Chapter 5

Five

Malcolm

H olly was here. I could scarcely believe it. The sound of her breathing and being able to steal my hand across her breast to feel her heartbeat helped steady me.

I hadn't realized how much I'd missed her until I had her back in my arms. True, I'd thought about her and missed her, but I'd tried to convince myself that was because I lost a respected colleague, and being a duke was a very solitary business.

I chalked up to lust how often I beat my cock off to memories of her. As soon as I saw in her in the pub with Fergus, I realized there was no way she was staying somewhere else. She belonged at Lachlan.

After I left New York so suddenly last spring and she failed to answer my calls, I hired a private security firm to keep an eye on her for a few months. Securing her an apartment was the tricky part. Having her stay in my townhouse was my first inclination, but Holly would never take charity, so coming up with a safe plan required some planning.

I was able to get her into a one-bedroom apartment with an actual doorman that was still walking distance to the hospital. I had a third party pay the building manager to cook up a story about the resident being a grateful patient. It wasn't uncommon in NYC for the wealthy to bestow their favors upon those that they crossed paths with.

And I had my reports about how things were going with her. It was my saving grace. I requested pictures too. She was thinner and looked tired. I knew my sudden absence from the emergency room would have created more work for her.

I almost had a heart attack when she cut her long hair to a shoulder-length bob. The memories of that glorious hair falling forward while she rode me still haunted my dreams. Along with the bob came ponytails for work and while she was out for runs.

Holly was a creature of habit. I justified the security to myself by making sure she was safe. And that was the only thing that allowed me to get the scant sleep that I did.

Glancing down at her in my arms, her pale skin revealed dark circles under her eyes. I'd forgotten how deliciously curvy she was and alone.

She was staying in Lachlan until the stalker was behind bars; that topic was closed for discussion.

It was beyond belief that someone could get to her. One thing was certain, changes were going to be made when she returned to New York. I wasn't risking her safety again.

Though we were intellectual equals, I'd been delighted to discover Holly was a natural submissive in bed. "Harder" and "more" were her favorite words. And that fact that she'd given me her virginity was like a gift I treasured.

In our time apart, she hadn't been with anyone else. I hadn't either, for that matter. I simply hadn't had an interest in anyone else I met.

That night in her room in New York wasn't a fluke. There was something between us, something good. I'd never felt like this about anyone before. We needed time to explore it, and that was in short supply right now. It seemed that was the only thing I couldn't buy. But I was from a long line of Lachlan men and giving up wasn't in our DNA. I would solve the puzzle of Holly, just like all the other challenges I faced.

"What time is it?" Holly stirred then wiggled, so her ass was up against me.

"Early." I'd drawn the heavy curtains around the bed to keep it warmer. We were under a thick pile of blankets. I ran a hand over her hip. Her skin was soft and warm.

"It's so dark out."

"I drew the curtains around the bed to keep things warmer. But I guarantee it's dark outside. Scotland in winter makes New York look like Miami."

"I don't know about that. I don't remember wearing a bikini much to work."

"Thank God for that. Otherwise, the whole emergency room would have descended into chaos."

I rolled her over so that she was under me. After I'd gone down on her last night, she'd fallen into a satisfied sleep. It surprised me how knowing her so well translated into amazing sex. Now she wrapped her legs around me, and I growled appreciatively. Her fingers stroked my back. I ached to claim her pussy. I craved to sink every inch of my cock into her and fuck her so hard she couldn't walk without thinking of me.

I dipped my fingers to stroke over her pussy lips and found her already wet.

"That's a friendly, good morning." I kissed her open mouth while I slid a thick finger inside her dripping folds.

I felt her muscles clamp around my finger as she released a sigh of pleasure.

"I'm going to fuck that sweet little pussy of yours so good you'll be thinking about me all day."

Her fingers flexed into my back. "Mmm, yes please. I want to see if that's true. I want that."

"Want what?" I teased, kissing her eyelids, the delicate rim of her ear, and the soft skin of her neck.

At the same time, a second finger joined the first, and I increased my pace. That sweet little nub of her clit was swollen and eager. So damn eager.

I longed to suck on it like I did last night, tasting her juices, but my overpowering need was to sink my cock deep inside her. I would feel no peace until I rode her hard and filled her pussy with my cum.

My cock slid inside her with one smooth glide. I stilled, loving how tightly she gloved me.

"You are fucking tight. It feels amazing." I kissed her. Her lips opened and I dove in exploring her mouth with my own.

A moan deep in her throat urged me to start stroking her. She moved her legs higher around my waist, allowing me deeper access to her sweet pussy.

I was so transported that I was only dimly aware of the commotion in the hall. This was my private wing of the castle, which meant most of the time, it was as quiet as a mausoleum.

