Sabelle sent him a rueful smile. "I've heard you have very persuasive ways with women. Use them."

Duke swallowed. A vision of his type of persuasion played in his head: Felicia naked on his bed, his fingers clamping her wrists above her head holding her beneath him as he plunged deep, deeper.

No, he couldn't use such methods on Felicia. She might become his mate, but in her heart, she was Mason's. He had to remember that and keep his bloody hands off her.

Still, fever burned through him when he thought of her on the other side of the door, alone. Waiting.

Ice hollered for Sabelle. Insistently. A mate's demand. She turned and ran, leaving Duke to face Felicia alone. Fist clenched, he knocked as gently as he could manage.

"Who is it?"

"Simon. May I come in?"

A long pause. Finally, she opened the door a crack. Blue eyes like a Caribbean sea stared back. Pale curls twined around her shoulders and streamed over the sweet mounds of her cotton-covered breasts. He could still taste her sugary flavor on his tongue. And he ached for more. The need heated him from the inside out, and he wondered how he'd ever find the strength to leave her untouched, let her walk away. Somehow, he had to.

Felicia backed away from the door and let him in. The bed looked rumpled and warm. Duke saw the outline of her body on the sheets. And got hard. Damn ...

"Felicia," he began. "I know this situation isn't optimal, but--"

"You needn't give me your sales pitch. Sabelle already delivered it. You're the most available wizard of the group. But we both know this is a fantastically bad idea."

"Because I want you?"

Felicia blushed, hesitated. "Is that why Shock and Lucan think that you regard me as your mate? Even Sabelle hinted at it."

Duke gritted his teeth. Telling her the truth would do no good, but as Shock had pointed out, he couldn't lie. "That, coupled with my desire to protect you, may have planted the idea in their heads."

"And it had nothing to do with our kiss?"

She was dangerously close to the truth.

He restrained an urge to wince. "I didn't tell them about it. Everyone is on edge ..."

Technically, not a lie.

Felicia paced. "The problem is, mating with any wizard to protect myself and help magickind betrays Mason, but you ..."

Would be the worst choice because Mason despised him.

"I won't touch you."

Duke assumed she'd be relieved. Instead, she looked perplexed and a bit agitated.

"How will you get energy? Sabelle explained how you derive it."

Damn it. Sabelle had best not explain more to Felicia, like the fact she was his destined mate and the lengths to which a wizard would go in order to claim his woman.

Those facts would only make her more skittish.

"I'll manage."

She froze. "With other women?"

"Does it matter as long as I keep my distance?"

Would she be jealous? Duke held his breath, hoping she'd refute him, hoping she'd offer herself. If it weren't for Mason, he'd be inside her morning, noon, and night.

Evening, dawn, twilight--anytime he was awake and she was willing. And that would drag him deeper under her spell and hurt so much more when she left. Mason would hate him even more. Regardless, need pounded inside him, and Duke almost didn't care about Mason or the pain.

Almost.

"Can you? That kiss we shared ..." She bit her lip, betraying her nerves.

"So help us both. Don't let me ..." Touch you, taste you, feel you close around me while you scream in ecstasy. "I only have so much strength. Stop me next time I tell you to."

Anger tightened Felicia's face. "You overwhelmed me. I had no time to think or breathe or speak."

True. He'd backed her against the door, shoved his body flush against her soft curves, and devoured her tender lips. Her only crime had been responding--a small infraction comparatively. "You're right. Sorry. I'm prepared to Call to you, which I believe is our best course of action, despite the ... drawbacks."

She looked wary, as if she didn't like the fact he hadn't assured her that he could keep away. Smart girl. Duke feared once the words had been spoken and she was his that the fever boiling his blood now would scorch away his restraint. But letting Mathias anywhere near her was far worse.

"We're running out of time," he pointed out.

"Yesterday, I nearly married a man I very much esteem. My best friend. I understand you're suggesting a temporary arrangement, and I'll forget it all eventually.

