by Lauren Dane
Roman laughed. Gods how she loved the sound. Her cunt actually spasmed, wanting him. She squeezed her thighs together.
“And what did you do to him?”
“I threw him out, too. And then I set fire to his suits. It wasn’t nice, but I felt a lot better afterward.”
“You’re very vicious. It’s an attractive quality,” he added quietly. “Did he slink off to another ’Verse? He’s not still with her?”
“Gods no! His taste in side bits was very bad but he was smart enough to know what Marcala was and wasn’t. I never should have said yes when he proposed. In fact, I believe he never cheated on me until he proposed to me. It was his self-destruct button. He’s a good man in his own way. An excellent barrister but a horrible fiancé. I shudder to think about the poor woman who marries him.”
“Barrister?”
“Yes. Logan, you met him I think, a while back.”
His mouth tightened a moment and then he relaxed. Was that jealousy?
“Ah yes. He did seem the sort to throw away a wonderful woman for momentary pleasure.”
She laughed. “Very nice answer, Mr. Lyons. Now I see why they talk about you on the vids in those breathless voices. Wondering which woman will snap you up.”
He rolled his eyes and she realized how pleasant it was to have just a normal moment with him. It would have been more pleasant to be naked and alone with him in her bed of course, but normalcy was something she hadn’t expected from him. In the midst of his huge manor, it seemed a funny word to choose, but it was.
“I should go.” She looked up into his eyes and wanted to kiss him so badly her lips felt the phantom touch of his.
“I wish you wouldn’t. After all, Jaron wants you here. You’re quite welcome. We’re pleased to have you after all you’ve done for Marcus and his son. At some point, I’d like to speak with you on a business matter. Deimos tells me you’re addressing the AC, which I endorse. Perhaps we can discuss that at some point?” He cocked his head in a particularly charming way and she nearly sighed. Gods, she was losing three years of maturity every second she stood with him. Soon she’d start twirling her hair and thrusting out her chest at him.
She swallowed and licked her lips nervously. His pupils widened and she wanted to groan. The two of them were volatile, the chemistry between them was bigger than the room and she felt caught in it, like swaying sea grass.
“I can, yes.” She’d meant to tell him to comm her so she could set up an appointment or a vid conference.
“Can I give you a tour of the greenhouse? We grow all our own fruits and vegetables here on the grounds. They’re the original from when we came through and set up the colony here.”
She loved the pride in his voice.
“I would be honored.”
They strolled together down a long hallway, side by side but not touching. The sounds of the room where the food and people were dimmed as they drew away. He pointed out the art on the walls and she nodded, half listening. Her body grew heavy in his presence.
She wasn’t sure what she’d expected when he said greenhouse, but it wasn’t what she stood looking at.
“I’m at a loss for words.” The greenhouse was gargantuan, which, given the overall scale of the house and complex itself, made sense. Huge stands of fruit trees lined a central walk and on either side and hanging from the rafters just beneath the glass ceiling, plants abounded. Vegetables, fruits, berries and flowers exploded in her vision. The scent overwhelmed, heady and fecund.
“When we first came through the portal and began to build a colony, House Lyons built this greenhouse and planted the seedlings and seeds they brought through. We fed our people then from this ground.” He bent and sifted dark, rich soil through his fingertips.
She got it then as she stood there in his greenhouse. Leadership wasn’t just a job he held because he was born first. He took being the ruler of House Lyons seriously. He took conservatorship of the people of Ravena and the associated ’Verses under Lyons’ control seriously.
He was House Lyons in a way she hadn’t understood until that very moment as he held the earth responsible for nourishing his people.
“I don’t think you’re a bad man,” she said quietly, bending down with him. “I believe you have done an excellent job. Ravena is prosperous. Our literacy rate is the highest of all the Federated ’Verses. Quality of life is high. I’m not doing this because I think you’re mismanaging your people. I want to share the burden, not add to it.”
