“The rumors are still spreading. They’re saying Jacqui’s just your cover-up. I think the rumors are being spread by the Mungons. I don’t think our people are doing anything more than repeating it.” Kane looked angry for a moment but squashed it. Cade knew the anger was for him but anger wouldn’t help anything, it would only make them sloppy.
“Some of our people are very close-minded people. I thought we’d come to a new age. I’ll have to dispel them somehow.”
“Getting her pregnant would work. It would shut them up for a little while anyway. And with an heir, well, you could do whatever you wanted to anyway.” Cade knew Kane brought up a good point. As long as the child had his DNA, the gender didn’t matter and neither did his sexual affairs after. Once a child was produced the rest didn’t matter.
“You’re right. I hadn’t planned on a child so soon but... I guess plans are made to be changed.” Cade smiled ruefully at his younger brother and watched him stand.
“I’ll let you get to working on that and go see about producing another one myself. Damesha is insisting we wait but Elspeth needs siblings. And I sure do love that baby. I need more.” Kane smiled happily and Cade watched his brother leaving, wondering at the change in his brother.
Damesha hadn’t been the only thing that changed Kane, Elspeth had as well. Kane loved his daughter and doted on her already. Cade knew that could be a threat to him later in life, his love for his children, especially with the Mungons out to topple him and his family, but his clan was demanding a child. He’d give them one if Jacqui agreed. For the good of the clan and maybe to save his own soul.
Cade went up to Jacqui’s room an hour later but she was asleep. Her right hand was tucked under her cheek and her lips were slightly parted. He had ideas about how to occupy her lips but the skin beneath her eyes looked bruised, her nose red, and her cheeks mottled. Had she been crying, was that why she looked like that?
Cade stepped back, his hand out to stroke down her hair but he stopped himself. Why had she been crying? Was it something Evelyn said or was it their night last night? Did she regret the night she’d spent in his arms?
He suspected she’d been a virgin but she hadn’t said anything. That moment of resistance when he’d first entered her was something he’d never encountered before. Had she been a virgin and now regretted what they’d done?
She’d burned in his arms, burned with heat, not the burning sting of extreme cold. He’d never seen a woman respond so openly, so hungrily, surely that hadn’t all been an act? If it was she was a damned good actress. Cade didn’t believe that though, her body had responded to even his breath, whispered across her skin. Such a response couldn’t be faked. He’d felt her tight heat as she’d exploded and that couldn’t have been faked either.
It must be something Evelyn said. What had the woman said to her? Cade settled on the sofa in her room to watch her sleep. He didn’t want to leave her alone but it was obvious she needed to rest. He needed to think, to see if he could find a solution to what had made her cry. She was a part of the clan now, though she didn’t know all of their secrets. That made her problems his and, in turn, his responsibility to resolve. He’d wait for her to wake, he’d just rest on the sofa for a little while until she stirred.
Leaning his head back against the soft pillows he was soon asleep, snoring slightly as the night passed on and his dreams took over his internal debate about whether he could afford to allow himself to love the woman or not.
Chapter Eight
Jacqui
Jacqui woke in the night, an odd sound stirring her from her dreams. It was a soft sound, like air escaping with a slight rumble behind it. Was it a snore? Rolling over she decided she didn’t care and was almost asleep again when she realized that if the sound was a snore there was someone else in the room with her.
Fear froze her in place for a moment. Someone was in her room! She panicked, screaming internally at her muscles to run for the door but then sanity took over. Whoever it was they were asleep, which meant they weren’t there to hurt her. And she was in Cade’s house, anybody that managed to get in her room would have to belong here to get past the security that hid themselves in the shadows, always watchful but never speaking. The men and women of the security force had unsettled her at first but she’d grown used to them and stopped wondering why a man in the middle of a farm in Kansas would need a security force. They became almost a part of the furniture.
It must be Cade, she finally decided. Her muscles relaxed and she quietly pushed away her covers, walked over to see who was on the sofa.
