Doomsday Brethren, Book 04: Entice Me at Twilight (28 page)

Warmth flowed through his chest, an endless pool of contentment and love.

In that moment, he couldn’t remember his future ever looking brighter. Yes, Mathias was still plotting nefarious acts. His mother was disappointed in his behavior and had said so in no uncertain terms. Mason was ready to throttle him. Nor had Duke won Felicia’s heart yet. But she was
his
. Nothing else mattered. Nothing else ever would.

Shucking off his trousers, he left them near the bedside and slid between the sheets with her. God, she was warm and soft—everything he’d been searching for during a dozen long years of dating tedious models and actresses, pretending happiness.

When he leaned over to kiss her cheek, she stirred. Her lashes fluttered up over sleepy blue eyes. Her gaze was so unguarded, so open, it took his breath away.

“Is it time to get up?”

Duke shook his head. “Soon.”

He leaned in and dropped a lingering kiss on her mouth. Once, twice. Then he pressed her to the mattress and half-draped his body over hers, feeling her sweet curves against him.

Felicia tensed.

Undeterred, Duke filtered his hands through her silky curls. “I’ve missed you.”

She hesitated, but he saw her pulse fluttering at the base of her neck. “I’ve been asleep only a few hours.”

“Any time away from you is an eternity.”

Felicia nibbled on her bottom lip. “How can you mean that? I-I know you have the magical means of sensing your mate but …”

“You don’t have that luxury. I’m aware of that.” He sighed. “The instinct is magickind’s way of ensuring wizards pursue the right female for them. I just wish our women had the same assurance.”

“You’ve sacrificed much to keep me safe. But feelings … aren’t easy for me.”

Impatience chafed Duke, but he curbed it. The mating instinct told him many things about her character that humans spent years learning. The reverse didn’t apply, and he had to keep that in mind.

“I know three days seems like a whirlwind romance. What can I tell you about me to help you feel better about us?”

She paused, grappling with her answer. “I don’t think it’s that simple. I didn’t formally meet you until the day before my wedding, and during the months of planning, Mason painted you as the worst cad. Pictures always showed you with new arm candy. None ever lasted longer than a week, and I …” She grimaced.

“You wonder if there’s any chance at the end of a week, I’ll show you the door. You know that’s not possible.”

“Is it? What if you change your mind? You’re only with me because magic decrees it. Can that last?” She shook her head. “What if your instinct is wrong?”

Duke’s heart nearly burst. If she didn’t care about him,
none of this would worry her.

“My instinct isn’t wrong, and I won’t change my mind. I wish I had the perfect words to reassure you. All I can say is, you trusted me with your safety. Do the same with your heart. I know you’re guarding it and feel scared, but you
are
brave. You took the existence of magickind in stride. You escaped from Mathias, carried the Doomsday Diary with you, though it put you in more danger. Every day you do something new that endears you to me. We’ll work this out.” He grabbed one of her hands and squeezed.

He kissed her again, more invitation than demand. She stiffened, but he persisted. For a sweet moment, she succumbed, her lips turning soft, clinging. Then she pushed him away again.

“How can you be so sure that what you feel won’t pass? Mason told me that you once made love to four women in the same weekend, including his French tutor, and—”

“That was my transition.” Damn Mason for passing his bitterness on to Felicia. “When a wizard turns thirty or thereabouts, his magic asserts itself, and he undergoes an intense few days when he becomes more than human. To complete the transition, we require a great deal of energy. Which, as you now know, means sex.”

“And that happened in the middle of your birthday party?”

Duke nodded. “I didn’t know what was happening. I didn’t know what I’d become until my unique magical power emerged. The earth shook—literally—at my command, and I nearly brought down Lowechester Hall’s roof.”

“You … cause earthquakes?” She looked somewhat shaken herself by that fact.

He nodded. “It’s not a power I use often. It drains me utterly. And you probably ought to keep that under your hat. Every witch or wizard’s unique power is their last line of
defense. Somewhat like your built-in lie detector.”

“Indeed.” She hesitated, staring. “I’m simply … What a shock transition must have been for you.”

“Utterly. I went through the entire process acting purely on instinct. As regrettable as causing a scene at my party and bedding Mason’s crush was, I would have died if I hadn’t.”