“There are things I’d like to talk with you about. Things you should know but I can’t just now.” His voice was the barest sound and it alarmed her.
“All right.”
“Can I come to you? Tonight?”
“Yes.” Was he kidding? She’d craved him every day since she’d seen him last and there was the look in his eyes just then. It worried her.
He straightened and brushed his hands off. The scent of the rich soil drifted to her as she stood.
“It’s beautiful here.”
“What I love about this place is how generations of Lyons children played here. How this soil has fed our people. How our ’Verse grew from this spot. From breadbasket to factories. It started here. In my home. I’m proud of that, Abbie.”
“You should be, Roman. It’s something to be very proud of. It would be a terrible invasion of your private life but people should know about this place. It should be part of the history of this ’Verse. What do you do with all this food?”
“We feed the household with it. Set aside for the cold months. Mercy makes jams and sauces, she preserves things. We also donate to a program in the fourth ring. A boarding school for children who’ve lost parents to lockup or death.”
“Martinson School.” She knew it. It wasn’t too far away from where they’d lived when they first came back to the capital. “That’s wonderful, Roman. It’s a good program. Nyna and my mother participate, and several restaurants in the capital send food there on a regular basis as well.”
He smiled. A genuine smile. She liked him unguarded. “That’s good to hear. It alarms me that the population there has grown in the last years. I’m working with some on the Council to enroll the older ones in different apprenticeship programs so they have a place to go after they do their time in the corps.”
“If you only knew how all this do-gooder stuff made me feel.” She laughed and he joined her. They walked the path and turned to go back. He wasn’t just some isolated, out-of-touch despot. Roman Lyons was a man who cared about his people. It only made her want him more.
“Ah, there you are, Roman. And look who you’re with. A secret assignation, perhaps?” Alexander stood at the top of the steps leading back into the main room where the party was.
Thank goodness they hadn’t even risked touching.
“Abigail Haws, this is my brother, Alexander. I apologize for his sense of humor. He believes vulgar is the height of hilarity.” Roman’s mouth arranged itself into a semblance of a smile but it was automatic, not real.
“I met him today at the Justice Administration building. He informed me I was defensive. I informed him he had a great deal to learn.”
Roman looked toward Abbie, alarmed his brother had sought her out. Protectiveness surged through him. No one would hurt her. Period.
“Is that so? And what were you doing so far away from your club?” Roman placed himself between them slightly.
“If you two will excuse me? I need to say my farewells to my sister and Marcus. Mr. Lyons.” Abbie nodded curtly at Alexander. “Thank you for your hospitality, Roman. Please do consider what I said about the greenhouse and placing it in historical context. I know I found it fascinating to see such an important part of our history right here.”
He bowed slightly. “Of course. Thank you for all you’ve done for Marcus and Jaron.” He wanted to walk her out. Wanted to touch her to make sure she was all right; her back was so straight it looked as though she’d shatter.
She left and
Alexander stared at her a little too long for Roman’s comfort.
“What are you doing here, Alexander?”
“I stopped over to see Corrin. I wanted to hear how he did with his last exams.”
One thing Roman could not fault his brother on was his attention and affection toward Deimos and Corrin. He might have been a cad in his personal life but when it came to his nephews, he was attentive and a fine uncle. Roman’s boys understood their uncle was less than perfect, but Deimos in particular had taken on reforming his uncle as a sort of holy mission. It seemed to amuse Alexander and it certainly gave Roman a chuckle to watch.
“He placed in the top three in the program.” Roman smiled.
“Of course he did. Boy is a natural. Despite our differences on political matters, you’ve done a fine job with them.”
“Thank you.” Nice, but Alexander could have commed about it. “Why are you here, Alexander? Really?”
“I met the rather fetching but quite angry little barrister today. She’s trouble, just as Saul says. But Dem seems to think she’s got a point. I tried to speak to her but she told me she had more to say to me than she could in a hallway between meetings. She told me to call her assistant to set up a meeting and walked away. Really, the unranked these days have quite the attitude. Here I am, a member of House Lyons, and she walked away from me.”