Cade was there, his white shirt unbuttoned down to the middle of his chest, tie stripped away. His face was relaxed and his mouth was open slightly, his head to the side. Sleeping on his back he looked vulnerable, in need of a shave, and devilishly handsome. But could she let him into her heart?
Evelyn’s news had been a blow; one she’d rather not have had. One minute she was a normal human being, well as normal as she could get, the next a witch who didn’t have a clue how to use her powers. Evelyn had said something about an instructor but how would she explain that away to Cade? She sat on the oak table in front of the sofa and watched Cade sleep.
Her mother had told her secret and her father had used it to make himself rich, he’d used her until she had nothing left to give. Cade had riches she couldn’t even imagine, he had power, and he’d done it all on his own. He wouldn’t be the same as her father, would he? He wouldn’t want to use her in that way.
Jacqui’s thoughts had changed dramatically since she’d come to Kansas. She’d struggled to maintain her façade, her disinterest in the world. Last night had torn down walls she’d thought would never fall. She knew she could still display a level of reserve most people couldn’t begin to fathom but could she hold herself back from Cade now? She knew she was falling for him but could she trust those instincts? Her mother had and she’d ended up in an early grave.
Jacqui reached out, wanting to touch the soft, silky black hair that shone in the moonlight. It looked like satin but she didn’t get her hand near it before Cade was awake, his hand grasping at her to push it away.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you. Would you like to sleep in the bed instead of on this tiny sofa?” She had to smother a giggle because most of his legs were dangling over the other end. At well over six feet the tiny couch could barely contain him.
“I, um, oh, yes, please.” Cade looked delightfully sleep-muddled and Jacqui wanted to hold him close to her heart and absorb some of the heat she knew he radiated. Passing a hand over his face he sat up. “Why do you keep it so cold in here all the time?”
“I hate being hot. You can always add more clothes but there comes a point where you just can’t take anything more off to try to get cool. I like to sleep covered up too so I always keep it cold in my bedroom, at least.” Having grown up in Florida, Jacqui knew a thing or two about heat, humidity and trying to stay cool.
“That makes sense.” He still looked confused as he came to full awareness but then he seemed to remember where he was and his face took on a guilty look. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep.”
“Not at all. I’m quite happy to find you in my room.” She gave him an encouraging smile and he smiled back at her, reaching out for her hand.
“Shall we get under those covers you love so much then?” She stood with him as he got to his feet and walked to the bed.
“Indeed we shall but I think you’ll be more comfortable out of those clothes.” Her words were suggestive, urging him to strip down. Almost daring him.
Cade accepted the challenge and slowly began to unbutton the last remaining buttons on his shirt. He gave her a knowing smile as he pulled the shirt away from his taut abdomen and off his arms. Her left eyebrow twitched as she got a good look at him in the moonlight. Stunning.
His dark skin, so smooth to her touch, was meant for her lips and that flat stomach of his…oh my!
“Come here.” She cro
oked her finger at him and he walked over, the belt to his trousers undone but not his buttons.
Jacqui slid her hand up his rigid length, pressing gently into him before she leaned forward, kissing his stomach.
She felt a shiver pass through him as he looked down at her wordlessly, his eyes on her face as she undid the button and pulled down the zipper. His pants slid down his legs, revealing bare skin. He hadn’t been wearing any form of underwear! She liked that.
Jacqui took his erection in her hand, feeling the weight of him and the heat as her long fingers wrapped around him. She could only just get her nails to touch her palm. When he gasped she dragged her eyes from his rigid cock to see his eyes burning down into hers.
“Don’t stop.” His voice urged her on, to do more.
“Oh, I won’t baby.” She breathed the words against him and leaned forward again, dragging her tongue over the tip of him. It felt spongy, silky, but somehow hard. She wanted to taste all of him.
