The Prince's Captive Virgin

Her wounded, strangely beautiful captor, who seemed to bring ice with him whenever he entered a room.

She closed her eyes, waiting for sleep to claim her. And as her thoughts began to swirl around in a confusing circle, she kept picturing his dark eyes. Dark eyes, set in a ravaged face, that were windows to an even more ravaged soul.

Thoughts of him made her restless. Made it impossible for her to breathe.

I will present you to the world as my mistress.

Memories of those words, of that voice, set off a quiver low in her belly. And her final thought before drifting to sleep was that if this was fear...if it was anger, it was unlike anything she had ever felt before in her life.

With those words still resonating inside her, she was forced to recognize, as sleep claimed her utterly, that she felt neither fear nor anger toward him.

But she refused to name the things she did feel. Which were far more monstrous than he could ever be.

CHAPTER FOUR (#uf55788d6-4e82-53b2-85cf-6824c0dab08b)

THE CASTLE FELT DIFFERENT. Adam had to wonder if it was because of the woman who was currently residing in it. He did not like to give her presence that much weight. There were often women and residents here in the castle, various staff members who he did his best not to interact with. Plus Athena, who had been with him for more than a decade.

Belle’s presence should make no difference at all. And yet, it was as though he could feel her in the air. He gritted his teeth. Perhaps Felipe was right. Perhaps he was starting to get a little bit too close to insanity thanks to his years of isolation.

To be so much a part of a place that he could sense the presence of a new person...yes, that was perhaps a bit close to crazy.

Though, crazier perhaps, was that flash of heat that had flared up when he had placed his hand on her last night. He should not have done so. It had touched something inside him, awakened something. Something that was far better left asleep.

For the first time in recent memory, he felt restless. Usually, he was content to conduct his business within the confines of the palace walls, or, if he was feeling like a change of scenery, on the grounds. Often, a burst of energy could be dealt with in his gym.

This was different. He didn’t like it.

He prowled the halls of the palace, his staff members making themselves scarce the moment he approached. He was clearly radiating his foul mood.

If there was business to take care of as far as the country was concerned, Fos would have approached him already. But, he had not seen his adviser today at all, so that meant he lacked for specific direction.

Given the circumstances, he disliked that greatly.

A maid scuttled by, and Adam stopped her with a warning look. “Have coffee sent to the library,” he ordered.

“Forgive me, Your Highness, coffee is already there,” she returned, bowing slightly.

“Why?”

“For...the lady. Was that not... Athena told me to serve her when she asked, and where she asked.”

Of course she had. Obviously, his housekeeper had seen fit to override his handling of his own captive. “You did nothing wrong,” he said. “You may go.”

He continued on his way to the library. And there he found her. She was sitting in an armchair, her legs tucked beneath her, wearing the same clothes she’d had on yesterday. Yes, that was right; she’d told him she had nothing else to wear. He would have to ensure that something was procured for her.

Her attention was so focused on the book that was sitting in her lap that she didn’t look up when he came in.

“Enjoying the story?”

She jumped, looking up, her blue eyes wide. “I was,” she said, her tone dripping with disdain. Her pale cheeks had a rosy flush to them, and he wondered if she was embarrassed about something. Or, if she was angry. Likely, it was anger.

“What is it?”

“Nothing you would be interested in,” she said, closing it, keeping her finger tucked between the pages, holding her spot. She reached over to the table that was placed next to the armchair and picked up a mug that he assumed contained coffee.

Next to that mug was another, and beside that was an insulated carafe. He moved nearer, picked it up and helped himself to a cup.

“I was told I would find you here, along with the coffee,” he said.

“And so you did.” She gave him a sideways glance, her lips pressed against the edge of her mug, poised as though she was about to take another drink. “You said that I could go in any room I wanted, as long as I didn’t invade your quarters.”