Had Orion known all along that Rafe was working for the feds? If so, then why not kill him? Unless the hint of legitimacy was what helped Orion get what he needed. And maybe casting blame on Rafe took care of two birds with one stone. An assassin made for the perfect fall guy.

“He probably sent someone else to grab the diamond the night of the ball and then sent me to do the dirty work.”

“I can’t believe that kind of man exists.”

“He’ll never hurt you again.”

She licked her lips. “So if you didn’t take the diamond, then what are we going to do?”

“We’re going to find your birthright, and I’m going to protect you from Interpol and from your brothers. They only way anyone is getting to you is over my dead body.”

Later that night, Diana blinked in the dim light, disoriented. She hated waking in the middle of the night. Especially in a new environment. It was always so difficult to go back to sleep.

Rafe had taken a bedroom next to hers at the penthouse. They had a lot to work out, and he said he couldn’t do that in her bed.

She clutched the pillow in her arms closer, wishing it were him. It shouldn’t be so hard to sleep alone. It was what she was used to after all. But she’d quickly grown accustomed to being sheltered and cherished in his strong arms. Now she felt so isolated sleeping by herself. Maybe he’d finally washed his hands of her.

After everything, she wouldn’t blame him.

Then she turned and he was there.

“Rafe?” She sat up, shocked that he was just standing in the darkness, watching her. If it had been anyone else, it would have been totally creepy, but she knew this was his way of protecting her. He’d keep watch without taking any rest for himself. But she didn’t want to be just protected by him. She wanted to be loved by him.

“Please don’t hate me.”

It shocked her how vulnerable she sounded. But it was how she felt. Every moment without him only drove home how shattered she’d be if he left her. Every moment was a painful reminder of how much he was risking because of her past.

Rafe moved quickly, his legs eating up the distance between where he stood next to the window and the bed. He crawled over the covers, landing on his arms, hovering over her.

“I could never hate you.” His nose brushed her cheek, and she heard his quick inhale, like he was taking in her scent.

It was so unbearably erotic, the idea that he wanted her scent in his lungs, that she moaned and moved against him. Rafe growled softly under his breath, the raw sound traveling through her system and settling right in her core. Heat spread out from there, radiating out through her limbs and washing over her skin. Goose bumps rose, and his breath on her skin, his fingers on her arm, and the weight of him pressing her into the mattress were suddenly all she could think of.

“Rafe, please. I need you.”

She clawed at him, unable to articulate the sudden, all-encompassing need she felt. It was like a living, breathing thing, this need to be surrounded by him. Maybe a part of her thought if she could merge their souls together she’d have a piece of him that no one could take away.

“I need you too. Diana. My sweet Diana. You have no idea how much.”

For someone like Rafe, a man of such few words, it meant everything to hear that he was just as lost in this as she was. Did he feel the same urgency to have, to take, to taste as she did? Diana gave in to the desire to touch and ran her hands over his thick, glossy hair and down the broad shoulders that sheltered her so wonderfully. Rafe smiled softly at the touch, clearly enjoying the tactile sensation of having her hands all over him. He pulled back slightly and then tugged his shirt over his head.

Diana had gone to bed wearing nothing but a T-shirt, so she yanked it over her head and dropped it over the side of the bed. Rafe stood and shed the rest of his clothes. Diana watched as that beautifully cut body emerged, looking like an avenging angel in the darkness. He was so very beautiful and all hers. For now.

She held out her arms to him, welcoming him to her in every way. Rafe took her lips in a brutal kiss, pinning her to the bed with his iron grip on her waist. She gasped and moaned into his mouth, her skin heating with every lash of his tongue and every sinuous press of his thick cock between her thighs. He slipped and rubbed through her wetness, using her own lubrications to ease the way as he teased her. Diana turned her head and bit his arm, thrilled with the dark appreciation that lit in his eyes.

“Take what you need from me. I don’t trust myself to be gentle when I want you this much.” Rafe lay on the bed and gestured for her to climb on top of him.

Just when she was about to climb astride him, Rafe cursed and pointed at his nightstand. “Condoms. They’re in the top drawer. The whole penthouse is well stocked.”

The reminder made Diana think of her vomiting that prior day. She put a hand to her belly. What would Rafe think if he knew that he might have already tied himself forever to the girl who’d lied to him and brought danger to his family?

“Diana? Are you okay?”

She nodded and retrieved the condoms from the drawer. When she didn’t appear to be moving fast enough, Rafe got up and took the box from her hand.

“We don’t have to do anything. I would never want you to feel pressured.”

Diana put her fingers over his mouth. “I’m not feeling pressured. I’m just thinking how lucky I am to have you. To be here right now. The FBI was a wake-up call for me. My brothers would have killed me. I guess it’s just hitting me now that I’m all alone in the world.”

Tags: M. Malone The Deep Duet Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net