The Duke Takes a Wife

by Dahlia Rose

  “What organization would that be?” Zeva asked.

  “I head a group of lawyers who fight for the underdogs in D.C.,” Keith explained. “People like you, women who have been sexually harassed, people who have been exploited in politics and basically blackballed for their views. We get them justice if we can and bring to light the black underbelly of this town.”

  “In this city that probably makes you lots of enemies,” Zeva said worriedly.

  “We’ve been threatened, bricks thrown through the window and harassing calls,” Keith grinned even as he said it. “Nothing in this life is easy. We could run away and give up, but no one else is and these people have to live with much worse, so we manage.”

  “Plus you have that security detail you hired,” Jasper said. “Mac is not one to be messed with.”

  “Mac another friend?” Zeva asked.

  “Yes, quite British and bad ass as hell,” Jasper replied. “He also keeps Keith and his family safe.”

  Zeva smiled and nudged him with her shoulder. “And here you were making me think you knew no one in this town. You even have a connection with Joan and Ralph. You’re practically a native.”

  Jasper grimaced. “Please, anything but that. By the way, Keith, if Uncle Brewster calls and asks I got snookered with you and ended up staying at your place.”

  “Understood. I know you have to keep this under wraps until you announce at home to the banshee queen,” Keith replied.

  “I take it he means your mother,” Zeva said dryly. “Can she really be that bad?”

  “Think of the worst person you’ve ever met and up that by one hundred percent,” Keith spoke before Jasper could.

  “Her evil could make walls bleed,” Jasper added. “Don’t worry, we don’t see her often and you, my dear, can handle the queen of the Morlocks.”

  She laughed, but she was worried about a woman who could make her own son hate her. She, Jasper, and Keith chatted until a sleek black limo arrived, and when she got inside there was another woman who Keith introduced as his wife. The drive to the Hotel Du Pont was a short one, and Jasper had everything prepared. There was a suite and waiting for them was a justice of the peace who was a friend of Keith. As she changed, Zeva shook her head over the connection they all seemed to have in the small circle of friends. Keith and Lanie would be their witnesses for the wedding, and she felt like she was among friends. Zeva was a part of them now and basically she felt a little less alone in the great big world.

  Zeva looked at herself in the full-length mirror of the bedroom in the suite. She had chosen a soft champagne colored dress that ended at her knees with a lacy hem. It was slightly off the shoulder and the fabric clung to her curves. To add a little spice to the ensemble she wore the red heels that she wore the night of the gala where she met Jasper. It matched the lacy bra and panties set she wore beneath, because if this was her wedding night, she was sure as hell going to knock his socks off.

  Jasper’s voice came through the barrier of the door after a soft knock. “Zeva, are you ready?”

  Zeva took a deep breath and moved to the door. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

  She felt the heat of his gaze as he took in her appearance from top to bottom.

  “You look absolutely fantastic, smashing, bloody gorgeous,” he said almost reverently.

  “Keep that up you may give me a big head,” she teased.

  “You’re lucky I’m not throwing rose petals at your feet.” Jasper took her hand. “I feel like the luckiest man in the world right now. You’re wearing red shoes, that’s fucking hot.”

  Zeva looked up at him. “You say the nicest things in the most dirty way. Are you sure you’re a duke?”

  “The most unconventional one you’ll find,” he promised.

  He led her to the center of the living room area of the suite, and waiting for them was Keith and Lanie plus a woman wearing a dark robe. The ceremony was quick and simple, and soon she was Duchess Zeva McTavish. In a way it blew her mind when Keith gave them a small bow and said, “Duke, Duchess, it was an honor to be a part of this.”

  They shared a small lunch with her new friends before they left early in the evening and they were completely alone. They sat together on the sofa and she kicked off her shoes and tucked her feet under as she leaned against him. It was comfortable, like they had done this every night for years. Zeva could hardly believe they meshed so well so quickly, but it was still very new. She wondered if it would change, especially when she moved and his family got into the mix.

