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“Never” She shook her head, re at the reception “Never again”

Again there was that faint, tantalizing smile that reo Of how her body had fought her mind and had almost won Of how much her body still wanted hi her But he didn’t say anything—he didn’t have to He merely turned, moved the tapestry to one side and disappeared into the darkness

Chapter 9

Back in his bedroom Andre paced until his body caler raced in his veins But a flicker of hope had been ignited He’d been so close So close to having Juliana again he hadn’t wanted to let her go when she’d struggled against him—but he had Instantly He’d sworn to himself he would wait until she came to him

He hadn’t intended to seduce her Hadn’t intended to touch her at all He honestly had gone to her roo to her suite via the main corridor, but he hadn’t wanted to couard and the ones assigned to her—the ones she still didn’t know anything about—anyone could have seen hi at her door, and at that tiht it would seemcurious Possibly suspicious Certainly worthy of couards were discretion personified and the household staff knew better than to gossip outside the walls about anything going on in the palace, he didn’t want backstairs gossipthe rounds about Juliana

He hadn’t seen her in the corner of her bedrooeway, and he’d thought she wasn’t there He’d planned to enter the sitting roo her about DeWinter and leave Sihtforward But when he turned and saw her reflection in the , he’d been frozen Unable to move Unable to speak Then she’d seen him Ordered him to leave And when she’d clutched the bodice of her dress like an outraged virgin, he’d moved Not to leave, as his brain told hi to touch her the way he needed to breathe

To hear her accuse hi her had been more than he could bear He had to reo Had to remind her that she had come to him But when he touched her, when he smelled the delicate scent that rose fro him to stop, but his body refused to obey Because every word he whispered to her reminded him of what it had been like to make love to her What it had been like to know she loved hih to come to him

And her body had responded to his Finally She didn’t want it to—oh yes, he could tell she was fighting her body’s response—but he knew she wanted hih Not yet But it would happen He knew it in his heart He could wait until then He’d waited all these years, hadn’t he?

With that realization he finally let hi that had been weighing on his er She didn’t know it, seemed totally oblivious to the fact that someone had deliberately tried to run her down the day she’d visited the royal cemetery But he was as sure as a man could be The Mercedes had turned out to be stolen That meant someone had planned the attack on her

Should he tell Juliana? Warn her? If he did, would she believe him? Not unless you tell her how you know, he admitted to himself, and he wasn’t ready to do that Not yet Because he didn’t kno she’d react when he told her hisher for the past three years That his men had surrounded her in the first-class cabin on the plane bringing her here That she hadn’t taken a single step since she’d been in Zakhar withouther safe

Not stalking her That wasn’t it at all, but she ht feel it was an unwarranted intrusion into her life, and he couldn’t take that risk—he had to keep her safe no matter what

He’d already doubled the surveillance and protection on Juliana, which uarded But that was better than the alternative

Juliana tossed and turned, unable to sleep Unable to erase the evening fro in her bedroom, but earlier, in the little library All the different ways he’d looked at her The way he’d held her in his strong e her to confide in hily beneath her ear The emotions in his voice, his face, his eyes Sweet, then autocratic De, then tender Gentle, then implacable All the facets of his personality she re-up years Her beau ideal prince