Strictly Taboo(144)

"I'm sorry Mum, I'll just go get ready and I'll see you in a couple hours." I told her and kissed her cheek. "You look beautiful by the way."

"Thank you, now go before you make me cry and ruin the makeup Maria is doing and make her have to start over." My mother told me and gave my hand a little squeeze before ignoring me to focus on the rest of her day.

Soon, I'd be a Princess. You'd think that would be every girl's fantasy, but for me, it was almost a nightmare. When my mother walked down that aisle, it would make Rupert my step brother. He'd be completely off limits, though I know my mother told me I could have him if I wanted him. She was old fashioned in some ways, she believed love could conquer all social gossip, but I wasn't so sure, and since it didn't just effect me, it also affected her and the King, I was hesitant to take the risk.

Walking down the hall to my room, I found Rupert waiting for me after I shut the door and turned around to see him. He pounced before I could leave the room and escape.

He pinned me to the wall with his body and kissed me. I kissed him back before I could stop him and then after a moment, I pushed him away, breathing hard. I couldn't go there.

"Stop this Rupert. We had our little fantasy afternoon, and now it's time to grow up and move on. Our parents are getting married in just a few hours, we will be brother and sister, and we have to stop this." I told him, turning my head away from him, trying to be brave and firm. He made me want to lick him from head to toe like a damn Popsicle and maybe if I avoided staring at him, the feeling would go away.

"Lara, if you haven't figured it out by now, then I guess I need to spell it out for you. I'm not going to leave you alone. If you go back to England, I will follow you. I'll find every excuse in the book to be close to you and until you admit you love me, I'm not leaving you alone." Rupert told me, wrapping strands of my hair around his fingers.

Whipping my head around to look at him, I felt my jaw drop open. "Love? What does love have to do with sex?"

"Do you really think this is just about sex?" Rupert sighed, seemed exasperated by me. "Of all the girls in this world, do you really think I'd chase after my soon to be step sister unless it was more than just sex?"

"I don't know. You've got a bit of a reputation as a womanizer." I admitted and shrugged at him. Love, it never dawned on me that the feelings between us, the attraction, could be more than just lust. I'd gotten to know him and he didn't chase after anything in a skirt that I could tell. Just me. In a skirt. Or jeans.

"Do you believe everything you read in tabloids?" He asked me quietly.

I shook my head no and realized he was right, I hadn't seen any of the signs that the tabloids had exclaimed about who he was. I, of all people, should know better than to believe idle gossip. Goodness knows I'd had my share about me when I was younger; it's what happened when you were almost royalty. And now, here I was actually about to be a Princess, falling in love with my step brother to be, and having broken almost every ethical code I thought I had when it came to sex and who I got involved with.

"Lara, I can see the little wheels in your brain turning and I don't like that expression on your face. Talk to me. Look at me. Face whatever this is between us with me. This is more than just sex, I know it, I think inside you somewhere, and you know it too." Rupert told me.

"We are going to miss the wedding." I told him. Okay, we had a couple hours, but I was worried about showing up all disheveled and embarrassing my Mum.

"No, we have time to talk. I'm not leaving unless you can tell me you don't love me." Rupert told me giving me a firm look. I opened my mouth to talk and he touched my shoulder and looked down at my face and I lost all train of thought. Telling him I didn't love him wouldn't come out between my lips and I just blinked at him.

While I couldn't admit I loved him yet either, that was closer to the truth then telling him I didn't. I was confused and I felt my brow knit up into an expression that had him tilting his head to look at me. I felt like he was trying to look into my soul and it made me a little uncomfortable. He had these eyes that didn't miss anything. He noticed every detail; it was probably why he was so good when it came to sex. He could pick up every little gasp and change, and here I was thinking about sex again. Bringing my hands up over my face I started to laugh. I couldn't help it.

"You need to go away Rupert. You are messing with my head. And my body. Just go away." I told him, but I knew I didn't sound very convincing. I didn't even convince myself that's what I wanted. He stood there staring at me and I pushed him. He stumbled back a couple steps and gave me a shocked expression. I don't think he was expecting my reaction.