Bedding The Wrong Brother (Dalton Brothers Novels) (22 page)

Her smoking hot, I-wish-we-were-alone-so-I-could-jump-her, body.

Damn, he was good, he thought, noting that the black and red polka dot bikini hugged her curves in all the best places.

The audience quieted, and still Rhys didn’t move or speak. 

Melina narrowed her eyes and peered closer at him.  That’s when he realized Melina wasn’t wearing her glasses. 

“Where are your glasses?”

She frowned.  “In—in my coat.”

Rhys snatched up the coat and searched the pockets until he found her glasses.  Carefully, he slipped them on her nose.  She blinked at him.  He grinned.

“When you want to make a point, you go all out, don’t you?”

“Being in love with a professional magician isn’t going to be easy.  I have to upstage you every now and then.”

“So you’re in love with me?”

Melina nodded.  “For years.”

“Love, as in love, love?”

“Love, love,” she echoed. 

He dipped his head and kissed her, a reverent meeting of lips that drew an “aw” from the audience.  Throwing her arms around him, she buried her face in his chest.  “Can we get off stage now?”

“You bet.”  Rhys turned to Max.  “Can you take over here?”

Max strode up to them, hugged them, then turned to the audience.  “Talk about a tough act to follow.  Now, ladies, who’s wearing something that can compete with that bikini?”

The audience roared as Rhys helped her into her coat and off the stage.  He ushered her into his dressing room before sweeping her off her feet and twirling her around.  His hands immediately wandered inside her coat, and hers followed suit, tugging off his jacket and unbuttoning his shirt faster than he thought possible.  She was working the fly of his pants when she suddenly stopped.  “Wait.  I forgot something.”

Rhys groaned.  “Can it wait?  I’m right in the middle of a performance here.”

She giggled and stroked him through his pants, delighting in his groan of pleasure.  “It’ll just take a second, I promise.”

He took a deep breath.  “Okay.”

“I’m ready to answer the pop quiz now,” she said.

Rhys laughed.  “Okay,” he repeated. 

“What would I do to have you,” she reminded him.  “That’s what you asked me.”

“I haven’t forgotten.  So what’s your answer?”

Reaching into her bikini top, she pulled out the small booklet she’d tucked against her breast.

He stared at it.  “It’s your passport.”

“That’s right.  Now open it.”

He did.  Stuck in between the blank pages was the paper lizard he’d given her so long ago.  “You kept it.”

“I didn’t answer you before and I’m so sorry about that.  I love you.  If you still want me to, I want to be part of your life.  I can’t travel all the time because I know that won’t make me happy.  But I don’t think that’s what will make you happy either.”

“So what are you proposing?”

“I propose that we put our heads together and do what we do best.”

“Tell me,” he whispered.

“What else?  We’re going to make magic,” she whispered back. 

EPILOGUE

Dalton’s Rule of Magic #15: The show must go on.

Melina looked up as Rhys walked into the house.  He sighed as he put down his briefcase and loosened his tie, everything about him radiating exhaustion.  Concerned, she strode toward him.  He smiled when he saw her.  “Hey, ladybug.”

“Hi yourself,” she said, giving him a hug and a light kiss. 

He growled when she pulled away, cupping her head and pressing her close for a longer, deeper set of kisses.  Before she knew it, he was backing her into their bedroom and going at her clothes with a determination that made her laugh. 

“And here I thought you were tired.”

He tsked.  “I’m never too tired for this.”

Once he had her naked, he laid her back on the bed, smoothed his hand over her stomach, then froze.  He leaned in closer, pressing her thighs apart to get a better view.  With the lightest of touches, he ruffled the dainty curls that had been shaped into a heart. 

“Wow.”

She pursed her lips.  “That’s it?  Wow?  Do you have any idea how traumatic it is for a woman to get waxed?”

