by Anna Edwards
Nicholas looks toward the door that I entered the room through.
“You’re an idiot. Damn it.” Nicholas’ grip on me becomes even tighter and drags me back to the hole in the wall. “Get to bed, William. If our father asks about this, you haven’t left your room all evening. You hear me?”
“Yes.” William holds the book up for me. “I just wanted to give this to her.”
“Not now. I’ll come back and get it later.” Nicholas pushes me back through the door and starts to shove me through the dark corridor. I remember there are stairs somewhere around here, and just as I’m about to tumble down them, Nicholas grabs me. He slams me against the wall. I can’t see him, but I can feel the anger emanating from him.
“If anything happens to William because you were in that room, then I’ll kill you with my bare hands.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
NICHOLAS
The need to protect herself must suddenly occur to Victoria because before I realize what she intends to do, she raises her leg and thrusts it hard into my shin. I step back and grab my aching leg.
“Bitch,” I growl, but she doesn’t hear me because she’s taken off fast down the corridor. She manages the steps down without any trouble, and I listen to her rapid breathing in the darkness. I chase after her with murderous intent. William is my flesh and blood — he’s my closest ally in this house, and I won’t see any harm come to him from anyone. Especially a stuck up girl who thinks that she’s better than her allotted place in life. She thinks I’m a coward. I’ll show her just what I can do. She reaches her room and kicks at a pile of books holding the door open and tries to shut it. She’s too late and too weak against my superior strength. I push the door open and stalk into her room. The lights are already on, and I can see that she’s like a frightened little rabbit, cowering backward into a corner.
“Big mistake,” I sneer.
“He came to me first,” she pleads.
“William doesn’t understand what he’s doing. He thinks he’s nice, but he doesn’t understand the trouble it’ll get him into with my father. You should have sent him away and certainly shouldn’t have followed him.” I prowl closer to her, closing the distance between us like a cheetah ready to pounce.
“You forget something. I’m not the monster in this house. I’m just as much of a victim as it seems your brother is. Both of us not allowed to leave and kept hidden away against our free will. If you want to look at who might hurt your brother, go look in a mirror,” she hisses back at me. “Your brother was just being nice and bringing me a present.”
I groan. Setting William up with an Amazon Prime account was the worst thing I’d ever done. I thought it would help alleviate the boredom he felt, but after he spent five thousand pounds on games consoles, books, and a massive television in the first month alone, I decided to limit his spending. He’s obviously been on it again and buying presents for people that he really shouldn’t.
“You have to promise me you won’t tell anyone you saw him.” She's in the corner, and I place both my hands on the wall either side of her. She’s trapped. The only way out is to kick me again, but I’m anticipating that.
“Why?” she asks with utter contempt for me.
“Please?”
“Let me go, and I won’t say a word. Let me walk out of this house, right now.”
“You know I can’t do that,” I reply, sick of the same argument. Doesn’t she realize that I could squash her like a fly?
“Why not?”
“For god’s sake, Victoria. Just accept that this is happening. You aren’t getting out of here anytime soon,” I snap.
“Tell me something — I know what happens if you choose me. I get to be the Duchess of Oakfield and put my own children through the heartbreak I’m experiencing. What happens if you don’t choose me?”
“I’m not talking about this. Just answer me. Will you keep quiet about William?”
“No, you answer me.” She stamps her foot. I brace myself just in case she’s about to kick out again.
“God, you're the most infuriating woman I’ve ever known. Fine, you want to know what happens. If you survive the task, if being the poignant factor, and you lose, then you’ll be taken by the other men and raped. You’ll then be executed —since you’ll know far too much. Face it. One way or another, your life’s over. Accept it. Save my brother in the process. Don’t drag him down with you.”
She gasps, and her legs give way. She sinks to the floor at my feet.
“How can you do this to me? You don’t even know me. How can you be so cruel?” Tears pool in her eyes, but they don’t fall. Despite her moment of weakness, she won’t allow me the indignity of seeing her cry.
