Alexander & Rebecca (Royals of Valleria #1)

Chapter 13

Rebecca watched Alex walk away from her and she wondered how he could walk after what had just happened. Quite frankly, she wasn't sure she would ever walk again. Her legs felt boneless, and the rest of her body felt deliciously used and tender.

As she heard the water running nearby, her mind flipped through moments of their lovemaking. Feeling suddenly shy, she pulled the covers over herself. Alex had seen her naked, had kissed and touched just about every part of her body, and now she felt suddenly nervous.

What happened next?

In all her discussions with friends and even her mother about sex, she'd never bothered to ask what happened after two people shared an explosive release that seemed to change you forever. At least, she knew she would never be the same.

Was it the same for Alex? She wasn't sure. The only thing she was now sure of was that she was falling for him, and falling fast. It wasn't just the physical intimacy they'd shared. No, it was more the words he'd spoken to her beforehand. Her heart couldn't help but be moved when such tender phrases of love and longing had burst forth from his lips.

When he strode back into the bedroom, Rebecca watched his progress, unabashedly gazing at his long, strong body as he took casual strides across the room. His hair was mussed and his body still held a light sheen of sweat. Even from the bed, his musky, male scent reached her, and she felt herself getting warmer again.

"Keep looking at me like that and I'll just have to make love to you again." He pulled the sheet away from her body, licked his lips, and slid into bed again, drawing her into his arms.

"Have to?"

He kissed her nose. "Need to, more like. How are you? Are you in any pain?"

She shook her head. "A little achy, I suppose, but that's all."

"Good." He kissed her forehead and settled her against his chest. She could hear his heart beating steadily and she felt safe enough to ask what she most wanted to know.

Rebecca played with the hair on his chest. "Alex?"

"Hmm?"

"Did you mean what you said?"

Alex rhythmically stroked the hair on her head. "About what?"

She swallowed. "When you said you loved me? Did you mean it?"

In a flash, she was underneath him again, his arms trapping her in on either side of her own. "Yes I meant it. I'll tell you something else, darling."

"What?" she whispered as she gazed into intense, dark eyes.

"You're it for me. I was sure of it before, and I'm even surer of it now. If you don't want me, and I pray to God that's not the case, then there won't be another for me. In my heart, I know that's true."

How could he be so sure, and she be so unsure? What was really holding her back? "Alex. What about your family? Or the public? They may not think me enough for you, or the country."

He kissed her long and deep, tongues twisting and tasting, before he broke away. "Don't worry about that. My father approves of you, and that will go a long way. So does Marcello."

Relaxed from the kiss, she tensed with her next breath. "Your brother approves of me?"

"I told him after dinner tonight, though he wasn't all that surprised. I'd told him myself the other day that I was in love with a woman. Earlier today, when I recognized your apartment as the blast site, I had to tell him how I knew it."

Alex shifted so they lay side-by-side, and his arms moved into a tight grip around her. "Once he realized that I love you and want you as my wife, he smiled and approved of my choice. It helped that Papa also approved of you."

She shook her head. "I still can't believe the King approves of me. Alex," she said with sudden worry. "What if they know you're with me tonight?"

Alex chuckled. "They're idiots if they don't think I'm with you. Who could resist seeing the woman they love in the dark shadows of night?"

"You won't get in trouble?"

He smiled and kissed her cheek. "Is it wrong to be happy because you're worried about me? I do wonder, though."

"About what?"

"Why aren't you more worried about breakfast, when you'll likely have to face both my parents and siblings together, with them knowing we likely spent the night together?"

She buried her face against his chest. "Oh, Alex. Can't we skip breakfast?"

He lifted her chin to drop a light kiss on her lips. "I am all for skipping breakfast, though I don't think you really want to. I'm sure you'll have worked up quite an appetite by morning."

Unable to resist, her hands started to roam down the delicious lines of his body. God, he was so sexy, so virile, and so completely male. Could she be enough woman for him for a lifetime together?

For now, she would put her doubts aside and just enjoy this moment, and this time with him. She sighed as his lips nibbled on her ear and he whispered a few choice, naughty words that had her blushing.

"Mmmm. My love likes a little dirty talk, does she? I'll have to keep that in mind."

She gasped. "Alex."

"Yes?" he whispered.

"Alex," she sighed and slipped under his seductive spell once more.

"Give yourself to me. I want more from you. I want everything."

After they made love again, she felt so close to him, felt so much with him. Did everyone feel like this after making love? she wondered, as her hands softly caressed his sweat-slicked hair.

She desperately wanted to stay awake, to talk and cuddle in his arms again, but exhaustion overtook her.

Alex returned from the bathroom to find her sleeping, his angel now lying on a field of crumpled white sheets, her hair strewn on the pillow around her.

He should go back to his room for the last few hours before sunrise, to keep their relationship secret a little longer. However, he found he couldn't leave her. Not now, not ever, if he could convince her.

So, he slipped into bed, pleased when she automatically rolled towards him and into his arms with a sigh. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. He would stay with her on this, their first night together. Hopefully, he would never have to leave her again.

And with dreams of their future on his mind, he fell into sleep.

**NOTE: This is the 'clean' version of this story! If you'd like the full sexy, sweary version, you can download it for free now.