A Savage Debt (The Beholden Duet #1) - Zoey Ellis Page 0,45

high society, Ana.”

Ana nodded, she’d always known that. “But why would I do anything with them?”

“Being a virgin doesn’t mean that you don’t trade other favors.”

Ana thought back to the way he had ordered her to her knees the previous night. He’d been checking if she’d had any prior experience before.

As if he read her mind, Maddoc slowly lowered to his knees, Ana’s eyes widened, unsure what he was doing, but when he leaned forward and pressed his nose to her mound, she let out a breathy moan. “Maddoc,” she whispered.

His tongue brushed her folds, stroking them gently before pressing his mouth farther in and sucking, flicking and grazing everything he could reach.

Ana moaned, pleasure racking her body as his mouth closed over her clit. She ground her hips in her his face, tilted them and spread her legs to give him more access. He set a steady rhythm, brushing and swirling his tongue until she was climbing that breath-stealing peak. His hands squeezed her ass, pulling her closer to him; her hands were in his hair, grabbing handfuls as the pleasure built.

Just as she was about to tip over the edge, Maddoc pulled away and rose to his feet, those intense eyes back on her.

Ana panted, frowning. “Why did you stop?”

Maddoc tilted his head toward the window, and when Ana turned to it, she was almost blinded by the sun. It had just broken over the horizon and was streaming through the window. Ana almost cursed. The damn sun!

Maddoc leaned in so close, she could smell herself on his glistening lips.

“I will finish at dusk tonight,” he murmured. “And I will know if you have touched yourself, so don’t.”

Ana rolled her eyes in amusement. So she couldn’t even touch herself. She should have guessed. Strangely, the idea of seeing him at dusk was exciting. Having him kneel before her like that, giving her pleasure with his mouth while she stood, had to be one of the sexiest and erotic things she had experienced with him.

She nodded, and Maddoc glanced down at her lips. She wondered if he wanted to kiss her as badly as she wanted him to, but they couldn’t touch each other now.

After a long moment, he picked up her dress and walked out.

Milly came to collect her again, this time armed with appropriate gowns, shawls, and hats. She was pleased to see that Ana wasn’t as distressed as the first night, so she left her alone to bathe while summoning her parents.

Ana took her time bathing, glad to wash off the sweat, dried semen, and crusted blood. She didn’t feel as achy as last night, but her body still pained her a little. Her mind was busy mulling over Maddoc’s behavior. The most concerning thing for her was his implying he’d planned to extend their nights together. Father certainly wouldn’t allow it, but Maddoc was not stupid—and would have known that. She wondered if he planned to kidnap her, but that didn’t make sense either. And why would Maddoc, who traveled all over the kingdom, steal a princess who would be recognizable anywhere she went? It wouldn’t be smart to have her live as an outlaw like him, so what did he mean? She sighed and shook her head.

The most immediate and pressing issue was Father killing him at dawn tomorrow. At the beginning, she didn’t think twice about his impending death, but now… she wasn’t sure she could be part of that—not without at least warning him. Maddoc was forceful, brutish, crude, and rude when he wanted to be, but there were moments, like this morning, when he was almost perfect, and that in itself was amazing. She never expected to find even one part of him desirable or worth of a second thought, but he was more complex than Ana realized.

She knew, though, that she couldn’t expect Mother and Father not to take the opportunity to kill him if they had the chance. She may have found some qualities in him she liked, but she wasn’t so blinded that she didn’t realize they were largely due to her instincts as an Omega. She didn’t know the man apart from what she’d experienced in the room, and he had done some terrible things over the years. In that sense, warning him seemed foolish.

Mother and Father arrived after her bath and sat where they had yesterday morning—the queen on the chair facing the bed, the king standing slightly behind her, and Ana sat on the bed.

“You