Chapter 7: The Master’s Bed

My legs felt like water as I walked down the dim, quiet corridor toward the master suite.

The heat between my thighs was a burning, undeniable reminder of what Damian had done to me on the terrace. His seed trickled down the skin of my inner leg with every step I took, staining the inside of my red silk dress. My heart hammered against my ribs like a trapped bird, every instinct screaming at me to run, to escape the Rossi estate before these two brothers completely consumed me.

I pushed open the door to the master suite and stepped inside.

The room was bathed in the soft, flickering light of a dozen tall candles. The heavy velvet curtains were drawn tight against the balcony glass, blocking out the howling storm outside.

Sitting at the foot of the massive king-sized bed was Lucian.

He was still in his crisp black tuxedo pants, but his dress shirt was unbuttoned at the collar, revealing the sharp line of his collarbone and a glimpse of broad, muscular chest. He sat quietly in his wheelchair, holding a crystal glass of amber scotch between his long, elegant fingers.

When the door clicked shut, he slowly raised his head. His cold, dark eyes locked onto mine, taking in my disheveled hair, my swollen lips, and the rumpled, stained red silk of my dress.

"You took your time on the terrace, Valerie," Lucian said, his voice quiet, smooth, and chillingly composed.

I stood near the door, my hands trembling as I held the edges of my dress together. "Damian... Damian was showing me the garden view."

Lucian took a slow, deliberate sip of his scotch, his eyes never breaking contact with mine. A faint, razor-thin smile touched his lips, a smile that held zero warmth.

"Did he show you the garden?" Lucian asked softly, setting his crystal glass down on the bedside table with a quiet clink. "Or did he show you how well he obeys my commands?"

I froze. "What?"

Lucian pressed a small silver button on the armrest of his wheelchair. The motor hummed quietly as he rolled himself closer to me, stopping just two feet away. The scent of cedar and expensive tobacco rolled off him, identical to Damian’s scent, yet colder, more calculated.

"Damian is my sword, Valerie," Lucian murmured, leaning forward slightly. His dark gaze dropped to the hem of my red dress, where the faint dampness bled through the silk. "He executes my orders. He handles the dirty work. And when I require a job done with absolute precision... I will send him."

My stomach dropped into a bottomless pit. "You... you ordered him to sleep with me?"

Lucian didn't answer directly. He raised one pale hand, his long fingers gently catching the hem of my dress and lifting it slightly, revealing the dark, wet trail running down my bare thigh.

He didn't look disgusted. He looked like an artist examining a completed masterpiece.

"The Rossi empire needs an heir, little bride," Lucian whispered, his thumb lightly stroking the bare skin of my knee, his touch surprisingly hot against my cold skin. "Rival families are circling like vultures. They think because I am confined to this chair, the bloodline dies with me. They don't know that my brother and I share more than just a face."

"You're monsters," I breathed out, a sob catching in my throat as hot tears pricked the corners of my eyes. "Both of you. You're using me!"

"We are preserving what is ours," Lucian corrected smoothly, his hand sliding higher up my thigh, his palm spreading over my bare skin with possessive, unyielding force. "And you, Valerie, signed the contract. You belong to the Rossi name now. Every inch of your skin, every breath you take... and every drop of seed placed inside you."

He pulled my thigh forward, forcing me to take a step closer to his wheelchair.

Before I could react, Lucian gripped the front of my red silk dress with both hands and tore it open down the center seam. The expensive silk ripped with a loud, violent sound, falling away from my body and exposing my lace panties and bare chest to the candlelight.

I gasped, covering my chest with my hands, but Lucian’s dark eyes flashed with an intense, sudden fire that shattered his fragile, invalid facade.

"Beautiful," Lucian growled, his voice dropping an octave into a deep, guttural tone that sounded terrifyingly identical to the man from my wedding night.

He gripped my waist, his hands strong, heavy, and completely unyielding. He pulled me down onto his lap, trapping my hips against his hard thigh muscles.

My heart did a violent flip. I looked down at his legs, the legs everyone believed were paralyzed, and felt the rock-solid tension in his muscles as he held my full weight without a single trace of weakness.

"Lucian..." I gasped, my eyes widening in shock. "Your legs... you're not…"

"Shh," Lucian purred against my ear, his lips grazing my skin before his teeth bit lightly into my earlobe. "Don never reveals all his cards, Valerie. Not even to his wife."

He didn't give me time to process the revelation. His hands swept over my bare back, pulling me flush against his chest as his mouth claimed mine in a dark, ruthless kiss.

Where Damian’s touch was wild, primal, and explosive, Lucian’s kiss was cold, methodical, and completely suffocating. He took his time, his tongue exploring every corner of my mouth, stealing the very air from my lungs until I was gasping, my fingers helplessly digging into his broad shoulders.

He reached down between us, his large hand cupping my core right through my torn lace panties. He felt the slick, wet warmth left behind by his brother, and instead of pulling away, his thumb pressed hard against my swollen peak, drawing a sharp, loud moan from my throat.

"So wet," Lucian rasped against my neck, his hot breath sending shivers through my whole frame. "My brother did a fine job preparing you for me."

"Lucian... please," I whimpered, torn between horror and the overwhelming, traitorous pleasure surging through my body.

"Please what, my sweet wife?" Lucian growled, sliding his hand beneath my lace panties, his fingers sinking deep inside my heat in one swift, unyielding thrust. "Please let me claim what my brother started?"

I screamed softly into his neck as he set a slow, deep, punishing pace with his fingers, hitting the exact same sensitive spot Damian had touched on the terrace. My hips arched helplessly against his hand, my body surrendering completely to the intoxicating power these two men held over me.

"Look at me, Valerie," Lucian commanded, his dark eyes burning into mine through the candlelight. "Tell me who you belong to."

"You..." I choked out, my inner walls clamping around his fingers as a fresh wave of heat began to build in my stomach. "I belong to... the Rossi empire..."

"Good girl," Lucian whispered, a dark, wicked smile spreading across his handsome face.

He lifted me effortlessly off his lap and threw me onto the center of the grand king-sized bed. Before I could catch my breath, he stood up from his wheelchair, tall, powerful, and completely unburdened, and unbuckled his belt in the flickering candlelight.

From the dark corner of the room, a subtle red security light blinked twice on the wall camera.

Damian was watching. And Lucian was about to take his turn.