Devlin Dynasty 2: Fall Fury (10 page)

“Agreed. You two will have to fight it out, then. But I feel something deep within

you, Max. Something elemental and powerful. You know of our magic, and I

know of yours.”

Once again, she surprised him. “You know what I am?”

She rolled her eyes. “Of course.”

“And you don’t object?”

Angelina shook her head. “There are all types of people in the world. Some haveno magic within them at all. Then there are others, like you and me, who aredifferent, possessing powers that the average person has no knowledge of. As Itold you before, as long as you don’t harm my daughter and your intent ishonorable, I have no objection to what you are. A merger of Storm and Devlinmagic could be very potent.”

“That it could.” A new admiration for the strength of the Storm family filled Max

with hope for the future. He felt a lot less lonely in this strange new place.

“Now I’m going to return you to Shannon, who, by the way, is currently shooting

daggers at you. I’m certain she thinks you and I are plotting against her.”

“Aren’t we?” he replied with a grin, dancing her over to her husband and

daughter.

Her eyes widened and she threw her head back and laughed, then patted Max onthe cheek. “You’re a charmer, Max Devlin.”

“And you’re a lovely woman, Angelina.”

“
Merci
. Ah, there’s my gorgeous husband.” Angelina moved gracefully from Max’s to Galen’s arms, then pushed Shannon toward Max. “
Ma belle fille
, go dance with Max so he doesn’t feel all alone.”

Sauntering quickly away, Angelina and Galen left Shannon standing in front ofhim.

A very unhappy looking Shannon. She started to turn away, but he caught herwrist and pulled her against his chest, then weaved her into the throng of dancers.

“I don’t care to dance any more,” she said, gritting her teeth through a smile.

“Oh, but we had just gotten to the good part earlier when we were interrupted by your parents.” He spotted the balcony and maneuvered them closer to the double doors.

“You mean the part where I drive my knee up between your legs and crush your

balls?”

“Nah, not that part. The part where I sweep you out onto the balcony for a little

alone time.”

Before she could offer a protest, he had moved through the open balcony doors.

The night was breathtaking, like the woman in his arms. Sultry, steamy, filledwith magic and passion. Her hair gleamed in the partial moonlight, her skintaking on a pearl-like glow.

“I’m going back inside.” She turned, but he held tight to her wrist.

“Stay here with me.”

“We’re not here to play, Max. I have work to do.” Anger tightened her features.

But she didn’t tug at his hand again.

“You’ve worked long enough. Now it’s time to relax a bit.”

“Does ‘no’ just not fit into your vocabulary?”

“Not where you’re concerned. Besides, you don’t really want to say no. You want

to say yes, but you’re afraid.”

She wrenched her arm away and turned toward the balcony, gazing out onto thebusy street below. Okay, they were making headway. She hadn’t gone inside yet.

“Psychoanalyzing me now?”

“Not at all. I just sense your emotions.”

Despite the heat, a cold wind swept over them. Shannon’s hair blew back in thestiff breeze, yet she didn’t budge nor appear to be cold.

“Don’t assume to know how I feel, Max.”

Max stood firm despite Shannon’s attempt to freeze him. “Let me tell you exactlyhow you feel, Shannon. You’re angry because you can’t control me like you’vecontrolled other men in your life. You’re angry at yourself because you feelsomething for me that you don’t want to, and it scares you.”

When he stepped closer, the wind howled fiercely, the temperature dropping bydegrees. She’d put up a barrier, or was trying to. But he’d never been one to letanything keep him from a goal. Undaunted, he stopped behind her, reaching forher arms. Instead of grabbing her, he caressed her from her shoulders to her wrist. She shuddered, but didn’t turn around.

“You’re wrong. That’s not how I feel.”

“Deny it all you like, but there’s a connection between us.”

“That’s my mother talking.”

“Your mother and I agree, then. There’s something that ties us together,

Shannon.”

“That’s all bullshit. Nobody tells me what I should feel or for whom.”

“I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know. You already feel this way;

you’re just trying to deny it. I’m curious as to why.”

“I don’t want you.”

He turned her around, trying to be gentle, but his patience was wearing thin. Hewanted her. His cock was raging, the primal instinct to mate overpowering hisnormal common sense. The urge to slam her against the brick wall behind them,lift her skirt and drive his cock in hard and deep grew stronger by the minute. Ifthey didn’t leave this party and soon, that’s exactly what he would be doing.

Ignoring her denial, he swept his hand over her hair, shuddering at the silken feelof the strands as he threaded his fingers through them. She opened her mouth tospeak, but he’d had enough of arguing. Instinct told him to follow through on hisdeepest desire, and right now his deepest desire was trying her damnedest to getaway from him.

That he wouldn’t allow, so he followed his instinct. He backed her up against thewall then drove his mouth down over hers, silencing anything she might’ve said. His tongue invaded, his lips coaxing hers to respond.

He tried to be gentle. God knows, he tried hard, but lust had taken over, the needto possess stronger than the desire to take things slowly.

Expecting a fight, he was surprised when she whimpered and met his thrustingtongue with equal fervor, her body drawing closer to his. He wrapped his armsaround her and crushed her to him, her full breasts pressed against his chest.

The wind died down, replaced instead by a simmering heat that made him want tostrip them both naked right there on the balcony.

Not a bad idea at that.

No, there were people inside. Passion warred with logic. He had to get them outof there, had to find a way to get off this balcony and head to the hotel.

To his suite, where he could undress her slowly, savor every moment of this firsttime.

Who was he kidding?

“Aw, fuck it,” he grumbled against her lips.