Jacqui moved again, her tongue moisturizing her lips before she let him slide into her wet depths. She heard him sigh and smiled as he went further, deeper, into her mouth.
“Were you a virgin last night, Jacqui?” The words stopped her, froze her in place with his cock in her mouth. She pulled away finally, wiping her wet lips with the back of her hand before she looked up at him again.
“What does it matter?” Her words were guarded, discouraging further questioning.
“I just thought you might have been and if you were, well, maybe you might want some instruction.” He sounded as though he might run at any moment.
She didn’t take his words as insulting, she took them with images of him sliding between her lips as he instructed her to open wider, suck harder.
“Then you might want to, whether I was or wasn’t. I aim to please, after all.”
“Alright.” It was a simple way to say thank you, to display his relief at her not getting angry with him, of saying he wasn’t going to force her to answer.
“How do you want me to hold your… cock, dear husband?” She used her best kitteny voice, a sultry voice that invited play.
“Just… oh… just like that.” She tightened her grip on him once she took him in hand once more.
“And my lips?” She placed her lips on the tip of his organ, letting them rest there for a moment before darting out her tongue. She may have never done this before but she understood the art of teasing.
“Open.” He strangled the words out as her tongue slid down his length and back up.
Jacqui opened her lips for him and he moved, thrusting into her mouth gently.
He paused as he slid in, realizing she couldn’t open any further. “Suck.”
She took his words as a command, but a gentle one, and did as instructed. Pulling her cheeks in, she sucked as she pulled away from him, letting her tongue drag underneath his length.
“Open.” She placed her hand at the base, holding him steady as she opened once more. This time she opened her lips but only enough for him to slide between her teeth.
“Suck.” His words were simple but oh so erotic as she watched his face tighten as she did as he told her to do.
She’d caught on and decided it was time to take matters into her own hands. Slowly at first, she started a rhythm that made him bury his fingers in her hair. She could feel him growing harder in her mouth and she sucked every time she came back up his length and figured out how to keep the friction going as she went down.
Cade’s hips started to move in time with her head, his thrusts gentle so he wouldn’t hurt her.
“Fuck, Jacqui.” He strangled out the words, pulling away. She cried out as he pulled his cock from her mouth.
“But you didn’t finish!” She’d wanted the whole experience! Doing this to him was really turning her on and she loved making him lose control. He’d taken that away from her.
“Later!” His words were a demand as he pulled her into a sitting position on the bed then pushed her back. “Open.”
Her legs spread of their own will and Cade’s tongue was soon in a place no tongue had ever explored before.
“Cade, stop! Oh god, wait no, oh fuck no don’t stop!” He’d found her clit and her embarrassment and worries flew away as he sucked at her hard and fast, his tongue flicking at the button as she writhed against his face.
Jacqui felt her nipples tighten and tugged at the aching peaks, making the ache deeper, harsher, but not able to stop herself as Cade sucked at her clit. It felt too good to stop. She felt as though she were on fire but she didn’t want the fire to go out, she wanted it to burn her to ashes, until she exploded into flames only Cade could put out.
Jacqui was just on the verge of something great, holding her breath as the pressure built, as the fluttering started, when Cade reached inside of her, sliding into her wet depths with two fingers and finding just the right spot to make the world go dark as her body convulsed beneath him.
She heard a grunt of satisfaction, felt the hum of it on her mound, but didn’t care as she inhaled sharply, her body bowing until she thought her back would break. She didn’t care about that either because if this was how she was going to die it was the most perfect way ever. She rode the waves as his tongue lashed at her, propelling her further than she’d gone the night before.
For long minutes, pleasure surged through her. His tongue, his fingers never missing a beat as he sent her higher. Jacqui could no longer make words, she could only make noise as she tried to stay in the moment, fought with her own body to stay in that place of perfection where thought couldn’t intrude.
With a sigh she finally came back to earth, slumping on the bed as Cade wiped his face and moved away.