“No.”  He rubbed her lower stomach is soft, soothing circles.  “If it’s uncomfortable, then stop doing it.”  Kissing her stomach, he slowly skimmed his way down to her core and nuzzled her.  “But I have to say, this heart’s damn sexy.”

“Then it’s worth a little embarrassment to have it done.”

He raised a questioning brow.  “Just what happens at these wax places?“

She pushed his head down.  “Would you stop talking and get back to what you were doing?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said.  As always, he put his best effort forward with magical results.   

An hour later, they were lying content in each other’s arms when Melina remembered.  “Lucy called.”

“And?”  There was no mistaking the wariness in Rhys’s tone.

“She said the dean is bugging her about doing another presentation with Jamie.  Apparently, they made quite an impression the first time.”

“How fast did she say no?” 

“Actually, I was surprised.  She said yes.  She grumbled about it the whole time, though.  She said she’s trying to soften the dean up so she’ll get some extra grant money.”

Rhys snorted.  “Soft isn’t really Lucy’s thing.  She’s got the hots for the professor.”

Melina gasped.  “Are you kidding?  Lucy and Jamie?  No way.  That’s like—like putting together—”

“What?” Rhys questioned.  “A footloose professional magician and a small town entomologist?”

He tugged on her arm, and she curled back into him.  “I suppose anything’s possible, but that would be truly shocking.”

“As shocking as Max having the hots for Grace?”

“What!” she shrieked.  She shoved him away, stood, and slipped into her robe.  After tying her belt, she propped her hands on her hips.  “Okay, now you’re just playing with me.” 

Rhys threaded his hands behind his head and shrugged.

“When?”

“The night after you accosted me on stage wearing nothing but your bikini.  Grace called the theater to check in with you, and Max answered the phone.  I have no idea what was said or if and when they’ve ever met in person.  All I know is that he’s been walking around in a daze, muttering her name.  He’s reverted back to his old ways, nothing like the new-and-improved Maxwell Dalton, Magician and Host of the getting-to-be-quite-famous Dalton Theater.”

Still trying to imagine Grace with Max, or heaven forbid, Lucy with Jamie, Melina walked to her dresser and touched the little box she’d set there earlier.  Smiling wickedly, she decided to wait a little while longer before she gave it to him.  “Well, I suppose he deserves some time off for good behavior.  Let’s not forget we’re together because of him.”

Rhys snorted.  “Let’s not forget he’s the reason I didn’t get into your pants when you were sixteen.”

“Like that would have happened.”  When he stared at her, she smirked.  “Okay, it would’ve definitely happened.  But who can blame him for being jealous of you?  He felt bad and tried hard to make amends.”

Eyes wide, Rhys stood and waved his palm in front of her face.  “Hello?  This is the same man who copped to taking an ax to Metamorphosis.”

Melina smacked his hand away.  “Impulsive, but determined.  He knew you weren’t going to be happy with Seven Seas so he made sure it didn’t happen.  Then he worked like a mad man to get you guys signed at the Portofino.  You both did.”

“I suppose,” Mac grumbled.  “In any case, the meeting with the attorneys to nail down the final contract went well today.”  He lit up.  Rubbing his hands together, he started untying her belt.  “Now I get to enjoy the fruit of my labor—at home and in my bed with my own little sex dynamo—while he has to slog through standing-room-only performances in the newest luxury resort in Vegas.”

Melina rolled her eyes.  “Yes, I’m sure all that fame and female attention will get old eventually.”  He knelt in front of her, peeled back her robe, and kissed her stomach.  She ran her hand through his hair and peered down at him.  “Sex dynamo, huh?”

“Hey, you’re the one who bought the crotchless underwear and crop.  I was just your hapless victim.”

She jumped on him and pushed him down at the same time, digging her fingers into his ribs even as he did exactly what she wanted him to.  Flipping her onto her back, he covered her with his body and pinned both wrists above her head with one hand.  “I love that this is your favorite position,” he whispered, then laughed when she tried to knee him.  He easily deflected the blow, kneed her legs apart, and rubbed the hardest part of him against the softest part of her. 

