Page 58 of A Virgin for the Rakish Marquess

“I wonder, Diana,” James purred, “if those pastries tasted good.”

Diana was still lost in a haze when he drew closer to her. She could not think, her pupils dilated with desire.

“I guess I have to find out,” he rasped.

He leaned in, one hand on the back of the couch and the other on her waist, pulling her closer, their breaths mingling. He brushed his lips against hers slowly, just barely, just enough to make her lean toward him. He cupped her face, his thumb brushing her lower lip.

“So sweet already, Diana,” he murmured, his voice rough.

“You… you haven’t tasted me yet,” Diana pointed out.

“Do you want me to?” he whispered.

Her fingers curled into his shirt, and she shifted closer to him.

“Do you have any idea,” he asked in a molten, dark voice, “what you do to me?”

Diana barely had time to react before his lips crashed onto hers. She gasped, and he swallowed the sound, deepening the kiss and pulling her closer until she was half sitting in his lap. His tongue swept inside her mouth, teasing, demanding, claiming every inch of it, devouring her, coaxing out soft, breathless sounds that only made him kiss her harder.

His hands explored her body, and he longed to finally see what was underneath all her layers. His hand moved to the shoulder of her dress and tugged on the sleeve.

James was a patient man, but when he saw her skin and the lace of her thin nightgown, he could barely keep himself in check.

He tore his mouth from hers and kissed her jaw and down the soft skin of her neck. She moved on pure instinct, her thighs pressing together, and he smiled as he nipped her earlobe. She buried her hands in his hair, tugging lightly and making him moan. Her head lolled back, and her lips parted on a soft whimper. And he had barely started.

James’s hand traced the column of her neck, his thumb pressing lightly over her racing pulse before sliding lower, barely grazing the swell of her breasts through the thin fabric of her dress.

“Ah!”

His thumb drew small circles on the swell of her breasts as he licked the sensitive skin behind her ear. He found the delicate neckline of her dress and tugged, the soft fabric sliding down her chest and shoulders, baring inch after inch of skin to his ravenous gaze.

James broke the kiss just long enough to look at her. “Shall I stop, Diana?”

She shook her head violently.

“Answer me,” he ordered, his breath hot on her skin.

“No… please,” she begged breathlessly.

“Oh, My Lady,” he whispered. “I will pleasure you. I will find every spot that makes you quiver,” he promised, letting his fingers dance lightly over her skin. “I will own each and every sigh.”

With a sudden yank, he freed her breasts. He cursed under his breath, his hips jerking just slightly, his hardness straining against his tight breeches.

No, tonight is for her.

He placed an open-mouthed kiss on her collarbone, and then he moved down, trailing kisses over her quivering skin. Both hands cupped her ample breasts, the white mounds spilling out of his palms just enough to make him hungry for them. When his thumb brushed over a stiff nipple, Diana almost catapulted off the sofa.

“No, Diana, I want you here,” he warned, kneading her flesh.

“I am… I am here.”

“Good,” he murmured.

Diana moaned in delight, his mouth, his hands, his body all devoted to her. The sound was music to his ears, but he knew he could make her more desperate, more breathless. Without warning, he flicked his tongue against her nipple.

“James!” Diana cried out.

“That’s it,” he encouraged.

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