Page 21

T he following night, Alicia was in her sewing room, laughing at how ludicrous her latest creation was.

She did not want to analyze why she had chosen to alter her nightgown of all things. Nevertheless, it was her latest project.

It was late, and having been unable to sleep, she had come to see if she could tire her mind with some sewing.

The resulting creation was unfit to be seen. The neckline was far too low, and the alterations she had made were not so much unusual as indecent .

Her waist was cinched painfully with the pieces of fabric she had replaced with others, and the neckline plunged halfway down her breasts.

She laughed as she looked at herself in the mirror, glad she was alone and the servants would never see her in this. Even Rose would be scandalized.

Alicia sighed, spinning in place and putting her hands on her hips. She was not tired at all, despite the late hour.

Glancing at the clock, she pulled her robe from the chair where she had left it and decided to go to the library and find the most boring book she could think of.

The house was silent as she tied her robe tightly around her so as not to startle any unsuspecting footmen, and she went down the stairs to the library.

It was her favorite room in the house—tall and wide, with the musty scent of books and leather in the air.

As she closed the door behind her, she was considering which section would make her as tired as possible when she leaped back, slamming against the door in shock when a shape rose from before the fire.

The soft chuckle made her glower at her husband, who bowed, placing a hand over his heart.

“My apologies, Duchess. I thought you would have been fast asleep by now.”

Alicia caught her breath, her heart fluttering. “I could not sleep. I thought I might find a very boring book to read.”

Her eyes moved to the volume in his hands.

“Do you recommend that one?” she asked.

Seth’s smile was sly. “I do not think it will bore you to sleep, Duchess,” he said.

Alicia shivered in the cold room, and he beckoned her toward the fire, indicating that she should sit in the chair beside him.

She did so, feeling awkward in his presence, as if she were intruding.

“And why not?” she demanded.

“Because it is The Monk by Matthew Lewis, and I do not think it would send anyone to sleep.”

Alicia pursed her lips in disapproval. “I have heard of that book.”

“I am sure you have.”

She snorted. “My friends all think it quite marvelous, but it is so scandalous. Is he not a holy man who is led astray?”

“Very much so, yes.”

“You know the story already?”

“This is my third time reading the book.”

Alicia shifted in her seat, frowning as he laughed at her again.

“You are shocked, Duchess?” he asked, the glint in his eyes making her even more uneasy.

“It is most unsuitable, I am sure.”

The Duke watched her for a while, making her fidget in her chair again as he stroked his thumb over the cover, his eyes never leaving hers.

She glanced at him, unsure why his gaze was so direct, when she realized he was not looking at her at all, but at her breasts.

Looking down, she found that her robe had fallen open and her tweaked nightgown was exposed to the room.

Rising to her feet, she turned, clutching the robe tightly around her, embarrassed and determined to leave. Before she could do so, however, a hand grasped her wrist.

He spun her back in his arms, and in the next instant, he pulled the robe off her.

The roughness of the movement startled a shrill cry from her as his eyes turned black with need. The dangerous heat in his eyes thrilled her beyond anything she had ever felt.

This is what I made it for, after all. For his eyes only.

Alicia could not move, paralyzed by desire, but the Duke was utterly still. It was as though he were waiting for her permission to act.

The back of his hand came up to brush against her neck as he let out a long breath.

“Would you like me to read you a passage from the book? I think you will enjoy it almost as much as I am enjoying this view.”

“You are not serious,” Alicia spluttered, scandalized.

The Duke took a step forward, and another, until she felt the solid form of a desk against the back of her thighs.

“I am in earnest, Duchess. Let me read you a line or two.”

Alicia gasped as he pushed her onto the desk, throwing the book down beside her as his hands slid beneath her thighs. Within a moment, he pulled them apart and stepped between them, his eyes flashing.

He used his wide body to pin her to the desk, leaning down until her back was flat against it, her breath uneven and frantic as heat pooled between her legs.

