Page 43 of A Delicate Conquest

“Go right ahead,” she whispered.

A low growl reverberated from deep within his chest—a sound that was completely inhuman.

Oh. My. Goodness.Bea kept her eyes closed, content to bask in the quiet intensity of his presence. His scent—clear, cool, and crisp, like winter pine—enveloped her.

She’d never experienced anything quite like this; never wanted anyone so badly.

He found the zipper of her dress. She didn’t have to explain to him how it worked.

Deft fingers unraveled her with ease.

He pulled up her skirt with careful urgency, drawing the slinky fabric over her legs, her hips, her belly, her breasts…

And she shifted and lifted herself in places to accommodate his silent request.

At last, he pulled the garment up over her head, over her raised, crossed-over arms.

It disappeared into the darkness, leaving her in just her shoes and her undergarments.

Bea kicked off her silver shoes—remade by Mavrel’s magical technology—the damn things that had caused this predicament in the first place.

All of a sudden, Mavrel wasn’t moving anymore.

She reached out and felt him, pressing her palm against his warm, hard chest.

He didn’t say a word.

“What’s wrong?” she whispered, experiencing a moment of self-doubt. Was he having second thoughts?

“Nothing’swrong.” Mavrel’s voice was hoarse. “It’s just that…”

“What?”

“I… I did not know that such things existed.”

“Things?” Now, she was both desperately aroused and confused.

“These…garments.” The last word came out as a cracked whisper. “I could eat you alive.”

“Oh.Those.Yeah, well, it’s a good thing I don’t do things by halves, then.” She’d almost forgotten she was wearing the sexiest lingerie she owned: delicate, lacy, and black. A barely-there bra of gauzy mesh decorated with intricate floral embroidery. A matching G-string with the same pattern, subtly obscuring her entrance behind a black silken leaf.

She’d just wanted to feel good in her beautiful dress, and pretty lingerie made all the difference.

Beasworeshe hadn’t been thinking about anything else.

“What’s this?” Mavrel’s hand glided across her bare skin, over her right side, starting at her lower ribcage, skimming over the hollow of her waist, caressing the swell of her hip. “You’re marked.”

Ah.Bea smiled. That was her tattoo. A blue lotus flower—Nymphaea nouchali var. caeruleato be precise—adorned with intricate swirling elements, extending from just below herribcage to her hip, the vibrant pigments of delicate purplish-blue and green contrasting with her “What do you think of it?”

“I don’t understand it, but I think it looks amazing on you. It’s so veryyou.Bold. Vibrant.” His voice was filled with desire and curiosity. “There’s a meaning behind it?”

“There is, and I’ll tell you sometime. But not now. Please,just?—”

“You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” he whispered, and she felt his warm breath across her belly.

She almost wanted to tell him to give them light again, just so she could see his expression, but from the sound of his voice, she could imagine it.

Imagination could add so much more to the real thing.

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