Page 25 of Desert Island Duke

His heart skipped another beat.

He shouldn’t. He absolutely—

She stood up.

The water was only waist deep. She emerged, wet and glistening; shoulders, breasts, the sinful curve of her waist.

Oh, God. She was perfection. Pale, creamy skin, pink-tipped breasts, water droplets sliding over her like little pearls.

Maybe he’d truly died and gone to heaven. Maybe he’d been bitten by some hideous snake or terrible spider and was even now hallucinating this exquisite, deliberate provocation.

She didn’t lift her hands to cover her breasts. Instead, she stood there, letting him look his fill.

“Caro,” he croaked, desperate.

Her mouth curved. “I’m seducing you, Cavendish. In case you haven’t noticed.”

“Oh, believe me, I’ve noticed. What I’m wondering is why?”

“Why not?” she countered. “It was your idea. And besides, nobody has to know.”

There was challenge in her tone, daring him to disagree, and a flash of annoyance warmed him. He didn’t want to be her secret experiment, some nameless fling she could forget as soon as they were rescued.

He wanted forever.

But his thoughts scattered as she leaned back in the water and pushed off, and his fingers unbuttoned his breeches without consulting his brain. He shucked the fabric down his thighs, kicked them off, and dove into the water.

The invigorating chill did nothing to cool his ardor. The moment he resurfaced Caro threw herself at him and he almost went under again at the feel of her naked body pressed against his.

Her arms slid around his neck, the hard tips of her breasts squashed against his chest, and he groaned aloud in pleasure.

He was lost.

It was the most natural thing in the world to wrap his own arms around her, to urge her legs around his waist, using the buoyancy of the water to maximum effect.

God, the slip-slide feel of skin on skin was almost his undoing.

His erection was trapped between them, pressed against his stomach, and, impassioned, he caught the back of her head and pulled her in for a soul-stealing kiss.

This was nothing like the slow, leisurely exploration of before. This was openmouthed and hungry, hot and wet. She moaned into his mouth as he devoured her, holding nothing back, showing her the full force of his need.

It should have scared her. Should have had her pulling back in alarm. But Caroline Montgomery had never done the expected. She fisted the wet hair at the back of his head and tugged him closer, kissing him back as if her life depended on it.

God, she was a fast learner. Each time he angled his head to get a better taste, she angled hers the opposite way, fusing them together, giving more. Taking it all.

Unable to help himself, he traced his hand down the curve of her back and cupped her backside, squeezing the rounded flesh until she was squirming against him.

“God, Caro. Let me pleasure you. Please.” He panted it against her neck.

She pressed frantic kisses along his jawline, then leaned back in his arms. “Yes.”

His heart thundered in relief.

“Not here,” he managed. He surged for the shallows, and she clung to him like a starfish. He carried her from the pool, barely making it to their discarded pile of clothes before he lowered her to the ground and pressed her beneath him for another mind-numbing kiss.

Scarcely able to believe it was happening, he kissed his way down her throat, then licked the water droplets from her skin as he moved lower. His hand cupped her left breast while his mouth found the right, and he relished the choked little gasp that escaped her as he swirled his tongue around her peaked nipple.

“Max!”

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