American Queen (New Camelot Book 1)

I wake up sore, sweaty, and happy.

Embry has flopped over onto his stomach, one leg bent, snoring loudly, and Ash is still wrapped around me, although his arms are slack and he’s hooked a leg around the cover to cool off. His breathing is even and steady, and I know if I could see his face in the dark, it would be that rare expression of vulnerability that squeezes my chest every time I see it.

I blink in the dark for a few minutes, content and safe and transformed. I feel like a different person. A realer person. Like a fairy tale princess awakened from slumber. But this fairy tale also comes with an aching pussy and a powerful thirst, so I carefully wriggle out of bed to go find some more Advil and a glass of water.

It’s only been a couple of hours since we collapsed onto the bed, and it’s a deep dark outside the windows, even with the city glowing around us. Plenty of time to snuggle back in, I think as I use the restroom and swallow the pills. A perfect way to end a perfect night.

My phone buzzes on the nightstand, and since I’m up, I go check it.

Abilene: I know it’s the middle of the nite but I need to talk. can u come down to the lobby? It’s important.

I’m already grabbing my robe and putting it on, searching for hotel slippers to go with it.

Me: omg, are you okay? I’m coming down now.

Abilene: I’m okay, I just need to see u.

With my hand on the door, I think about waking up one of the men and telling them I’m going downstairs, but they both look so perfect and boyish stretched out on the bed that I hate to wake them. I’ll tell Luc or one of the other agents waiting in the hallway, I decide. And if Ash wakes up, then he’ll be able to find me right away.

But when I open the door and step out into the hallway, I don’t see Luc. Or any of the other agents. I slip my phone into my robe pocket and walk further down the hallway, puzzled. Even while we sleep, there’s usually perimeters of agents guarding the room. We’re never really alone.

I turn the corner to the see the elevator, and again—no one. Even though I know for sure there’s always an agent at the elevator.

Something’s wrong, I think, and the moment I think that, I know I need to get back to the room, back to Ash. It was stupid of me to come this far down the hallway in the first place, but the best thing to do now would be to—

Oh shit.

There’s a man standing in front of me wearing a hotel employee uniform and blue latex gloves, a cleaning cart at rest behind him. His uniform says Daryl, but I know he’s not a hotel employee. Because I’ve seen him before.

At the Carpathian diplomatic dinner.

I take a deep breath, preparing to run. And he steps towards me with a cold smile.