Wicked Nights With a Proper Lady(18)

He must have caught her off guard because she didn’t struggle to be free of him. They were effectively locked together in their own little realm of velvet and gilt where no one could witness what might transpire. The familiar lavender scent of her clothes clung to her like fresh spring rain. God, the woman drove him mad with lust just by being so close to her.

“I like you unsettled, Miss Camden. It allows me to take certain advantages I wouldn’t have the opportunity for otherwise.” He paused in his speech, his eyes dropping to her mouth. “Nothing would please me more than kissing you. Right here. Right now.”

“Your behavior is uncalled for.” She shoved at his chest, but it wasn’t to push him away because her hands flattened and relaxed there. “We will be missed if we don’t find the rest of our party.”

He couldn’t care less about her cousin and the Carletons when he was too busy imagining the wicked things he could do to her. Like peel her dress away and lick every inch of her skin, which he knew was as soft as the petals of a flower in bloom. He wanted to hike up her skirts and feel the litheness of her legs as they wrapped around him. Neither of those things could be accomplished here, but when he did finally have her in his bed again, he’d take his time and savor every touch, every taste, until he was drowning in her very essence.

A small taste of her would have to suffice for now.

Placing his thumb on the center of her chin, he inched it down far enough to separate her lips and see her tongue peeking out from between the pink folds. His gaze caught hers full on. He couldn’t stop himself from sliding his fingers over the side of her face and slipping them lower to capture her neck in his hand. She didn’t resist him, didn’t pull away. Instead, she arched her body marginally forward in invitation.

She was an enthralling and fascinating creature. His very own water nymph come to life.

Fingers reaching out, she found his chest and slipped her hand higher, above his necktie, and wrapped it around the bare portion of his neck. Her palm was warm, and her touch made him more desperate than ever to whisk her away from the prying eyes around them. Steal her away so he could have her all to himself.

“Kiss me, Genny.”

She shook her head. “I can’t do this with you.”

“You wish to do this with another?” Even though he said this in jest, the very idea sickened him. He would never allow another man to lay a finger upon her.

“You know precisely what I mean.”

“Then you leave me no choice but to make the first move.”

With his hand still at the small of her back, he pulled her solidly along the length of his body. When she gave in and stopped fighting the natural press of their bodies, a low sigh escaped her parted lips. He traced the seam of her mouth with his finger, building the anticipation of what was to come.

The scent of her perfume was an aphrodisiac in and of itself. Loose tendrils of her hair teased at his nose. One touch, even one taste would be stepping into dangerous territory.

* * *

What had happened to her resolve to remain distant with Barrington? No good would come of spending any time with him … alone.

And why was she practically throwing herself into his arms, enticing him in a way she had no right to do?

“You are making a spectacle of yourself,” she said.

“We are cocooned in our own private sanctuary. Only the two of us will know that I am a fool for you.”

Without warning his free hand threaded through the back of her hair to cup her head and better angle her face. The warmth of him enveloped their fused forms, making her skin feel overheated.

His lips found the heavily beating pulse at her neck instead of her lips, which she had parted in anticipation. She had wanted to feel the press of his mouth upon hers, wanted to taste his passion upon her tongue.

Something akin to disappointment filled her heart that he did not lay claim to her mouth. But what right did she have to that feeling? She should be picking her skirts up and running as fast and as far as she could.

His mouth was firm but soft against the vein pulsing heavily at her neck. His teeth pulled lightly, teasingly. The tickle of his nose drew a line from the base of her neck to the sensitive spot behind her ear.

Why was she failing to keep a cool distance from him? Why couldn’t she detach herself from her feelings of old? Opening herself up to this man would lead to heartache once he was done with her and gone again.

His teeth pulled at her earlobe, sucking it into the recess of his hot mouth. Her traitorous body molded impossibly tighter to his.

It had been so long since he had held her. She wanted more. Even if that desire was complete madness.

