Captive Princess: A Dark Paranormal Romance (Feline Royals Book 2) Read online

  There was no use in speculating now, though. With a sigh, I wrapped my arms around Shadow, nestling back against Lord Balam at the same time. Even though everything that could go wrong on this tour seemed determined to go wrong, I’d found more pleasure and happiness in the small moments with these men than I’d had in my whole life before it.

  Thirty-One

  Sir Kenosi

  Entrepreneur, Cheetah Nation

  “Sir, do you need anything?”

  It took me a moment to register July’s voice, to open my eyes. She smiled up at me, all copper skin and ebony eyes. Any other night, I would have said yes. I would have asked her to bring all the girls in to have a little fun.

  But not tonight.

  Tonight was too important.

  I dismissed her, slipped off my shoes, and lay down on the bed. It seemed too big, too empty with just me in it. This time, I wouldn’t use pleasures of the flesh to distract me from what was lacking my life. This time, I would listen to the voices of the ancestors. I would find the most elusive of treasures for a shifter—my True Mate.

  I closed my eyes and folded my hands on my chest, focusing the way the panther had instructed. He’d told me I might not see anything, but I wouldn’t entertain that possibility. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, one most shifters never got. If she was out there, I would see her.

  I tried to sink into a meditative state. This was one area where the Cheetah King could have done better than I could. He might not provide for his people the way I did, might not protect them, but the bastard could sure as shit meditate like a wise man.

  I wasn’t so practiced. My mind wouldn’t stop moving. It kept coming back to the princess, and not even the right one. The human one, the one whose eyes dared me to break her. I had tried. Outwardly, it might even appear that I’d succeeded. But I knew better. I hadn’t even touched the wildness in her eyes, let alone tamed it.

  And that just about drove me crazy. Every time I saw it, all I could think about was how I wanted to tame her, claim her. I wanted her to be mine, but she wouldn’t. Even when she was begging me to cum inside her tight little pussy, I knew she didn’t want me. Not the way I wanted her to. Not the way I wanted her.

  I pushed thoughts of the human princess out of my mind and tried to focus on finding my True Mate. If she was out there, I was supposed to see a vision of her. I waited, trying to clear my head.

  But again, the image of Itzel slipped back into my mind. Itzel, face down on the table, her face in the spilled wine, her hands in the plates of half eaten food, getting fucked like a dirty slut. Itzel’s legs around my neck, moaning as I sucked the sweet nectar from between her thighs. Itzel’s full, plush lips stretched around my cock, my hand buried in her hair.

  I sighed in frustration. I was not only still thinking about her, but now I was hard.

  Shadow had told me to have patience, that it could last all night. So I made myself comfortable, showering and then slipping back into the bed to try again.

  I tried. I tried again, and again, and again, until I knew for certain that either the potion didn’t work, or I had no True Mate. Because no matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried to drive the thoughts of her from my mind, the only woman I could see was human.

  Thirty-Two

  Itzel

  Princess, Ocelot Nation

  That night, I took comfort in the presence of one of my amours beside me as the other sat watch. Though the bed was narrow, I didn’t mind. After the past week’s ordeal, I didn’t want any space between us. For the first half of the night, I slept curled in Lord Balam’s arms, twining my legs with his and laying my head on his chest.

  When I woke with a start in the night, I found comfort in the green glow of Shadow’s eyes nearby as he sat up in the dark, making sure no one came for me. Sleep eluded me, so I slid out from under Lord Balam’s arm and out of bed. I found a man’s shirt in the closet and slid my arms into it, pulling it closed around me as I tiptoed over to join Shadow.

  Without a word, he rose from his chair and disappeared into the darkness of the room. A second later, the door opened, letting in a shaft of light from the hall. Shadow gestured for me to go out, following me into the hall and closing the door so we wouldn’t wake Lord Balam.

  “Do you think Sir Kenosi will let Camila go once he sees his mate?” I asked. “Maybe he won’t care about keeping her anymore.”

  “Maybe,” Shadow said.

  “Will the amulet have worked yet?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest and rocking back on my heels. For some reason, I didn’t like to think of Sir Kenosi running off with his mate, forgetting me like he’d forget all his Julys when August rolled around.