“Because she was on her way to meet with me.”
Alexander turned to see Deimos approach. “You’d better not mess with her, Alex. She’s no pushover, and she’s not a doormat. She’s not going to fall into bed with her thighs open for you either.”
Roman only barely stifled a harrumph at the very idea that Abbie would do anything of the sort. Well, with anyone but him.
“She’s addressing the AC in a week. You’re not going to win your silly battle to take her license. Why don’t you step back and let it go? She didn’t do anything wrong. I tell you, she’s a good citizen. And she protected the woman who raised my mother and she got Jaron out of lockup today and you know he didn’t hurt anyone.” Deimos used the big eyes on his uncle and Roman wanted to laugh when he saw it work.
Alexander was such a contrast! Roman had tried to figure his brother out from childhood but he never could. Yes, part of it was being born second and having all the emphasis put on Roman. But Roman took over House Lyons when Alexander was just ten years old. He had a lot of time to be something but he had sort of wandered around. Other second sons worked hard and ran Family projects and businesses.
But he wasn’t all bad either. He was a good uncle and he loved their sister, Sophia. Alexander took care of their mother as well, squiring her to her meetings and luncheons.
Still, he treated most other women horribly and Roman had had to pull him out of many different potential scrapes because of it. There was a fund of sorts to deal with the messes Alexander left behind with his women. Unpaid bills, disgruntled women with flats and rent due, that sort of thing.
“I admire Abbie Haws greatly, Alexander. She’s intelligent and works hard and she is strong. What she wants isn’t so very bad.” Roman was torn between this discussion and wanting to sneak off to be with her.
“Right now? With things the way they are? Any slight upheaval could be disastrous. How can you even consider her plan, Roman? It’s madness.” At least Alexander was concerned in some sense. Roman had to give him that.
“This has nothing to do with any problems with the Imperialists. In fact, we could actually alleviate some of our internal problems if the unranked felt listened to.” Deimos was on to something. Roman and he had discussed the subject just that morning. “Come with me to our next meeting with her. Or take her up on her offer to meet with you and hear her out. She’s a very intelligent woman, informed, well-spoken. Give her a chance, a real one, and don’t be an idiot.” Deimos laughed and Roman wanted to groan.
“You’d go against your grandfather in this, Dem?” Alexander asked.
“Saul Kerrigan is my grandfather only because he contributed genetic material to make my mother. He’s not part of my life in any sense and I am fortunate to not share any of his traits. My father believes Abbie has something meaningful to say, as do I. That’s what’s important, Alex.”
Roman was very proud of his boy just then. And proud that his brother actually seemed to listen.
Chapter 18
He tapped quietly on her door, anticipation thrumming through his veins. She opened, wearing a soft robe, her hair loose like he preferred. He stepped inside and everything felt right again.
“I’m sorry. I wanted to get away earlier but Alexander wanted to talk. And talk some more. I escaped as soon as I could. Is it too late?”
She cupped his cheek. “I’ve missed you. I’ll take whatever of you I can get.”
He moved into her arms because it was where he was supposed to be. She was warm and soft and felt like home.
His clothes melted away, their hands working together to make him naked, as naked as his heart was.
Her bed was ready, the blankets pulled back, and he laid her gently down, opening the front of her robe. Her body revealed to him and him alone. Rain pelted her windows, scattering sound through the room as he pressed a kiss between her breasts, breathing her in.
She caressed his neck, kneading the knotted muscles there. He unfurled in her presence. Relaxed, calmed and left all the other context weighing him down at her door.
“There, now you’re here with me,” she murmured, kissing his shoulder. “All you need to think about is right here. Leave the rest of it until later. For now, lose yourself in me.”
She wrapped a thigh around his waist and her pussy made contact with his cock. “Gods, you feel so good,” he said as he kissed down her neck.
