Page 6
Madison
“You...”
The word hung heavy in the air between us.
I stepped back, unsure how to respond, but acutely aware of the fear that also built inside me.
Fear of him, fear of myself, fear of the strange energy that crackled whenever we touched.
Everything was both terrifying and overwhelming. But beneath it all, I found a hunger… a need that matched the darkening I saw in his eyes.
“Why me?”
I asked.
“Why fear me? You have all the power here.”
Hugh lifted his chin and tightened his jaw.
“Not from where I stand.”
The temperature in the conservatory climbed.
Sweat trickled down my neck while the sun beat through the glass walls that pressed closer with each passing moment.
The yellow silk of my morning dress clung to dampened skin. Hugh's intense eyes travelled down my body, lingering on places that made my skin burn under his scrutiny.
“I should go.”
Despite my words, my feet remained rooted to the spot.
Hugh's emotions crashed over me in waves I couldn't block.
Before I could process what was happening, his hands found my waist while mine clutched at the fine linen of his shirt.
His lips pressed against mine, hot and demanding as he deepened the kiss, mirroring my need and desperation.
I parted my lips, inviting him to explore.
His tongue swept against mine, making me groan.
He tasted like sweet tea and brandy. Everything about him flooded my senses, making my head swim and my body ache with need.
A flash of memory from the night before struck.
He’d rejected me, pushed me away.
I’d wanted to scream and lash out in frustration. His every act was maddening. He’d pushed me away, left me cold and wanting while shadows danced at his command, as his eyes and every sense I had told me that he wanted me. If he did the same again…
Hugh's hands roamed from my waist to my back, pulling me tight against him until I could feel every hard line of his body through our clothes.
The solid heat of him banished my doubts.
“Madison.”
My name on his lips was a dark caress that sent need pulsing straight to my core.
He spun me around and backed me against one of the stone planters.
The rough edge bit into my bottom as he lifted me to sit on its rim.
His lips never left mine. He pushed between my thighs and unbuttoned my dress, pushing the fabric from my shoulders. Cool air kissed newly exposed skin before his mouth followed the same path, trailing kisses down my throat to the curve of my breasts.
I arched into him, threading my fingers through his dark hair, and whimpering when his lips closed around one nipple.
He stepped back, making me afraid he would leave me like this, but heat shone in his eyes, and his emotions poured out of him.
Fierce desire mingled with awe and possessiveness, yet beneath his primal need, I felt… tenderness.
“You're perfect,”
he breathed against my nipple as he returned to nip and tease, drawing sounds from me that I never knew I could make.
“I've wanted this since the moment I set eyes upon you.”
He slipped his hand beneath my skirts, fingertips tracing a burning line up my inner thigh.
When he found the wet heat between my legs, I gasped and clutched his shoulders, my head falling back as pleasure coursed through me.
“I need to see all of you,”
Hugh said before pulling the remains of my dress away, leaving me completely exposed in the golden sunlight.
His gaze devoured me, his eyes darkened to near black, and shadows gathered at his feet.
“I want to watch your face while I make you mine.”
His need poured into me, and his eyes never left my face as his fingers plunged between my legs again, and circled my tender bud.
My head fell back as pleasure built within me.
His fingers slipped inside before pulling out and circling that bundle of nerves that made me cry out and arch my hips into his hand. Each touch sent shockwaves of pleasure rippling through my body.
“You’re so wet for me,”
he said, his voice rough.
“So perfect.”
I felt a blush rise on my cheeks at his words, but couldn't deny their truth.
From our first meeting, my body had responded to him in ways I had never imagined possible.
Another wave of his emotions crashed over me. His urgency at needing release and the satisfaction of knowing the pleasure he gave me. The sensation of his emotions, layered with mine, pushed me towards…
“Hugh,”
I said.
“Please.
I need you. Now.”
Understanding flashed in his eyes.
He freed himself from his trousers, and when I reached out to touch him, to explore the impressive length that made my core clench with anticipation, he caught my hands and pinned them above my head against the stone wall behind me.
The rough texture scraped against my knuckles, but I barely noticed as Hugh claimed my mouth in a bruising kiss while positioning himself at my entrance, teasing it with a gentle pressure that had me gasping against his lips.
