GraceinMoonlight (20 page)

Taking a deep, fortifying breath, she turned to face the
woman who’d haunted her nightmares along with Ettore.

And realized her grandmother had lost some of her power to
shock and awe her.

With Kaisie at her back, she looked Graziella in the eyes
and waited.

Her grandmother raised one perfectly curved eyebrow at her.

“We need to talk.”

“No, Grandmother. I don’t think we do.”

“Well, you can stick your head in the sand now but when I
die, which won’t be too long from now according to my doctors, I think you’re
going to want to understand a little bit about how this company works…since it
will belong to you and your children.”

Chapter Eight

Grace sat on Kaisie’s screened porch, staring out into the
dark.

Every now and then she’d see a shadow move through the
underbrush. She knew the only reason she caught sight of the wolf was because
he wanted her to.

The young soldier, Seth, was out there. She knew it was him.
He’d come to the house earlier to tell her he’d be on patrol tonight.

She liked Seth. He didn’t say much but he always had a smile
for Alex and treated Amy like he did everyone else. He didn’t talk much but
when he had something to say, it was relevant and insightful. And he had the
driest sense of humor, something they had in common.

The ride back to the den from the city had been quiet. The
men hadn’t had much to say and she had been too stunned from her grandmother’s
announcement to contribute to anything they might have said.

Her grandmother was dying. She was eighty-seven, so this
wasn’t a shock. Grace couldn’t even muster up much sympathy because her
grandmother had never shown her anything other than mild interest.

But Grace had been beyond shocked when her grandmother had
dropped her bombshell this afternoon.

The only question Grace could ask was “Why?”

She continued to ask it even though her grandmother was
still in New York and she was back in Pennsylvania. Where she planned to stay.

There was no way she was going to take control of her
grandmother’s company, not even to hold it in trust for her children. She
didn’t want anything to do with the
Mal
. She wanted to put all that
behind her.

And yet…

The money from the company could fund her research into
Alex’s unknown disease and the
lucani
disease Dane Dimitriou was trying
to cure. She could hire someone to run the company, which had been in her
family for almost a hundred years, for her.

For that matter, she could give the reins over to her
father, who was bound to be upset that his own mother had tossed him aside in
favor of the daughter he’d barely spoken to in years.

“You don’t have to make a decision tonight. You know that,
right?”

She turned to find Kaisie watching her from the doorway. Her
lips automatically curved in a smile at the sight of him leaning against the
jamb.

Sexy just wasn’t a strong enough word to describe what she
thought of him. Long, lean, sleek. He made her heart pound just from one glance
of those green eyes.

She couldn’t believe how much she wanted him. Or how very
much she loved him. It felt like a fever in her blood and she’d never thought
that could be a good thing.

Now she wanted it to consume her.

She held out her hand and he smiled as he walked over to
take it. And that fever became a raging bonfire.

Drawing in a deep breath, she caught the clean male scent of
him and couldn’t wait to take a bite out of the firm flesh of his chest. She
couldn’t imagine her life without him anymore.

And though that should have scared the life out of her, she
felt nothing but absolute joy.

He grabbed her hand, lacing their fingers together then
drawing her hand to his mouth. She thought he was going to kiss her but his
tongue flicked out to paint her knuckles with heat.

She shivered and tugged on his hand but he refused to
release her. “How much trouble are you in with Cole?”

Kaisie shrugged, as if it didn’t matter that he’d disobeyed
a direct order from his king and killed Ettore. “He understood, especially when
I told him your grandmother gave us more than Marrucini ever would have.”

“We can’t be sure she doesn’t have a hidden agenda. If the
name she gave us is legitimate, she risked so much. I just can’t believe she’d
do that. You don’t know her, Kaisie. She’s not the type of person who would do
that out of the goodness of her heart. The woman has no heart.”

“I didn’t smell a lie on her, babe. I seriously think she
thinks she’s telling the truth.” He bent over to press his mouth against hers
for a hard, heated kiss. “We don’t know that Marrucini would’ve given us any
more. At least now we have a place to start.”

Staring into Kaisie’s steady eyes, she wanted to believe her
grandmother hadn’t lied to them. That the information she’d given them about
the leaders of the
Mal
was correct. But she knew her grandmother.

“Kaisie—”

He bent and pressed his lips against hers again, this time
wrapping his arms around her and lifting her off the couch.

“Time for bed, babe.”

She liked the sound of that. “But—”

“No buts.” Another kiss.

Blessed Goddess, his kisses had the power to scramble her
brain and leave her panting for him. “Are the kids asleep?”

Kaisie strode through the living room to his bedroom on the
other side of the house. “Alex is. Amy’s pretending to be and that’s good
enough for me.”

“Kaisie…” She sighed as she nuzzled her nose against his
neck. “I love you but you didn’t sign up for this much crazy.”

“Don’t worry, baby.” He kicked the door shut behind him. “I
can handle crazy. I don’t think I could handle losing you.”

Tears welled and she didn’t bother to blink them away. When
he laid her on his bed and started to strip away her clothes, she watched him,
seeing the heat in his eyes flare as he uncovered her.

He had her naked in seconds, his gaze sliding along her like
a physical caress. Her nipples tightened, her thighs clenched and she could
barely breathe, even though he did nothing more than stare at her.

When he finally met her gaze, she nearly combusted.

