by Donna Grant
She looked into his eyes. Her heart thumped, her blood hammered in her ears. The desire was no longer hidden in his gaze. It shone bright for all to see. This was her moment, her shining instant when her wish to have Rhys was granted.
Lily lifted her mouth to his, but it wasn’t for the chaste kiss from a moment ago. All of her desire, all of her longing … all of her yearning was poured into the kiss.
And Rhys’s answering moan was all it took to spur her onward.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Rhys knew it was a mistake kissing Lily again, but it didn’t matter how many times he told himself that, he still couldn’t leave. She was in his blood, in his psyche. She roamed through his dreams, teasing and tantalizing him with her seductive black eyes and hair.
Her first kiss had been a meeting of lips. The second time had been full of longing and passion. The third time she kissed him, he was unprepared for the force of it. The kiss was fiery, fierce, sensual, and altogether carnal.
His cock ached to be inside her, to fill her again and again until she was limp from the pleasure. He wanted the world to know she was his. The very fact that someone like Lily was with him made his throat tighten with emotion. She knew what kind of man he was, and she still opened herself to him.
Rhys rocked her against his arousal once more and heard her throaty moan. It made his rod jump in anticipation. He pulled her tighter, loving the feel of her warm skin against his. Her hands roamed over his shoulders and back the more their kiss sizzled and burned.
With a small movement, Rhys undid her bra, the straps loosening on her shoulders. She ended the kiss, a grin upon her lips as she leaned back to remove the garment. Rhys’s mouth went dry as he stared at her breasts. They were full and round, her dusky pink nipples already hard.
Rhys cupped both breasts and watched as Lily’s eyes slid closed on a soft sigh. That sigh turned into a moan when he ran his thumbs over her nipples. Her nails dug into his arms and her head dropped back, exposing the long curve of her neck.
Unable to resist, he leaned forward and kissed along her neck as he massaged her lovely breasts. But it wasn’t enough. He wanted all of her bared so he could put every inch of her to memory.
It was Lily who stepped out of his arms. Her lids opened to show her dark eyes were dilated, her breathing heavy. The curve of her lip was seductive, alluring as she turned and walked to the door of the bedroom. There she paused and shimmied her panties over her hips and down her legs. She stepped out of the red satin and disappeared into the bedroom.
Rhys removed his shoes and socks before he stood. As he followed her, he unbuttoned his pants. At the doorway, he stopped and looked inside to see her standing at the floor-to-ceiling window with her back to him.
“You’ve no idea how beautiful you are,” he said as he removed his pants and came up behind her.
She leaned back against him, her palms on the window. “My body is on fire, and yet the glass is cool.”
Rhys reached around and set his hand atop her breast and slowly ran his hand down her stomach to the black curls nestled between her legs. He held her up with his other hand wrapped around her waist while he spread her curls. A satisfied smile formed when he found her wet to the touch.
To his surprise, she reached behind her and wrapped her hand around his cock. Rhys hissed in a breath as she ran her hand up and down his length.
Rhys wouldn’t be able to hold onto his control if she continued, and he wanted the night to be about her. He wanted to show her that he was different, that she mattered. He spun her around, pushing her back against the window. Her breath came out in a huff, but her eyes were alight with excitement.
Bending his head, he fastened his lips around a nipple and sucked. Her arms came around him, his name falling from her lips in a strangled whisper.
Rhys suckled, teased, aroused first one breast, and then the other until he had to hold Lily up. Her eyes were closed, her lips parted as moan after moan fell from her full lips. Only then did Rhys drop to his knees. He moved one of her legs until her thigh rested on his shoulder. At the first touch of his tongue against her sex, she jerked and then sighed.
Her hips began to move as he found her clit with his tongue and swirled around it. He licked, he laved mercilessly, bringing her to a fever pitch only to back away at the last second before she could peak.
“Breathe,” he told her. “Close your eyes and concentrate on how my tongue feels against you.”
She complied instantly. Rhys paused for a moment, and then he licked her slowly. Lily shivered, gasping and clinging to the window even as she begged for more.
“Please,” Lily pleaded.
Rhys slid a finger inside her as he continued his assault. The moment her body began to tighten around him, he stopped once more. He looked up at her and used his tongue to swirl around her clit faster and faster, matching the rhythm of his fingers pumping inside her.
Almost instantly her body tightened, getting ready to climax. Rhys added a second finger to stretch her. She moaned loudly, her palms on the window. When Rhys pulled away once more, Lily groaned, her hips rocking from the need to fulfill the pleasure. He stood and waited for her to open her eyes to look at him.
He lifted her up so she could wrap her legs around his waist. Rhys kept her raised above his cock, her back against the window. Then, slowly, gradually, he let her slide down his arousal.
When she was fully seated, he held still, gazing into her dark eyes. “How do you feel knowing that anyone who looks can see us?”
“I feel sexy, carnal. Free,” she whispered in a throaty voice.
He pulled out of her and then thrust deep. She clung to him, their eyes locked as their bodies moved against the other. He progressively increased the rhythm, plunging deeper, harder each time. Soon sweat glistened over their bodies.