Drawing in a deep breath, she forced her hands between their bodies and gave a small shove against his chest. This intimacy, this need to touch each other couldn’t continue. She had to take herself as far away from this man as possible.

Obligingly, he lifted his head from the sweet torture he was inflicting on her skin and senses and took a step back. It wasn’t that she wanted to leave his arms. She wished she could relish in the feel of his strong body surrounding her and reigniting passions long vanquished by his leaving four years ago. To feel so utterly feminine and protected in his arms, even for an unguarded moment, made her yearn for what could never be and had never been because he hadn’t wanted to marry her.

She pressed her fingers to her neck, sliding the tips over the sensitive spot he’d nibbled at. Palms flattened over his chest, she had to fight against the craving to bask in the touch of every solid warm inch beneath. She would prefer to pull him back and have his lips descend upon hers, instead of pushing him back another step.

Allowing this concession of a second kiss had been a grave mistake.

Closing her eyes, she took in a deep breath hoping to find her equilibrium again. What had she just allowed to happen? A cool caress of air brushed her skin as the curtain was pulled aside. Leo grabbed her hand and led her out into the corridor.

“Come, before we are truly missed.”

The bright lights stung her eyes for a moment but they adjusted quickly, and she could see her cousin and Lady Carleton ahead of the rush as they made their way downstairs to the refreshment table. Even though it felt as though she and Leo had delayed for a lengthy period of time, they’d only been behind the curtain for a few minutes.

Leo took her arm in his and strolled down the hall at an unhurried pace. There were enough witnesses to see them acting above reproach. But would any of them guess why her cheeks were flushed and her neck probably reddened from Leo’s ministrations?

Would any of them wonder if Barrington and she were merely friends? Or would they think Leo was courting her? Genny wondered if they thought his intentions pure or devilish. Definitely the latter.

“You’re a daring man,” she mused aloud.

“Life wouldn’t be nearly as fun if I didn’t step outside society’s strictures every now and again. I do have a reputation to uphold.”

Only a man could say such a bold thing. Though she’d done just that once upon a time, she knew she’d spend the rest of her days trying to hide it from the world. “I still stand by what I said earlier, Lord Barrington.”

“I seem to have forgotten what that was.”

When she peered up at him, he gave her a knowing and pleased grin.

“You must find yourself another woman to toy with.”

“Toy with?” He tsked and gave a slight shake of his head. “Such harsh words, Miss Camden. You wound me.”

“I doubt that.”

“Surely you’ll understand my predicament better when I explain that I just can’t seem to stay away.”

“I’ll not buy into your charm as so many others do. I know exactly what type of person you are. Now if you’ll excuse me, I would like to discuss the opera with my cousin.”

With that she quit his company. But not before he whispered something altogether improper, along the lines of rekindling old passions, in her ear.

Damn that man. He’d ruin her before the season was out if she didn’t learn quickly how to better guard herself. She was no young debutante, easy to disarm and take advantage of. She was a grown woman with far too much experience in dealing with the opposite sex. So why couldn’t she fend off Barrington? Was it because he had intimate knowledge of her? Or was it because she secretly craved his touch?

As she saw it, her main problem was that he kept showing up at every event she attended. She almost wondered if he had orchestrated their meeting at the jewelry shop.

If she couldn’t find a way to avoid him, she’d have to learn to ignore him when they attended the same functions. And if she failed at doing that …

Well, she could only hope that she would never find out.

* * *

Leo watched Genny as she weaved her way through the crowds to make it to her cousin’s side. Genny whispered something in her cousin’s ear, causing the young woman to laugh. Then they turned down the wide entry stairs at the front of the opera house and headed toward the lobby.

He followed them as far as the top landing of the stairs, though he kept an eye on her from his vantage point.

Ponsley was a cheap bastard where his servants were concerned. Maybe the old man had dressed Genny in drab ensembles intentionally so she wouldn’t draw eyes away from his daughter, who was adorned in the finest that the seamstresses in London offered. It couldn’t be argued that both women were lovely in their own way but only one had managed to catch Leo’s eye.