“That’stoonice,” she murmured.
Anthony’s chuckle was rich with pleasure. “Ah, sweetheart, was it only last night? It seems an eternity has passed between now and then.”
She reached out to cup her palm to his cheek and ended by running a finger over his lips. “Only an eternity?”
He said her name impassionedly before he caughther wrist and kissed her palm, his dark eyes never leaving hers. An electricity passed between them, hot and tingling. And his intense stare continued to hold her transfixed as he shrugged out of his robe, yanked the sheet down, and covered her body with his. He commenced then to kiss her so long and passionately that she was in a state of mindless need when he finally entered her, so much so that her climax was immediate and earth-shattering, her cry of fulfillment sending Anthony over the edge as well.
In a cocoon of contentment, Roslynn held his sweat-moistened body, waiting for their breathing to return to normal. She was in no hurry to have him move, and so her hold was rather tight. Not that it could have kept him there, but he was in no hurry to move either. His head rested on her shoulder, his breath fanning her neck, stirring the hair there, tickling her. Gooseflesh rushed down her arms and she gave a little shiver, enough for him to notice.
“I have managed to act the typical groom,” he said with a sigh. “Impatient, speedy, and now contrite.” He lifted his weight onto his elbows, which gave her a little thrill as his groin pressed more tightly to hers. “I give you leave to castigate me, my dear.”
“For what?”
“Well, if you don’t know—”
“For what, Anthony?”
“For my lack of control, of course. A man of my age and experience has no excuse, so I must put the blame on you. You quite make me lose my head.”
“Is that bad?”
“I’ll let you be the judge in a little while, when I make love to you at a more leisurely pace.”
Her laugh was deep in her throat. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were fishing for compliments. Youmust know your performance wasn’t lacking. Quite the contrary. You were wonderful.”
He gave her his melting smile, which sent a weakness racing through her limbs. She gasped, her lips parting, tempting him to bend down and brush them lightly with a kiss.
But then he got up, surprising her by tossing the sheet up over her and retrieving his robe where he’d carelessly dropped it on the floor. He sat down again on the edge of the bed, but at a distance, which should have given her warning.
With a mock sigh, he said, “And now for the noise.”
Hazel eyes blinked. “The noise?”
“The unleashing of your Scot’s temper.”
Roslynn grinned at him, thinking he was once again teasing her. “I’m going to lose it, am I?”
“More than likely, since I’m honor-bound to tell you that I lied to you today.”
Her amusement fled. “About what?”
“Can’t you guess, my dear? I have no intention of keeping a mistress on the side now that I’ve married. It utterly defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?”
“But you agreed!”
His smile was one of sheer male satisfaction. “I can safely say I would have agreed to anything today to make you legally mine, even to putting it in writing, which fortunately you didn’t think to request.”
Roslynn stared at him incredulously, hot anger banishing the languor of her limbs. She felt tricked, cheated. She was furious.
“You married me falsely!”
“I married you in good faith.”
“I offered you an ideal situation, mon!”
“One I didn’t ask for or want. And, my dear, ifyou’ll just think about it, you’ll see how utterly absurd your request was. You didn’t ask me to marry you, I asked you, and I’ll have you know I’ve never done that before. Nor is it something I would have done lightly. I’ve had mistresses enough to last me a lifetime. What I want now is a wife.”
It was ludicrous how calm he was next to her fury, shaming her into lowering her voice. “You say so now, but what of next month, next year? Your eyes will be a-wandering again soon enough.”
