Cash had no idea what came next in this adventure. He was already so far out of his depth that he couldn’t begin to predict anything. But one thing he knew—he had to protect Ella. She wasn’t precisely fragile, but she was feeling the psychological bruises today. That’s why he called up Hawk and told him they were staying in. Cash didn’t particularly want to spend an entire day cooped up with Ella, but it would be cruel to drag her out to deal with more reporters when she was still absorbing the fact that her relatives had lied to her for so long.

While Ella curled up in a chair by the window with a book she’d found on one of the shelves, he surfed through TV stations, looking for something mind-numbing. He landed on NCIS and kept it there. That show was fun even if it was cheesy as hell and inaccurate about a lot of shit that he and his kind did. Gibbs made him think of Colonel Mendez, except that Gibbs was a bit older. Still a badass though.

He kept the sound low so as not to disturb Ella. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen anybody so engrossed in a book. She had no cell phone, so she wasn’t constantly picking it up to check her social media accounts. It was strange and refreshing at the same time. He’d been out with women who were tethered to their devices, who had to glance at it every chance they got. Some even picked it up after sex. One had Instagrammed the rumpled sheets and her bare legs. When she’d tried to snap his abs, he’d taken the phone and tossed it onto the floor before giving her a reason to forget all about Instagram for a while.

A couple of hours into his NCIS marathon, his phone rang. A glance told him it was Camel.

“Hey, dude,” Cash said.

“That was one hell of a fishing trip you went on,” Camel said.

Cash snorted. “Caught something I didn’t expect, that’s for sure. If you’d come with me like I asked, maybe this wouldn’t have happened.”

Though that meant that Ella would currently be in Sheikh Fahd’s harem somewhere in Qu’rim. She wouldn’t be a virgin anymore. And she’d probably be crying.

“I’m allergic to fish.”

“I’ve seen you eat shrimp and striped bass. You are not allergic.”

“Fine, I’m allergic to fishing. Who wants to stand around and throw a line in the water all day? Give me a rifle and let me hunt.”

“Is that really fair to your prey? You’re a fucking military sniper. You don’t miss. Bambi doesn’t stand a chance with you.”

“Hey, when I shoot a deer, I take it to be processed and donate the meat to the homeless shelters in town. It might not be fair to the deer, but it’s good for people who need to eat.”

“Fine, you got me there. So what’s up back at HQ?” he asked, knowing this was more than a simple shoot-the-breeze call.

“Same shit, different day. When are you coming back?”

“We’re supposed to head back tomorrow. But I don’t know what happens after.”

“So you really got hitched, huh?”

“You know I did. You motherfuckers have probably been laughing yourselves silly about it for the past two days.”

Camel snorted. “Yeah, you bet we have. Cash “Money” McQuaid, the dedicated bachelor, hitched to a frigging princess. She’s a hot little piece of ass too. You tapping that yet?”

Cash couldn’t explain the wave of ice that crystallized in his veins. Or the hot anger that burned it up again. “No.” He glanced at Ella. She was still face-first in her book. He pitched his voice lower anyway. “I’d appreciate you don’t talk that way about my wife, man. Not cool.”

There was a moment’s hesitation on the other end. “Dude, you’re serious.”

“Sure am. Don’t do it. You don’t talk about Ivy or Christina or Miranda that way to Viking or Cage or Cowboy’s faces, right? So don’t do it to Ella.”

“Copy that, and sorry if I crossed a line.”

“It’s okay. But now you know.”

“You falling for her?”

Cash frowned. “No way. But she’s been through a lot. I don’t want to see her deal with more crap than she can handle.”

“I guess my real reason for calling doesn’t even need to be discussed now. The answer is clearly no.”

“You can’t say that for sure. What is it?”

“Women. Two of them who want to double-date this weekend.”

“I just got married and you thought I’d want to go on a date?”

“Hey, we were told you had to do it in order to cover your ass. I figured you’d go your separate ways when you got home and you’d be back to your usual routine.”

His usual routine. Missions, women, missions, women, missions. Lather, rinse, repeat. Didn’t sound so fun at the moment, even though it was the way he lived his life on a regular basis.

“Probably be a while before things get back to normal.”

There was amusement in Camel’s tone. “So I gathered. Hey, let us know when you’re back. And what we can do to help with the situation. If she needs twenty-four seven protection, the guys will make it happen.”

“I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I appreciate the offer.”

“Enjoy your honeymoon, Money.”

“Don’t be a dick, asswipe.”

Camel laughed. “You know that’s not going to happen. You’ve got an old lady now. It’s fricking hilarious as shit.”

“I’m hanging up now.” Cash ended the call with Camel’s laughter ringing in his ears.

