Forever My Love(36)

Alec's breath disturbed'the wisps of her bangs. He had a strong urge to nuzzle past her hair and find her forehead with his lips… but there were the twins to consider. Turning Mira until her back was to the chil­dren, he mouthed silent words to them and winked. The next moment they left, smothering their high-pitched giggles with small hands. Mira lifted her gaze to Alec's face in bewilderment.

"They left. Where did they… what did you say to them?"

"You wouldn't continue to dance with me if I told you."

"You've just unleashed two small but destructive storms inside the manor," Mira said. "I wash my hands of all responsibility; whatever they do is your fault." As he grinned at her unrepentantly, she added, "You should be down there with everyone else, Alec."

"Where did you get this remarkable fondness for telling me what to do?""Someone needs to."

"Heartless creature—you'd actually send me back to the ball if you had your way, condemning me to hours of inane chatter and perfunctory dances."

"It's where you belong."

"And where do you belong?"

"Upstairs, in bed," she replied, and as she saw the devilish gleam in his eyes she added promptly, "by myself."

"But we're each entitled to a few minutes of escape from where we're supposed to be… and that's why we're both here."

"What could you have to escape from?" she asked. "A man of your station—"

"—has his own kind of problems," Alec interrupted dryly.

"Very small problems. I suppose one of your prob­lems is boredom? Well, that's nearly inexcusable. There's no reason for boredom, not when the world is full of so many things to be done."

"What about loneliness?"

"Loneliness… that's more difficult to solve," she said thoughtfully. "But that's not a problem of yours, is it? There are so many people who want to be with you, who want to be your friends, women who want…"

"Women who want… ?" he repeated quickly. "What about you? Do you want anything from me? I've been trying to find that out for two weeks."

She did not reply as she looked at him and won­dered what kind of game he was playing with her. She was too transparent to him; she knew that if she weren't careful he would discover things that she had been afraid to admit even to herself. Her eyes were caught by his, and although she knew that he was seeing far too much, she could not look away.

Her thighs brushed against his as the dance forced them closer; their steps became smaller as their bodiesmolded to each other. Their palms pressed together until Mira was not certain if it was her pulse or his that she felt beating between them. Again she was filled with that yielding weakness, that awareness of him, and the moment became timeless, a moment to re­member for the rest of her hie. One by one their fingers laced together, her small hand bound to his large one. She could not speak as she looked up at him, her eyes as black as midnight… and she knew that she was beginning to love him. It made her afraid and exhilarated, reckless. The wide, striking lines of his mouth were softer than usual, the brutally clean cut of his features highlighted by the stars and the clear white moon. He was like something out of a dream, his face all silver and shadows as he bent his head and kissed her cheek.

She shivered at the velvet brush of his lips, excite­ment crackling along her veins and awakening her nerves. She did not resist him, didn't turn her face away as his mouth traveled over her skin and grazed her cheekbone. A slight frown gathered between Alec's brows as he lifted his head to look at her, and it seemed as if he were torn between different impulses. As he stared at the softness of her lips, he swore quietly, and then his mouth sought hers, hot and insis­tent, urging her to yield to him, demanding that she open to him. Parting her lips, Mira succumbed to the searing magic of his kiss, stumbling against him as they stopped waltzing and simply stood there locked tightly together. Her arms went around his neck, her hands crept up to the back of his head, her fingers weaving through the raven smoothness of his hair.

Clinging to him, she responded to him with aban­don, her mouth moving strongly under his, her body pressing sweetly against him as his hands wandered over her. One of his knees parted her legs and he cupped his hands over her buttocks, pulling her up­ward. She quivered as his hard thigh pressed into thesoftness between her legs, the firm pressure easing her mounting frustration slightly… but it was not enough, not nearly enough. Purring and sighing, Mira writhed against him in an effort to be closer. Her nostrils filled with the intoxicating fragrance of him… ah, she was drunk on him, and the night, and the sweetness of the feelings that flowed through her lavishly.