Moonlight Menage (3 page)

The place literally should’ve landed on their heads. If they’d been seconds later walking out the door, they’d all be buried under the pile of rubble the house had become.

But somehow, they’d gotten here. He’d managed to get Nic and Kaine and the
eteri
in the car and drive them to Kyle’s. He barely remembered the time behind the wheel. He’d been on autopilot the entire trip and he still couldn’t believe he hadn’t driven off the road or passed out along the way.

He only knew that the next thing he remembered was Kyle and Dr. Marone ripping open the car doors, pulling out bodies and taking them into the house.

The doc had examined Kaine first and declared her injuries superficial, unconsciousness her body’s way of healing. The
eteri
had also been out cold by the time Duke got them to Kyle’s. No one had been too worried about him.

But the doc had examined Nic and his entire vibe had changed. Duke had scented anxiety pouring off the veteran
lucani
doctor.

That had been bad. Tira walking in with Tam had almost been worse.

Duke had wanted to howl.

Her overwhelming fear for Nic’s life had made him sick to his stomach. He’d wanted to comfort her but his default asshole had kicked in. Combined with coming off the adrenaline high, Duke felt like he’d just ended a ten-day bender.

Tired, angry, aching all over and terrified that his best friend was about to kick it, Duke had latched on to Tira’s fear for Nic and her anger at him and let it fuel him.

He felt like he was gonna fall over at any second but he needed to wash the dirt and grime off his body. And since she was handy, she’d have to suck it up and do it for him.

Didn’t matter that she hated him, that she thought he was demon spawn and the root of all evil.

Or that he wanted her hands on his body so badly he shook with it.

He could just imagine her reaction if he pulled her close and kissed her like he was dying to do. She’d freeze in his arms then pull away. Her gaze would go cold and she’d hightail it away from him as fast as she could go.

And he’d only have himself to blame for her reaction. The way he’d treated her since her vision…

Shit, he
was
crazy.

He hadn’t had the strength to close the shower stall door and when he heard Tira moving around, he figured she was leaving.

So when she stepped into the shower with him, he nearly fell on his ass in shock.

Shorter than him by almost a foot, Tira’s white-gold curls looked like moonlight against her pale skin. Wearing a white lace bra and plain white cotton bikini panties, she didn’t meet his eyes as she stuck the washcloth in her hands under the water.

“If you fall, I won’t be able to get you back up,” she snapped, her tone cold.

Duke couldn’t help himself. He nearly laughed at her unintentional sexual undertone because she sure as shit could get him up.

Hell, he would’ve bet the house, the farm and his life that he wouldn’t have been able to get an erection right now but he would have lost that bet. He knew when she started to rub that wet cloth on his skin, his cock would start to harden and she’d have even more reason to think he was a prick.

“I won’t fall. Just hurry up.”

He braced for her touch but still wasn’t prepared when she brushed the cloth against his back. A lightning charge of electricity shot through his body, making every hair stand on end.

Her strokes were tentative at first, but became firmer as she washed his shoulders and back.

Uni’s ass, he could stand here forever if she continued. His shoulders dropped from their hunched position as the tension eased out of them and the pounding in his temples dialed down from excruciating to merely mind-numbing.

She moved in ever-widening circles down his back until she reached his waist, where she hesitated for several seconds before finally sweeping the cloth over his ass.

Desire for her bare hands on his body raged through him, but he knew he was reaching the end of his strength when his cock barely gave a twitch.

He had his mouth open to tell her to hurry the fuck up when she bent to take care of his legs.

She moved faster now, as if she wanted to get this over with.

“Can you turn?”

Good question. He was barely holding himself up now. Still, he wasn’t about to fall in front of her.

And he had to admit he wanted her to put her hands on his chest. And lower.

Yeah, he was a son of a bitch. A pathetic son of a bitch.

Praying for strength, he forced himself to turn, ignoring the dizziness in his head and the weakness in his knees.

Now the water fell on his nape and shoulders, making his eyes close for just a second. When he opened them again, he saw an emotion on Tira’s face that caught him off guard.

For a second, he thought he’d seen something hot and dark in her eyes. A yearning. For him.

