The Betrayal (28 page)

He sucked in his breath. “
Mm
, that feels good.”

“What about this?” She alternated her fingers with her mouth and nipped and tugged at the hard nubs.

Declan moaned louder, wordlessly encouraging her to continue. Moving lower, Chloe kissed her way to his navel, pausing to flick her tongue inside the slight indentation before continuing lower.

His cock stood thick and hard amongst the cluster of dark tight curls between his thighs. She encircled his length with her hand and squeezed him with her fingers.

“Ah, Christ, sweetheart. That feels so good.”

Emboldened by his enjoyment, she swiped her tongue around the head of his cock before taking him into her mouth. Inch by inch, she took him in as far as she could, sucking and squeezing him with her fingers and her lips.

“Mm
, yes. That’s it, sweetheart. Don’t stop.”

Despite her lack of experience, Chloe went with her instincts, encouraged by Declan’s moans and mumbled assurances that what she was doing felt good.

Lifting her mouth from his cock, she moved even lower. Cradling the heavy weight of his balls in the palm of her hand, she teased them with the tip of her tongue, swirling through the soft hair that covered them.

Declan groaned louder and lifted his hips off the sheet. “Christ, I can’t take any more. I need to fuck you.”

Chloe loved the urgency in his voice. It made her feel powerful, confident in her ability to arouse him. Sliding up over his body, she once again straddled his hips.

He twisted beneath her and reached for a condom and then handed it to her. She blushed and took it from his fingers. Frowning in concentration, she worked it over his erection, feeling triumphant at her success.

Positioning herself over his straining cock, she pressed her wetness over his tip, teasing him with slow, sensual movements of her hips.

“Christ, Chloe. Fuck me,” he groaned hoarsely.

Without warning, she sat down hard on his thighs. They gasped in unison and Chloe couldn’t help but think how good it felt to have him deep inside her again.

Moving slowly, she set the pace of their lovemaking. Leaning over him, she laced her fingers through his and stared into his eyes. They were wild with desire.

The pressure low in her belly grew. She picked up the pace and slid up and down on his cock with increasing frenzy. Moments later, she reached her peak. The waves of her release washed over her. Her inner muscles contracted. She leaned forward and squeezed Declan’s hands, crying out in relief.

An instant later, he wrenched his hands free and grasped her hips, holding her still while he plunged into her again and again. With a hoarse cry, he tensed and emptied himself inside her.

It was long moments later before either of them was able to speak. Declan broke the silence.

“You’re unbelievable.”

Chloe turned in his arms and smiled. “I’m glad you think so.”

He put his arms around her and squeezed her hard. “Oh, I don’t think so, I
know
so. If I’d been any more turned on, my balls would have exploded.”

Chloe ducked her head but couldn’t help the grin. “You didn’t do too badly yourself. You might not believe this, but last night was the first time I’d had an orgasm.”

Declan’s eyebrow rose in surprise. “Wow. I can’t believe I’m the first to make you come. What the hell was wrong with those other blokes? You’re a natural.”

Chloe did her best to retain eye contact, but it was difficult with her face burning hotter than a summer bushfire.

“There were only two, remember? Not exactly a football team and we were teenagers.”

Declan pulled her closer and growled in her ear. “And I’m jealous of even those two. I want to be the only one who gets to watch you orgasm. Agreed?”

Chloe stared at him, her smile evaporating. “What are you saying?”

Declan’s eyes darkened and his expression sobered. “I really like you, Chloe. I know we met in…unusual circumstances, but I don’t care about any of that. I want us to get to know each other, go out and date like normal people. What do you think?”

All of a sudden he sounded very uncertain. His gaze lowered, but not before she caught the vulnerability that shadowed his eyes. Her heart tripped over. She reached out and cupped his cheek in her hand, forcing him to look at her.

“I’d love to.”

A torrent of emotion filled his eyes. “Really?”

She nodded and smiled. “Yes, really.”

Declan pulled her close and kissed her softly on the mouth. Chloe reveled in his tender display. A shaft of sunlight landed on his head, burnishing the brown streaks in gold.

“What time is it?” she asked.

“Nearly seven.”

