Black Mark Series Book 3: Black Mark's Heart

by Ebony Olson

  "Dare!" I smacked his chest. "Don't you dare."

  Darius frowned. "You're right, I don't want to read it," he muttered.

  "What page did you open at?"

  "He's never going to forgive me for hiding this from him, I'll never forgive myself for being like her," he read. "But, I can't tell him. I've wanted to, every day since I found out. I've wanted to, but can't. I hate him so much, for what he did. I despise the air he breathes for saying those words to me. I loathe the ground he walks upon for walking away from me." Darius took a breath, tears swimming in his eyes. "I love him so much more, still, and I hate him for making me love him that much," Darius breathed the last.

  "Oh," I whispered, swiping the tears from my cheeks. I took the diary back and placed it in my bag. "I never thought you would forgive me, Dare, especially not as easily as you did."

  "I haven't forgiven you, Mora. You hid my son from me, you lied to me, and just when I was getting to know my son, you took him from me."

  I felt my heart seize in my chest, the scars of the pain and distrust between us, tightening and constricting.

  Darius brushed his thumb over my cheek. "I love you, Mora. More importantly, I know you love me. Everything you've done, I know you did out of love, not from your need to be loved. That is why we can move past this, Mora. Forgiveness will come, not just from me, but from you because I know you haven't truly forgiven me, or trust me for abandoning you either." Darius pulled me closer. "So we'll love first, forgive later."

  I looked up into Darius's hazel eyes and knew he was right. I still worried he'd change his mind and leave again - possibly after getting me pregnant a third time. I needed to focus on us being a family and leaving not just our past, but my childhood, and the trust issues I have from that behind. If he could love me after all I'd done, that was enough.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Two Months Later

  "You've got the number of the hotel?" I asked Bill.

  "Mora, I've got this. Jacob, Willow, and I are going to watch some old school wiggles then they will go to bed while I work on my thesis," Bill assured me. "Steffen will be my back-up if they try to cause too much trouble. Won't you, Steffen?"

  "Of course, Mr. Smith," Steffen concurred. "Enjoy your wedding night, Mistress."

  "Seriously dude, you have to stop calling her that. It's creepy," Bill grumbled.

  Steffen looked unfazed. "It is what one calls their employer in this position," Steffen told him for the umpteenth time. I'd given up trying to get him to call me Mora, or even Mrs. Rafal.

  "If I called her mistress, everyone would think she's my bit on the side." Bill winked to me and waved goodbye as he walked into the kitchen to shit-stir Steffen. Those two had bonded immediately. Steffen never had a son, and he really liked having another young man in the house.

  I kissed my babies goodbye and went out to the waiting car. "Clark," I greeted.

  "Mrs. Rafal," Clark smiled, closing the door after I slid in.

  Clark, Warren, Zander, and Wendall all moved to Scotland with Darius. Warren and Sophie took over the lease of the penthouse apartment Darius rented when he first moved here. Zander was living with them and flying home to see his newest girlfriend every weekend. He and Sally split several months ago, and Sophie assured me that the new girl is a lot nicer. Sophie set him up with a harpist from her orchestra. Wendall and Clark were sharing a flat elsewhere.

  A lot of the staff transferred when the new office opened in Edinburgh last month. For those that chose not to transfer, Alex offered for them to interview for positions with Horizon, which had nearly doubled in size since I worked there.

  Darius was still working overtime to interview and replace the staff he lost. He managed to keep the good ones like A.K., and Lynwood kept a local office open in London. It was small, only twenty employees, but it was a place for Darius to still meet clients personally once a week when he flew down on Tuesday mornings. Occasionally, he'd needed to stay overnight, but for the most part, he was home with me every night.

  My phone started ringing. I looked at the screen and smiled. "Cass."

  "Hello, Mora. I have a question."

  "Shoot."

  "If Jeremy and I move closer to you and Dare, would we be able to have a foursome on occasion?" Cassandra asked politely.

  I burst out laughing, "Cass, I haven't even had sex with Dare in like seven or eight months. Can I please at least get back on the horse before you start making those offers?"

  "Horse, nice association," Cassandra giggled.

  "Are you seriously thinking about moving here?" I asked.

