By the time the King of Laeth returns to his chambers Calista is asleep. Moonlight glimmers on her exposed leg and he runs a hand through his hair.

Her father is not happy. He threatened to wage war. Jasper sent a letter back explaining how he is in no position to attack him. He should just accept his daughters fate and move on.

Walking closer to the bed he notices how her butt juts out when she is asleep on her side. Before he can stop himself he reaches out and grabs the soft flesh in his hand.

Calista grumbles and opens her eyes. "Why are you touching my ass?"

He plops down on the bed. "Because it's mine." Jasper tugs the sheets down and exposes the princess. "You dressed like this just for me?"

She doesn't say anything and he wonders if she fell back asleep. His hand connects to her ass and she lets out a yelp. "What was that for?!" Calista flips onto her back and faces him.

"For ignoring me." The Princess rolls her eyes. She instantly regrets it. He climbs on top of her in an instant, his dark eyes gleaming mischievously.

Her mind instantly goes back to the other heated moment they had. Jasper stares down at Calista and traces her lips with his finger.

She stays still and doesn't push him away. Her body temperature rises and her tongue darts out to lick her chapped lips. His eyes follow the motion and he tips his head down and captures her lips.

Something snaps within her and she returns the kiss. He hums and it vibrates against her chest. Her hands stray up to his hair and she marvels at how soft it is.

His tongue intertwines with hers and she tugs on his hair gently.

The King grabs her knee and wraps it around himself. He pushes himself against her and she gasps.

She gets startled when Jasper unhooks her bra. Calista wraps her arms protectively across her chest before he could take it off of her.

"You are so beautiful." He murmurs, tracing his hands down to her hips. Her eyes are heavy with lust and she moves her hands away.

Jasper removes the material and tosses it to the other side of the room. Leaning back he takes in the beauty of the girl underneath him.

Her heaving breast stare up at him and her nipples are erect. Calista's hands itch to cover herself but the look on Jasper's face stops her.

His hand grabs one breast and squeezes. He takes a rosy bus into his mouth and she groans. Jasper's eyes are latched onto her face and he memorizes the way she looks when pleasure overcomes her.

His other hand fondles with the material of her thong and he eventually tears it away. When Calista hears the zipper of his pants her eyes snap open.

Reality hits her in the face. She is going to sleep with a total stranger. "Stop, please." He kisses her mouth hungrily and she starts to protest. "Stop!" She yells trying to push him off her.

Fear zips through her and she jabs her knee up into his abdomen. He groans painfully and she pushes him off her. "I said stop." Calista speaks. She gathers up the sheets shakily and wraps them around herself.

Moving to get off the bed Jasper grabs her wrist. "Calista I'm-" She spins around fast and her hand comes across his face. Tears stream down her face and Jasper releases her arm before he could do anything he regretted.

"Don't speak to me." She walks across the room and disappears behind the bathroom door. Guilt sears through him.

He should not have done that. But another voice in his head says that it is his right. She is his wife. His face stings from her slap and he grits his teeth.

He shouldn't have pushed her. She apparently has never been with another man and she is just so innocent.

A head ache begins to form and he pushes himself off the bed. If he can't fulfill his needs he is going to hurt her.

Calista finally comes out of the bathroom when she hears Jasper leave. She quickly dresses herself and plops down in the bed.

She keeps her eyes on the doors and dreads the moment that he will come back. Her eyelids droop and she eventually falls against the bed and sleeps.

:::::::::

"My King, always a pleasure." Phoebe curtsies her hazel eyes never leaving mine. Her father is one of the Council members and she has always been an easy lay. She smiles widely her red lipstick applied perfectly.

She tosses her blond hair to the side to show her dress barely containing her breast. My mind flashes back to the moment when Calista exposed herself to me.

I bite my lip and push her from my mind. She takes that as an invite because her fingers trace up my arm and eventually she just pulls me in her room.

Phoebe pounces on me and starts unbuttoning my dress shirt. "How's your new wife?" She asks, with a little bitterness.

