Chapter 1
The pale light of the S?o Paulo morning tried, without much success, to penetrate the heavy velvet curtains in our bedroom.
The room was immersed in near-total silence, broken only by the almost imperceptible hum of the central air conditioning.
I opened my eyes slowly, feeling the unreal softness of the Egyptian cotton sheets against my bare skin.
But nothing there was more comforting than the warm, familiar weight of Eduardo’s arm around my waist, holding me close against his broad, firm chest.
Our honeymoon in the Northeast had been over for a few weeks, but in his arms, I felt that our private sanctuary remained intact, even within that vast mansion of marble and glass in the heart of Morumbi.
I turned to face him, moving carefully so as not to wake him suddenly.
Eduardo slept with a serene expression, strands of dark hair falling casually across his forehead, his slow, steady breath gently ruffling the hair on my shoulder.
I smiled, feeling my chest tighten with such tenderness.
I brought my hand to his face, tracing the strong line of his jaw with my fingertips.
I moved closer, brushing my lips against his in a gentle good-morning kiss—just a delicate touch.
Eduardo sighed in his sleep and tightened his embrace, pulling me closer until there wasn’t even a millimeter between our bodies.
I left a trail of gentle kisses down his chin, moving down his warm neck, taking in his natural scent—a blend of expensive soap, sleep, and masculinity that intoxicated me every morning.
That’s when I heard his deep, hoarse laughter vibrate in his chest.
“If you keep doing that, I guarantee I won’t make it to the office before noon,” my husband murmured, his voice still thick with sleep, his brown eyes opening slowly, sparkling with lazy mischief.
“And who said I want you to go to work?” I whispered back, gently nibbling on his earlobe.
Eduardo rolled over in bed with surprising agility, reversing our positions and pinning me beneath his body. The trace of sleep vanished from his eyes, which darkened with desire. He cupped my face with both hands, his thumbs caressing my cheeks with a devotion that made me melt.
That morning’s first real kiss was slow, deep, and filled with adoration.
His lips parted over mine, exploring my mouth with his tongue with slow, delicious tenderness, savoring every second as if we had all the time in the world.
My hands slid up his broad shoulders, tangling in his hair, pulling him toward me with an urgency that sprang from the depths of my soul.
“My Maria…” Eduardo whispered against my lips, his breath coming in gasps.
My husband’s hands traced a slow path down my body, following the curves he already knew by heart, yet touching them as if they were a sacred discovery.
Each caress sent shivers down my spine, spreading a wave of heat that radiated from my core to the tips of my toes.
There was no haste, no roughness. It was lovemaking in its purest form—tender, intimate, and reverent.
He kissed my neck, moving down to my breasts, taking my hardened nipples into his mouth with a tenderness that made me gasp and arch my back, offering myself even more to him.
My fingers lightly scratched his back, feeling the taut muscles beneath his smooth skin.
His touch glided across my stomach and went lower, finding the slick heat between my thighs, already throbbing with anticipation.
When his fingers touched me there, caressing my center with slow, circular movements, I let out a low moan, closing my eyes as pleasure clouded my mind.
“Look at me,” Eduardo whispered, his voice hoarse and urgent.
I opened my eyes, meeting his intense, passionate gaze fixed on mine.
My husband positioned himself between my legs, supporting his own weight on his forearms so as not to crush me.
He guided himself slowly inside me with a continuous, deep thrust that united us completely.
I let out a long sigh, filled with his heat and strength.
The perfect fit, the feeling that we belonged to each other indissolubly.
Eduardo moved inside me at a slow, steady rhythm, keeping his eyes fixed on mine as if he wanted to see into my soul through that connection.
Each thrust was accompanied by whispered words—declarations of love and possession that fueled the fire in my womb.
The constant friction, his heavy breathing against my neck, the brush of our sweaty skin…
Everything was a symphony of unfiltered intimacy.
I wrapped my legs around his waist, pulling him deeper into me and matching the rhythm as it gradually grew more forceful.
The pressure mounted, pleasure building in hot waves that stole my breath.
Eduardo moved faster, the muscles in his back tensing beneath my hands.
I reached the peak first; my body contracted around him in spasms of pure ecstasy that made me scream his name against his neck as my vision went white.
Seconds later, Eduardo buried his face in the curve of my shoulder, and his body went rigid as he spilled himself inside me, letting out a deep, satisfied moan that vibrated through my entire body.
We stayed like that for several long minutes, our hearts beating out of sync, our bodies pressed together, united by sweat and labored breaths that slowly returned to normal. He kissed my forehead, my nose, and finally my lips.
“I love you so much it hurts, you know?” he murmured, stroking my hair scattered across the pillow.
“I love you too, my prince,” I replied, smiling with my eyes closed, feeling like the most secure woman in the world.
The magic of that intimate bubble, however, had a time limit. The real world was calling from outside the curtains.
Eduardo finally found the strength to pull away, leaving the bed with a heavy sigh.
I lay wrapped in the sheets, watching him adoringly as he walked naked to the enormous bathroom, the morning light outlining the muscles of his back and legs.
The sound of shower water falling on the marble flooded the room.
About twenty minutes later, he returned.
The transformation was almost mesmerizing.
The tender, disheveled lover from moments before had given way to the ruthless businessman.
He was wearing tailored navy blue pants, perfectly complementing a starched white shirt.
As he buttoned his cuffs, he walked over to the mirror and smoothed his hair, now neat and brushed.
Finally, he slipped his watch onto his wrist—a platinum timepiece that cost more than the house where I grew up—and put on his jacket, completing the armor of power that the world saw.
He approached the bed and leaned over me. The smell of sex and sweat had been replaced by the woody fragrance of his imported cologne.
“I have a meeting with the shareholders at nine and a business lunch with the German investors,” he said, gently running the back of his hand across my face. “I promise I’ll try to get back early so we can have dinner together.”
“I’ll be waiting for you,” I promised, smiling, lifting my head slightly to give him one last, lingering peck on the lips.
“Don’t let my mom nag you too much, okay?” he joked, but there was a slight shadow of concern in his eyes. He knew about the differences; he knew that Dona Eleonora hadn’t accepted me, but he downplayed the situation, believing that time would fix everything. “If you need anything, call me.”
“Don’t worry, love. Good job.”
Eduardo gave me one last bright smile and walked to the double doors of the bedroom. When the lock clicked shut behind him, the silence returned.
There, alone on the enormous bed, watching the dust dance in the few rays of sunlight streaming through the gap in the curtains, I suddenly became aware of the overwhelming size of that house.
The marble walls made the air feel even colder.
I clutched the sheets to my chest, feeling a slight anxiety tingle in the pit of my stomach.
My prince had left for battle in the corporate world, and I had been left behind in the castle.
The problem was that, in that castle, the queen mother was in control, and to her, I would never be anything more than the commoner who had invaded her reign.