Shadows of the blackwood contract

Chapter 2

The shock in me went down my spine

His words slid into my ear like smoke, hot and suffocating.

His body pinned me harder against the cold marble of the kitchen island, the sharp edge digging into my lower back. The city lights of London blurred behind him, turning the penthouse into a shining cage.

My breath ceased.

"Watching me? What the hell do you mean by that?

A low, dangerous chuckle resonated from his chest.

His storm-gray eyes - the same shade as Dan's, yet so much colder - darkened with raw hunger.

"That night in the club wasn't a chance, Judith.

I orchestrated it. I knew exactly who you were... the woman my brother ruined and left behind.

The mother of his hidden child."

Shock slammed into me like a wave.

I shoved at his chest again, but he didn't move.

His hands on my hips tightened, fingers pressing into the red fabric of my dress, pulling me close against the hard evidence of his arousal.

"You... you knew about Lily?"

My voice cracked, a mix of fury and fear forming inside me.

Lily - my four-year-old secret, the only light in my broken world.

The thought of Ethan knowing about her all along made my stomach stir.

"Oh, I knew everything," he murmured, his lips brushing the shell of my ear.

His breath was warm, sending unwanted shivers racing down my spine.

"I made it my business to know.

While Dan was off playing the victim abroad, I kept tabs on you.

Your struggles.

Your mother's illness.

The debts swallowimg you whole.

You were desperate... perfect for my needs."

His hand slid up my side, slow and deliberate, tracing the curve of my waist through the thin silk.

The touch was possessive, almost reverent, but laced with control.

Heat bloomed under my skin despite the panic growing in my throat.

It had been so long since anyone touched me like this - with such intense, unyielding desire.

"Ethan, stop,"

I whispered, but my body betrayed me.

My nipples tightened against the fabric as his thigh nudged between my legs, parting them slightly.

A soft gasp escaped me before I could swallow it.

He noticed.

Of course he did.

That cruel smirk deepened.

"You say stop, but your body remembers what it's like to be wanted, doesn't it? Dan may have had you first, but I'll have you completely.

Mind, body... and that fire you try so hard to hide."

Emotions crashed over me in a storm. Anger at his manipulation. Shame that part of me - the lonely, starved part - responded to the heat radiating from him.

And beneath it all, a deep, aching longing for the man who had once made me feel alive.

Dan's face flashed in my mind - his tender eyes, the almost-kiss in the hallway. But here was Ethan, his twin, claiming what wasn't his to take.

"I signed the contract for the money," I said, my voice trembling as his lips grazed my neck.

"Not for this.

Not for you to... to use me."

Ethan pulled back just enough to lock eyes

with me.

His free hand cupped my jaw, thumb touching my lower lip with surprising gentleness.

For a split second, something vulnerable flickered in his gaze - a shadow of pain, quickly buried under layers of ice.

"You think this is just about using you?" His voice dropped, husky and rough with emotion he clearly didn't want to show.

"I've wanted you since the first time I saw your photo in Dan's old things.

The way you smiled in those pictures... It haunted me.

While my brother ran from responsibility, I built an empire.

But none of it filled the emptiness.

Then I found you - broken, fierce, raising his daughter alone.

You're not just a pawn, Judith.

You're the one thing that makes me feel something real."

His confession hit like a punch to the chest.

Tears formed in my eyes.

Was this the ruthless billionaire everyone feared, or a man twisted by years of rivalry with his twin? His body pressed closer, the hard length of him grinding slowly against my core through our clothes.

A moan slipped from my lips before I could stop it - low, needy.

"God, that sound," he groaned, his control eroding.

He captured my mouth in an intense kiss, not gentle like Dan's almost touch, but demanding and devouring.

His tongue moved in, tasting me with raw passion.

One hand tangled in my hair, tilting my head for deeper access, while the other roamed lower, slipping under the hem of my dress to caress the bare skin of my thigh.

Heat covered in between my legs.

My hands, meant to push him away, instead fisted in his shirt, pulling him closer.

Emotions grew stronger - betrayal, desire, confusion.

I hated how right it felt, how my body curved into his touch after years of loss of feelings.

His fingers inched higher, brushing the edge of my lace panties, teasing the sensitive flesh there.

"You're already wet for me," he whispered against my lips, voice thick with triumph and something softer - longing.

"Let me show you what it's like to be claimed by a man who won't run.

A man who will burn the world for you and Lily."

Tears slipped down my cheeks even as pleasure built. "Ethan... please. I can't. Dan-"

At the mention of his brother's name, Ethan stiffened. He broke the kiss, forehead resting against mine, breathing ragged. His eyes burned with jealousy and raw pain.

"Dan doesn't get to have you again," he growled, but his touch gentled, thumb wiping away my tears.

"He left you bleeding.

I'm here.

I'll protect you both... but you have to be mine. Fully."

The tension hung thick in the air, our bodies still pressed together, hearts pounding in harmony.

I felt exposed, vulnerable - my dress hiked up, his arousal throbbing against me.

Part of me wanted to surrender, to let the fire consume the emptiness inside. Another part screamed that this was dangerous, a devil's bargain wrapped in passion.

Before I could decide.

Ethan's phone vibrated sharply on the counter. He ignored it at first, leaning in for another kiss, but it buzzed again.

With a curse, he pulled back slightly and glanced at the screen. His face hardened instantly, all desire vanishing into cold fury.

"It's Dan."

My heart staggered.

Dan - the man I once loved, the father of my child, the one whose touch had nearly shattered my resolve just hours ago.

Ethan answered on speaker, his arm still locked around my waist, keeping me trapped against him.

"What do you want, brother?" Ethan's voice was ready.

Dan's reply came through, raw and urgent. "Ethan, we need to talk. About Judith.

About the baby. I deserve answers. Meet me at the estate in thirty minutes. Alone."

Ethan's grip tightened possessively. "She's not your concern anymore."

But Dan's next words froze us both.

"I know the truth about Lily. And if you don't bring Judith, I'll tell everyone exactly what kind of monster you really are... including the secret you've been hiding from her."

The line went dead.

Ethan's eyes met mine, filled with rage and a flicker of fear.

His body was still hot against mine, the intense promise of more lingering in the air, but now a new shadow loomed.

"What secret?" I whispered, my voice barely audible, heart beating faster.