Of course I opened my stupid mouth. I knew that man was stubborn as hell, and I knew he wouldn’t be happy if I pushed him right away. I couldn’t help myself, though. I just had to say something.

In my defense, I was sleepy. He woke me up from a dream about his body pressed against mine, and I found that I was completely wet already. It was more than a little crazy to see him standing at my door after that. He looked so tired and stressed; I couldn’t help but let him inside.

Plus, I had hoped he wanted to do more than talking. I wasn’t ashamed to admit that I wanted a piece of the king that night. I had been more than a little thrown when it seemed like he wanted to discuss politics instead.

The poor man. He had the weight of the country on his shoulders, with a civil war raging and his civilians dying. I wanted to help him, bring him some comfort, but I didn’t know enough about the situation to say the right thing. I was a stranger in these lands.

But he shouldn’t get so annoyed with me. He should realize that I didn’t understand what was happening and that I’d interpret the situation through my American perspective.

The next day, I got up early and wandered out of the house. I didn’t want to run into Trip, so I decided to go for a walk. He was probably sleeping anyway, but I wanted to play it safe. I got a little coffee in a paper cup and carried it down the path.

It was a bit chilly in the morning, and a thin mist hung over the green, dew-covered grass. I was the only person for miles, or at least that was how it felt. Truthfully, there was a security guy following nearby, hanging back to be respectful, but watching over me. I thought it might be George again, but I couldn’t be sure from a distance.

I hiked up along a short incline and down toward the stream. I was wearing running shoes, tight black jeans, and a gray zip-up hooded sweatshirt. My hair was up in a messy bun, and I didn’t expect to see a single person, which was what I wanted.

I needed to think. I needed to figure out what the hell I was doing here, in Starkland, following Trip around on his crazy trip.

I’d been invited originally to potentially marry him. He needed a popularity boost, and they thought I might make a good suitor. Okay, that was fine. I understood that. Trip had people taking care of that sort of thing for him, people like that minister Lynette. I doubted he’d had much say in that decision.

Now, though, things were different. We’d been together and we’d survived together. I was beginning to feel a closeness with him that I couldn’t describe, despite the two of us coming from completely different worlds. He was the king of some foreign European country, and I was just a normal American girl. You didn’t get much more different than that.

But we had something in common. We had a shared desire. Maybe it was a desire for each other, or maybe it was just a desire to touch each other. Either way, there was a magnetism there.

Despite how much of a cocky jerk Trip could be. He had a good heart, and I knew that deep down. Maybe he pushed boundaries a little too hard, but he got away with it most of the time.

I found myself walking along the stream, mud sticking to my shoes. I smiled to myself, sipping my coffee and enjoying the early morning air. I crested a small hill and saw the copse of trees up ahead.

I stopped, hesitant. That was a special place, I knew. I wasn’t sure if I should go in there without Trip.

But something compelled me. I wasn’t sure what it was, but something pushed me forward.

I continued down along the stream, toward the magical forest. I got that feeling again as I walked amidst the Aspen trees. I felt like I was in a magical world, and in a lot of ways I was. I’d never been so close to real power before, but now I was sleeping in the same house with it and talking to it in the middle of the night like it was no big deal.

Trip was real power, or at least his position was real power. He held it so gracefully, like it meant nothing, but he was the king after all. It terrified me, but it also excited me more than I wanted to admit. Trip was a man who could create and destroy, and he could do so easily.

I moved farther into the forest and then suddenly stopped in my tracks. Standing not far away was a man wearing black. Fear gripped my chest as I had a flashback to that night.

I stared at him and didn’t move a muscle. Slowly, the man turned toward me and nodded.

It took a second for me to realize that it was Al, Trip’s bodyguard.

I took a deep breath, steadying myself. It was only Al, standing out in the woods. As I looked around, I realized that Trip’s entire team was spread out around me. They were impressively good at being unobtrusive, to the point where I didn’t even notice them.

But then it hit me: If Trip’s men were here, that meant Trip was nearby.

I had a deep, stabbing nervousness in my stomach. I had gotten away from the house to avoid running into Trip, but somehow I had stumbled right into his private spot.

I took a deep breath, steadying myself. I wasn’t backing down. I might as well go right for it and be a freaking big girl instead of acting like a scared child. He was just the king after all.

Scratch that. He was just Trip.

I continued forward, knowing where I’d find him. The security team let me through, each man nodding to me as I looked at him. I continued on past them for another few minutes, the aspens getting denser and denser until I spotted Trip up ahead.

He was leaning up against the tree with the swing tied to it, his arms crossed. He was looking out over the stream as it wound through the forest.

“I thought that was you,” he said as I approached.

I stopped. “How’d you know?”

“I heard you coming a mile away,” he answered, laughing. “You stomp like a giant.”

“I do not,” I said. “I glide. I’m a lady.”

He grinned and turned toward me. The grin slowly disappeared. “Look, I was an ass last night. I’m getting sick of apologies, so I won’t make one.”

“You were an ass,” I agreed. “Apology accepted.”

He laughed and looked back at the stream. I walked up and stood next to him, my hands wrapped around the cup of coffee.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?”

I nodded. “Yeah, it is. It’s not weird that I came here, right?”

“It’s not private or anything,” he said. “I don’t mind if you come here.”

“Thanks.” I leaned up against the tree, inches away from him. “I’m surprised you’re awake.”

“I find it hard to sleep during a crisis.”

“That’s probably not the worst trait.”

“Maybe. I can think better when I can actually sleep, though.”

“Good point. Wouldn’t want the king to make some horrible decision while sleep deprived.”

He frowned and looked away. “Exactly.”

“Hey,” I said, reaching out and touching his arm. “I was just kidding.”

“I know,” he said, looking back at me and smiling. “I know. There’s just a lot going on.”

“How are things?”

“About the same as last night. You know, when I drunkenly got annoyed with you.”

I smiled softly. “Yeah. I remember.”

He stared at me for a second and then looked back over my shoulder. He made a gesture.

“What was that?” I asked.

“I just sent my team back to the estate,” he said. “And your man, too.”

“So we’re alone out here?”

He nodded. “We are.”

I felt that nervous spike again. I realized that I was dripping wet, and I had been since I saw him standing out here. He was wearing a pair of perfectly fitting jeans and a tight, simple T-shirt that made his muscular chest look incredible.

He turned toward me. I pressed my back flush against the tree.

“What now?” I asked him.

“You know what now,” he said, coming close to me. He took my hips and pulled them against him. I gasped softly.

“No,” I said. “I don’t know.”

He smirked and moved his lips up against my ear. “Say it,” he ordered.

“I can’t.”

“Your king commands you.”

I opened my mouth but didn’t know what I was about to say.