Free REGENCY: Loved by the Duke (Historical Billionaire Military Romance) (19th Century Victorian Short Stories) by Serena Vale, Tencia Winters Page B

building. In front of them parked the planes waiting for the passengers to enter.
    “What do you mean with your plane?” Bliss asked.
    Ricardo grabbed her hand. Bliss stopped moving forward. He pointed towards a smaller jet on the side. It had red carpet rolling down on the boarding stairs. Balloons and bouquets of flowers were attached around its door.
    “I mean that it is my private jet,” he said softly. “Bliss,” he added, “will you marry me for real?”
    Bliss felt tears accumulating in her eyes.
    “Ric,” she said, “you are sure not one hundred percent normal.”
    A guy with a camera appeared in front of them.
    “Smile for the picture,” Ric whispered to her. Then she kissed Bliss on her lips.
    Now, that was also something new. They had kissed before on previous Christmas days but those kisses were nothing like this. As if Ricardo had lost his self-control, as if he forgot about this all being just a show. He kissed with a demanding mouth, he kissed her as if there was a chance of going forward. Bliss could not control her own mouth and kissed Ricardo back with her full heart. The guy with the camera kept on clicking. Time had lost its meaning.
    They departed from New York and landed in Vegas.
    The ceremony was swift and simple. Before Bliss knew she had become officially Mrs. Ricardo Drago.
    Her husband rented a villa for them in MGM Resort’s Mansion.
    It had been a long day and Bliss attempted to say goodbye at the door of her room.
    “Are you saying I cannot even enter my own wife’s room?” Ricardo demanded with a playful voice.
    Bliss could not decide whether he was serious or not. Part of her wanted this to happen, but another part warned her of falling for a friend who had such an illustrious record as a womanizing bachelor. Maybe it was nothing more just his habits. True men had to keep on pushing while worthy women had to keep on denying their advances.
    “Ric, I’m sleepy,” she protested.
    “Right,” Ric answered. His voice turned back to normal as if he realized that sex was no part of their deal at any point. “We are going to have a long day tomorrow,” he added.
    “Good night,” Bliss said.
    Ricardo bent ahead and kissed her on the cheek.
    “And good night to you,” he said.
    Bliss pushed her door in and stepped inside her room. She shut it behind her not even caring whether Ricardo was still standing there.
    High life sure was beautiful but it tested her endurance to its limit.
    She undressed hastily and slipped under the blankets on her bed.
    She fell asleep even before she had a chance to realize that gifts of all kinds in neat wrapping were piled up on the carpet in the middle of the room.

Chapter 3
    A series of urgent knocking on her door woke Bliss in the morning. She got out of the bed drowsily. Her hair was messed up and she did not even dare to think about the state of her makeup. The series of knockings continued and she had no choice but to answer immediately to the early intruder.
    “Yes,” she yawned with one hand on the doorknob.
    “It is your darling husband, my dear,” she heard Ricardo from the corridor.
    Her husband, right. She had to smile over the thought. She opened the door.
    “You know I need a certain amount of sleep in order to maintain my beauty,” she said half-jokingly. But Ricardo was not in a funny mood. He stepped into her room in a shipshape outfit and shook his head in disappointment.
    “We have so much to do,” he said, “and you have not even checked your gifts yet.”
    Bliss blinked around sleepily. There was indeed a huge heap of boxes in fancy wrappings waiting for her in the middle of the room.
    “Oh, Ric,” she muttered, “this is only the first day of our marriage but you are already spoiling me.”
    Ricardo teared one of the boxes open and took out a winter dress, the most beautiful dress Bliss had ever seen. Maybe the weather was a bit too cold at this time of the year to actually wear it, but even so it was something