Page 46 of Marigold and the Marquess
She was a little star fallen from heaven to shine just for him.
Second, that he wanted to give Beldon a beating long overdue because he was a sniveling, conniving, and backstabbing weasel.
But most of all, he wanted to be rid of all three men who were nothing but liars, cheats, and scoundrels. They contributed nothing to society. No one would miss them if they suddenly disappeared and were never seen again. “You don’t want to know.”
Marigold would not see the efficiency of his vengeance in quite the same way.
He helped her take the flowers out of her hair, unpinning her curls so that they tumbled in smooth waves over her shoulders. “Black silk,” he murmured, running his fingers through the beautiful strands.
As her hair gently fell over her shoulders, he eased the luscious mane aside and began kissing her neck, at first suckling lightly at the spots he knew would be the most sensitive. Just beneath her earlobe. At the junction of her neck and shoulder. Feather-soft kisses along her throat.
She sighed and turned to him. “Leo, that was nice.”
He had managed to undo the lacings of her gown in the meanwhile so that it now slipped off her shoulders. He held his breath as the delicate silk slid to the floor and pooled at her feet. He helped her step out of it, and then set the elegant gown aside.
Turning back to her, he drew in another breath.
Lovely.
Marigold wore only a sheer chemise.
His body responded with arousing heat.
He needed to be doused in a vat of cold water if he was going to make it through the night without claiming her fully.
Or he could just turn away, but that was never going to happen. Instead of looking away, he stared.
Her breasts were naturally firm and round.
So was her delightful derriere.
This girl did not need a corset, nor had she worn one today. Well, he knew Marigold was beautiful.
She made his heart thrum and his every pulse throb. In fact, all of him was throbbing, including his privates which had to be kept in check because he could not, and would not, make her his own yet.
He left her in the chemise even though that gossamer fabric hid little, and began to undress himself. Jacket, cravat, waistcoat, shirt. Boots. All flew off as he wasted no time on himself.
Marigold neatly folded each item over a chair as he tossed them off. “We are hiring a valet for you tomorrow,” she muttered.
“Sterling usually attends to it, but I suppose he’ll be kept too busy now that I have gained a wife.” He smiled. “I’m usually more methodical. However, I feel particularly urgent tonight.”
She looked at him and blushed. “What happens next?”
“I remove your chemise and then kiss you with all the passion you deserve along the entire length of your body.”
A hot, pink blush stained her cheeks. “Oh, and what am I to do while you are doing that?”
He lifted her into his arms. “You are simply to enjoy the experience, my pet.”
She glanced at the nightgown at the foot of the bed. “Um…”
“We’ll leave that for another night.” He set her down in the center of the large bed and then placed her nightgown atop the pile of her clothes on the nearby chair. When he returned, he nudged her down so that she lay on her back, her hair naturally fanning out across their pillows.
He stretched out beside her, his big body sinking into the mattress.
When he turned to Marigold, she was frowning. “Leo, why did you not tell me?”
“Tell you what?”
