She didn’t even like Lucian. Okay, well, she liked the Taylor she’d met in the bar but wasn’t particularly fond of the version known as Lucian. And what she did know about him, it was everything she shouldn’t like in a guy. Or at least it felt that way to her. She found him infuriating and smug, aggressive, and, okay, the fact that he read Harry Potter to his sister was sweet and she could tell he truly did care about his sister. She sensed there was more to him than . . . than the walking sex persona, but . . .
But what she wanted was just a kiss, and it had been so long since she was kissed, forever since she felt like she could be devoured by another. How bad could that be? Awareness coursed through her body and the tips of her breasts pebbled under the thin shirt.
This deep, masculine sound came from Lucian, sending a pulsing dart of lust through her. He sensed it. She didn’t know how he could, but he knew what she was thinking. Those thick lashes of his drifted down and she knew he was going to do it. He was going to kiss her right in this hallway. He would press her into the wall, trapping her body there with his, and she wanted to feel him.
What could go wrong?
Cold reality slammed into her. What could go wrong? Hell. Everything, but namely her job.
It was official.
The curse of the de Vincent house was real, because she was losing her mind.
“This is screwed up,” she said. “You’re screwed up.”
“I’m not just screwed up, Ms. Hughes. I’m as broken as they come, but I don’t need to be fixed. I don’t want to be fixed.” He caged her in. “I like all my fucked-up shards and pieces. They make me who I am. They make me real. The question is, can you handle real?”
She should really push him away now, especially since he was telling her that he was messed up. Not that she needed that confirmation, but she didn’t push him away.
Then Lucian made that sound again, causing the very core of her to clench in desperation. Somehow, she didn’t even know, her hands landed on his chest. His skin was smooth and hard under her palms. She didn’t push him away.
He lowered his head, stopping a mere inch from her mouth. A taut moment passed as her heart thundered out of control and her brain screamed for her to end this before it was too late.
“Fuck it,” he growled.
And then he kissed her.
Chapter 18
The first touch of his lips to hers wasn’t timid or questioning. His mouth on hers shattered every single valid concern that had risen to the tip of her tongue. Lucian nipped at her bottom lip, and when she gasped, he took full advantage, deepening the kiss until she was surrounded by the taste and feel of him.
He drank from her, kissing her like he intended to devour every breath she took. And that was how Julia felt.
Devoured.
Julia had never been kissed like this.
His mouth covered hers as he leaned in, lining up all the most interesting parts of their bodies. Hip to hip. Chest to chest. His hand cradled her jaw, tilting her back to gain more access, and she gave it as her heart pounded and pulse skyrocketed.
He slid a hand down her side, under the cardigan and over her hip, to her thigh. His fingers curled into her flesh, pressing through the thin pajama bottoms. Julia’s body took over without thought. When he lifted her thigh, she curled her leg around his.
Julia moaned as he sank into her. Their clothing nothing but a thin barrier between her heat and his hardness. Dragging her hands up to his chest, she clutched at his shoulders as his hips rocked into hers. She trembled against him—against the wall.
Lifting his mouth just enough to speak, Lucian dragged his thumb along her jaw. “God, I’ve been wanting to do that since the first moment I laid eyes on you.”
Julia shuddered as she drew in shallow breaths. A tiny part of sanity returned. They shouldn’t be doing this. Not in the hallway where his brothers could find them. Not anywhere. “Lucian—”
He kissed her again, silencing whatever protests she was working on making, but this time was different. It was slow and deep, as if he were now taking the time to familiarize himself with every centimeter of her lips. It wasn’t nearly as hard, but it was just as consuming, if not more. Her entire body hummed as a deep ache grew and intensified each time he pressed into her.
She was drunk on his kisses.
How easily he distracted her was quite devious, making her wonder if that was how he earned his nickname. It would make sense, because she could barely remember who she was and she sure as hell didn’t protest as that hand of his left her hip and found its way under the hem of her shirt, sliding along the bare skin of her side.
She rolled her hips against his, trembling when a near animalistic groan erupted from him. Panting in between kissing, her back arched when his hand found her breast. Lust pounded through her as her nails dug into his shoulders.
“Julia,” he groaned, and then his tongue was tracing her lips again, demanding entry.
Her fingers reached the short, soft strands of his hair just as his thumb brushed over her nipple. Julia cried out, and he swallowed the sound with another scorching kiss.
“I love those sounds you make,” he said, voice gravelly. “Just hearing them could make me come.”
She lost whatever little breath she had. “You . . . you can’t be serious.”
“Don’t believe me?” He kissed the corner of her mouth. “Touch me and find out. It’ll be over in under a minute. That’s how hot you make me. That’s how crazy you got me.”
Touch him? Oh God, she wanted to. Badly. So much so, that she was dizzy just from imagining herself doing so.
His hot, wicked mouth moved along her jaw to her ear. “I can help you do it. You want that?”
Julia’s eyes drifted shut as she bit down on her lower lip. This was insane. She needed to stop this, but she didn’t when he curled his hands around her wrist. She let him draw her hand down his chest, over the tight ridges of his stomach.
He stopped when the tips of her fingers brushed the band on his pants. “What do you think?” he asked, his lips moving down her throat. “You say yes, I’ll help you. I’ll prove to you just how ready to explode I am.” He caught the skin of her neck between his teeth, sending a bolt of wicked pleasure through her veins. Letting go, he soothed the sting with a swipe of his tongue. “I can show you what I do.”
Lucian dragged his mouth back up the side of her throat. Her fingers splayed wide as he held on to her wrist. “I can show you what I do when I’m thinking of you.”
Her body was at war with her mind. Common sense dictated that she say no, but that wasn’t what she wanted. She should know better, but she didn’t want to listen to the voice of caution.
Julia’s throat dried as she lowered her leg and rasped out, “Yes.”
His answering groan turned into a deep, breath-stealing kiss that Julia realized she had very little experience with. “Thank God,” he whispered, and then he dragged her hand under the band of his pants.
Almost immediately, her fingers brushed over the wet, hard tip. He pulled back just enough that when she opened her eyes and looked down, she could see the head of his cock.
With his other hand, he pushed down the sides of his pants, exposing the thick, long length of his erection. Her eyes widened. She’d felt him, so she had a good idea of his size, but seeing it was a whole different story.
Goodness.
Lucian moved her hand down to the base and then slid his hand over hers, curling their fingers around his thickness. Then he moved again, slowing dragging her hand up and then back down.
She knew how to do this, but there was something incredibly hot with him guiding the strokes. He had control in this moment, and God help her, she was turned on by that. Thoroughly aroused by watching his darker hand swallowing hers and feeling the heated skin under her palm jerking.
“Watch,” he said, kissing her temple and then the other corner of her mouth. “Watch us.”
He didn’t have to tell her to do that. Julia couldn’t look away if she tried. He used her hand to stroke him, slow at first and then faster, squeezed her hand until his entire body jerked.
His body began to move in tune to the motions of their hands. The bead of liquid grew, and her heart sped up. She couldn’t believe she was doing this and she couldn’t stop.