Healing Hands and Changing Hearts

As fear and confusion swirled in Madison's mind, one thing was terrifyingly clear - her mission had just become exponentially more complicated. How could she possibly complete her assassination after not only bedding the prince once, but twice now?

Some traitorous part of her was quickly becoming enamored with Wald, enthralled by his masculine power and disarming charm. The way he had taken her with such feral, unbridled passion awakened cravings in Madison that she couldn't begin to comprehend. She had been trained to be a remorseless killer, she only needs survival and vengeance on the Lycan bloodline.

Yet this prince, this feral beast of a man, had unmanned her utterly. Made her whimper and cry out for sinful release in a way no proper lady, let alone a disciplined assassin, ever should. As Madison lay awake in the tangled sheets with Wald's muscular form curled possessively around her, she couldn't deny the shameful truth - her love for this monster in a way that terrified her.

Wald's low, rumbling snores filled the stillness of the bedchamber, each exhalation puffing warmly against the back of Madison's neck. With infinite care, she carefully disentangled herself from his clutching embrace and slid out of the luxurious bed. Her body still tingled from their vigorous couplings, feeling deliciously well-used in a way that made her stomach flutter with illicit thoughts.

No, she mustn't dwell on such sinful fancies! Forcing herself to turn away from the alluring sight of Wald's naked, muscular form amid the rumpled bedding, Madison quickly tugged on her discarded maid uniform. She moved quietly about the prince's chambers, cleaning up the disarrayed clothing and attempting to make the room look somewhat presentable as the first pale rays of dawn filtered through the windows.

Despite her best efforts, Madison's hands trembled as she worked, her mind utterly scattered. How was she to proceed now? Her mission could no longer be accomplished through stealthy assassination - she had walked willingly into the beast's den and given herself over to him, body and soul. Any plots or schemes would surely see through the prince's discerning gaze now that he had tasted her most intimate secrets.

So consumed was she by this turmoil that Madison didn't notice Wald had awoken until a pair of powerful arms wrapped around her from behind, startling her with their sudden embrace. A low, pleased rumble sounded in her ear as the prince nuzzled against her neck, inhaling her unique feminine scent.

"You're up before the servants, little maid," he murmured in that deep, sleep-roughened tone that made her knees quake. "Though after the vigorous 'duties' you created last night, I can't say I'm surprised."

One of his big, calloused hands palmed her breast through the thin fabric of her dress, giving it an audacious squeeze that made her gasp. "I was rather hoping you might see to attending me before the day's started properly."

Madison couldn't stifle the shiver of forbidden desire that licked through her at his words. As if of its own volition, her treacherous body arched back against the rigid planes of Wald's naked chest, silently begging for the kind of delicious punishment he could deliver.

Get a hold of yourself! she screamed internally even as her lips parted on a ragged moan of need. This is the man you came here to kill, the son of your family's murderer! How can you so easily turn traitor to their memories, to your sworn oath of vengeance?

Isn't that what you're doing already by whoring yourself to him night after night? a darker, crueler voice taunted from the shadows of her mind. You're nothing but the prince's plaything now, his obedient little bedwarmer content to open your thighs for his pleasure while your family's souls cry out for justice.

The cruel words lanced straight into the core of Madison's being, momentarily shocking her out of her lust-fogged haze. She violently shoved Wald's hands away, spinning to face him with hot anger sparking in her eyes.

"That's enough, Your Highness!" The biting rebuke left her lips before she could reconsider, her chin lifting in a rare show of defiance. "I am not some whore to be summoned to your bed on a whim. I may have...indulged your baser needs already, but I'll not be treated as a mere plaything!"

For a long, tense moment, Madison was certain she had crossed a line, that the haughty prince would not stand for such impertinent behavior from a lowly maid, even one who had shared his bed. She braced herself for his cruel reprisal or backhand. Instead, to her utter shock, Wald threw back his head and laughed - a deep, genuine peal of masculine amusement totally at odds with his typical arrogance and ferocity.

"Well said, little maid," he chuckled, shaking his head blithely. "But perhaps you have forgotten - you always make the first move."

Stepping closer, he cupped her cheek in one rough palm, his intense gaze searingly direct. "You've got fire in you, girl. A fierce, indomitable spirit that calls to me in ways you cannot begin to comprehend." His thumb skated over her parted lips with maddening tenderness. "I crave that passion of yours like a starving man craves bread. To tame it, to unleash it upon my desire..."

Leaning in, Wald claimed her lips in a searing, demanding kiss that rekindled the reckless embers of want smoldering in Madison's veins. When they finally broke apart, she felt dizzy and undone, clinging helplessly to the solid contours of his powerful frame.

"There is much more to you than meets the eye, sweetling," Wald murmured against the throbbing pulse point of her neck. "And I intend to strip away every last one of your secrets until only the raw, blazing truth of you remains."

With those ominous words hanging between them, laden with unspoken promise, the prince released her and turned away to ready himself for the day ahead, leaving Madison to contemplate the chilling implications of what he'd said.

Had he somehow guessed at her true motives for infiltrating his castle? Was this newfound... fascination of his just a ploy to lure out her deceptions through seduction and sin? No matter which way she turned, Madison's path seemed increasingly labyrinthine, any chance of escape or success more hopeless with each passing tryst.