THE DOORS OPENED and Austri walked out, his face blank, but his eyes concerned. “Hi, Austri.”

“M’lady.”

“Thanks for telling Kaspar,” she droned sarcastically.

“That’s out of my control, m’lady. In my defense, I only told him I was picking you up.”

Jesska shook her head. “I’m not really mad, Austri. I’m just a little out of sorts this morning.”

He looked grim.

“It’s not the end of the world,” she said, and forced a smile. “People lose their jobs all the time. Especially in this economy.”

He nodded, his face now devoid of expression. “What can I carry down for you, m’lady?”

“I’ll show you.” She led him to her cube, and he picked up both boxes as though they weighed nothing. “I can take one,” she protested.

“I have them, m’lady. Anything else?”

She shook her head and grabbed her purse.

“Jess?” Tim called.

“Sorry, Austri, just a sec,” she said, and stepped into her boss... no, ex-boss’s office. “I’m out of here.”

“I’m really sorry, Jesska. Truly. I tried to keep you.” He stood and reached out his hand.

She shook it, but didn’t know what to say. She went with the higher road. “Good luck with everything, Tim.”

Pulling her hand away, she turned and, noticing a hovering Austri, led the driver out of the building, finding the car at the curb, Jóvin inside. Austri popped open the trunk... how he did it, she wasn’t sure... set her boxes inside, and then opened the door for her. She slid into the car and secured her seatbelt, dropping her head on the headrest and sighing. What the hell was she going to do now?

Her phone buzzed and she saw her brother’s number pop up. “Hey, Cam.”

“Hey. You called?”

“Yeah. But I’m good now. I just needed a ride.”

“How come?” he asked.

“Got fired.”

“Right,” he said with a chuckle.

“No, I’m serious. I got laid off this morning.” She stared at the roof of the car. “You know, I think this is why Monday’s get a bad name.”

“Don’t companies usually fire folks on Fridays?” he countered.

Jesska glanced out the window. “Never been fired before, so I have no idea.”

“Are you okay? Do you want me to come take you to lunch?”

“No, I’m okay. Austri picked me up and we’re headed back to the hotel. I just want to eat a bag of Cheetos and drink a bottle of wine.”

“Delicious.”

Jesska chuckled. “Totes.”

“Are you really okay?”

“Ask me tomorrow. Right now, I’m in shock and I need to process.”

“I’m sorry, Messka. This sucks.”

“Totes.”

Cameron chuckled. “You still have your warped sense of humor, I see.”

She smiled. “Totes.”

“Okay, thirteen-year-old girl. I’m going to let you go, but I’ll keep my phone on and close if you need me.”

“Brother of the year award, Cam.”

“Aw, thanks, Messka. Love you, too.”

“’Bye.”

“’Bye, sis.”

She hung up and closed her eyes. A slight bump indicated they were heading into the garage, so Jesska sat up and set her phone in her purse. She was surprised to see Kaspar waiting for her as they drove in. Lordy, he was pretty. Austri pulled the car to a stop and Kaspar opened the door, holding his hand out to her. She took it and climbed out.

“Austri will handle your personal items,” he said, reading her mind.

Jesska nodded. “Thanks for everything, Austri.”

The driver nodded and then drove off to find a parking spot. Kaspar wrapped an arm around her and kissed her temple. “Are you all right?”

She nodded, giving him a gentle squeeze. “I think so. I’m a little numb right now, but I’m okay.”

“Come upstairs and we’ll talk.”

“Don’t you have meetings?”

He smiled. “Nothing I can’t take a little time away from.”

She sighed. “I think you’re too good to be true.”

Kaspar chuckled. “We’ll see how long I can fool you.”

They stepped into the elevator and Kaspar hit the button for the top floor, keeping his other arm firmly around her. Entering his suite, she laid her purse on the table and kicked off her shoes, flopping onto the sofa with a sigh. “What did you say earlier?”

“I love you, beautiful girl.”

She smiled. “Say it in Icelandic again.”

“Ég elska þig, fallega stúlka.”

“So pretty.”

He leaned down and kissed her. “As are you. Are you hungry?”

“Kaz, you fed me until I nearly burst this morning.”

He frowned. “You had two bites of food.”

“Three.”

“Two,” he corrected.

