Chapter 2

Juliana spared no effort to ensure the entire arrangement went smoothly.

She sent over a mountain of expensive supplements and fertility vitamins, cheerfully calling it "optimizing my chances of conception."

I stared at the table full of herbs and fell into deep thought.

I said, "Juliana, are you sure the Regent will even cooperate?"

Juliana gnawed on a barbecue rib and mumbled through a mouthful of meat.

She said, "Alexander is cold as ice, but he's got one fatal weakness. The man has appetites."

I choked on my coffee and nearly spat it across the table. "How do you even know that?"

Juliana flashed a sly grin, her expression bordering on shameless. "I dug through the household records. He doesn't keep any mistresses, but the number of undergarments he goes through every day is staggering."

I had absolutely no words.

Fine. Only Juliana could come up with that kind of scientific deduction.

For the sake of the mission, I decided to ambush him in his study that very night.

I changed into a sheer white gown that left just enough to the imagination, and Juliana hovered behind me like a field commander. "Pull the neckline lower. Mia, this is do or die."

I glared at her. "If you're so smart, why don't you go?"

Juliana shrank back immediately. "I don't have the equipment for this. If I went, it'd just be harassment. When you go, it's strategy."

I carried the tray of soup toward the study like a soldier marching to her death, bracing myself for whatever awaited on the other side.

Before I even stepped through the door, a wave of cold air hit me square in the face.

Alexander sat behind a massive desk, reviewing documents. He was dressed entirely in black, and his sharp features looked like they could cut through steel.

My knees went weak on the spot.

Could a man like this really be "borrowed"? I had a feeling he'd snap my neck before I even got the chance, convinced I was some assassin.

But then I thought about Juliana's pitiful, tear-streaked face, and I forced myself to keep walking.

I said, "Your Highness, it's late. I brought you some soup."

Alexander didn't even look up. His voice was so cold it could freeze the air between us. "I believe you have the wrong room, Your Grace. The King's chambers are next door."

I leaned closer to him, soft and delicate, and let my hand rest on his shoulder. "His Majesty isn't feeling well tonight. He asked me to keep you company instead."

The quill in Alexander's hand froze mid-stroke, and he finally looked up at me.

Those eyes were deep and dark, like a whirlpool pulling me in.

Alexander set the quill down and studied me with a half-smile that wasn't quite a smile.

He asked, "The King sent you to keep me company? And how exactly do you plan to do that?"

I steeled my nerves and sat right down on his lap.

I had to hand it to Juliana. She wasn't exaggerating. His thighs were rock-solid under me, and his tapered waist was every bit as impressive as she'd promised.

"Your Highness, you are truly brilliant and powerful. I've admired you for so long." I forced out the words, nearly gagging on my own performance, while my fingers secretly fished out the little pouch of "aphrodisiac powder" Juliana had given me.

She'd had it specially made by some rogue apothecary outside the palace. According to her, even an elephant would go mad after a single dose.

I waited for the right moment, sprinkled the powder into his goblet of wine, and lifted it to his lips with a sweet smile. "Your Highness, have a sip. You've been working so hard."

Alexander stared at the glass of wine, then glanced at the flush creeping across my cheeks. A cold smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.

He took the glass and drained it in one long swallow.

I was cheering on the inside. It worked.

But before I could savor the victory for even three seconds, the room spun around me, and he slammed me down onto the desk.

Papers and an inkwell crashed to the floor, splattering ink across the marble.

Alexander's eyes burned red, and his breath came out so hot it practically scorched my skin. "Using me to breed an heir. Clever little scheme you've cooked up, Your Grace."

I stared up at him in horror. "You knew it?"

He gripped my chin, his voice a low, gravelly rasp. "That idiot Juliana couldn't even bother to shut the door while she conspired with you. I heard every word from the balcony above."

Juliana, you absolute moron.

He continued, "Since Your Grace is so desperate to borrow what's mine, it would be terribly ungracious of me to refuse, wouldn't it?"

The words barely left his mouth before a rough, searing kiss crashed down on mine.

That night, I finally learned the meaning of "be careful what you wish for."

Alexander was like a wolf starved for three years, and he turned me inside out with absolutely no mercy.

I sobbed and begged and swore I didn't want it anymore, but he just bit down on my earlobe and laughed, cold and low. "Too late, Your Highness. You slipped me the drug. You started this game. And now you want to run? Not a chance."

The next morning, I braced my hands against my lower back, which felt moments away from snapping in half, and drifted back to my chambers like a broken paper butterfly.

Juliana was crouched by the door waiting for me. The second she spotted the trail of red marks covering my neck, her jaw practically hit the floor. "Holy crap. It got that intense? Mia, you're a soldier."

I smacked her across the face. "Get lost."