A glance at Ella revealed that she’d fallen asleep in the chair. The book lay in her lap, her head was tilted to the side, and her pretty pink mouth dropped open the slightest little bit.

He thought about moving her to the bed, but touching her was an exercise in iron control. Not that he wasn’t capable of maintaining control, but it hurt. Physically hurt in ways that could only be relieved in the shower with his hand wrapped around his cock and thoughts of her in his head.

There was time for that. He could sneak off to the shower, turn on the spray, and release some of this tension before she woke.

Cash shook his head. No, he wasn’t leaving her here. What if she woke up while he was gone? What if she opened the door to the room and someone grabbed her while he was standing in the shower and beating off to the thought of her?

Nope, not the way he operated. He was just going to have to suffer for a while.

He went over to pick up the book and laid it on the table before it slipped to the floor. The book was jacketless. He’d expected one of her racy romance novels, but instead it was a nonfiction tome.

Body of Secrets: Anatomy of the Ultra-Secret National Security Agency.

Cash blinked at the woman asleep on the chair. Seriously? She was reading a book about the National Security Agency? She’d been engrossed for hours now. He took it over to the couch and flipped it open to the beginning.

Holy shit.

It was all about cryptography and code-breaking. National security. He flipped through it, careful not to lose her place. Fascinating shit. He’d loved reading as a kid. Still did, but he didn’t get much time for it these days. Mostly he read mission briefs, studied intelligence reports, read the paper—things like that.

Cash didn’t know how much time went by while he got sucked into the pages before he heard Ella stir. He glanced up, watched her search for the book.

“I’ve got it,” he said.

She looked up. “You stole my book.”

“You were about to drop it.”

She stretched. “Well, then. I suppose you’ve done me a service.”

“Why did you choose this one? Of everything on the shelf?”

“Have you been reading it?”

“Yes.”

“Then you know why. It’s fascinating.”

It was indeed.

“You read many things like this?”

“I read a lot, yes. My aunt and uncle have a library filled with books. Fortunately, they never censored my reading. My access to the internet, yes. But not my reading.”

“I thought you liked to read romance novels.”

“I do. But I like to read a lot of different things, Cash. Greek mythology, science, economics, biographies. I especially love biographies. People live such fascinating lives.”

And she hadn’t. That was the implication. He heard it as clear as a bell. It angered him on her behalf. He closed the book and set it on the table.

“You want it back right now?”

She shook her head. “I’m hungry. Can we order something?”

“Yeah, we can order up.”

He went and got the room service menu and took it to her. She studied it carefully, then chose the least expensive thing on it. He knew because he’d looked at it earlier.

“Get what you want, Ella.”

“I want that sandwich.”

“You don’t. You want the steak. Or maybe the pasta with lobster in it. You don’t want a boring sandwich.”

She arched an eyebrow. “How do you know what I want?”

“I don’t. Not really. But I’m pretty sure you’re running a calculator in your head that’s adding everything up and wondering how you’re going to pay anyone back.”

She dropped her gaze. “Is that so wrong?”

“No. But it’s also unnecessary. Nobody here is keeping tabs on what you eat—or what you wear. That was your aunt and uncle. Not us.”

She bowed her head. “All right. I want the pasta with the lobster. How did you know?”

“Because of the way you ate the pasta Alfredo I made.”

She grinned. “You’re a very good cook.”

“I pay attention to what I’m doing. That’s all it is really.”

“Well, I don’t know how to cook. So I appreciate it very much.”

“I guess this means you won’t have dinner waiting when I get home from work?” he joked.

She shook her head. “I’m afraid not. Am I already a failure as a wife?”

He liked that she could banter with him. That meant she wasn’t taking this too seriously after all. He went over and picked up the hotel phone. “It’s okay, Ella. I don’t think either one of us knows how to do this whole married thing.”

“I know one thing we’re supposed to be doing,” she said. “But apparently that is not something you are willing to teach me.”

He pretended not to hear her.

---

It didn’t take long for the food to arrive. Ella dove in, uncaring that she was once more eating fattening pasta. The sauce was creamy, buttery, and the lobster chunks were fat and juicy. It was heaven on a plate.

They were sitting at the table in the suite, a waiter having laid out all the food before retreating. Cash had ordered a steak. Ella closed her eyes and moaned.

“Jesus, Ella. You have to stop that shit.”

Her eyes popped open to find Cash regarding her intensely. “What?”

“Making those noises.”

“Oh. Sorry.” She twirled the fork in the pasta, her cheeks heating as she considered his words.

“Hey.”

She looked up, hot embarrassment swirling in her belly.

