The Lover Hunt Read online

  The Lover Hunt

  Jess Michaels

  Contents

  The Lover Hunt

  About the Author

  Copyright

  About the Publisher

  The Lover Hunt

  “SO HOW GOES THE LOVER HUNT, CAROLYN?”

  Lady Riverton sipped her tea and thought about her best friend Gretchen’s question. “Better. I have narrowed the possibilities to two.”

  Their other friend, Melania, chuckled as she took a pastry from the overflowing plate on the sideboard. “That is an improvement since we last spoke and you had a dozen or so men dangling.”

  As Melania settled her slender form into a chair across from the settee where the others sat, Carolyn shrugged. “What can I do? Taking a new lover is a very serious matter. Especially a lover to follow in James’s footsteps.”

  Gretchen and Melania let out sighs at the same time. “Ah, James…” Gretchen laughed at their choral speaking, then continued, “It’s a shame he had to find a proper wife.”

  “He asked me, you know,” Caro said before she took another sip of tea.

  Her friends both stared at her with wide eyes. “What?” Melania asked, her voice elevating to near shouting level. “He asked you? When? What did you say? Why didn’t you tell us?”

  “Oh, he asked me right before we parted,” Caro said with a dismissive wave of her hand. “But of course I said no. James was spectacular in my bed and I do adore him, but I have already been a wife. I have no interest in being one again. Besides, he’s too young.”

  “You were of an age, Caro!” Gretchen protested as she shoved a lock of brown hair behind her ear. “Both thirty.”

  “Yes, but he’ll want a young woman to bear him heirs and spares aplenty.” Caro shook her head. “In the end, we would have resented each other and I much prefer to remember our affair with a few sighs and happy, sinful memories.”

  Melania nodded, though Gretchen looked unconvinced. “Perhaps it’s for the best. But you haven’t told us the most interesting tidbit yet!”

  Caro blinked at her pretty blond friend. “Which is?”

  “Which two men have proven themselves worthy of your consideration for a new lover.”

  “Yes,” Gretchen encouraged her, leaning forward in anticipation. “Who?”

  “Alec Hamilton,” Caro admitted with a smile, “and Stephan Dubois have both captured my interest. Last week, Stephan pulled me aside at the Sameson party and, well, let’s say things became very…heated.”

  “You went to bed with him?” Gretchen asked, eyes widening.

  “No, there was no bed.” Caro laughed. “Rather, a settee in the parlor. And there was no sex, if that’s what you mean. But he did give me a spectacular orgasm that still makes my legs shake when I think of it.” She sighed as the memory made her wet again. “Wonderful, skilled hands, that one.”

  “And what about Hamilton?” Melania asked. “If Stephan is so wonderful, what makes you continue to consider Alec?”

  “He is so very handsome,” Caro sighed. “And he has been writing me letters that spell out very plainly what he wants to do to me with his mouth, his hands, his cock…and where. Adventurous, and you know how I like that.”

  “Mmmm,” Melania said, nodding.

  “But however shall I choose?” Caro asked. “I have been weighing both options for days now, and every time I think of something to put one man ahead, a memory of something the other did makes them even again.”

  Gretchen laughed. “Oh, the dilemma! My God, to have to choose between two virile, sensual men who want nothing more than to give you orgasms until you are weak with release.”

  “It is difficult,” Caro insisted, but she was laughing along with her friends. “Which one would you pick?”

  “Alec,” Gretchen said without hesitation.

  Caro shifted her attention to Melania, who shrugged sheepishly. “I would choose Stephan.”

  Caro pursed her lips. “Thank you, you’ve been very helpful.”

  Gretchen leaned back on the settee and looked at Caro evenly. “Why not try them both?”

  “Sleep with each of them?” Caro asked. “I’ve thought of it, of course, but the male ego is so fragile. What if I liked the second one better, but he found out I slept with the first before him? I could end up with two miffed gentlemen and no lover at all!”

