She gave him a teasing smile. “That many? Then you must enlighten me as to who they were because I only recognized three of them.”
“As Lord Chesterfield used to say: ‘The day I do that, it will be a cold day in hell.’”
Susannah laughed freely. “I don’t know all of Lord Chesterfield’s sayings, but you and I both know the man never said that in his letters to his son or anyone else.”
“Probably not, but since he is dead and won’t know it, we can attribute it to him with a clean conscience.”
“You are too hard on your grandmother’s dear friend. But I was just thinking that there is one good thing about not dancing tonight.”
“I can’t think of what that might be, Susannah,” he said dryly as he rubbed her palm with his thumb.
“Perhaps there will be a next time.”
Race let go of her hand and let his fingers drift along her cheek to her chin and he turned her face to his. “I’ll make sure there is.”
As his tender gaze stayed on hers, his hand slid around to the back of her neck, the heel of his palm resting on her collarbone, his thumb at the hollow of her throat. He bent down and kissed her tenderly, briefly, as if he were shy, and she knew that was not the case. His lips were warm, soft, intriguing, promising more to come. Susannah’s breath came in little gasps.
The kiss deepened. A breathless fluttering filled her stomach. When he broke the kiss, Susannah wiped her lips with her tongue. His lips touched hers again, the same as before, brief, non-threatening, but very satisfying. She didn’t know how or why such innocent kisses should send deep thrills of desire spiraling through her, but she welcomed them and the way Race made her feel.
She had fallen victim to his charm the first time she saw him, and every time since then, when she was with him, her attraction to him grew stronger.
Susannah lifted her lips to his and whispered, “We don’t have much time before Mrs. Princeton returns, Race. Kiss me again.”
He needed no more urging. His lips covered hers quickly with hard and hungry pressure as his other arm snaked around her and pulled her tightly against his strong chest. She opened her mouth to him. Their breaths mingled, and their tongues played together as they devoured the heated moment of passion that flared between them.
With one hand he held her close, while the other slipped beneath her cape and found her breast. He caressed her with such skill, she wanted to cry out from the sheer pleasure and excitement his touch created inside her. His movements were exhilarating. As her body reeled from his sensuous assault, she clung to his shoulders, feeling desperate to get closer to him.
His mouth ravaged hers in a savoring kiss that was meant to seduce her and be victorious. His tongue probed her mouth with intensity, and she gave back as much as she took in. His hand expertly kneaded her breast before gliding down her ribs, past her waist, and over her hip, and then slowly moving back up to cup and lightly fondle her breast again.
Susannah sighed with contented pleasure, wanting to give her body over to his exquisite touch. Her arms circled his powerful back. She gloried in the feel of him beneath her hands.
Slowly Race stopped the kiss and moved away from her to the far corner of the seat. His breaths were short and shallow.
Stunned from his withdrawal from her, Susannah asked, “Did I do something wrong?”
“No, no, not you, me,” he said huskily. “You tempt me too much, Susannah. I have very little control where you are concerned.”
Still reeling from exquisite passion, Susannah swallowed hard and said, “I find myself in the same position as you.”
“Yes,” he whispered. “But you are a duchess and deserving of more respect than to be taken in a carriage on the street.”
That certainly put the situation in perspective for her as to what he was thinking, but his answer did little to satisfy her craving. She was still savoring the way he was able to make her feel. Yes, she was a duchess, but she was also a woman who wanted the touch of this man. Was it wrong for her to want him when he thrilled her in a way she had never experienced before? She appreciated his chivalry and expected nothing less from him, but…
“You are right. I am not a lady of the evening. I am a thirty-year-old widow who has found a man who makes me feel things I have never felt before. I don’t want to deny myself this opportunity for I fear I will never have it again.” Susannah paused and then said, “Race, will you come to my bed tonight?”
His eyes rounded. He blinked slowly, as if giving himself time to let her words sink in and believe what he had heard. He shifted in the seat and said, “I—of course, if you are sure.”
She reflected for a moment on what she had asked of him. She did not regret it. “You seem stunned that I’ve asked you.”
He settled back into the plush cushions once again. He looked at her from hooded eyes. “All right, I am. It’s not every day that I have the lady of my dreams invite me to her bed.”
A little embarrassed, Susannah smiled to cover her feelings. “I have to admit I’m a little stunned myself that I have asked you. Does my forwardness displease you?”
“Never,” he said in a hushed but fervent voice, continuing to keep his distance from her.
“Yet you are still reluctant.”
“No, Susannah, I’m having a hard time believing my good fortune.”
