Sally had not been exaggerating when she waxed poetic about his body.
Her blood heated and a thousand butterflies now fluttered within her belly. He had to know the effect he was having on her, for his gaze was still on her and he was grinning. “You next, love.”
Oh, she adored the way he spoke to her in that deep, gentle growl. “Um…” She licked her lips. “I’ll need help.”
Most of her gowns were easy to slip on and off, but this one required assistance because the intricate buttons and lacing were all on the back.
“I see,” he said, the deep timbre of his voice resonating through her and making her tingle. He turned her so that her back was to him and then began to unlace the ties. Once again, he took his sweet time, pausing to trail light kisses along her neck with each lace untied and each button undone. She was mindless by the time he had the gown off her.
She closed her eyes, wanting to feel the sensation of his hands on her body as he turned her to face him and began to nudge the chemise off her shoulders. He kissed her bare shoulders, then slid his hand inside the loosened chemise and ran his thumb in a slow swirl along the bud of her breast.
Bursts of heat shot through her body.
She clutched his shoulders, holding firm to those massive muscles as he lowered his head to her breast and put his mouth to it. Fire raged through her, for his lips scorched her to the core, and his tongue…dear heaven, the things he did to her with it.
Then they were on the bed, her clothes off and her hair unpinned so that it tumbled down her back and over her shoulders in dark, cascading waves. She did not know what to do or what to expect, but he took command and led her ever forward to exquisite heights, teasing her with every bit of his body so that she was a ball of fire by the time he was ready to claim her.
Not merely claim her, but conquer her.
Plunder her.
Take possession of her heart and soul.
She could not get enough of him, adored the weight of him atop her, and loved the way he held her with aching need and urgency. He ignited her blood and had her pulses wildly throbbing by the time he finally entered her and moved inside her. Their hips rubbed together and their hearts beat as one.
“Are you all right, love?” he asked with typical consideration, for there was no one more thoughtful than this wonderful man she could now truly call husband.
“Yes…oh, dear heaven…yes.” He had her so mindless, she was surprised to get a single word out. She wanted him deep inside of her and sighed when he obliged, then groaned when he kissed her with a primal heat and quickened his thrusts with delicious urgency.
His hands were all over her.
His lips, too.
He kissed her breasts, flicking and swirling his tongue over their taut peaks. All the while, their bodies remained in intimate contact, his sleek and powerful as he buried himself inside her, and hers completely molten as she soared to the stars…and kept her soaring until he also joined her on that climactic journey.
“Blessed saints, you are sweet,” he said with a growl when they were both spent and breathing hard in delight. He slowly rolled off her, but kept her close and wrapped her in his embracing arms so that she now lay atop him with her hair tumbling over his chest. He ran his fingers through her hair, smiling as he gently brushed the longs strands back. “You are mine, Viola. And I am yours forever.”
“I was always yours,” she whispered and nestled in his arms.
He claimed her again in the middle of the night, taking her with that same mix of exquisite tenderness and savage heat. He brought out the wanton in her, too. She had never known her body could respond in this way to a man’s touch. Well, it was to his touch alone.
She ached with desire for him, her own need shockingly wild and unrestrained. But he did not seem to mind, purposely encouraging her soft gasps and purring moans. His smug grin as they soared again and slowly came back to their senses said it all. He liked this power he had over her body, liked stirring her to passion and knowing she was helpless to resist. “You do the same for me, love. I cannot get enough of you. But I had better behave myself or your body will be sore in the morning.”
He shifted her so that she was once again nestled in his arms.
This is how this vicar’s daughter fell asleep, delightfully snuggled in the viscount’s arms. “I love you, Alex.”
CHAPTER 18
London, England
August 1823
“LET ME INTRODUCEyou to Lord Fenhaven and his daughter, Lady Felicity Rose,” Alexander’s father said to him and Viola as they stood on the family reception line in the elegant Trent townhouse to greet the crush of guests invited to the gala celebration of his parents’ thirty-fifth wedding anniversary.
Alexander exchanged a knowing glance with Viola, for the young woman now before them had been on their list of diamonds under consideration for his house party last month. “A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lady Felicity Rose.”
She tossed Alexander a smile, although it was more a curl of the lips than anything sweet or charming. “I understand you are newly married.” She now turned to Viola with an arrogant tip of her chin. “And you are the vicar’s daughter who caught him in the parson’s trap. Our society must quite overwhelm you. Poor thing, I’m sure you are worried about making afaux pas.”
