Chapter Five
Sierra
The engagement party feels like an elaborate performance, one where everyone except me seems to know their lines. A live orchestra plays softly in the background. Servers weave effortlessly through the sea of impeccably dressed guests carrying champagne and delicate hors d’oeuvres.
And every conversation revolves around how perfect Marco and my mother supposedly are together. Smiles are exchanged, congratulations are offered, and I stand among them all, wondering how many people would still be celebrating if they knew what I suspect.
Weeks ago, I could barely force myself to remain in the same room as Marco. Now, strangely enough, my anger toward my mother’s decision has dulled, not because I approve of it, but because someone else has steadily occupied my thoughts instead.
Royal. It’s become impossible to deny.
He has slipped into every quiet moment of my day, every late-night thought, and every plan for the future I never expected to make with another person. Loving him was never part of the plan. In fact, getting close to him wasn’t supposed to happen at all.
Yet somewhere between it all, he became my favorite place to escape. That realization should make me happy. Instead, it terrifies me. Because the longer I wait to tell him the truth, the more devastating that truth becomes.
Unable to bear another congratulatory speech, I quietly excuse myself and retreat to the downstairs powder room. The silence is immediate, replacing the orchestra with the soft hum of the ventilation system.
As I stand before the marble vanity and stare at my reflection, I smooth a hand over my emerald gown. I touch up my lipstick more out of habit than necessity, my thoughts racing faster than I can organize them.
Over the last week, my priorities shifted. My mother’s engagement still hurts. And the possibility that she’s marrying the man responsible for my father’s death still keeps me awake at night. But now another fear eclipses it entirely.
What happens when Royal finds out I’ve been lying to him? I close my eyes. Tonight has to be the night. Marco’s office is only a short walk from the ballroom. If I can find one piece of evidence linking him to my father’s death, I’ll finally tell Royal everything. He deserves the truth.
Decision made, I square my shoulders and step back into the hallway. The ballroom is alive when I return, couples swaying across the dance floor beneath glittering lights. Before I can disappear into the crowd, someone gently catches my hand.
“Sierra.”
I turn to find Riccardo smiling warmly. “May I?”
He gestures toward the dance floor. I hesitate only a moment before placing my hand in his.
“I suppose one dance won’t hurt.”
Riccardo is an effortless dancer, confident without being overbearing. We move comfortably among the other couples while polite conversation fills the silence between us.
“You’ve been spending a lot of time with my brother.”
The observation catches me off guard. “Is that a problem?”
He chuckles. “Not for me. I’ve never seen Royal make this much effort for anyone.”
I glance away. “Maybe you’re imagining things.”
“I’m not.”
Before I can think of a response, another familiar voice interrupts us. “Mind if I cut in?” Royal says.
Riccardo smiles knowingly. “I was wondering how long it would take.”
He steps away without complaint, leaving Royal to slide effortlessly into his place.
“You planned that.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
I smile and shake my head, giving in to the dance and the music.
“You’ve been avoiding me,” he murmurs seconds later, his lips brushing my ear.
“I’ve been busy.”
“Liar.” His hand slides lower, almost to the curve of my ass. “You’ve been wet and thinking about me. Same as I’ve been hard and thinking about you.”
I flush, glancing around the crowded room. “Someone will see.”
“Let them.” His eyes darken. “I want them to know. I want everyone to know you’re mine.”
“Royal...We’re at our parents’ engagement party.”
“Exactly.”
The song ends, but instead of releasing my hand, Royal gently leads me away from the dance floor. He spins me, guiding me through the crowd with deceptive ease. I don’t realize where we’re going until the noise fades, until he pushes open a door and pulls me into darkness.
We slip into the library, closing the door just enough to soften the music outside. Moonlight filters through the tall windows, leaving most of the room wrapped in shadows. He presses me against the door, his mouth on my neck, his hands roaming. “I need to taste you,” he growls. “Now.”
“We can’t. Someone could…”
“Come in?” He finishes. “Find us? Find you with your legs spread while I eat you like a starving man?” His hand slides up my thigh, beneath my dress. “Isn’t that what you want? Isn’t that why you’re so fucking wet right now?”
I should deny it. I don’t. “Yes,” I breathe.
He drops to his knees, shoving my dress up around my waist. I’m bare beneath, my underwear left behind in some desperate moment of hope earlier. He groans at the sight of me, his hands gripping my thighs, spreading me open.
“Beautiful,” he murmurs. “So fucking beautiful.”
Then his mouth is on me, and I bite my lip hard enough to draw blood to keep from screaming.
He licks into me with devastating precision.
His tongue finds my clit and circles, teasing, driving me toward the edge with terrifying speed.
I grip the doorframe behind me, my head falling back, my hips bucking against his mouth.
He pulls back just as I’m about to shatter, and I whimper at the loss.
“Not yet,” he says, his voice rough, his chin glistening. “I want you desperate. I want you begging.”
He returns to me, slower this time, his tongue sliding through my folds with agonizing leisure. He builds me up, brings me to the edge, then pulls back again. And again. I’m panting, writhing, my body coiled tight as a spring.
The fear of discovery only sharpens everything, each distant laugh from the party sending a fresh spike of heat through me.
“Please,” I finally gasp, shameless. “Royal, please, I need to come…”
He sucks my clit into his mouth and slides two fingers inside me, curling them just so, and I shatter.
The orgasm crashes through me like a wave, my body convulsing, my cry muffled by my own hand.
