Page 58 of The Dravenhearst Brides
She hadn’t realized she’d spoken aloud. Her gaze darted upward, wanting to see his face, the look in his eyes.
Liquid gold.
Merrick’s hands reached for her chemise, teasing the straps downward. “Tell me to stop,” he panted. “Tell me to stop, and I will.”
The question was there, right there in his eyes, but it meant nothing to her. Only his unvarnished desire mattered. The wanting inside her was ruinous.
“Don’t stop.”
The slide of silk, slithering down her body, clinging to the moisture coating her skin. Dragging. The reveal seemed infinite. Long enough for her mind to catalog a thousand tiny doubts. She almost reached for his hands and told him to stop, but then she saw the expression on his face as he took all of her in. Thereverence.
Her doubts were silenced.
“I see you, Margot,” he rumbled, hands digging in to grip her bare hips. “Every inch, I see you. And you are absolutely beautiful.”
Merrick’s fingers slid down her legs, hovering at the band of her thigh-high silk stockings. He played with the edge, softly sliding his fingers under, then out. Her leg trembled beneath his touch. Her hand moved down his strong chest, fingers trailing as gently as a whisper. Creeping closer, closer…
When she reached his waistband, she paused. His breath hitched.
That was all it took. She slid lower, taking him completely in her hand. Feeling his fullness strain beneath the fabric of his trousers, a fullness she sensed—distantly—belonged to her. It was both terrifying and thrilling.
He groaned, a strangled, desperate sound. Yielding more of his weight. Pressing into her.
“Margot…” he warned.
She began to work his belt buckle.
“Margot,” he tried again. “We are rapidly reaching a point of no return. If you keep going, I don’t know…I’m not sure I’ll be able to stop.”
She tilted her head, wondering exactly what he meant. What it meant precisely, if they didn’t stop. Where, specifically, would he take her?
His belt was fully undone. Her fingers hovered, trying to decide.
“Margot.” His hands folded over hers, stopping her. “I need to hear you say it. I need to know for sure. It’s important to me.”
“Just a little more,” she panted, looking into his eyes, a little shy.I want to know. I want you to show me.“Please?”
“Just a little?”
He looked so impossibly good wet. Skin glistening, hair slick. A large drop fell from the tip of his nose to her cheek.
“Yes.”
He guided her grip away from his waist. “Then let’s leave my trousers on for now. Let me try something else…”
His hands were back on her, sliding up her leg. Past the stockings. Higher and higher until he wasthere. Slipping between her thighs.
Her head lolled back in the wet grass, unchecked mews spewing from her lips. His mouth covered hers, swallowing her cries. He smiled against her, his fingers continuing to tease.
“Do you like this?” he murmured between kisses. “Tell me.”
“Merrick?” A breathless question.
“Tell me what you want, love. Just a little more?” His finger slowly plunged inside her.
She exploded into something wholly new, her eyes flying open in surprise. Her gaze swept over his face, but when he started to move—onefinger deep inside her, another rubbing gently against her front—her lids slammed shut again.
It was all too much. She was feelingso much, couldn’t possibly handle seeing right now.
