Page 111 of Wedded to the Duke of Seduction

Leo needed no further encouragement. He lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bed, laying her down with exquisite care upon the cool sheets. Leo joined Marina on the bed, his weight supported on his arms as he gazed down at her. The morning light filtering through the curtains cast a golden glow over her features, highlighting the love in her eyes.

Leo knelt beside Marina on the bed, his gaze filled with a mixture of tenderness and desire as he looked down at her. His fingers traced the delicate curve of her cheek, his touch reverent, as if reassuring himself she was truly safe in his arms.

“I almost lost you tonight,” he whispered, his voice rough with emotion. “When I couldn’t find you, when I thought?—”

Marina pressed her fingers to his lips, silencing his fears. “I’m here now. We’re both here.”

His hand slid down to cradle her neck, his thumb brushing over her racing pulse. Slowly, deliberately, he lowered his head until his lips met hers in a kiss that started gently but quickly blazed into something deeper. Marina’s arms wound around his neck, pulling him closer as she parted her lips beneath his.

Leo’s kiss became more urgent, his body settling carefully over hers as his hands explored. His fingers worked at the ribbons ofher nightgown, each touch purposeful yet unhurried. When the silk parted, revealing her skin to the golden morning light, his breath caught.

“Beautiful,” he murmured, trailing kisses along her collarbone. “My brave, beautiful Marina.”

She tugged at his shirt, desperate to feel his skin against hers. Leo helped her, pulling the garment over his head and casting it aside. Marina’s hands spread across his chest, feeling the strong beat of his heart beneath her palms.

“I need you,” she whispered, her eyes holding his. “All of you.”

Leo’s hand slid beneath her nightgown, caressing her thigh with gentle pressure. Marina arched into his touch, her body responding instantly as his hand moved higher, discovering the heat at her center.

“Leo,” she gasped, head falling back against the pillows.

His lips found the sensitive spot beneath her ear then traveled lower to the pulse point at her throat. Every kiss was a declaration, every touch a promise that went beyond words. With careful movements, he eased her nightgown up and over her head, leaving her bare beneath him.

Marina’s fingers worked at the fastening of his trousers, her movements growing more urgent. Leo stilled her hands, bringing them to his lips.

“Slowly,” he murmured against her fingertips. “We have all the time in the world now.”

He kissed each finger before returning to capture her mouth again. His hands explored the familiar landscape of her body with renewed appreciation —the curve of her breast, the dip of her waist, the flare of her hip. Each touch drew a soft sound from Marina’s lips, each caress building the tension between them.

When he finally shed his remaining clothes, their bodies came together skin to skin, the sensation drawing a gasp from them both. Leo’s weight pressed her gently into the mattress as his hands continued their reverent exploration.

“I love you,” he whispered against her skin, the words punctuating each kiss as he moved lower. “Every part of you.”

Marina’s fingers tangled in his hair as his mouth found the sensitive peak of her breast. Her back arched, offering herself to him completely as pleasure coursed through her body.

“Please,” she whispered, her voice breaking with need. Her legs parted in invitation as Leo settled between them.

His eyes locked with hers, dark with desire but clear with emotion. “You are my heart,” he said, his voice thick with feeling. “My soul. My everything.”

Marina reached up to touch his face, tears gathering in her eyes at the raw honesty in his words. “And you are mine,” she answered. “Always.”

Leo stroked the satiny skin of her thigh then dragged a finger over her folds. He carefully parted them and circled her pearl, his touch light and teasing. When she was sufficiently wet, he sank himself into her.

It was gentle. Different. Love guided their movement.

Marina let out a blissful sigh as his cock pulsed inside her. She surrendered herself to the exquisite pleasure of him, gliding in and out of her slick tunnel. It wasn’t hurried. She swayed her hips against his, their bodies kissing and parting over and over. When she came, it was an explosion of pleasure starting at her toes and rising through her thighs and ending in her core.

Leo gave two more long thrusts, and his release was a hot flood inside of her.

When their breathing calmed, Leo drew her to him. “I’ll never let you go.”

Marina nestled against Leo’s chest, her skin still tingling from his touch as his promise wrapped around her like a shield against all future harm. In the quiet aftermath of their passion, she felt the last pieces of doubt dissolve, replaced by a certainty that transcended words or vows.

This was what she had never found with Henry, what she had scarcely believed existed outside her stories. Not just desire, but a bone-deep belonging that made the world beyond their bed seem distant and inconsequential.

EPILOGUE

FIVE MONTHS LATER

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