“I’m going to have to go. They’re putting together a team to arrest my uncle this morning. I-I wanted to go and see him beforehand.”

Declan frowned. “Why?”

Chloe struggled to make him understand. “It’s not what you think. I’m not going to warn him, although I assume Stanford’s already called him. I just want to…you know, ask him
why
?” Her voice cracked on the last word and she turned away so that he didn’t see her tears.

“Tell me about him.”

She closed her eyes against another surge of emotion and compressed her lips. Taking a deep breath, she began to speak.

“Forty-eight hours ago, I would have told you that, apart from my father, he was the man I most admired. He’s strong, intelligent, funny, loyal. He’s all the things I look for in a man. He’s my number one support and has always been there for me.”

“Christ,” Declan muttered. “This must be devastating for you.”

Her breath hitched. “He’s been married for more than forty years. Okay, it took a long time for my cousin to come along—twenty years, in fact, but none of us thought anything of that. We all sympathized with their plight and prayed that somehow, some way they would experience the joy of having a child. It was all that my aunt wanted.”

“Your aunt’s obviously younger than your uncle?”

“Yes, she was twenty when they were married. He was twenty-seven. When she turned forty, they’d just about given up hope of having the much-longed-for child. We were all shocked when they announced she was pregnant.” Chloe shook her head in disbelief. “All along, the family assumed it was my aunt who had the fertility problem. Now I can’t help but wonder if it had more to do with my uncle.”

“Who knows? At the end of the day, it probably doesn’t matter. I wonder if your aunt is aware of his double life?”

Dread settled like concrete in the pit of Chloe’s belly.

Her aunt… Did she know?

She tightened the sheet around her. She could hardly ask her parents. She couldn’t believe either of them knew the truth, yet something that big couldn’t have been concealed from her family for so many years.
Could it?

One of the often annoying things about a good Italian family was the lack of privacy. There was no such thing as minding your own business. If you had a problem, everyone from Great Aunt Marietta to the second cousin’s three-year-old knew about it and that’s just how it was. She had to believe her much-loved and well-respected uncle had hidden this shocking secret very well, or everyone would have known about it.

She was certain that no one in her family knew Ronald Sabattini was gay—or bisexual. She shook her head. She didn’t even want to think about that.

Another thought struck her and she flinched in horror. Could
she
have also been a pawn in her uncle’s quest to destroy Declan? As a close relative, Ronald Sabattini knew her better than most.

He would have known her senior position within IA would increase the chances of the investigation coming across her desk. He would have known if she believed a crime had been committed, she would prosecute to the full extent of the law. He would also have been comfortable that, in the event suspicion fell upon him, she would be the last person to give credence to the idea.

Had she also been part of his evil plan? The thought made her ill.

“Talk to me, sweetheart.”

Declan’s gentle request roused her from her dark thoughts. Keeping the sheet around her, she wriggled to the top of the bed and joined him with her back against the headboard.

“I have to confront my uncle and get some answers.”

Declan pulled away from her, his expression reflecting his concern. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea, Chloe. Surely you should let someone else in your office deal with this? No one knows how your uncle will react. It could be dangerous.”

Chloe shook her head, refusing to believe her uncle would hurt her. “He’s not going to do anything like that. I’m not sure how he’s going to react… Maybe shocked that his secret’s been discovered and anxious that his role in why you were arrested has come to light—both of those things, I expect—but he’s my uncle and he loves me. He’d never do anything to hurt me.”

Declan looked unconvinced. “Be that as it may, you shouldn’t be the one to speak with him. Or at the very least, you shouldn’t be going alone. We have to assume Charlie’s spoken to him since yesterday. Your uncle will know the net’s closing in on him.” His expression turned grim. “I’m coming with you.”

Chloe opened her mouth to protest, but he cut her off. “This isn’t up for negotiation, Chloe. Relative or not, the man’s proven he’s totally without scruples and he has to be feeling desperate. I’m not going to have you risk your safety when you don’t know what he’s going to do. We have no idea what he’s truly capable of.”

She stared at him. All the reasons why there was no need for him to accompany her ran through her head. Instead, she found herself nodding.

