“I’m not certain I
“You need to. He’ll be more willing to tie the knot if he believes he won’t be getting a cold fish in his marriage bed.”
She frowned. “Do you think I am a cold fish?”
The duke’s expression turned enigmatic. “I know you are not, but you have to show Haviland as much. Which leads me to my next suggestion. You can do much more with your mouth.”
“More than pouting?”
“Yes. Your mouth is full and inviting, but you need to look kissable.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “How do I do that?”
“Bite your lips to make them look passion-bruised. Wet them with your tongue. You want to entice your suitor to kiss you.”
“Is that why Fanny made me wear lip rouge at the Cyprians’ ball?”
“I expect so. And it worked quite well.”
“You truly wanted to kiss me?”
“Very much. But you looked the part that night. You were much more approachable than now.”
“Approachable?”
She could see the duke almost smile at her peeved tone. “You don’t want Haviland to think of you as a delicate porcelain doll but a flesh and blood woman. It’s much more enticing to a man.”
The furrow in her brow deepened. “I don’t really understand the difference.”
“Take your friend Fanny, for example. She is considered a beauty, but that isn’t what most men find appealing about her. She has an earthy quality that’s highly alluring.”
“Which I lack.”
“But you can make up for it with your actions. You may appear a proper lady of refinement, but you want Haviland to know you have a passionate nature underneath that perfect, untouchable exterior. You must give him the urge to abandon all his gentlemanly discipline and think about bedding you.”
“I see,” Roslyn said slowly, although she had little confidence that she could pull off such a feat.
“So try looking kissable.”
Obediently, she worried her lower lip with her teeth, then wet it with her tongue. “Like that?”
“Yes. But try to be more sultry. Part your lips. Pretend to be a little breathless. And look directly at me. Remember, eyes and mouth are your first weapons.”
She held his gaze as she parted her wet lips and manufactured a subtle pant, but it still felt absurdly unnatural.
Arden obviously thought so too, since he shook his head ruefully. “You can do much better than that, darling. Come, now…make me want to kiss you.”
Despite her determination, the thought of kissing Arden again sent a thrum of excitement shivering across her skin. Purposefully ignoring the wanton feeling, Roslyn tried again to look kissable, slowly licking her lips while trying to appear sultry.
“That’s somewhat better,” he encouraged. “Just watching you should arouse me.”
Arouse the Duke of Arden? Impossible, Roslyn thought with a silent chortle. The techniques of seduction he was teaching her might work on normal men, but not in a million years would she ever believe she could have the same effect on him, especially when he knew exactly what tricks she was attempting.
When she broke off her struggles with a laugh, Arden sank back against the sofa in defeat. “Perhaps you are hopeless after all.”
“No, no, I can do it,” she asserted, trying to stem her amusement.
“Then show me. See if you can arouse me. Come sit beside me here so you have a better chance.”
When he gestured at the sofa cushion beside him, Roslyn hesitated barely a moment before gathering her determination. If she intended to conquer her self-consciousness with Lord Haviland, she would have to become more at ease with the physical aspects of a seduction. And she had a willing subject to practice on right now, perhaps for the last time, since the duke intended to return to London after this lesson.
“Now what?” she asked when she had settled beside him.
He lounged back against the padded arm of the sofa. “I will leave it entirely up to you. What did I teach you yesterday?”
“That I should contrive to touch you.”
“So do it.”
Reaching out, she let her fingers settle on his hand, which was resting on his buckskin-clad thigh. In response, he slid his hand from beneath hers and placed his on top, covering her fingers and pressing her palm against his thigh. “This is more arousing to a man,” he explained.
“Isn’t that good enough?” she finally asked.
“You should move closer. Tempt me with your nearness.”
She shifted her position and leaned forward so that their mouths were only a short distance apart, which made her excruciatingly aware of his body, especially since she was required to brace her hand against his thigh for balance.
“Now kiss me,” he ordered blandly. “You should learn how to do it properly.”
Her own gaze dropping from his, Roslyn eyed the sensual fullness of his mouth and felt herself tense. It would be utterly unwise to kiss Arden, even though she longed to. But then she chided herself for being missish. She had already kissed him once before-and allowed much more than that! Letting him teach her to kiss wouldn’t be nearly as scandalous, but could be highly beneficial in her campaign to win Lord Haviland.
A deep breath did nothing to calm her nerves, however, and when she hurried to press a quick kiss to his lips before drawing back, his slight frown told her clearly that she had utterly failed to impress him.
“Again, but more slowly,” he suggested. “Make it linger. And put your hands on my chest so that I’m aware of you touching me.”
His coat was open, so Roslyn tentatively pressed her palms against the lapels of his waistcoat. She had to lean over much farther than was comfortable, yet he didn’t intend to help her at all, she realized. He kept his arms at his sides and remained still while she set her lips to his.
The heat of his mouth was highly distracting, so she concentrated on ignoring it as she kissed him with untutored skill. After a long moment, Roslyn pulled back, eyeing him questioningly.
His green eyes had darkened a fraction. “Better, but still inadequate. Use your tongue. That’s very arousing to a man.”
Leaning forward again, she let her tongue slip inside his mouth to explore the warm recesses. It was highly intoxicating for her, if not for him, and had a profound impact on her senses.
She was more than a little breathless when she drew back. “Are you aroused yet?”
“Not quite. You’ll have to be more assertive. Lay claim to me when you kiss me.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Let me show you…”
Reaching for her, he lay back and pulled her on top of him, molding her softness to his much harder frame. She could feel the shifting muscles of his chest beneath her palms as their lips melded and he took over kissing her.
Her body softened, yielded to him, as his lips shifted over hers in sensuous coercion. Then his tongue slid inside and found hers, mating with it in a slow, intimate dance. When she gave a soft little sigh, he angled his head and pressed even deeper, exploring, tasting, coaxing.
For a long moment she became lost in the sheer wonder of his kiss, in the lush assault on her senses. The delicious feelings he aroused in her were overwhelming, kindling a throbbing ache between her legs, a fierce yearning. Without conscious thought, she began moving her hips against his, seeking a release she couldn’t even name.
When at last he broke off his kiss, disappointment surged through her. She hadn’t wanted him to stop. Yet