Felicia blinked, her blue eyes incredulous. “So those four women … that’s not a habit of yours?”

“No.” He sent her a wry smile. “I’m hardly a saint, but I prefer one woman at a time. And from now on, I want only shy little blondes with sharp tempers and sweet lips.”

Felicia blushed. “You’re flattering me.”

“One of my favorite things to do.”

“Stop.”

He smiled. Really truly smiled. “What shall I do instead? I have ideas …”

Shifting the lower half of his body closer, he brushed his erection against her thigh. She blinked up at him. “You—you’re naked!”

“That’s generally how a wizard makes love to his mate. Though I wouldn’t object to working around clothing every now and again for something fast and scorching. But having you stretched out bare and warmed by sleep beneath me is a luxury I’ll take advantage of every chance I get.”

For the first time in his life, Duke wanted to close his eyes and completely give himself to someone, not to rev up his energy, but to exchange love. He ached for Felicia to do the same, but knew he needed to give her some time to open herself to him, be free of her fears and absolved of whatever guilt she felt for betraying Mason. Complete trust in three days was a tall order.

He drew his free hand over her shoulder and down her
arm, until he clasped her hand and drew it above her head. Guiding her fingers around the edges of the headboard, he held them there with a gentle, but firm grip. He repeated the process with the other hand. Rearing back, she peered at him with a question.

“Leave your hands here until I tell you otherwise.”

“But—”

“No talking. Your only responsibility is to lie back and enjoy the pleasure I give you. Say nothing, think of nothing, only feel.”

Duke didn’t give Felicia a chance to reply before he wrapped his hand beneath her head and kissed her, urging her lips apart so he could sink into the candy haven of her mouth and stroke deep.

Beneath him, she hesitated, then opened to him. Responded to him.
Perfect
. She was like silken sugar everywhere, sweet, soft, addicting.

With a gasp, she pulled away, wriggled beneath him. “Simon, the danger and Mason—”

“Are not issues at the moment.” He pressed her fingers around the headboard again. “Lie still. Let me handle everything. Just feel.”

His taking control and removing the appearance of responsibility allowed her to be in the moment. After a long hesitation, she nodded and gripped the headboard. Thrilled, he dove back into the kiss, brushing his mouth over hers, his tongue dancing languidly with hers. Her breath began to stutter. Her body tightened. Her nipples peaked.

Smiling between kisses, he peeled back the sheet to reveal her white bra and knickers.

“But …”

He shook his head and tossed the sheet down, to tangle at their feet. “I’m going to make love to you now. And again tonight.
Then tomorrow morning, provided I make it through the long night without waking up and needing you.”

She sucked in a stunned breath. “Simon, I— That’s not a good idea.”

“Why? You feel something for me.”

“I do, but … I’m sorry. You’ve done so much for me.” Regret shone from her blue eyes, even as they became earnest and open. For the first time, Felicia wasn’t running from her own emotion. “I need time.”

Simon suspected she’d used that line on Mason with great efficiency.

“We have none. The danger is still coming. To fight it, we must stay together. But damn it, I want to be more to you than the means to stay alive.”

Her face softened, a mixture of affection and guilt. “You are.”

“A friend?”

“Yes.”

A safe answer, but an unacceptable one.

“That’s not all. We’re
mated
. We’ve bonded. I know most humans don’t fall in love in three days. I’ll do my best to be patient. Just … don’t hold yourself back from me.”

She shook her head. “I’m not accustomed to this much … attention.”

“Surely I’m not the only man to want you madly.” Felicia looked away, and a suspicion ripped through Duke’s head. He froze. “Am I?”

“Well, I … Tristan wasn’t very sexual. We … it was just twice. I never let anyone else touch me after that.”

“Except Mason,” he pointed out, gritting his teeth.

She squirmed under his hard gaze. “Not even Mason.”

Three whispered words, and Duke felt as if someone had punched him in the gut. He gasped, “Mason never took you
to bed?”

“No,” she whispered.

Triumph jetted through his veins. Felicia was
his
. Tristan? An inconsequential figure from her past. All that mattered was that she had never given Mason the sweet gift of her body. His heart lightened. If Felicia didn’t care for or trust him, she would have never allowed him to make love to her, much less reciprocated with such abandon.

