thought maybe a third song had come and gone when she finally pulled her head from where it was nestled under his chin and realized they had gradually worked their way from the couples dancing along the edge of the ballroom to the shadows of the small terrace that led off it.
She looked up into the mesmerizing heat of his black gaze, suddenly aware of exactly where this was going. “I told you I’m not interested in being a diversion,” she reminded him a little too breathlessly.
“No?” he said derisively, bending his head toward her. “Your signals are saying the contrary.” Sliding his fingers around her jaw, he captured her lips in a kiss unlike any she’d had before. Cajoling and demanding her acquiescence all at the same time, it was sensual, playful and masterful, enticing her to respond to his seductive expertise.
Her lips clung to his, helpless to resist his slow, intoxicating kisses. She swayed closer to him, her hand settling on his waist. He drew her into his warmth, the proximity of their bodies sending a shiver through her.
He lifted his lips from hers, their breath mingling. “Open your mouth, angel.”
She hadn’t been aware she was denying him anything. Obeying his command, she allowed his firm, beautiful mouth to part hers in a hot, languorous exploration she felt right down to her toes.
Her sigh split the air. He moved his hands down to her hips and shaped her buttocks, drawing her even closer to him until their bodies were molded together without a centimeter between them. She could feel the hard heat of him burning against the juncture of her thighs, as impressive as the rest of him. It made her knees weak.
“Aristos,” she gasped, pulling her mouth from his. “Stop.”
Satisfaction laced his gaze as she stared up at him, the supreme control she found there snapping her out of her haze. She put a palm against his chest to put some distance between them, but the hand he held at the small of her back kept her where she was. He slid it down over her buttock to wrap around her thigh.
“What are you doing?” she demanded, pushing harder against the rock-solid wall of his chest to no avail.
“Checking for weapons.”
“Weapons?” Her brain struggled to compute. “Why would I be carrying weapons?”
He ran his palm over her other buttock and down the back of her thigh in a leisurely exploration that brought a heated wave to her cheeks. “Maybe you should tell me, Kara.”
The edge to his voice made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. He knows. Had known all this time.
She pushed a hand against his chest and this time he released her, setting her away from him. She bit down into her lip. Hard. “You know I’m not Kara.”
He raked his gaze over her face. “Correct, angel. So maybe you’d care to tell me what you’re doing here. And why you impersonated Kara Nicholson to get in.”
A buzzing sound filled her ears. “How did you know?”
“Well, let’s see... Your accent, for starters. Second, Kara is from Houston, not Dallas. And finally, I happen to know Kara. Intimately. And you are not her.”
Thee mou. She closed her eyes, cheeks flaming. He and Kara Nicholson were lovers. How could she have ever thought she’d get away with this?
She opened her eyes. “You were behind me in line. Why didn’t you call me out then?”
“I wanted to see what your intentions were.”
“What did you think I was doing?”
“We have a country trying to draw us into a war, in case you hadn’t noticed.”
Disbelief sank through her. “You think I’m a spy? An assassin?”
“I think when anyone enters an official royal engagement under false pretenses, it needs to be investigated.”
“So you thought you’d appoint yourself investigator? Maul me while you’re at it? Make a game of it?”
“I wouldn’t call it mauling. You were as into that as I was. And as for my interest in you, it’s my security team the palace is using tonight. A side business of mine, angel, along with my big, bad casinos. I wasn’t about to set you loose with the king in the room.”
She clenched her hands at her sides, her gaze fixed on his. “You are going to regret this.”
An amused glimmer filled his eyes. “Really? Do tell. My guess from the way you’ve been eyeing the king is that you’re an ex-lover. A jilted one, perhaps... You don’t seem—how should I put it?—off your rocker, so I’m assuming you’ve come with some misguided belief he’ll take a lover. I hate to break it to you, but he’s madly in love with his wife. It isn’t going to happen.”
A jilted lover? She gaped at him. “Are you out of your mind?”
He lifted a shoulder. “I’ve seen the women who throw themselves at the king. They crash parties to meet him. They go to ridiculous lengths to get his attention. So even though you,” he said, stripping the clothes from her with a look that singed her skin, “are undoubtedly every man’s type, this was a wasted escapade.”
Fury swelled up inside her. “I came tonight because I need to speak to the king about a personal matter. Just like I said earlier.”
“Why do it under false pretenses?”
“It’s complicated.”
“Complicated how?”
“That’s my business.”
“I’m afraid it’s mine if you don’t want me to have you handcuffed and hauled out of here right now.”
“You wouldn’t.”
“Try me.”
Her heart surged painfully against her chest. Pressing her hands to her face, she paced to the other side of the terrace. “I can’t tell you why. I admit my methods for getting here were unconventional, but they were necessary given the security surrounding the king. I would never have gotten an audience.”
“That security is in place for a good reason.”
“Yes,” she said, turning around. “It is.” She took a deep breath. Fixed him with an imploring look. “I promise you it’s imperative I speak to the king. In fact, if you would just take me to him right now, I would highly appreciate it.”
“Not happening until you tell me who you are and what your business is.”
“I can’t.”
“Kala.” He spun on his heel and stalked toward the door.
“Aristos, stop.”
He turned around. “No one knows this,” she said. “You can’t say anything to anyone.”
“Spit it out,” he growled.
She lifted her chin. “My name is Aleksandra
