He spun her around, his lips caressing the nape of her neck as his hands made quick work of her gown—ties undone, skirts rustling to the floor, stays tugged loose, petticoats falling in a whisper until only a thin shift clung to her. “Iwant.”
She moaned lightly when the cool air touched her skin, the sound rippling through the approaching night.
Sliding his arm around her waist, Dominic pulled her back against his chest. “More than you know, Mrs. Beckett,” he murmured in her ear, his tepid breath sending a shiver of yearning through her.
Before she could move to undress him, he settled her carefully on the bed, the coverlet a silken dream beneath her. For a heartbeat he stared, eyes shining the color of forgotten seas, full of mystery and desire. His chest fell with a deep sigh as his hands tensed at his side. “My God,you’re stunning. I consider myself the luckiest of men.”
Dazed, she shook her head, having no idea what to say, what todowhen she was burning up inside, when she loved him this much.
With a knowing smile, he began to strip away the remnants of his own restraint—waistcoat shrugged aside, buttons slipped open one after another, shirt tugged free and tossed to the floor. Braced on herelbow, her breath caught at the sight of him undoing himself piece by piece, until at last he stepped from his trousers and drawers, his gaze meeting hers again, no barrier left between them.
You’re the stunning one,she pledged, beauty carved not in stone but in flesh.And I’m the luckiest of women.
After only a second’s hesitation, he moved toward her, crawling onto the bed. Her elbow gave way as he eased her down, laying her back. His lids lowering to conceal the heat in his eyes, his broad body covered hers, pressing her into the mattress. Then his mouth found hers again, no words now, only the fierce insistence of lips and tongue, the surrender of purpose as he kissed her until thought dissolved.
The details of their first time would surround Louisa for days, weeks, months—forever—but in the moment, it was a rush of sensation that she’d been, even with some knowledge, unprepared for. The friction of his slick skin against hers, his hips nudging her thighs wide as he sank between them. His shaft, hard and heavy, settled into her soft folds as if they’d been fashioned for each other.
Which, she supposed, they had.
He palmed her lower back in skillful possession, tilting her hips as his fingers began the wicked play he’d made her crave since that stolen interlude in his warehouse. She closed her eyes to the sight of him looming over her, the gorgeous silver-streaked strands she so loved dangling across his brow, struggling to control the tremors dancing across her skin and the surety that she would be crushed by passion if she allowed it.
“It doesn’t work like that,” he whispered, his lips settling at the curve of her shoulder and sucking the delicate skin there between his teeth—gently but with purpose. She felt the touch, theintent, to her toes and back. Laughing tenderly, he slid a long finger inside her and stroked. Then he paused, his warm breath streaking across her cheek. “Command of our bodies isn’t always ours to maintain, that’s the beauty of this. It’s my husbandly duty to make you lose your mind.”
She groaned, hips rising, grasping his shoulder, urging him to continue.
“Recall my advice, the pause is everything. The moment the senses take over, let them. Feel me, Lou,” he said and worked his finger deeper, then another joining the first. His thumb moved over her sex, pressing as he stroked. “The second before the delicious spoils is the best approximation of heaven.”
“Spoil me, then,” she whispered, drawing a ragged laugh from him.
But he complied—and was calculated about their adventure after that. His touch, his palpable hunger, the sensual grind of his cock against her thigh, left her no choice but to submit to anything he asked of her. When he left the kiss to draw her nipple between his lips, his tongue circling the hardened bud, she was lost. Her release rolled over her with a roar in aching degrees, taking her with it. She gasped, pulling his body atop hers, her cheek pressed to his chest. His heart bumped in time to her frantic breaths as blood raced through her veins. The ecstasy was indescribable.
Confidence born of need, reserve mislaid in the face of raw desire, she took hold of his rigid shaft, marveling at the smooth sleekness, the absolute perfection. Her strokes were clumsy, but his hum of pleasure made her soar. And with more practice, shewouldget better.
“I’m not going to last, darling Lou. Not this time. I waited, as promised,” he said, his voice threadbare. Unable to form a capable reply, as she shuddered with the last vestiges of her climax, he moved to fit the crown of his cock at her entrance. “I’ll be gentle, as much as I can. Just know I want you more than I’ve wanted anyone in this life.”
Mouth locating the nipple he’d yet to savor, he feasted while thrusting inside her in agonizingly,gloriouslyslow notches, the patient skill he’d spoken of on display. The pain was sharp but lasted only seconds, swallowed by his tenderness and their ardor.
When his hips were locked against hers, he paused, his browdropping to hers. “This is better than I’d imagined, and sweetheart, I’ve imagined nothing else for days.”
Dominic held still, buried deep, as they trembled at the enormity of what they’d done, what they’d become.Husband and wife, lovers.His breath feathered across her lips, tremors rocking his body from holding back, while his thumb brushed her cheek in a touch so reverent it unraveled her.
She cupped his jaw, anchoring herself in his kindness, his strength, as if she might steady them both. “It doesn’t work like that,” she whispered, lifting her hips, dragging him back into the dance. The silver streaks in his hair glimmered in the lamplight, her endless fascination. “That’s the beauty of this. My wifely duty is to make you lose your mind.”
He groaned in what she assumed was agreement and began to move, gradually at first, each thrust a measured claim, until her body softened, opened, answering his. Her name fell from his lips as he gathered her close, as her legs wrapped around him, intensifying their rhythm.
His hair dampened against his temple, his mouth finding hers in kisses that blurred into the cadence of their bodies—urgent, consuming, their breath tangling in the hush of the bedchamber as they gave themselves over to one another completely.
Chapter Ten
Where longing bleeds intotrust.
Lovemaking had neverleft Dom with knees too weak to support him.
Never. Notonce.
Shifting gently on the bed so he didn’t wake her, he drew Louisa closer even as his shoulder screamed. It had been cramping for the past hour, but he wasn’t letting her go.
Not when his fantasies were swirling like morning mist around him.
