“A bit,” she answered honestly.
Lucas nodded, studying her as he made a lazy circle around her. He’d considered many different ideas for her seduction, and as he gazed at her, he debated among several.
Did he go in for the easy target? Use her passions against her to make the experience quick and effective?
Did he use the opportunity to coach her to benefit his own pleasure?
Or take it slow, building up the climax to the fevered frenzy his body craved?
“I rather feel like you’re a tiger and I’m your helpless prey.” Liliah arched a brow artlessly. “I wasn’t aware that this took so much forethought.”
Lucas chuckled, pausing in his stride. “That, my dear, is where you are most certainly incorrect, and where your innocence bleeds through your wit.”
“Is that so?” Liliah tipped her chin daringly.
“Indeed. And while I do not have to take my time in this area, I find that it pleases me to do so, and as such, you are quite at my mercy.” Lucas reached up and slowly unfastened his cravat, sliding the silk off his neck. Liliah watched with open interest as he set the garment on the side table.
“Should I . . .” Liliah tugged on her gloves.
“No.” Lucas shook his head. “Wait. It’s all about anticipation,” he stated, answering his own question concerning methods.
Slow and erotic.
His body almost wept in delight.
“Very well,” Liliah answered, her brow pinching slightly as he slowly unbuttoned his white shirt. As he stripped off his shirt, he tossed it to the side, his body pounding with heat at the fascinated expression in Liliah’s eyes.
Her gaze roamed his chest freely, exciting his body further. “Oh my,” she breathed, taking a slight step forward.
“Ah, no. Look only,” Lucas instructed, slowly striding toward her. Her chest rose and fell in quick succession, giving a luscious view of the shape of her breasts. With a mischievous grin, Lucas leaned forward just enough to feel the heat from her skin, to smell its fragrance, to breathe her air, yet not touch. Tilting his head, he moved from her hairline down to the curve of her neck, breathing out against her skin, grinning when she shivered slightly.
Her hands twitched as if to move.
“Wait, love,” he scolded teasingly. Breathing out against the sensitive space just below her ear, he leaned back and walked around her. Her gaze followed him, glancing behind her shoulder till he leaned in once more, this time nipping ever so lightly against her neck.
A soft gasp escaped her lips. “I—I thought we could not touch,” she challenged, but the effect was lost in the breathy nature of her tone.
Lucas chuckled lightly against her skin. “I said you could not touch, nothing about myself.”
She sighed softly as he nipped her again. “It hardly seems fair.”
“I care not.” He retreated slightly and carefully unfastened the few buttons at her back, belatedly realizing she’d had the forethought to wear something easy to remove, and replace.
Her forethought pleased him greatly, adding another layer of need to his already pulsing body. As he slipped the dress off her shoulders, his fingers tingled as they brushed the softest chemise she wore beneath. It was innocent and arousing all at once in its design and simplicity. Leaving just enough to the imagination to drive a man wild.
The dress pooled at Liliah’s feet, and as she shivered slightly, he ran his hands down her arms, savoring the smooth texture of her skin. “Turn,” he commanded quietly.
Liliah stepped from her dress, then turned, her expression wide and full of wonder. “When you touch me, it is like holding an open flame against my skin—yet no pain . . . I’ve never experienced the like.” She spoke with quiet awe and artless honesty.
Lucas nodded once, then tugged on her hand, pulling her in close. Lowering his head, he brushed his lips against hers, once, twice, and a third time before retreating. “Imagine that . . . but all over.” He used his nose to move her cheek to the side as he nipped her ear, then traced her jawline with his nose before capturing her lips once more.
He swallowed her reply with a searing kiss. His body strained against his remaining clothes, demanding he remove them and end the sweet torture of anticipation.
Yet he paused, and suffered and burned while he slowly tugged at Liliah’s chemise, only breaking the kiss long enough to remove it fully. He captured her lips once more, not wanting to give her a moment to think about what was taking place, his body growing fearful he’d not experience his own release should she back down from their agreement.
His body trembled with impatience, reminding him of how long it had been since he’d experienced the soft submission of a woman’s body. Willfully, he forced back his galloping passions and focused on the seduction—needing her to be as desperate as he.
He nipped at her lips as he reached up and cupped her breasts, glorying in the beautiful weight of them in his hands, the perfect shape of them against his fingers. She gasped as he touched her, but he silenced her shock with another kiss, then kneaded her artfully into submission. When he sensed her need growing, he released her delicate skin and quickly unfastened his breeches, stepping from them. His fingers caressed up her bare back and then moved back down, slipping around the last of her underthings and carefully removing them.
