Then his hands began skimming down her body. He cupped her breasts, tweaking her nipples before he moved lower across the flat of her stomach, around her hip and down her leg. She wore a light muslin gown, with the weather so warm, and very little underneath so that when his fingers grasped her hem, he was able to easily lift her skirts. Her pantaloons were rather sheer and his fingers skimming along the fabric were almost like he was touching her skin and goosebumps broke out all along her flesh.
He slid his lips across her jaw and down her chin. “I can’t wait to see you in my bed,” he whispered close to her ear. “I’m going to strip off every stitch of clothing and kiss every inch of your skin.”
Heat, warmth, and wetness was flooding between her thighs and, as if he sensed that, his hand sought out the area. Finding the slit in her pantaloons, he trailed his fingers through her curls and then gently along the slit of her womanhood, causing her to let out a gasping moan. He smiled against her neck. “Do you like that?”
“Yes,” she didn’t hesitate in her answer. “Oh yes.” She still gripped his shoulders and she started kneading the skin in her restless want of more.
He brushed the flesh again and again, her head beginning to toss from side to side until he finally parted her soft folds and slid his middle finger through them again. Her hips bucked and she said his name again. “Cole.” It was a plea, a cry for more, the neediness coming through in the high pitch of her voice.
“Yes?” he chuckled, caressing his hand up and down again until he found her opening and suddenly, slid a finger inside her channel.
She gasped in a breath, feeling both needier and more complete all in the same breath. As the heel of his hand pressed against her sensitive nub, she rocked against him. “Oh,” she moaned. “Cole.”
“Say my name again,” he spoke against her neck. “Say it over and over and I’ll give you everything you want.”
She blinked her eyes open. “Everything?” Hope filled her chest, making her lighter. Would he give her his heart?
“Everything, love,” he answered, pulling out and pushing back into her.
She closed her eyes again. In this moment, she would pretend. Pretend that it meant something he’d used the word love. Make believe that he’d meant his heart as well as physical pleasure. “Yes,” she hissed. “I want everything.”
Her words nearly undid his last shred of control. He wanted everything too. He wanted to bury his cock deep inside her. He wanted to hear her moan his name in pleasure when he did. But mostly, he wanted to tuck her against him and keep her there, warm and safe forever. And that was the problem.
No matter what he did, there were no guarantees in life. She could be gone in an instant…ripped from his arms.
That thought was the only one that kept him sane. Insured that he didn’t undo the stays of his breeches and take her right here in the office.
Instead, he pushed his finger in deeper, taking pleasure from her reactions, her moans and cries of pleasure as he watched those lovely lips part. Her eyes dilated, her cheeks flushed, and her body writhed in tandem with his strokes inside her.
And when she came undone, she cried his name again, her neck arching. He kissed the slender column, his own body begging for more. Instead, he gently pulled his finger from inside her, closing her pantaloons, and pulling down her skirt. “How was that for your first experience?”
Her eyes, which had drifted closed, fluttered open and a sassy little smile played upon her lips. “What I am wondering is if that’s as good as it gets or if it gets better?”
He nearly spilled his seed in his pants. “Mary,” he pushed out between gritted teeth. “Do you want to make it to our wedding a virgin?”
Her eyes closed again. “Not particularly.” Then she skimmed her hand down his back until it reached his ass. She gave his cheek a light squeeze. “Do you want me to?”
He throbbed. “No and yes.”
She stiffened underneath him. Stiffened away. “What does that mean?”
Did he tell her that he was afraid to be with a woman again? That such intimacy frightened him after his loss? “I did promise your family there was nothing untoward happening.”
She relaxed again. “And there wasn’t. Now we’re engaged.”
She did have a point. And the part that wanted to be inside her was slowly but surely overruling his worries. “What if you get pregnant before the wedding?” Or at all.
She sighed again and he realized that he loved her little sounds. “We’ll have a baby that much sooner.”
He pulled back. “Is that a good thing?” He knew they’d discussed an heir but the more he considered the idea, the riskier it seemed.
She cupped his cheeks with her hands. “Does it make you feel better to know that the women in my family have very few problems with birthing?”
That did actually. A lot. Air rushed from his chest. “Even the small ones?”
She gave him a grin. “Even the small ones. We’re a tenacious bunch.”
He lifted her skirt again. This was less of the seductive caress and more of a needy yank. “And you’re sure you don’t want to wait until our wedding?” His grip on control was slipping away.
“I’m sure,” she said quietly next to his ear. “I’ve been waiting since forever.”
He fumbled with the fall of his breeches even as he peppered her neck with kisses. “Mary. It’s been so long I…” Did he want to tell her he couldn’t control himself? He took several deep breaths as he parted her pantaloons again, the silky fabric brushing against his thighs.
She slid her fingers into his hair, pulling him tighter to his chest. “I’m ready for you.”
His entire body responding to those words, hardening, lengthening. As beautiful as