  “People aren’t going to be bowing and stuff to me when I get to Northumberland, are they?” Zeva asked worriedly.

  “I can’t say not, people know me and know that I am basically easy going,” Jasper explained. “But the older generation still likes to follow the old ways, and women at the shops will call you duchess when you go into town.”

  “Okay.” She blew out a breath. “I’ll have to get accustomed to that.”

  There was a knock on the door, and Jasper jumped up quickly from the sofa and she fell against the cushions

  “Hey!” Zeva said with a laugh.

  “I’m sorry, but it’s the champagne,” he said grinning.

  “Well then, carry on,” Zeva said sitting up.

  The room service attendant brought in a cart with a gracious smile. It was filled with champagne, fresh strawberries, desserts, and more. Jasper tipped the man from the wallet in his pocket and then he wheeled the cart in front of the sofa himself.

  “A toast,” he said as he worked the cork from the bottle. “To our marriage, and years of love, laughter, and children for us.”

  She watched as he poured them both two glasses. “I like the sound of that.”

  Jasper gave her a glass before sitting down. “I do too, very much so.”

  “Does it feel like we’ve known each other forever, or is it just me?” Zeva asked. “I’ve never been so comfortable with a man, in all honesty, I’ve never made such a big decision so quickly in my life. I spend more time debating myself mentally about things that most people take for granted. But this... I’m married and moving, starting a new life all in less than a week.”

  He turned to her. “I think we saw something in each other we both were looking for. There’s so much I have to learn about you, and vice versa, but it feels bloody right and I don’t doubt my instincts in the least.”

  “I’m glad you don’t, you may have to remind me to stop over thinking every once in a while,” she admitted. “I was raised in foster care and basically took care of myself all my life. Speaking of which, what will your family and the media think of you marrying a woman who doesn’t even know who her family is?”

  “What people think has never been a concern to me,” Jasper replied. “I have to tell you, there will be a dinner at the manor where I introduce you to the family and others in the society of Northumberland.”

  “Then the news will run with it,” Zeva assessed.

  “Yes they will, and we will be fine,” he answered honestly.

  Jasper held up his glass. “To us, Duke and Duchess of Northumberland, and to the beginning of our adventurous marriage.”

  Zeva touched the rim of her glass with his. “To us.”

  They took a sip and the bubbles tickled her nose. The champagne was sweet, with a bold, fruity flavor and while they enjoyed it, they tried different desserts on the tray and sampled the fruit.

  “This champagne is excellent,” Zeva said draining her glass.

  “The bottle is gone.” Jasper held it up.

  “Awww,” she said with a pout.

  He reached under the cloth of the cart and pulled out another ice bucket with a bottle inside. “But we have another.”

  “Yay!” She clapped, enjoying the evening immensely.

  Jasper popped the cork and poured them another glass. She took a sip, and when he sat down next to her, Zeva kissed him. Jasper plucked the glass from her hand and placed them on the room service cart. He moved and pr
essed her back into the sofa, covering her body with his own as he kissed her hungrily. Zeva loved the feeling of his body on hers as they kissed. They fit together like two pieces of a puzzle, as he settled at the apex of her thighs. She lifted her hips against him with a soft moan as his tongue slipped deeply into her mouth.

  “I think I like this portion of the evening very much,” Zeva murmured when he lifted his head to look at her.

  “I’m amazed someone as beautiful as you would be with me right now,” he said huskily and caressed her face. “Thank you for being my wife.”

  She truly felt humbled. “Thank you for choosing me.”

  He stood and held out his hand to her. “Shall we go to bed?”

  Zeva put her hand in his. “Yes, let’s.”

  As they stepped into the bedroom, Jasper pulled her close and she felt her breath catch at their intimate connection. Zeva unbuttoned his shirt slowly and pushed it off his shoulders. The bare expanse of his chest called for her to touch him, and she ran her fingers through the soft thatch of hair over skin and muscles.

  “I want to see you,” he said huskily.

  Zeva suddenly remembered her shoes. “Sit there and I’ll be right back.”

