He tipped her chin up. “Cecilia… are you saying you love me?”
She shook her head. “I am saying Imightbein lovewith you… Against all odds, I know.”
The carriage was cantering down the lane to the country house, and Cassian found himself in a place he was not so familiar with. Oddly, he felt… at ease. The emotions he had once felt so fiercely were no longer sending jagged shards through his soul.
But…the Continent.
It was not a desire to go; it was aneed. He had to put England behind him and find the peace he’d ached for so many years.
“Cecilia,” he murmured lowly as the carriage slowed. “I leave in four days. What do you want?”
“I don’t want the annulment. I don’t care what my mother says.” Cecilia paused, then met his eyes with a hesitant gaze. “And I want you to make love to me.”
He held her gaze for a breath.
“Are you sure? There is no coming back from this.”
“I know,” she replied. “And I won’t regret it. Please don’t ask me again.”
Tempering a smile, he gathered her in a bridal carry and stepped out of the vehicle. She held fast to him and, as he stepped acrossthe doors, studiously ignored Andrew’s approving smile and took the steps.
Her head was pressed against his chest, and while he felt her tremble, he associated that was virginal nerves rather than regret. He pushed the door to his room open and strode in.
CHAPTER 26
The bang of the door locking in place came seconds before Cecilia was gently rested on the edge of Cassian’s bed. He paused only a heartbeat before leaning in to claim her mouth with his.
When their lips met, however, hers had parted on the softest of sighs. He deepened the kiss, and she kissed him back with equal fervor. He made a low sound in his throat, the demanding thrust of his tongue made her shiver.
Cassian drew away from her lips and dropped to one knee before unlacing and pulling her half-boots from her feet. Her hands slithered into his raven hair, and she rubbed the back of his neck while he removed the second boot.
Rising, he undid his own boots and began to slip the buttons of his waistcoat out. Watching the tight cloth slip from his shoulder made Cecilia’s breath hitch. Getting to her feet, she undid his cravat and let the soft cloth slide from her fingers.
Plucking the cloth before it could fall to the floor, Cassian murmured, “We are going to use that soon.”
“…How?”
His grin held a sliver of evil. “You’ll see.”
Then his mouth was on hers, kissing her again. His lips roved agonizingly slowly, and his kiss deepened until she was almost gasping. She broke away for air, and his mouth strayed to the curve of her jaw and down to the column of her throat.
His lips seared a necklace of kisses over her collarbone—she gripped his shoulder and arched her back with a whimper. His rough fingers roved up the back of her dress, and Cecilia felt the heat of his hand through the fabric and the graze of his stubble on her neck.
His fingers tickled her nape as he undid the hooks and the ties of her waist. Her heart took residence in her throat as he peeled the lapels down her shoulders.
He bared her with care, then glided off his shirt—the sculpted breadth of his chest catching her breath—before slipping her out of her chemise too. Her first instinct was to throw her arms across her breasts, but he took her wrists lightly and guided them away.
“Don’t hide yourself from me, my darling sin,” he murmured seductively while tugging her wrists away. “I want to seeallof you.”
When shewasable to pry them aside and reveal the fullness of her breasts, the reverence in his gaze had him whispering, “Perfection.”
He gathered her against him, guiding them toward the bed, every step deliberate. As he sank onto the mattress, he pulled her with him, their bodies aligning in a sweet, irresistible press. His rough hands slid up her sides, and the scrape of his calluses made her squirm and quiver in agonizing pleasure.
Grasping her waist, he flipped them, and she landed on her back; her breath punched out as his wet tongue dipped to seal around a rosy nipple. Arching into his mouth, she clawed at the sheets with one hand and clutched his raven tresses with the other.
“Gorgeous,” he murmured, the vibrations striking everychord in her body.
His thumb flickered over her other nipple, and she groaned at the shock of bliss. She bit her lip against a moan as he gently rolled her sensitive bud between finger and thumb.