But it's frightening."

"You're not afraid of wizards." If she had been, she'd have run screaming from the lot of them earlier.

"Perhaps foolish on my part, but no."

He stepped closer. God, her scent, wholesome yet so fucking arousing, nearly brought him to his knees. "You know I'm willing to do anything necessary to keep you safe."

Her shaky sigh reached deep inside him. "Yes. And I appreciate it."

Knowing he shouldn't, Duke closed the distance between them a bit more, leaning against the wall, trapping her between him and the mattress. "You're afraid of me. Our kiss."

Felicia tried to hide it, but she was every bit as affected by him as he was by her.

That fact sizzled all the way to his core.

She hesitated, stuttered, "It didn't mean anything to you, I know. All your women ... It was just energy, yes?"

"Magickind doesn't exchange energy through kissing."

"Oh." She swallowed.

Duke frowned. Her reticence went deeper than normal uncertainty in a foreign situation, almost like she feared their attraction, their connection.

A terrible thought jolted him. "Did some man hurt you, Felicia? Break your heart?"

She jerked her startled blue gaze to him. "No. Before Mason, I only dated one other man. Tristan and I parted amicably."

Shoving aside his burning jealousy that his brother and some unknown wanker had touched her, Duke frowned at her words. Though she wasn't a femme fatale by nature, she was gorgeous enough to have men falling at her feet. Since she didn't, there was a reason. Once they'd mated, he'd have time to figure the mystery out.

"Shall I Call to you, then?"

For a long moment, she said nothing, then finally nodded. "How do we ...

proceed?"

No one had prepared her. Damn. "Wait here."

Duke dashed through the hall, looking in several rooms until he found a pen and paper. He jotted down the Binding words, then darted back to Felicia, his heart racing from more than the sprint.

Tonight, she would be his. Perhaps not in every way, but Duke couldn't deny how wonderful it would feel to call her mate, even if only for a while.

Back at her side, he handed her the scrap of paper, hoping that she didn't see his hands shaking. "Once I speak the Call, you say this in return. Then it's done."

She scanned the words, then glanced up, her blue eyes hesitant. "These sound very ... permanent."

"In our world, mating is usually sacred. Despite what you may think, mate-breaking is rare. Unions last hundreds of years, and normally we don't undertake a bond for mere protection." He took a risk, grabbed her hand, and squeezed. Damn it, he ached to do much more than comfort her, but he didn't dare scare her away or test his own restraint. "These aren't normal circumstances."

"Of course not. You're willing to help me, and I'm being a ninny. I'm sorry. I--"

"You're fine. Ready?"

She hesitated, then nodded.

Again, knowing he shouldn't, he laced their fingers together. His heart chugged faster as he looked deep into her eyes and swallowed all inflection. If she detected how badly he wanted this, she might run the other way.

"Become a part of me as I become a part of you. And ever after, I promise myself to thee. Each day we share, I shall be honest, good, and true. If this you seek, heed my call. From this moment on, there is no other for me but you."

The rightness of those words slammed over his senses. The fever that had raged inside him since the moment they met skyrocketed. Need scraped across his skin, making him restless. Making him burn. Reminding himself that he couldn't act on it, he clenched his jaw and waited as the silence dragged on.

"Felicia?"

Chapter 9

"HELLO." A BEAUTIFUL WITCH with light brown curls and matching eyes entered the sophisticated but unfamiliar bedroom and smiled sweetly as Duke shrugged out of his winter coat. "Clothed or naked?"

He nearly choked. "I beg your pardon?"

She hung his coat over the footboard, then waved her hand in front of her chest.

Instantly, the buttons of her blouse came free, exposing plump, white breasts barely concealed by delicate white lace.

A week ago, Duke would have been drawn to this witch. Hell, after that display, he would have gotten her naked and horizontal in thirty seconds. Now, he stared resolutely at her face--and not an inch lower.