  “Yes,” Shadow said in his whispery growl.

  “What if… If Camila’s his mate, will he be fucking with her head like he did to me?”

  “I don’t know him well enough to answer that,” Shadow said. “But most shifters treasure their mates and would do anything to please them.”

  “That makes me feel a little better,” I admitted, hunching my shoulders and hugging myself tighter. Lord Balam would have comforted me better, but I appreciated Shadow’s bluntness. It was refreshing after all the games Sir Kenosi played, the games everyone had played for my entire life.

  “I guess we’ll have to hope he has a change of heart about imprisoning the ocelot heir,” I said. “If he can’t be convinced, I’ll have to call my father tomorrow.”

  Shadow tensed, and I remembered again that he was a panther. He was the enemy of our people, my father and my sister. He wasn’t old enough to have taken part in my mother’s murder, but his clan was responsible. Guilt pulled tight inside me at the thought. I was literally sleeping with the enemy.

  “I should try to sleep again,” I said.

  Back in the room, Lord Balam had risen and insisted that Shadow get some sleep, too. I didn’t know how Shadow felt about it, but it was awkward as hell for me to lie down next to him while still thinking about his people murdering my mother. He didn’t seem overly eager to tangle up with me, either, so we lay on the narrow bed, both of us trying too hard to respect the other’s space.

  After an hour of lying awake, frustrated and unable to sleep, I gave in and scooted into Shadow’s arms. A sigh escaped him, and he pressed his lips to my forehead in a long, hard kiss before pulling back. He adjusted his body against mine, drawing me close. After a minute, his breathing deepened, as if he’d only been waiting for me to come back to him before he could sleep. I must have been doing the same without knowing it, because I quickly fell into sleep.

  I woke to the loud bang of the door flying open.

  I jerked upright, pulling the sheet up around my chest. Sir Kenosi stood in the doorway, breathing hard, his eyes narrowed. “You tricked me,” he snarled.

  It took me a second to realize his eyes weren’t on me. I shifted to see Shadow propped on his elbows, his expression alert despite having been woken so suddenly. Lord Balam had leapt from the chair and stepped between us and the angry cheetah.

  “What are you talking about?” I asked.

  “You lied,” Sir Kenosi growled. “You drugged me. I should have you thrown in the shifter jail, and trust me when I say that’s somewhere you don’t want to go, no matter how much you deserve it.”

  “It is a hallucinogen,” Shadow said, slipping from the bed with that liquid, feline body of his. “I disclosed the effects in full. There was no trickery.”

  “I tripped my balls off, but I didn’t see my True Mate,” Sir Kenosi shot back, his eyes flashing molten gold.

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa,” I said. “Are you seriously going to barge in here acting all indignant that someone tricked you? That’s rich.”

  Sir Kenosi turned his fiery glare on me. “Of course you’re in on the deception.”

  “First of all, I had nothing to do with the amulet. I wasn’t even there when you opened it. And second, if Shadow tricked you, maybe it’s time you got a taste of your own medi
cine.”

  In truth, I had no idea what Shadow had given him, but it was all I could do not to burst into laughter. If Shadow had the balls to drug Sir Kenosi instead of letting him use the amulet, I was so pleased I could have kissed him. Someone needed to knock the cheetah down a peg, and if it was one of my lovers, all the better.

  “Sir Kenosi,” Balam said. “I’m sure it was a misunderstanding. Perhaps it only works for panthers.”

  “Perhaps,” Sir Kenosi said in a slightly mocking tone. He crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes as he looked between the three of us, seeming unwilling to let it go just yet.

  “Maybe we’ll give you the real thing if you release my sister like you promised,” I said, crossing my arms to mirror Kenosi’s posture.

  “I don’t have your sister,” he said, a bit of his usual smirk returning. “I never had her.”

  “What?” I asked, my heart thudding against my ribs. “Where is she?”

  “She demanded a room fit for a princess,” he said. “In fact, she wanted the room you couldn’t wait to abandon. It was empty, so I told her she could use it and bring her guard along, too.”

