And she wanted it back – wanted him – more than anything else in the world.
Taking courage, she moved toward him once more, not stopping this time until she was able to touch him. The palm of her hand found his cheek before sliding up into his unkempt hair. “I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve been here all along,” he muttered, his voice hoarse.
“Perhaps I should be clearer.” She looped her arms around his neck and rose onto her toes while pulling his head toward hers. “I’ve missed this.”
Without holding back she captured his mouth with her own, not with gratitude or affection this time, but with uninhibited wantonness. A growl of pure satisfaction rose from his throat, and then his arms were around her, dragging her closer – so wonderfully close she could feel each exquisite contour of his solid frame.
Angling his head, he deepened the kiss and allowed her to taste him. The earthy flavor of coffee crept over her tongue, accompanied by a faint hint of brandy. Ida sighed with more than mere pleasure. She sighed with contentment as well. This was home, right here with this man. Wrapped in his arms was where she belonged.
Simon’s mouth forged a smoldering path down the length of her neck. Ida tilted her head to grant him more access. His hands shifted her weight, pulled at the hem of her robe and the chemise beneath, and then she was being lifted up into the air. One moment later her bottom connected with the dining room table. Simon nudged her legs apart, stepped between them and cradled himself against her. A playful nip of his teeth grazed her shoulder.
“Ida.” Her name, part reverent benediction, part tortured groan, brushed over her skin. “You make me forget who I am and what I should do until there’s just want and need and a burning desire to have you.”
“I feel the same way.” Her mouth sought his once again, kissing him with every yearning she felt in her heart.
“You’ve been through so much,” he tried, “I don’t want to push you and—”
“Simon?” She captured his head between her hands and stared into his scorching eyes. “You’re good and kind and horribly considerate.”
“Horribly?”
“Don’t be a gentleman tonight. Be a scoundrel instead.”
His eyes darkened and his nostrils flared. “If that’s what you want.”
The edge of her mouth lifted. “I think it’s what you want as well.”
A swift nod was his only answer before he stepped back and pulled her down from the table. His hand found hers and then he was leading her out of the dining room, into the hallway, and up the stairs. Ida could barely keep up.
The door to her bedchamber opened and she was pulled into the room. The door closed, the click of the key turning in the lock ensuring they would have added privacy. Curtains were hastily closed and then she was back in his arms, being kissed as if she were the air he needed in order to breathe.
Chapter Thirteen
God help him, he couldn’t get enough.
Pushing his fingers up into her thick mass of hair, Simon cradled the back of her head while feasting on Ida’s perfection. She tasted divine, much better than he remembered, though how that might be he had no idea.
His fingertips found a hairpin and then another. One by one, he pulled them all free and allowed them to fall until silken tresses cascaded around her shoulders. Simon deepened the kiss for a moment – a reminder that he was a starved man and she the most splendid banquet he’d ever discovered. And then he took a step back and paused.
The loud beat of his heart filled his ears, echoing through him as he stared at the most gorgeous woman in the world. Her robe was completely askew and her uncombed hair an unruly mass of spun gold. Simon’s chest tightened. His fingers twitched with the need to touch her, to slide his hands over each inch of glorious perfection, and to take her most precious gift for himself and call her his own.
“Would it be too dastardly of me to ask you to take off that robe?” If he did it himself, he feared things would progress too quickly. Her hesitance was so brief he wouldn’t have caught it if he hadn’t been watching her closely. “Relax, Ida. Don’t be shy or afraid when you’re with me. And take as long as you like. I’m not going anywhere.”
A nervous bit of laughter erupted from between her lips. “I’m sorry. It’s so silly considering what I’ve been used to over the past few years. It’s just that I’ve never undressed in front of a man, except the other night of course, but it was dark then and your eyes were closed. Now, even with the fading light you can still see. And I can’t help but worry a little abou—”
“You mustn’t.” It was all he could do to remain where he was and not pull her back into his arms. “My God, Ida. You drive me mad when you’re clothed, so I can assure you I’ll think I just died and went to heaven the moment I see what you look like naked.”
Her cheeks turned from pink to blazing red. “Perhaps we can do it together.”
“I’m not sure that’s wise. If I touch you again I’ll—”
“No.” She shook her head. “What I mean to say is that it would be easier for me to undress if you undressed as well. At the same time.”
A smirk pulled at the left side of his mouth. “All right.”
If this was what she needed in order to feel more comfortable, then he was more than happy to oblige. Pulling his shirt from his trousers, he drew it up over his head in one swift movement and tossed it aside. Ida stared at him in dismay. His smirk turned into a wide grin.