  “I didn’t mean to try them separately,” Gretchen said with a wicked smile.

  Caro stared at her friend as comprehension dawned. “You mean…take them both to my bed at the same time?”

  Melania grinned. “Oh, that has always been my fantasy. Two men, paying attention to you and you alone. Pleasuring you in every way.” She shivered. “Lovely.”

  Gretchen nodded. “Exactly. And you’ll certainly know by the time you are finished which one you fancy most. Why not try it?”

  Caro got up and paced to the window to look out over her gardens. Like Melania, the idea of being loved by two men at once had always been a secret fantasy of hers. One of the few she hadn’t acted upon since being widowed and finding the freedom that state gave her. And Stephan and Alec both wanted her, and were both adventurous.

  She turned back to her friends. “Yes. Why not?”

  Caro stood outside her chamber door a few days later, staring at the barrier between her and what she hoped would be a night of searing pleasure. Her butler had told her that Alec and Stephan arrived a few moments ago and were escorted to her chamber to wait. The look on his face when he relayed that information had been priceless. Ah well, she’d always given the servants plenty to gossip about.

  Putting a seductive smile on her face and straightening her shoulders with confidence, she opened the door and entered.

  What she found were two powerful men who did not like each other, especially when it came to their shared interest. Alec Hamilton stood on one side of the room, glaring at Stephan Dubois, who was pacing in front of the fireplace.

  In the brief moment before they noticed her entry, Caro drank in the pleasure of each man’s appearance.

  Alec was tall, broad-shouldered, and very muscular. He was not a man of rank, though he did come from a respected family and was accepted in the ton because of the investments the rich lords had made in his businesses. He was successful, wealthy, and so very handsome. His blond hair was cropped short, in the popular Greek style. When his green gaze swung on Caro, she couldn’t help but think of all the letters he’d written her in the past few weeks. Letters in which he told her how much he wanted to fuck her and in how many ways. She shivered at the thought.

  “Caro,” Stephan drawled from across the room. She turned her attention to him as the husky tone of his voice went through her and settled low in her belly.

  Like Alec, Stephan was a physically strong man, but not in the same way. Where Alec was all brawny muscle, Stephan was leaner. His muscle had been built from sparring in his club, not lifting heavy equipment. He was taller than Alec by a few inches, darker, and had elegant hands and long fingers.

  She smiled as she remembered where those elegant fingers had been a few nights before. Buried inside of her, stroking her to powerful orgasm over and over again.

  His pale blue eyes sparkled, as if he recalled that night just as clearly. His dark hair made them shine even brighter.

  “Good evening, gentlemen,” she said softly as she closed and latched the door behind her. Stepping into the room, she motioned to a table in the center of the chamber, near the foot of her big bed. On it were three glasses and a bottle of wine. “Drink?”

  Alec glared at Stephan again, and Stephan glared back as they both declined. Caro smiled as she poured herself a glass. Their animosity could play in her favor tonight as they tried to prove themselves, or it c
ould backfire if they refused to share her.

  “I suppose you wonder why I invited both of you here and had you brought to my bedchamber,” she said, breaking the tense silence.

  “I had hoped we would finish what we started at the Samesons’,” Stephan said softly. “But then I saw him here.”

  “Too bad you couldn’t finish what you started in the first place,” Alec said under his breath.

  Before the argument could come to blows, Caro held up each of her hands toward the men. “Enough. I am going to speak plainly.”

  The two men broke their glares and looked to her. She drew in a harsh breath and continued.

  “I won’t pretend that I am not looking for a new lover. And that you two gentlemen are the ones I want. You are very different, but you both intrigue and arouse me.” She shot each man a long, meaningful look. “Yet, I have not been able to decide. And that is why I’ve brought you here tonight.”

  Stephan tilted his head. “Why, Caro? To inform us of your decision?”

  She smiled at him, looking at those skilled hands again. “No, Stephan. To obtain your assistance in making that decision. I would like to make love to you both.”

