“You did WHAT?” King Edward roars.

I squeeze Josephine’s hand.

“We got married,” I say.

“Without my approval?” he goes on, pacing back and forth across the sitting room. “You didn’t tell us, didn’t ask our advice, you just eloped? Just like that?”

I open my mouth to respond, but Josephine cuts me off.

“Daddy, I’m sorry we didn’t tell you,” she says.

“The fact that you didn’t tell me is the least of my concerns, young lady,” he says, turning sharply and pacing in the other direction. “You’re a princess, and with your life of great wealth and leisure comes certain responsibilities, to your country and to your people.”

“We were engaged anyway,” she says, her voice surprisingly steady. “And I love him.”

The king exhales hard, and I’m surprised fire doesn’t shoot from his nostrils. The queen is sitting in a chair, watching us quietly, thinking.

“There are protocols surrounding this sort of thing,” he goes on. “You can’t just go get married on a whim, Josephine. What’s that going to look like to the public? I’ll tell you, it looks like we’ve got a daughter who makes rash decisions, who’s mercurial and tempestuous, who doesn’t even tell her own family when she decides to get married...”

“Jo,” her mother says quietly. “We wish you’d told us.”

Suddenly Josephine squeezes my hand even harder, and her mom’s words hit me like a punch to the gut.

I hadn’t even thought of that. My own parents have been distant at best since Nadia died, so it just didn’t occur to me that Josephine’s parents would be this upset and not seeing their daughter get married.

But of course they are, and I feel awful. Josephine’s mouth opens slightly, she swallows hard.

“I’m sorry,” she says, still squeezing my hand like her life depends on it. “I didn’t think...”

“That’s right,” her father says, entering the conversation again. “You didn’t think.”

“Edward,” the queen says, and the king stops pacing and looks up at her. She puts out one hand, palm outward, in the universal calm down gesture.

He stops pacing.

“Prince Leo, would you be so good as to give us a moment alone with Josephine?” she asks.

I don’t want to. I know they’re her parents, and they’re clearly not going to harm her, but I don’t like the thought of leaving her alone, without me for backup.

But I look down at her, and she nods.

“Please, it’s fine,” she says.

“You’re sure?”

“Of course.”

I don’t like it, but I’ll obey my princess.

I bow to the room and leave.

* * *

Josephine’s in there for a long time, and though there are raised voices once or twice, for the most part they talk quietly and I can’t hear what they’re saying.

That doesn’t mean I leave. I sit on a bench in the hall outside the room, just waiting in case my princess needs me. Last night I swore to never leave her side, and even though a conversation with her parents wasn’t exactly what I had in mind, this is as good a place to start as any.

Finally, the heavy door cracks open. I practically leap to my feet, afraid that Josephine’s going to come out and leap into my arms, crying hysterically.

I’m afraid that somehow, her father has the power to annul our marriage, even though I know he doesn’t.

But Josephine is smiling, even though I can tell she’s been crying, and I pull her into my arms.

“I’m fine,” she says.

“You were crying.”

“Yeah, well...” she says, her voice drifting off. “I didn’t mean to, but I hurt their feelings.”

She takes a deep breath and pulls away from me, looking me in the eye.

“What do you think about getting married again next week?” she asks.

I kiss her, once on the lips, and once on each tear-stained cheek.

“I’d marry you every week,” I say.

* * *

A few days later, we have an engagement banquet, followed by an engagement ball. I know there are rumors floating around about why we’re getting married so soon after announcing the engagement, but I make up something about my parents wanting a daughter-in-law soon, and I also, I don’t give a shit about the rumors.

At both events, I can hardly keep my hands off of Josephine. It’s all I can do not to shout from the rafters that she’s mine, already my bride, and that I’m hers for forever. We hold hands under the banquet table, and it’s all I can do not to slide my hand into her lap, lift the long skirt of her gown, and tease her until she comes right there, in the middle of everything.

