Lydia Dare - Wolf Next Door

"Ye mean in the bedroom?" Elspeth asked with very little concern for propriety. Lily blushed almost as much as Prisca.

Prisca nodded quickly. "Bedroom. Garden. On the settee." She drew herself back to the present when she recognized the wistful tone of her own voice.

"I hope you mean at the dower house," Lily said, a smile suddenly tipping the corners of her mouth.

"Of course!" Prisca cried. Then she couldn't keep from snickering. "But here's the problem. It's all for

me

."

"I doona ken what ye mean," Elspeth said, her eyebrows scrunching together.

"Oh, never mind," Prisca said, sure her face was aflame.

Lily covered Prisca's hand with her own. "Don't worry. As long as he

is

coming to you, you have nothing to be concerned about."

"I would think so, too," Prisca admitted. "But when he comes to be with me, I get all the pleasure and he gets none." There. She'd said it. She blurted the last. "Ever!

We

haven't

even

consummated

the

marriage yet!"

"Oh." Prisca and Elspeth both understood at the same time. Lily spoke. "You mean you've never?" The women shot astonished looks at one another. "That's a surprise."

"Imagine if you were me," Prisca grumbled. "On the one hand, I'm extremely pleased to be so well taken care of. But I would like to reciprocate, just a bit. Otherwise, I just don't feel right about it."

"Seduce him." Elspeth shrugged, as though it was a simple matter.

"What?" Prisca gasped. "I don't know how to seduce him," she groaned.

"All I have to do is look at Simon…" Lily began, then blushed prettily.

"I seduced Ben. I had ta take all my clothes off under the light of the full moon ta get his attention, but I did. It's how I convinced him ta claim me. We hold more power than we realize at times."

"Claim? What does that mean?"

"Will is goin' ta teach ye. Doona worry."

"And as the moon approaches, it will become more and more difficult for him to resist," Lily piped in.

"Truly?"

"Aye, truly," Elspeth concurred.

"Oh, why me?" Prisca groaned. "My

husband

is courting me, and now I have to

seduce

him to get him to make love to me."

Lily and Elspeth both giggled at the same time.

"I could think of worse situations to be in," Lily said, a smile upon her face.

Thirty-Four

Will didn't particularly care for the smug expression on Simon's face as he regarded him from behind his new mahogany desk. The duke leaned back in his chair and folded his hands as his grey eyes swept across Will, who was leaning against the study doorjamb.

"Just what is the meaning of that look?" he asked his brother.

Simon smirked, which was rare. "I hear you've been a busy man, William."

A busy man? "I do hate it when you're cryptic, Simon."

"Tell me, are you experiencing problems

rising to

the occasion

, where your bride is concerned?"

Will blinked at his older brother. Certainly he didn't mean that the way it sounded. "Rising to the occasion?" he echoed.

"You've always been a lust-driven man, Will. So it's the only answer that popped to my mind. You've made an excellent show of caring for your wife's needs without indulging a bit for yourself, it sounds like."

How could Simon possibly know that?

Apparently the mortified look on his face amused Simon even more, because the duke started to chuckle. "Women do talk. I can't help the fact that I have excellent hearing."

Will growled.

"Save all that for tomorrow night, little brother," Simon advised. "But honestly, are you all right? Everything in working order? Or did Brimsworth do permanent damage somehow?"

Not wanting anyone else to overhear the conversation, other than Ben and Oliver who were probably enjoying themselves immensely at his expense, Will stalked into the room and slammed the door shut. Simon's eyes didn't even grow round with surprise. He simply shook his head. "Do be careful with that door, old man. It's not accustomed to such abuse."

Will snorted. He'd heard Simon slam it on more than one occasion. "So that we're clear, everything

works jus

t fine." He'd been submerging himself in icy bathwater for days now to keep his lusty side at bay. The moon, almost completely full, was making that rather difficult.

"Well, I am glad to hear it. I truly was concerned about you."

"No need," Will grumbled, sliding into one of the overstuffed chairs in front of Simon's desk.

"Do you mind me asking why you haven't bedded your wife yet, William?"

Of course, he minded. What went on in his bedroom was none of Simon's damn business. Not that he could say that to his brother. Since the duke was pack leader, it was always best to show him respect, no matter how grudgingly. "You're the one who said I should court her."

Simon's dark eyebrows shot up in surprise. "That's what you're doing?"

Will shrugged. He'd never actually courted a woman before, not in the traditional sense. He was probably going about it badly, but he wanted Prisca to know how much he loved her, cherished her. Showing her was better than telling her. "That, and I'd really rather not scare her off at the moment," he admitted.

?"

"You know what we're like days before the moonful. She'll be better able to handle me after I've claimed her. Until then, I don't want to take any chances."

"So you've decided to claim her after all?" Simon sounded pleased.

Will nodded. Prisca loved him, and she accepted the truth about who he was, amazing as that sounded. In his heart, he'd vowed never to let anything stand in his way if she returned his affections.

"Good. You had me worried," his brother confessed. "Now that Brimsworth is gone, you've nothing to worry about."

Will leaned forward in his seat. "Thank you for that, Simon. For sending him away."

"Thank Major Forster when he returns. When Brimsworth came to ask about a mentor, he stepped up and offered to deliver him to Canis House."

"You handled that situation beautifully, as you do everything else."

"Stop trying to change the subject." His brother smiled. "Have you told her? Does she know what to expect?"

Will winced. "Not the particulars, no." He wasn't certain how Prisca would take to the idea of him leaving a permanent mark on her neck. It was a pretty neck.

"Well, you're running out of time to remedy that, William. Do so before tomorrow night."

"Is that an order?"

"Does it need to be?"

Will shook his head. He knew Simon was right. He just didn't relish the conversation he had to have with his wife.

***

Prisca found her husband reading

The Times

in the dower house sitting room. At least she thought he was reading. Upon further inspection, she noticed his eyes didn't move at all; he seemed to be lost in his own thoughts.

She could stand there and watch him all day. The way his brow creased and his lips twisted up in contemplation. He was mesmerizing.

A moment later, he dropped the paper to his lap and looked at her. The intensity of his gaze startled her, and she gasped. "Will."

"Priss, come here." He flipped the paper onto the rug and gestured to his chair.

She crossed the floor to stand before him, and in one fluid movement, he tugged her onto his lap.

"Will," she giggled as he kissed her neck and his hand slid up her side.

He groaned, and Prisca couldn't help but grin in response.

Seduce him. That's what Elspeth had suggested

. It couldn't be that difficult. She ran her hands up the fine lawn of his shirt until she reached his collar. Then she stroked her fingers into his hair and reveled in her own power as he shivered beneath her.