His breath caught in his chest again then released in a slow whoosh. “The other men you’ve been with. Made love with.”
Her mouth formed a silent O. It hadn’t even occurred to her that he would question the fact that she wasn’t a virgin. Heat crowded her cheeks, and the fire could not be blamed.
She shoved away from him slightly so she could see his expression. But there was no condemnation in his eyes. Merely curiosity and something else. Insecurity.
She cleared her throat. “There was only one. And...I was young. And foolish. It’s all very embarrassing,” she said, glancing away.
“Did you fancy him?” Ridge asked.
She sighed. “I thought I did, but in reality, he was only interested in divesting me of my clothing.”
“Who was he?”
“An English soldier from a regiment stationed in India. I was rather homesick, and I latched onto his interest. I thought he was my way home.”
She shrugged. “After he bedded me, I never saw him again.”
Ridge frowned. “The bastard.”
“And what about you?” she asked teasingly. “Surely if you question my past, I have the right to know of your scores of lovers.”
To her complete amazement, he blushed. She smiled wider as he fidgeted.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” he muttered.
“Try me,” she challenged.
He took a deep breath and stared at her as if daring her to laugh. “You were my first.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Really?”
“Yes, really.”
“But, you were so...”
“So, what?” he demanded.
“So good at it,” she said, her face on fire.
He grinned. “Thank you.”
Her fingers trailed down his cheek, and she smoothed a tendril of hair behind his ear. “Why me? Why not another woman?”
He caught her hand and pressed it to his lips. “I don’t really know, but I always felt I was waiting for something, someone special. It sounds trite. Rather silly actually, but I couldn’t bring myself to share the most intimate of acts with just anyone.”
She smiled, her cheeks aching from the burst of joy she felt. What woman would not die to hear such words from a man who loved her? Just for a moment she could forget everything that was wrong and concentrate on the very rightness of this moment.
“I do love you, Ridge,” she said, needing to say the words.
He frowned slightly. “I hear abutin there somewhere.”
She flinched. “No buts. I love you.”
“And I love you. I ache from loving you,” he said hoarsely.
She put a finger to his lips. “Why don’t you show me.”
If the future was one big question mark, she wanted to live the present to the fullest. There would never be another man for her after Ridge.