Afterward, I’m impossibly hard for the entire ball, just watching her glide around the floor, beautiful and graceful as a swan. She dances with everyone there — it’s only polite, after all — and even though all the other men are perfectly courteous and well-mannered, by the end of it I’m responding to my own dance partner with one-word answers, watching Josephine from the corner of my eye.

It’s not that I don’t trust her. It’s not that I feel like there’s any real threat from any of these men.

I just don’t want to fucking watch anyone else dance with my princess, and it works me into a near-frenzy of possessiveness.

Finally, I can’t stand it any more. There’s a lull in the dancing while the band takes a break, and I find Josephine, talking to her two sisters and a few other people.

I smile as charmingly as I possibly can, though I still see nervousness flicker over a few of the faces.

“Ladies,” I say, winding my hand through Josephine’s. “Could I steal my fiancée away for a few moments?”

They all agree, giggling a little, and I lead Josephine through the dance hall, to an outside door, and we emerge into the cool night air.

“What is—“

I lean down and kiss her, because I feel like if I don’t kiss her right now, I might dissolve. Josephine practically melts under my lips, her soft body yielding instantly, and a surge of heat spikes through me.

My hands lock around her waist, and her fingers wind through my hair. I kiss her greedily, urgently, our bodies pressing together as I invade her mouth with my tongue, possessing her.

“I need you now,” I growl when we separate.

She looks around nervously. We’re outside in a balustrade, not far from the lit windows of the dance hall where everyone we know is still standing.

“Leo, it’s—“

I kiss her again, and this time I slide both hands down to her ass, squeezing her firm cheeks hard and rocking her body against my massive, insistent erection. I can practically feel her heartbeat fluttering in her chest, and I break the kiss to whisper into her ear.

“I want to fuck you so hard you forget your own name,” I murmur. “You’re so fucking beautiful that I can’t stand it.”

Josephine bites her lip, her eyes lowering. Even though I’ve been talking to her like this for weeks now, she blushes, but it only makes me harder.

“Okay,” she whispers, and grabs my hand. “Come on.”

I let her pull me along until we’re at a doorway. Josephine tries the handle, but it’s locked.

“Shit,” she mutters, and pulls her hand out of mine.

I swallow hard, leaning against the wall, hoping that no one comes along and sees us breaking into a locked room in the palace. Not that I care, but I’m trying to get along with my future in-laws. For my princess’ sake.

She lifts the handle, twists it slightly, makes a face, and then suddenly the door swings open and Josephine grins.

“We figured that out as kids,” she says, and winks at me.

We’re through the door in a flash, and I push it shut behind us. It’s some kind of store room, but the kind of store room you could only find at a palace — there are some boxes and furniture, but also a suit of armor, a huge painting of a forbidding-looking woman, and a corner filled with rolled-up rugs.

I grab Josephine’s hand and yanking her back against me, her body warm and supple, and she arches into me, turning her head for another kiss, slowly grinding her perfect ass against my erection.

I groan from somewhere deep in my chest, and Josephine bites my lip, already panting for breath.

This isn’t going to be slow and romantic, this is going to be quick and rough and hard. I reach down her top and find her nipples already hard as diamonds, and I pinch one as she moans into my mouth.

That’s all it takes.

I push Josephine forward until she’s pinned against a big wooden crate, probably holding priceless jewels or something. I don’t know, and I don’t care as I move my hands up her back, pushing her forward as I grind my still-clothed cock against her heat and she looks over her shoulder, eyes heavy-lidded with lust.

“Say it,” I command.

“I need you to fuck me,” she says, her voice as soft and submissive as always, still sounding innocent and girlish even though she knows exactly what she’s doing to me.

I run one thumb down the cleft between her cheeks, lingering on the tight bud of her asshole for just a moment, and even through the fabric of her gown I can feel her shudder with desire. I still haven’t claimed her ass, no matter how badly I want to — it takes time and preparation, and when I finally do I want my princess to love having my cock there.

Then I keep going, to her lips so swollen with desire that I can feel them through her skirt, to her clit.

