It sounds like a threat…or maybe even a vow.
Chapter 3
Henrik
Denying her pleasure is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but I have to have the control right now. Amber is not like any other woman I’ve ever met, but yet everything about her is familiar and known to me. The way she fits perfectly in my arms, the way my heart opens when she’s near, it’s all pointing to something bigger than us.
“Where are we going?” she asks as I pull out my cell.
Magnus sends me a text saying they’ve already lifted off and to take the other plane. Good, I’d prefer privacy right now.
“To Norway,” I answer, tucking my phone into my suit.
“What?” She nearly falls off the seat, but I put my hand between her legs to keep her from going anywhere. She glances down at my possessive hold but doesn’t try to make me move.
“You heard me.” I lean in close and smile at her, kissing the soft spot on her neck just below her ear.
“Y-yes, but why?” She takes a breath as my mouth lingers.
“Because you’re going to be my bride.” Her body tenses, and I know this is when she’s going to push back. And it’s why I’m not going to allow her even an inch of space.
“Henrik, you’re hot, and if you want to get tangled in the sheets, I might stop playing hard to get. But under no circumstances will I marry you.”
“We’ll see.” I straighten in my seat and wink at her, which makes the fear in her eyes turn to anger. Good, I can deal with anger.
“You can’t just show up and take me. That’s now how this works! We’re in America!”
I laugh, and it just makes her angrier. God, I love seeing the fire in her eyes as she huffs.
“I’m serious! You and your brother are insane. We met at a casino, and—”
“And had a night that changed me forever,” I interrupt her, bringing her wrist to my mouth. She swallows as I brush my lips over her racing pulse. “When my father saw my mother in our village, he knew with one look that he was destined to belong to her for the rest of his life.” I kiss her soft skin and inhale the scent of roses and close my eyes. “And so he did.” When I open my eyes, I see her anger is gone, but it’s replaced with confusion. “When we met, I handed you my heart, and now it will reside within you until my last breath. I can’t allow you to carry my heart so far away from me, baby girl.”
“Henrik, I—”
The car stops, cutting off what she was about to say, and then the back door is opened. I step out and hold my hand, waiting for her to take it. She growls in frustration but eventually she takes it, and I help her out. The plane and crew are ready and waiting for us, and for a second Amber looks around.
“There’s nowhere to escape to,” I warn her, and she rolls her eyes. “You can run if you want, but I’ll get you on that plane.”
“There better be some hard liquor waiting for me.” She raises her chin and tries to stomp past, but I grab her by the waist and pull her close to me.
“You can have whatever your heart desires.”
“I desire to be set free.”
“No you don’t.” I smile, and it irritates her.
I take a breath, and just before we reach the stairs of the plane I tug her hand, and she stops walking. “Look at me, Amber. Look me in the eyes and tell me your heart desires to leave. Say the words, and if there’s no lie, then I’ll have the driver take you back to your sister's wedding, and you’ll never hear from me again.”
This is a steep gamble, but I’m willing to bet my life on it. I’m willing to bet us on it. I know what she’s denying herself and what we could have, and even if she’s not willing to say the words out loud, her heart won’t let her refuse what she feels.
She clenches her jaw and opens her mouth, but a second later she closes it and looks at the plane. I wait, daring her to lie to me, and when her eyes meet mine her shoulders sag.
“You’ll take me to my sister?” I know she’s talking about Amber and not Lindsey.
“She will be in Norway,” I say, hesitant to say exactly when I’ll take her to see her sister.
“All right, let’s do this.” She smiles at the captain as she climbs the stairs and is pleasant to the crew as we take our seats.
Once they go through all the safety instructions and the wheels are lifting off the ground, I feel somewhat better about this plan. There’s still a lot that can go wrong, but I’m hoping that I can be convincing.