Shannon tore her mouth from his and met his gaze. “My thoughts exactly.”

Chapter Six

Shannon knew she would regret this later. But later was…later. Right now, all shecould think of was Max.

He buried his face in her neck, his tongue licking along the delicate skin. She dugher nails into his shoulder and held him in place, never wanting the delicioussensations to end. His low, guttural growls drove her crazy. Delirious withpassion, she didn’t even care they were on the balcony and that nearly everyoneshe knew stood only a few feet inside.

Screw it. She wanted this. Summoning up a blast of wind, she directed it at thedoors and they blew closed. For good measure, she summoned another stronggust to scoot the wrought-iron loveseat snug against the doorway.

That should take care of anyone wanting to wander outside. As far as the peoplebelow, they’d never see. Shrouded in darkness and tucked against the wall, a largepotted palm provided enough coverage to assure them privacy.

Hell, this was New Orleans, and they were smack in the middle of the French Quarter. People wouldn’t bat an eyelash at a couple engaged in a little outdoorpassion anyway.

Max lifted his head and looked at the door and loveseat, then at her. “You dothat?”

“What if I did?”

He grinned, his teeth gleaming bright white against his tan face. “Great idea.”

His smile died and he grasped the back of her neck, drawing her mouth to his. Helicked her lips, coaxing her mouth open with his tongue, then diving inside.

A mix of emotions clouded her judgment. She shouldn’t want this. Impulsivebehavior was so unlike her, and yet she felt as if she’d been pulled into a vortexand was powerless to stop the raging storm.

Keeping a tight leash on her powers was going to be difficult if Max continued tosweep his hands possessively over her body. Like a man in desperate search ofsomething, he gripped her arms, his fingers traveling down and over her hips,clenching and unclenching his fingers against her flesh.

When he raised the back of her dress and palmed her buttocks, flames of burningdesire licked at her skin He was hot. She was even hotter. And more than readyfor whatever he had in mind.

His touch wasn’t gentle and exploratory. Barely leashed passion burned insidehim, threatening to consume them both.

An insane sense of urgency enveloped her and she knew that sex with Max wouldbe combustible. She prayed for the strength to keep the hurricane at bay.

“Too many clothes,” he murmured, bending down to lick the swell of her breasts rising above the top of her dress. She threaded her fingers in his hair and held tight as his tongue snaked into the valley of her cleavage.

With a savage tug he pulled the bodice of the dress down, baring her breasts. Hekissed each globe, laving her nipples with his tongue. She sank her teeth into herbottom lip to keep from shrieking as tight pleasure coiled deep within her. Hetugged on the aching buds, just as he had in her dream fantasy.

He devoured her breasts, taking as much of them into his mouth as would fit, andwrapping his hand around the rest. Moaning loudly, she closed her eyes tight andjust went with the flow of incredible sensations.

When he’d had his fill of tasting her, he dropped to his knees and she opened hereyes, feeling a breeze between her thighs as he lifted her dress.

Max leaned in and pressed his mouth against her panties, his hot breathtantalizing her with the promise of what would come next.

But surely not out here. He wanted to fuck her, that much she knew. But this?

“Max, stop.” The words came out like a sensual plea rather than a command to cease. She was powerless against his onslaught, barely able to breathe, let alone carry on a conversation.

“No,” he mumbled. “Need to taste you.”

“Later.”

“Now!”

Her legs shook with the force of her desire as Max spread them apart, then tuggedroughly at her panties. The feel of the lacy silk thong scraping her legs was moretantalizing than anything she’d ever experienced. Max helped balance her as shestepped out of them. He tucked the scrap of black fabric into his coat pocket.

The knowledge she was fully naked under her dress, that her breasts were baredto someone who might see, both mortified and aroused her.

But nothing was more enticing than seeing Max on his knees before her, lifting upthe hem of her dress and staring at her sex.

When his gaze met hers, his eyes were pools of dark desire, his lashes like thedarkest night and those strange yellow flecks in his eyes were glowing.

“I love the way you smell,” he whispered. “Like sweet honeysuckle mixed with the unmistakable scent of sex. I’m going to eat you until you scream for me, Shannon. And then I’m going to fuck you until you scream again. And I don’t give a damn who hears it.”

She shuddered her next breath, unable to respond. Not that he expected her to,because he leaned in and pressed his lips against her clit, then licked her.

Shannon couldn’t withhold the gasp that escaped her lips. Nor the whimper thatfollowed when his exquisite tongue traced every contour of her pussy, divingbetween the folds of her slit to lap up the juices seeping freely there.

This was nothing like what she was used to when it came to sex. Max had beenright. She
 
had
 
controlled the men she’d been intimate with before. Maybe she’dpurposely attracted men she knew she could dominate.

But deep down inside, she’d never been satisfied with a man who took his ordersfrom her. In business, she was in charge. In the bedroom, she wanted a man tomaster her.

Max Devlin would never be dominated by anyone, man or woman. That shealready knew. It was a strange thought to be having while he worshipped betweenher legs, but even this act showed his control over her, because she was quicklylosing any she’d had. Or thought she’d had. She hadn’t been able to control adamn thing since the moment she’d met him.

She tangled her fingers into his hair when he lifted one of her legs and placed itover his shoulder, then spread her wider, opening her sex to him. He slipped twofingers inside her wet cunt and thrust hard. Biting down on her lower lip to keepthe cries at bay, she panted instead, overcome with sensations of blinding heatand a sweet ache that built fast and furious within her.

He covered her clit with his lips and sucked, drawing out the mewling sounds thatcouldn’t possibly be coming from her throat, nor the guttural groans that made hersound like a desperate bitch in heat.