“It’s not personal. If I could change things, then I would. I want this as much as you do.” The anger of moments ago dissipates between us. I crouch down on the balls of my feet in front of her. “I’ve told you I have no choice. It’s the only way to get rid of him.”
“Your father?”
I nod an affirmative.
“I don’t want to die.”
“I don’t want you to die. I don’t want Elizabeth and Amelia to die either, but I have to get rid of him. Once I’m Duke, William can be seen. I’ll be in charge. I’ll make the rules.”
“Will you change the rules of the society so that this doesn’t happen to other people?”
I swallow deeply.
“I’ll do what I can.”
“You mean no.” She pushes to her feet and walks past me to the bed. I follow her and wrap my arms around her. I don’t know why. It just seems the right thing to do. She’s distressed. She’s been told she could die within the year.
“I don’t know if that’s a battle too far for me. I won’t ever stop trying, though.” I lay my head on her shoulder and whisper my words into her ear.
“William’s safe. I won’t mention I’ve seen him. He told me about the cameras you have on us. You might want to get rid of any video that’s been recorded.” She sounds defeated.
“Thank you. I’ll choose you in return if I can. I’ll make you the Duchess.”
She spins in my arms and faces me. The tears she’s been holding in begin to fall. Her stunning emerald eyes meet mine, and there's sadness and defeat in them.
“No, don’t make a promise you can’t keep. I’m not protecting William so I can gain favor with you. I’m doing it because he’s as much a victim of this house as I am.” She looks down at the ground. “I think it would be better if you go.” With a wriggle, she attempts to pull out of my arms. I grip tighter. I don’t want to go. She looks back up at me. “Earl Lullington, please.”
I bow my head and bring my lips down on hers. She’s soft and tastes of strawberries. At first, she doesn’t respond. I pull back and see that tears still fall. She opens and closes her mouth like she wants to tell me off, to shout, scream, and rant at me, but nothing comes out. I let go of her waist with one hand and use my fingers to wipe away her tears. She turns her head and kisses the tears from my digits. My breath hitches, and I lean back in to kiss her again. This time, she responds, and before I know it, we’re bumping into the bed and falling on top of it.
She breaks the kiss and stares at me intently.
“Make me feel. If I’m to die, allow me this one thing.”
I slide down her body. She’s wearing the silk dressing gown and set of pajamas that I bought for all the girls. Tradition dictates that they should wear these horrendous Victorian nightdress things, but I’m afraid they did nothing for me. If I can’t see a woman naked, then I prefer her to look casual in low slung trousers and a tight t-shirt. I pull her pajama bottoms down and throw them on the floor. My face is inches from her pussy, and I can smell her arousal. It leaves a glistening coat on her neatly trimmed cleft. I shove my face in between her legs and start to sample her delights — like a man on death row consuming his last meal. I’ve eaten enough pussy to know a good one when I taste it, and this is the best ever. She’s succule
nt, sweet and wet, just for me.
“That feels amazing.” She squirms with pleasure under my exploration of her folds.
I pull my head up. “Has anyone ever given you oral sex before?”
She lifts her head up and raises an annoyed eyebrow at me.
“Err. You’re the only man I’ve ever been alone with, except my father and brother. I don’t know what other freaky things your family gets up to, but mine doesn’t go for incest.”
I chuckle and let it reverberate around her inner thighs. Even with my head in between her legs, she's still lippy. I like it.
“Believe me, neither my father or brother have attributes akin to yours, which entertain me in the slightest. I like the fact that I’m the first man to go down on you. I know once you’ve had me you won’t want anyone else.”
“Arrogant or what?” she snorts.
“It’s my middle name.”
I flex my index finger and tenderly sink it inside her. She clenches down on the intrusion — fuck, this is only a finger. I imagine sticking my cock inside her. She would grip me like a vice and milk the cum from my body in a violent explosion. But I mustn’t get ahead of myself. First, I’m going to give her, her first orgasm from being licked out.