“You notice everything, don’t you?” She caught his amused expression. “What? I almost never eat breakfast. Plus, I was way too tired to eat. Someone kept me up far past my bedtime.”

“Regardless. Are you hungry?” he repeated.

She sighed. “Starved. But if you keep insisting I eat all the time, you can’t complain when I gain a hundred pounds.”

Kaspar laughed as he picked up the phone and she heard him order food, all her favorites, of course, then he headed back to her and joined her on the sofa. “You should never skip breakfast, elskan.”

“See?” She poked him with her foot. “Bossy.”

He grabbed her foot, grinning as he massaged it. “Perhaps this new development is a relief, hmm?”

Jesska sighed, and shifted to give him better access. “Well, yes, considering I didn’t really like my job.” She grimaced. “But I only have a few months of savings and a little money left over from my trust fund, so I’m going to have to look for something else pretty quick.”

“Not if you don’t want to.”

“What do you mean by that?”

He paused in his attention to her feet. “I will take care of you.”

Jesska snorted. “I have never—and I mean, never—wanted anyone to take care of me. Hence the reason I moved out of my parents’ house the day I turned eighteen.”

Kaspar cocked his head.

“What?” she challenged.

“Was that the real reason?”

She stared at him. “No. The real reason was they had me committed to the psych ward two days before I turned eighteen.”

“Is that why your relationship is strained?”

Jesska frowned. “It’s a little early in the morning to psychoanalyze my relationship with my parents, Kaz.”

“Do you think they might have wanted to take care of you?” he continued.

She pulled her foot from his hands and sat up. “By putting me in the loony bin? I was restrained, Kaspar. Tied down. I wasn’t allowed to pee.”

He grabbed her hand, tugging her onto his lap. “I’m not saying that what they did was right, elskan, but I can sympathize with them. How frightened they must have been to find you passed out and losing blood.”

She blinked back tears. “I was fine.”

Kaspar linked his fingers with hers. “You were passed out in a pool of your own blood.”

Jesska nodded. “So?”

“So. That’s the very definition of not fine.”

“Your point?” she snapped.

“When I saw you bleeding, I nearly lost my mind, Jesska, and that was a small nick. What your parents must have thought when they found you nearly dead...”

She slid her face into his neck. “You might be right.”

“I will admit, I don’t agree with the severity of their actions, sweetheart, but I can sympathize with their predicament. And I wonder, if they hadn’t acted so rashly, would you be gone from this world?” He lifted her chin. “What then, hmm? I would have never found you.”

“Perhaps I’ve been a bit too hard on them.”

“I think you might have been, elskan. And I’d like to meet them before I take you home to Iceland. They must have done something right, because they made you.”

She smiled through her tears. “You are ridiculously sweet sometimes.”

“Just sometimes?”

“Yes. That’s all I’m giving you. Otherwise your head won’t fit through the door.”

Kaspar laughed. “Well, in the spirit of being sweet, will you let me take care of you until you find something else?”

“Kaz,” she said slowly, pushing herself from his lap. “In all reality, I don’t know where this is going. I like where we’re at, and I’m liking the way we are together, but let’s be honest, we don’t know how long this is going to last. I’ve worked really hard to be independent, and as much as I like the idea of being taken care of in theory, the reality is, I would probably rather chew my own arm off than ever have a man take care of me.”

A knock at the door cut off Kaspar’s response, and he rose to his feet to answer it. A young man from room service wheeled a cart in. Kaspar signed the check and then closed the door behind him. Jesska stood and rushed to the food, her stomach rumbling at the smell of deliciousness wafting from the covered trays. Before she could remove one of the lids, Kaspar took her hand and backed her up against the sofa.

“What are you doing?” she asked, and laid her hands on his chest.

He smiled, running his thumb along her pulse. “Although I am sympathetic to your quandary, sweetheart, and one of the things I love the most about you is your independence...”

She bit her lip. He said “love.”

“...I am not particularly interested in whether or not you want me to take care of you. It’s just going to happen.” He leaned down and kissed her neck. “And this, baby, is going to last a lifetime, so you better get used to me caring about you.” His lips moved to her jaw and then he smiled before covering her mouth with his.

Jesska closed her eyes and slid her hands up his chest and into his hair. She loved the way he called her baby. This could become a problem for her. But right now, she loved his lips on hers and his body close, heating her in more ways than one. She whimpered when he broke the kiss, settling his forehead against hers and trying to catch his breath.

