The Virgin's Choice by Jennie Lucas Read Free Book Online

could think about was that Xerxes had been right. Lars had betrayed her. Tricked her. He’d used her own idealistic nature, her belief in loyalty and love, against her.
    He’d never loved Rose at all. He’d only wanted her body. He was already married, and he’d been waiting…waiting for…
    “He’s waiting for his wife to die,” she whispered aloud.
    She felt Xerxes touch her arm. “I know.”
    She looked up. His dark eyes were surprisingly gentle.
    “Come,” he said in a low voice. “You’ve had a rough day. I’ll take you to bed.”
    She was unable to resist as he took her hand in his larger one, lifting her to her feet. She trembled at his touch, barely feeling strong enough to hold the bodiceof her wedding gown closed with her other hand. She pressed her fingers against her heart. She felt faint, her knees weak as she tried to walk. Stopped.
    She looked up at him in the dark, shadowy hallway. She saw the roughness in his expression. He was everything Lars was not: brutal, ruthless, vengeful. Truthful.
    Abruptly, Xerxes lifted her into his strong arms, holding her against his chest. She felt the rush of electricity, the overwhelming awareness sizzling through her just as it had when he’d first touched her, when he’d kissed her on the plane.
    He didn’t know that it had been her first kiss. And that her whole body trembled now with all the desire and yearning of twenty-nine years of loneliness.
    He carried her down the shadowed hallway and up a sweeping flight of stairs. The rhythm of his footsteps was heavy against the marble floor, mingling like percussion against the music of the roaring surf outside.
    She glanced up at his face. His expression was brutal, even cruel. And yet he held her so gently. She’d thought him some kind of malevolent demon, but perhaps he wasn’t. Perhaps he was a dark angel, who’d unexpectedly come to save her.
    At the end of the hall, he used his shoulder to push open a door with a low creak. Supporting Rose’s body with one arm as if she weighed nothing at all—which she probably did, compared to him—he switched on a small lamp with his free hand.
    She dimly saw a large, Spartan bedroom, utterly masculine, devoid of color. The walls were white. The bedwas black. The wide windows had a balcony overlooking the moonlit sea.
    He set her down on the bed. Looking down at her, his eyes were dark as night. Dark—and full of hunger.
    He was going to kiss her again. She knew it. He was going to kiss her, despite his promise. Promises meant nothing to men. They’d meant nothing to Lars. Now Xerxes would ruthlessly possess her. He would take everything she had once hoped to give her husband in innocence and faith.
    Rose no longer had the strength to fight.
    He pushed her back against the enormous bed. Slowly, he pulled the fabric of the bodice from her clenched fingers, leaving her silken bra and the bare skin of her belly in clear view. She felt the magnetic force of his body over her own, his powerful strength and size as he stared down at her, pinning her with his dark gaze.
    She stared at him numbly. She had to fight. Why couldn’t she fight? She breathed, “I…I hate you.”
    His sensual mouth curved as he looked down at her. “I don’t need you to love me. I just need you to obey.”
    Rose closed her eyes, waiting for him to rip the wedding dress down her legs and throw his body over hers. Waiting for him to ravish her without hesitation, to ruthlessly and brutally seduce her naked body.
    She almost didn’t care. She’d lost herself completely. Just a few hours ago, she’d been idealistic, romantic. Now, she felt—nothing.
    Then he touched her.
    His fingertips were feather-light, running along her bare collarbone to her shoulder. Strange sensations coursed through her body, an odd tumble of emotionsthat frightened her. Fear? Yes. But also…something more than fear. Something greater than fear that made her tremble deep inside.
    His hands moved slowly down the