Noble Blood

react.

He sucked in a breath and moaned, his hands going to her hips. He held her trapped, unable to move as his mouth devoured hers, taking everything she’d offered and more. She allowed that small spark of Sidhe power inside her to rise to the surface, to surround them both. She dropped her Seeming, letting everything she was sink into him, needing him to accept everything she’d been telling him.

They were meant to be together. He was meant to be hers. If he tried to run again she’d hunt him down and tie his ass to her bed. That was, if Duncan didn’t get to him first.

He pulled back with a gasp. His expression was horrified. “No.”

She was panting, so aroused she could barely breath. “No?”

“You’re Duncan’s. He deserves you.”

She blinked. The way he’d phrased that struck a chord. “And you don’t?”

His jaw clenched. “Duncan deserves the best.” His smile was wistful. “Sweetheart, you’re the best.” He kissed the tip of her nose and let her go. “Let me go, Moira.”

“Can’t.” She grinned up at him. “I’ve begun Claiming you.” She patted his chest, feeling justifiably smug. “You belong to me now, and you’re not going anywhere.” She blinked up at him innocently. “You don’t want me getting sick, do you?”

“Are you serious?” She nodded. Oh yeah. She was deadly serious, and he’d just have to get with the program. “Uh, no. I don’t want you to get sick.” He gulped. He looked like someone had just poked him in the ass with a stick.

“Good.” She brushed a kiss on his chin and let him go. She watched him turn on his heel and damn near stumble out of the office. She leaned back against the desk and chuckled. There was no way her stubborn vamp was leaving Malmayne property any time soon.

This was going to be fun.

Chapter Five

“What the hell do you want?”

Charles Malmayne paused on his way out of the white limo, his silvery gray eyes widening in astonishment. “Is that any way to greet your uncle?”

Through sheer force of will Duncan kept himself from grinding his teeth. He did not need this right now. He had another mate to Claim, some Vows to recite. He watched his uncle get out of the limo and make his way toward the stairs.

“Perhaps we should take this inside.” Charles gestured to the front door, for all the world as if he was inviting Duncan into his home. Charles had always been arrogant, but since Cullen had passed away he’d gotten bold.

“I don’t think so.” Duncan planted himself in front of the door and crossed his arms. “There’s no reason we can’t take care of our business quickly and efficiently. State your business, Uncle.”

“We have much more to discuss than apparently you are aware of.” Charles smiled, and something about the older Sidhe’s expression had Duncan’s shoulders tightening in anticipation. Duncan’s own face must have been colder than he thought, because his uncle’s next words were, “Aren’t you going to invite me inside?”

“No.”

Charles sighed. “Very well. There is unrest among the clan members. Several of us feel you have not upheld the obligations the lord of the Malmaynes must meet.”

“Such as the punishment of the Dunne clan, the mating of Leo and a suitable Malmayne female, and the execution of Jaden Blackthorn?”

“So you are aware of our demands.”

Demands? Duncan could feel his fury trying to creep over his face but managed to keep it off. No way would he allow Charles to see him upset. “We owe honor debt to the Dunnes. You know this.”

“None of it would have happened if Leo Dunne had just chosen to accept the marriage to Kaitlynn. You know this, Duncan. Something could have been arranged with his pet human. It’s not as if it hasn’t been done before.”

“Theirs is a true bond.”

“Oberon himself proved that under the right incentive a true bond could be broken.”

Duncan’s eyes went wide. “Oberon’s bond was dissolved by the Gods themselves.” And that was only after the Dark Queen had been shown to be in league with pure evil.

“So Oberon would have you believe.” Charles put his hand on Duncan’s arm. Duncan was stunned. How could Charles believe a true bond could be set aside by nothing more than will? “I know two clan members who are willing to fulfill the Malmayne end of the bargain.”

He needed to nip that thought before it bloomed. “That contract is between the heads of the two households. As there is no longer a daughter of Clan Malmayne, the contract cannot be fulfilled that way.”

Charles shook his head. “Duncan. You know who I mean.”

His eyes narrowed. “The point is moot. The marriage contract has already been fulfilled. I am married to Moira Dunne.”

“She is unsuitable.”

Duncan took a deep breath, the rage building deep within him. How dare he malign Duncan’s chosen? “She is mine.”

“What about the debt owed by the Dunnes?”

Duncan rolled his eyes. He was done with this topic. “Get it through your thick skull. We damaged the Dunnes. Got it? We owe them.”

Charles merely shrugged. “And the vampire?”

In an instant, his fists were curled in Charles’s pristine black lapels. For the first time in at least four hundred years he lost his temper in front of a rival. “Jaden is mine.” Charles was a threat to Duncan’s chosen family, and he would see to it that he never came near either Moira or Jaden again.

Charles carefully pulled free of his grasp. “I see. You understand the clan will have something to say about this?”

His lips curled in a feral smile. “Bring it on.”

“Very well then.” His uncle straightened his jacket and stalked back toward the limo. “Duncan?”

“Yes?”

“I will miss you.” Charles got back into the limo with a small wave, shutting the door behind him.

Duncan watched the limousine pull away. What else could go wrong today? He’d have to figure out a way to get Moira and Jaden to return to New York with him, because his worst fears were now confirmed. The clan wanted to replace him as their lord. It was becoming obvious who the rest of the clan wanted as his replacement.

He ground his teeth in fury. Charles Malmayne was his father’s younger brother, born fifty years after Duncan. He had the bloodline to lay claim to the clan if Duncan should falter. The others would accept him without hesitation. He had two daughters, each one willing to take Kaitlynn’s place on Leo Dunne’s arm. Once they discovered he was mated to Jaden they’d have the backing of the White Queen, Glorianna. Her hatred for vampires was legendary in the White Court, which was why most non-Black vampires joined the Gray Court, even the ones with good hearts like Jaden. Where that hatred sprang from Duncan had no clue, but the Queen could be rabid on the subject. If she backed them up all the way he’d find himself under Charles’s thumb before he could blink.

But first he needed to know why the fulfillment of the Malmayne-Joloun marriage contract was so important to his clan. He had to find out before Charles made his move or he would be forced to bow to his uncle’s rule. Charles, elitist bigot that he was, would never tolerate a vampire in the clan. Jaden would be put to death on his orders, and there would be nothing Duncan could do about it. Not without…

He frowned. No. That option was a possibility but not something he dared contemplate, not until there were no other options left to them. He’d have to think of something else.

He turned to enter the house, the argument with Charles fresh in his mind. He knew what Moira had been up to in the office, knew she’d begun to lay her Claim to Jaden. Duncan’s eyes narrowed. Maybe that was the way to