Page 47

“I’d very much like to show you what I’ve done in the master suite,” he said.

“I’d very much like to see.”

Mordecai wet his lips with a languid drawing of his tongue and stepped back, presenting his hand. His gaze never left mine.

I clasped the offering and let him tug me to my feet. Our chests collided. Our fingers weaved together. He leaned in like he was about to steal a taste but stopped before making the connection.

“Come. This way.”

I followed him from the dimly lit kitchen into a darker hallway. The air was heavy and still tinged with the faint smell of damp earth, like the mansion hadn’t been aired properly. From the hallway, we ascended the stairs to the mezzanine, Mordecai’s footfall barely issuing a protest from the aged wooden boards. Mine seemed to echo hollowly all around, no matter how lightly I stepped.

Not once did he stop to turn on a light. Not once did he stumble or hesitate. The deeper into the house we went, the more turned-around I became.

Every window we encountered was covered in heavy drapes, admitting the faintest strips of light around their edges or none at all in some cases. We remained cloaked in shadow. From what I could see, nothing much had changed on the second-floor landing. The same bare walls. The same grand chandelier looming crookedly overhead. The same dark hallways leading east and west.

Mordecai walked swiftly and soundlessly. I hustled to keep up, lest he accidentally release my hand and I lose him in the dark. Partway down a hall, he paused, and I recognized the bathroom, although I couldn’t see beyond the threshold. A residual chill tickled my spine at remembered ghosts in mirrors that I didn’t actually see.

Mordecai slipped inside, leaving me in the hallway. No impression of a window shone from within, although I could have sworn I’d seen one during the tour. Perhaps I misremembered. I heard him shuffle through drawers as though seeking something he couldn’t find.

“I’m on PrEP,” I blurted, figuring he was on the hunt for a condom.

The sound of rummaging stopped, and Mordecai materialized in the doorway. I couldn’t get a read on his expression, and for a beat, wondered if he’d heard me.

“Do we need a condom?” I asked. “Are you—”

“It won’t be necessary. It was lubrication I was after.”

“Ah. And?”

“No luck.”

“We’ll figure it out. Lead the way. It’s too dark up here. I’ll get lost otherwise.”

Mordecai glanced along the hall. “Oh, right. I forgot you couldn’t see where you were going. Apologies.”

“None needed. I don’t need light for what we plan to do.” Wiggling my brows, I snagged his waist and found his mouth in the dark, kissing him as I backed him against the door frame.

Mordecai didn’t protest and moaned.

I roved his body, exploring edges and contours, hills and valleys. I couldn’t get enough. Too many clothes in the way. I wanted him naked. Journeying lower, I located the confined swell of his fast-growing erection and palmed it, urging it to grow.

A strangled noise left his throat, and he pressed his hips forward, clasping hold of my upper arms. Encouraged, I continued until we were nothing more than dueling tongues, wandering hands, and clashing teeth.

Another grunt and a soft nip, then Mordecai shoved me away with a growl. “Enough, Ensley. I will fuck you in a proper bed, not a corridor.”

I chuckled, still fondling his erection while gnawing his shapely jaw. “Such a gentleman. I’m not picky.”

Tipping his head, he allowed the assault for another minute before clamping a hand around my wrist. “I am. Stop before I come.”

“That’s the goal, isn’t it?”

“Devil take you. You’re a handful.”

“You’re smiling, so I don’t think that’s a bad thing.”

“Come now.”

He dragged me in the direction I assumed was the master suite. My eyes were adjusting to the dark, but I had no sense of depth and couldn’t predict how far we had to go to our destination. My memory of the one and only time I’d been to the second floor was skewed.