Page 40 of The Duke's Lesson in Love

ChapterSixteen

It was after nine o’clock when they retired from the lounge, trading it for their bed chambers.

Her nerves had leaped from her skin each time he had shifted in his seat. Or when their fingers brushed as they reached for the tray of sweets on the table.

Though she knew marriage was nothing more than a ploy to keep Edwin safe, she could not help being aware of Lord Gilleasbuig. They shared an attraction…no, a bewitching charm to be sure, but this was different from the wandering looks and kisses they shared thus far. The electric bolts sizzling her skin were scorching hot flames that threatened to consume her if she didn’t reach the safety of her room soon.

“You will be my wife in every sense of the word”, the memory of his words vibrated along her spine. But surely he would wait until they returned home.

“Good night, Your Grace.” She gripped the doorknob, but before she turned the handle, the hot wall of his chest heated her back as he leaned close.

“This room is no longer yours.” His hand rested on her lower back.

Sadie shivered. Her forehead fell against the door.

“I’ve already had your belongings moved to my chamber.”

This was yet another thing he did not ask her permission for, and she spun to tell him that he’d taken liberties, that he was maddening. But he was too close.

His mouth slammed against hers in a hungry kiss, buckling her knees.

His good arm encircled her waist, dragging her flush against his body. He tasted of wine and cured meats, and she drank all of it, pressing shamelessly against him. This was no stolen kiss. It was desire, a bold declaration of what he wanted. What they wanted.

“Are you certain?” Kisses were one thing, but even she knew getting out of a marriage was more difficult after it was consummated.

“Of wanting you in our marriage bed?” He nipped her lower lip. “I have never been more certain. Consummating our marriage will leave no doubt as to the legitimacy of our union.”

“Oh!” She flushed, her gaze lowering to shield the sting from his words. Of course, he was thinking of Edwin’s future.

He cursed. “Forgive me. I am no good at courting and wooing.”

“The truth is better than any lie.”

“Look at me.”

She did, unable to keep the uncertainty from her eyes. Didn’t she say she was willing to love him without expectations of her feelings being returned? Then, why did her heart ache?

Taking her hand, he led them into his room and locked the door. “I want you,” he said, watching her.

“But you said—”

“I chose you as my wife. You are the mother of our child.” He closed the gap between them. “I thought I knew what choice was before when I was younger and thought of nothing except rebelling against my parents. I was so wrong. Having your love surround me these last few weeks made me realize that anything I thought I felt in the past paled in comparison.”

Her breath quickened when he tugged the front of her functional blue dress, unraveling the slender ribbon at the bodice.

“I have wanted you since before I met you. There were so many days I watched you and my son from afar, wishing to get closer to you, but too cowardly to act on my desire.” He peeled the dress off her shoulders, letting the fabric fall to her waist. “Then I saw you wrapped in my nightshirt. No other picture has filled my mind since.”

“You were foxed.” And he had tossed her out of his bed that night, literally.

“Not that intoxicated or foxed enough to forget the scent of your bath oils on my sheets.” Another tug of her simple dress left her in her thin chemise. “Take it off.”

Sadie swallowed. She could not think when he looked at her with such thirst in his eyes.

Thirst for her.

There was no denying she wanted him. Her body ached; her core clenched in anticipation. She had never been with a man, but she was not shy either, not when he offered pleasure. Slowly she lifted the garment over her head, her gaze never leaving his.

They stared at each other for several long, heated seconds until she clutched the garment against her chest. There was a vulnerability in him being fully dressed and her naked. Each pass of his gaze over her heavy breasts, the slim cut of her waist down the triangle of dark curls at her juncture made every inch of her body hum.

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