He keeps licking me through it, prolonging the pleasure until I’m sobbing, overwhelmed, my legs trembling.
He rises slowly, his eyes dark and satisfied. “Good girl,” he murmurs, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “Now it’s my turn.”
He takes my hand and presses it against the hard ridge of his cock through his trousers. “Feel what you do to me? Feel how fucking hard I am for you?”
I nod, my mouth dry. I’ve never done this before, never wanted to, but with him, I want everything.
“I want you to suck me,” he says, his voice rough. “Right here. Right now. Can you do that for me, princess?”
I swallow, nervous and aroused in equal measure. “I’ve never…”
“I know.” He cups my face, his thumb tracing my lower lip. “I’ll guide you. Just open your mouth and let me in.”
He unzips his trousers and frees himself, thick and heavy and impossibly hard. I stare, intimidated, but he guides me down with gentle pressure on my shoulder. I kneel before him, the carpet rough against my knees, and look up at him through my lashes.
“Fuck,” he breathes, his hand tangling in my hair. “Look at you. On your knees for me. Anyone could walk in and see you like this. See what a good little cocksucker you are.”
I flush at his words, the crude praise sending heat pooling between my legs again. He guides himself to my lips, his grip in my hair tightening.
“Open,” he commands.
I do, and he slides into my mouth, slow and careful. He tastes like salt and musk, like power and need. I close my eyes and focus on the feel of him, the weight of him on my tongue.
“That’s it,” he groans, his hips stuttering forward. “Just like that. Fuck, your mouth is perfect, princess.”
He guides me with his hand in my hair, showing me the rhythm, the depth. I relax my jaw and take him deeper, hollowing my cheeks, and his groan echoes through the quiet room.
“Sierra,” he chokes out, his head falling back. “Fuck, princess, just like that. Don’t stop.”
I find a rhythm, my hand wrapping around the base of him, my mouth working the rest. I look up at him, watching his face, the way his jaw tightens, the way his eyes squeeze shut. He’s beautiful like this, stripped of control, at my mercy.
“Your mouth,” he grits out, his hips moving faster. “So fucking good. I’m going to come, princess. I’m going to come down your throat, and you’re going to swallow every drop. Understand?”
I moan around him, the vibration making him curse. His grip in my hair tightens, almost painful, and then he’s coming, his body going rigid, his release flooding my mouth. I swallow, surprised by the taste, the heat, the power of it.
I did this to him. I reduced this controlled, dangerous man to shaking, gasping need. He pulls out slowly, his chest heaving, his eyes dazed. He helps me to my feet and kisses me, deep and thorough, tasting himself on my tongue.
“Perfect,” he murmurs against my lips. “You were perfect.”
We straighten our clothes in silence, the moment too fragile for words. He adjusts his tie, and I smooth my dress. He takes my hand and leads me back toward the door. Before we reach it, someone knocks lightly on the door.
“Royal?” Riccardo’s voice. “Dad needs you.”
Royal sighs. “Of course he does.”
He squeezes my hand once before opening the door. “I’ll find you later.”
“I’ll be here.”
He disappears down the hallway beside his brother. I wait exactly thirty seconds. Then I head in the opposite direction. Marco’s office door is unlocked. My pulse quickens as I slip inside and quietly close it behind me.
The room is exactly as I remember. Dark wood. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. An immaculate desk.
I move quickly, opening drawers, searching folders, photographing documents whenever something looks remotely connected to Madera Holdings. Financial statements. Property acquisitions. Shell corporations.
Nothing. Frustration builds. “There has to be something.”
I move behind the desk. Another locked drawer. Then I notice a hidden release beneath the desktop. The drawer clicks open. Inside sits a slim black folder. I barely manage to lift it before the office door opens behind me.
“What are you doing?”
The sound of Royal’s voice makes me freeze.
Slowly, I turn. He’s standing in the doorway, confusion already giving way to disbelief as his eyes move from my face to the folder in my hands. For several seconds neither of us speaks. Then he quietly closes the door.
“Sierra.” His voice is calm. “Explain.”
I lower the folder onto the desk. “I can.”
“So do it.”
I swallow hard. “My father was investigating Marco before he died.”
Royal’s expression doesn’t change. “What?”
“When I took over Dad’s company, I found emails... notes... unfinished reports.” My voice trembles despite every effort to steady it. “He ended a business deal with your father because he’d discovered something.”
Royal stares at me.
“I think Marco had him killed.”
Silence. Finally, Royal laughs. “You think my father murdered your father.”
“I know how it sounds.”
“And you decided the best way to investigate was sneaking into my father’s office?”
“I needed proof.”
“So that’s what this has all been?” His eyes harden. “The dinners. The time together? The relationship?”
“No…”
His voice rises for the first time. “Then tell me when it stopped being an investigation.”
“It changed.”
“When?”
“I fell in love with you.” The words leave my mouth before I can stop them.
His jaw tightens. “I don’t know what’s real anymore.”
“It was real. Everything between us was real.”
“You expect me to believe that after finding you standing in my father’s office, going through confidential files?”
Tears sting my eyes. “I was trying to protect my family.”
He steps aside, opening the office door. “You need to leave.”
“Royal...I never wanted to hurt you.” I’m crying now.
“Congratulations.” His voice is quiet now. “You did.”
I stand there for another heartbeat, hoping he’ll look at me the way he did only minutes ago. He doesn’t. Without another word, I dash past him and out of the office, every step feeling heavier than the last. I’ve finally told the truth, and it may have cost me the only man I’ve ever loved.