She sighed and arched as he reached a nipple and tugged it with his teeth. Responsive, vital, Abbie Haws responded to his touch with all her being. She threw herself into sex like she seemed to do everything else.
“I want you to lick me, please.”
He looked up into her face. Gods, she was exciting. “I think I can do that. I like it when you ask me for what you want.” The satin of her belly met his lips as the scent of her body seduced him.
Her pussy opened to him as he bent his head and took the first long lick through her. He loved putting his mouth on a woman’s sex. Loved the taste of her, the scent. His wife had not been very enthusiastic about it, sadly. They’d been young and she’d been raised with negative feelings about it.
But Abbie widened her thighs and rolled her hips, seeking more of him. He’d been with women since Lindy’s death. He’d enjoyed sex with them. But he hadn’t matched so closely with a partner the way he did with her. It was liberating to him to be able to be himself without any judgment on her part. She accepted all of him, not just accepted but encouraged.
Her breath caught when he pressed the flat of his tongue over her clit. Her heels dug into the muscle of his shoulders and back.
“Mmm, yes. Like that.” She breathed out.
“This?” He repeated the slide of his tongue over her clit. “Or this?” He sucked it slowly, abrading it with his teeth just slightly.
She laughed, her fingers digging into his hair as she urged him on. “Either. Both. Whatever.”
He hummed against her clit, loving the way she squirmed in response. Salty-sweet, her taste slithered through him and he couldn’t get enough. He used his palms to press her thighs flat against the bed and moved his mouth, lips and tongue back and forth over her pussy.
Her words melted away until all that was left were soft, begging sounds that wrapped around his cock, his gut, his heart.
A gasp, a sigh, a strangled moan, and she came when he pressed two fingers deep into her gate.
Pleasure rushed through her, white noise in her ears as she held him tight to her. His hair was soft against her fingers, something that always surprised her. Smooth and cool. Unexpected and, yet, totally like him in many ways.
When she opened he
r eyes he was smiling at her, his lips glistening with her honey. “You’re beautiful. Now on top. I want to watch you fuck me.”
He rolled, taking her with him and she scrambled up to position herself over his cock. “I’d really rather suck your cock.”
He thrust up and into her body, filling her. “I’d really rather be inside your pussy. I’ve been thinking about little else for days and days.”
“So very used to getting your way, House Lyons.”
“Leadership means I get many benefits.”
Laughing while having sex wasn’t something she did often and she wouldn’t have expected it of him. But he had such a love for it, such an appetite for her body, it made her giddy and lighthearted.
And she’d never admit it but he was just right-sized. Not hugely tall, so big he made her feel small and in fear of being crushed or trampled. But just tall enough she felt overpowered in a sexy sense and not a fearful one. It wasn’t often she liked feeling small, but with him, it worked.
She ground herself down on him, rubbing her clit on his pubic bone. Her hands were braced on his hips to hold herself steady as she rode him.
“I love this trail of hair here,” she said, tracing her finger from belly button to the spot the hair disappeared where they were joined. “And your belly is so flat and hard. Not the body of a man who sits behind a desk all day.”
He laughed, sending little shocks of pleasure through her as he moved. “I go from meeting to meeting all day long, love. I walk everywhere. I heft files. I try to keep up with the boys. I fuck beautiful barristers. I need to be in shape for that. Wouldn’t want it to get out that I’m too old for this game.”
She pulled a single hair on his belly and he hissed in pain even as he laughed. “Vicious!”
“Mmm-hmm. Don’t forget it.” She tightened her muscles around him and he moaned.
“With a pussy like that, how can I?” He cupped her breasts. “These are so very fine. Nipples so dark and pretty. I love seeing you in your suits, knowing what’s beneath. Knowing I’ve touched them, licked them. Knowing I’m going to come on them soon.” Another hiss. “Well now, that works for you, doesn’t it? Nearly as much as it works for me.”