God, I can’t take this. I lift her skirt with one hand and unbutton and unzip my pants with the other. When her gown is around her hips, I grin in surprise.

She’s soaking wet, and not wearing panties. I pause for a moment, stroking my cock with one hand and her slippery entrance with the other.

“You planned for this,” I say, my voice gravelly.

“I had a feeling,” she says, looking back at me, that mixture of submission and seduction in her eyes.

I grab her hair and push her down just hard enough that it doesn’t hurt, and she gasps with pleasure and anticipation.

Then I take her with a single thrust, sheathing myself in her as she sighs, her eyes rolling back into her head. She’s every bit as tight as she was the first time I took her, but in the days since we’ve fucked every which way and I know she can take my cock like this.

“Is this why you didn’t wear panties?” I ask, pulling out and then bottoming out in her again. This time she gasps and moans, because I know my cock is hitting every sweet pleasure spot inside her.

“Yes,” Josephine gasps. “God, fuck yes.”

“And you like getting bent over a box in a store room and fucked hard,” I say, thrusting faster, harder. “That’s not very polite of you, Princess.”

“Fuck polite,” she gasps. “Make me come, Leo.”

I fuck her even harder, my hips slamming into hers, and Josephine moans and whimpers. The entire palace guard could kick in this door right now and there’s no way I would stop.

This, right here — Josephine bent over in front me, my cock filling her completely as she moans, making her come while I’m in total control — this is everything.

Her muscles start fluttering around me, and I can tell she’s about to come, but I want something more. Something else, because I’m addicted and obsessed with her, and because I love that even here, now, where we could be found any minute, her body is mine and I can do anything I want.

I pull out. She turns her head, baffled and confused, but I keep my grip on her with one hand and dip three fingers inside her with the other, getting them slippery and sticky with her juices.

Then I slide them up, from her seam to her back hole, circling it with my fingers.

Josephine bites her lip and closes her eyes, her body softening under mine. This isn’t the first time I’ve done this, and I know that even though she thinks it’s filthy, she loves it.

I slide one finger into her ass, feeling her clench. I wait for her to relax, then I slide in a second finger, waiting again.

This time she flexes her hips against my hand, like she’s asking for more, so I slowly, carefully add the third one.

“You like it when I fill your ass, Princess?” I whisper.

Gently, carefully, I move my fingers inside her tight back hole, feeling her respond, pushing back against me.

“Yes,” she says.

“You’re so fucking dirty,” I murmur. “And I love you for it.”

I take my hand off her hair, grabbing my cock again. When I push it against her entrance she gasps and tenses, but I don’t stop, and after a moment she relaxes.

I ease myself into her, incredibly, impossibly tight, and Josephine practically melts.

“Leo,” she whimpers. “Oh, fuck, Leo, that feels so fucking good...”

I almost come on the spot, and I know I can’t last long, not like this. It’s not just that I’m filling both her holes at once. I’m doing it here, and she’s letting me.

I could fuck her anywhere I wanted, any way I wanted, and that’s the sexiest fucking thing I can think of.

In seconds I’m fucking her hard again and Josephine is moaning, babbling a combination of my name and the word fuck over and over until she comes so hard she buries her face in her elbow, her pussy and ass clenching around me like a vise.

I only last one more stroke before I come too, unloading myself deep inside her, pure pleasure and satisfaction rocketing through me in a surge so strong it nearly knocks me over.

It takes us a long time to catch our breath, but when we do, I take my fingers out of her ass, then pull her upright. I’m still inside her, but she arches her back and turns to kiss me, long and slow and lingering.

“I love you,” she whispers.

“I love you more,” I say.

We kiss again, and I have an idea.

“I’m going to claim your ass on our second wedding night,” I murmur, and I feel her pussy clench around me.

“That’s in a few days,” she murmurs.

“I need you,” I say. “And I want to possess every inch of you. I want to make you feel pleasure you didn’t think was possible.”

She smiles a little.

“You do,” she says.