Page 74 of A Touch of Charm
The silence between them hung heavy, charged, her racing heart the only sound she could hear besides the soft crackle of the hearth. Thea’s gloved fingers twisted at her waist as she fought to keep steady, though every nerve in her body thrummed with awareness. Andre moved, bridging the short distance between them in an instant, and her stomach twisted with anticipation. When his hand lifted, his thumb brushing over the curve of her cheek, her whole body stilled at the contact.
“You feel… the way Mary said?” he murmured, but it wasn’t a question, it was permission. His voice low and stirring something deep within her, as though he knew exactly what caused her trembling.
“I do,” she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper, shaky but unhidden.
She didn’t realize she had backed against the door until she felt its hard support on her back, their breaths mingling in the scant space between them. His hand drifted lower, curling lightly around her jaw, tilting her face up, and she closed her eyes for just a moment, overwhelmed by the sheer intimacy of the gesture. When she opened them again, his gaze softened, but the glint of something far more primal lingered, just beneath the surface.
Then, without another word, Andre’s lips touched hers. Gentle at first, as though testing her resolve. Thea couldn’t suppress the sharp inhale, the shock of it shivering down her spine and settling like a spark of fire low in her belly. His mouth was warm, soft yet insistent, coaxing her to respond. She did, her fingers lifting unbidden to clutch at the crisp fabric of his shirt, holding him as though he might disappear if she didn’t.
The kiss deepened, his lips moving against hers with a slow, deliberate passion that stole the air from her lungs. Thea’s sensation narrowed to the contact—the faint taste of tea on his mouth, the faint scratch of his clean-shave jaw, the unrelenting strength in the firm pressure of his touch as it settled at her waist. Heat blossomed in her chest, spreading outward, until there wasn’t a part of her unaffected by his nearness.
Her knees felt weak, and she leaned into him, into the solidness of his frame, the anchor he provided to her dizzy frenzy of emotion. One of his hands slid upward to cradle the back of her head, his fingers tangling softly in her hair. Thea tilted her head instinctively to deepen the kiss, a quiet sound escaping her throat that she barely recognized as her own. The treatment room, the jars of tinctures, and even Mary’s meddling all faded into a distant haze.
There was only Andre—his lips, his heat, his strength—and for that singular moment, she allowed herself to be entirely his.
His initial hesitation gave way to a fervent response. His arms encircled her waist, pulling her against him as if anchoring himself to the moment—to her.
He opened his mouth and moved his lips, gently sucking her in, and she gasped into him. He brushed her lower lip with his tongue, and all the questions in her mind were erased. Just like that, he’d answered all of her questions. For all that mattered was that he indeed felt the same.
Oh and how he felt!
The intensity of the kiss deepened, and a rush of emotions surged through her—desire, fear, joy—all blending into a dizzying whirlpool that left her breathless.
This was new for her, and she didn’t expect it, but perhaps the surprise made it much more special.
*
For Andre, thekiss was both a revelation and a surrender.
At that moment, Andre knew he was lost to her. Thea was not just a fleeting passion, a moment of desire to be forgotten. She was everything, the center of his world; the one person who could make him forget all else. He wanted to stay and be with her and lose himself in her completely.
Thea’s hands cupped his face, her thumbs brushing over his cheeks in a gesture of tender affection. Andre leaned into her touch, his heart swelling with emotions he could not name. He kissed her again, this time with a slow, deliberate passion that spoke of all he felt, all he could not say.
When they finally pulled apart, their foreheads rested against each other, breaths mingling, eyes locked in a gaze that spoke volumes.
In that fleeting instant, they were no longer two individuals bound by society’s constraints. They were simply two souls finding solace and strength in each other. The future was uncertain, but for now, in this singular, breathtaking moment, they belonged to each other entirely.
And then there was a thud.
Followed by a knock. “Andre?” Wendy called.
“Thea!” Mary added. “I know they are in there,” she mumbled.
“What is going on in there?” Wendy called.
Andre stepped back and let out a heavy exhale.
Thea gave him a humored look, pressing her lips together as if to taste him again.
And he couldn’t stop himself from kissing her again. To feel her tender mouth, the heat building for him, and she opened up immediately.
Another knock came from low on the door, near the doorknob. Mary.
Andre put one hand against the door as if the sheer pressure from his arm could keep the world outside at bay, especially the curious girl—and he didn’t mean Mary. Wendy mumbled something behind the door, and then he recognized Alfie’s voice.
He knew he had to go. If he was supposed to keep her safe, hidden, unseen, scandal was not the right way to accomplish that. But he felt an almost magnetic pull to Thea. Her touch was intoxicating. Her soft, blue gown clung to her in a way that caught the light just right, highlighting the perfectly flaring curve of her waist and the delicate slope of her shoulders when he glanced down. But the rosy blush on her face and the pinkness of her swelling lips was more than a declaration of the word he didn’t dare name. Her eyes, a deep shade of blue, seemed to pierce through his resolve, making him question everything he thought he knew. Her movements were graceful and deliberate; it was undoubtedly her first kiss and a silent invitation stirred something primal within him he didn’t want to suppress.
Their breaths mingled as she cradled his cheeks. There was a riveting tension in the air, a palpable anticipation that made his pulse quicken. Thea’s hands moved with gentle certainty, her fingers trailing a line of fire down to his collar. Andre’s heart thundered in his chest as she slid her hands lower, resting on his heart, her tender and commanding touch. He could feel the warmth of her palms, the slight tremor that gave away her rising desire.
