Steam Guardians 01 - A Lady Can Never Be Too Curious (15 page)

“You’re only seeing what you want to see. Looking for justification for your forwardness.”

His lips thinned. “I’m being truthful. You wanted to be an Illuminist. Truthfulness is part of our nature.”

“What you are being is bold, Darius, and it has nothing to do with the Order you serve.”

He combed his fingers through her hair, and the sensation silenced her. It was overwhelming, so many points of awareness being triggered by so gentle a touch. He returned to her nape, cupping it in a solid grip she recalled very well. The memory had appeared often in her dreams.

“Which is your fault for appearing like a siren.”

“I was in bed. Besides, I am not so irresistible.” But she was breathless. Her lungs were working double time to keep pace with her racing heart, and she could smell his skin now with each quick-drawn breath. It was dark and hard, and when combined with the way he held her neck, rational thought threatened to escape her completely. She didn’t want to think; she wanted to fall back into the swirling storm of emotions and experience them fully.

One dark eyebrow rose. “I beg to differ,” he whispered. “Your effect on my defenses is devastating.”

He moved close enough that she could feel his breath against her lips. He pressed closer to her and placed a gentle kiss against the burning warmth of her cheek.

“The light in your bedroom illuminates every curve through the ever-so-delicate fabric of your chemise. Even the hard points of your nipples were illuminated to draw me to you.”

She gasped and tried to push him away, but he had her pinned to the wall.

“Either you are a calculating female or ignorant.” Another kiss landed on her temple before he raised her face to look into her eyes.

“I am not ignorant.” The retort came from her pride before her common sense intruded enough to warn her.

“Then I happily accept your invitation.”

“It wasn’t—”

He silenced her with a kiss. It was harder and more demanding than the ones she recalled, but something inside her approved wholeheartedly, that wild, primitive need that had bothered her every night since the last time he touched her. It consumed her like a fever, rising to engulf every inch of her while he pressed her mouth to open. It wasn’t a request, not a gentle teasing, but raw demand. A hand landed on her hip, smoothing over the curve and up the indentation of her waist until he brushed the side of her breast.

She shivered, but he didn’t stop. He cupped her breast and brushed his thumb across the puckered nipple.

“Exactly as I witnessed.” His fingers teasing the hard nub.

He was nearly growling, but that pleased her; the sure evidence that she had pushed him beyond his polite persona fed the wildness swirling around inside her.

“Exactly what I cannot resist…”

He trailed a line of kisses down her neck, hungry, needy ones that set off a yearning deep inside her belly. She found herself straining toward him, offering herself to him as he moved lower to where he was still cupping the mound of her breast.

“Oh sweet Christ…” She moaned when his mouth closed around her nipple, the thin cotton nothing between them as he sucked the entire tip inside his mouth. He toyed with the sensitive peak, circling it with the tip of his tongue while he cupped the entire mound to hold it in place. His other hand found the curve of her hip and slid around until he was urging her forward and bending her back to allow him better access to her breast.

It was insanity, yet she didn’t fear the surge of emotions boiling over the top of her self-control. It felt natural, as though she’d known exactly what she wanted, despite not really understanding how her desires might be satisfied.

But she did have one fear. It pushed its way past the delight wrapping around her.

“Go away if all you are going to do is tease me, Darius.”

He lifted his head, the light behind him making it impossible to read his expression. He was part of the night and yet solid beneath her fingertips. More than solid, he was hot, and she could feel the beat of his heart.

But she resisted being drawn down into the web of sensations before making her own demand.

“I mean it.” She curled her hands into fists and pushed against him. “I’ve spent enough dark hours longing for what you start but never finish.”

“You don’t understand what you’re asking.”

But he did. She could hear it in his tone—hard and edged with a promise that sent a shaft of need tearing through her belly. She felt empty, the walls of her passage transmitting how much they wanted to be stretched around his male organ. Oh yes, she understood the carnal nature of her yearnings, and with the darkness surrounding them, ignoring her desires didn’t seem so important. Being truthful did.