  I missed Cassandra and having our kids play together. She was due to have her baby in a matter of weeks now. It was another girl. Cassandra was ecstatic. She was already planning the sleepovers with Willow, and she's still planning Jacob and Ashelynn's wedding.

  "Dead serious," Cassandra squeaked. "Jeremy paid the deposit for the place two houses down from you this morning. We are going to be neighbors."

  They'd come to visit a few weeks ago and had been really impressed with the estate I lived in, right in the middle of a prestigious golf course. I couldn't care less about the golf, but Jeremy was in man heaven.

  "It's the seven-bedroom place with the staff quarters."

  "Oh my God!" I cried out happily. "That will be wonderful. When are you moving up?"

  "Not for two months," Cassandra sounded happy. "Jeremy is going to open another recording studio there. He's going to scout for a location after the baby is born. He's not allowed to leave London until that happens now."

  "I'll let Dare know. He'll be thrilled," I cheered.

  Sophie had already moved up, and we saw each other regularly to plan for her wedding. If Cassandra and Jeremy moved up, I'd be over the moon.

  When I left London five months ago, I felt isolated. All my friends had slowly faded out of my life again. Jeremy and Cassandra had been the main stayers, and the Fehu were going to force them to stop spending time with me too. It was amazing that now, those people were following Darius and I to another country.

  "Good. Now, it's been two months. Why aren't you back on your husband again?" Cassandra asked, all serious.

  "I've been a bit scared about it, but I'm on my way to take care of that now," I laughed.

  "There's my girl," Cassandra praised. "Give him a big sloppy kiss from me."

  I laughed again, hanging up. We arrived at the newly refurbished building that was now the Lynwood main office. It was a three-storey building which Darius remodeled with open staircases and two glass elevators. I still took the stairs to his top floor office.

  "Thank God," Wendall sighed. "Warren was running out of excuses to keep him here." He handed me an envelope. "Your room key. You're all checked in. I've ordered your breakfast for the morning and canceled his appointments so that he doesn't need to be in the office until eleven."

  I smiled and kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Wendall. Is he in his office?"

  "Yes. Go on in. Warren is just talking crap by now," Wendall snickered. "I'm logging off and going home."

  I stepped forward and pushed open the office door. Darius looked up, confused. Warren smiled. "Hello, Mora." Warren looked at his watch. "Shit. I promised Sophie I'd be home on time tonight. I better get going." Warren grabbed up the file he was showing Darius and walked out.

  Darius stood up. "Is everything alright, baby?" He came around and pulled me into his arms.

  "Of course. I just decided that we hadn't been out to dinner since you moved in. I thought it might be nice to do that. Just the two of us," I explained.

  Darius grinned. "You decided to surprise me with dinner out?" Darius lifted a suspicious brow. "Any special occasion?"

  "Does it need to be one?"

  "No." Darius dropped a deep, languid kiss on me. I pressed my body against his and moaned when he held me tight to his solid body. "We could stay here a little longer," Darius whispered in my ear suggestively. He was being patient and waiting for me to be
ready again, but he'd been hinting towards sex more the last few weeks.

  "No. Clark is waiting downstairs for us," I refused, stepping back from the temptation. "Grab your stuff and let’s go."

  Darius smiled and grabbed his bag and laptop. He took my hand and walked with me down to the car. Clark drove us to The Balmoral. Darius quirked a brow at me. "Hadrian's?"

  "Number One," I countered.

  Darius whistled. "Someone's trying to impress."

  I blushed as he slipped out of the car. The valet opened my door and helped me out. Darius took my arm and led me inside. When he turned for the restaurant, I redirected him to the elevators. Darius frowned but followed. I took us to our level and then to our suite.

  Darius was grinning largely at this point. "The Scone and Crombie suite. Nice choice. Are you trying to seduce me, Mora?"

  "Is it working?" I lifted a brow, my smile all cheek.

  Darius took the key and opened the door. "Oh, baby, you had me the moment you walked in the door." He held the door for me and I stepped inside. "What time will Clark be back to get us?"

  "Nine, tomorrow morning," I informed him, walking through to the bedroom.

  Darius hesitated. "What about Willow?"

