Page 97 of A Night of Desire with a Duke
Her gasp broke free before she could swallow it down. Heat shot through her like lightning, her knees buckling so violently she clutched at the paneling behind her again. She wanted to push him away, to save them both from ruin and yet, every fiber of her body begged her to hold still, to let him go on.
“Oh, my goodness,” she whispered, her head falling back. “James… you mustn’t.”
He looked up, his mouth still wet from her, his eyes burning with an intensity that made her whole body quake. “I must. Do you know how many nights I’ve dreamed of this?” His grip at her hips tightened, dragging her closer, forcing her to feel every bold stroke of his tongue. “No more denial. Not tonight.”
The sensations came in waves, each one more devastating than the last. She bit her lip, trying to smother the cries rising in her throat.This is wrong. This is dangerous. This is...Her thoughts shattered as he changed his pace, teasing and relentless all at once. Her legs trembled, her breath hitched, and the only thing anchoring her was the strength of his hands pinning her to the wall.
Her mind flickered with panic;what if someone entered, what if someone saw,but even that fear twisted into something hotter. The scandal of it, the impossibility of it, only drove her higher, every nerve alight with forbidden pleasure.
“Look at me,” he demanded, pausing just long enough to lift his gaze to hers. His mouth hovered close, his breath hot against her trembling skin. “I want to see you come undone. For me.”
Her eyes fluttered open, glazed and desperate. The raw hunger in his expression, the sheer possession etched into every line of his face, stole what little restraint she had left. She felt herself unraveling, a helpless sob torn from her lips as the tension broke.
“James...!” She clung to him, to the wall, to anything that might hold her together as her body yielded, shuddering violently under the onslaught of sensation. He didn’t let go. He pressed harder, refusing to release her until she sagged against the paneling, boneless and breathless, utterly undone.
When at last he rose, his chest heaved with exertion, his hair disheveled, his mouth slick with proof of her surrender. He caged her against the wall with his arms, his forehead pressing to hers.
“You are mine,” he whispered fiercely, his voice unsteady, as though the force of his own desire nearly broke him. “No matter what the world says, no matter what scandal follows… you are mine.”
Her only answer was the sobbing breath she dragged into her lungs, her hands trembling as they clutched at his coat. For the first time, she understood what it meant to be both destroyed and remade in the same breath.
He buried his face against her trembling form, his voice fierce and low. “Never doubt, not for a moment, that you are mine.”
"Yes," she agreed. "You are. Now let Peters take you home."
Indeed, the long-suffering valet was waiting by the garden gate with a carriage, looking resigned but clearly unaware of what had transpired.
"Your Grace," Peters said patiently, when James moved towards him. "Perhaps we should return home?"
"Peters! Excellent timing."
"Indeed, Your Grace. The carriage?"
James allowed himself to be led away, but not before turning back to Catherine one more time.
Catherine watched the carriage disappear, shaking her head, legs still trembling.
Back in her room, she found a letter that must have been delivered while she was in the garden.
My darling Catherine,
By the time you read this, I'll probably be drunk, trying not to think about how much I'd rather be with you. My friends mean well, but they don't understand that celebrating my last night of "freedom" is absurd when I've been happily captive to you for months.
Tonight was too close. When Miss Worthing threatened you, when I thought we might be exposed, all I could think was that I didn't care. Let them know. Let everyone know that you're mine and I'm yours and have been since that night at the inn.
But you would have cared. Your reputation would have suffered. So I lied. I'll lie a thousand times more if it protects you. I'll swear the sky is green and water runs uphill if it keeps you safe.
Two more days, my love. Two more days of pretense, of careful distance, of proper behavior. And then, finally, I can love you the way I've been desperate to since that morning I had to leave you.
Dream of me tonight. Dream of our wedding, our wedding night, our life together. Dream of forever.
All my love, James
P.S. - If you hear someone throwing pebbles at your window later, it's probably me. Apparently brandy makes me sentimental. And possibly criminal, since I'm considering breaking into your room. Peters has promised to stop me. We'll see who wins.
Catherine laughed, pressing the letter to her heart. He had indeed shown up, drunk and devoted and completely hers.
Two more days.
