He slowly lowered his arms to his sides.
“But I think sayingI want to kiss youis a very good start.”
He said nothing but continued to stare at her like she was a lamb and he was a starving wolf.
“But what you’re saying and how you behave have to match.”
He shook his head.
“You say you want to kiss me, but you’re acting like you want to tup me.”
“I do want to tup you.”
Her breath caught. A throb started up between her legs.Say something besides I want to tup you, too.
She coughed into her fist. “Of course, you do. You’re a man in your prime and you haven’t had coitus in years. You’d want to tup anyone with breasts, I warrant.” He tried to break in here, but she wouldn’t let him. “However, a young lady doesn’t know about tupping, Kit.”
“You do.”
“I’m beside the point. When you kiss a young lady, you must be concentrating on the kiss. Only the kiss. Nothing more advanced. At least for the first kiss. You must make the first kiss just a kiss. And wonderful.”
His feral look faded away and a haze came over him. She was losing him to that mysterious place he went sometimes.
“Kit!”
He blinked.
“Kit, do you like kissing?”
His spine went rigid. “I’ve never thought about it.”
“You like what the kissing leads to?” And even though she knew it was dangerous, she winked at him.
Franny, you are so naughty. Stop flirting. Right now.
He answered her question quickly. Seriously. “Yes.”
“You know the answer to that question right away. Which means you’re comparatively indifferent to kissing.”
Suddenly his hands were on her waist and he was pulling her into him. “I wouldn’t be indifferent to kissing you.”
Oh, mirthiful elevens. The ridge of his hardness was against her belly. She felt her own wildness rising to the surface, bubbling, boiling, the desire, the want, the raw need. What would it be like to have this gorgeous, ravenous madman bed her? Gadzooks.
She steeled herself. “Let go.”
He did immediately and she almost whimpered, almost threw herself back up against him. But instead she stepped away and put her hands behind her to keep herself from touching his hair, his jaw, his shoulders, the beautiful bulge in his breeches.
“I’m going to teach you how to kiss an innocent young lady, Kit. Not me. Is that clear?”
A wily look. “But it’s you I’ll be kissing, correct?”
“Yes.”
“So . . .” He moved several inches closer to her.
She took a step back. “So. A kiss speaks without words. What do you think a first kiss should say?”
He rolled his eyes.