  “You can’t just trade us out like we’re interchangeable,” I said, trying to summon my inner princess and sound as superior as Camila always did. I stood straight and squared my shoulders even though I was still wearing nothing but Shadow’s shirt. “Camila’s important. I’ll have to report this to King Ocelot if she’s not freed immediately.”

  “She’s free,” he said. “Nothing is stopping her from joining you except her own anger.”

  “Oh,” I said faintly, the knife of pain returning to my chest.

  “In fact, I’ve already met with her this morning,” Sir Kenosi went on, a smug smile tugging at his lips. “I hope you’ll be pleased to learn that I’m providing one of my private choppers to get you to lion country safely.”

  “That’s very generous,” Lord Balam said. “We offer our deepest gratitude.”

  “Why would you do that?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at Sir Kenosi. “You came in here all angry that we’d tricked you, and suddenly you’re offering us transportation?”

  “Not only that,” Sir Kenosi said. “I’m offering you protection in the form of immunity. Not one nation would dare harm someone as influential as I am.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Oh, didn’t I make that clear?” Sir Kenosi said with a smirk. “I had breakfast with your sister, and it turns out we have quite a lot in common. For instance, we both believe you should keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”

  “Still not getting it,” I admitted.

  “I’ve done everything I can here,” Sir Kenosi said. “To be honest, I’ve grown rather bored. There’s no challenge anymore. I thought I’d spice things up. Be happy, Princess Itzel. I’m not just giving you a helicopter. I’m coming with you.”

  Thirty-Three

  I didn’t see Camila all day until we arrived at the helipad atop Kenosi’s tower. I rushed over to her, my heartstrings tugging despite her snub the day before.

  “I got the amulet,” I blurted out, then slowed when I reached her, feeling stupid. “I just wanted you to know.”

  “I know,” she said, adjusting her sunglasses. “Sir Kenosi told me this morning.”

  “I don’t want to fight,” I said, handing her the velvet jewelry box. “I’m sorry that I pretended to be the rightful heir. It wasn’t to enjoy any luxuries. I was trying to protect you, and I know it sounds lame, but that’s the truth.”

  Camila worked her lips from side to side, studying me like she wasn’t sure she could trust me. “I feel like I don’t even know you anymore,” she said. “You’re so different now.”

  “I feel the same way about you,” I said. But even as I said it, I paused to question what she’d said. Maybe she was right. A lot had happened to me in the past few months. I’d lost my innocence in every way. I’d lost my childhood sweetheart, the dream I’d held onto since my mother died. I’d started casually sleeping with a man, only to have it grow into something real. And now I was sleeping with two men. I’d learned to enjoy some of the darker aspects of my sexuality, too. It wasn’t all love and tenderness, as I’d imagined with Tadeu. And now, I was beginning to see some truths about the Ocelot Nation and even my own sister. I couldn’t deny that those things had changed me.

  What hadn’t changed was my love for my sister, my certainty that she would be a better ruler than my father the tyrant.

  “Here,” I said, shoving the box into her hand. “See, we’re all good. I love you, Camila. I trust you. You’re going to be a great queen. I wouldn’t be helping you get these if I didn’t believe that with all my heart.”

  Camila made a little ‘hmph’ sound and slipped the box into her satin clutch. She must have gone shopping in the past week, because she wore a new designer dress suit. The others had all replaced their clothes, too. Only I was at the mercy of Sir Kenosi’s wardrobe choices. Today, I wore a little black dress that accentuated my ample curves but definitely didn’t match everyone else’s travel attire. At least Camila had given me a little cardigan to wear over it so I didn’t look like I belonged on a street corner.

  “You may escort me to the next kingdom,” Camila said, raising her chin in her queenly pose, as if she were talking to a guard. She’d rarely spoken to me that way in our own kingdom, but everything was different away from home. Maybe things would go back to normal when we returned. I just didn’t know if I wanted that or not.

  “Okay,” I said. “What do we know about the Lion Nation?”

  “We’ll discuss this on the way,” Lord Balam said, stepping up beside me and guiding me toward the sleek, silver beast crouched on the helipad.