I push another finger inside her, and she groans even louder.
“So full.”
“Wait until it’s my cock.”
I feel her entire body shiver under me. Dipping my head again, I devour her. It isn’t long before she starts to writhe and jerk on the bed in a climatic orgasm. She moans my name in a raspy breath.
“Nicholas.”
The way she says my name catches my breath and halts me in my exploits to send her high again. Fuck, what am I doing? I can’t do this. I can’t take her in this way. I can’t develop feelings for her. It’ll ruin everything. I jump from the bed. She sits up, her hair crazy with that ‘just come’ look.
“What’s wrong?” she asks with disappointment on her face. “Did I do something wrong?”
“I’m not the man who should make you feel. I’m the devil. You’ve called me that yourself.” I readjust my trousers, my cock is rock hard, and go to the door.
“What?” She slides from the bed on wobbly feet. Thankfully, her dressing gown covers her nakedness from me.
“Thank you for agreeing not to out William for his indiscretion. I’ll see to it that he doesn’t bother you again. You should get some sleep. We have a task tomorrow, and, as you’ve asked me not to, I won’t go easy on you.”
Her lips purse together, and her brow furrows. I know that she’s about to hit me with another outburst, but I don’t wait to hear it. I leave the room and take the steps to mine, two at a time. I can’t get to it fast enough. The house is still dark apart from a small slither of moonlight cascading through the windows not covered by curtains. On entering my room, I slam and lock the door behind me. I need to relieve the ache in my pants. Fuck, I would have taken her there and then if my brain hadn’t kicked in. I’m not here to fall in love with these girls. They’re a means to an end: stick a child in them, raise the next generation, and free William from the confines of his seclusion imposed by my father. I drop my trousers and pump hard at my cock. I fist it so fast that I come in an instant. My essence spills onto the floor, but I don’t care. I needed this release. I need to prove to her that I’m the devil who takes for himself. She’s a lamb to the slaughter — a means to an end. I won’t rest until I’m the next Duke of Oakfield.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
VICTORIA
I’m naked underneath a gown again. I’ve learned enough to know, that doesn’t end well. Elizabeth, Amelia, and I stand in front of the members of the society. The Duke and Nicholas are at the head of the group. They both wear tailored dark suits, white shirts, and matching ties. Nicholas fiddles with his ever-present cufflinks. He hasn’t looked at me once since he entered the room. It’s like he’s brought a shutter down on what happened between us last night. I should step forward and shout at the Duke that William came into my room last night. I’m angry enough to do it because Nicholas is so damn stubborn. If only he would end what’s going on, then we could all leave. He won’t, though. His father controls him like a puppet on a string, and that’s the reason why I won’t tell on William. Feeling an intensity wash over me, I look toward Nicholas, his eyes are everywhere except on me. William, I look up at a balcony toward the top of the high ceiling. I can’t see him although I know that he’s there. He hides in the shadows. I can’t help but envy him. I wish I were up there hiding with him. I look back down and toward Nicholas, and he’s scowling at me. It’s a warning — he must’ve seen me looking up. I shut my eyes and let out a long breath before mouthing,
“I promise.”
I don't look at him again, for the Duke starts his speech that will lead to today’s torture.
“Welcome again, gentlemen. I trust you all slept well. It’s been a few days since we conducted the last trial, and I’m sure you’re all as excited as I am to continue with choosing a wife for my son.” A few of the men murmur their eagerness to continue. I want to scream that they’re all freaks, but I know it’s better to hold my tongue. I shuffle my bare feet against the cold of the stone floor and wait to hear my fate.
“As the wife of a Duke, the chosen woman will need to take discipline and thank her husband for it. She’ll be expected to be impeccably behaved and subservient to his needs at all times, but by nature, they’re women and thus prone to faults. This task looks at how well the women before us will take the discipline that Nicholas will give to them, and it will probably set a precedent for the future of their marriage.” The Duke laughs. I find myself beyond caring at this point. I thought I was getting somewhere with Nicholas, last night, but when he pulled away, it all crumbled, and I was the one who realized that my fate and his are intertwined forever. Until he understands the hold that his father has over him and stops lying to himself, there’s nothing I can do to save either of us.