  "She'll feed on the bottle tonight. She's not doing the two a.m. morning feeds now, so it's only the two bottle feeds," I explained. "I'll express tonight and in the morning, and be home in time for the ten o'clock feed."

  Darius considered me. "I didn't bring any clothes, Mora."

  "Oh, I packed for you. Clark brought our bags to work with him this morning and Wendall dropped them off when he checked us in at lunchtime," I informed him. "Look in the wardrobe. I'm just going to use the bathroom." I smiled and went in, shutting the door.

  "You've planned this in advance, haven't you?" Darius asked through the closed door.

  I smiled, changing out of my simple black dress and into a long silky nightdress. It was meant for our wedding night two years ago. I let my hair down, looked in the mirror, took a deep breath, and walked back out.

  Darius's mouth dropped open. "Jesus, Mora, you look...I thought we were doing dinner?"

  I smiled. That was an even better reaction than I'd hoped for. "Dinner will be delivered in two hours," I told him, walking towards him. "We never got our honeymoon, Dare, so tonight is going to be our wedding night."

  Darius encircled me in his arms. "Once you are ready, I'll take you on a proper honeymoon too," Darius murmured.

  "Oh, I've already booked that. I'll let you know that one in advance. Hint, you're going to need a bathing suit."

  Darius cocked a brow. "I'm not the director anymore, Mora. I need to tell my boss I'm taking time off."

  I lifted a brow at him.

  Darius laughed and picked me up in his arms, walking us towards the king-sized bed. "Let me guess. Already taken care of?"

  "Damn straight, Skippy," I laughed.

  Darius grumbled, rolling his eyes. "If you teach our children to talk, I'll never understand a word they say."

  "Dare, I never understand you, but your accent is too damn sexy for me to care what you are actually saying," I teased.

  "Best I use body language then." Darius lowered me to the bed and I scooted back to the center. He started undressing for me, and I watched, enthralled, as he removed every stitch of clothing before climbing onto the bed with me. "Mora."

  "Dare?"

  "Do you remember our agreement for our wedding night?"

  I swallowed. I hadn't forgotten. "There is lube in your toiletries bag," I blushed.

  Darius brushed my pink cheek with his knuckles. "I got Jasper Jones to teach me how best to bleed someone. He helped me create a kit so I can do that for you, Mora."

  I couldn't stop my heart accelerating in excitement. "It's not your thing."

  "You're my thing, Mora. If it's what you need, I'll give it to you."

  "Dare."

  "Mora?" Darius moved his mouth close to mine.

  "Not tonight. I just want you to make love to me. The kink can wait," I whispered.

  Darius smiled, slipping his hand along my leg, pushing my nightdress up. "I'll make love to my beautiful wife now. Later, I'm going to rip this stunning nightdress to shreds and make you scream for me, because, Mora, you were the last woman I had sex with, and we're going to make up for lost time. I don't care if you can't walk in the morning."

  My eyes went wide, but the curse word on my tongue was stolen by Darius's hot press of his lips to mine. His hand pushed my thighs apart and gently stroked over my heat. He coaxed me gently to orgasm with his hand. He tenderly removed my nightdress, lavished my breasts with kisses, and adored the three stretch marks Willow was nice enough to give me below my still slightly rounded tummy. Then Darius lay between my thighs and delicately eased his tongue inside me, using his mouth to elicit another orgasm from me.

  When Darius laid his body over mine, his eyes were the warmest and happiest I think I'd ever seen.

  "Protection," I panted, my body still quaking beneath him.

  "I love you, Mora Blake-Rafal," Darius whispered to my lips. He pressed into me, slowly, carefully. He watched my face, listened to my gasping breath, and reacted to what he knew I needed. He eased in with all the time in the world, buried himself as deep as he could in this position, and then kissed me passionately. We made love. Slow and gentle. I felt him swell and throb, felt him struggle to control himself.

  When I could feel I was ready to tumble over the brink again, I put my mouth to his ear, sucked his earlobe, and murmured, "Yours."

  Darius let out an amazing roar, pinned my hips, and pounded into me. My back arched and I came silently. Darius damn near let the whole of Edinburgh know he came. He collapsed on top of me, panting. "You are the best fucking wife in the world," he growled. He kissed me heatedly, then rolled to the side.

