Page 41 of The Duchess in His Bed
“Someplace more private.”
At the top, he escorted her along a short corridor that on one side was open to the gaming floor. When he reached a door at the corner, he shoved it open and ushered her inside, closing out the world beyond. With his back against the hard wood, he watched as she reached up, undid the lacings on her mask, and removed it. It dangled between her fingers as she wandered around the room, taking in her surroundings. The sofa, the chairs before the fireplace, the low tables, the flames flickering on various candles spread sparingly around the room.
She stopped at the round white linen-covered table near the window where Gillie’s finest wine had already been poured, breathing, awaiting Selena’s arrival. Assorted cheeses and bread were also there. Along with—
“Strawberries.” Glancing over her shoulder, she gave him a gentle smile, one wreathed with pleasure. “They must have cost you a fortune.”
“You’re worth it.”
Slowly, she turned. “Is this the relaxation room?”
“No.”
She meandered to an open doorway and peered inside. Grew still, and he knew she recognized a bedchamber when she saw one, especially as this one contained a larger than normal four-poster bed. “Is this where the gents with red buttons bring ladies?”
“No.”
She faced him, a thousand questions reflected in her eyes, or perhaps it was merely the flames from all the candles. He crossed over to her, touched his fingers to her soft cheek. “These are my lodgings. I’ve never brought a woman here.” For some reason, he thought it important she know that.
“Why me?”
Because she was different, because she touched him in ways no other woman ever had. Because he wanted to walk in here and inhale her fragrance, wanted to sit in a chair and bring forth memories of her within these walls, wanted to lie in his bed and recall how it had felt to have her beneath him there. “Because you asked to be bedded, and I want you to have more than that. I intend to seduce you.”
“With strawberries and wine?”
“For starters.”
She wound her arms around his neck, pressed her body up against his, and he went immediately hard. She undid him so easily, and he wanted to have the same effect on her.
“You seduced me from the beginning, Aiden Trewlove, until all I think about, all I dream about is you.” Her voice was low, throaty, sensual.
Lifting up on her toes, she planted her mouth on his and he was lost. He cursed her for being the seducer, cursed himself for falling, then cast all his plans onto the wind. For what did it matter when they were of a like mind, when they each craved the other?
And he did crave her, as he’d never yearned for anything in his life. It was not her beauty but her spirit that drew him. Her adventuresome nature that had her searching for what she’d never acquired after the bonds that held her to an oath had been severed. She’d not hesitated to come after what she wanted. She’d rebelled against a mourning period that would have held her in seclusion. Her strength was apparent.
But it was tempered by her caring and concern, her depth of grief for a kind husband who had left her unsatisfied. Tonight Aiden would satisfy her in every way possible. He would take her, possess her, claim her until she thought of no one other than him, until she was convinced that only in his arms would she ever find complete satisfaction, acceptance, fulfillment.
When he was done, she would leave, but would do so with the knowledge that she would return.
At long last he would be hers. Completely. Absolutely. Totally. It was the only thought racing through her mind as he deepened the kiss, thoroughly exploring her mouth as though he’d not done so before. He tasted rich and dark, dangerous. Whisky, perhaps. Or brandy. She imagined him lounging in a chair before the fire, slowly sipping and savoring the amber liquid, preparing for when he would do the same of her.
The stroke of his tongue over hers was leisurely, yet meticulous. He left no aspect of her mouth wanting. His capable hands closed over her bottom, squeezed the cheeks there, pushed her up against him, and the hard ridge of his desire pressed against her belly. Evidence of his own need for her inflamed her passions. He wanted her, yearned for her. This would not be a cold, mindless coupling. It was not about business. It would not be about results. There was a purpose to it beyond anything she’d ever envisioned. It would be about need, the need to possess, the need to share bodies, sensations, pleasure.
How she had longed to be wanted like this, to know with certainty that she was desired. He wanted to please her. The strawberries told her that. The fact he’d not taken her immediately that first night told her more. Their coming together was not the result of animalistic needs requiring satisfaction, no matter how feral his growls or how demanding his hands. It would not be rutting at its most basic. No, there was caring here. A need to satisfy the heart and soul as well as the body. She’d never felt more treasured.
And that was a danger. To her emotions, to her goals, to her fragile heart.
She should put a stop to things immediately, before it was too late. But she wanted what he was offering. She wanted his kiss that turned her knees to jam. She wanted the taste of him, the warmth of him, the feel of him, the scent of him penetrating every aspect of her being. She wanted him, the man. No other would suffice. He was what she craved.
He trailed his hot, moist lips along her throat. “Lena.” The rasp was that of a man calling for salvation.
“No one calls me that.”
“All the more reason I should.”
He had the right of it there. Everything about their encounter would be unique to him. No memory he gave her would ever be usurped by another.
She pressed her mouth to the silky underside of his jaw where his whiskers were the softest. No pet name seemed adequate for him.Sweetheartanddarlingwere not powerful enough for what he did to her, for the way he made her tremble inside and out. Only one word worked for him, captured his strong and formidable presence. “Aiden.”