“That backfired.”

She giggled. “Now I’m hungry in a really different way.”

“Me too.” He kissed her nose and stepped away from her, focusing on the food. “Come and eat elskan.”

Jesska took time to pull herself together as she sat at the table and scooped eggs onto a plate. Once she felt she could speak without drooling, she asked, “How is it you speak English so well?”

He shrugged. “I speak several languages fluently. I never really thought about the why or the how, it’s just something I do. My entire clan does as well.”

“Well, I couldn’t even master pig-Latin as a kid, so I’m impressed. Languages are not really my thing.”

He smiled. “Once we’re bound, you’ll speak and understand Icelandic.”

“Shut up, really?”

Kaspar nodded and pulled a dome off a plate, setting it aside. “Our minds become linked, and we’ll be able speak telepathically as well.”

“Linked?” She gasped. “As in, we’ll be able to read each other’s thoughts?”

He popped a grape into his mouth and nodded.

“Um...” She shook her head. “Pass.”

“What?”

“There is no way in hell I’m going to let you into my head. You’re already taking up valuable real estate in there, and I’m not giving you anymore.”

Kaspar grinned. “I’m in your head?”

“That’s what you took from that?”

“I like that I’m in your head, elskan, but I’d love to be in your heart.”

“Oh, don’t you dare start getting all nice on me again, Kaz. I can’t take it.”

He stood and wrapped an arm around her from behind. Leaning down, he kissed the sensitive part just below her ear. “I love it when you call me Kaz.”

She closed her eyes, a shiver running through her. “Do you?” she whispered.

He nodded, kissing her neck. “I do.”

“Noted.”

He released her and took his seat again, and she spent the better part of their meal trying to figure out how to untangle Kaspar from her heart. He’d woven himself so completely into her life in such a short amount of time, she wasn’t entirely sure how, or even if she wanted, to cut him loose.

“I have to go, sweetheart,” he said, frowning at his phone.

“Go. I’m okay.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded. “I’ll watch some bad soaps and maybe look for a job while you work.”

He chuckled. “Easing your way into being taken care of?”

“Something like that.”

“Do you want to go out for dinner, or stay in?”

She smiled. “Mmm, I don’t know. Out?”

He rose to his feet and bent down to kiss her. “Tell Camilla where you want to go and she’ll handle it.”

Jesska snorted. “What kind of executive assistant would I be if I couldn’t make a simple reservation?”

“Camilla will handle it.”

“Jesska will handle it,” she countered.

“Stubborn.”

“Bossy.”

He grinned and kissed her again. “If you need me, call me.”

“I won’t need you.”

He gripped his chest and groaned. “You wound me.”

Jesska giggled. “Oh, baby, how will I live without you for...” she looked at her watch, “...all of three hours until you figure you need to check on me?”

“It’ll be closer to four.”

She laid the back of her hand on her forehead and tipped her head back. “No! Not four. I can’t live without you for four.”

He stroked her cheek. “I love you, silly girl.”

She nodded, not sure how to respond. He loved her? Was that even possible in such a short amount of time? She watched him leave and then finished her food before stacking things in the hallway for the staff to retrieve. Sitting down with her laptop, she went about finding a job. The problem was, she couldn’t think about anything other than Kaspar’s words of devotion.

The man was irresistible, and she realized that she was falling in love with him. It was different than what she had with Seth. It was mature and deeper, and much, much scarier. It was forever.

* * *

Jesska felt soft lips on her cheek and sat up, colliding with Kaspar’s chin. “Oh, sorry,” she said.

“I didn’t mean to startle you, elskan. You just looked so sweet lying there asleep.”

She smiled and dragged her hands down her face. “What time is it?”

“Six.”

“Crap. I didn’t make a reservation.” She grimaced. “I got busy with job searches and then I must have fallen asleep. I’m sorry, Kaz, I totally forgot.”

Kaspar chuckled. “Camilla made one at Serratto for seven if you want to go there, or we can still stay in if you’d rather.”

She blinked up at him. “Would it be horrible to stay in?”

“I’d prefer it.”

“You would?”

He nodded. “It’s been a long day, sweetheart, and my brother arrives in the morning, delayed as usual, so it means we can spend a little extra time together tonight if we stay in.”