Then confusion set in. “But you planned to have children with him.”

“Yes, but I told Mason I wanted to wait until we were married. He didn’t seem troubled by the request, so I never imagined that he desired me or had feelings beyond friendship until our wedding day.”

“Let me be clear: I can’t live without you. I don’t intend to try. I plan on spending the next thousand years with you. Give me the chance to prove to you that my instinct is right. Lie back, hold on, and feel me.”

Bathed in the soft afternoon sunlight, Felicia flushed a pretty pink once more and bit her lip, now swollen from his kisses. Her soft blond curls tumbled around her shoulders, longer strands curling beneath her breasts cupped in peek-a-boo lace. Indecision and yearning spread all over her face.

God, she was beautiful. And—damn it—his. He’d make her see that. He couldn’t endure this biting ache for a woman he could see and talk to, but never truly have. He needed her love in return.

He pressed a kiss to her mouth. “Did I tell you that a wizard knows his mate by taste?” At the surprise that crossed her features, he smiled and worked down her body. “So the first time I kissed you, I knew unequivocally that you were mine.”

As she gasped, he unclasped her bra and drew it away in a
sweep of his hand.

She opened her mouth to protest, but he laid a finger across her lips. “Lie back and feel.”

After a long moment, her anxious blue gaze softened. She exhaled in surrender. The sound went straight to his cock.

He laved her nipple with his tongue. She stiffened, trembled. So responsive. Duke smiled secretly against her skin. The sugary-gardenia scent of her lured him. He inhaled deeply, struck again by the rightness of her in his life.

“But what wizards love most is to taste their mate’s flavor.” He eased a palm down her abdomen, curling his fingers under her knickers and right into her folds. And she was wet. Duke shuddered, nearly coming out of his skin. “Here, where your flavor is pure and most intimate. That, we love.”

To prove his point, he whisked her knickers down her thighs and dropped them to the floor. Her damp golden curls beckoned.

“Spread your legs.”

Felicia tensed again, but fresh moisture slickened her folds. Damn her fears for making her fight what she wanted. Duke understood, but refused to bend. He must get past this before they could progress.

“That’s an order.” He sent her a firm stare. “There’s nothing for you to think through, only to feel. Let me in, Sunshine.”

Biting her lip, her body tense, she did as he asked, oh-so-slowly easing her thighs apart. He could have done it for her but this … she opened herself to him like a gift. She trusted him. He was truly grateful.

Easing her folds apart, he breathed in her essence, then pressed his tongue to her. She gasped, jumped. Duke held her hips down and laved the swollen knot of nerves. Yes, she was aroused. But she wasn’t comfortable with it.

He sucked her clit gently, then released it, raking his fingertip over the little ridge. His eyes closed, and she clutched the headboard more tightly, as if restraining her need.

“Why can’t you let yourself want me?”

Felicia tried to wriggle away. Duke held her firm, his fingertip working erotic circles over her most sensitive flesh.

“It makes me … too vulnerable,” she mewled, her body arching.

“You don’t want to be close to me.”

He kissed her again intimately. Even if her heart was fighting him, her body’s defenses were breaking down. With every touch, she slickened, swelled, arched more.

“No.” Her high-pitched admission bounced off the wall.

“You think I’ll leave you.”

“The minute I let myself care …” She writhed, fighting the pleasure.

She was dead wrong. His reassurances weren’t convincing her. What the hell kept her from tearing down that wall around her heart?

“The minute you let yourself care,” he whispered, “I’ll be there to fill you up with love for the rest of your life.”

Her face told him how much she wanted to believe him, but her head thrashed from side to side in denial.

Duke lowered his head to her slick, tender flesh again and feasted, using slow licks that lasted forever, soft brushes of his fingers. “You’re perfect for me,” he whispered. “Until you, I never felt as if I belonged anywhere. I never truly connected to anyone. Money and fame insulate. I’ve often felt alone, even in public or when I had a lover. But you …” He lapped at her with a long groan. “With you, I’m at home.”

Felicia perspired, her body writhing. She looked at him with fevered blue eyes. “Why?”