“You can’t,” he rumbled. “That’s . . .”
“You liked it,” she said, surprised and delighted by her discovery.
“Too much.” He swallowed and worked to slow his breath. Sinking back down to the bench, he pulled her in close, almost as one would tuck a baby animal close to one’s body. “I am wanting too much.”
Justine felt almost drowsy with the attraction between them. It was a surprising drunkenness, except for the tight concentration of desire between her legs. He brought his hand to her face, dragging his thumb across her cheek.
“I want everything with you.”
Justine shook her head. “I’m not sure I know what that means.”
He grinned back at her. “I’m not sure I know either.”
“Does it mean I get to speak to you whenever I want?”
“Yes.”
“And make jokes and tease you?”
He blessed this question with a kiss on her lips. The searing touch of it had her straining to make him stay, even as he pulled away. “Yes.”
“And kiss you?” She looked at him, knowing she was crossing into a territory more dangerous than the previous questions.
He kissed her again, more thoroughly this time, pushing his tongue into her mouth. She responded in kind, which seemed to surprise him by the way he startled but clearly enjoyed as he tangled with her all the same.
His left arm had cradled her legs, but now he slid his hand up so he was cupping her bum. He kneaded and palmed her arse, which was far more pleasant than Justine would have thought. Leaving her mouth to gasp for air, he slid his kisses down to her neck. This desire of his, how it focused on her heightened every sensation.
Her afternoons with Annabelle Rivers werenothinglike this. They had giggled and kissed and petted, and it was very nice. This tidal wave of lust and need was dizzying and exciting and made her feel good in a way she’d never felt before.
And here was the moment her mother had warned her about. The exact decision that her mother knew she would make when she chastised Justine about her impulsivity. And Karl Vogel’s tongue drawing circles across her chest, pulling the nightrail lower and lower drowned out any whisper of caution.
The neckline of the nightrail caught, snagged as low as it could, and Karl could not get to her bare breasts. She knew that was where he was going, that’s where she wanted him to go. But he couldn’t use the hand he was holding her with, and he clearly did not want to sacrifice the one occupied with her bum. He growled in frustration.
Through the haze of desire, she pulled his face up to hers. “I want more, but this is a sign to stop.”
“A sign to get new sleeping clothes.”
She threw her head back and laughed, glad that he was as frustrated as she was. “This isn’t reasonable. I can’t let you ruin me in a dining room. I ate a pork chop just there.” She pointed.
He nodded, making a considering sort of expression, looking where she indicated.
“Are you not going to say anything?” she asked, feel awkward now that they weren’t devouring each other.
“Not yet. It’s—” he stopped speaking, flexed his thighs, causing her to bounce in the air, which made him groan. “I’m trying—”
His whole body tensed this time. She couldn’t figure out what was going on. “Are you ill? Should I leave?”
His eyes squeezed shut and he relaxed. “Yes. Please stand. Not leave.”
“Of course.” She scurried off his lap, collecting her dressing gown and woolen shawl around herself, as prim and proper as she could manage. “You don’t seem well.”
Suddenly, Karl stood and strode through the dining room, around the bar and to the back door. Justine followed him, curious now. He got to the door and picked up handfuls of the old, stale snow that lingered in the shadows of the building. Then he clapped one on the back of his neck, and the other he rubbed on his face.
“Are you . . .” She trailed off as he turned around, his face red from the cold and his eyes bright blue.
“The inferno you inspire takes some effort to control, Justine.” He stood close to her in the doorway, the midnight hour freeze creeping into the inn. Still, she could feel the heat of him. The inferno that raged inside her as well.
He pushed her against the doorframe and kissed her. She pulled him down to her, holding him with all her strength.