  Alec straightened up in surprise. “You mean you want me to stand here while that good-for-nothing fucks you, and then fuck you and let you decide whose cock you prefer?”

  Caro moved toward him, flicking her hips so Stephan would get as much of a show as Alec. She placed the hand that did not hold her wineglass against his forearm and looked up into his green eyes.

  “Actually, I had hoped you wouldn’t stand by idly while Stephan took me. I hope that you will join us.”

  Alec blinked, but Caro felt his body heat increase immediately, and when she darted her gaze down, his cock had begun to harden.

  Stephan chuckled. “There is no one like you, Caro. You want us—both of us—to take you…together?”

  She looked over her shoulder, then slowly put her back to Alec. She stepped back until her backside touched his body and her shoulder blades rested on his chest. He let out a low growl and his arms came around her stomach, fingers spreading. She shivered.

  “Yes, Stephan. That is exactly what I want. To be pleasured by both of you at once. Can you put aside your differences to give me that fantasy? And I’m certain by the time the night is over, I will be better equipped to choose which one of you will be my lover on a more regular basis.”

  Stephan watched as Alec’s fingers stroked upward and his big, rough palms wrapped around her breasts. Caro sighed and leaned her head back against his chest. He bent his head and began to nibble along the column of her throat, tasting and teasing her skin until fire spread through her entire body.

  “Fuck,” Stephan muttered, making his way across the room in a few long strides.

  As Alec stroked her breasts and suckled her throat, Stephan’s hot lips came down on hers, his tongue invading her mouth with a thrusting motion that made her knees wobble with its promise.

  Caro nearly dropped her wineglass, but Stephan was already taking it away. While he continued to kiss her, Alec began to open the buttons at the front of her gown. Stephan leaned back and watched, bright eyes glazed as more and more of her bare skin was revealed. Of course, she hadn’t worn a chemise beneath. What was the fun in that?

  Alec peeled her gown back, baring her from the waist up, and the two men stared, Alec down from behind her and Stephan from in front. She tingled at the feeling of so many eyes watching her and at the pressure of one hardening erection at her backside while the other rose to press against the breeches of the man before her. And all that arousal was hers.

  Stephan swirled a finger into the red wine in his hand and moved closer. Slowly, never breaking eye contact, he rubbed his finger against one nipple. Caro sucked in her breath as the cool wine took away any friction from his gentle touch. Then he returned his finger to the glass and repeated the action with the opposite nipple.

  As if they were on cue, Alec took the glass from Stephan and downed the remaining alcohol in one sip before setting the glass aside. Meanwhile, Stephan bent his head and stroked his rough tongue over Caro’s bare breast.

  She arched into the touch, fisting her hands into his thick, dark hair and urging him on. Her soft moans echoed in the silent room.

  Her head lolled against Alec’s shoulder as Stephan continued his ministrations on her swollen, sensitive nipples. Alec cupped her chin and tilted her face toward him. Suddenly it was his tongue invading her mouth. But unlike Stephan, who had thrust suggestively, Alec swirled and suckled. With a thrill of hot desire, she realized he was mimicking the actions Stephan was performing at her breast.

  Clawing at Stephan’s shoulders, Caro arched her hips helplessly, lost in the sensation of being pleasured by the two men. It was almost too much already, and they had hardly begun.

  Caro pulled back from Alec’s kiss to look up at him wildly. He met her gaze and his normally serious face tilted with a half grin.

  “This is what you wanted, sweet,” he whispered. “And now you have it.”

  She drew in a breath as Stephan sucked hard on one nipple, staggering against the heady pleasure that pulsed from the pulling tug of his lips all the way to the wet nub of her clit.

  Alec’s smile fell, replaced by serious intent yet again. Without releasing her, he reached down and tugged her drooping gown over the flare of her hips. It pooled at her feet.

  Stephan pulled away from her breast and caught his breath. Alec steadied her before he came around to stand beside Stephan. Caro smiled. Neither man had ever seen her fully naked before. Alec had touched her through her clothing in the past, and Stephan’s hands had found their way under her skirts, but never like this. Never utterly nude and offered to them.

