Page 113 of Stolen Princess

My eyes flicker back and forth between his. He’s telling the truth. It shocks me, but it doesn’t change the situation with us. “Then what? You don’t want me the way I want you?”

He chuckles mirthlessly. “How can you know you want me, princess? It hasn’t even been a week. Yes, a lot has happened, but I’m also the first person you met. The first man.”

I glare at him, miffed. “Yes, you’re the first person and the first man I met. But I didn’t kiss Masters, and I didn’t kiss Lars. I didn’t look at them or think about them the way I think about you. Maybe I’m young and naïve, but don’t tell me I don’t know my heart or what I want.”

A hint of a smile breaches the hard line of his lips, and he swipes some of my hair back behind my ear before his thumb caresses my cheek. “You’re an angel. A princess. I’m a criminal and a murderer. You’ve seen that. We’re about as opposite as it gets.”

“I’m still me. I don’t care that you’re a thief, and I don’t care that you killed Lars. Just tell me the truth. Don’t give me bullshit excuses. Tell me that you don’t have feelings for me. I can handle that. I’m a big girl now. But excuses feel like lies, and I’ve had enough of those.”

“My excuses aren’t lies, darlin’. They’re reality.”

Frustration slams into me. “Don’t do that. Please. Fucking please.” My eyes close, and my chin tilts back. I release a ragged breath, at my wit’s end. “I’m too tired to play games. I thought you were dead. You have no clue how that…” I drop my chin and meet his gaze. “Just tell me the truth. Do you care? It’s a yes or no question. Because if you care, then the other stuff, all those excuses, aren’t as important.”

His knuckles glide along my cheek, a smile on his lips that makes my insides flip. “It doesn’t matter if I care or not. This is where you belong. It’s not where I belong. I’m trying to do the right thing for the first time in my life. Don’t you see that?”

I scowl and take a step back, my arm flopping down at my side. “So you saw me.”

“I saw you,” he agrees.

“Now you can go. I’m alive. Reward earned.”

I start to turn, but he tugs me back by the front of the shirt I’m wearing.

“I didn’t take the reward.”

“Why not? That’s your retirement.”

“I don’t want that money, princess. From the first moment I saw you, it became annoyingly clear that you’re all I want.”

My breath hitches.

Slowly, he looks up at me from beneath his lashes. “You’re sure I’m what you want? You have to fucking be sure. I’ve only had two people, both of whom left me, and neither liked nor wanted me. No one has ever wanted me. So you have to be sure. Because if I give you my heart and you let it go, I won’t come back from that. You salvaged the only decent remaining part of me and brought it back to life. Me wanting you isn’t the issue, nor is how I feel about you. It’s everything else. So be fucking certain.”

His vulnerability cuts me to the quick, and I place my palm flat against his chest. His pulse thrums against me. “This is where I’m meant to be. With you.”

“I’m not a prince.”

I scrunch my nose. “Thank god, right? Imagine if you were?” I make a gagging noise, and he laughs.

With his good arm, he hauls me back into his chest and slips his arm around my waist.

“I want you,” I promise him.

“You mean that?”

“More than anything.”

“I thought I lost you.” His forehead lands on mine. “You’re such a pain in the ass.”

“Me?” I squawk. “You’re the asshole. I thought I lost you too.”

“Princess, I’ve nearly died a million times, and you have as well, but the one thing I know, the one thing I’m certain of, is that I’m so fucking gone on you. You say you want me to stay with you, but the truth is, I obviously don’t have it in me to leave you, or I would have by now.”

“Then stay,” I whisper against his neck. “I get it. It hasn’t been very long. We might be crazy. This might all blow up tomorrow or next week or next month. I haven’t done this before, and neither have you. But I don’t care.”

“Being with you is the best time I’ve ever had. Even when it was awful and scary, it was better than anything else. Any other moment. You’re my crown jewel. My greatest reward. The ultimate prize. The thing I’d steal over and over to keep as mine.” His lips trickle along my cheek and neck back up my jaw to my lips. “But you’re not supposed to fall for the villain.”

“The villain is sexy. Heroes are boring.”