"She's fine." I answer. Her hand slithers down and grabs my hardness.

"This is for me?" She asks. No. Calista caused the tightness in my pants not her. I don't answer her and she grabs the back of my head and kisses me sloppily on the lips.

I remember when I used to crave Phoebe. I actually thought about marrying her. But then I heard that she visits the guards every night also.

Now this just feels disgusting. She reaches for my zipper and I stop her by stepping away.

"I can't do this anymore, Phoebe." I start buttoning my shirt back up. She just rolls her eyes.

"You've said that before, Jasper." She sighs. I ignore her and leave. I feel disgusted of my behavior and I'm dreading of the moment I walk through the bedroom doors and look my wife in the face right after I almost had sex with another woman.

::::::::::

The door opens and closes and Calista shoots up. Jasper walks in his clothes wrinkled and his hair a mess.

But that's not the only thing she notices in the dim light. Lipstick smears across his cheek and bottom lip. Anger sears through her.

She erases all emotion from her face when he looks over at her. She might not have agreed to be married to him but it is shameful for your husband to be with another woman.

"I'm sorry, Calista." He mutters plopping down on the other side of the bed.

"About what? When you tried to force me to sleep with you or the whore you replaced me for?" She keeps her voice neutral and emotionless.

"Princess, I didn't sleep with anyone." He gets up and starts toward the bathroom. "And if I did, it wouldn't be your concern."

He shuts the bathroom door behind him and Calista hears the shower running. Tears well in her eyes and she flees to the balcony.

The sun has risen and its orange glow castes over the village. She hates the King. She hates how knowing that he was with another women. She hates fate interweaving them together.

But her body says different. Calista swipes at the tears and admires the Kingdom of Laeth.

Jasper hates himself. He lets the cool water run down his muscled body and thinks back to the look on Calista beautiful face when she saw him.

It made him feel disgusting. He should feel that way. Calista is destroying him. She is not like the other women he's been with. She is innocent and enticing.

He hates that even when he leaves to attend to business about the castle that she is on his mind. He hates that he cares what she says and what she does. And that makes him feel vulnerable.

He wants her approval so bad it aches. Jasper contemplates in the shower for a long time. He comes to a decision that seems reasonable and his chest aches at proposing this to her later.

:::::::

Jasper comes out of the bathroom and Calista is still outside on the balcony.

She doesn't acknowledge him when he sidles up next to her. "I want to make a proposition."

Calista keeps her eyes forward. "It seems like you are not that happy here and so I will grant you free access to the land, with of course protection." Jasper begins.

"If..." Calista says. She has a knot in her stomach and she feels like she is going to dread the 'if'.

"If you will fulfill the duties of being my wife. You will give your body to me and bear me heirs."

Her eyes survey the beautiful rolling mountains and the vast village of people below. "I thought that was already our agreement. It is not a proposition if you already have or will have what you want."

"I guess you're right. But I want you to be more comfortable here. And I want you to trust me."

"You're asking me to trust you when I saw you with evidence of sleeping with another woman?" She turns to him and raises an eyebrow.

"I didn't do anything with her. I apologize for my harsh words earlier." He shuffles awkwardly. The King is not used to apologizing and Calista notices.

"May I tell you something?"

He nods his head and she tucks a piece of stray hair behind her ear. "When you have a child it becomes the center of your world. Your most beloved creation. Imagine having a little baby that you raised and cherished. That child is a part of you."

Her jaw clenches. "The child will love you too and will always look up to you as if you were a god." Her words become harsh. "Then imagine someone taking that child away. Your child. How would you feel, Your Majesty?"

Jasper stays quiet and stares down at the beautifully harsh nymph. "You took me. My father's beloved creation. So it will take more than just words to earn my trust, King."

Her fist are balled and a stray tear runs down her pale cheek. "You have my body but you don't have anything else."

He gently pulls her against him. "You can be such an inspirational speaker." He kisses her forehead "But I will have all of you, Princess."