The Hero and the Hidden Royal - Renae Kaye Page 0,46

Tomorrow you can move in.”

“And I’ll pay half the rent.”

“Fine.”

“And you’ll cook those dumplings-in-caramel things you did before.”

“Fine.”

Sam brushed the hair back from Derek’s face, happily gazing down at his contented lover.

“You must have something you want, though. Some demand of me. Or else it’s not fair.”

“Okay. I want you to fuck me again.”

Sam grinned. “Fine. Tomorrow.”

“Good. Tomorrow you’ll fuck me, then you’ll move in, and then you’ll fuck me again. And you’re not leaving.”

“Nothing will separate us,” Sam vowed.

“Nothing,” Derek agreed.

~~~~~~~~

Chapter Sixteen

DEREK CONSIDERED MONDAY WAS ONE of the most fabulous days of his life, up until approximately seven that evening.

All day he thought of Sam. He thought of the chalet. He thought of Sam. He thought of the domestique tresorie. He thought of Sam. He thought of the museum and the delights it held, with many lovely artifacts from Castle de Fleur’s long history.

Marguerite, the housekeeper from the castle, replied to his enquiry and confirmed that the room that had been converted to a nursery still had the original 1940s paneling and that she was unaware of any safe or hole in the wall where Derek described. She promised to approach the earl with the information and see if he was aware of anything further.

Derek was so happy that he was almost dancing on air on his way home. He deliberately worked an extra two hours so that he could leave early the following day because Sam would be coming to dinner.

The laneway was ahead of him, and instead of raising his fears to go invisible, or going the long way around, he raised his chin and marched determinedly down its darkened length. As he passed the alley where Sam had had his fight, he hesitated, but when no body of a thief came tumbling out, he moved forward and glanced to the side, up the alley. No fight, just the lights above each business’ door. He grinned and walked on, remembering the first time he saw Sam.

He therefore didn’t see the man waiting, half hidden by the stack of crates, and holding a blanket. All Derek knew was suddenly he was enveloped in darkness and someone yelled, “Got him!”

The claustrophobic obscurity made him yell out in fright, and then suddenly he could see again. But that was even more frightening, because he was surrounded by three men who were grappling with what seemed to be nothing. In actual fact it was an invisible Derek with a blanket over his head. The blanket had gone invisible as his fear was so great, which gave Derek the ability to see straight through it, although breathing was hard.

“Stop!” he cried.

The men seemed to expect the invisibility because they didn’t stop. “Get the other blanket,” one yelled and they threw another one over his head. It immediately turned transparent as well.

“Fuck,” one man shouted, put his thick arms around Derek, and lifted him off his feet. “Grab his legs.”

“I can’t see his fucking legs,” another hollered back. Derek screamed under the blanket, but it was muffled by the layers. He kicked out and satisfyingly managed to lay a couple of kicks on his attackers. He wriggled and squirmed and screamed, but it was to no avail. No one came to his rescue.

Eventually the three men managed to subdue him, one with his arms around Derek’s knees, another with his arms around Derek’s neck.

“I need to breathe,” he choked out, struggling to get enough air into his lungs under the two blankets. Black spots danced in front of his eyes. He couldn’t draw enough breath to scream and yell.

“Raul’s here,” one said, and Derek had no idea what they meant until the white van pulled up beside him. He was bundled unceremoniously into the back of the van. The three men jumped in beside him, lying on his body to keep him from moving and using touch rather than sight to subdue him. Derek wince as he received an elbow to the stomach and a knee to his groin.

He was seriously struggling to get enough air and knew it was a choice between continuing to struggle and pass out, or ceasing his movements and pleading for the blankets to be removed. It wasn’t much of choice. He went limp.

“I need to breathe,” he cried as loudly as he could. One heard him and hauled up the invisible blankets, allowing a shaft of fresh air in. Derek gulped greedily. His heart rate was rocketing. Finally with the black dots no longer obscuring his vision,