My breath hitched when he finally pushed inside.
The slight pain gave way to indescribable fullness.
He pressed his forehead against mine and began to move, slow and deliberate at first, letting me adjust to his size.
“Look at me,”
he demanded as his thrusts deepened.
His hands gripped my hips as he thrust inside, over and over, claiming me as his, while I wrapped my legs around him, drawing him deeper still.
“You’re mine,”
he said before capturing my mouth in a kiss that was almost brutal in its intensity. “Say it.”
“I-I'm yours.”
I gasped as he growled in satisfaction and drove into me harder and faster, hitting a spot deep inside that made stars explode behind my eyelids.
With each thrust, more of Hugh's emotions bled into me.
His pleasure, his wonder… loneliness and fragile hope...
His vulnerability. I felt the real Hugh beneath the mask and realised why he might be afraid of someone with my gifts. He was a man capable of feeling deeply, despite his efforts to appear otherwise.
Hugh slipped a hand between our joined bodies, finding my most sensitive bud.
The dual sensation of him filling me deep inside while he worked magic with his fingers built a tension inside me that climbed higher and higher until it shattered in waves of pleasure that rippled through my entire being.
My eyes rolled back, and I cried out his name as my core clenched and pulsed around him.
The waves of release felt endless, and just when I thought I couldn't take any more, Hugh shifted the angle of his thrusts and hit another spot inside that triggered another, even more intense climax.
I clawed at his shoulders, my nails digging into the fine linen of his shirt.
Moments later, Hugh buried his face against my neck.
“Madison,”
he said, his voice guttural as his body shuddered and he spilled himself inside me.
The shadows in the conservatory pulsed and swirled with his release, responding to his intensity.
But instead of feeling frightened, I found myself breathless with awe at the power he commanded.
We remained locked together for several heartbeats, both of us struggling to catch our breath.
Hugh lifted his head and looked at me with wonder and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear with a touch so tender that made my heart race anew.
He's using you.
Using his magic to seduce you.
The words cut through my haze of contentment like a knife.
I stiffened and glanced around every corner of the conservatory searching for the source of the voice, even though I knew I wouldn’t find it.
“What is it? What's wrong?”
Hugh asked, his brow furrowing with concern.
He'll take what he wants and discard you.
Just as he did before.
“A-a voice,”
I whispered, but instantly regretted the admission.
Was this how it had started for Eleanora? Is this what he did to her?
Hugh's expression darkened.
He stepped back and adjusted his clothing with sharp, efficient movements.
“What are you hearing?” he asked.
I slipped from the planter and gathered my dress, pulling it on to cover my exposed skin.
My hands shook as I fumbled with the buttons.
“Whispers,”
I said while watching his face carefully.
“They say terrible things… about you.”
Hugh's eyes widened, and his gaze darted around the room.
The reaction told me everything I needed to know.
“You hear them too,” I said.
“No.”
The lie came too quickly, too forcefully.
My anger flared, hot and bright.
The intimacy we had shared moments ago felt like a distant memory, tainted by his refusal to trust me with the truth.
“I should go,”
I said again, and this time I meant it.
He never wanted you.
You're nothing to him but a vessel.
I gathered what remained of my dignity and walked toward the door, forcing myself not to look back despite the pull I felt toward Hugh.
It took far too many steps to reach the doorway, and with each one, the whispers grew louder.
“The fern,”
I paused without turning.
“It needs less water, not more.
Olivia has been drowning it.”
I wasn't sure what made me offer the advice, but perhaps one small part of me needed him to know that at least one thing I’d perceived was real.
As soon as I was out of sight, I leaned against the corridor wall and pressed my hand to my mouth to stifle a sob.
My body still hummed with the memory of pleasure, but my mind reeled with confusion and fear.
The ring on my finger pulsed cold and heavy, a reminder of the shackles that bound me to a man I might never understand.
Control your...
The familiar mantra stalled in my thoughts.
There had been nothing proper about what had just happened, and my emotions refused to be contained.
And as I made my way back to my chambers, I wondered if this was how Eleanora's madness had begun.