He must be close to passing out.

He shook his head, spraying water droplets all around them. Tira quickly dropped her gaze and started to wash him again. Her left hand settled on his ribs, as if to brace him. The other swiped the washcloth as quickly as she could across his chest and stomach, then down his legs, carefully avoiding any contact with his balls and half-hard cock.

Vaffanculo
, he hoped she didn’t make some smart-ass or offended comment about his state. Because in the frame of mind he was in right now, he’d want to press her against the wall and kiss her. Show her just exactly how he felt about her.

Gods damn it, he was sick and tired—

He swayed on his feet, his head feeling like he’d just taken a blow.

As if from a distance, he heard her gasp. His arms and legs started to shake and he had three seconds to think,
Holy shit, I’m going down.

Then her arms wrapped around his waist and her body pressed full length against his.

Holy shit
became
Aw, fuck
as every one of his senses lit on fire.

How many times had he dreamed about her like this? Okay, maybe not with the bra and panties but this was closer than he’d ever thought he’d get to those fantasies and his body leapt to attention as if he wasn’t about to fall on his face with exhaustion.

He felt her every breath, felt the lushness of her gorgeous breasts against his upper stomach. She was so much smaller than him, her head fit under his chin easily, which nestled his cock against her soft stomach.

He sucked in a deep breath as his naked cock rubbed against her naked skin. Jesus, he was completely fucked up. He wanted her until he throbbed but he could barely stand.

If he didn’t have his hands planted on the stall walls, he’d be lying on the floor.

He groaned.

“Duke? Are you okay?”

Huffing out a laugh that made her stiffen against him, he knew she thought he was going to say something stupid and offensive. Like he always did.

“No, I’m not. If I don’t get out of here soon, I’m gonna go down hard. I don’t want to hurt you, Tira. I never want to hurt you.”

Shit, his tongue was coming loose and that was dangerous. He had to get out of here and away from her. Now.

But his body had finally decided it’d had enough. The muscles in his legs shook like cooked noodles, his head swam in a fog. But damn if he didn’t have a hard-on.

Tira took a deep breath and he nearly groaned as her tight nipples rubbed against his chest. “Okay, let’s get you on the floor and then I’ll go get Kyle to help you out of here.”

He was too used up to argue with her. Instead, he let her maneuver him until his back was against the wall and he could slide down the slick tile until his ass hit the floor.

His eyes had closed for the trip down but when he reopened them, all he saw were her breasts.

She was bending in front of him, trying to free her arms trapped between his back and the wall. Her pale skin gleamed, the mounds of her breasts nearly falling out of that lace bra, which no longer hid anything at all. The water had turned it translucent.

If he could have, he would have leaned forward and sucked one of those pretty pink nipples into his mouth. Fuck the consequences.

But he couldn’t even lift his head.

Uni’s ass. He needed… He needed…

“Duke! Don’t fall asleep. Not yet. Just let me get Kyle.”

“What if I don’t want you to leave?”

He forced his head back far enough that his eyes could connect with hers and saw her complete shock at his too-truthful statement.

Idiot. I’m such a fucking idiot.

But, oh, sweet Blessed Mother Uni, she was beautiful. He wanted to kiss that rounded mouth, put his hands around her tiny waist and lower her down onto his lap.

Onto his fast-fading erection.

He turned his head to the side, resting his cheek against the cool tile. “Make it fast, babe. I’m gonna be out cold in less than a minute.”

Tira didn’t want to leave Duke on the floor of the shower.

She actually worried that if she left him, he wouldn’t be breathing when she returned. Logically, she knew that wasn’t going to happen but her brain wasn’t exactly up to speed.

And she wanted him to explain what he meant by his question. What if he didn’t want her to leave? What did that mean?

As she stared into his dark eyes, pulled in way too many directions to think straight, she put her hands on his cheeks and bent to kiss him on the forehead.

Except for washing his body just now, she hadn’t touched him like this in eight years. For so long, they’d been at each other’s throats, since she’d forced herself to give them up. To push them away.

Nic had seemed to understand why she’d done it. Why she had to keep her distance from them or lose her mind. Nic never made her feel guilty about her withdrawal.

