Her eyes widened. “Henry...”
“I know you are not ready to think in those terms, but it is important to me that you know where I stand. My intentions toward you are honorable, Viola. I will never bed you and leave you and I will never trick you into submitting.”
She sank back in her chair, and when he cupped her cheek again, she leaned into his warmth as if craving that extra support. “I’m not ready to contemplate marriage.”
“Then don’t.” When she gazed back at him, he took her hands between his. “Know that you are in control, Viola. If you want to kiss me, please do. Because I can assure you I want that as well. But if you are not ready, then wait. I will not rush you in any way.” He raised her hands to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “But just so you know, the fact that I am doing my best to behave doesn’t mean I am not having scandalous thoughts.”
Her breath hitched. “Really?”
He allowed a devilish smile to slide into place. “If you must know, they keep me up at night.” Deliberately, his gaze dropped to the elegant line of her décolletage. “I cannot stop wondering what it would be like to peel your clothes from your body and run my hands over your skin.” He imagined other things too—things that left him aching with need and desperate to feel her hands upon him. But he would not describe any of that right now because if he did he might lose control, and that would be really bad after promising her restraint.
So he straightened himself and released her hands while enjoying her dazed expression. Oh, he’d definitely given her something to think about later when she got home and climbed into bed. Again, not wise of him to allow his wicked mind to consider whatthatmight lead to. Unless he wanted lust and desire to ruin everything.
Her eyes, burning bright with profound interest, pierced him until he could scarcely move. She studied him with the sort of sharpness that made him ache for her touch. “I should probably go,” she said as if she’d somehow forgotten how she’d come to be in his office in the first place.
Henry nodded stiffly. “Probably.” He waited for her to move, prepared to stand the moment she did.
Instead she remained where she was, watching, assessing, pondering something that made Henry’s pulse leap with strange expectation. She was torturing him with her beauty, her closeness, her bloody décolletage which revealed far more than it ought. Christ, she was maddening and he needed her gone if he was to gather his wits and prepare for tomorrow.
Instead she leaned forward, affording him with the most perfect view of her breasts. He gripped the armrests and forced himself to stay still, breathe slowly, keep calm. “Viola,” he murmured.
“The trouble is, I don’t want to leave you,” she said. “At least not yet. Not before doing this.”
And then, to Henry’s amazement and utter delight, she closed the distance between them and placed her lips against his.
It wasn’t at all what she had been planning to do when she’d come to see him. The only thing on her mind had been making him give up the duel. But then he’d touched her and said things that filled her with want. And by God, she wanted. She wanted to know how he tasted and what he felt like beneath her own mouth. She wanted to kiss him so thoroughly that their kiss would be the only one she remembered. She wanted to mark him as hers and convey how she truly felt: that there was more between them than friendship alone and that if he survived the duel against Robert, they would need to discuss every facet.
For a second, he sat as if stunned, but then his lips moved against hers and a rough growl emerged as he started kissing her back. It was slow and gentle at first, and Viola took pleasure in growing accustomed to the feel of it. But as she pressed closer and their kiss grew deeper, his hand came around her waist, and before she knew what was happening, she was pulled straight onto his lap.
She gasped with surprise and Henry took advantage, claiming her mouth so fiercely it caused her to burn from within. More so when his hand began exploring her body with torturous slowness. Pressing into his sweet caress, she heard her own groan of pleasure like a stranger’s wanton plea for more.
Henry bit her lip gently and abandoned her mouth, kissing his way along her jaw. “God, Viola.” He nipped at her earlobe, and clusters of sparks raced straight to her core.
“Yes,” she murmured while threading her fingers through his hair and arching against him so he could have better access.
To her dismay and thorough disappointment, he pressed his forehead against her neck and held her tightly against him, before loosening his hold and guiding her back to her seat. He stood and went to the sideboard to pour himself a drink while Viola struggled to catch her own breath.
“If I...” His voice was hoarse and his eyes bright with pure desire. He downed the contents of his glass and tried again. “If I kept on kissing you, we would have ended up on the floor with your skirts up around your waist and my...” He let the words fade but Viola got the picture. Right now, she wasn’t sure that sounded all that bad. His shoulders seemed to harden as if under tremendous pressure. “I don’t want us to be a quick tumble for each other. I want more than that, which is why I must ask you to leave now before I lose my resolve.”
Viola was astounded, flattered and slightly disappointed, but she admired his ability to consider such things when all she wanted to do was feel and experience and show him how much he mattered to her. So she stood and smoothed the fabric of her gown with trembling hands.
Henry stared at her, nostrils flaring as he took in her appearance. She could only imagine what he saw after what they’d just shared. Her skin still felt flushed and her lips continued to tingle from where they’d connected with his.
“There is nothing I can do to dissuade you from going through with the duel, is there?” It was the only thing she could think to say for the sake of steadying herself just enough to quit his company and return to her home.
He came toward her, stopping only when he was directly before her. “No.” Impulsively, he clasped her head between his hands and kissed her again with added fervor. It was quick but fierce and left no doubt in her mind that this point was not to be argued. As if to underscore what she already knew, he said, “This duel has to take place, Viola. I am sorry, but I will not call it off.”
“Then I wish you success.” She hesitated briefly while holding his gaze. And then, before she could change her mind, she walked to the door, opened it wide, and exited into the hallway beyond.
The air was crisp against her face when Viola left her house to hail a hackney the next morning. Few people were about at this early hour, which made travel easy. She doubted Henry would want her attending the duel, but staying away and worrying over the outcome wasn’t an option either. Especially not after the incredible kiss they’d shared the night before. They’d moved beyond the bounds of friendship within the blink of an eye, and were now joined together in a tightly wound knot of emotions that demanded she witness the events about to take place.
Arriving at Hackney Meadows, Viola climbed down from the carriage and paid the driver. She then straightened her spine and walked toward the men who were gathered some distance away. Robert was the first to notice her approach. He glared at her before turning aside and offering her his back.
Haines saw her next and hastened toward her. “You should not be here.”
She raised a brow. “Is that why you left thatambiguousletter for me to find?”
“No.” He frowned. “It was of course to alert you in the hope you might stop this madness before it got this far. But now we’re here and the pistols have been examined. I fear there is no going back.”
