Gazing up into his intense green eyes, she felt the ground shift beneath her feet. What he said was true, she knew, but admitting it would feel too much like surrender. She’d be no better than her mother, falling for a man who couldn’t possibly love her back. Daphne shook her head. “All of this was a mistake. A simple, foolish mistake.”
His delicious lips curved up into a wicked smile. “Trouble is, Daphne, you gave yourself to me, and mistake or not, I intend to have you.”
Chapter Four
The shock on Daphne’s face was almost worth the price of heading to the marriage gallows. He’d hoped to discover that it was her who’d slipped into his bed.
The memory of their first meeting was still vivid in his mind, and it swirled to life more often than he cared to admit. He could still remember the emerald gown she’d worn to James’s wedding, the delicate, slightly breathless look about her when James had introduced them. She was beautiful, with wide blue eyes and fiery red curls, and a smile that had stricken him silent. If she were any other woman, he’d have pursued her relentlessly, but her innocence and her connection as James’s sister-in-law had placed her far beyond his reach.
Until now.
“You can’t possibly mean that.” She scrunched her face in disbelief. “Now let me go before someone catches us.”
“The door is locked. We are quite safe. Unless you wish for someone to happen upon us.” He flashed her a wicked smile.
“Of course not!” Shock looked rather fetching on her. Cheeks flushed, eyes brightened, she was a prime article indeed. Marrying her might not be quite the trial he’d feared. In fact, he rather liked the idea her filling the role as Duchess of Claymore. More than that, he liked the idea of claiming her in every way imaginable.
“Then I’d advise you to lower your voice. The whole house is liable to hear you.”
She pressed her lips together and glared.
“Now,” he said, “where were we?”
He’d had enough women to know what desire looked like and Daphne had it written all over her pretty face—she was just too afraid to admit it. The way she trembled, the way her gaze licked him from head to toe, the way her breath hitched when he drew in close. Oh yes, she was hungry for him indeed.
“I don’t believe you are unaffected by me.” He had her pressed against the bed, so she scrambled atop the mattress and faced him on her knees. “Perhaps I shall prove just how affected you are.”
“Completely unnecessary, Ashton, I assure you,” she said. “I’m perfectly willing to admit you have a certain…appeal, but it’s Edward I intend to…” Her words trailed off as he reached out and brushed a silky tendril of hair off her shoulder, exposing the mark on her neck again. His mark.
“Do you want me to leave? Say the word and I’ll go.”
Boldly, her gaze raked down his bare chest, down to his straining erection. He needed to be inside her, filling her, taking her to the very edge of ecstasy. She licked her lips and shook her head, just a slight movement, but it was all he needed. Triumph shot through him. She wanted him; she was just too frightened to admit it.
“What do you need, Daphne? Tell me.” He needed to ease her into this, seduce her with his words, his tongue, and then perhaps she’d be willing to admit the truth.
Their eyes met and held, before her gaze suddenly flicked away. “I don’t know.”
He advanced, pushing her back against the pillows. Her lips were red, plump, ripe for his kiss. He itched to tear at the fabric of her nightgown and push into her tight, welcoming heat. To bury himself inside her so deeply he’d be a part of her forever.
“Let me show you.”
She was kneeling, trapped between him and the headboard, her gaze lingering on his mouth. One knee on the mattress, he braced one hand on the headboard above her head. Before he left this room, he wanted to know that he stirred her body in shocking and immoral ways. To prove that she was just as affected by last night as he was. He wanted her to hunger for him, crave him, just as he craved her—not just her body, but her spirit, her soul.
She licked her bottom lip and looked up into his eyes. Hunger shone back at him, nearly as fierce as his own. She nodded, almost imperceptibly.
With a wry smile, he unbuttoned the top of her nightgown and exposed a generous amount of flesh to his hungry gaze. Her skin was perfection. Pink and creamy, it looked as smooth and flawless as painted china.
Curling his fingers around her ankle, he tugged gently, forcing her flat on her back. Her breath hitched as he swept the fabric aside, baring her left breast. Her nipple was deliciously ripe and he sucked it into his mouth, swirling his tongue around the tip. She mewed a little, just a breath of sound that made his cock swell painfully. He feared he’d ever get enough of her sweet, enticing responses.