"This ... can be done clothed?"

"Mostly so, yes." Her smile turned from bright to soft. She studied his magical signature with hazel eyes, trying to hide her curiosity. "You've Called to someone?"

It showed. Good. Any alteration on his signature might keep Felicia safe. "Yes."

His thoughts spun back to her little bedroom in the cave, Felicia's hand curled in his, their fingers linked. She'd felt warm, vital, small. And trusting. Granted, her trust in him was limited, yes. But a start.

Into the hushed silence, he'd spoken the Call, forcing himself to deliver the momentous words in calm tones. He'd really wanted to back her onto the mattress, sink deep inside her, then howl out the words as they found pleasure together. Bloody impossible.

"Um ..." The unfamiliar witch's eyes narrowed in study, her face puzzled. "Are you ill?"

His heart stuttered. Did his signature still appear wonky, shiny? In case she knew anything about Untouchables, he didn't dare ask.

The witch frowned, scanning him. Then she smiled again. "Of course you're not.

You look quite healthy. Silly me."

He breathed a sigh of relief at her conclusion. "Just fine."

The witch settled onto the side of the sumptuous bed covered in a sleek black duvet that accented the gray walls. The turquoise of the throw pillows was echoed by modern wall art in the same shade. "The female you Called to spoke the Binding?"

"She did." Right or wrong, every muscle in Duke's body celebrated that fact.

Those sweet words falling from Felicia's lips trembled across his memory now, making him ache for her desperately. Obsessively.

He remembered how it had happened with perfect clarity. Felicia had licked her rosy lips nervously, then whispered, "As I become a part of you, you become a part of me. I will be honest, good, and true. I heed your call. 'Tis you I seek ..."

Then she'd paused again, her fingers tightening on his. She'd glanced at the paper in her hand, at him once more, clearly seeking reassurance.

"You're doing the right thing," he'd whispered, inexorably drawn closer. "One more sentence, and all will be right."

You will be mine.

A ragged exhalation. She pressed her lips together and closed her eyes.

With his free hand, Duke put a finger under Felicia's chin and lifted her face to his. The touch sizzled through his blood. "Look at me, Sunshine. That's good. You're almost there. Say those words to me."

Felicia swallowed. To his surprise, her hand crept up his arm, latching onto his biceps, seeking support. The pulse pounded at her delicate neck. Her gardenia musk wafted between them, nearly driving him mad.

Thick brown lashes fluttered over her vivid blue eyes before her stare snared his with an electric pull. "From this moment on ..."

His gut clenched when she paused again, her fingers biting into his arm. He leaned closer still, until his mouth hovered inches over hers. Memories of the moments he'd kissed her the night before crashed through his head. Soft, plump lips. Her taste ... so addicting. Sugary with a hint of sin. Her entire body trembling under his.

Duke moved his finger from her chin, swiping it along her jaw, anchoring his hand at her nape. Pulling her closer. "From this moment on ..." he prompted.

Her breathing grew more rapid. The tips of her breasts brushed his chest with her next breath. She bit back a gasp and tried to retreat. Scorched all the way to his toes, Duke didn't give her an inch of space.

"From this moment on, there is no other for me but you." She'd looked at him with unguarded blue eyes, spiked with tears. That she'd been moved was a jolt to his chest. She'd felt the meaning of the Binding.

Because he meant something to her? Or because she feared she'd betrayed Mason?

Duke gritted his teeth. Whatever. The words were spoken. Victory coursed through him. Every instinct he possessed urged him to use this opportunity to find a way to keep her forever. Cold logic reminded him why he couldn't.

Then Felicia turned her head, pulled away, darting for the other side of the little room.

Duke knew he shouldn't touch her. Knew it, but ... he still reached out to grab her arm and pull her flush against his body, where she couldn't miss his rough breathing or his aching erection. Her eyes widened. He scented a faint trace of her arousal.