  He laughed. “Just know I’m very aroused, and anything you do may cause me to ravish you.”

  She gave him a wicked smile from the door. “Here’s to hoping that happens.”

  Zeva grabbed her shoes from the floor and put them back on before heading back to the room. Jasper’s eyes followed her as she stood in front of him and slowly slipped the dress from her body. She heard him suck in a harsh breath when she stood in front of him wearing only her panties, bra, and shoes, all in that sexy red.

  “Dear God, I may have died and gone to heaven,” he murmured. “Your skin takes hints of light and it turns to bronze. You are like a goddess.”

  “You and those pretty words.” A slow smile spread across her face as she stepped between his legs. “Does that mean you like what you see?”

  “Very, very much,” he murmured. He ran his hand down her waist to her hips. “I want to taste you everywhere.”

  “Do it,” she dared him.

  His eyes flashed with desire before he pulled her down to the bed and covered her body with his once more. He took her lips in a fierce kiss that left them both reeling. She moaned under the onslaught of his lips and tongue, trying to get closer, and still it wasn’t enough. He lifted his head and stared into her eyes for an instant, as if making sure she was real before swooping in to take more of her lips. Zeva could get drunk off his kisses. His taste was bold and masculine with hints of the dessert and champagne they consumed earlier.

  This new sensation was making her heady. She felt almost drunk with the desire she and Jasper created. She gasped as he roamed soft kisses down her neck to the swell of her breasts and cupped the heavy globes through the lacy fabric of her bra. Jasper reached around and with deft fingers unhooked the lingerie easily. She was impatient to have his hands on her skin. She sighed when he cupped her breasts in his hands and massaged them gently before bringing them to his mouth. Then Zeva moaned when he used his tongue to tease her nipples.

  “You have the most delicious nipples,” Jasper murmured as he moved from one to the next.

  “More,” she begged, and her head fell back at his touch.

  He obliged and took one of the coca bean tips into his mouth. Zeva cried out in agonized delight and trembled in his arms.

  “Oh yes, God that feels so good,” she encouraged him breathlessly as she held his head to her body. “Take me, Jasper.”

  “Oh no, not yet luv.” His voice was laced with need. “I’m going to learn each and every nuance of your body.” Jasper kissed a beeline to her stomach and took the lacy scrap of her panties down her legs and over her heels. He pressed a kiss on the trimmed hair at the apex of her thighs. “I can smell your scent, I want to taste you, luv.”

  Zeva met his gaze and did as he requested, revealing her already moist sex to his heated gaze. He ran a lone finger down the slit and she felt him graze her clit. The sensation caused her to shiver, and Zeva parted her legs wider in a silent plea for more. His head bent between her legs and she whimpered at the long, slow lick. Jasper groaned and pressed his face against her pussy. The way he used his tongue to ravish her made Zeva buck as the need speared through her. She arched upward to meet each flick of his hungry tongue. The things he made her feel, Zeva was reeling from the sensations.

  Jasper parted her sex and sucked at her clit before he delved between the soft folds of flesh to penetrate her with his tongue. It was driving her to the edge of reason, and she cried out, gripping the sheets of the bed and writhing under his ministrations. Her excitement built with every new thing he did. A small flick of his finger across her clit had her begging for more. He circled around her opening, teasing her with the sensation of almost penetrating and she bit her lip in sweet agony. Finally he gave her what she needed and slid one, then two fingers into the warm caverns of her pussy. The cry that left Zeva’s lips she was unable to stop. She undulated her hips, lifting them upwards to meet the repetitive insertion of his fingers.

  She closed her eyes as pleasure coursed through her and her breath came in short pants. He fingered her moist entrance with deep penetrating movements that became faster and harder until she was begging for release. Her body tightened and arched with an orgasm that took her breath away, and her mouth opened in a silent scream while she shuddered helplessly. He pressed his mouth against her sex and she heard his guttural groan of need as she came again, bucking wildly.