She could feel his length pressing against her and could not help her moan.

The Duke placed the book on her stomach, open to a page, as she trembled beneath him and began to read.

“ Matilda, in all the pomp of beauty, warm, tender and luxurious, clasped him to her bosom, and lavished upon him the most ardent caresses.”

Alicia shuddered.

“He returned them as eagerly, and already was on the point of satisfying his desires, when the faithless form disappeared, and left him.”

Alicia’s hands clutched at her gown as his fingers slid over her breasts, stroking them reverently as he set the book aside, grinding his hips against her in a wicked rhythm.

“Shall I leave you wanting, Duchess? Or will you let me have my fill?” he asked.

Alicia closed her eyes, the need within her rising to a fever pitch, and she could only nod, desperate for him to take her any way he wished.

Seth shuddered, his length so hard it was painful. He had not expected Alicia to find him here, and certainly not dressed as she was.

“I approve of this creation, Duchess,” he said, lowering himself over her and licking the swell of her breasts as she shuddered and moaned beneath him. “I would encourage you to make more. Or you could save yourself some time and simply wear nothing at all.”

With desire raging through his body, he could not hold back any longer, and he ripped at the garment as her sharp moan filled him with more need and desperation.

Her breasts sprang free, and he sucked on her nipples as she writhed beneath him, her back arching off the desk as his desire rose to a fever pitch.

Her fingers tangled in his hair as he worshiped her, his other hand moving lower, clutching the hem of her nightgown and pulling it up.

He stood back, looking down at her. She was the most exquisite thing he had ever seen.

“You are perfection itself,” he said sincerely, before pushing her nightgown upward, baring her to him.

She jolted against the desk, her legs open and needy below him as he met her gaze.

“Will you allow me this, Duchess? I will not take you tonight, but I would have you take your pleasure on me.”

Alicia nodded desperately, her breasts rising and falling in her agitation, and he groaned.

Seth lowered himself to his knees, pulling her toward him and pausing for a moment before he began to lap at her entrance, lavishing attention on the delicate nub as she trembled and thrashed beneath him.

She came apart for him, her thighs quivering violently as he thrust his tongue inside her.

Her fingers found his hair again and pulled him against her as she pulsed with mindless need.

Seth moved back to watch her as he thrust his thumb into that dark, perfect space. Her body surged upward, her mouth open in a silent scream as he pushed further into her, watching her breasts quiver.

Pulling back, he pressed one finger to her entrance, and Alicia looked down, staring as that finger slid inside her.

She closed her eyes, gripping the edge of the desk as her hips thrust upward repeatedly. Seth slid his finger to the knuckle, and her head fell back onto the desk.

“I want you to feel this, Duchess. Imagine it is my cock inside you, pleasuring you, driving you mad.”

Alicia shouted, the echo bouncing off the walls as he pushed a second finger inside her.

His own desire was painful now as he watched her crumble beneath him, her pleasure building, reaching its peak.

“I want to see you in this gown every night, Duchess, and I will take my pleasure with you whenever I wish. I will take you in every room in this house until you have moaned and screamed on every surface I possess.”

He felt the walls around his fingers squeeze painfully tight as she found her release, her hands slapping against the surface of the desk as she panted into the dark room.

Slowly, he rose to his feet as she recovered.

Unable to stand it a moment longer, he undid his breeches and released his length into the cool air. Stroking himself as her eyes followed the movement, he reveled in the expression on her face as she saw the whole of him for the first time.

“Soon, Duchess, I shall have you like this and ruin you forever. You will be addicted to me and me alone, seeking your pleasure, begging for it every hour of the day.”

He stroked himself, reaching for her and clasping her hand as he found his release, and they both panted into the quiet of the room.

Seth sighed as they came down from the heights of their pleasure, Alicia closing her eyes in quiet contentment.

He stared at his Duchess, the most perfect woman he had ever beheld, fear and pain warring inside him.

I cannot get enough of her, but I can never truly have her.