And when he tossed his shirt over his head and shucked his
jeans down his legs, she felt her juices seep from her body.

He didn’t make her wait any longer.

He fell on her with a hunger she returned, their mouths
fused, their skin pressed tight. She slid a hand between them to wrap around
his cock, hard and hot against her stomach. So silky.

Kaisie groaned and tore his mouth away to begin trailing
kisses down her neck.

She knew he was headed toward her breasts and her nipples
ached for the feel of his lips on them.

But she ached between her legs even more.

With one hand on his hip, she pushed and prodded until he
complied with her silent demand.

The tip of his cock slid between her sensitive lower lips,
filling her slowly and sensuously. She couldn’t help the moan that escaped when
he finally began to move.

With her arms wrapped around his shoulders, fingers sinking
into the muscles of his back, she curled her legs around his hips and arched
closer, taking him deeper.

“I love you.” His breath rasped against her neck followed by
a quick nip of her collarbone.

As he began to thrust, he took her mouth again and stole her
breath.

He didn’t let her up for air until she began to convulse
around him. He rode her through her orgasm, pushing her higher, extending the
sensation until her arms fell limp to the bed.

Only then did he release, the pulse of his orgasm making her
breath hitch.

“Kaisie…”

“I know, babe.” He pressed a kiss to her cheek. “You love
me.”

“Always.”

Epilogue

“Push, Mara. That’s it. The head’s about to crown.”

Struggling through the pain, Mara fought to keep her eyes
open and on her cousin, Amy, as Amy translated the nurse Tamra’s words into
sign language.

Though she suspected her body would do whatever it wanted,
she didn’t want to do something wrong and hurt her child.

Behind her, Grace braced Mara’s body with her own, her
presence a comfort she couldn’t acknowledge enough. Grace had been a godsend
these last few weeks, steady, calm, the mother she’d always dreamed of having.

Now she was going to be a mother and—

Another contraction ripped through her abdomen and, though
she heard herself scream in her head, no sound came out of her mouth. The
streghe
hadn’t been able to release the spell. Yet.

She bore down, trying her damnedest to force her child from
her body. Fear, joy and an almost tactile sense of anticipation crowded inside
her.

What if—

Amy was signing. “The head’s out. On the next contraction,
push hard and you’ll be able to hold your son.”

Her son. Only hers. The
lucani
king had promised her.
No one would take her child. No matter what.

Blessed Goddess, please—

Another agonizing contraction and she pushed and pushed
until she thought she’d never be done and then, finally, the pressure eased.

She opened her eyes, desperate to see her baby. She caught
sight of a tiny arm then a small body. The head. She needed to see his head.

At first glance, she couldn’t see his face. Then she
realized why.

It was covered with the caul. But not completely. The caul
covered only a portion of his face.

She started to cry.

* * * * *

Race didn’t know what the hell he was doing here. It wasn’t
as if he was gonna go in there and…do something.

What the hell would he do? Mara probably wouldn’t even want
him there. Hell, he didn’t know why he’d
want
to be in there. He only
knew that when Kaisie had told him Mara was in labor, he’d had to come.

Six hours later, he’d done nothing more than pace like an
expectant father. Which he wasn’t. The baby wasn’t his. Mara wasn’t his.

Hell, most of the times they’d crossed paths since she’d
been rescued from Florida, she’d barely looked at him.

He probably scared the shit out of her with all the tats and
the body built for heavy-duty violence.

Beautiful, fragile, terrified,
pregnant
Mara didn’t
need him hanging around her, making her more anxious than she already was.

Vaffanculo
, the girl had more than enough problems
without his completely schizoid emotional reaction to her. She didn’t need him
following her around like an overgrown, lovesick hellhound.

He ran a hand over his head, the stubble softer than it had
been just yesterday. He hadn’t shaved it in a few weeks. Not since they’d
gotten back from Florida. And no, he wasn’t about to analyze why.

The murmur of voices from her room increased and he froze.
Closing his eyes, he listened then heard the distinctive sound of a baby
crying.

He ran for the door, stopping before he pushed it open.

Looking in the small window, his gaze immediately went to
Mara.

Crying. Fuck, she was crying.

He had a hand on the door ready to push through. He didn’t
give a fuck what anyone else thought. He wanted in there and—

Her face totally transformed with a smile. A weepy, wet,
totally exhausted smile that made his heart beat once again.

She reached out and Tam put a tiny, messy little body into
Mara’s arms.

Mara only had eyes for the baby but Race saw the pensive
glances exchanged by Grace and Tam.

Shit. Just…shit.

Also by
Stephanie Julian

Lucani Lovers
1: Kiss of Moonlight

Lucani
Lovers 2: Moonlight Ménage

Lucani
Lovers 3: Edge of Moonlight

Lucani
Lovers 4: Moonlight Temptation

Magical
Seduction 1: Seduced by Magic

Magical
Seduction 2: Seduced in Shadow

Magical
Seduction 3: Seduced and Ensnared

Magical
Seduction 4: Seduced and Enchanted

Magical
Seduction 5: Seduced by Chaos

Magical
Seduction 6: Seduced by Danger

Magical
Seduction 7: Seduced by Two

Size Matters

Print books by Stephanie Julian

Lucani Lovers
1: Kiss of Moonlight

Magical
Seductions: Shadow Magic