It hit her with a rush, and Paisley's eyes widened, color rushing to her cheeks.
Of course, she only knew about this sort of thing thanks to her old nursemaid, who had sat Paisley down at the age of fourteen and given her a long, detailed, matter-of-fact explanation about the facts of life, the differences between men and women, and what a person could expect upon getting married. She'd also offered advice as to how a lady could avoid a baby, if she so wished, and what she could do to make a babymorelikely to come along.
The poor woman would likely have been dismissed on the spot if Paisley's Mama and Papa had learned of the conversation, butPaisley was grateful for it. She'd had too many friends who had been shocked, disgusted, and miserable upon their marriages.
But enough of that. Paisley had a more pressing problem which would be harder to deal with.
No pun intended,she thought, a trifle hysterical. She shifted again and cleared her throat.
"Um, Dominic..."
He swore under his breath, and the world shifted again.
Paisley found herself swept up from the bed and deposited on her feet. Dominic towered over her as usual, his head rather too close to the office ceiling.
His eyes were wide, and she realized that he really had been half-asleep when he pulled her down to him.
That should have been a relief, but instead disappointment pooled in her stomach.
"I..." Paisley began, trying to formulate some sort of apology.
Well, really, theybothneeded to apologize. She might have walked into his office without warning, but he had pulled her into bed with him when he was half-asleep, which was equally bad, really.
"I knew I shouldnae have hired ye." Dominic rasped, his pupils pinprick small and fixed firmly on her.
Paisley opened her mouth to protest, to point out her decently impressive track record to date, or perhaps to make some sort of apology or explanation.
Before she could speak, she found herself pushed back against the wall, a pair of large, warm hands curling over her shoulders.
And then Dominic kissed her.
Needless to say, Paisley had never been kissed. English ladies simply werenotkissed before marriage, and usually not very frequentlyaftermarriage, either. She'd never thought it looked particularly enjoyable.
She was wrong.
Dominic's lips were soft and hard, firm but not too firm. He smelled of grass after rain, of whiskey, of sleep. His stubble scratched her skin, but pleasantly so. She felt his fingers trail against the soft skin of her neck, leaving goosebumps in her wake.
Paisley did nothing. She knew, in a vague, half-conscious sort of way, that she couldn't simply lean up against the wall like a plank of wood while she was being kissed, and yet she couldn't make her hands move, couldn't touch Dominic the way she longed to do. He was wearing a thin linen shirt, open severalinches at the neck, and she imagined drawing her fingers down the warm, exposed skin there.
The ache inside Paisley throbbed demandingly, making her gasp. The gasp was swallowed up between them, lost in the intoxicating heat of Dominic's mouth. It was the most shocking, thrilling, delightful thing that had ever happened to her, and she could think of nothing but the join of their lips and the heat of Dominic's body against hers. Her knees sagged a little, threatening to deposit her on the ground, but Dominic's arms were tight and sturdy around her, and she clutched at his upper arms desperately, fingers digging into the smoothly muscled skin.
The kiss was over before she could snap out of it. Dominic ended the kiss, stepping abruptly back. Paisley sucked in a breath, suddenly aware that she hadn't breathed for a while now.
"Some doors should be left unopened." Dominic said shortly. "Ye shouldnae have come in here. Daenae come in here again."
With that, he yanked open the door – which had drifted closed at some point – and pushed Paisley out into the hallway.
The door closed behind her with a slam, and she stood there for a few moments, gathering her thoughts.
Well,Paisley thought dizzily.Well, that was unexpected.
Dominic closed the door behind Paisley and turned the lock with a shaking hand. He paused, leaning forward to rest his forehead against the wood, and listened. After a pause of a minute or two, he heard her footsteps retreat down the hallway. Was it his imagination, or were her footsteps shaky and uneven?
He swallowed hard, squeezing his eyes closed. Moving woodenly and gracelessly, like a drunk man, Dominic turned his back to the door and slid roughly down to sit on the ground with athump.
What was he thinking? What had he done?
Sure, he had acted out of reflex at first when he pulled Paisley down. Any movement around him when he was asleep meant danger. At least that’s what it meant back in his guard years.
