Married (14 page)

And all the while, Georgie stroked and petted, memorizing his reactions, investigating his needs. Her restless fingers wandered all over his flesh, closing tight before caressing softly. One fingertip dragged down his length before she caught him again, and slid up to the tip.

She rotated her palm over the head of his cock and his hips bucked. She spent a few more seconds there, tracing careless designs over the sensitive flesh and watching him struggle to maintain his control. Closing her hand just below the flared crest, she licked out and found the slit in the very center of his glans, carrying a hint of his pleasure’s flavor.

A sense of her own power poured into the lust rising up her spine. It detonated with a blast of golden magic and filled the room with light. Silviu’s expression turned pained, his eyes turned to hammered steel. He lifted a hand and slid his fingers into her hair as she held his fierce gaze and brushed her open mouth over his cock.

His fingers clenched hard when she repeated the action with her tongue.

“Suck my dick, Georgie.”

She loved the rasping quality of his tone. Loved the break in his voice when he made his demand. She licked him again, leaned down toward the base and sucked gently.

“Not what I meant.”

She smiled against his hot flesh and worked her way back to his tip with playful pecks. The hand in her hair pulled her into the position he wanted, the other wrapped his cock. He slid the head against her parted lips, watching avidly as she flicked her tongue out. Their gazes locked as he fed the first inch into her, but Georgie wanted him on her own terms. She didn’t want to wait passively on her knees while he fucked her mouth.

She drove down on him and sucked hard. Lips closed tight, tongue whipping, she used her whole mouth to pleasure Silviu. Sliding and slipping over his length, she kept up a firm pressure, working her lips over as much of him as she could take, her nose bumping against the knuckles of the hand he curled around his dick. She ate him up and couldn’t get enough.

Silviu groaned and arched. His breathing fractured and Georgie pressed him harder. She wanted him to lose his control the way he always made her do. She renewed her attention to the heavy sac between his thighs—pulling gently, stroking and kneading. Silviu rewarded her with a broken noise that had her moaning around his cock and pulling against the hold he maintained on her hair.

She drew back to his tip and swept her tongue over the smooth curve. The taste of his pleasure filled her senses, encouraging her, urging her on. She clamped her lips tight and sucked without mercy, desperate for his release, desperate for more of the sense that she still held some control in their relationship.

And he gave it to her with hot spurts and breathless groans. His climax ripped through them both, the golden glow of their magic connecting them in ways Georgie couldn’t begin to understand. She milked his cock as he came, licking and laving, drinking him down and letting him fill her to completion. She sucked until he shuddered and sagged against the door, only letting his wet crest pop from her mouth when his hand fell from her hair.

It was a momentary respite as his fingers clenched in her neckline and hauled her to her feet. In a single, smooth move, Silviu pressed her back to the door and drove his hand under her dress. He licked an excess drop of his pleasure from the corner of her lip before catching her mouth in a fierce embrace, hot and hard, demanding and persuasive. Dominant.

“Fuck, that was too soon, love.” His lips moved over hers when he pulled back to let her breathe. “I would have preferred to have that last all night, but I need you too badly.”

She had no chance to reply as he attacked her mouth again. Slick and wet and wild, he consumed her and ripped her thoughts from her head. Georgie melted against the door and let him have his way—the pleasure he offered persuading her into surrendering to everything he asked for and giving him complete control over her body.

His finger traced the edge of her panties before slipping beneath. Without any hesitation, he found her entrance and thrust in—a single finger, driving deep. She was damp but not wet, and the friction set her blood on fire. Her pussy pulsed hard before saturating itself completely.

Silviu groaned into her mouth and sucked her tongue. Heat shot down her torso and lodged between her legs until she lifted against him, silently asking for more. He scraped his teeth against her lip and gave her what she needed, two fingers stroking her inner depths with a fluid rhythm that had her writhing and trying to climb his body.

His fingers stretching her, his knuckles dragging over her sensitive inner flesh, sent electricity coursing up Georgie’s spine. Her lower belly contracted and the rest of her muscles followed suit, drawing her hard against Silviu’s hand with her back arched violently. Shock waves spread out between her legs as her lust grew sharp.

