“No way,” she said. “No kissing until we’ve talked some things through.”
A noise from behind him grabbed his attention, and he pressed a finger to Leah’s lips. Together they watched as the stable hands left for their quarters, apparently having finished their duties for the evening.
“Come here,” Leah whispered, and led him into the warmth of the stables.
The heavy scents of horseflesh, leather, and straw perfumed the air. Avery lit the lamp by the doorway, and together he and Leah made their way to an empty stall near the back of the stables.
The lamp’s metal hook rasped as he hung it above the stall door. Words ran rampant through his brain as he rehearsed them silently. He must remember all the reasons that he and Miss Ramsey could not be together. Never mind Prachett. He’d been careless before. He could have left her with child, after all. There was nothing he could give her, no provisions he could make to ensure her happiness and well-being. Their encounter had been a mistake. They had no future together, and he must convince her of that.
But when he turned and saw her there, pale-blue gown seeming to make her skin glow in the lamplight, all his carefully chosen words dissipated.
“Tell me the truth, Avery. Have you been following me?”
She’d set her fan on the narrow window ledge and had her hands on the curve of her hips. His pulse quickened as her decolletage heaved with emotion.
“I have.”
She lost some of her irritation at his honest confession. “Why?”
He took a step closer to her, drawn despite himself. “Because there are evil men about, and you are an innocent.”
She barked a laugh, tilting her head back in mirth. With that graceful column so exposed, he was sorely tempted to taste her lovely skin. He did not.
“I’m about as far from innocent as you can get, dude. I can take care of myself.”
He shook his head. “You mistake my meaning. There are threats that you are unaware of.” Unable to resist her anymore, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her to him. “I would see that you come to no harm.”
Her arms wound around his neck. “Why do you care so much?”
His kiss was the only answer he could give.
All his reasoning why they should not lie together burned up in the heat of that kiss. She pressed herself eagerly to him, opening her mouth to receive him. He groaned as he tasted the wet recesses of her, reveling in the feeling of her hands wandering the planes of his shoulders and back.
His erection pressed full against her belly, hardening him further. The decolletage of her gown seemed to call to him, begging for his attention. Who was he to ignore such a summons? He pressed fiery kisses along her throat, in the sweet space between shoulder and collarbone, finally to rest his lips atop the swell of her left breast.
“Avery,” she whispered in a throaty voice. “I want you too, but you have to promise we’ll talk afterward.”
“Of course.” He’d have promised her the moon in that moment. Though he was not proud of his too-hasty answer, it seemed to please her.
Leah divested him of his trousers, eyes alighting when she spied his erection. Her attention only served to harden him further.
“You’ve missed me too, haven’t you?”
She didn’t give him a chance to respond before she took him into her mouth. Her hot, wet mouth closed around his length and his knees buckled. Gripping the wall to steady himself, he threaded his free hand into her hair.
She took him deeply, throat working around the sensitive tip of him. He never looked away. He couldn’t. The sight of her beatific face as she moved her hand and lips in concert was the most sensual thing he’d ever seen.
“Leah,” he whispered, “you must stop.”
At his words, she ran her tongue up the underside of his shaft. A drop of crystalline fluid appeared at the tip. Avery gritted his teeth to stop the flood of pleasure that threatened to sweep him away.
He must regain control of this. Of her.
Gripping both her hands in one of his, he laid her back into the sweet-smelling straw. She pulled against his grip, but he tightened his hold. The way she smiled, writhing and twisting against him, was proof of her approval.
He kissed her deeply, mastering her mouth with sweeps of his tongue. With his free hand, he lifted the fine satin of her skirt. Silk stockings covered her legs, but he knew the fine fabric could not match the beautiful flesh between her legs for softness.
She moaned her passion into his mouth when his hand parted her wet folds. Her thighs fell open, and he settled between them eagerly.
“Avery.” She’d torn her mouth from his, gripping the length of his hair in both hands. “Please, please take me.”
He couldn’t. Not yet.
Releasing her hands, he rose on his knees and lifted her hips to his face.
“Oh God!”
Her cry was muffled by the yards of satin and lace that covered his head. Her taste was as incredible as it had been those weeks ago. He spread her petals wide, licking and sucking every part of her most precious flesh.
Her movements quickened, becoming frantic.
“Avery, please!” Her high, thin plea broke through to him, and he relented.
Entering the well of her body with two fingers, his lips closed on her fluttering, swollen bud.
She screamed.
He held on as the spasms wracked her, coming slower and slower until she stilled. He unearthed himself from her skirts and smiled down at his beautiful, dazed-eyed angel.
“More,” she whispered, holding her arms up to him.
He needed no second invitation.
Falling atop her, he kissed her mouth with all the fervor he’d shown to her tender flesh only moments before. She quickly matched his intensity, gripping his shoulders and moaning as he probed at her entrance.
“Are you ready?”
“God, yes,” she cried.
He plunged into her, high and hard. They cried out together as her warm sheath welcomed him home. Avery trembled as he held his upper body aloft, hips moving instinctively.
“You are so beautiful,” he whispered as he thrust. “Leah, oh, Leah.”
Her name was a litany, a prayer that was necessary to his continued life. Her throaty cries quickened his movements as he strained for that peak, for the both of them.
He grew harder within her as her channel grew wetter, more swollen around his length.
She buried her face in his shoulder as her pelvis moved to meet his.
It felt so wondrous, so completely incredible, he wanted it to go on forever.
But then he reached between them to fondle her swollen button. Her explosion took him along with her.
They came together, her body wringing every last drop from his. He shook with the effort of holding himself upright. He must not crush her, but he wanted to remain there, sheathed in her warmth forever.
His world, in that moment, was perfect.
A nearby whinny caused them both to laugh, but it broke the spell of the moment. Reluctantly, Avery rolled to the side and gathered a panting Leah against his chest.
She pressed sweet kisses against his chest. “You’re pretty damn good at this.”
He laughed. “You are exceptionally skilled as well,” he said, toying with a blond curl. “An admirable trait for the woman I love.”
The admission surprised him, but once the words were uttered, he was glad of their release. He did love
