Silk And Seduction Bundle 2. Louise Allen

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СКАЧАТЬ at him enviously. ‘How I wish I could have had the courage to do that. I went the other way. I…squashed myself into the mould they tried to make for me…’

      He strode back to the ottoman, grabbed her hands and tugged her to her feet.

      ‘When Rick told me how miserable his sister was, I wanted to rescue her…’ He paused, a frown on his face. ‘Of course, I did not know she was you, but—’ he squeezed her hands tightly ‘—earlier on, you said this marriage could be a new start. Oh, I know you were thinking about the mess your parents left behind them. But—’ and his eyes took on an intensity that called to something deep inside her ‘—could it not be a fresh start for us?’

      ‘Us?’ Her eyes were wide and misty, the way he had seen them look after he had kissed her. Her lips were slightly parted, too. His heart thudded heavily against his rib cage.

      ‘You and me,’ he growled, scarcely resisting the urge to step forward and close the minute gap that still separated them. ‘I will never try to mould you into some unattainable image, Midge. I shall not expect anything from you that you are not equipped to give.’

      And then he traced the length of her lower lip with his forefinger.

      She had the strangest urge to capture the finger between her lips and nibble at it. Her eyes flew to his. He was looking at her expectantly.

      And then he smiled at her.

      He was such a handsome man. Even when he was scowling, there was still something about the vitality of him that had made her body leap in response.

      But to have the full force of that smile turned upon her…oh, it went straight to the very core of her, like a cup of hot chocolate on a bleak winter’s day. Because his former words had been almost as devastating as they were heartening. Yes, he expected her to be a social disaster, but he would never hold her inability to behave decorously against her. He was prepared to accept her exactly as she was.

      Just as, she suddenly perceived, he was hoping she would try to see the best in him. He wanted her to forget the vain, pompous ass who had paraded about town dripping with jewels. To look beneath the gaudy clothing and see the man he wished he still was.

      ‘I will always think of you as Monty, then,’ she vowed.

      Afterwards, she was never quite sure who had moved first. She only knew that they were in each other’s arms, kissing each other as though their lives depended on it.

      She no longer felt the need to hold back from him. Or pretend that she objected to the way his hands were exploring her body.

      He wanted her.

      Just as she was.

      And for the first time in her life, she was not a bit sorry she was female. Her body, which she had so often despised, now seemed like a treasure chest, which he was unlocking, revealing unimaginable riches within.

      She felt a little shy when he finally laid her on the bed, having divested her of every stitch of clothing. Blushed when he tossed aside his dressing gown and joined her.

      But the feel of his hard, naked body next to hers was so delicious, the sensations he roused as he kissed and caressed her softness so powerful, they soon swept modesty aside.

      When he made them one flesh, she felt complete for the first time in her life. More fully herself than she had ever dreamed she could be.

      But he did not stop there. He drove her on, into new realms of sensuality that almost began to frighten her. Finally being encouraged to behave exactly as she wanted was one thing. But now she was beginning to feel as though she was almost out of control.

      ‘Monty!’ She gasped, her eyes flying wide open. ‘I can’t…it’s too much…’

      ‘Let go,’ he murmured breathily into her ear. ‘Let it happen.’

      Then he raised himself up so that he could look into her face.

      ‘Trust me…it will be good…’

      The lower half of his body ground harder against her, just where the exciting feelings were at their most intense.

      That intensity swelled to a crescendo. The most incredible pleasure she had ever known blasted through her, from the tips of her toes to the roots of her hair.

      ‘It’s happening!’ she cried, in shock, clinging to his shoulders as she flew apart.

      ‘Oh, yes,’ he groaned. ‘Yes, it is…’

      Time stood still as everything shook and pulsed and throbbed.

      And then they floated gently back down to earth, like the sparks after a rocket has exploded.

      Together.

      As the carriage swept through the park gates and Midge got her first glimpse of Shevington Court, her stomach tied itself into a knot. Not for the first time that day, she was glad Monty had elected to ride beside the carriage. For she would have felt obliged to find something positive to say about the imposing set of stone buildings sitting on top of a rise, dominating the entire landscape. The closer they drew, and the larger she realized the place was, the greater grew her sense of inadequacy. She had never even attended a house party in a home so grand. Now she was expected to live here!

      By the time the carriage drew to a halt beneath the port cochère Monty had already dismounted, and it was he who came to hand her out. He did not, as a footman would have done, merely extend his arm for support, but took hold of her waist and bodily lifted her to the ground.

      His hands seemed to burn through the material of her coat as she recalled, with a flush, how they had felt on her bare skin the night before. But as he set about deftly straightening her skewed bonnet she began to feel annoyed. How could he remain so calm, so unmoved by their proximity, when she was in a breathless state of arousal! It was galling to think that if he decided to kiss her, she would simply collapse backwards into the carriage, dragging him in after her, and never mind what the servants might think as she slammed the door in their faces. But of course, he did no such thing. Once he had assured himself that she was tidy, he tucked her hand in the crook of his arm and led her up the flight of shallow stone steps to the front door.

      She had to cling to his arm for support, so weak were her knees by this time. The man was a menace to female kind!

      ‘It’s not what you would call a comfortable home,’ he startled her by saying. ‘Draughty barracks of a place, positioned as it is on top of a hill. My grandfather built it for show, more than convenience, I think. Good training for me, though,’ he finished enigmatically, turning to eye the ranks of windows.

      ‘Training?’ she asked.

      ‘Oh.’ He seemed to snap back to her from far away. ‘For school. Army barracks. Bivouacking in the Pyrenees…’ His voice trailed away as the immense double doors swung open as if by magic and a stately butler materialized from the shadowy interior. ‘Good day, Francis.’ He nodded, then murmured into her ear, ‘Indeed, you may find that the wearing of extra petticoats may prove beneficial. I shall have to inspect the efficacy of your underwear thoroughly, every day, I should think, to make sure you don’t catch cold…’

      The thought of him inspecting her underwear made her go hot all СКАЧАТЬ