“Shh. What do you think of the play so far?”
“Robert,” she gasped, clutching his arm, hoping to force him to move those inert fingers that were both tease and torture.
“Oh no. You shall need to tell me something of the plot at intermission, before you are allowed more.”
What? Plot?The man was dastardly. Why had she missed him again? He was a mean bastard when he did this. But godsakes, he knew how to build her excitement.
Finally, the curtain shut for the first intermission. Beth turned, to be met by Robert’s direct gaze.
“It seems you missed me, too, Peaches.” He twitched his fingers, and her eyes nearly crossed.
But he slid them out of her as sconces were lit, causing her lower lip to jut in a pout.
“Well?” He stuck his fingers in his mouth with another hum. “Have you seen this play before? How do you feel this performance compares?”
“Robert, be serious. I can’t concentrate on anything but you when your hands are on me.” She was ready to beg.
“Come now. We were both fully clothed. You forget, I’ve seen you evaluate harnesses even as I strap you into one.”
****
Robert heard Althea and Evan talking behind them, and someone left the box, but his entire focus was on Beth. He wanted this woman back in his bed—in his life. Gulping at that thought, he put it aside. He needed every bit of his skill as a lover to get past their disagreement, but he was confident he’d win her back.
“Beth, I meant what I said. I have missed you, and I want to talk, but I know you. You need to be pleasured in order to focus. It seems my trip to Cheltenham was rough on you. Allow me to make it up to you.”
“Yes! Please. But please, no quizzes.” She pouted as she begged. “I can’t focus. I haven’t been able to focus for days.”
Oh, really?He was pleased to hear that, despite not having a clear vision of a future together. She was a bright star while he preferred the darkness of the shadows.
They had leaned toward each other to talk, and she clutched his arm. He used their proximity to reach across and tweak her nipple through her dress.
She gripped tighter.
The orchestra played a note signaling the end of the intermission. He dragged her onto his lap so they both faced the stage. It had the added benefit of hiding him from the boxes across the theatre, who would see only Beth. He hoped she recognized the compromise in his actions. He’d never have played even this much, this hidden, publicly before her.
The move had caused her skirts to drop, and he drew them back up to her lap. With a quick sideways check, he ascertained Evan had closed the curtains on either side of the box to give them privacy from adjacent boxes. As Evan and he had shared women and discussed leather pieces as they were modeled, Robert had no concerns about privacy from his friend. He slid his hand under her arm to cup her breast discreetly.
She squirmed, thrusting her bottom toward his cock.
“Should I bare you? Tug this dress down that last inch and show the audience your beauty? Pluck your nipple as the violinists pluck their instruments?” They were empty threats, but he knew the image would excite her.
“No. I want to be yours, not theirs.”
He blinked at the unexpected response. He’d think about its meaning later.
She squeezed her hand between them to grip his cock through his breeches.
“No, you don’t get that yet. In fact, you’ll need to stay very still so the other theatre-goers do not know what I’m doing.” His hand slid from her breast to her inner thigh, bare above her stocking. He did not linger this time, instead aiming for her hot wet center immediately. He wished he could taste it, strapping her down for an hour or two of luxurious exploration before giving in to her begging. This would have to do for the moment.
She slid her legs to the outside of his, offering herself without hesitation. Her skirts, while above her knees, rested on the leg she straddled. And his lap was below the front half-wall of their box.
He thrust his two middle fingers into her, holding her lips even wider with his forefinger and little finger. His thumb unerringly found her swollen bundle of nerves and began tapping.
Beth jerked once, but then held still. She moaned in the back of her throat.
“Shh,” he whispered in her ear, blowing a breath into the pink shell after that solicited a shiver. Her sudden movement had made his cock twitch against her arse, and it was all he could do to silence his own groan.
Her hand gripped his arm that held her in place across her stomach. Her breasts strained in her bodice with her ragged breathing, and he hid his grin. She was his harp, and he would play her with every ounce of expertise he had.
