by J. K Harper
To be honest, although Sebastian's treasure room had been a pinnacle experience of not only her career but her entire life so far—well, with the exception of the previous night with the man himself—and she had approached it with professional hat placed firmly on head, part of her was still squeaking and gibbering and jumping up and down in wild excitement. She felt somewhat like a little girl who was just told that unicorns and flying ponies were not only real, but she was getting some of her very own.
Of course she'd known Sebastian was insanely wealthy. Yet to actually see that wealth, in person, to see how easily and casually he lived that life, was another thing entirely.
There was no question he was thrilled she was here. There was no question that he was excited to show it off, and he was definitely into her. She couldn't deny that. It was all just overwhelming. And it kept messing with her firm instructions to herself to not get her hopes up.
Biting her lip, she finished getting ready for dinner. Mid springtime in Southern California meant the temperatures this night promised to not dip below 65 degrees. It was still about 80 right now, making her very glad she'd brought along the simple yet pretty, short evening dress in her overnight bag. Realizing how much Sebastian enjoyed her body, enjoyed looking at her, and appreciated her as a woman had bolstered her own confidence in how she decided to dress around him.
She felt pretty damned sexy, to be honest.
As she somewhat nervously primped in the bathroom's elegant mirror, she remembered how he'd bent her over his desk and had his deliciously decadent way with her last night. The mirror reflected the slight pink staining her cheeks as she fussed with her hair. Holding up her hair with one hand, she reached her other into the small toiletries bag she'd brought with her, rifling through it.
Aha. Her hand closed around the beautiful little hairpin the dealer, Mark Edwards, had brought her from his client. She thought Sebastian might enjoy the extra effort she'd taken in wearing something from their mutually beloved Californio era to dinner at his historic Californio hacienda that evening. After she clipped up her hair, topping it off with the hairpin nestled deep inside the mass of it, she took a step back from the mirror to scrutinize herself from every angle.
Wow. She had to admit it. She looked kind of—hot.
"You're a total babe, girl," Gabi's laughing voice teased in her head.
Thinking of her friend, Lacey picked up her cell and shot off a quick text to her. She hadn't heard from Gabi since her friend had gone back out to the island, but that wasn't uncommon. Gabi worked hard, not to mention she generally took time for some crazy, adventurous personal fun out there as well. Lacey didn't really expect to hear from her again until she got home, whenever that might be.
Even so, she couldn't help but snap a quick picture of her full body in the mirror, vamping for the camera. She sent it to Gabi with the words, OK! You win! Yes, I'm a hot babe. Ha. You'll never guess where I am. Lots to tell you later XOXO Lacey
After another fortifying breath, Lacey left the room. She managed to navigate her way downstairs to the gorgeous inner placita of the hacienda. Stepping outside, she gasped for the bazillionth time that day, now at the magical scene set before her. Luminarias, beautiful lights that traditionally were candles situated in pretty little brown paper bags weighed down with sand, decorated the courtyard in beautiful patterns, including stars, crosses, and something that took a long moment of puzzling as she tried to decipher what it was.
She stood there staring at it when her neck subtly prickled with a delighted realization. Sebastian was behind her.
“Step back a little bit more, and up." His deep voice murmured close to her ear as he leaned forward and dropped a kiss on her bare neck, sending a shiver down her body. "Here, up these little steps."
She stepped back with him, up onto the low, unrailed balcony that extended down the courtyard, then turned around and looked again. "Oh, wow. It's amazing. Did Maria set that up?"
Sebastian shook his head, admiring the sight with just as much appreciation. "No, Ricardo. I asked him to make that special pattern."
The largest cluster of luminarias made the outline of a dragon in flight, stretching across the width of the courtyard. Right at the center of it was a small table for two, romantically set up, just waiting for them to be seated. "After you, my lady," Sebastian said, he sketched her a half bow. The luminarias cast enough light for her to see the smile on his face, the seriousness of his dark eyes as he took her hand to lead her to the table.
