A Certain Wolfish Charm(54)

"I have never set out to woo a woman until now. Before I met you, I just wanted to bed them." Lily felt her heart expand.



"You don't want to just bed me?" She felt like a ninny. But she was finally getting closer to having answers to her questions, so she wanted to take advantage of the moment.



"Oh, no," he chuckled, his gaze sliding over her like a caress. She shivered. "I most certainly do want to bed you."



"You know that's not what I meant. How will I be different from any of the thousands of women you've been exposed with in the society rags?"



"Thousands is exaggerating just a bit, Lily."



"Not by much." She was finally able to yank her hand from his and stand. She stood in front of him and put her hands on her hips. "Why are you marrying me, Simon?"



Simon leaned forward and grasped her hips, pulling her to stand between his spread knees. She tried to take a step back. "No pulling away," he said, looking into her eyes.



"Why, Simon?" she insisted.



"Because I want to protect unsuspecting yard



furniture around the world from your wrath. You can simply abuse mine, and the rest of the world will be safe." He pulled her closer, his hands snaking around her thighs to clasp just below her bottom.#p#分页标题#e#



"Oh, you…" she groaned. She'd never wanted to hit anyone so much in her life.



"All right," he sighed. His hot breath stole right through her dress, he was that close. It touched her belly like a gentle rub. "One: you're ruined. And it's my fault. So, there's a bit of obligation there."



Lily felt tears choke her and tried to push them back.



He must have noticed because he said, "Wait," and held up one finger. "That's not all."



Lily sniffed and swallowed hard.



"Two: you're Oliver's caretaker, almost a mother to him, and he's going to live with me. So, having you live with me, too, will serve a dual purpose."



Lily had never heard such a poor excuse for marriage. She clasped his wrists in hers and tried to pry his hands from the back of her thighs. He didn't budge. The man had really strong arms, which infuriated her.



"Three: there's the fact I really want to bed you," he said quietly as he looked up at her again. He trailed slow kisses across her belly, his hands sliding up to grip her bottom through her dress.



Lily gasped and immediately felt a flip in her belly. Don't let him distract you, Lily. She swallowed the lump in her throat. "Well, of course you want to sleep with me. You want to sleep with everyone."



"Not any more. I haven't even thought about another woman since you walked through my door."



***

Simon knew how dangerous it was to bare his soul to the woman, but he could sense she needed a bit of reassurance. Despite the fact that he truly did want to marry her, he also wanted her to be happy and feel secure in the situation. As safe as she could be with someone of his ilk.



"You haven't thought about anyone else?" she croaked. He almost had to grin at her discomfiture.



"How could I when you're right here, taunting me with your charms all day?" He gathered her skirts and put his hands below them, grasping the back of her thighs, pulling her closer to where he still sat on the bench.



"I don't taunt you."



"Oh, yes, you do." The woman had no idea how sensual she was. He would just have to show her. "And you don't even intend to do it, which makes me want you even more."



"Simon, I'm almost twenty-four years old. No one has ever wanted me."



"I want you," he said, removing one hand from her skirts to clasp her own and bring it to press the front of his trousers. Her fingertips skittered across the fabric, testing the feel of him. He bit back a groan.



"That's…?" she asked, a question in her voice.



"That is how much I want you." And much, much more, he thought. "I want to be with you." He punctuated the sentence with a kiss to her belly. "I want to be on top of you." His hand slid beneath the legs of her drawers to knead her bottom. "And I want to be inside you."



The scent of her arousal caught his nose, and Simon felt like he could devour her in that moment.



She broke him from his concentration when she shook his shoulder. "Simon," she nudged. "Simon," she whispered vehemently. "Someone is coming."



"No. That comes later, love."



"Simon," she nearly shrieked, pushing his arms from beneath her dress. Or trying to. She wasn't very successful. Thank God, she was such a little thing, he thought, or she could win by sheer strength of will.#p#分页标题#e#