“Your brother’s coming? Megan’s... ah... boyfriend? What do I call him?”

Kaspar removed his watch, pulling his shirt from his trousers as he headed to the bedroom. “No, Ari’s not coming. Gunnar is. As far as Ari and his title as it pertains to your sister, I suppose they are mates. As you and I are.”

Jesska craned her neck to watch Kaspar as he unbuttoned his shirt and slipped it from his shoulders. His chest was like granite and when he turned to grab a T-shirt, the muscles on his back rippled with the motion. He caught her eye and she gasped, sitting back down on the sofa, hoping he hadn’t seen her staring at him. He returned to the living room devoid of shoes, but in the same pants he wore that morning.

She smiled up at him and he leaned down, one hand on the armrest and one behind her head, his face within inches of hers. “Did you like what you saw?”

“Very much.” Jesska took a deep breath. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry, baby. I like you watching me.”

She licked her lips. “I like it too.”

He grinned and leaned closer, kissing her before sitting beside her. “What do you want for dinner?”

“Right now, I could eat the entire left side of a cow.”

Kaspar raised an eyebrow. “Not the right?”

“Oh, I’ll take the right too, but I don’t want to be greedy.”

He laughed. “I’ll order two, then.”

“This is you taking care of me, huh?”

“Part of it, yes,” he said, and kissed her palm.

“Okay, brownie points for you. Cooking’s not my strong suit.”

He turned and reached behind him, grabbing his phone, texting who? Jesska could only guess. Setting his phone aside, he grabbed her hand again.

“Who was that?” she asked.

“Camilla. She will order our food.”

“I could do that, you know. As could you.”

Kaspar cocked his head. “But it’s her job.”

“Does she ever get a day off?” she asked.

“Sundays. Except when we’re traveling.”

“Kaz,” she said in exasperation. “Are you seriously telling me she only gets one day off a week? And sometimes not even that?”

He rubbed the back of her neck. “Yes.”

“What about dating or just doing girl things? Girls need more than one day off a week.”

“We don’t date.”

She leaned away from his touch. “Well, what happens when she finds her true love or whatever?”

“Then he will bind her, and she will no longer work for me.” He frowned. “Her assistant will take over, I suppose.”

“What if she doesn’t want her assistant to take the job? What if she wants to work for you?”

“She’ll need to speak to her mate about that.”

Jesska tugged her hand from his. “You’re not serious.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Obviously.” She rose to her feet.

“What are you doing?”

“I think I should go back to my room.”

Kasper stood. “Why?”

“Because if I don’t, I’m going to get really pissed off.”

“I’m guessing I said something really wrong, but I have no idea what it was.” He crossed his arms. “Care to fill me in?”

She fisted her hands at her side. “You know, sometimes you’re just the sweetest, most brilliant man on earth, and then you say something so... so... unbelievably chauvinistic and stupid.”

Kaspar ran his hands through his hair. “I don’t know what to tell you, Jess. It’s my world. I’ve never known anything different.”

“I know,” she said.

He reached out his hand. “Stay.”

“Is that an order, my liege?”

“Baby.”

Jesska cocked her head. “I’ll stay if you promise me you’ll give Camilla another day off.”

He sighed. “If she would like another day off, I will give it to her.”

She took his hand and let him pull her back down on the sofa. His phone buzzed, so he grabbed it and then set it on the coffee table. “Our meal is being sent up.”

“That was quick.”

Kaspar smiled. “We have a chef at our disposal.”

“We do?”

He nodded.

“That’s awesome,” she said.

A knock at the door sounded and Kaspar rose to his feet to open it.

“Sire,” Camilla said, and followed the server into the room.

Kaspar nodded in greeting.

“Hi, Camilla,” Jesska said.

The assistant smiled. “M’lady.”

Jesska still wasn’t used to being called “m’lady,” but she didn’t react quite so shocked anymore. Camilla organized their meal and then walked out of the room with the server.

“She really didn’t need to come all the way up here,” Jesska said.

Kaspar opened his mouth and then closed it again.

She raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“I’m choosing my words, and the words I thought about choosing were probably going to get me in trouble, so I am now choosing to stay quiet.”

Jesska giggled, standing on her toes to kiss his cheek. “Smart man.”

Kaspar grinned, holding her chair until she sat down.