Authors: Melissa Schroeder
"There will be no wedding tomorrow, but from your
reaction tonight, I will try to convince your mother it should be sooner. If
not, you will make yourself sick.”
"Sick?"
"I will talk to you about it later. It seems our women
are ready to be entertained by us."
He wanted to push for an explanation, but he decided against
it. They were already under the scrutiny of the crowd.
As Cordelia neared him, some of his inner beast seemed to
calm. He still wanted her, but the moment she took her place beside him, he
felt as if everything settled.
“Do you feel all right, Diana?” Cordelia asked.
It was then he noticed that her sister did not look well at
all. She was perspiring, her eyes filled with pain, and her flesh was white.
“I have one of my headaches. I think I need to go home.”
Instead of the commanding woman he had met earlier, her voice had diminished.
Every word she said looked as if it pained her to utter.
“Do you have a carriage?” his father asked.
“Yes. I…” she swallowed. “I guess I am a little more tired
than I thought.”
“Well, we can go home. You need your rest,” Cordelia said.
“No.”
Diana paid him no mind, but his parents smiled. Cordelia
frowned at him. “She needs someone to take care of her.”
“I can get home on my own.”
“I will accompany you home, as will Samuel. Nico can use our
carriage to accompany Cordelia home,” Adelaide said.
Cordelia opened her mouth but he stopped her.
“It is perfectly acceptable for me to do so being your
fiancé.”
She wanted to argue, he could tell. It was skirting the edge
of propriety, but before she could disagree, Lady Diana almost fainted. His
father caught her in time to keep her from embarrassment.
“Let me take her home,” his mother insisted. “I had the same
issue when I was younger, and I know just what kind of medication to give her.”
His fiancée looked torn. It amazed him that she would worry
so much about a sister who had abandoned her when she was younger, but
apparently she did.
“I will take good care of your sister,” his mother assured
her.
She nodded. “Are you comfortable with leaving me here,
Diana? Mrs. Blackburn will take care of you.”
Diana must have been in pain because she nodded and accepted
his father’s arm. He led her out as his mother took Cordelia’s hand and
squeezed it. “I will take good care of Diana.”
With that they left. “I assume you would like to get
something to eat.”
Cordelia looked at him. “I am not all that hungry.”
Before he could insist, a gaggle of matrons arrived. He was
sure they were there to find out what was going on between them and what
happened to Lady Diana.
He did not move. He stayed, ignoring the pointed glances
from the matrons. They wanted him to leave, but it went against everything
stirring in his body at that moment. He had to stay, for his own sanity.
Walking away and leaving her would never be an option. When one of the old
biddies made a nasty comment, he felt the first stirrings of irritation. As if
she sensed it, Cordelia gave him a censoring look. He ground his teeth and
fought the need to drag her out of there. He would endure it until they left
because then he would have her alone in a carriage.
At the moment, he would do anything for a small taste of
her, even if it meant ignoring pointed stares and recrimination from the
matrons.
*
*
*
*
Cordelia allowed Nico to hand her into the carriage. She sat
as he took the seat opposite of her.
“I would have never believed you would have stayed so long
tonight.”
He glanced at her. “You were there.”
She waited for him to explain more, but he did not. He
continued to watch her. For some reason, she had the feeling he was a
predator…and she the prey. It was a bit disconcerting, especially since she was
trapped inside the carriage with him.
“I have been able to handle myself in ballrooms for years.”
His frown turned darker. “Not dressed like that.”
“Whatever do you mean?”
He gave a pointed glance at her bosom. “I have never seen
you so ready to put yourself on display.”
She did not like the dress especially. As she had said
earlier, it was too tight, and she did not like having men stare at her chest.
Well, most men. When Nico looked at her, something inside her stirred, hot and
needy.
“Diana insisted, but she did not realize that well…I have a
little more on top.”
“Anyone can see that by looking at you.”
“Nico!”
“It’s the truth, Cordelia. You should have never left the
house looking like that. What will people think?”
For a moment, she couldn’t think. The rage in his voice
should have upset her. She did not like arguing, but for some reason, she felt
invigorated by it.
“What will people think?” she asked, allowing the sarcasm to
drip from her voice. His eyebrows raised in surprise. “Are you Nicodemus
Blackburn? Because the Nico I know doesn’t give two wits about what society
thinks.”
For a second or two, she thought he would yell back at her.
Instead, he reached across, grabbed her and pulled her onto his lap.
Nico nuzzled Cordelia's neck, his fangs already descended.
He wanted to bite, to feed, but he knew he could not do that. For a Carrier,
being fed from the first time would be draining in more ways than one. After
that, it would be easier, but that first one it was much like losing your
virginity.
"Nico," she said again, this time her voice
deepening over the syllables. Need threaded every word.
He thought she would push at him at least a little. Instead,
she tilted her head to one side to give him better access. He could smell her
blood, that sweet liquid calling to him. He grazed her neck, enjoying the moan
of pleasure that slipped from her mouth. She was made for this. Centuries of
breeding would take control, and he knew he could have her then. Nico knew she
did not understand what she was going through, not a virgin. And she could not
even recognize her desire to offer nourishment to him.
He pulled back from her neck, then drew her face closer. He
kissed her, knowing it would not satisfy either of them. If anything, it would
make their dawning need worse. He understood this. She did not. He slanted his
mouth over hers, sliding his tongue between her lips. He could taste her then,
or at least a bit of her essence, but it was not enough. Pleasure crawled
through him as he continued to kiss her. He molded his hand to her breast,
enjoying the gasp of surprise mixed with delight. Her nipple was already tight.
He moved his thumb over it slowly as he nibbled at her bottom lip. Unable to
help himself, he grazed it.