“I understand that you make me want you in my bed.”

She slid along the wall until she could move away from him. Her chemise billowed as she moved, allowing the crisp night air to tease her overheated skin. “You know what you are doing, which makes it the worst sort of unkindness to tease me with kisses before you rip yourself away, glowering at me as though I’ve tried to sully your virtue. Well, Darius Lawley, you entered my private chambers tonight, so don’t you dare attempt to pin the guilt on me. Take responsibility for your actions. You’re an Illuminist, after all.”

He growled softly and followed her, stalking her slowly. “You’re justified in that accusation, Janette.”

She bumped into the opposite wall, and he braced his arm across the space to keep her pinned in the corner. Raw emotion blazed from his eyes, fascinating her.

“I’m drawn to you, in spite of every logical argument.” He moved closer. “In spite of every suspicion I harbor about you, I still came here tonight, still lost the battle to stay away from you.”

“And you are still angry with me for it,” she said, his words hurting her pride. “A high-society girl isn’t good enough for you? Just wait. I’ll make something of myself. Your world is not too much for me to handle, and neither is anything you can tempt me with.”

She stepped up to him and slid her hands over his jaw. A shiver shot down her spine instantly. She savored the sensation, moving her hands slowly before lifting them away. A tiny sound of regret escaped her lips.

“I can shoulder responsibility for my actions, but I refuse to allow you to accuse me of causing your fall from grace.”

She ducked beneath his arm, full of longing but satisfied with herself. She’d faced him like an equal, like an Illuminist.

But he caught her about the waist, binding her to his length as he placed a kiss against the side of her neck. So quickly she was at his mercy; he controlled her completely while she felt the unmistakable tremor of him fighting to hold on to his control.

“I fell from grace long ago…” He cupped her chin and raised it to expose the full expanse of her throat to his lips. “I’m drawn to you by the promise of regaining what I lost.”

He silenced her reply beneath a kiss that threatened to burn her. She’d never known another human might be so warm or that she could enjoy a kiss so much. He grasped her hair, maintaining control of her head while she turned to face him. His mouth slipped along the delicate surface of her lips before pressing her to open her mouth for something deeper.

When she yielded, his tongue swept across her lower lip before thrusting down to tangle with her own. She jerked, twisting away from him because there were too many points of sensation; it was impossible to understand what she wanted to do. But he kept her steady, stroking his tongue across hers until she mimicked the motion.

She thought they’d kissed before, but she had been naïve. Now she truly understood what passion tasted like. It was consuming and intoxicating, blinding her to everything but the next touch. Darius didn’t make her wait for it. He released her hair and slid his hands down the sides of her body, slowly, too slowly for the need pulsing in time with her racing heart. She reached for him, cupping the sides of his head, but froze when her fingers encountered the cold metal gears of his earpiece.

He was still on duty.

And yet he continued to kiss her, fanning the flames licking at her insides. All of it was threatening to send her emotions boiling over, and she couldn’t bear to have him turn his back on her. She feared she’d abandon every scrap of pride she had just to stand up to him if he left her now.

She pulled on the earpiece, trying to disconnect him from the duty he was so dedicated to.

He lifted his head, interrupting their kiss. The light shone off his eyes as his hand stopped hers from lifting the bit of technology away. She could see the protest flickering in his eyes.

“I have only myself, Darius, so if you want to be my lover, I am only interested in the man beneath the Guardian.”

His lips twitched, but only for a moment. The grin never reached his eyes; instead, she witnessed him battling to understand her. Or maybe just the effect they had on each other. It felt like a living, breathing conflict surrounding both of them.

“It’s been a long time since I have been myself…”

It was an admission, one that caused her breath to catch in her throat. Tenderness filled her for the first time when he lifted his hand off hers and allowed her to remove the emblem of his office. He watched her set it aside before a gleam of wickedness brightened his eyes.

“This clothing is part of the job too…”

He had the vest open in a flash, the sound of several buttons hitting the floor making her smile.

