THE QUEEN’S FORBIDDEN ROMANCE

**Chapter 4: The Banker Who Looked Like Sin**

Lila sat in the back of the black car, her hands twisting in her lap. The driver was one of the few people she trusted. He didn’t ask questions when she told him to take her to a private address in the city. He just nodded and drove.

Her heart was beating so loud she was sure he could hear it. She kept checking her phone. It was 9:47 p.m. Thirteen minutes until she was supposed to be there.

She looked out the window at the dark streets. Part of her wanted to tell the driver to turn around. Go back to the palace. Be a good queen. Pretend everything was fine like she always did.

But another part of her, the part that had been quiet for two long years was screaming to keep going.

She was tired of being lonely. Tired of feeling invisible. Tired of touching herself in the dark and crying afterward.

Tonight, she was going to do something selfish. Something just for her at least for once not for anyone.

The car pulled up in front of a tall glass building. Lila took a deep breath, thanked the driver, and stepped out. Her legs felt shaky in her black dress. No bra. No panties. Just like Michael had told her.

She walked into the lobby. The security guard barely looked at her. She took the elevator to the top floor. Her stomach was doing flips the whole way up.

When the doors opened, she stepped into a quiet hallway. Only one door at the end. His door.

Lila stood there for a full minute, staring at it. Her palms were sweaty. Her heart was racing so fast she felt dizzy.

“What am I doing?” she whispered to herself.

Before she could change her mind, she raised her hand and knocked.

The door opened almost immediately.

And there he was.

Michael Zenith.

He was even taller than she remembered. Broad shoulders. Dark hair slightly messy like he had been running his fingers through it. He was wearing a black button-up shirt with the top two buttons undone, showing a little bit of his chest. Black pants. Bare feet.

He looked at her like he had been waiting his whole life for this moment.

“Queen Lila,” he said, his voice low and rough. “You actually came.”

Lila swallowed. “I… I did.”

He stepped aside. “Come in.”

She walked past him into the penthouse. It was beautiful — dark colors, big windows with city lights sparkling below, soft music playing somewhere. But she barely noticed any of it. All she could feel was him standing behind her.

The door clicked shut.

Lila turned around slowly. Michael was watching her with those intense eyes. The same eyes that had made her stomach flip the first time she met him at the bank.

“You’re nervous,” he said. It wasn’t a question.

She let out a shaky laugh. “A little. Okay, a lot.”

He smiled. Not a big smile. Just a small one that made her knees weak. “You can still leave if you want. No pressure.”

Lila shook her head. “I don’t want to leave.”

Michael took one step closer. Then another. He stopped right in front of her. So close she could smell his cologne — something dark and expensive that made her head feel fuzzy.

“You sent me that message,” he said softly. “You told me your p***y was wet.”

Lila’s face burned. She looked down at her feet. “I know. I’m sorry. That was—”

“Don’t apologize.” He gently lifted her chin with one finger so she had to look at him. “I liked it. A lot.”

Her breath caught. His eyes were so dark. So hungry. But there was something else there too. Something warm.

“I’ve been thinking about you since the day we met at the bank,” he admitted. “You looked so sad that day. So… trapped. I wanted to make you smile. And then you sent that text and I almost lost my mind.”

Lila’s heart was doing crazy things in her chest. “I’ve never done anything like this before.”

“I know.” He brushed his thumb across her bottom lip. “That’s why I’m going to take my time with you.”

She shivered at his touch. Her body was already reacting to him. She could feel the heat between her legs. The ache she had been ignoring for so long was now impossible to ignore.

Michael leaned down until his lips were almost touching her ear. “Tell me what you want, Lila.”

Her voice came out as a whisper. “I want to feel wanted. I want to feel… alive.”

He pulled back just enough to look at her face. “Then that’s exactly what I’m going to give you.”

He took her hand and led her deeper into the penthouse. They stopped in front of the big window overlooking the city. The lights were beautiful, but Lila couldn’t look away from him.

Michael turned to face her. His eyes dropped to her dress, then back to her face.

“No bra,” he noticed. His voice had gotten deeper. “No panties either?”

She shook her head, suddenly shy.

Michael let out a low groan. “f**k, Lila. You’re going to kill me.”

He stepped closer again. This time he didn’t stop. He pressed his body against hers, pinning her gently against the window. She could feel how hard he was already.

Lila gasped. Her hands came up to his chest on their own.

“I’ve been hard since I got your text,” he confessed, his lips brushing her ear. “I’ve been sitting here thinking about all the things I want to do to you.”

“Like what?” she whispered.

He smiled against her skin. “Like making you come on my tongue until you can’t remember your own name. Like bending you over and f*****g you until you scream. Like watching you ride me while I tell you how good you feel.”

Lila’s legs almost gave out. No one had ever talked to her like this. No one had ever made her feel this wanted.

Michael pulled back slightly and looked into her eyes. “But first… I need to know something.”

“What?”

“Are you sure about this?” His voice was serious now. “Because once I start, I don’t think I’ll be able to stop. And I don’t want you to regret it tomorrow.”

Lila looked at him for a long moment. She thought about the cold palace. The empty bed. The king who never touched her. The years of feeling invisible.

Then she thought about how alive she felt right now. How her whole body was buzzing. How for the first time in forever, she didn’t feel like a sad queen.

She reached up and touched his face.

“I’m sure,” she said softly. “I want this. I want you.”

Michael’s eyes darkened. He leaned in and finally kissed her.

It wasn’t a soft kiss. It was deep and hungry and full of everything they had both been holding back.

Lila moaned into his mouth and kissed him back with everything she had.

His hands slid down her body, gripping her waist, pulling her closer.

She could feel his hardness pressing against her. She could feel how much he wanted her.

And for the first time in two years, Lila didn’t feel lonely.

She felt wanted.

She felt alive.

And she never wanted this night to end.