  I smiled at him and stretched out like a contented cat. My God, I'd really, really missed that. I rolled to face him. "You know if you just got me pregnant again, I'm going to be the best fucking widow in the world, right?"

  Darius grew a grin so big and wicked on his face I damn near came again. "You're on the pill, Mora. I saw it in your drawer when I was looking for something yesterday." Darius rolled to face me, running his hand up the side of my body. "You've been on it two weeks. We should be safe."

  My brows furrowed. "Why were you in my drawer yesterday?"

  "I was looking for your vibrator."

  "Why?" I asked surprised.

  "So I could pack it in my luggage for tonight." His grin grew at the look on my face.

  I sat up, annoyed. "How? I was so sure I'd surprise you. Everyone promised to keep it a surprise."

  Darius rolled out of the bed. I recognized he was getting out of reach. "The hotel called to confirm the reservation while you were in the shower yesterday morning. I answered your phone."

  I glared at him. "Darius Rafal, I'm going to bury you face down so the animals eat your sausage first. What were you doing answering my phone? You set the rule on that."

  Darius shrugged nonchalantly. "I set that rule before we got married, Mora. Now you are my wife, we shouldn't have anything to hide from each other." Darius picked up his discarded clothes and hung them in the closet with what had already been unpacked by the hotel staff. "Oh, the travel agent called to confirm our booking in Bora Bora for November. I've booked the private jet already."

  I looked at him wide-eyed, picked up a pillow, and threw it at him. Darius started laughing when I launched at him. He caught me over his shoulder and carried me into the bathroom, turning on the shower before depositing me under the rain maker showerhead.

  "We should talk finances, Mora," Darius declared, stepping in with me.

  "Excuse me?" I asked unhappily.

  Darius soaped up his hands. "This place isn't cheap, and while I know you aren't struggling financially, you've been footing the bill for everything since you left. I need to be able to provide for my family, Mora. I want us to hav
e a shared bank account that I can deposit a portion of my wage into for household expenses, Bill's wages, and that you can use to pay for these wonderful surprises."

  "Don't be ridiculous, Darius," I rolled my eyes.

  "Hey," Darius took my face in his hands, "Don’t roll your eyes at me or I'll put you over my knee." I bit my lip and squirmed. Darius's mouth lifted at the side, but he resisted the smile. "We are a team. Shared finances for our living expenses. Personal shopping and presents come from our own pockets. Agreed?"

  "Fifty-fifty split?" I asked.

  Darius shrugged. "Sure. I'll make time tomorrow to do the sums."

  "You'll do them with me, after dinner tomorrow night, at home," I declared. I wasn't fooled.

  Darius let the smile happen this time. "Yes, dear."

  ***

  "I've been so jealous of Willow suckling these breasts of yours." Darius's fingers, already drawing circles across the side of my body, brazenly moved to grope my breast.

  I pinched Darius's nipple hard. "We've done it three times already tonight, Dare. I seriously am not going to be able to walk tomorrow. I cannot make love to you again tonight."

  Darius removed my hand from his nipple and dragged it over the defined musculature of his body until he wrapped my fingers around his hard, thick monster. "I love you, Mora, but what I'm feeling for you right now is pure lust."

  I caressed his hard-on gently. I wanted to be touched, kissed, and caressed. I wanted to be taken so hard I screamed for mercy. Darius bit his lip and hung his head back, enjoying the way I touched him beneath the sheets. I flicked my thumb over the tip of his monster and massaged his precum into his taut skin.

  Darius smiled and turned quickly, putting me on my back as he kissed me rough and hard. I moaned under the onslaught of his lust and gripped him hard in my hand. Darius groaned, pulling away, letting me see his eyes fold back in his head. "Jesus, you have an amazing grip, Mora," Darius complimented.

  I smiled, giving him my neck. He caressed up my thighs, over my hips, then dropped his mouth to take one of my nipples in his mouth. My eyes went wide as he started sucking and I felt the let-down sensation. I expected him to pull away, but he moaned and placed my hand back to feel how hard and thick he'd grown. I blinked, surprised that a guy would be into this. I shouldn't have been, everyone had a kink, but I never expected Darius to be into it.