He pushed her higher and her pussy grew tighter. Her cries were lost to Silviu’s kiss, her body his to command. She was reaching for her climax, the magic around them growing brighter, warmer, more chaotic, but he held her orgasm just out of her reach with expert fingers. She would have given nearly anything to feel the width of his cock forging through her core.

Suddenly, Silviu stilled with a low, vicious curse. “Your grandmother’s coming. I can hear her talking to Adam.”

Georgie could have cried, as his words sliced through the ringing in her ears. She struggled through the fog of desire cloaking her senses to all but Silviu’s body. Slowly, Silviu withdrew his fingers from her needy pussy and set her on her feet, leaning her back against the door as her knees buckled. He jerked at her dress until the hem was properly positioned then turned his attention to fixing his own clothes. A violent pang struck her chest as Georgie watched him tuck his cock away.

He swept her hair behind her ear with an apologetic grimace. “Next time, love.”

By the time the door opened and Madeleine and Adam stepped into the room, they were both put back together, though Georgie had wrapped her arms around her waist in a feeble attempt to still the shudders wracking her muscles. She fixed her gaze to the wall, unwilling for either of her Family members to see the near-painful need she knew must be blazing in her eyes. In her peripheral vision, she saw her grandmother go rigid, a frown pulling at the tired lines of her face.

“What is going on here?” Madeleine’s nostrils flared and Georgie had no doubt that the scent of their passion had been detected.

Silviu answered calmly. “Graves accosted Georgie just outside your door, Mother Davenold.”

“Are you all right?” Madeleine reached for Georgie’s shoulder, leaving her with no option but to face her grandmother’s examination.

“He hardly assaulted me. He simply extended an unwanted invitation to his bed.”

“According to Constance,” Adam drawled, “his bed is crowded.”

“Well, I assure you, I won’t be part of the gathering masses.” Georgie made an attempt to straighten her spine. “I’d just walked Christiana and Margaret to their room and was coming here when I ran into Graves. He’s up to something.”

“Of course he is,” Silviu agreed. “And I’ll find out what. But for now, you will be careful and stay close to your Family.”

“Why don’t you start on your quest now.” It was a clear command from the Davenold Matriarch, given in a tone that brooked no argument.

Silviu nodded. He reached for Georgie’s hand and kissed her knuckles with an old-fashioned flair that trilled over the nerves in her wrist and reignited the lust she still hadn’t managed to bank. She held herself very still, fighting to keep her composure, struggling to hide her emotions from her sharp-eyed Mother.

“Watch over your grandmother and let her presence protect you.” Silviu smiled ruefully. “At least you’re petite enough to sleep on the sofa comfortably.”

He and Adam left together. Madeleine moved to her favorite armchair and eyed her granddaughter with imperious intent. Georgie’s skull prickled with anxiety. She remembered the expression the old woman currently wore very well, but the last time she’d seen it was ten years ago, just before she was banished for the crime of being seduced by her betrothed.

With a stifled sigh, Georgie settled down on the sofa and waited for her grandmother’s inquisition to begin.

Chapter Twelve

Silviu

“Come with me.”

Adam’s brows lifted but he followed, for which Silviu was grateful. Silviu had feared the Davenold man would balk simply because of the minor power struggle Silviu and Georgeanne were skirting. Adam was surprisingly loyal to his cousin, though Silviu still wasn’t certain just how far that sentiment extended, considering his twin sister was also vying for Davenold Motherhood.

“Where are we going?” Adam asked.

“I want to speak to Eliasz and get his take on this situation. He’s a Levy and his talent could be useful for figuring things out.”

“What talent would that be?”

Silviu merely shook his head, unwilling to divulge his brother-in-law’s secrets. Typically, only women had the ability to hear rumors on the breeze, making Eliasz’s ability Silviu’s ace in the hole. He wouldn’t freely share that information with a man who could make Georgie’s rise to the top of her Family’s hierarchy difficult. Favorite cousin or not.

Making a mockery of his claim of being Ileana’s chaperone, Silviu found his sister and her fiancé in the room they shared and unapologetically interrupted them in whatever night-time activity they’d planned. Silviu didn’t care. Ignoring Eliasz’s half-dressed state and his sister’s white-knuckled hold on her robe’s lapels, Silviu dragged Adam into the room a bare second after his brother-in-law grumpily answered the door.

