Femme Fatale: The King's Deadly Temptress

It was already midnight when Caleb dropped Damien off at Crown Resort Group's main office building. Entering the building, the security guard greeted him, to which he acknowledged with a nod before sauntering towards the private elevator.

With both hands inside the pockets of his long grey trench coat, Damien stopped in the middle of the empty lobby and turned his head towards the door at the far end of the space. After pondering for several seconds, he turned on his heel and walked towards it. Pushing the door open, he entered and found himself at the lobby of his hotel.

The employees greeted him as he passed them on his way towards the elevator. He was a little buzzed and wanted to sleep, but more than that, he wanted to see Katherine.

Since it was late, he entered the Royal Penthouse quietly, thinking that she must be asleep already. Pushing the door open to her bedroom, Damien found her hugging the Damien Pillow in the middle of her bed. After closing the door behind him, he shrugged off his coat, then removed his shoes and shirt. 

Wearing only his pants, he strolled towards the bed, slipped under the covers and replaced the pillow that Katherine was hugging, with himself so that she was hugging him instead. He pulled her even closer and breathed in her scent, feeling instantly relaxed.

It was such a comfortable feeling for him that he wished he could go home to this every day. Over the weeks that they had been together, he had grown more and more attached to her to the extent that he could easily say she has become his addiction. But with Katherine as his heroin, he would never want to go into rehab.

Damien's eyes were already closed and he was about to drift to sleep when Katherine shifted in her sleep.  In her grogginess, Katherine felt the warmth that emanated next to her. It was pressed against her cheek and she could feel her head slightly rising and falling. 

Opening her eyes, the very first thing that she saw was his chest and the palm of her hand was pressed on his warm skin. Her eyes widened in surprise when she realized that a topless man was in bed with her but she soon recognized that it was Damien and her rapid heartbeat slowly calmed down.

Katherine raised her head and thought that he was asleep until she heard him speak, "Sorry, I woke you." His eyes were still closed as he tightened his arms around her.

"Did you just come in? Why aren't you wearing clothes… a shirt?" She glanced down to his torso and felt shy.

Damien nodded and slurred, "I don't have clothes here. I missed you."

She softly chuckled and started to roll to the side. "I'll try to find one. I think I have a large T-shirt in the closet." 

She tried to push herself up from the bed but Damien's large hands pulled her back into his embrace and he let out a groan. "Don't move. It's cold," he said as he stroked her arms.

Katherine cleared her throat, feeling goosebumps from his touch. "Which is why I'm going to find you a shirt." She tried to get up once again but Damien locked her in place — she was not able to escape.

"I don't want a shirt. I just want to stay like this." He buried his head into her hair and kissed it. "Why do you smell so good?"

Katherine could only swallow. She was pressed onto his bare skin, making her face flush. 'You might be okay with this, but I'm not. How am I supposed to sleep when you're topless next to me?!' she said in her mind.

In an attempt to distract her mind, she asked the first thing that came to her mind when she smelled alcohol on him, "Did you drink a lot?" 

"Just enough. I'm just a little tipsy."

"Did… you enjoy your boy's night?" she wondered. She was trying to strike a conversation to take her mind off of the situation that she was currently in.

"Mhmm."

"Where did you go?"

"TGC," Damien answered briefly while stroking Katherine's back gently. Why was this woman suddenly so inquisitive?

"You went to a strip club?!" Katherine snapped her head to him. It didn't matter that it was his strip club — it was a still a strip club and it was a boy's night! Her thoughts have gone wild when an image from that one time that they went there flashed in her mind – waitresses in high cut bodysuits and half-naked women dancing on stage. Did they really go there?

Damien chuckled at the tone of her voice. What was this woman thinking? Opening his eyes, he met her glare and it only amused him more. He shook his head and answered, "The other one. The one beside it."

Katherine recalled that there was a burlesque club next to the strip club and she didn't know what to say until she suddenly blurted, "Were there ladies?"

He let out another chuckle when he saw where the conversation was heading. "What are you going to do if I say there were ladies?"

Her brows creased even further. "Did they hit on you? Did you allow them to hit on you?"

Damien's smile widened as he listened to her silly questions. He raised his hand and flicked her forehead, making her wince and rub the spot with her fingers. 

"What nonsense are you talking about? Why would I do that, Kitten?" He kissed the skin where he just flicked and snickered. "It's a burlesque club, of course there were ladies… there were men and women."

"I never understood clubs like those. I've never been to one before… I think."

"Then I should bring you there someday. You might just like it." 

Katherine furrowed her brows and questioned, "I would?" She imagined herself having to watch a performer strip on stage and shook her head.

"You're thinking about striptease, aren't you?" he asked in a playful tone.

When Damien saw that Katherine had shifted her gaze and pursed her lips into a thin line, he added, "Burlesque is an art, and striptease isn't necessary. It's a variety show that features both provocative and comedic performances."

Katherine just stared at him, seemingly unconvinced about the whole thing. Is this man saying this in order to justify himself why he was there tonight? She knitted her brows.

"You think too much." Damien tipped her chin up and crashed his lips down to hers. 

The taste and smell of whiskey mixed with his scent wafted in her nose, the experience was intoxicating for her that she melted in his arms and allowed him to kiss her deeply, his hands roaming all over her sides and back.

"In case you are doubting, I was thinking about you the whole time I was away with my friends," he spoke after pulling away. "I'm always thinking about you. I don't have time to think about irrelevant things." She could only nod her head and swallow.

Looking into her eyes, Damien brushed her hair away from her face and added, "I spoke to my grandmother a few hours ago. She wants to meet you." 

"You… told her about me?" Katherine studied his gaze under the dim light. 

"Of course. Why wouldn't I? She couldn't wait to meet you," he answered.

Hearing his response, Katherine fell into deep thoughts. She shifted to the side and thought about those times when she met his family. Her silence was making him worry.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked.

"It's just… So far, I've only met your uncle and your cousin. They aren't exactly the type of people that I'm excited to meet," she confessed.

"You don't have to worry about Nana. She can have a sharp tongue sometimes but that's just who she is. Actually, she's really sweet." 

A smile broke on Katherine's face as she nodded, "Okay, then… I'd love to meet her too."

Seeing the change in her expression, Damien was now at ease. He propped himself up on his elbow and a teasing smile formed on his face as he asked, "So… earlier... you were thinking about striptease… Have you ever–"

Katherine's eyes widened and her hand flew, covering his mouth to stop him from talking.

He removed her hand from his mouth and he continued to tease her, "What? It's not like you haven't stripped in front of me."

"That was one time! And I was drunk, okay?!"

"Then, you could try not drinking this time."

She swiftly grabbed a pillow and smacked his face with it, making him burst out laughing. 

"Oh God, Damien! Go to sleep!" Katherine wiggled her way out of his grasp but he was having way too much fun to let her go.