“Tell me, Nell.” Her name scraped from his throat as he tilted his head closer.
“I cannot.” It was thinner than a breath, her eyes fluttering closed.
“Why not?” He pressed, his forehead dropping to rest against hers.
“Because it would be a lie.” She hated herself for meaning it, her breath hitching in her throat.
Something in him snapped. He kissed her, hard and hungry. His hands fisted in her hair, tilting her head back to expose the line of her throat. She kissed him back with all the fury she’d been swallowing for weeks, all the want, and all the hate. Then, he dropped to his knees.
She stared down at him. This tall, powerful man was kneeling before her in the dirt, looking up at her as if she were holy.
“What are you—” She began, but the question died as she gripped his shoulders for balance.
“I have thought about this every night.” His hands found her ankles beneath her yellow skirts, his fingers wrapping around bare skin. “I have woken up hard and aching with your name on my lips.”
“Dominic.” His name caught in her throat as she felt the cool air on her legs.
“I want to taste you.” His hands slid higher, over her stockings and past her garters. “I want to bury my face between your thighs and make you forget your own name.”
“Someone could see,” she gasped, heat flooding her face as she glanced toward the maze path.
“No one will hear you but me.” He ducked beneath her skirts and disappeared into the yellow silk.
She couldn’t see him now. She could only feel his breath hot against her inner thigh and his hands gripping the back of her left leg. He lifted her. Her leg came up, and he draped it over his shoulder, opening her wide to the quiet alcove. She grabbed the stone bench behind her, her knuckles going white as she strained to stay upright.
“Dominic.” She gasped his name again, feeling off-balance and terribly exposed.
“Hold tight.” His response came muffled through layers of fabric. “I am going to ruin you.”
His fingers found the slit in her drawers and parted the linen. There was a shock of cool air, then a sudden, localized heat. His tongue dragged through her folds, one long, slow stroke that made her knees buckle.
“Christ.” He groaned against her flesh, the vibration shooting straight to her core. “You are already dripping.”
“Please.” The word escaped before she could catch it, her head falling back against the hedge.
“Please what?” He licked her again, maddeningly slow. “Tell me.”
“I don’t know.” She shook her head blindly, her fingers clawing at the stone.
“Yes, you do.” His tongue circled her pearl without quite touching it. “Say it.”
“More.” Her hips rocked instinctively toward his face. “I need more.”
“More of what?” He pressed a kiss to her inner thigh, pointedly avoiding the center of her ache. “This?”
“No.” She whimpered, her breath coming in shallow stabs.
“Then what?” He gave her another kiss, higher but still not high enough. “Use your words, Nell.”
“Your mouth.” She was begging now, shameless and desperate. “On me. Inside me. I don’t care. Just, please.”
He sealed his lips over her and sucked. She screamed, her hand flying to her mouth as her teeth sank into her own palm. He didn’t stop. He sucked, licked, and devoured her like he would die without the taste. Her thigh clenched around his shoulder, her heel digging into the sturdy muscle of his back.
“Let me hear you.” He growled against her skin. “No one is listening but me.”
“I cannot.” A sob tore from her throat as she struggled to remain quiet. “Someone will hear.”
“Let them.” He spread her wider with his thumbs, his tongue plunging inside her. “Let the whole world hear what I do to you.”
