“Relax,” he ordered.
“It hurts.”
He began pressing kisses to her throat, until all she was thinking about was his mouth and the trail of dew he was leaving in its wake. Then he pushed harder.
She bit back her cry. Rising above her, he held her gaze. “I don’t know how to make it not hurt. Do you want me to stop?”
She shook her head. “I want you to make me yours.”
Reaching beneath her, he lifted her hips, changing their angle, and then he plunged, deep and sure, blanketing her mouth, absorbing her shriek. She was his, and in spite of the pain she was glad for it.
Slowly, he rocked against her until her body was more welcoming, until the pain eased, until she was lost in the wonder of them being truly united, two becoming one.
The pleasure she’d experienced earlier began to return, but with more intensity, more purpose. She dug her fingers into his buttocks, guiding him, as his movements quickened. Her nerve endings began to prickle, her breasts grew heavy, and her womanhood came fully awake, bursting with sensations that had her gasping and making little mewling sounds. Once again, he covered her mouth with his, quieting her with a swirl of his tongue, a stroke of hers.
Then everything came apart and something completely unexpected burst through her, as stars shot around her, seemed to explode within her. He pumped into her, groaned throatily, went stiff and still, although she could feel the tiny tremors cascading through him, through her.
Burying his mouth in the curve of her shoulder, he went limp. They both lay there, breathing heavily, and she felt her love for him expand in an all-encompassing emotion.
Laboriously, he lifted himself up, met her gaze, caressed his thumb over her cheek. “Are you all right?”
With a soft smile, she nodded.
“It shouldn’t hurt so much next time.”
“It doesn’t matter if it does.”
“Of course it matters. I never want to hurt you. I love you, Vivi. I love you with every part of me.”
Chapter 9
1871
I love you.Words that had once been so easily given, words he doubted he’d ever utter again.
Sitting in the darkened bedchamber, he waited, striving to ignore the stink of some perfume that was overly sweet. Why would a man wear something that made him smell like a rose in bloom? Or maybe the Earl of Dearwood kept it on hand for his paramours.
In spite of the fact that the man’s name was familiar, Finn couldn’t quite recall where he’d encountered it before. He should focus on puzzling it out, but thoughts of Lady Lavinia Kent kept intruding, demanding attention. Vivi. He recalled a time when merely murmuring her name had been a balm to his soul.
Why was it that after all these years and all the pain she’d caused him, he still found himself drawn to her? He’d wanted to press his lips to hers, caress his hands over every inch of her silken flesh, tangle his fingers in her hair, push his cock into the tight cove of her womanhood, where once she’d held him so snugly he’d had no desire to ever leave.
He had to wonder: if he’d never known her, if they’d had no past, if he’d only met her for the first time tonight—would he have been as intrigued, would he have wanted to learn all he could about her? That was the hell of it. He’d have been more intrigued because there would have been nothing to cloud his thinking, his judgment.
What had happened to shape her into a woman who would risk so much to ensure the safety of children? Although he couldn’t forget how comforting she’d been when she’d learned the truth of his parentage. She hadn’t turned away from him as he’d expected. Why had she later?
In retrospect, what he’d known about her, what he’d felt for her, had been little more than the passions of youth. He knew little about her politics, her religion, upon what she placed value, how much she might be willing to sacrifice to achieve her dreams. He couldn’t even claim to know precisely what her dreams were—or had been.
He’d thought she’d been willing to give up her aristocratic life for him, but she hadn’t been waiting for him. Instead it had been her father who had informed him she wouldn’t be coming. Had she changed her mind about the life he’d been offering?
If so, then why was she now living what appeared to be a much harsher life, one with fewer niceties, one without him? What had taken so long for her to choose this path? What had prompted her to do so now? The questions, so many questions, swirled through his mind with such speed and ferocity that he thought he might run mad if he didn’t obtain the answers. She was the only one who could give them to him.
Better to be done with her, to forget he’d ever found her. Even better to take her to her brother and claim the five hundred quid. The irony of that path wasn’t lost on him. They’d sent him to prison because he’d wanted her. Now they’d pay him a reward because he no longer wanted her and would return her to the place she belonged.Although he wasn’t quite certain she did belong there any longer, and the thought of returning her didn’t sit well with him.
He missed her, damn it all to hell. She’d been his first, but not his last. He’d had other women since her, but none of them had managed to work their way into his soul. The coupling was always perfunctory, just an act, skin touching, hips thrusting until the release came—always unsatisfactory and disappointing. Only with her had he ever caught a glimpse of something that closely resembled heaven.
Hearing the echo of distant footsteps on the stairs, he shoved aside all the unsettling thoughts and questions about Vivi. Inhaling a deep breath, he brought forth a mien he didn’t particularly like, but it served a purpose, albeit one he didn’t especially care for, but it was all for a greater good. The door opened, and a gentleman staggered in, carrying a lamp. Finn was surprised the bloke hadn’t set fire to his residence on his journey up. He waited until the lamp was safely set on the bedside table and the gent had turned away from it. Patience was one of the virtues that made him so good at what he did. “My lord.”
The Earl of Dearwood yelped like a kicked dog, staggered back, and grabbed one of the bedposts. “Good God! How did you get in here?”