  “Oh luv, that was bloody marvelous, I love how you come,” he said huskily. He kept his fingers moving inside her and sent her spiraling into another round of ecstasy.

  When she met his gaze his eyes had a wild look of passion that Zeva had never seen before. It aroused her to no end, the primal look on his face, and that she was the one he wanted and needed. He held on to her thighs, pulling her closer to him and burying his mouth against her pussy again. She arched when he burrowed his tongue deep inside, tasting her flavor. Zeva grabbed his head and pulled his face deeper into her soft wetness. He excited her to the point of insanity, and she wondered if anyone just slipped into blissful unconsciousness from pleasure. His tongue was fast flicks and penetration of her sex. She could feel herself losing control as her hips moved furiously against the seeking appendage of his mouth.

  “Oh God I need...Oh Jasper, please, I can’t stop!” she begged.

  He knew just how to make her come again and kept up his passionate ministrations, sliding his fingers into her to match the movements of his tongue on her clit. His name was a keening cry from her lips as her body convulsed and tightened around his fingers before the warm flow of her juices dripped down his hand.

  “Now, now, I want you inside me,” Zeva said urgently.

  “Tell me to take you.” Jasper’s voice was raw. He moved and knelt between her legs, rubbing the tip of his cock between the lips of her pussy and making her tremble against him.

  “Yes Jasper, I want it, I want you baby.” Zeva was wanton in her plea.

  He groaned as he obliged her request and sank deep inside her. Zeva eagerly wrapped her legs around his waist as their bodies moved instinctively together in unison. She lifted her hips to match the movement of his hips with each deep thrust. Zeva ground toward him, trying to take more and give more all at the same time as they consummated their marriage.

  “I love how you feel wrapped about me, you clench around my cock and it feels so damn good.” His voice was a harsh whisper by her ear.

  His words fueled her need, his accent was thick with desire and it was as if each word was another intimate caress. She knew that with no other man had she ever felt like this. Zeva wanted to be consumed by him, mind body and soul. Their connection was a fire in her blood.

  “Only you, oh yes,” she said on panting breaths. “Oh baby, I’m going to come. I can’t hold back.”

 
The words barely left her mouth when she felt her body begin to tremble and her pussy clenched around his throbbing cock. He pressed his face against her breast before sucking her nipple deep in his mouth. The sensation was like a spear to her core, making her cry out in the midst of her release. She felt Jasper let himself go and fell over the abyss with him. He groaned her name and filled her sex with his seed. They lay panting in the aftermath of their mating with slick bodies twisted and pliant in tangled sheets.

  “Well, we know the sexual part of our marriage works,” she mumbled.

  Jasper chuckled as he trailed his fingers down her arm. “Works, made me see fireworks, possible loss of the use of my extremities...”

  She laughed and snuggled closer. “Now if you snore then we need to buy a supply of ear plugs. I can deal with it, if you keep this level of gratification up to par.”

  Jasper nuzzled her neck until she squirmed. “Willing to live with snoring for my sexual prowess may be the best compliment anyone has ever given me.”

  “Hey, I know how to treat my man right.” Zeva yawned. “I wish you didn’t have to leave so soon.”

  He sighed. “I feel the same way, but we’ll be together on only a few weeks and then we have the rest of our lives to live, learn, and love each other.”

  She turned in his arms and looked at him. “Do you think you’ll ever love me?”

  Jasper kissed her. “Without a doubt.”

  “Good, because I care for you already. The next step will be love and I don’t want to love anyone who can’t love me in return,” she said simply. “If this is to be a marriage of convenience with some hanky-panky on the side so be it. But don’t make me love you unless you can love me back.”

  “That won’t happen Zeva, I swear it,” Jasper promised.

  “Then get some rest, because we definitely have to do this again before you leave,” she announced.

  His laughter echoed in the room. “You are bloody marvelous.”

  Zeva smiled as he pulled her close and held her tight. She didn’t say anything but she thought the same about him. Tomorrow he would be leaving and the countdown would start to when she saw him again and her move would begin.