It was a feast indeed. Exquisitely delicious food, opulent wine, and Lacey's increasing awareness of Sebastian's very male presence across the little table from her made it the most magical meal she'd ever had. By the time dessert was presented, she felt so giddy from the glasses of ruby red wine and the intensity in Sebastian's eyes that she thought she could possibly levitate out of her chair.
As Maria was leaving the table after serving their dessert, Sebastian called to her in a low voice, "Give us our privacy, please, Maria."
Lacey barely heard Maria's affirmative reply, so lost was she in Sebastian's eyes.
"Have a bite of your dessert with a sip of your wine." His voice sent another quiver through her legs. The heat was rising, coiling deep in her belly and spreading throughout her.
"It's a very special, slightly spicy chocolate dessert. It pairs perfectly with the wine. Particularly,” he added in a low, seductive tone, “when you have the flavor of both on your tongue at the same time."
Lacey almost swallowed her own tongue at the innuendo behind his words.
Sebastian Bernal was definitely, positively, absolutely the most erotic man she'd ever met in her life. She was flooded with another beautifully wet warmth between her legs just from his voice. Keeping her gaze locked on his, which reminded her of the wild intensity of their union the night before, she dipped her fork into the dessert, lifted a small bite to her mouth, took a taste. Almost moaning as the hot sweetness blossomed across her tongue, she then raised the wine glass and took a sip.
Just as he'd said, the mingled tastes in her mouth were pretty much—okay, she was going to think it. They created an orgasm in her mouth. What did some people call it—a foodgasm. Yes. The way he was looking at her, she was about to have a real orgasm on top of it as well.
"Lacey," Sebastian growled, pushing his chair back from the table. "I can't let you finish that dessert on your own."
Lacey swallowed the bite of chocolate and the splash of wine. Heart banging inside her, she watched as he stood up to slowly, deliberately stalk around the table to her side.
"I want to taste everything at once.” His voice had a deep, almost feral note to it. “May I?"
Mouth opening as she began to breathe faster, completely uncertain of what he was asking but definitely more than eager to allow it, Lacey nodded her head. She was well past the point of trusting her usually controlled voice. She knew it would come out a strangled gasp if she even tried to speak.
Gently, although with a restrained urgency that told her he was holding himself back by sheer force of will alone, Sebastian reached for Lacey's dessert plate. "Come," he said, turning and walking to one of the comfortably padded cedar wood lounge chairs set at the far, shadowy edges of the placita. "Bring your wineglass with you."
Legs trembling so much she wasn't certain she wouldn't fall on her face as she followed him, Lacey obeyed. The sheer thrill of simply doing what he asked her to, trusting him without question, made her moan out loud.
At the chair, Sebastian turned to her and said in a low voice, "Lie down on it. I want full access to your own delicious treats."
Lacey was pretty sure she was about to hyperventilate. Not taking her eyes off his, she somehow backed herself to the chair, reaching behind to feel for it so she wouldn't land on her ass on the burgundy red paving stones of the placita, and sank into it.
Sebastian stood there, controlled power screaming from every inch of his muscled body, just watching her. She scooted herself
back until she was nestled into the chair, legs stretched out in front of her. Sebastian smiled, something so marveling, so appreciative, breaking across his face that Lacey felt lightheaded along with the potential hyperventilation.
Was he going to…? Did he want her to...?
"Are you wearing anything under that dress of yours?" His voice was a dark, sinuous glide of desire that stroked up against Lacey's senses.
Mute, she nodded. Damn. Apparently she hadn't got the memo that she wasn't supposed to wear underpants to dinner.
"Open those beautiful legs of yours. I need to see you." Sebastian never took his eyes off her as he spoke, though she caught a glimpse of his pulse pounding hard in his throat where the luminarias cast it into light.
Shaking with the wild anticipation of what was about to come, Lacey did exactly as he asked. She felt absolutely no trepidation about baring herself in front of him. She felt utterly safe. Right now, she would do anything in the world he asked and not even bat an eyelash.
