Page 49 of Seducing a Frigid Lady
Hoping to offer her a little stability, Lionel lifted his free hand and cupped her other cheek. Holding her face firmly in both hands, he gazed deep into her eyes as he stated, “Perhaps it is time that we both stopped thinking and worrying over what this might be and simply see where it could take us.”
Miss Lloyd’s eyes flitted before him as though she was searching his gaze for any hint of what he might mean. Then she breathed in a tone filled with desire, “Yes.”
Mind whirling with the possibilities, Lionel saw that this might be his final chance to do so, and so he leaned down and pressed his lips firmly to hers.
The way her hands slipped onto his chest, palm down, made him fearful that she might try to tear herself away from him. Instead, she moved closer, kissing him in return. And a rush of pure desire and passion overwhelmed Lionel so entirely that he was the one forced to pull back. He did so only to lean his forehead against hers, his eyes still closed as he whispered, “I like you, Miss Lloyd, and I shall not apologise for it.”
Feeling her trembling in his hands, he half expected for a fresh burst of anger to erupt from her like a plume of fire from a dragon’s maw. Instead, she responded in a voice as quiet as his own, “I like you too.”
Her admission made Lionel gleeful, though he tried his hardest to temper it, determined not to slip up all over again and push her away.
“Then can we agree to trust each other?” Lionel asked, his forehead still pressed to hers because he could not bear the thought of moving away. “To trust that we shall both care for one another no matter where this goes? That in the end, we shall figure this out,together?”
Having felt Miss Lloyd’s breath caressing his face, he opened his eyes the moment that he felt it stop. Lifting his head just slightly, he found that her eyes were still closed and her lips were pursed as though she was holding her breath intentionally.
“Miss Lloyd?” he said in a hushed tone, frightened to disturb her and risk ruining everything.
When her eyes fluttered open to look at him, he noticed for the first time just how long and luxurious her eyelashes were, how dark and seductive they appeared. And when she scowled, her eyes seemed to darken with them.
“I do not know why, my lord, but Idotrust you,” she declared. Reaching up, she gripped hold of both his hands and guided them down from her face. Holding them before her, she squeezed his fingers gently and added, “I agree to stop worrying and to see where this could possibly go. Though I make no promises.”
She tore a smile from his lips with those words and he leaned in to peck her forehead with his lips before he stated, “I would not expect anything less.”
Unable to stop from doing so, he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers once more, his insides tingling with delight when he heard the gentle moan that escaped her throat.
When he pulled back again, she breathlessly whispered, “My lord, I think you ought to leave before someone finds you here.”
And for the first time Lionel did not feel the immediate urge to protest. He had done all he had set out to do, ensuring that Miss Lloyd would at least give him a chance to see where their relationship could go. And he could not ask for much more than that, at least not for now.
I must not push her away again,he told himself firmly even though everything in him was telling him that he needed more, that he needed to show her how he truly felt rather than wasting his time on words.There will be plenty of time for that in the future.
For now, he must content himself with all she had already given him. He could not risk losing her trust.
“I will go,” he vowed. Though he could not refrain from adding, “But before I do, perhaps you could promise me something else?”
Miss Lloyd hesitated only a moment before she responded, “That all depends on what it is.”
Lionel bit his lip then, wondering whether he should refrain from saying what he had been truly thinking. Unable to think of anything else on the spot, he decided that the truth was best. “Promise me that you forgive me?”
Miss Lloyd’s brow rose at that and her gaze darkened once more. She pulled away slightly, though Lionel was relieved that she did not force him to release her hands. “Forgive you for what?”
“For putting Mr. Kenyon in his place,” Lionel said, biting back the urge to laugh as he remembered the look on Mr. Kenyon’s face when he had thrown the card table at him.
The way Miss Lloyd bit her lip and the flash of amusement in her eyes told him that he had already been given it. “I only wish I had been there to see it,” she admitted, her cheeks flushing as though she was embarrassed to admit the fact.
Gleeful with her unspoken forgiveness, Lionel kissed her one final time before he pulled her hands to his face and kissed her knuckles in farewell. “I hate that I must leave you.”
“As do I, but you must,” Miss Lloyd insisted with a shake of her head. “If we are found here together, we may never get the chance to find out where this could go.”
Knowing that she was right, Lionel forced himself away from her. Turning, he crossed the small wooded clearing, returning to the wall where he had climbed over in the first place.
“You know, my lord, there is a gate just down—” Miss Lloyd protested, but Lionel turned before she could finish and shook her head.
“What is the fun in that?” he asked, winking at her before unceremoniously throwing himself back over the brick wall, knowing that if he were to walk down to the gate, he would likely not be able to resist the urge to turn back and return to her all over again.
Chapter 17
Several mornings after her encounter with Viscount Sinclair in the woods behind her house, Priscilla was uncertain whether or not she should be pleased by Mrs. Lyttleton's suggestion that she join her and her daughter to pay a call upon Mr. Parr and Lord Sinclair. Though she knew it was likely down to her own daughter's closeness with Mr. Parr, Priscilla couldn't help but wonder whether perhaps some rumour had begun circulating about herself and Lord Sinclair.
