And hiding your safety from me.

His eyes flashed, losing his mirth, trading it for his well-known aggression. “Ça y est tu peux passer au dessus.”It is. Get over it.

“No. Not until I’ve processed it. Don’t you understand I’d won the lottery by finding you? That all my wishes were granted when you fell in love with me? How can I justify being a billionaire in monetary worth, when I’m already beyond wealthy by having you?” My eyes burned as tears puddled from nowhere. Damn, I didn’t want to cry. I didn’t want to appear weak. I didn’t know how to formulate my real concerns because I didn’t even understand them myself.

My real fear stemmed from Frederick’s veiled comment.

“They’ve saved your business but taken—” Taken what? How soon? I couldn’t stomach the thought of Q being hurt.

Q frowned; he lost the edge of anger, confusion filling his gaze. “Tess—it’s because of those reasons why I gave you the money. I’ve never trusted anyone to use my wealth in the same way I do. I never had the urge to share that responsibility. It’s because you love me that you’re perfect to accept the weight of the Mercer fortune.”

I looked out the window again, swallowing the lump that had the audacity to choke. I’m afraid I’m not worthy of all of this. I’m afraid life will expect me to pay another toll, and I’m terrified I won’t be able to afford it.

Q pulled his legs toward him, stretching to wrap a fist in my hair.

My heart flurried as he gently but firmly tilted my head to face him. “What’s this really about, esclave?” His eyes searched mine, and I knew he’d never understand. I’d agreed to marry him. By that alone, I would’ve spent my life surrounded by wealth because I would spend it surrounded by Q. It made no difference.

But my real terror was the prick of instincts honing in on things Q kept hidden.

Oxygen caught in my lungs. I’d been planning a lifetime together, so why did I suddenly have the horrible notion Q planned for much less?

Q’s face was cast with shadows as the plane pierced clouds, blocking out the view of the disappearing French countryside. “Peu importe ce qu’il y a tu peux me le dire.” Whatever it is, you can tell me.

I shook my head, swallowing my tumultuous concerns. He didn’t need to know I guessed something was amiss—not until I had concrete evidence and could demand an answer.

Resting my palm on his warm thigh, I said, “It’s fine. I’ll be fine. Thank you. Thank you for trusting me with everything that you are.” And stupidly planning for things I won’t let come to pass.

Q’s jaw clenched and for a moment I worried he wouldn’t let me hide the truth, but then his hand dropped from my hair, brushing against the ‘Q’ branded into my neck. The skin was no longer painfully sensitive; I shivered at the soft caress.

“You still don’t get it.” He shook his head, eyes alive with vitality and connection. Bowing his head, he brushed his lips against mine. “You may have become richer in bank balance—but Tess…you made me richer in my heart. And that’s f**king priceless.”

My body gave way from substance to molten, and I arched my chin to kiss him. I wanted to shed my skin and fly. I wanted to free my soul, so Q could see just how much I loved him. My note wasn’t enough to describe how much he’d changed my life. He was more than healing acid—he was my blood. We shared the same heartbeat and if he died I had no doubt my life would cease, too.

Q’s eyes drifted closed. His tongue licked my lips, changing the kiss from sweet to sultry. He gathered me in his arms, bruising my spine with his fierce embrace. His taste drugged me. All I wanted was to be na**d and beneath him.

Safe. I wanted to be safe.

Breaking the kiss, I whispered, “Where are you taking me this time?”

Q laughed softly. “Always so inquisitive.” Kissing the tip of my nose, he murmured, “I’m taking you on that date, esclave. Our very first one, and I expect to get to second base.”

I moaned as his hand cupped my breast, rubbing his thumb over my nipple. “You’re already at second base.” My breath was as soft as the wispy clouds outside.

His mouth trailed along my jaw and down my neck, licking exquisitely softly. “So I am.” His touched turned firm, massaging my breast, unfurling desire in my core. “Stop being so damn easy to seduce.” Teeth replaced his tongue, turning soft to sharp.

“I can’t help it. I’m completely helpless against the man I’m going to marry.”

His arms banded tighter; a low growl bubbled from his chest. “Fuck, I love hearing you say that. Say it again.”

I smiled, shivering in his arms. “The man I’m going to marry.”

“And after we’re married, how will you address me?” His lips trailed fire over my collarbone.

“You’ll be my husband. My maître husband.”

He bit me, his large body trembling. “I like the sound of that.”

My insecurities broke my self-control. “And you’ll be mine forever, Q. Won’t you?”

He pulled back, scowling. “A marriage is forever, esclave.”

I nodded, forcing my eyes not to show my true concern.

A marriage maybe forever, but a human body was not. And Q seemed to think he was immortal.

But I knew the difference. I’d hurt him. I’d scarred him.

The invincible master bled…he could be killed.

Rome.

A honeymooner’s dream. Or, in our case, a crescent moon.

My mouth fell open as Franco opened the car door, granting me his large hand to climb out of the vehicle. Someone needed to slap me. I’d left reality and stumbled straight into the pages of my own fairy-tale.

The hotel soared upward as well as outward. I couldn’t see where it ended or begun—arched windows with Juliette balconies stood like perfect soldiers in a battalion of architecture. Pillars and porticos with dark brick, alabaster marble, and a red carpet leading to a lobby accepted me like royalty. And through the green-tinted glass of the entrance, the largest tiered chandelier I’d ever seen screamed fortune. The hanging crystals looked like an upside down wedding cake—if such a cake existed with fifty layers and thousands of jewels, all hanging from a colossal ceiling with Pegasus, Hercules, and Zeus immortalized by the finest painting imaginable.