The Duke's Unwanted Second Wife

Mature Content ahead

”What course of action should we take then?” Eilika asked with anxiety.

”I shall dispatch a message to Louis immediately. He can investigate the matter directly and discern what is transpiring there,” Damian asserted. ”For the moment, our priority is to uncover who delivered this note and how they managed to trace our movements here.”

”Could someone have followed us from Varos?” Eilika suggested, looking up at him.

”It is highly probable,” Damian replied. ”Otherwise, a threatening message of this nature could not have reached us so swiftly, particularly at a cottage we occupied only hours ago. I shall look into the matter. Do not let it consume you with worry.”

”It is a matter of profound concern, Damian,” Eilika insisted with apprehension. ”The Queen confided our private affairs to someone who has now proven to be our enemy.”

”That should be impossible,” Damian stated, shaking his head. ”The high tower where she is confined remains under strict guard. No one enters without the King’s permission, and the King assigned only his most loyal men to watch her.”

”Then who could this anonymous sender be?” Eilika asked, her brows knitting together in confusion.

”I suspect Lord Xavier’s son,” Damian answered. ”Though I cannot take formal action on mere suspicion alone. Whatever their identity, they clearly seek something in return, of that much I am certain.”

He offered the explanation with a steady voice, aiming to calm her rising panic. Yet beneath his composed exterior, he realized that he needed to unmask the sender and neutralize the threat before they could strike him and destroy his family.

”If you say so,” Eilika replied softly. ”You ought to dispatch a word to the King or the Crown Prince as well. They must be made aware of these developments.”

”I shall,” Damian agreed with a nod.

”And you may speak freely with me if this weighs upon your heart,” she added, her gaze softening. ”I know how deeply matters concerning Liliana affect you.”

”They do not,” Damian said, his tone resolute. ”Not any longer. I was once bound by those sentiments, but that time has passed. In truth, the memory of her betrayal brings only bitter indignation. My sole intention was to lay her deceit bare before the people, and had the provincial council not intervened, I would have resolved the matter long ago.”

Satisfied by his answer, Eilika stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him, resting her hands against his broad back in a quiet gesture of solace.

”Just know that I am with you,” she whispered softly. ”We will face this together.”

”I know,” Damian replied.

He rested his palm gently against her arm before they slowly pulled back from the embrace.

Moving his hand upward, his fingers cradled the nape of her neck as he leaned down and captured her lips in a deep kiss. The forgotten parchment remained tucked tightly in his other hand, pressed firm against the small of her back.

Eilika gasped softly into the kiss before responding with equal fervor. Without breaking the embrace, Damian slid a arm beneath her knees, lifting her effortlessly into his arms and carrying her toward the bed.

He tossed the envelope onto the side table before sliding his hand back down to her waist, pulling her against him.

She pressed a hand gently against his chest, panting soft breaths between them. ”The lunch meal... it will be ready shortly.”

”Let it wait,” Damian murmured against her skin. ”I am hungry for you.”

He trailed his lips down the column of her neck, pressing hot kisses into her skin that left warm, faint marks in their wake. His hands moved with quiet purpose, shifting the heavy fabric of her skirt to trace the line of her thigh as he drew her closer beneath him.

”Mmm”

She bit her bottom lip, her back arching slightly off the mattress at his cool touch against her warm skin. A sudden shiver ran through her frame. Her fingers instinctively tangled into his hair, guiding him as he trailed a line of slow kisses down the length of her collarbone.

Damian shifted upward, gathering one of her legs into his grip to trace a path of sloppy kisses higher along her thigh.

”Damian,” she whispered as her gown fell disheveled around them, her resistance dissolving completely under his touch.

”Yes, my love?” he murmured, a faint smirk playing on his lips .

’My love?’

Hearing that, Eilika’s heart fluttered wildly against her chest, but her breath caught in her throat as he nipped lightly at the delicate skin of her inner thigh.

The next second, his lips softened into a soothing kiss that chased the momentary sting away, a quiet gasp escaped her instead.

Flustered by her own surrender, Eilika pressed the back of her hand against her mouth.

Damian looked up, his eyes dark with intent. ”You still shy away from me so easily,” he whispered, a low humor threading his voice. ”What will you do when I shed the rest of these clothes?”

Her cheeks flushed crimson at his words, the heat intensifying a second later as she felt his warm hand glide beneath the damp linen of her undergarments, finding the sensitive core of her body.

She pressed her thighs together tightly, her heart hammering against her ribs as she realized Damian’s steady gaze had not broken for a single moment.

”Damian... do not look at me like that,” she murmured, her voice barely above a breath as heat flooded her face.

”Eilika, tell me what you wish,” he said, asking for her consent while maintaining that unwavering, intense look. ”If we proceed, I do not intend to stop today. I have wanted this for far too long, and once I begin, I will take all of you. Tell me what you desire? Do you want this as much as I do?”

”I do,” Eilika replied without a moment’s hesitation, looking directly into his eyes. ”I want you to love me.”

A genuine, warm smile broke across Damian’s face. Without taking his eyes off her, he reached down and swiftly unbuttoned his shirt, discarding the garment over the edge of the mattress.

Eilika swallowed hard as her gaze swept over his bare torso—the broad shoulders, the firm line of his chest, and the lean muscle carved by years of training. Her eyes naturally traced lower, widening in a sudden hitch of her breath as she noticed the bulge against the front of his trousers.

Damian gently took hold of her knees, parting her legs as he shifted closer between them.

”It is time I attend to my wife,” he murmured softly. With a deft flick of his fingers, he untied the simple cotton ties of her undergarments and drew them away, laying her completely bare to him.

Flustered, Eilika instinctively threw her gaze upward to the timber ceiling, dropping her hands to cover herself in a fit of sudden modesty.

But Damian was quicker; his fingers caught her wrists in a gentle grip, holding them securely above her head against the sheets.

”There is no need to hide,” he whispered in a deep voice. He claimed her mouth again, his tongue sliding against hers as his free hand moved lower, parting her and pressing a finger into her.

She was tight around him.

”Ngh...”

A soft, muffled sound escaped her against his lips. He felt the resistance and knew he would need to ease her open carefully before going further.

He continued with steady patience, coaxing her still with slow kisses. The hold on her wrists had loosened; his hand now rested above one breast. Freeing it, he lowered his mouth and drew the tip between his lips, sucking firmly.

”Damian... Nhhh...”

Her back arched from the mattress.

He pressed his finger into her again, working her open with care so she might take him without pain. If she was not ready, he would stop. Her comfort stood above his own need.

”Damian... please... more.”

Eilika demanded, though she scarcely understood the new pleasure building in her body.

He shifted lower, settling between her thighs and pressing his mouth to her.

”No— Angh—”

The sound broke from her the moment his tongue dragged over her wet flesh. Her moans grew louder; her fingers twisted in his hair. The sensation struck hard enough that the room seemed to tilt around her.

Her moans rose higher with every firm stroke of his tongue.

”Damian, it feels strange. You should stop. Something is happening—” Eilika’s voice broke as she begged while her fists knotted hard in the sheets.

”You are close to your release, wife,” Damian said. He paused only long enough to push one finger into her with ease, then added a second.

When both were seated, he returned his mouth to her, tongue working steadily over the nub while his fingers moved in slowly.

Her hips jerked against him.

The tension in her body wound her tighter. He did not ease the pace, holding her open to the rising climax until the pleasure crested hard and forced a sharp cry of his name from her throat.