“All right.”

Relief flooded his face. “Thank you.”

“But we’ll travel separately and you’ll wait outside. You won’t have clearance to get into Parliament House. It will be easier this way.”

Declan nodded his consent. “Okay, but if he threatens you, if he even raises his voice to you, you get the hell out of there and call me. We’ll set up your phone to dial me with the push of a button. I’ll be right outside the building. Got it?”

“Got it.”

“Good.” Declan glanced at the clock. “What time does he normally get to his office?”

“Around eight. He likes to get in early.”

Declan climbed out of bed, oblivious to his nakedness. “We’d better get moving then.”

Chloe averted her gaze, unused to having a naked man parade around in front of her. When he walked into the ensuite, she sighed quietly in relief. Moments later, she heard the sound of running water.

Scooting across the bed, she picked up the sheet and wrapped it around her. Slipping out of the room, she collected the clothes she’d arrived in from the spare bedroom and headed back to Declan’s room. The sound of running water stopped. Declan filled the bathroom doorway, a towel wrapped around his waist and another one in his hand. He scrubbed at his hair.

Eyeing her and the sheet she held tightly around her, he grinned, a knowing glint in his eye. “Shower’s free.”

She refrained from commenting. Nodding her thanks, she slipped past him.

* * *

Declan barely had a chance to pull on his jeans when there was a loud knock at the front door.

“Declan, if you’re in there, you’d better open up this instant. You’re worrying the shit out of all of us. We’ve been calling you since last night. Mom’s beside herself with worry. Christ, if you’ve gone and done something stupid, I’ll never forgive you.” Another loud thump sounded against the door.

Declan pulled on a clean T-shirt just as Chloe appeared in the doorway of the ensuite, wrapped only in a towel.

“What’s all that noise?”

“It’s Clayton. He’s outside.”

Chloe blushed. “What’s he going to say when he finds me here?”

Declan grinned, delighted at her bashfulness. “If you hurry up and throw some clothes on, he doesn’t actually have to find you
here
.” He looked meaningfully at the rumpled bed. “I mean, we can kind of ease him into the idea of us being together. Clayton might be three years younger than me, but he’s way more conservative. We don’t have to hit him over the head with it.”

She grabbed a pillow and threw it at him. “
I’ll
hit you over the head in a minute.” With that, she turned on her heel and headed back into the bathroom.

Declan chuckled and hurried down the hall, knowing Clayton wouldn’t give up until he’d broken the door down. When another bang sounded, he called out to his brother.

“Clayton, it’s okay. I’m here. Hang on a minute and I’ll let you in.” Smoothing down his hair with his fingers, he reached for the doorknob.

Clayton’s worried frown warmed him all the way through. “Hey, there little brother,” Declan said, grinning. “What are you up to?”

Clayton pushed passed him, his scowl deepening. “Don’t play all innocent with me. Why haven’t you answered your phone? I tried half the night to get through to you. I even came by here twice and I called you again this morning. Where the hell have you been? We’ve been worried as shit. Mom was about to start calling hospitals.”

Declan sobered and considered what conclusions his family must have drawn when he couldn’t be reached. When they’d left his place yesterday afternoon, he’d been down on everything. He’d asked them to leave so that he could have some time alone. He could only imagine what they’d thought when they couldn’t contact him today.

“I’m sorry, Clay. I didn’t think. Chloe came over last night and we spent some time talking about the case. There’s been a breakthrough—”

Clayton’s gaze moved beyond Declan’s shoulder, his eyes widening in surprise. Declan turned and spied Chloe behind him, now dressed in the clothes she’d worn to his apartment the night before. He reached out and drew her close. Clayton started coughing.

Declan stepped forward and thumped him on the back. “Are you all right, mate?”

Clayton shook his head and fought to catch his breath. “Yeah, sure,” he wheezed. “I’m just a little…surprised.”

“I told you Chloe was helping me.”

“Yes, you did. I didn’t realize you meant…” Clayton flushed and averted his gaze.

Declan laughed at his brother’s discomfort, but then took pity on him, after catching sight of the color that also bloomed in Chloe’s cheeks.