There was no turning back now for either of them. Their bond was sealed. As the minister spoke the final prayers and benedictions, she said a prayer of her own.Dear Lord in heaven, please let him grow to love me. I promise to love him with every fiber of my being!
She blinked away tears as her aunt began to play again. It was all too much. Her heart was overflowing, and she didn’t know how to stop crying.
David quickened his pace as he led her down the aisle and through the long hall to the blessedly empty drawing room. Assoon as he closed the door behind them, he turned toward her, and her tears began to flow in earnest.
“Clarissa, what’s wrong? I thought this was what you wanted. Do you regret—”
“No. I am merely overwrought. It has been a rather overwhelming day. Everything’s happened so quickly.”
He pulled out his handkerchief and instead of handing it to her, he used it to brush a tear from her cheek. She couldn’t stop herself from nuzzling into his caress, and he froze, letting the handkerchief drop to the floor.
For a long moment, they were both still but for their breathing, his fingers cupping her cheek.
His gaze heated and dropped to her lips.
“David,” she whispered. “Do you want to kiss me?” She could hardly believe it, but why else would he be looking at her like that?
“I…” He squeezed his eyes shut and swallowed hard, his hand dropping away from her face. “I don’t…” His lips made a thin line as he pursed them together.
“Doyouregret marryingme?” She shouldn’t have asked, but she couldn’t stop herself. She needed to know the truth. He’d been so convincing when he spoke with such force during the ceremony. Like a fool, she’d let herself think that meant he harbored tender feelings. But perhaps her optimism had led her astray, as it had with Jeffrey.
“No.” His voice rasped as he spoke. “I don’t regret it. And yes, I want to kiss you. I’ve wanted to since the day you fell into my arms at the Carringtons’.”
Her breath caught at his confession. But this was a delicate moment, and the slightest misstep might send him running. Ever so carefully, she reached for his arm.
He inhaled in sharply at her touch but didn’t withdraw.
“Then what is stopping you?” she asked gently. “You already know I want you to.”
He looked up at her with such longing that she forgot to breathe. “I know. But I don’t deserve you, Clarissa. My heart is damaged beyond repair, and I don’t want to break yours.”
She squeezed his arm and stepped closer so that his face was mere inches from hers. The tension between them crackled and sizzled, and every part of her body strained to close the distance. But he was like a cat who eschewed unwanted attention, she reminded herself. So he had to choose this now. She could not force it, only offer. “I’m stronger than you think. You can’t break me.”
He tipped his head forward until his forehead touched hers, and his scent of cedar and citrus mixed with his subtle musk to addle her senses. Dear Lord in heaven, she wanted this kiss! But still, he refused to move.
“I can, and I fear I will,” he whispered. And yet his arms encircled her, pulling her flush against him. “But I need you, and I want you. And though it may damn me, I can’t resist you any longer.”
At last!
He enveloped her in an embrace that sent fire racing though every inch of her, his lips scorching her own with his kiss. It was a bolt of lightning, blinding and cataclysmic, filling her with a burning hunger she had never known before. Her previous stolen kisses paled in comparison. This was beyond her wildest hopes—passion that thundered and sparked, devastating everything in its path, transforming everything it touched.
She lost herself in the storm of his caresses, letting it carry her away, as he deepened his kiss, drawing her in, consuming her with a ferocity that melted her and left her pliant and boneless. Thankfully, his strong arms surrounded her, pressing her to him and holding her up. The need to caress him in returnoverwhelmed her, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, running her fingers through his hair.
Her touch seemed to embolden him, and the fury of his kiss redoubled. It was all she could do to keep her feet under her as she clung to him, returning his caresses with an eagerness that fed the bonfire between them. Flames licked at her flesh as he kissed along her jaw and down her chest, and she arched back, eager for more.
And then he stopped abruptly, stepping back, though still holding her up, hands caging her waist.
They were both panting and flushed, and the wild, hungry way he looked at her made her want to melt into a puddle on the floor. “Why did you stop?”
“Because I had to before I lost control completely. And because there are guests waiting right outside that door, including the vicar! But rest assured, you undo me, Clarissa.” His chest heaved as he took slow, deliberate breaths, still looking at her like the most precious thing that had ever lived.
“I do?” It was so much more than she’d dared hope for. She wanted him to lose control, to unleash the storm once again. Never had she felt so adored, so desirable. Her former feelings for Jeffrey, even those she’d felt before she knew what kind of vermin he was, paled in comparison. He might have been the man she wanted for a time, but David was the man she needed.
He nodded, his gaze singeing her even at a distance. “I apologize if I was too forceful. I should have been gentler.”
“No, it was perfect! You were perfect. I want this.” Her body pulsed with pleasure that had sharpened to an ache. All she wanted was for him to close the distance, kiss her again like that, and never stop.
“Be careful what you wish for, sweet.” His voice rasped, and his gaze burned with sensual promise. Until he turned away. “We should return to your parents.” With that, he straightenedhis waistcoat and faced the door, offering his arm without looking at her.