“Ladies. Would you remove your cloaks and form a line in front of Nicholas? He’ll ask you a question, and you should answer it as you feel he would want you to.”
I can’t help but think that sounds a little too simple for a task. Where’s the humiliation? I suddenly fear the question he’ll ask. I remove my gown, as do Elizabeth and Amelia, and we stand as ordered. Nicholas walks the line. He stops in front of each of us and looks us up and down. I notice no interest on his face with Elizabeth and Amelia, but when it comes to me, the way he looks between my legs has me rub them together at the memory of his head in between my thighs. His nostrils flare as though he’s aware of the arousal pooling between my legs. Fuck. I can’t get horny for this monster. I’ll become the freak then. I look down at the floor, and he walks back to Elizabeth.
“Miss Sandford, if we’re out at a social function, and I ask you to get on your hands and knees, bark like a dog, and crawl around the room, would you?” Some of the assembled crowd laugh at his question, but it just confirms to me how insane this is.
Elizabeth pulls on a strand of her jet black hair and pouts at the question. She’s pretending to mull it over? I can see the look on her face. I really haven’t warmed to this girl. She seems to actually be enjoying what’s going on. I, on the other hand, want to just gag. When she gets to her knees and barks like a dog, I’m pretty confident that I’m going to be sick.
“I’ll do whatever you ask of me. As my husband, you’ll be my master, and I’ll obey your every command because you need to be satisfied in all things.”
Yep, definitely feeling queasy.
“Thank you, Elizabeth.” Nicholas smiles at her and offers his hand to allow her to get back on her feet. He kisses it and moves onto Amelia. The blonde haired girl seems to be stronger today. She’s been dealing with the situation the worst of all of us. I’ve been desperate to get to know her better — I might be able to help support her, but we haven’t had the opportunity to talk amongst ourselves. She turns her head to look at me
and smiles with reassurance.
“Keep your eyes on me, Miss Rushbrooke, not Miss Hamilton.”
“Apologies, Lord Lullington,” she whispers, and I see her hands start to shake. Even though he isn’t looking at me, I frown at Nicholas with utter scorn. He doesn’t need to be such an obnoxious bully.
“The same question. What’s your answer?”
“Yes, I would, My Lord.” She doesn’t hesitate in her answer, but there’s no feeling in the words. They’re said only because she needs to give an answer, and that’s the one she thinks Nicholas wants to hear.
“Thank you, Amelia,” Nicholas replies and comes to stand in front of me. He keeps his stare focused on my face, and I’m glad for that. The last thing I need is to have my thoughts muddled by lust.
“Miss Hamilton, what’s your answer to the same question?” My survival instincts tell me to say yes and be done with it. Move on to the next task without torture, but the passion that burns inside me screams for me to tell him to go to hell. I find my own hands shaking. My legs feel like jelly. I just want to run and hide from the question. Why is it so difficult to answer? I swallow deeply and press my hands to my side to calm the tremor in them.
“Yes…” ‒ I pause. Nicholas smiles‒ “should be my answer, but my father raised me not to tell lies. If I said yes and forego any punishment you are about to give me, then it would be deceitful to the truth of this situation.” My last point’s a sarcastic dig at what happened between Nicholas and me last night. He knows this is wrong but won’t do anything about it. “My answer is, no, Earl Lullington. I wouldn’t get to my knees and be a dog if you asked me to. Because you keep me here against my free will, you don’t deserve my respect enough to do what you ask of me.”
Nicholas’ face reddens, and a vein in the side of his neck pulses furiously. Its beat matches that of the thundering tempo of my heart. He doesn’t speak, though. He turns away from me and faces his father.