Enticing Eve: Scandalous Secrets, Book 2 (30 page)

It took a few seconds for her words to register in his overloaded brain. Her eyes, dark malachite shining in the candlelight, expressed her desire.

She pressed her mouth against his with a savage hunger before wrapping her leg around his. The instinctive gesture was his undoing.

Rolling Eve onto her back, Colin lay atop his wife, her supple body adjusting beneath his weight, molding with his. He tore his mouth from hers and Eve moaned her disappointment.

Colin then kissed her chin, then her neck. His tongue traced a hot path to her breasts, where he paused before gently nipping one of her nipples with his teeth.

A shudder of pleasure rippled through her as his warm breath fanned her flesh. This feeling, glorious as it was, was nothing in comparison to what was to come, of that she was now certain.

Colin traced one of her nipples with his tongue and Eve arched her back as heat pulsated through every inch of her body. He then seared a path to her other breast, her flesh on fire underneath his tongue. This time, he nibbled her nipple before seizing it with his mouth. Eve sighed, her nails digging into his flesh, her feminine core now throbbing with need.
 

Eve wanted more.

Was desperate for it.

As if sensing this, Colin parted her thighs with his warm hand. His dexterous fingers toyed with the curls at her womanhood as Eve gasped in immediate response.

He then probed downward, to her feminine petals. Eve’s heart skipped a beat, then two as he caressed them.
 

Her back arched instinctively as his finger probed her core, slow and steady. He repeated the process, delving a little deeper with each entry until Eve felt as if she would explode.

“
Please,
” Eve implored.

Colin probed even deeper and Eve clutched the opulent bedding with her fist. She was so tight. Colin feared he would hurt her if he entered with his shaft. It took all of his willpower not to take her now, his manhood throbbing beyond the painful stage.
 

“It’s all right,” Eve murmured, lacing her fingers around the nape of his neck. “I’m ready.”

Colin wasn’t as certain. Did she have any idea what was to happen next? Her intense gaze locked with his. “You won’t hurt me.”

Her belief in him filled his heart to the point that he was certain it would overflow with his love for her. “Darling ...”

“I trust you,” she whispered. “You won’t hurt me.”

He relented, his fingers retreating. Eve’s soft form lay still underneath him, waiting. Still wary of hurting her, Colin proceeded gently. Instinctively, Eve parted her legs, causing his erection to throb harder for her in response. She then arched her back, thrusting herself against his length.

It was nearly Colin’s undoing as he inched inside of his wife, then out, probing for entrance past her feminine wall. All the while, he watched her writhing underneath him.
 

Dear God, this woman was his heaven.

Exploring deeper, Colin repeated the process as her core tightened around his length. It was an ecstasy unlike any he’d ever known. Flames rose within him, burning hotter with each thrust inside of her.

Eve cried out beneath him.

“Am I hurting you?” he muttered in a husky whisper, trying to stop, but she wouldn’t let him. Instead, she began to undulate beneath him.
 

They were one, united, as he punctured her feminine wall, as they reached for heaven. Higher and faster, until the universe splintered into thousands of tiny fragments, bursts of color and sound.
 

At long last Eve Weston belonged to him. They were united in body and soul. The realization filled his life, his once ordinary world, with an abundance of color and energy.

Crushing his mouth against hers, Colin kissed her until their spasms subsided, losing himself in her. He wasn’t certain where either began or ended.

They were one.

For the first time in his life, Colin felt he had a true purpose. His heart beat for Eve. His every breath was for her. To love her and to be loved by her, to protect her until the day he died.

His life began with her, and he was certain that his life could end with her as well.
 

If she ever rejected him ...

Colin shut his eyes, blocking out the very thought that frightened him unlike any other. On this night, Colin handed Eve his soul.
 

His wife now held the power to grant his every wish.

She also held the power to destroy him.

Chapter 15

Colin studied the shadows lurking amid the flickering amber hue of the dimming wall sconces. Such had become his nightly ritual – watching, waiting, while seemingly-innocent silhouettes shifted into distorted and unholy apparitions.

Most men would consider such interpretations of mere contours between light and dark to be the figments of an overactive imagination. Not Colin, for he understood that the worst nightmares were conjured from truth. He also knew from firsthand experience that evil does indeed exist, propagating horrors that most refined men fail to comprehend.

He listened to his bride sleeping soundly beside him in naked splendor, the sound of her rhythmic breathing and the warmth of her body nestled against his failing to keep his insomnia at bay.

His eyes remained fixed upon the vaulted ceiling where outlines of what appeared to be spindly branches crept upwards. They stretched higher until arriving at the arch where they froze as if fossilized.
 

Reminders, though unnecessary, that there was no escape from his past and the many daemons it harbored.

Eve stirred, stretching as she rested her chin on Colin’s chest. “You’re awake?”

Cupping her face in his hands, he explained, “I don’t sleep much.”

Her gaze softened, as if she understood. “This is a new beginning. Perhaps, that will help?”

Dear God he hoped so.

“How can this possibly feel so right?” Eve asked, coiling wisps of his soft chest hair between her fingers, “after we caused so much pain for Tristan?”

Guilt lodged in Colin’s throat. He swallowed hard against it, finding his voice at last. “I don’t know. It does feel fated, doesn’t it?”

Eve propped herself up on her elbow, her long, golden hair spilling over her milky breasts, the same breasts that his mouth had devoured mere hours before.

“I love you,” she whispered.

Colin brushed his thumb against her smooth cheek. “I love you, too.”

A deep line of concern furrowed across Eve’s forehead. “I used him.”