“So you were a boy once.” She marveled at the playfulness appearing in his eyes.

“A very long time ago.” The shirt followed the vest but floated more slowly until it disappeared into a dark shadow.

She hadn’t realized she’d been retreating until her legs hit the bed. She would have tumbled onto it if he hadn’t wrapped an arm around her waist to steady her. She still ended up on it, but he controlled her descent and scooped his opposite hand beneath her knees so her legs joined her. The bed rocked as he sat down beside her.

She only had a moment to realize he was in bed with her, bare-chested, before he extinguished the light. Her belly twisted with something that was a mixture of excitement and trepidation—she refused to acknowledge fear. She was an Illuminist woman, or at least on her way to being one and taking a lover was her choice.

His shoes hit the floor before his hands cupped her hips once more. He eased her up onto her knees while his mouth found hers again. There was something intensely enjoyable about the way his hands gripped her hips. A spike of need tore through her thoughts, rendering her mind useless again. Darius seemed to feel the same way. He kissed her but slid his hands down her thighs before grasping the delicate fabric of her chemise and pulling the garment upward.

She gasped, unable to control the sound. Even firm in her choice, she still felt the bite of vulnerability as the night air became the only thing touching her skin.

“Siren…luring me close with your song…”

His voice was husky and almost unintelligible, but he pressed her back while laying a trail of kisses along her body. It was so much simpler to close her eyes and allow herself to be immersed in sensation.

Delight…really.

And she wanted more than to have it given to her. She reached for him, running her fingers along the ridges of muscle his clothing had hidden. It was suddenly clear why men dressed in so many layers; their bodies were lust-inspiring.

She wanted to touch and kiss every inch of him, but Darius was intent on the same course. They moved around each other, taking the opportunity to touch the skin available. The bed rocked as they rolled, and the bedding ended up on the floor.

He captured a nipple, and she arched up, twisting her hands in the remaining sheet beneath her.

“So…damned sweet…” He moved to its twin, capturing it with a soft growl.

“Flesh is not…sweet…” she panted. Logic had not completely escaped her yet.

He chuckled, the sound full of promise. “Yours is. I could dine for hours upon it.”

One hand had left her hip and smoothed a path onto her belly. Why had she never noticed how soft and sensitive the skin there was? Her passage was aching with need, sending tremors along her limbs.

“I’m ashamed to say I can’t wait that long.”

She sighed with relief and reached for him, craving more contact. His hand traveled lower, until he was teasing the soft curls covering her mons.

“It is a shame truly to not taste all of you…”

His fingers parted the folds of flesh protecting her clitoris. Her breath froze in her throat but went shooting out when he touched the little bud at the top of her sex. Pleasure so acute, it shared commonalities with pain tore through her. There was no time to think, only to respond. Her cry echoed around the room, sending a scarlet blush to her cheeks with just how out of control she was.

“But I’m as needy as you are…” Darius confessed.

He didn’t grant her the opportunity to argue. His mouth claimed hers once more as he freed his length. Curiosity urged her to look at it, but Darius never stopped kissing her long enough for her to see. Instead, he lifted her leg and pushed it up to allow his hips to nestle between her thighs. She felt the hard nudge of his cock burrowing its way between the folds of her sex. She was far wetter than normal, the fluid easing his way. It was hard, harder than she’d ever believed a man’s organ might be, but her passage ached for it. Even as he began pushing into her body and her flesh protested, she was arching to take him deeper out of instinct.

But the pain became white-hot. She gasped and tried to twist away. Darius didn’t allow her even a tiny bit of freedom, his larger body pinning hers to the surface of the bed.

“I can’t—”

“You can,” he whispered against her neck, his tone rich with confidence. Her pride swelled in response, and her body suddenly stopped protesting his entry. With a final moment of resistance, his cock slid completely inside her.

There was nothing but burning pain; it raced up from where his hard flesh pierced her. No sound escaped her throat because her lungs had frozen as the agony held her tight in its grasp.