Olivia expected that he would collapse against her, and she would have to accept the full weight of him. She tensed, preparing herself, then he surprised her again by lowering himself to his elbows and only sheltering her with his body.
He kissed her on the mouth, slowly, deeply, nudging her lips apart, tickling them with his teeth and tongue. It was the sweetly lazy kiss of a sated man, but it was outside Olivia’s experience. When he drew back, she stared at him, wondering what was required of her now.
Griffin sighed, made regretful by what he saw in her face. He smoothed the worry lines across her brow with his fingertips. “There is nothing you must do,” he told her. “Save sleep, if you like.”
He watched her nod and felt her relax a fraction, though her eyes remained alert and mildly wary. Easing out of her, Griffin rolled to one side and lay on his back. He placed a forearm across his eyes and allowed himself a moment to bask in the lethargy that came after such intense pleasure. Almost immediately he felt her stir beside him. Without lifting his arm, he asked, “What are you doing?”
“Looking for my nightgown.” Unaware of his scowl, she continued patting down the covers in search of the article. When she didn’t find it, she slid to the edge of the bed and groped outside the covers along the floor.
“Why do you need it?”
The question seemed absurd to her, the answer obvious. “I am naked.”
With his free hand, Griffin found the curve of her hip under the bedclothes and laid his hand there. “So you are, as am I. I fail to see that it presents a problem.”
Olivia sat up, dragging the blankets with her. She noticed that her movement did not dislodge his hand. The shaft of rosy dawn light that slipped between the drapes was sufficient for her to look about. She spied her shift on the floor, most of it bunched under the bed. Conscious of Griffin’s hand, she managed to slip one leg out of bed, snag the gown with the toe of her foot, and kick it high enough to snatch it out of the air.
“Impressive,” Griffin said dryly.
Olivia glanced over at him, but his forearm was once more in place like a blindfold. As soon as she began to raise the shift to slip it over her head, she felt his hand leave her hip. It snaked outside the covers and was presented to her palm up like a platter.
“Give it to me.”
“I did not perform the acrobatics for your amusement,” she said. “It was all in aid of recovering my gown.”
“I’m quite sure it was. Nevertheless, give it to me.”
That he expected she would surrender it so easily galled her. That she did so, galled her more.
He pitched the nightgown over his side of the bed, well outside her reach, then he put out his palm again. “Your robe, also.”
She had hoped he’d forgotten it. It lay bunched at the foot of the bed where he had tossed it after helping her out of it. She did a little flutter kick under the covers and managed to make the robe jump in her direction. When it was close enough, she caught it with her fingertips and dragged it toward her and passed it directly on to him.
With his forearm still in place, he did precisely the same thing with it as he’d done with her nightgown. “Come,” he said, patting the space beside him. “Lie down.”
Olivia was not so quick to obey this time. “You said I might sleep if I wished.”
“Of course.”
“But I prefer to do so in my own bed.”
“That presents a bit of a dilemma, don’t you think?” Now he lifted his arm just enough to give her the benefit of his darkly wry look. “Since I prefer that you do so here.”
Unhappy, and too weary to shield it from him, she asked gravely, “Am I to have no say?”
Griffin would not allow himself to be swayed by what he glimpsed in her face. She did not need to be alone just now, no matter that it was her preference. He knew the look of someone bent on tormenting herself with second thoughts and recriminations. He’d seen it often enough in his own reflection. “You have had your say, have you not? And I have had mine. It is a disagreement, but given the fact that I have already confiscated your gown and your robe, I think it will be settled in my favor. Now, lie down, close your eyes, and appreciate your own victory.”
“My victory?” She burrowed under the covers, though not in the space just beside him. Turning on her side, she drew up her knees protectively. “What nonsense.”
Griffin finally let his arm fall away from his eyes and cast her a sideways glance. “If you will but recall, it was you who wanted to have done with it. And so we are.”
She was glad for the relative darkness that concealed the heat in her cheeks. Still, she heard herself remark with considerable coolness, “It was you who put forth the terms, I believe.”
“So that a small measure of dignity might be preserved.” Olivia flushed more deeply, remembering how she’d grasped his cock and parted her thighs for him. He must be referring to his own dignity because she’d already proved she had none.
Griffin reached for her, laying his fingertips across her cheek. Her skin was warm. “You’re blushing.”
She flinched, trying to escape his touch. He was already too often plucking the thoughts from her head; she did not appreciate him testing the waters by touching her face.