  When Sir Kenosi had said “chopper,” I’d pictured something noisy where we had to shout over the wind, inhale exhaust, and sit on each other’s laps to fit in. I should have known better. The chopper was a luxury machine with an enclosed cabin that could have fit two dozen people. I didn’t even have to stoop to walk to my seat, let alone cram in next to someone and yell to be heard.

  “This is quite suitable,” Camila said, taking a seat in a plush leather armchair and crossing her legs primly. My dress suddenly felt ten times more inappropriate. Camila looked like a princess flying with her escort of guards to visit another kingdom. I looked like a freaking escort her guards brought along to fuck.

  Which, ironically, was not all that far from the truth. Except for Gabor, I’d been fucking all three of these men, and I wasn’t planning to stop.

  I caught the quirk of arrogance at the corner of Sir Kenosi’s eye as he watched me, waiting for a reaction. Fuck. Had I just been thinking of him as one of my consorts, a man who wouldn’t mind hanging out with the other guys I was fucking? Lord Balam had said he was happy with it, and Shadow seemed to get pretty turned on when he saw us together, jumping in both times to participate. I wasn’t sure about Sir Kenosi. I wasn’t even sure I liked him. But my body sure as hell knew it wanted more of what he had given me.

  “Not a bad ride,” I said, shrugging like I wasn’t at all impressed. “Not too shabby at all.”

  In truth, I was trying not to gape. I’d rarely traveled, and my knowledge of helicopters was limited to what I saw on military dramas and reality survival shows.

  “Glad it’s not too shabby for a pair of princesses,” Sir Kenosi said, grinning like I wasn’t fooling him one bit. He dropped into one of the chairs and patted the one beside him. “Sit.”

  I hesitated, torn between wanting to sit next to him and wanting to defy him just to show him I was no longer his puppet. Gabor stepped into the helicopter, scanning us in one quick glance. Our eyes caught, and I remembered my shame at knowing he might have seen what had happened between Kenosi and me. I quickly stepped away from the cheetah, my heart hammering. What was wrong with me?

  Gabor might have thought I was forced to do those things, that I hadn’t enjoyed them. Knowing that I had made me fe
el ten times as filthy as the fact that he might have seen me sucking someone’s cock—someone he knew was never going to be my husband. With Lord Balam, at least I could pretend I had the intention, since everyone in our court had apparently assumed as much. But with Shadow, with Sir Kenosi? There was no pretending. To Gabor, it probably looked like I was either cheating on Lord Balam, or I was as common as the rumors had suggested and then some. No wonder he wanted nothing to do with me.

  I couldn’t blame him. I deserved whatever he thought of me. The night before, I’d asked him to stay. I’d wanted him to, would have done anything to have him hold me and comfort me. When he’d refused, I hadn’t lain there and cried myself to sleep. No, I’d found not one man but two to take his place, as if he meant nothing more to me than that. As if he could be replaced, and I didn’t really care who was in my bed as long as I had arms to hold me and a cock or two to fill the emptiness I felt.

  Turning away, I slid into an empty chair next to Camila, barely able to swallow, let alone speak or meet the guard’s eyes. Shadow took the seat on my left, Balam sat next to him, and Gabor took the empty seat next to Camila when everyone else was situated.

  “Looks like this will be a fun trip,” Sir Kenosi said, flashing that million-dollar smile. “If the tension in here is any indication, it looks like I missed some good stuff on this tour.”

  “Traveling is stressful,” Camila said in her sweet, bland way. “The attacks have added to the usual tensions that arise.”

  “I’m sure that’s it,” Sir Kenosi said, slouching back in his chair with his legs sprawled out as he surveyed our group one by one. Today, he’d left his disguises at home and wore a pair of simple dress pants and a lavender silk shirt unbuttoned a few extra buttons at the collar. He would look gorgeous next to my sister, I realized. Of course, that was impossible. Our kingdom thought it only right for princesses to marry advantageously, and there was no way they’d let Camila choose a low-born shifter, even if he was richer than a god. My father had married a shifter with zero royalty running through her veins, and after her death, some shifters had blamed Father for marrying beneath him.