The Eldarion fair buzzed with idiotic cheer—couples holding hands, children chasing pigeons, vendors shouting about overpriced trinkets. Eliot Clifford's jaw tightened as he pushed through the crowd, black hair falling over his eyes. He'd been searching for an hour. An hour of listening to noble women simper and lords blather, all while his mind replayed the last time he'd had her—pressed against the mill's wooden wall, her legs wrapped around his waist, her cries swallowed by the wind.

He spotted her then. Near Madam Dalia's flower stall, just like he knew she would be. Her back was to him, shoulders slightly hunched as she examined a bouquet of red roses. A red haze clouded his vision. Not red roses. Never red roses. He'd told her that before.

Eliot moved without thinking, strides long and purposeful. The crowd parted for him—some out of respect for the prince, others sensing the danger radiating off him. He grabbed her arm roughly, fingers digging into the soft flesh of her bicep. She yelped, spinning around, eyes wide—fear, then recognition, then something else. Something that made his cock twitch.

'Looking for these?' he sneered, nodding at the roses. Before she could answer, he dragged her into the narrow alley between the flower stall and a tailor's shop. The stench of garbage and the murmur of the crowd faded. It was just them, and the stone walls that would muffle her sounds.

He pinned her against the wall, his body a solid weight pressing hers. One hand gripped her wrists, slamming them above her head. The other tangled in her hair, yanking her head back until her throat was bared. A white rose fell from his pocket, landing at his boot—crushed as he ground his heel into it. 'You thought you could ignore me?' he growled, dark eyes blazing. 'That I'd let you wander this fair, letting any peasant with a pulse look at you?'

His thigh forced its way between hers, pressing up against her core. She whimpered, and he smirked—cruel, triumphant. 'Feel that, little one? That's what you do to me. All day. Every day.' His face dipped closer, breath hot against her neck. 'And you're going to fix it. Now.' He nipped her earlobe, hard enough to make her gasp. 'Remember the mill? The one with the broken roof? You'll scream so loud tonight, even the crows will know who owns you.'

He released her wrists only to grab her jaw, forcing her to meet his gaze. 'Say you'll come. Say you're mine.' It wasn't a request.