But Duke… He’d taken her actions as a slap to the face. As if they’d become prize fighters in a ring, he’d backed into the opposite corner, his defenses up at all times.

And his tongue could wound at twenty paces.

Whenever he made a smart-ass comment, she couldn’t help herself. She had to fight back, even though she loved him just as much as she loved Nic. She wouldn’t be able to bear it if anything ever happened to either of them. It might just push her over the edge into the abyss her mom was in.

She didn’t linger, but she didn’t just give him a peck and pull away. She pressed her lips against his skin, tried to let him know how she felt without saying the words he didn’t want to hear. At least, not from her.

Blessed Goddess, she couldn’t lose them.

“Don’t move.” She forced the words out of her mouth as she rose and turned away to leave the stall. Avoiding Duke’s gaze, she wrapped a towel around her wet body and hurried back to the bedroom to get Kyle.

Fear made her freeze with her hand on the doorknob. What if something had happened to Nic? What if he’d died while she was in the shower with Duke?

How would they—

No. She couldn’t do anything about Nic. But Duke still needed help.

After a deep breath, she opened the door and looked for Kyle. He was standing at the foot of the bed, arms crossed over his chest as he watched Dr. Marone and Tam hover over Nic.

Blessed Goddess, he looked…

She swayed on her feet. He looked dead.

Choking in a breath, she wanted to run to the bed but couldn’t move.

“Tira, hey, it’s okay. He’s gonna be okay.”

Kyle stepped into her field of vision and she looked up at him, expecting to see confirmation of her fears on his face. Then his words finally sank in.

She wanted to drop into a puddle on the floor as relief made her woozy but she forced herself to remember why she was here.

“I need you to help Duke out of the shower. I can’t move him on my own.”

Kyle closed his golden eyes for a brief second before he shook his head as he moved past her. He headed to the bathroom, muttering under his breath the entire way. “That stupid, fucking— Why the hell didn’t he just— Shit, Duke. You’re a stubborn ass.”

“Yeah, and fuck you, too,
decurio
. Just help me up. I doubt Tam wants me as a permanent fixture in your bathroom.”

Tira’s heart stuttered. The language and the sentiment were all Duke. He made Kyle’s higher rank as
decurio
sound like a swear word even though his voice had all the strength of a newborn infant.

Kyle’s mouth pulled into a flat line, as if he too recognized how weak Duke sounded. He reached down to pull Duke off the floor, and his expression got grimmer as he practically had to carry Duke back to the living room. Before she left the bathroom, she grabbed several towels from the cabinet then hurried after the men.

Kyle had already gotten Duke onto the couch, where he lay with his head resting against the back cushion. His eyes were closed and he was so beautifully naked that it took her a minute to realize his skin was covered with goose bumps.

As Kyle stepped back, she moved in. The oversized towels still weren’t big enough to cover his entire body. Starting at his shoulders, she pushed him forward just far enough to get one around his back then draped another over his chest. The next she lay across his stomach and lap then she knelt down to wrap another one around his lower legs.

“Can’t stand the sight of me naked, huh?”

She bit back a sharp retort to his taunt and stepped behind the couch to wrap his hair in one of the towels. “You’re cold. I don’t want you to get sick.”

“Not gonna get sick.” Slurring more words now, his eyes closed, he was almost asleep.

Kyle stepped into her line of vision to get her attention, knowing she wouldn’t have heard or comprehended anything he said. All of her attention was focused on Duke. “I’ll go get a blanket for him and a pair of Tam’s sweats for you.”

As Kyle left, she looked down, realizing all she had on was a towel and her undies. She’d completely forgotten but now her own flesh broke out in goose bumps.

She shivered but Duke didn’t notice. She was pretty sure he’d fallen asleep or passed out.

Standing above him, she watched his rugged features soften as she gently squeezed the moisture from his longer-than-normal hair.

Now that the adrenaline rush was wearing off, she’d started to shake. Her hands trembled. She needed to ask Kyle for a comb. Duke’s hair would be a tangled mess if she didn’t get it combed out before it dried completely.