Jaden edged closer. He wanted to watch that hard cock shuttling in and out of Moira, wanted to see the ecstasy on both their faces when they came. He wanted to spill his seed on both of them, mark them, claim them in his own twisted way so they could never leave him, never hurt him again.

Something was wrong. Something didn’t make sense, but it was too late now. He tried to pull back, to distance himself from the fantasy but he was coming, pulsing into his hand, the orgasm so intense he saw stars.

Green and silver stars.

Duncan’s gasp was followed by a guttural moan as he pulsed deep inside her, giving her his seed, his Claim on her complete. “Moira.” He collapsed against her, his eyes tightly closed. His hand cradled the back of her head, bringing her mouth around to his. He kissed her softly. “Moira.”

He smiled. Moira’s affection peppered her touches, her kisses. It would deepen in time, with care and the attention he hadn’t been able to lavish on her before Jaden came home. As far as he and she were concerned, everything would be all right.

As for Jaden? Duncan’s eyes narrowed with stubborn intent. Well. He’d just have to make it all right.

Jaden panted, his eyes closed tight, his erection still in his fist. He could feel the water beating down on his back, the temperature turning cold. How long had he stood there, beating off, wishing he could be with Duncan and Moira?

Gods, he was so pathetic. He laughed, the sound filled with pain. He needed to wrap this fucking assignment up and get the hell out of fucking Nebraska. Maybe he’d head to New York next, visit some old haunts. Look up his Sire and finally pay the Black Court fucker back.

It was time to live his life on his own.

Jaden entered Duncan’s study with as much nonchalance as he could muster. He did not want either Duncan or Moira to know what dirty, nasty thoughts had been dancing around in his brain while he’d been supposedly getting squeaky clean.

Well, he’d put so much effort into “cleaning” his cock it probably did squeak.

They weren’t there. Jaden sniffed, checking for their scents. His cock went from limp to hallelujah in two seconds flat. They’d had sex in here. Recently. The faint hint of blood lent a sweet, coppery tang to the scent that had him fucking salivating like Pavlov’s dog.

Well. Shit. Had he been using his imagination, or had he been in their minds, like some pervert, watching them actually make love?

Man, Duncan was going to kick his ass. The Sidhe as a whole did not share well. Toys, cars, lovers, it was all the same. They saw, they wanted, they claimed it as theirs and woe to he who wanted a little taste. Duncan was a powerful Sidhe, over five hundred years old and lord of his clan. He would not take kindly to the knowledge that Jaden had seen his wife naked and having hot, sweaty, grinding sex… Jaden shivered with want and swallowed hard. He had to stop thinking like that. One hint that Jaden had been in Duncan’s mind, riding his orgasm, watching Moira’s, and Jaden would be one unhappy vamp. Duncan would break out the rotating pineapple attachment for that one.

His asshole clenched just thinking about it.

He glanced toward the window with longing. Maybe he could make a quick getaway, call them from Reno. Or Monte Carlo.

Or Mars. Yeah. Mars might be far enough away. Breathing was highly overrated anyway.

“Jaden, glad you’re down early.”

Shit. Busted.

Duncan took a seat on the edge of the desk, right where Jaden had imagined the torrid encounter. “There are some things we need to discuss without Moira hearing them.”

Jaden blinked, his eyes glued to Duncan’s ass resting against the desk. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

Duncan’s voice had taken on a husky quality. He looked up to find Duncan staring at him, his lips curled in heated amusement.

Wait. Heated?

He decided to focus on something other than whatever was going through Duncan’s mind. Because unless he missed his guess it wasn’t Duncan’s big head that was running the show right now. Why that should be he had no clue, but hell. What did he know about the Sidhe other than what Duncan and the Insane Malmaynes had taught him? Maybe Duncan had some kind of exhibitionism fetish he’d never bothered to tell his best friend about, or he was reliving his afternoon delight with Moira. “Is Moira in danger?”

The heat died in Duncan’s eyes, to be replaced with that iron determination Jaden knew so well. It was that determination mixed with the man’s compassionate heart that had gotten Jaden out of that alleyway alive all those years ago. “So far there has been talk of discontent over my mating, but no real threats. Not yet, anyway.”

Compassionate Duncan might be, but no one had ever claimed he was stupid. “It’s a matter of time, then.”

“Yes.”

Jaden ran his hands through his hair. “There’s something you need to know.”

Duncan nodded, like he’d been expecting Jaden to say something like that.

“I’m a Blade.”

Duncan’s whole body tensed. Jaden could hear his heartbeat speed up. “What?”

“I’m one of Oberon’s Blades. I’ve been working some cases for The Hob for the last two months.” Longer than that, really, but what Duncan didn’t know couldn’t get Jaden’s ass kicked.

Duncan’s jaw was working again. He was going to owe his dentist a fortune if he kept that up. “And now?”

Jaden bit the bullet. If things were bad enough that Moira was on the verge of being threatened then Duncan needed to know. “I’m here on a case.”

Duncan’s eyes closed. “After the case is over? Will you stay?”

Jaden shrugged, faking a nonchalance he didn’t feel. The urge to run his hand over that stubbled jaw was almost irresistible. “Then I move on to the next one.” He smiled. “You always knew the baby bird would someday fly the nest, old man.”

The slow smile that crossed Duncan’s face sent a shiver of fear down his spine. The last time Duncan had smiled like that…well. The man he’d smiled like that over was finally walking again, wasn’t he? “We’ll see.” Duncan shifted, his expression easing. “The case?”

Jaden settled into his usual seat in front of Duncan’s desk. He wondered if Ian had set it back up or if Duncan had. “Rumor has it some of the Malmaynes are edging toward the Black.”

He shielded his eyes from the sudden burst of silver light that shone from the Malmayne lord. “Henri.”

“Care to tone that down? You’d give spotlights hissy fits.” Jaden blinked rapidly, trying to adjust his eyes. “I see spots before my eyes,” he muttered, ignoring Duncan’s chuckle. “Geez, old man. Calm down.” The name Henri finally registered. Henri was the worst sort of toady and firmly of the belief that a Sidhe’s shit didn’t stink. He was also a raging bigot. He bet Henri was horrified that even someone with Leo’s polluted blood almost married into the pure Malmayne bloodline.

No, that wasn’t right. Henri had tried to get Leo to somehow mate into the Malmayne clan. Was almost insistent about it, in fact.

What the fuck was going on? At this rate he’d need a flowchart to keep track of the crazies and their plots.

“I still don’t know how they think they’re going to manage to get Leo to fulfill the marriage contract considering the man’s already true bonded to Ruby. Besides, the only female Malmayne candidate is dead unless we start looking at the cousins.”

“You’re true bonded to Moira. That should have been enough to fulfill the contract, even in their eyes, since you’re head of the clan and Moira is a direct descendant of Aileen.” Jaden rubbed his chin, thinking. He ignored the speculative gleam in Duncan’s eyes since, really? The man was acting fucking weird. Had he figured out that Jaden had taken a little joy ride through his sex life? “So, what? You think they might have another contender to bring forward?” Another Deranged Darling would just make his day. Give him something to sink his teeth into.