“Forget I said that, okay?”

“No, you are right. It’s rude to make noises while eating. Aunt Flavia would be horrified.”

“Fuck Aunt Flavia.”

Ella gaped for a moment—and then she burst out laughing. Oh, how many times had she wanted to say that but never had?

“Yes, fuck Aunt Flavia. Fuck her good.”

It felt so awesome to get that out. To say such rude words. To mean them.

“Uh, Ella… Princess, you shouldn’t talk like that.”

Ella blinked. “Talk like what? Fuck? You said it.”

“Yeah, I did. But you shouldn’t.” He closed his eyes and put a hand over them for a second. “Fucking hell,” he muttered.

Or at least that’s what she thought he said.

“It’s not proper for a lady in your, uh, position,” he continued.

“In my position? You mean exiled, broke, and running from an arranged marriage with a sheikh? That position?”

“No, honey,” he said, and her heart kind of squeezed at the way he said honey. As if he really meant that she was his honey. “I mean that you’re royal. And while I don’t care what the hell you say, you might need to be careful for the next time you’re in public. You know?”

“I would never say such things in public,” she said, scandalized. “I’m not a fool.”

“No, I don’t think you are.”

“Then don’t tell me what to say. You said it. I can too. Fuck Aunt Flavia. And Fuck Uncle Gaetano too.”

“You’re killing me, Princess.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re so wholesome and unworldly. And then you say shit like that. So matter-of-factly. As if you talk like a sailor all the time.”

“They are just words, Cash. It’s not a big deal.”

He sliced off a piece of steak. “Not supposed to be.”

“Then why do you get so worked up?”

His eyes glittered hot for a second. “I’m trying to figure that out.”

Ella took another bite of her pasta. She didn’t moan this time, but she wanted to. So good. So rich and forbidden. Aunt Flavia had told her that men wanted their women thin. That a plump woman was unattractive. Ella had watched enough television to know that was probably true. She took one more bite and carefully set the plate away. She hadn’t had the discipline when he’d cooked for her the other night, but she did now.

Cash frowned. “Is there a problem with the food?”

“Of course not. I’m finished.”

“But there’s three-quarters of it left. You’ve barely eaten any.”

“It’s okay. I need to be careful anyway.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means I don’t want to get fat.”

His expression was thunderous. “Is that you talking or your aunt?”

“It’s me.”

“Bullshit. It’s your aunt and her notions about how thin you need to be.”

“Do you like fat women, Cash?”

“Sometimes. It depends.”

Well, that wasn’t the answer she’d expected. “Sometimes?”

“If she’s comfortable in her own skin and loves who she is, yeah, sexy as fuck.” He shrugged. “I pretty much love women in general. And while I won’t lie and say it doesn’t matter to me what a woman looks like, I’ve found that what I consider sexy isn’t limited to a specific set of physical qualities.”

She thought about that. And then, because she was still hungry, she reached for the pasta.

Cash’s expression softened. “Don’t let those people control what you do anymore, okay? It’s your life, not theirs.”

“Old habits are hard to break,” she replied, twirling the fork in the noodles. “But I’m trying.”

“That’s good.”

She took a bite. “What about you, Cash? Have you considered that maybe some of your rules need to be rewritten?”

He lifted one eyebrow. Then he laughed. “Touché, Princess. And no, some rules are good ones.”

“Even when they are silly and outdated?”

“To you, maybe. They aren’t silly to me.”

Ella sighed. She’d never really thought she’d so desperately want a man to initiate her into sex, but here she was. Wanting. Aching. Desiring him to hurt her so she could get that part over with and get to the good stuff.

“If I promise not to get emotionally attached to you, will you consider it?”

He blinked. “You can’t promise that.”

“Can’t I? It’s about as realistic as your certainty that I’m going to fall for you if we have sex. I imagine there’s a fifty-fifty chance one of us is right.”

He dropped his fork and shook his head. “I’ve never met anyone like you.”

“Nor I you. Here I thought virginity was a prize for men. You’ve certainly proven that I’ve been misinformed.”

Before he could answer, a loud thud sounded from the corridor outside the suite. Ella jerked her head in that direction. Cash was on his feet in a second, weapon drawn from somewhere on his body and pointed in the direction of the sound.

He glanced back at her, his expression so deadly serious that her heart plummeted into her stomach. “Get in the bathroom and lock the door. If I don’t come for you in five minutes, don’t open the door.” He tossed her his cell phone. “Call Hawk and tell him what’s going on.”

“I don’t know how to use it. I’ve never had a phone—”

“You can use a computer, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then you can use a phone. Find Hawk’s name in the address book. Follow the prompts to call him. Now go.”