There is nothing Matthias Deverell, illegitimate son of a marquis, wants more than to remove the murmurs of treason that haunt his father’s name. He is determined to do just that, even if it means completing the nearly impossible task of reassembling the globe his father used as a safe. With pieces spread all over London, it will take all of Matthias’ considerable skill at intimidation to retrieve them. Nicholas Rexford, young Viscount Leighton, wants only to be able to provide a comfortable life for himself and his three sisters. After being left in near-poverty thanks to their father’s spending and gambling, Nick is desperate to find a business venture he can invest in to turn their fortunes around. Sadly, he has no head for business, preferring to spend his time engrossed in horrid novels. When Matthias finds Nick in possession of a piece of the globe, he believes the handsome young man to be in on the scheme, and decides to keep a closer eye on him. But when Nick meets Matthias, he is enthralled by the “dark and dangerous bastard” who could have stepped out of one of his novels. Despite his suspicions, Matthias is drawn to Nick, but will his suspicions destroy what is developing between them and cost Matthias a chance at happiness?

The Bastard's World

Nick welcomed the burn as Matthias entered him, it kept his mind from spinning completely out of control. Then Matthias began to move, and every stroke sent sparks dancing on the inside of his skin. He was painfully hard and knew he would go insane if attention wasn’t given to his straining member. Surely Matthias didn’t expect him to—“Please!” he cried out when Matthias grabbed his wrist before he could make contact.


Instead of releasing him, Matthias took his other wrist as well, using them to hold Nick in place as he moved relentlessly. All Nick could do was grip the soft fabric beneath his fingers. Perhaps he could have broken free if he’d tried harder, but it was so much better to just allow Matthias to push him to the brink, to that place where there was nothing else in the world but the hard body moving him, surrounding him, filling him.


Chapter 39