Baron of Blasphemy (Lords of Scandal 12)

And that undid him.

The sound of his name on her lips like that. He exploded too. Onto the floor.

He kissed her until he was certain she’d received every ripple of pleasure and then he climbed into the bed with her, tucking her against him.

She curled into him, soft as pudding as she molded to his side, her head fitting into the hollow of his neck.

She murmured softly, “I had no idea. No wonder women love rakes so much.”

He chuckled at that, trailing his hand up her back. Rakes did not spill their seed on the floor to protect their wives’ sensibilities. “I’m happy to serve my lady.”

Her leg came over his thighs and he pulled the limb a bit higher, enjoying the way she was tangled up in him.

“I want…” she whispered, looking up at him. “I want to give to you the way you’ve given to me.”

His cock twitched at the words and he nearly groaned. “Trust me, sweetheart. There is plenty of time for all of that. We’re going to teach you everything you wish to know.”

She lifted her head, her finger tracing little patterns on his chest. The gentle touch sent rivulets of pleasure across his skin. “Everything?”

“Everything.”

“Tell me about your family again.”

He stiffened. Everything but that.

Chapter Twelve

Abigail felt the shift in him. The tightening of his muscles, the inhale of his breath. “Abigail.”

“I know they didn’t love you,” she said, lifting her head again to look in his dark blue eyes. They swirled like the ocean during a storm. “That’s their fault. Not yours.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I do.” Then she gave him a small smile. “I’m a total pain in the ass and my sisters still love me.”

“Did you just use profanity?”

She sniffed. “I’m a married woman now.”

He chuckled despite the situation and then reached out, running his fingers through her hair. “Thank you for not saying that you were married to the man who blasphemes with abandon.”

She reached up and touched his cheek. “Who did you hate more, your father or your brother?”

A touch of resentment lit his eyes. “I knew my father was a cruel bastard. He hit me square in the jaw with a closed fist at the age of four. But my brother...because of our age difference and he was away so much, I made up this fantasy. That he and I would somehow stand together against the tyrant. He used that allegiance, on my part, to get me to sign a paper that turned my part of the inheritance over to him.”

She drew in a sharp breath trying to even imagine one of her sisters acting that way. “He did what?”

“He got me good and drunk and then pushed the paper in front of me. Later, I didn’t even remember signing it.”

She flattened her hands out on his chest directly over his heart. She could feel its solid beat under her fingers. “It’s too bad he’s dead. I’d like to punch him.”

He gave her a small smile. “Thank you.” Chad continued stroking her hair, pushing her head back down onto his chest.

But she lifted it again, meeting his eyes once more. “I know that we are just a match of convenience. My safety and reputation in exchange for my dowry.”

He grimaced, his fingers digging deeper into her scalp. “That’s not—”

“It is,” she answered. Then she leaned down and kissed his chest. “But if you let me, we can be…more. I can show you what it means to be part of a real family.”