Page 54 of Duke of Chaos

A heady moan full of relief poured from Ezra’s throat as her hips began to undulate him into her perfectly, and his hands finally let loose of the settee. Her pleasure intensified when he brought them harshly to her backside, and she cried out his name as she felt him take over.

Ezra’s hands, firm and demanding, hooked into her hips, and before she knew what he was doing, she felt herself being lifted up and then slammed with force back down onto his shaft. Stars filled Lydia’s eyes as a new and intense pleasure filled her, and she let her body sink into his guidance once more. As if knowing what she wanted, Ezra forced her hips up until his engorged head was at the very mouth of her entrance and then slammed her down onto him again.

By his fourth powerful stroke, her orgasm was rippling throughout her body, and what little desire she had to be in charge drained away along with her juices. Wrapping her arms around his neck, Lydia pulled at him to look at her. She could not take it anymore, she realized; not seeing his eyes.

A whimper and another tug of her weakening hands caused Ezra to lift his head, and Lydia felt another gush of arousal flow from her as she saw the pure need and raw emotion in his crystal blue eyes. Once more, as if knowing what she needed, Ezra captured the back of her neck with one hand and kept the other on her hip and brought her lips to his as he began to work her atop of him.

Ezra’s kiss was as demanding and hungry as his thrusts; he would take everything she was willing to give. And, in that moment, she was willing to give everything. Just like they had in the park, she felt them transform into something else. Something more than a duke and duchess; something far more basic and driven by primal instinct to come together.

Sane thought, any thought, seemed to abandon them when they were fused in this way and Lydia loved every moment. She adored being able to let go, to feel and sense nothing but the pleasure vibrating through her body like a tuning fork; loved feeling herself turn into nothing but warmth and wetness and quivering flesh.

Ezra’s lips abruptly tore away from her, bruising her lips with his passion as he pulled her by the hair to look into his eyes. His icy blue orbs were glowing with the heat of his passion and desire, and he pressed his forehead tightly to hers as he growled out, “Come with me.”

Though his tone was demanding and fierce, Lydia picked up the slight desperation in his voice; and it was what sent her over the edge a final time. Through the chorus of her own moans and panting breaths, she heard Ezra’s strangled sounds of release ashe slammed her hips down into him one final time and locked her there.

A heavier, dizzying pleasure filled Lydia as she felt Ezra’s hips slow as his pumping member still spilled his seed into her; and with a shaky breath, she felt herself collapse. Immediately, both of Ezra’s arms were around her bringing her to his chest at a much slower pace, protecting her from harm. A thickness grew in Lydia’s throat as she felt how tenderly he cradled her head to his chest, and she blinked back two hot tears that suddenly sprang from her eyes as she felt his lips press into her hair.

As she listened to his pounding heartbeat she realized that there were two sides to Ezra: there was the Duke of Demons; his evil side that always got what it wanted, and then there was the man who stood apart from everyone and everything without complaint; who had pain but never complained about it. The man who could face anything, but panicked when shetook just the slightest bit of control.

There were layers to her husband, Lydia realized as she drifted asleep to the touch of Ezra’s fingertips raking gently down her back. Layers that, with time, she could peel back, discover, and soothe. But first, they would have to talk more. Much,muchmore.

“This does not mean our conversation is finished,” Lydia murmured into his chest, prying open one eye.

She caught Ezra looking down at her, his handsome face smooth. Not with numbness, she realized, but pleasure and satisfaction-and a bit of contemplation. His hand paused on her back as he continued to look at her, and in that moment she desperately wanted to know what he was thinking.

“No, it does not,” he agreed at last, his hand resuming its gentle stroking.

Satisfied with his acknowledgment, Lydia closed her eyes again and let her body ease into his. With the soothing rhythm of Ezra’s heartbeat, the gentle stroke of his fingers on her back, and the warmth of his chest, she felt her body sink deeper into relaxation. Then, just as she felt herself go, she felt a small pulse between her legs and smiled. She was falling asleep with Ezra inside of her.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Ezra awoke to the pressure of someone against his chest as his thoughts became filled with memories of the previous evening. His mother and Lydia; the storm, the fight, the lovemaking in the park. The lovemaking here. That was what that was after all. He did not simply pluck her as he would have done to anyone else. They had made love.

Opening his eyes, Ezra looked down to see Lydia, naked and still deeply asleep on his chest. Her dark brown hair was curly and loose and tumbled across her naked back. Her dark lashes were fanned over her cheeks and her lips parted slightly as she breathed softly in her sleep. Unable to stop himself, Ezra lifted a hand and gently moved a lock of her hair that had fallen over her eye.

He tucked the piece gently behind her ear, then stroked his palm over the back of her head, over her neck, and down the smooth, curved expanse of her back. Even in her sleep, Lydia whimpered and moved with the gentle stroke of his touch. Desire rose in him again, but so did something else.

That strange emotion he’d felt previously had again raised its ugly head and Ezra pulled back his hand in response to his discomfort. He had told her things last night. Secret, intimate things about his past with his mother that he had not even told his brothers about, and she had listened to him without judgment. Or, at least, without judgment of him. Her reaction to his mother was obviously a different story.

His mother. Talking about her had brought some old memories to light; ones he had long buried or dismissed as unimportant. But what if they were important? He’d never really pursued his mother as a suspect. They had been too focused on the men that could have been their enemies. Not just to the Fernside name, but also to the Banfield, Curtis, and Green names. They had been looking for men who had been angry with all of them, but what if he had been the sole target all along?

Needing to think, Ezra slowly moved himself out from under his sleeping wife, careful not to wake her. As he gently lowered her head onto the cushion, a soft sigh escaped her lips, and Ezra felt a fist tighten around his heart as he watched her curl and snuggle into the space he’d just left.

Go back to her,a voice inside demanded, but he ignored it. There was more than just his assassination attempt to think about, more than just his father’s untimely demise. He needed space to think aboutherand the effect she was having on him. He had been born into a cold, black void and had never felt much more than that until Lydia had come along.

She had brought light and warmth into his darkness, awakening sensations he never knew he possessed, and he had drank it in greedily. In turn, he had shown her what pleasures the darkness could hold, and they were now quickly becoming addicted to the trade.

Only now, he realized, perhaps he had shown her too much. She was turning into him, twisting into someone equally as dark. Her jest about stabbing his mother had genuinely amused him last night, but now, as he saw how his corruption was slowly taking over her purity, he was filled with self-loathing. He felt his body stir with strange arousal at the thought of such a thing, and he shook his head and scoffed as he began to roughly don fresh clothes.

“Where are you going?”

Lydia’s soft, sleepy voice instantly stilled his aggressive thoughts and Ezra stopped buttoning his trousers to look her way. Her green eyes were still hazy and full of sleep and her cheeks were flushed with the lightest pink as she yawned slowly and stretched like a kitten. Immediately his palms ached to smooth over her curves and he felt desire spread through his loins.

“I have to get to work,” Ezra forced himself to say, resuming his buttoning.

“You said we would talk, Ezra.”

He pulled on his shirt, tucking it roughly into his waistband and reached for his socks and boots. There was no disappointmentin her voice, no pouting, and Ezra knew that she was merely pointing out the truth. He stayed silent a moment longer, finished dressing, and then walked to the settee to kneel beside her.

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