Raised voices and slammed doors nagged at the edges of my consciousness. I relegated it to some maintenance issues. In a four-hundred-year-old castle, there was always something that needed fixing. Later today, I would find out what was going on and make sure the staff knew that this wing was off-limits until further notice.

But with Holly in my arms, the damned castle could have been on fire, and I wouldn't want to be disturbed.

"My lady, please, let me wake his Grace."

"Nonsense, get out of my way, Philips. I'm his mother, I've seen him in his birthday suit before."

Suddenly, the heavy green velvet bed curtains snapped open. The light was dim in the room, but there was no missing the figure standing next to the bed.

"Aha!" My mother was dressed in a navy twin sweater set with our family tartan in a tailored skirt. It was daybreak, and she was already in pearls and pumps. If the apocalypse ever came, she would greet it clutching them.

Holly let out a squeak of surprise underneath me.

"Get the fuck out." I roared, turning my head as I hunched my body over Holly to shield her.

Now, my mother released the bed curtains to peer at my bed.

"Mother, get out. Now." The fury in my voice would have frightened anyone else.

"Finally! I thought I would never get grandbabies." My mother clapped her hands together and smiled, as foreign to the woman as respecting privacy.

"What?" My fury was replaced with confusion. I glanced at Holly. She had slid away from me and pulled the covers up to her chin.

"I've been setting you up with Lord McAdam's drippy daughter, Rosalie, because she has a girlfriend, because, you know, there's still the matter of heirs. A mother's work is never done."

"Mother." I didn't know what horrified me more. That my mother barged in here, thought I was making babies, or had planned to marry me off as a beard. This was a lot to process before sunrise. "Wait for me in my study."

"You can't blame a mother for having her son's best interests at heart." She didn't seem inclined to move in the least. She craned her neck to get a better view of Holly. "She's rather small. Is she legal?"

"I'm right here. I can hear everything you say," Holly said tartly from her blankets. "Perhaps you'd like to inspect my teeth."

"There's no need to be vulgar, Dear. Your dentist can send a report to my secretary." My mother turned to me. "Does she have to be American?"

"Mother, you are American." I ground out through clenched teeth.

My mother ignored my comment, as she often did. She thought she was more Scottish than my father was, and he was born in this castle.

"Really?" Holly's voice was full of surprise. "I'm from the Bronx."

My mother shuddered. "We'll say she's from Connecticut."

"No one is saying anything, Mother."

"Of course, she will be presented to the press. It's hard to get a good look at her in this light, but an excellent stylist can fix anything."

"Mother," I ground my teeth. "You have three seconds to leave, or I will get up and personally show you the door.

She snapped the curtains closed. "Carry on, you two. We can catch up at tea time. Out you go, Philips. His Grace does not wish to be disturbed this morning." My bedroom door closed firmly behind her.

I fell back on the bed, pulling Holly to me.

"That was the former Duchess of Lachlan. I don't think she's ever been in this room before."

"It wasn't the introduction I expected to your family. In fact, I wasn't expecting to meet them all that."

I hadn't been planning on introducing Holly to my mother with her in my bed. Jamie or Fergus had cracked under her interrogation. And the fact that she thought I was going to let her plan my wedding to some unknown was beyond ludicrous. I'd been working my ass off for the past half-year staving off creditors and saving the ancestral home. I didn't have the luxury of hunting for a bride even if I wanted to.

Though, to be honest, the only one I craved was snuggled up against me.

"Sorry about that." I hadn't decided how much to tell Holly. I'd been planning on keeping her and my life here separate somehow. Clearly, that was not happening now.

"You never told me your mother was American."

"Had I told you anything about my family life?" Her skin smelled fantastic. It wasn't perfume because she'd only arrived with a backpack.

"No, but somehow that makes more sense how you were so at home in New York and can be so at home in a completely different life here."

"I'm not at home here. This is my duty." My hands roamed over her body. She smelled like heaven. I cupped her a heavy warm breast, "Would you like to rest some more?

Her fingers stole over me and stroked against my cock. "I'm not that tired. Now, where were we?"

That was all the invitation I needed.

"Get on all fours, put your ass in the air for me." I took her earlobe between my teeth, nipping it. Goosebumps rippled across her skin, and that wasn't from being cold.

With the bed curtains closed, it was like we were in our own private world again. Holly rolled over, getting on her hands and knees and the sight gripped me. She glanced back at me over her shoulder. Her cheeks blushed, but her eyes were bright.

I knelt behind her, running my fingertip down her spine with the barest touch. A low, breathy moan escaped her. She had dropped her head down so I couldn't see her face. Her submissiveness fueled a fire in me that I'd never experienced before.

Mine. Mine. Mine.

I paused, leaving my fingertip at the top of her puckered pretty pink asshole. Oh yeah, I would fuck here too. Not right now, but I wanted to claim every part of Holly now that she was in my bed.