"Oh," she said as he sucked the small drop of
blood from it.
Lord, that was a mistake. He had been right. Her blood was
sweet and savory. It danced over his taste buds, and his head started to spin.
He had never tasted something so delectable in his life. The tang of her called
to him. His craving for her increased. He wanted her beneath him as he plunged
into her and drank from her. His cock hardened, beckoning a need for release
that he had never had before. It was as if his body already knew this was his
mate.
He knew he was losing control of the situation, but for one
long moment, he did not care. He wanted her then, needed her. Waiting was not
an option.
He tugged on the material of her bodice and freed her
breasts. He kissed his way down her neck, grazing but not breaking her skin. He
did have enough sense to know that if he sunk his fangs into her, that he would
never be able to pull himself back.
He took one of her nipples into his mouth as he pinched the
other. She moaned then, his name, and he felt a stirring in his soul that
shocked him. The tight reigns of control he held on his baser needs started to
sleep. His own blood pounded. His fangs ached to feed.
Then the carriage came to a shuddering stop. It took him a
moment to realize they were outside her house, and soon his driver would be
knocking on the door.
He gave her nipple one last lick before pulling himself back
from her.
Good God, she was a sight. Her hair was slightly mussy, her
nipples were still hard with need, and a part of him yearned to damn everyone
to hell and take her then.
But that would not do.
He ground his teeth together then pulled up her bodice.
"Cordelia, love."
Her eyelids fluttered then she opened them. Deep within her
blue eyes, he saw the desire he felt.
"We are at your sister's townhouse."
For a moment she did not react. Then her eyes widened, the
passion dissolving into embarrassment.
"Oh, my goodness," she said, her tone still filled
with unfulfilled passion. "I-I cannot understand what came over me."
"I do, but we will not worry about that at the
moment."
He gave her a sweet kiss, barely brushing his mouth over
hers. Even that had his need for her rising. It took all his control to pick
her up and move her to the opposite seat. He ground his teeth together,
although his fangs did not ascend completely. He wasn't sure that they would
until he truly mated with her.
She was busy righting herself as much as possible.
"Just pull your cape over you, and no one will
see."
She sighed and did as he instructed.
"Nico...I..."
She seemed to be at a loss for words. When he really looked
at her expression, he could read the mortification. For Cordelia, healthy
sexual needs would have been seen as something to ignore. Not only did she live
in the stifling society of London, she had grown up the daughter of a woman who
was notorious for her affairs. He knew it could not be easy for someone like
her to deal with the need she had for him.
There was a knock at the door.
"Just a moment, please," he said. He took
Cordelia's hands. "What is it?"
"I just want you to know that I have never done
anything like that. Well, except for last night. I don't know…”
She raised her hands to her face and covered it. He knew her
feelings for him were normal. Their kind would always need sexual satisfaction.
But she was not ready to hear it now.
He gently pulled her hands from her face. The unshed tears
in her eyes almost unmanned him. She was confused, especially because she did
not understand.
“There is nothing wrong with your behavior, Cordelia. It is
natural.”
She sniffed then looked away. “I really fear that I have
turned into my mother.”
She said it with such disgust that he felt the need to ease
her worries. Nico knew he could not tell her everything. If he were to reveal
all to Cordelia, she would panic and run. He would follow, that much he was
sure of.
He tightened his grip on her hands. “Look at me.” He waited
until she lifted her gaze to his. “There is nothing wrong with you for wanting
me. Do not ever think less of yourself.”
She did not look convinced.
“Tell me this. When you see Malik, do you want him to touch
you?”
She actually looked repulsed by the idea. Then she smoothed
her expression. “Oh, it is not because he is…from somewhere else.”
“I know. What I was alluding to is that you have these
feelings for me. You have been in society for a long time, Cordelia.”
She frowned. “Not that long.”
He smiled at the indignation in her voice. He knew he had
hit a nerve. “Tell me, have you ever had a chance to be compromised?”
She sighed. “No.”
“Do not doubt the attraction we have for one another. It is
good to be this way with your chosen mate.”
She studied him for a moment then nodded. “I think I better
step out now or we will cause another scandal.”
A sense of satisfaction filled him. He might not have wanted
a mate, but he had chosen well. He lifted her hands and kissed them.
“But of course.”
*
*
*
*
Cordelia looked out over the street from her sister’s
bedroom window. She had not slept. She could not. She had felt relieved when
she first returned home. After checking on her sister, who was sleeping
peacefully, she had changed into her nightdress, slipped into bed exhausted,
but found herself unable to sleep.
She had thought she would be too tired to even dream, but
she found herself staring at the canopy of her bed. After several wasted hours,
she decided to go to Diana's room to watch over her.
Cordelia glanced at her sister's still form. It had been
years since she had seen Diana suffer from the headaches. She had assumed she
had grown out of them, but now she wondered if Diana had just kept herself in
the country because of them.
With a sigh, she looked out over the street again. The sun
was just starting to peek over the tops of the houses. The only people she saw
were workers hurrying to their jobs for the morning. She was a person happy
with her own counsel. Groups of people had always made her nervous. Once Diana
had left home, she had spent most of her days by herself. Occasionally, one of
the staff would take pity on her and entertain her, but that was not so often.
The only reason she had gone out in society was necessity. To eat she had to
learn to overcome her misgivings. Truthfully, she would not have a problem abandoning
it if she didn't need the money. She always felt hemmed in when she dealt with
society. The rules had always been something she never agreed with. Why was it
acceptable for her father to have dozens of paramours, but not her mother? But
that had not been what had bothered her as much as the feeling of restlessness
that moved through her every time she stepped into a ballroom.