  The men stared, and Caro arched her back in proud offering. She had always liked her body, with its sensual curves. She liked the power her body gave her.

  The two men exchanged a side glance, and a wealth of unspoken communication moved between them. It was as if their little miniwar was over, at least for now. Pleasure was more important than winning.

  Stephan motioned to the bed, and Alec nodded. He stepped toward her, and suddenly Caro found herself swept into his big, muscular arms. His fingers burned against her naked hip, curved against the swell of her breast as he deposited her onto her fine, satin sheets.

  She settled back against the pillows and watched. Stephan was already shucking his clothing at some kind of record pace. He’d already made quick work of his boots, jacket, shirtwaist, and cravat. Now he tugged at his shirt, and the fabric hit the floor.

  Caro sat up, darting her tongue out to wet her lips as she watched him pull at his trousers. He kicked them away and stood up to lock stares with her.

  By God, he was beautiful. Lean muscle caressed every part of his body, flexing when he moved. A light dusting of dark chest hair eased down to lead her eager gaze to the muscles of his stomach. And then lower.

  Lower, to a surprising glimpse of heaven. Despite being so lean rather than bulky, Stephan’s cock was big, bigger than James’s, and he had been her best endowed lover by far. Now that thick, hard erection was at full attention, curling up toward the flat plane of his belly.

  He grinned as he moved toward her to join her on the bed. He was no sooner on the mattress than she reached for him. Her nails trailed down his chest, his stomach, and finally she wrapped her palm fully around his cock.

  “Oh my,” she moaned as she stroked him from base to head.

  She continued to pump her hand up and down as Stephan moaned his encouragement, but she shifted her gaze to Alec. He undressed far more slowly than Stephan had, but the results were just as magnificent. His shoulders were impossibly wide and tanned from work in the sun. The muscles just kept going from there. There was nothing false about the fact that he was a big man, head to toe.

  He kicked his trousers away as he noticed Caro’s stare upon him. He watched silently as she rubbed her hand over Stephan’s p
rick, but she couldn’t tear her eyes away from his. Not as long, perhaps, but thicker.

  She sank her teeth into her lip and crooked the finger of the hand opposite the one pleasuring Stephan. With a curling motion, she beckoned Alec to join them.

  He did, moving slowly toward the bed. He climbed up on her opposite side and cupped her chin to kiss her. Hot and deep, his tongue swirled around her own and made her tingle from her nipples to her clit.

  “I want this,” Caro said as she pulled away from Alec’s kiss. She motioned to Stephan’s cock, licking her lips.

  Alec chuckled as one big hand slipped between her thighs. “Good. I want this.”

  He cupped her sex, spreading her open with one deft flick of his wrist. His thumb stroked over her clit, and Caro let out a cry of pleasure. She was so sensitive already, it seemed she was going to come without much coaxing.

  Stephan smiled as he repositioned himself to sit at the foot of the bed. He leaned back against her footboard, and Caro laid between his muscular thighs. She positioned herself on all fours, offering up her sex to Alec and whatever wicked things he wanted to indulge in.

  Slowly, Caro darted her tongue out and swirled the tip of it around the thick head of Stephan’s cock. He sucked in a breath at the sensation and his head dipped back. She repeated the action, tasting the bitter tang of his excitement already beginning to weep from the tip. She inched her mouth over him, drawing him in farther and farther, letting him fill her mouth as he would later fill her pussy.

  She groaned out her pleasure at feeling the hard length of him touch her throat, and the vibration made Stephan’s hips buck reflexively.

  She shut her eyes and began to pump her mouth up and down against him, stroking him with her tongue, rubbing him with her hand, until she was utterly distracted. Alec’s hands spread her sex open. His breath heated her already dripping slit, and she cried out against Stephan’s cock. Her cry turned far more plaintive when Alec stroked his tongue over her pussy.