate features, the way the dress hugged her figure earlier at dinner. She had looked so effortl

despite her situation. It made me want her even more. I wanted to pull her into my arms, claim he

sn't someone I could control with force or intimidation. I had to

ality. I turned, expecting to see Lucy barging in like she often did, but instead,

et. She was the last person I expected to see here, in m

surprise as I took another sip of my

rting around the room befo

he said softly, her voice

ing a brow as I set my g

I saw something flicker in her eyes-ner

rom me," she said, he

a challenge, and I cou

repeated, steppin

hough I could see the t

es I provided, eating the food I serve

her defiance slippi

me into this... this cage," she shot back. "So, tel

the sound filling t

like yet, princess," I said, my voice low as I closed the distance

me that,"

dmire her spirit, eve

enged, leaning closer, my f

hard, but sh

t," she said, her voice trembling slightly

, I know you're not like the others, R

uld feel it-but there was something else there too. Curiosity? Attraction? What

said after a moment, her voic

"Maybe you don't want to admit it, but there's a part of you

're wrong," she said firmly, but her vo

Rosana. Fight me, curse me, try to escape. But at the end of the day,

t. Instead, she took a step closer, her presence so intoxicating that I could feel her breath ag

said, her voice barely a whisper, but it sent a jolt thro

I was doing, my hand moved on its own, finding her waist and pulling her even closer. The proximity w

uddenly, we were falling onto t

neither of us moved. We just s

y of the

t this felt different-raw, urgent, and filled wit

o slap me, or at least try to break free. But to my surprise, she didn't. She kissed me back, her h

But as much as my body was screaming for more, I knew I couldn't go fu

feel the heat in my face, and I glanced at her, hoping she wouldn't hate me for

sure whether to be angry or confused, her lips still slightly swollen from the kiss. Her gaze softene

me like that?" she whispered harshly, though there was a fl

e me. We both knew that what had just happened was more than just