Bold Beautiful Love -- A Temptation Court Contemporary Romance: Temptation Court: Passion in New York Read Online Free PDF Page A

“I’ve been above board at every step of every project Court Enterprises has begun in your country. I’ve always believed in the great things we can accomplish together, Evrest,”—he circles his head back, taking me in with a tender glance—“and that was before I fell in love with one of your most beautiful citizens.”
    “Fell in lo—” Evrest’s hesitation is half a second behind the halt of my heartbeat. Even Doyle seems nonplussed by the declaration. The only normal pulse in the conversation belongs to the man with his hand in mine, his grip tight but warm, soothing my knuckles with the pad of his thumb.
    “You heard me right,” Cassian asserts. “I know it sounds a little crazy—”
    “No crazier than how I fell for my Camellia.” Evrest’s reply brings welcome warmth to the exchange—and my bloodstream, giving a not-so-fun preview of what it will be like to break this “news” to my family.
    Saynt will be peeved at first, though will warm up given the respect Cassian has already earned from him. But Maimanne and Paipanne are the giant enigmas, their reception as unpredictable as what King Evrest faced from the whole kingdom last year, when kicking Arcadian tradition square in the teeth. Taking Camellia Saxon, an American filmmaker, as his queen… Dear Creator .
    My head spins from the concept of it, even now—but the man himself underlines the point with his fresh laugh. “But the heart wants what it wants, my friend.”
    “Would’ve called you a fool for that a few months ago.” Cassian pulls me tighter, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “Now, I’m the president of the club.”
    Doyle snorts. Pushes back in his seat. “Just keep those cooties away from me.”
    In any other circumstances, I would be concocting something to zing back at him. But with more of this scenario snapping into place by the second, I focus all my energy on the situation at hand—and the leader of my country, only accessible via the monitor atop the jet’s work desk. “Your Majesty, with humblest respect, you must believe Cassian had no foreknowledge of Rune Kavill’s ties to all those contractor companies.”
    “I’ll swear to it in court as well,” Doyle inserts.
    Cassian slides his hand free from mine. Braces it fully on the desk, in order to nearly straddle the laptop with his arms. “I will say this, Ev,”—his use of the king’s nickname, granted only to close friends and Queen Camellia, is a surprise but not a shock—“that asshole is damn good.”
    Evrest grunts hard. “How so?”
    “I mean that my legal team is a group of research sharks. They don’t just vet every company we sign contracts with. They dig in, tear shit apart. Reference checks are only the start. There are also thorough investigations of past projects, employee backgrounds, safety records, Better Business Bureau standings…hell, I think one of their files even included pictures from their employee picnic.” He shakes his head, his whole body slackening. “The thing is, Kavill knew all of that…”
    “Which means…” Comprehension hits me in a sickening rush. “He was a shark about you too.”
    He jerks a succinct nod. “He knew exactly what we were looking for with every project, then streamlined that contractor’s qualifications to fit the bill.”
    “So on paper, they looked better than everyone else.”
    “Which is why so many of them ended up on your vendor list.” Evrest himself supplies the logical but disturbing conclusion.
    “Fuuuuuck.” Doyle presses farther back in his seat. His eyes slide shut.
    In front of me, Cassian’s hands tighten to fists. There is not a single shower door around, though I worry about his laptop screen. My betranli is a man of unstoppable conviction, drive, passion, and focus. When those traits are applied to the things he knows and loves—connecting, reconstructing, and improving countries—he is a force of heart-stopping energy, breathtaking beauty. But when he feels