Suddenly her body went taut as the orgasm took her. Her mouth opened on a silent scream, her body convulsing from the strength of it. Rhys carried her to the bed and gently laid her down. He smoothed back her hair and grinned as she gazed up at him in contentment.
Her legs tightened around him, drawing him deeper inside her. Rhys rose up on his hands and rotated his hips before he began to move again. She met him thrust for thrust, pushing him higher, urging deeper.
His climax hit him unexpectedly. He plunged deep and shouted her name as the tidal wave of pleasure overtook him, sending him into a sea of ecstasy he’d never experienced before.
Her arms wrapped around him, brought him down to her. She held him as they were wrapped in a bubble of bliss that no one could fracture.
* * *
Ulrik stood on the roof of his building staring off toward Edinburgh. His sources told him Rhys went there with Kellan while Warrick flew back to Dreagan under the cover of clouds. Rhys and Kellan weren’t alone, however. Denae, Kellan’s mate was there, as was a mortal named Lily.
“Lady Lily Ross. Nobility mixing with the Kings.” Ulrik grinned. He could imagine Con would have a field day with the news.
Constantine, the one who refused to let go of tradition, the one who clung to an old way of life that no longer served the Dragon Kings. Then again, Con was as outdated as his beliefs.
It was time for the Kings to have a new leader.
It was time for a great many new things.
Ulrik looked to the sky. He might have some of his magic back, but he still couldn’t shift. Every minute of every hour of every day that passed and he couldn’t take to the skies made him hate Con even more.
He was so close to getting his revenge that he could taste it. Many humans would die. Many Kings would die. But he would finally have all of his magic returned. He would finally take to the skies and soar among the clouds as he once had.
More importantly, his Silvers would at last be free from their perpetual sleep. It didn’t matter what he had to do, or who he had to hurt to get back what was taken from him.
Rhys only had a taste of what he himself had endured through the mi
llennia. If Rhys was this crazed after only a few weeks, what would he do years or decades from now? Ulrik was almost tempted to wait and find out. Con would get to see firsthand how a King could lose his sanity by being forced to remain in human form.
It was an ugly, violent, and dangerous spiral that took everyone and everything near.
That was one way to take down Con, and there was a very real chance Rhys could do it. However, Ulrik suspected that Con would lock Rhys away before anything like that could ever happen.
By doing that, Con would alienate many of the Kings, because though Rhys was a hothead, he was loyal to a fault and he had many friends. It was no secret that Rhys and Con butted heads often. So it would work in Ulrik’s favor that some would see Con’s actions as retaliation against Rhys.
But that was a chance Ulrik didn’t want to take. No, he had planned out his vengeance to the last detail. Now that everything was coming together was not the time to change anything.
How many years did he lose in his insanity? How many did he squander, scraping among the humans’ filth trying to ignore the dragon within him begging to take to the skies?
How many years did he exhaust until he learned to take whatever he wanted?
Only then was he able to start planning this moment. Thousands upon thousands of years of networking and laying the foundation of Con’s ruin. Just a little more time and all would be set right once again.
Ulrik turned away and walked barefoot to the door that led back inside the building. He walked down the ladder and then to the doorway of one of the spare bedrooms. Abby still slept, not that he expected her to be awake. He’d used her until she was limp and unable to move, much less utter a sound.
He closed her door and stood in the hallway. Abby, like most people, would assume that the room was his. In fact, Ulrik’s bedroom was hidden. No one but he had ever seen it.
Or ever would.
He was tempted to go there and rest, but there could be no rest for him. Instead, he decided to go downstairs and get some work done. Ulrik was halfway down the spiral staircase when he was alerted that someone was inside the store. It left him uneasy that there was no face to go with the alert.
On silent feet, he made his way down the rest of the stairs and out the hidden door. As he stepped into the back of the store, he paused. All the lights were still off with just a few on dim to cast away most of the shadows.
Ulrik came around the corner to see a man sitting in one of the overstuffed chairs. His back was to Ulrik, so he couldn’t see the man’s face.
For a second, Ulrik thought it might be Con finally come to try and kill him. Then Ulrik realized that Con wouldn’t come alone. He would want others watching.
“Looked your fill yet?” the man asked.
Ulrik frowned. There was something about the voice he recognized, a vague memory of something long buried that he should know. He didn’t have any friends. Which meant whoever this man was, he was an enemy. Ulrik prepared to kill him as he gave the chair a wide berth and walked around it until he stood diagonal to the man.
The light on the table beside the chair clicked on. “Hello, Ulrik.”
Ulrik stared in shock at his uncle.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Lily had her eyes closed, but sleep was the furthest thing from her mind. She was nestled in the comfort—and security—of Rhys’s arms.
It was surreal. Amazing.
Incredible.
The night before she thought was the end of everything, and twenty-four hours later, it was the best day of her life. How could two such varying incidents occur so close together?
With that thought, her mind drifted to Dennis and what he was forcing her to do. But it wasn’t just her. It was those at Dreagan—Denae, Cassie, Jane … Rhys.
Then there was Kyle.
If she helped Dennis onto Dreagan, she would never be able to look at Rhys again. How could she after making love to him, and then betraying him?
