Free He's No Prince Charming (Ever After) by Elle Daniels

faintest clue as to how we’re going to get over that wall.”
    The marquis looked at her, then his hands, and finally the wall. His face hardened as if he knew she wasn’t going to like his idea.
    “I’ll lift you up.”
    He was right. “Absolutely not!”
    His scars stood out white against his slowly reddening face. “And what is wrong with that idea?”
    “It’s undignified. If I were in a skirt…”
    “But you’re not.” He snorted, giving her a knowing look.
    “I won’t do it.”
    “Yes, you will. It’s the only way. If I lift you, you’ll easily be able to get over the wall.”
    Danni looked at his determined face and then at the wall. She wasn’t even going to consider it. “No.”
    A rumble emanated from deep within the marquis’s chest. It was the only warning she had before the man launched at her. A roughly padded hand muffled her screech of surprise. An arm the density of iron manacled her own at her waist, holding her tightly against the hard contours of the Beast and snatching her breath from her lungs. She wriggled furiously to escape.
    “Stop struggling.” He mumbled furiously.
    Danni opened her mouth and clamped her teeth down on his palm. He grunted, but his grip didn’t loosen. “If you don’t stop, I promise you I will throw you head first over that wall. I wonder what you’ll land in.”
    It wasn’t hard for her to imagine a bed of thorns awaiting her. With the admiral in charge of security, there was probably something worse awaiting an unsuspecting intruder. She stopped thrashing in his arms but realized immediately she’d made a mistake.
    In the chill of the night, the marquis was a stove, and the heat of his body penetrated deeply into her skin. His hot, ragged breath slid along the sensitive skin of her neck, spreading a warmth that weakened her muscles and flooded her veins. Worse, she was sure she felt a tiny tremor flit through the man holding her as well. A gasp of surprise caught in her throat as a low whisper brushed the curve of her ear. “Do I have your cooperation now?”
    She felt drugged as she silently nodded her head. The night’s gentle breeze carried his spicy scent into her aching lungs and heart. It was all she could do not to melt back into the marquis’s warming solidness. Suddenly, he dropped her.
    Danni stumbled, trying to catch her balance. The spell Fleetwood had woven was broken. She took a deep gulp of air to cleanse her lungs, ignoring the way her limbs trembled. She rallied her anger to disguise her confusion. “Do not ever, ever , lay a hand on me again!”
    His eyes stared at her with dark intensity, his body flinching away as if he’d been hit. A wave of unwanted sympathy made Danni regret her words. The emotion made her furious. His cold words broke the pregnant silence. “As soon as you are over that wall, I promise never to touch you again, madam.”
    Internally, she flinched. She had every right to be angry with him. He’d blackmailed her. He’d insulted her. He’d manhandled her. But something in the look he gave her made her feel the worst sort of brute.
    He stepped up to the brick and cupped his hands together. With little choice in the matter, Danni stepped forward. She placed her booted foot in his grasp, her fingers searching vainly for handholds as she was slowly lifted into the air.
    Their combined height put Danni within easy reach of the top. She pulled herself up and positioned herself on the edge. Fleetwood was only a few feet below her. She stared down at his head, her eyes tracing the soft curls in his hair, as a sudden thought came to her. “How are you going to get up?”
    For the first time since she’d met the man, he smiled. It transformed his features. His white teeth fairly glowed in his shadow-darkened skin and a slight, mesmerizing dimple appeared in the center of his lower lip, the result of his tight scar. His eyes flashed a brilliant green. Danni’s throat tightened, enchanted by the sight. Until he