“Only after we’ve had this out.” Her hand in his, now, he dragged her into the garden along a shadowed walkway.
But as they arrived at the edge of the garden, he realized he was acting like a savage brute. He jerked to a halt and scrubbed a hand down his face. This was no way he’d ever allow himself to treat any woman.
“I’ll take you back if you want. I just…”
He dropped her hand, drawing in a deep breath, expecting her to turn back in the direction from which they’d walked.
But she stayed.
“I… I love being with you, Zeke.” She swayed toward him. “But marrying you would be a mistake—for both of us.” Why was she so resigned to this?
“It doesn’t have to be.” Greys stepped forward.
She was shaking her head. “We’re too different. It’s impossible. I can’t… I can never be…”
“Diana…” Greys settled his hands on her waist, backing her up against the stone wall that surrounded the garden. “Not every nobleman is like your father. Not every marriage in theTonis like your father’s was.”
“Your parent’s—”
“Loved one another, but…” He swallowed hard. “My mother wasn’t strong like you. And I… am not my father.” The epiphany came as a shock. If he’d never known Diana, would he ever have recognized this truth? Being with her shed light on his past.
He was not the same man as his father.
Or his grandfather.
Grief-stricken to have imagine he’d lost her, Greys closed the gap between them, holding his breath.
“I’m not trying to be difficult,” she whispered, melting against him. “It’s just that…”
“Shh…” Greys inhaled her feminine scent, grazing his mouth along her jaw, “I told you once that this feeling—” he rubbed his hand down her shoulder, her back “—couldn’t last. But what if I’m wrong? I’ve never wanted a woman like I want you. I’ve never needed a woman like I need you. I dream about you.” He dropped his palm to the curve of her hip and squeezed. “You are a revelation. Diana, you aremyrevelation.”
She shivered, and Greys pulled her even closer. What must he do to change her mind? To help her believe in herself? To convince her to believe in the two of them?”
Diana tilted her head back, and her breath mingled with his.
She was a woman of passion. She responded to actions more than words.
“Little one,” He breathed and then claimed her mouth. This was her language. When it came to communication, their bodies would succeed where their words had failed.
He gathered the material of her skirt in one hand and hitched her leg around his waist.
“Zeke,” she hummed his name, almost vibrating as her arms encircled his neck.
“Diana.” His hand shaking, he slid it up her leg. “What about this?” He stroked her intimate folds. Was he shaking from nerves or from need? Or was it fear that he couldn’t convince her to change her mind?
He didn’t deserve her.
Greys had never had to fight for anything in his life, but he would fight for her.
The desire thrumming through his veins destroyed every preconceived notion of what his future would be. He only knew the present—the now. This breath. This beat of her heart—the pounding of his.
“Does this not change everything?” He thrust a finger inside her and was surprised at how unsteady he sounded. Would he ever have known this feeling existed? Would he ever have experienced something so raw and untamed?
Her very nature had coaxed him to life.
He added a second finger and stroke higher, inside, adjusting his position when she whimpered, repeating the rhythm when she moaned.
“Yes, Zeke, touch me.”