So suddenly she hardly saw him move, Sebastian leaped down, reached out his hand, and easily ripped away the flimsy, pretty little underpants that were all that kept her freshly shaved pussy from his view. Before she could even gasp, he rested the upper half of his body on the chair, nestled his head between her legs, and took a long, luxurious lick.
At that, Lacey couldn't stop the small, whimpering scream that burst out of her throat. Flinging her head back against the softness of the chair, her fingers clenched so hard around the wine stem she still held she wondered if she was about to break it. Yet she was past caring, because his tongue was licking, flicking, tasting, swirling, dipping into her to drink deeply of her juices.
Then he pulled back, murmuring a highly appreciative “Mmm” as he did so. Reaching down to her dessert plate that he'd set beside the chair, he scooped up a bit of the chocolate into his mouth. “Your wine,” he said, gesturing at the glass she still held in her hand.
Trembling a little, Lacey handed the glass to him. He didn't try to take it, though, but simply inclined his head toward it to sip. She tipped it a bit at the edges of his lips, watching with tense anticipation as his took a sip into his mouth. He swirled the flavors together before swallowing, holding Lacey's eyes with his own the entire time.
“Oh,” she whispered, enthralled. She felt so heavy between her legs, so plump and filled with need, she knew she would burst almost the second he touched her there again.
Giving her a smoldering glance, Sebastian lowered his head back between her legs, licking and sucking and swirling his tongue into her.
Without any more stimulation than that, Lacey tumbled straight off the edge into a burbling little orgasm that caught her by surprise, leaving her mouth half open in another, this time silent, cry, her head still flung back against the chair, her free hand gripping its wooden armrest.
Sebastian didn't stop his ministrations until the final quiver left Lacey's body, allowing her finally to flop down on the chair, her ragged gasps filling the soft night air. When one last, soft touch of his tongue caused her to jump, now so super sensitized down there that the feeling was too much, he sensed it and pulled back. Moving his way up the chair, his face hovered near hers as he whispered, "Open your eyes and look at me."
She did, feeling so gorgeously spent that it was an effort. Keeping his eyes open and locked on hers, Sebastian gently kissed her. His mouth tasted like her, the chocolate, the wine, his own dark, edgy self. It all threatened to tumble her over the glorious edge again, eager and willing for the beautiful, soaring fall.
They kissed for long, lazy moments, during which Lacey absently thought she was incredibly glad he'd asked Maria to give them privacy. His hands came up and worked their way into her hair, his eyes still holding hers, letting her sink into the beautiful, welcoming depths that made her feel so safe.
Finding the pins that held up her hair, Sebastian carefully, so as not to pull any strands, worked them out one by one, setting them onto the flat wooden armrest of the chair. Lacey helped by lifting her head to give him slightly better access. When his hands found the large, gold hairpin, he smiled. "One last barrier to seeing your gorgeous hair spread around your face and shoulders. I want to see your face again when you come, Lacey.” His tone was so serious, she caught her breath. “It's incredibly beautiful. It turns me on so much I almost feel as if I'll pass out."
A little too eagerly, she said, "Oh, I like the sound of that."
As laughter slightly crinkled the corners of his eyes, Sebastian finally pulled out the hairpin, casually glancing at it as he set it down on the armrest of the chair. Just as suddenly, all expression wiped clean from his face.
Lacey abruptly felt the air freeze between them.
Sebastian stared at the hairpin, his face paling in the flickering lights of the luminarias and the moon dancing far above. Slowly, he pushed himself back, away from Lacey, until he was standing again, the hairpin still in one hand.
"What?" she asked, dread tickling at her with cold fingers. "What's wrong?"
She sat up, nervously smoothing her dress back over herself. She suddenly felt completely exposed. Vulnerable. And somehow, for some reason, in the wrong. "Sebastian, what's going on? You look—"
He sliced the air with a sharp whip of his hand, instantly silencing her. When he finally dragged his gaze back up from small, golden hairpiece, Lacey felt like she'd been punched in the stomach. The look on his face as he stared at her was filled with rage, disgust.