“I need active minds,” Silviu explained the moment he’d enacted a silencing spell. “And some insight into the Levy Father’s decisions.”

“You’re asking the wrong person.” Eliasz ran a hand through his thick blond hair and took a seat on the edge of the bed next his betrothed. “I hardly know Daniel, so I don’t have much insight to offer.”

Silviu bent a penetrating glare on the Levy man. A scandal in the Levy Family’s past had created a deep rift between the primary and tertiary branches. Eliasz’s grandfather had been passed over for Family leadership and was stuck with a lesser position as the head of the third most important household. The primary and tertiary covens had had little to do with each other since, fostering resentment and a need for power in Eliasz that Silviu was happy to exploit.

“And you have no other knowledge?” he pressed. “No rumors to share?”

Eliasz flicked a glance at Adam but shook his head. “Like you’ve said many times before, it’s an unpredictable thing. Maybe it would help if you told me exactly what you’re looking for.”

Silviu prowled the room. “I have a lot of questions. First, and least important, is why the Ngozi–Levy wedding is taking place so soon. It’s taken nearly a decade to hammer out the betrothal agreement, and now the bride and groom are suddenly in a rush to tie the knot?”

“Maybe they’re impatient,” Adam suggested. “Maybe
because
the agreement took so long they’re all chomping at the bit to just get it over with.”

Ileana shook her head. “Neither the bride, nor the groom, seem to be anticipating their wedding day to the degree they can’t wait.”

“Exactly my point,” Silviu said. “Which leads me to question just what is going on between Daniel and Graves, and how that factors into this entire situation.”

Eliasz made a thoughtful noise and reached for Ileana’s hand. “The Njeles and Ngozis have made an alliance, and, while everyone knows it was to stand against the witch hunts, it tipped the balance in their favor on the patriarchal side. Both covens are widespread.”

Ileana’s face lit up with remembrance. “At our betrothal celebration, Daniel commented on that. He said the Levys needed to make strong alliances for themselves in order to preserve some of their influence.”

“My Family’s Councilman is retiring.” Eliasz met Silviu’s gaze. “Starting over is never easy and usually results in a loss of influence. There aren’t a lot of Levys available to Daniel who are well liked by the other covens.”

“Which is why we’re trying to convince Daniel that you’d be perfect to fill the seat.” Silviu knew full well how popular Eliasz was amongst both his Family and the other patriarchal witches. That popularity, combined with Eliasz’s talent and quick mind, made him a wonderful ally for Silviu’s own plans to take over the Council when Madeleine Davenold retired.

“Sure, but meanwhile, Daniel has to deal with two covens set against the majority of Levy Family ambitions.” Eliasz got to his feet and started pacing. “Some of that influence will be negated when Graves marries Constance. The secondary Ngozi branch may not have much pull in the larger Family coven, but Graves has carved out a niche for himself in wider politics.”

“He’s too unpredictable not to be placated.” Silviu leaned against a low dresser and gave the matter some thought. “All right, let’s say the wedding is taking place in a matter of days simply to help Daniel achieve an edge. I will accept that as a viable option since the next Council meeting is only a month away. But to what extent do Daniel and Graves collaborate with each other? What do they have planned in terms of power and politics?”

“You’re not going to figure it out,” Adam interjected. “We can only speculate.”

“Speculation is a start. Georgie is being targeted by Graves, and as she pointed out, for no good reason. Why is she here and what is his interest in her?” Silviu lifted a hand and ticked a few points off on his fingers. “Daniel seems to wield his authority over Graves fairly easily. Graves may not like it, but he obeys.”

Adam shrugged. “He can’t afford to break the betrothal.”

“And yet, he didn’t seal it in blood,” Ileana pointed out.

“Exactly.” Silviu held up a second finger. “Graves has zero influence over the Davenolds, so why was Georgeanne invited? She can’t help Madeleine with the Bestowal.”

Eliasz crossed his arms over his chest. “I was just assuming Georgie’s presence was requested because anywhere Madeleine goes, she’s sure to follow. She’s the front-running heir, after all.”