Page 14 of Jon’s Desert Prince Dream

His hand lifted, gently touching my cheek, thumb sweeping just under my bottom lip. The single touch almost undid me. The tenderness, the affection that chased the physical reaction had my knees shaking. I could hear my breath catch, knew he could see how undone that simple touch had made me, and although my cheeks flushed, I couldn’t look away from him.

“A dangerous choice, to leave it in my hands,” he rasped, bending over me. His voice was a dark purr as his lips grazed mine. “If left up to me, you’ll never leave.”

Soft lips against my own, hot and demanding. I groaned into the kiss. My hands sought a purchase, gripped the front of his clothes, until he pulled my wrists up and around his shoulders, which plastered me to him. I didn’t care. I loved the feeling of being so tightly held against him, loved being able to close my eyes and feel him like this instead. Feel the heat from his chest, his arms wrapped tight around me, the growing desire pressing up against my groin.

I moaned as he deepened the kiss, doing my best to return it. He was just so dominantly male in all the best ways. So confident and eager, and I wanted to latch on to him and not let go.

His lips trailed down to my neck, nibbling, while his hands roamed farther down. I knew very well where he was headed, and certainly didn’t mind, but somehow felt like teasing? “You seducing me, Prince of Havili?”

“For your pleasure,” he purred at me, then kissed the side of my neck before tacking on, “and mine.”

An arousing answer.

Although, dammit, was there even oil in my new house? I somehow very much doubted it. Maybe I should have looked around at Garrett’s shop better. After all, I’d had a feeling this moment would happen.

And I wanted every second of it.

A very loud bang sounded on the door below.

We both froze.

No, seriously, it sounded like someone was trying to break in. What the hell?!

“CHIEF DONOVAN!”

“Shit,” Prince Donovan groaned, untangling from me and hustling down the stairs.

Now, at a guess, I’d say something’d happened.

Resigned, I followed him down the stairs. Prince Donovan had said he handled emergencies, so I should probably get used to this now. Hell, I’d probably be pulled into the emergencies with him, since he seemed determined to keep me.

I was still halfway down the stairs when Prince Donovan yanked the front door open and snarled, “What?”

“Sorry, Chief, I know we’re supposed to leave you alone today, but the situation has got diplomatic repercussions.”

“How far?”

“Wharf.”

I cataloged the man as I joined them at the front door. Average height, dark hair, skin bronzed by the sun. Father of three, midforties, a solid and dependable man with a good aura and gentle heart. Oh, I’ll like him. Hopefully this was someone I could work with often.

“All right, lead the way.” Prince Donovan turned and extended a hand. “Want to see what the job entails?”

“Of course.”

It surprised him, again, that I grasped his hand. I didn’t know how to explain how much I loved holding hands. That silent gesture from Prince Donovan offered safety, affection, comfort—all three rare things in my life. He gave it so sincerely, so effortlessly, that I was in turn mesmerized. I would not turn down his hand anytime soon.

Prince Donovan paused to introduce us quickly. “Borrowman, this is Jon. He’s a Reader and will work with us, at least to start out with. Jon, Borrowman’s one of my most dependable officers, so if something goes down, running to him is always a good idea.”

“I understand. Nice to meet you, Borrowman.”

“Same. Let’s continue this after we deal with the situation, though.”

“Of course.”

We left quickly, only pausing long enough to lock the door behind us. Borrowman led us three streets over and one down, and it was indeed right on the wharf, a busy enough place any time of the day.

Part of the reason this country was so beautiful was because it was so well taken care of. People seemed to take great pride in it, and even the wharf, busy as it was, was kept clean. The streets were swept and there was no garbage about, so while the scent of brine and water was strong, it wasn’t mixed up with anything unpleasant.