Pure loathing.
He suddenly seemed twice as big, as if he was expanding. As if he was taking up more space than any man should. She almost could feel the fury pouring off of him, stabbing her like angry little knives. Unable to move beneath his vicious glare, Lacey stayed where she was, hardly breathing.
"You traitorous bitch," he said, his voice filled with an awful, aching rancor.
The venom of his tone, let alone the ugly word he flung at her, made Lacey recoil in sharp, sudden terror and renewed shock. He looked like he wanted to rip her apart with his bare hands.
Shaking the hairpin at her as well as his head in disbelief, he snapped, "So this is why I thought you were my mate. This is why I felt close to you. You had the last piece of my family's gold hoard with you. It wasn't you. You're just like her.” The expression on his face was an awful mix of bewilderment and fury. “You care nothing about me, and only about my wealth. My power.”
His rage, mingled with a horrendous, savage pain, cut right through her. She could almost feel the hurt. She opened her mouth to answer with something, anything, but he kept talking.
“Malcolm sent you here, didn't he?” Sebastian barked out a bitter laugh. “He is so determined to bring me down, he must have offered you a lot of money.”
Lacey still couldn't move.
“Tell me, Ms. Whitman"—the way he sneered her formal name made tears spring to Lacey's eyes as she stared at the man who not moments before had stroked her to ecstasy in such a way that she had seriously begun to realize she was actually falling for him—"how much did he offer you to do this? I'm sure you're set up for life now. Tell me the truth, Ms. Whitman. How much did that filthy bastard pay you off to destroy me completely?"
Chapter Fifteen
Sebastian thought his head might explode from the cacophony of thoughts and rage pounding through it. He felt his dragon side wanting to take over, wanting to lash out, leap into the air in wild flight, beat his wings against the sky. bugle out utter rage at being betrayed yet again.
He knew he was terrifying Lacey, but he couldn't care. She had the last piece missing from his hoard in her possession. The last piece he'd needed to bring back his powers in full, nestled into her golden hair just as she had wormed her way into his heart.
Like a duplicitous viper. The knowledge of how she, along with Malcolm, must've laughed at him as they plotted out this new way to bring him down made what had been the tentative unfurling of his withered heart snap shut again with such fury that it
hurt.
Horrible pain stabbed through his chest, making it almost hard to breathe. The only way to deal with it was rage.
"Answer me," his voice growled. His voice came dark and low with the strength of his despairing dragon behind it.
Still cowering in the chair, eyes enormous and filled with tears, Lacey—no, Ms. Whitman, he snapped to himself, that lash of pain striking him again—shook her head. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she said, her voice wavering along with the tears that dropped from her eyes. "I don't understand a single word you just said." Her voice whispered as she stared at him.
Sebastian roared, "Yes, you do! You joined forces with Malcolm Kerberos to help him finally destroy the last living member of the Bernal family, making him the most powerful dragon shifter!” Rage made his voice lash through the air. “It's what he's always wanted.”
Bitter laughter ringed his words again despite Lacey's continued shaking of her head. “Tell me, did you enjoy planning this little trick? Did you laugh every time we talked at the museum, every time you strung me along into believing that you actually cared about my family's heritage? That you might actually have cared about me?" He let the last word hiss out of him, less by deliberation and more because he could barely control his own voice.
His dragon ricocheted around his head, demanding to be set free. Pain blossomed in his hand where he squeezed the hairpin so tightly the little golden wings of the metal dragon dug into his palm.
Sebastian felt like nothing more than a walking, talking, living being made up of sheer pain.
Running footsteps interrupted him. The door to the courtyard was flung open, Ricardo and then Maria racing out. Maria, ever the mother willing to scold him, began to open her mouth, a look of shock on her face, but Ricardo gently shushed her. Quietly he said, "Señor Sebastian, is everything okay?"