They moaned together, and he took that as his cue to get busy with his free hand.

“Before you—”  She gasped when he sucked her nipple into his mouth, then flicked it with his tongue.  Tangling her fingers in his hair, she tugged to get his attention. “Before you distract me with sex, can I ask you a serious question?”

He groaned dramatically and dropped his forehead lightly on her chest.  “If you must, but make it quick.  I have a wife to satisfy.”

“Be honest.  Do you have any regrets about leaving the act?”

He sighed then met her gaze.  “Just one,” he said.

She jerked in surprise, inadvertently rubbing against his erection.  He bit back a moan even as he shook his head.  “Don’t look like that.  I love my life.  I love our home, love being able to travel with you when we want, love that I get to manage my brother’s flourishing career and charge him an obscene amount of money for the tricks that I invent for him.  Most of all, I love that I can have all that and you can be happy studying your bugs at UNLV.  I love you.”

“Then what’s your one regret?”

He lowered his head and whispered in her ear. 

She smiled.  This time when she rubbed against him it was deliberate.  “That’s okay.  That pair of cuffs has bad memories, anyway.  Think how fun it’ll be to find our new favorite pair.”  It shouldn’t be hard, she thought, given the assorted restraints that now waited on her dresser.  But for now, she wanted only to enjoy his touch.   

THE END

Thank you so much for reading Bedding The Wrong Brother!

If you enjoyed Bedding The Wrong Brother, I would love to ask you a favor and have you go back to wherever you purchased this book (Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, etc.), and leave an honest review.

Authors live and die by their reviews, and the few extra seconds it takes you really helps us authors out. 

And if you enjoyed this book, the sequel (Max’s story) will be available soon.  Join my mailing list at
www.virnadepaul.com
for an update.  In addition, you’ll find the same heart and heat in my other books, whether they are contemporary, paranormal, romantic suspense, or erotic romance.  However, here’s a sneak peek at what’s available:

**If you enjoy sexy, thrilling paranormals, try the Para-Ops series (Chosen By Blood, Chosen By Fate, Chosen By Sin) and the paranormal novella, 
A Vampire's Salvation. "I only have one request--when is the next installment due?"

**The contemporary novella, 
Wild For Him, is "well written...and steamy!"

**And if you enjoy hot cops, try Virna's super sexy erotic romances under the name Ava Meyers (The Red-Hot Cops Series)

ADDITIONAL TITLES

If you would like to read additional books by Virna DePaul, you can find out more about the following Kindle titles:

Paranormal Romantic Suspense:

Wraith’s Awakening (A Prequel Novella To The Para-Ops Series)

Chosen By Blood (A Para-Ops Novel, Book 1)

Chosen By Fate (A Para-Ops Novel, Book 2)

Chosen By Sin (A Para-Ops Novel, Book 3)

Contemporary Romantic Suspense:

Dangerous To Her (Harlequin Romantic Suspense)

It Started That Night (HRS – May 2012)

Shades Of Desire (HQN: Special Investigations Group, Book 1)

Shades Of Temptation (HQN: Special Investigations Group, Book 2)

Contemporary Romance:

Bedding The Wrong Brother (A Dalton Brothers Novel, Book 1)

Novellas:

A Vampire’s Salvation (A Beyond Human Novella)

Wild For Him

Erotic Novellas (Writing as Ava Meyers):

Copping To It (Red-Hot Cops Series Novella 1)

Cop Appeal (Red-Hot Cops Series Novella 2)

Copping Attitude (Red-Hot Cops Series Novella 3)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

 Virna DePaul
is a former criminal prosecutor and now National Bestselling Author of romantic suspense (Harlequin) and paranormal romance (Para-Ops series and new series with Random House).

CONTACT VIRNA HERE

Website:
www.virnadepaul.com
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Email:
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BEDDING THE WRONG BROTHER

Copyright © 2010 by Virna DePaul