Yet, how could she ever look into the eyes of her parents if she didn’t save Kyle? She would be responsible for him turning into Dennis.
It was a no-win situation. She had to choose between family and Rhys.
The decision was even more difficult now that she knew what she would be missing. Rhys was everything she wanted and needed. He was strong, gentle, encouraging, and loving. He was a man who would support her in whatever she did.
He reminded her so much of her father, which only made her want to cry. She knew her father would like Rhys. All of her family would like Rhys. How unfair fate was to give her a man who could heal her wounded soul only to force her to decide between Rhys, who could be the love of her life, and her family.
An image of her family flashed in her mind. It was four years since she last saw them. Was her father still watching his food for his high-cholesterol? Which diet was her mother on now? Did her eldest sister at long last have the baby she’d been dreaming of? Were her other sisters married?
Lily’s heart hurt with the unanswered questions. She wanted to think that Dennis wouldn’t have gotten to her this time if she had only returned to her family when she left him, but she knew it was a lie. Dennis would’ve found some way to get what he wanted. He always did.
If she chose Rhys, then her family would suffer unimaginably. Not to mention what sweet, funny Kyle would endure.
If she chose to save Kyle, Dreagan would miss some piece of artwork or something that could quickly be claimed by insurance and replaced. No one would die, and no one would be turned into an assassin.
Only she would be the one to lose either way.
The fact she knew she would have to leave Rhys, Dreagan, her friends, and her new life behind only pushed her to want to see Dennis dead sooner. If only she’d listened to her mother about Dennis. If only she hadn’t let him rule her life. If only she hadn’t been so weak to remain with him.
If only …
There was no amount of looking back that would change her past. It was done, decisions already made. The only thing she could do was ensure her present and her future.
And after what she was about to do to Rhys, she didn’t deserve him.
She wanted to tell him what was coming, but what would that accomplish? He would try to stop Dennis, which would only end up getting someone at Dreagan killed and her brother lost to her forever.
No, it was better not to tell Rhys anything. He would know her involvement when she didn’t return to work. Lily knew Dreagan might seek her out for damages, and she was prepared to face whatever legal action they would take.
“That sigh didna sound good,” Rhys said into the silence of the room.
Lily hadn’t even realized she had sighed. She listened to the beat of his heart beneath her ear. “Just thinking.”
“Anything I can help with?”
How she wished he could. Lily opened her eyes to look at his handsome face, a shadow of a beard darkening his jaw. “Unfortunately, no.”
“You’re no’ thinking of that wanker of an ex while in bed with me, are you?” he asked as he cracked open an eye and smiled at her.
She chuckled. “I would never.”
“Good, because that could severely damage my confidence.”
“Nothing could damage your confidence.”
He looked at the ceiling and put his other arm behind his head, his smile gone. “I’m a good listener. If you need to talk.”
“You’ve heard the worst of it.”
“Have I?” he asked softly and looked at her before lightly touching her bruised cheek. “How did you really come by this?”
Lily couldn’t answer. She didn’t want to lie again, especially not to Rhys. And yet the words stuck in her throat.
“The bastard found you.” Rhys turned so that they faced each other. “Why did you no’ tell someone? I’d gladly have taken care of him. Hell, anyone on Dreagan would.”
If only his “take care of” meant kill, but Lily would never ask that of anyone. It was her soul that wou
ld be stained with Dennis’s death and no one else’s.
“It’s been a year since I left him. I thought I was free of that part of my life, but I was wrong.” When Rhys entwined his fingers with hers, she gained courage to continue. “He’s only hit me in the face a few times.”
“There’s a special place in Hell for men like him,” Rhys said angrily. “I’d love to get my hands on him. Is he still around?”
Now Lily had no choice but to lie. How she hated it. Just another reason to want to cut Dennis out of her life for good. “I hope he got the hint after I refused to take him back.”
“Next time, call me. I’ll make sure that son of a bitch never bothers you again.”
She looked into his blue eyes, unable to hold back the wash of tears. Even though Rhys couldn’t help her, the fact he was willing to try was enough. The tears were forgotten as Rhys pulled her against him and kissed her. The last time she was in control. This time, it was all him.
He seized her lips, captured her breath. He conquered and dominated her with just his kisses. Lily submitted, wanting him and eager to see where he would take her. His hands were everywhere, caressing, stroking. Seducing. From her face to her feet, every inch of skin felt his touch. He was demanding and yet gentle, commanding yet tender.
His rule in the bed was absolute, unequivocal. And Lily found she was more than willing to acquiesce to his experienced hands and skilled lips.
The world fell away, forgotten as if it was but a dream. Rhys claimed not just her body and mind, but her soul. He challenged her without words to give herself up to him with no questions asked. Lily hesitated for only a heartbeat. Then she freely and unconditionally gave herself to him.
If she thought his kisses before were heavenly, then the scorching kiss now was as sinful as it was pure. The hunger inside her grew, expanded until it consumed her.
She tried to delve her hands into the silkiness of his dark brown locks, but he took her hands and held them above her head. Then he ran his free hand over her breasts, stopping to roll a nipple between his fingers.