“Don’t say such a thing,” he responded.

“It is true though I didn’t realize it at the time.” Staring at Colin’s chest, as if shamed by her admission, she continued. “I could have told him dozens of times about us. Instead, I remained silent. I pretended that I could replace you, convinced myself that I loved him to make me less despicable in my own eyes.”

At the mere mention of Eve having feelings of affection for another man, tension coiled within Colin’s abdomen like a snake. He didn’t want to consider Eve loving anyone else, especially his younger brother.

“The truth is that I never loved him,” Eve admitted, her intense gaze now locked with his. “I know now that you’re the only man I have ever loved. I used him to bury what I felt for you.”

The snake in Colin’s abdomen retreated. Why her admission thrilled him, he knew not; however, in mere seconds the room appeared brighter, the light illuminated from the sconces warmer than before.

“That’s the reason I feel so guilty,” Eve said as she buried her face in the crook of his neck. “I don’t know how I can feel such happiness with you, knowing that it came at such a steep price for Tristan.”

Colin wrapped Eve in a tight cocoon. He should feel ashamed, should be riddled with guilt for hurting his brother, but, the more Colin considered it, he felt ashamed because he didn’t feel guilty enough. It made no sense at all. Colin knew that he was at fault, yet a relief that he had never known settled within his soul because Eve was his, at last.
 

He decided the time for shame had passed. Eve wasn’t right for Tristan. She recognized it as did Colin. Eventually Tristan would realize it as well, though Colin hoped his brother would discover it quickly for all their sakes.
 

An idea formed, one that would allow Eve a respite from her guilt and Tristan time to heal.

“I have an idea,” he announced, pulling the bedding higher over Eve’s shoulders, “how about a change of scenery?”

“Your bedchamber instead of mine?” she stroked his chest.

Colin smiled into her hair. “No, although I am not opposed to your suggestion, I was thinking more along the lines of a journey.”

“Ah,” Eve’s hand stilled. “So we shall run, then?”

“No running.” Colin kissed the palm of her hand, noting that this had become a habit now and reveling in the intimacy of such an innocent act. “I prefer taking a train.”

Giggling, Eve leaned against her elbow. “Do you have a destination in mind?”

Destination …
 

Where would he take his bride? He must return in time to check the progress of the Scottish estate renovations though he dreaded doing so since that estate dredged up many bitter memories for him.

Seeds of his plan began to take root. With Eve by his side, they could make new memories. Additionally, the flurry of activity at the estate would give her activities to focus upon.

There would be no time for guilt.

“Our estate in Scotland,” he suggested. “I had been planning to sell it. However, seeing as you are my wife now, you must see it first. Who knows? Perhaps you will like it so much that we decide to keep it.”

“
Our estate
,” Eve nestled deeper in the crook of his neck, the wispy strands at his nape tickling her nose. “I like the sound of that.”

“Our Scottish estate, it is,” Colin said, one of his warm hands cupping her breast.
 

The gesture, intimate and unguarded, caused Eve’s skin to tingle under his touch.

“Colin, what was India like?” she asked.

He sighed, “The terrain was hot, the war bloody. The land reeked of death and disease.”
 

“Why did you join—”

“Shush,” Colin whispered. “Someday I will explain but not tonight. Please, allow us some time to celebrate our love, our marriage. Let’s concentrate on the present.”

She would have to be content with that for now.

Propping herself on her elbow once again, Eve leaned over Colin’s broad chest and kissed his scars, his skin warm to the touch. Eve noted with a pang of excitement that she could feel his heartbeat, strong and steady, beneath her lips.
 

A jagged breath escaped him. “You have no idea what your kisses do to me.”

Her hand traced a path down his chest. Eve dared to explore further until she reached the taut skin of his manhood, his shaft hardening in immediate response to her touch.

“Yes, I do,” she murmured.
 

Colin rolled Eve onto her back. “My wife has become so brazen,” he teased.

“Say that again,” she said, her fingers trailing up his arms, to the nape of his neck.

“Tell you that you are brazen?”

“No, refer to me as your wife.”

“You are my wife. If you weren’t, would I do this?” he asked, bending his head over her breasts, his tongue tracing a nipple.
 

Eve throbbed under his weight. “I would hope not. It would be quite improper.”

Releasing her nipple, Colin added “Or this?” before nipping her other nipple with his teeth.

This time, Eve couldn’t find words. Instead, a ragged moan escaped her throat. Colin’s mouth trailed lower, his passionate kisses igniting every inch of her skin. Lower, he went, still lower until his tongue explored her in ways she could never have imagined.
 

She arched her back, her hands bunching the soft fabric of the fine bed linens as her muscles constricted until spasms of rapture wracked her entire body. For the second time that evening, Eve climbed to heaven.

Having waited for what seemed like an eternity for Colin to marry her, it would have been worth a dozen eternities judging by this sensation,

To have a lifetime of nights like this to look forward to … Eve was certain that she was truly blessed.

* * *

Eve knew not what to expect from their Scottish estate. As it was in the process of a thorough renovation, Colin’s description was a bit vague. It wasn’t until their carriage swayed to a stop in front of a massive stone fortress buffered on either side by rust colored rolling hills that she was able to judge for herself.

“This is our Scottish estate?” she asked, her lips curled into a wry smile as she peered through the window.

Colin rested his hand on her waist, the intimate gesture causing her heart to leap with excitement. “Is it smaller than you expected?”

“Smaller than I expected?” Eve couldn’t believe her eyes. A large turret jutted off one side of the fortress.
 
“Colin, this is a castle.”