Page 68 of My Secret Duke
She loved him. And if she hadn’t known it or wanted to admit it before, then she did so now.
Olivia reached to encircle her arms about his neck, pulling him down for more kisses. They fell onto the bed, facing each other, and the kiss went on. There was a sense of urgency inside her, a need that could no longer be denied.
“Should I take off my—” she began, but he was before her.
“Let me.” He crawled down and knelt at her feet, removing her slippers and then reaching to lift her skirt so that he could untie her stockings. He smoothed his hands over her knees and calves as he rolled them down, and then he cupped her ankles. Ivo looked up at her, andthere was something in his face, in his eyes, that made her think that this moment was more than physical for him too.
Still watching her, he ran his hands up her legs again to her thighs, and then he ducked under her skirts, and she felt his hot breath between them. She must have cried out in surprise, arching toward him, but it was so good. She could hardly bear it. And then his tongue was lapping at her, and even his teeth, gently, and oh God, it was too much.
Her body gathered itself, and suddenly, she was soaring.
When she was able to open her eyes again, he was still kneeling before her, watching her with an arrogant grin. Slowly, he began to unfasten his pantaloons, shoving them down over his slim hips, down over his muscular thighs. He wasn’t wearing anything under them, which confused her briefly because she knew gentlemen wore underwear, but then she forgot all that when she saw him in his full, manly glory.
His arrogant smile had faded as he watched her eyes widen. “Olivia,” he began, as if he was going to suggest they stop now, and she couldn’t have that. She pushed herself up and reached for him, wrapping her hand around the thick heat.
Ivo groaned, and when she began to stroke him, he said in a muffled voice, “I’ll spill if you do that.”
Olivia stretched up to plant a kiss on his jaw, and then another, and then he was rolling her over on the bed,their bodies tangled in her skirts, and the ache inside her was growing again.
He was on top of her, taking his weight with his knees and elbows, but she felt his presence in a way that she never had before. He nuzzled against her throat, murmuring words she couldn’t understand, all of her attention focused on his hand, now stroking between her thighs, causing them to fall open, and then she felt him pressing for entry.
“Sweetheart… want you… so much…”
For a moment, she thought he said he loved her, but she must have been mistaken, and even if he had… She reminded herself feverishly that people said things at the height of their emotion; it didn’t mean they were serious.
Olivia arched against him, feeling the burn of his body easing into hers, the brief discomfort, before his fingers teased her into ecstasy. And then he was rocking against her, and she grasped his back, holding him to her, never wanting this to end.
Far away, a church bell rang, and she closed her eyes and imagined flying high over the city. She and Ivo, together.
Chapter Thirty-Two
She was sleeping. Ivo had been asleep himself, briefly, but he didn’t want to waste a moment of this time. They were lying on the bed, his body spooned around hers, with her back to his chest. He lifted his head and leaned over to kiss her gently on the temple, tucking her hair aside so that he could see her face. The pleasure had been beyond his wildest dreams, but he suspected that was because, for the first time, his heart was enmeshed, as well as his body.
He wondered how she could think they would only have this one night. It wasn’t enough. He would fight for more, for her, with everything he had. It was either that or live with a broken heart.
“Ivo?”
He looked down. Her eyes were still closed, long, dark lashes resting against her pale cheek. “Yes, sweetheart?”
She smiled, the corners of her lips turning up. “I like it when you call me that,” she whispered. “I’ve never been anybody’s sweetheart.”
That gave him a sharp pain in his heart, to think she had not been valued as she ought. He remembered how she had spoken about her childhood, the awfulness of it, and he swore to himself that if he won her, he would do everything in his power to make her life with him better.
“I will call you sweetheart forever now,” he said, his voice rough with emotion.
Her smile dropped away, and he felt her body stiffen.Her eyes snapped open. She lifted her head and looked at him over her shoulder.
“I should get back,” she said. “It must be late.”
“Soon,” he soothed. “We have a little longer.”
She hesitated, and just when he thought she was going to insist, she snuggled down against him again.
Ivo pressed his lips to her nape, lifting aside her dark hair. She shivered, and he did it again, reaching around to cup her breast, gently squeezing the lush flesh. He moved his thumb over her nipple, feeling it peak. She was his perfect woman, he decided. His pocket Venus.
“Feels nice,” she murmured, wriggling back against him, and he groaned at the sensation of her bottom pressing to his groin. “Can we do it again?” she added breathlessly. “Once more before we go?”
“God yes,” he said. When he slipped his fingers between her thighs, he could feel the moist heat there, the beginnings of her arousal and the residue of their earlier lovemaking. His cock was so hard, he ached as he carefully pushed inside her, and then reached around to tease her. She was already gasping, arching back into him, and as he began to move, she did too.