I brought a hand down to lightly slap her ass.

"Oh!" She moaned. She glanced back at me again, her face a fiery red.

"I love the imprint of my hand on your ass." I rubbed the imprint, savoring her curvy ass cheeks. "Do you like that, Holly?"

"I…I." She pressed her as into my hand.

"Tell me. There are no secrets in my bed."

She grew quiet. I could hear her brain churning with her tendency to overthink.

I slapped her ass again, this time teasing her clit at the same time.

She stiffened in surprise again, but then she immediately arched her back, pushing her ass higher in the air.

I smiled. Holly liked it. A lot.

But I was going to make her say it.

"Holly, tell me."

A shuddering breath and finally, "Yes."

Interesting. Holly could be submissive physically, but admitting it out loud would be more difficult for her. That didn't worry me. That just meant I could bring her even greater pleasure by combining words and actions.

I'd been jerking off to the memory of her reacting to my filthy talk in her bed in New York for months.

I slapped her other ass cheek. "Yes, what?"

She paused. "Yes, please."

I leaned over her. My chest touched her back as I whispered in her ear. "Try again."

Her shock was a palpable thing. Her body had softened at the contact with my chest. Now she stiffened.

"Yes, Your Grace."

"Good girl." I ran the tip of my tongue along the rim of her ear. "Tell me what you want, Holly."

"Fuck me." She dropped her head down again and arched her back. Her ass pressed against my raging cock.

I laughed darkly. "That's a given, Lass." My cock was so damn rigid, and my balls were tight.

I dragged the tip of my cock along the seam of her pussy.

"Fuck, you're wet." Slowly, I inserted the head of my cock in her sheath. Pleasure made me dizzy with the need to see my milk spill from her. The desire to sink myself fully inside her overwhelmed me. I closed my eyes, fighting for control. She'd been a virgin when I fucked her. That tight little cunt of hers needed tender care.

Her pussy muscles held the head of my cock inside her. She pushed her ass against me, taking more of me.

With a roar, I grabbed her hips and thrust balls deep inside her in one smooth glide. The force propelled her forward, and if I hadn't been holding onto her, she would have collapsed.

"Yesss." Holly hissed.

I hadn't fucked anyone without a condom before her, and the sensations threatened to overwhelm me. I could feel every bit of her holding me tight inside her. It was heaven, and I wanted to stay there forever, but I knew I could bring her a pleasure she'd never known before.

I pulled back until only the head of my cock remained inside her.

"Please," she cried, her voice rising to a wail at the loss of me inside her.

This woman was made for serious fucking. I thanked my lucky stars that I'd found her, and that I was her first.

The thought of not being her only lover filled me with a possessive rage.

"Please, what Holly?"

"Please fuck me." She paused. "Your Grace."

Of fuck. It was the first time in my life that my title brought me pleasure.

I thrust back inside her, taking her deep.

"Grab the headboard, Holly."

She did, and I settled into a rhythm, making myself go slower than I wanted. My cock loved how she gripped me and tried to hold me inside her when I pulled back. Between my pre-cum and her wet cunt, I slid in and out of her, the sound of our mixed pleasures filling our hideaway.

I was going to fill her with my cum and a primitive part of my brain loved knowing she would walk around this castle with my milk inside her. She was here and mine to protect. I would take care of her in every way. And that meant fucking that pussy of hers.

"Malcolm, that's so good," she moaned softly.

"Don't you dare come until I tell you." God, it was taking all my concentration not to empty my load into her. But I wanted her to come so hard that she passed out.

"I'm so close." Her hands clenched the headboard so hard that her knuckles whitened.

I push forward, taking her with harder strokes until my cock is so swollen with the need to come I can't take it anymore.

"Now, Holly, come for me, baby! Now!"

"Fuck me, Your Grace!" Holly cried. Her voice was hoarse. Her body shuddered, and she let go of the headboard.

I slipped my arm around her waist, pulling her back against me as my cock pulsed. My release was so strong, my cum emptied into her pussy, one thick ribbon after another.

Fuck, I hope I've knocked her up.

I held her against me as we collapsed on the bed. The only sound was our panting breaths.

She roused from her pleasure, turning to me. "Malcolm, I'm not like that."

"Like what?" I let my hand fall to her breast, cupping the fullness. Her nipple hardened at my touch. My cock was still hard inside her.

"The things I said—I'm not like that." She turned her lovely gaze up to mine. She was worried about what had happened between us—that her submission to me would make me think differently of her.

"It's us, Holly. It's who we are. Nothing to ever be ashamed about, love. Sleep now."

She opened her mouth to protest, but I leaned down, silencing her with a kiss. Her lips met mine and she stilled.

I wanted her again, but she needed to rest

I pulled back regretfully and tucked her head against my chest. "You're safe now. Close those pretty eyes and just be for a while."