“You can catch your breath but then I’m getting round two.” He kissed her damp thighs, inhaling her scent before he came up beside her. He pulled her into his lap and stroked her hair as little aftershocks shook her. She could tell by the grin he wore as she peeked through her eyelids that he was pleased with himself. And so he should be.
Smug bastard. She couldn’t stop the grin that stretched across her face as her brain finally engaged once more and she moved over him, stretching her body out to rest between his thighs.
“I think we need to take care of this.” Her words stopped and spoke no more as she took him in her mouth, aiming to find out what all the fuss was about.
“Oh no, little one, I want that pussy of yours, I want to be buried up to my eyeballs in it. Come here.” He pulled her up onto his lap and she moved with him, straddling his thighs so his hard length pressed into her.
She closed her eyes as she sank onto him, his rigidness invading her. A shudder passed through her when she could sink no more and she breathed deep as she let her body adjust to him. She knew he was big for the average male, but damn.
“Open.” She knew he meant her eyes, so she opened her pale gaze to his. His dark eyes bored into hers and she gasped again, was that love there or just desire?
She pressed her lips to his as he sat up against the pillows, longing only for that place of abandon where the world didn’t matter but she wanted to go there with him this time.
She found that if she moved just right her clit would press into him and she began a rhythm that made her ears buzz. He seemed to enjoy it as his hands went to her hips, holding her steady as she rode him hard and fast. Their breathing came in quick gasps, mouths fused as they moved together, his up to her down. Together they sought that moment of release they both craved, and silently she found it.
Breaking away as she kept up her pace, Jacqui felt the pleasure surging through her once more, straight up her spine and into her brain. Cade followed, a low grunt his only sound as he surged inside of her, spilling himself in the wet confines of her heat.
Jacqui felt his explosions and moved to take him deeper, wanting every part of him to touch her, to stroke her insides. She rode him until her thighs ached and she couldn’t move, her body too spent to move another inch. She sagged
into him, her brain quiet for once in her life. The only thing she knew was the sound of his heartbeat.
She was almost asleep, not caring that her thighs and knees were on fire, she never wanted to move from this place of solace, her refuge. She didn’t care how they’d started out, or that she barely knew him, this man was her savior. She knew the things she needed to know. Below that cold exterior that seemed to be harder than diamonds was a man of passion, a man who felt deeply, and wanted to please. She also knew he cared about his clan and would do anything for them. And she knew he wanted her. For now, that was enough.
“We have to move at some point, princess.” He murmured the words sleepily into her ear.
“No, we don’t. We can stay like this until we’re fused together and will never come apart.” She pouted against his shoulder, not even caring that he couldn’t see her.
“I think we’re about as fused as we’re going to get.” He gave a low chuckle that rumbled against her cheek.
“That may be but we don’t have to move. Not yet.” She gave a groan of protest as he rolled over to his side, taking her with him. Their bodies broke apart and she was no longer a part of him.
“Cheater! You’re bigger than me. That’s not fair.” She pouted into her pillow this time.
“You need to sleep. We need to talk in the morning so don’t go running off to have a bath, alright?” He kissed her neck as he cradled her, pulling her tight to him.
“I was a little, ahem, sore this morning.” She said the words into his neck, still not wanting to face him.
“Ah, that explains it. Alright. We’ll talk. In the morning. Go to sleep, princess. Unless you want another round.” His tongue darted out to taste her neck and she was lost to him once more, her exhaustion vanishing as his hot lips moved over her skin. She would never be able to tell him no.
Jacqui woke up the next morning to find Cade had ordered in breakfast and had a table arranged with everything they’d need. She ran into the bathroom to wash her face after a kiss good morning and get herself decent then went out to join him. Tying the belt of her robe in place, she sat down and looked at the French toast. She loved how the chef cooked it here. She missed cooking though, it was one of the ways she could express herself back in Florida.
Cade (Alexander Shifter Brothers Book 2) Page 9