Before fully thinking, he leaned forward and caught her ankle gently, dragging her toward him across the seat.
Charlotte gasped softly as he dropped to his knees on the carriage floor between her parted legs.
“Victor,” she breathed, half shocked and half breathless anticipation.
“You should not have looked at me like that,” he muttered darkly.
Charlotte’s lips parted faintly. “Like what?”
Victor pushed her skirts slightly higher, his large hands settling warmly against her thighs through her stockings.
“Like you enjoy driving me mad.” His thumbs stroked slowly upward, and Charlotte shivered visibly beneath his touch.
The sound she made nearly destroyed what remained of his restraint.
Victor closed his eyes briefly as heat flooded through him. Her thighs were soft beneath his hands, her body warm and responsive in a way that made him feel almost feverish. He had touched countless women before Charlotte, yet none of them had ever affected him like this. None had ever made him feel as though he were balancing upon the edge of complete ruin.
Charlotte’s fingers slipped into his dark hair hesitantly. “Does this distract you from the carriage?” she whispered.
Victor gave a rough laugh against her knee. “I scarcely remember my own name presently.”
She laughed softly at that, though it dissolved into a shaky breath when his lips pressed against her folds. His slow exploration upward along her rose bud filled him with heat.
Victor looked up at her then, and the sight nearly stole the air from his lungs completely. Her cheeks were flushed, her brown eyes dark and luminous, her lips parted softly as though every touch overwhelmed her.
God, she is beautiful.
Not merely pretty or attractive. Beautiful in a way that felt dangerous to a man like him. Her full figure filled his hands perfectly, her brown curls softened her face in a way that made her appear both warm and temptingly innocent, and her pale skin flushed so sweetly beneath his attention that Victor could not stop touching her even if he wished to.
And he absolutely did not wish to.
“You will bring me to release before the party,” Charlotte whispered weakly.
Victor’s hands tightened slightly upon her thighs. “I cannot help it.” His voice sounded rougher now, edged with something darker than teasing.
Charlotte swallowed visibly beneath his gaze. “Victor…” The way she whispered his name sent another violent rush of heat through him.
He pressed a slow kiss against her sweet center, licking and tasting her. He could not get enough of her honey.
Charlotte made the softest little sound in response, almost a moan, and Victor felt his control fray alarmingly.
He rested his forehead briefly against her thigh while trying to steady himself.
What the devil is she doing to me? I've never felt so consumed by another person before. Never felt this desperate merely to touch and hear and look.
Charlotte’s fingers brushed gently through his hair again. “Why do you stop?” she whispered teasingly.
Victor looked up sharply. “Do not mock me when I am at your mercy.”
Her eyes widened slightly with surprise. “At my mercy?”
He gave a humourless little laugh. “You truly do not realize the power you possess over me, do you?”
Then he licked her some more, with a deep hunger. He enjoyed feeling her wiggle beneath him. But it was when she spread her thighs wider that he groaned loudly. He wanted to please her. To make her shiver.
He flicked his tongue back and forth.
“Oh, Victor. It's happening again. I cannot stop. I will unleash myself,” she moaned.
