by Stacy Reid
He twisted with her so that she sat atop him, her knees bracketing his hips and her mons flushed intimately against his rising arousal. Amalie shivered in his embrace, almost frightened at the burst of molten heat low in her belly. His mouth ravished hers while his hands busily removed the pins from her coiffure, tumbling her hair to her shoulders falling to her mid-back.
Their mouths parted and they breathed raggedly.
“Your hair is like a curtain of waterfall,” he said against her mouth. “Beautiful.”
Another hard press to her mouth. Then he said, “Arch your neck for me. Hold onto the edge of the sofa and do not let go.”
Amalie complied, moaning softly when he nibbled along the exposed arch of her throat. He slid the gown down her shoulders, and down her arms. The cut of her dress and the lack of shift and chemisette made it painfully easy for him to remove her breasts from her garment. He dipped his long fingers inside her bodice.
They both gasped at the point of contact, and her breasts grew heavy with need and her nipples went painfully hard. Nothing could have prepared her for such a violent jolt of desire, and she shivered with burning need. The touch of his fingertips against her nipple was almost unbearable in the tenderness it created.
“How large and red they are,” he said, wonder and arousal rough in his tone. “Like succulent berries.” Gently his hand outlined the circle of her breast.
His head dropped and he took her nipple into his mouth. A cry tore from her as his teeth tugged at her nipple before he laved it tenderly with his tongue, then roughly kissed it sucking it deep into his mouth. That suction sent the pit of her stomach into a wild swirl, and that secret nub of her womanhood ached unbearably.
Amalie clasped his head to her chest, arching more into his embrace. She had never dreamt passion could be this brilliant, overwhelming fire. The soft, satiny feel of her gown slid sensually against her skin accompanied by the crackle of the material as he pushed it to her waist.
Everything felt frantic and desperate, so great was their need for each other. She swallowed tightly as his hands skimmed so hotly between her legs, at the same time he used his other hand to pull her head down to his and kissed her hungrily. There was a sharp tug and he parted her drawers.
Amalie’s heart pounded with excitement and apprehension. Their lips parted, and his breath flowed to her.
“Amalie, my sweet,” he murmured roughly.
“Yes?”
The hand he used to touch the corner of her mouth trembled. “I’ve never had a lover.”
“So you’ve said, I gather they were all quick liaisons...” Something in his expression halted Amalie, and her heart started to jerk even faster.
“Do you mean...do you mean you are chaste?”
His lips touched hers like a whisper. “Yes.”
“I... truly?”
“Yes.”
You waited for me. Inexplicably she knew that was his reason, but she was petrified to ask. “Take me,” she said hoarsely.
His fingers glided through her wet sex, up and down, over her aching nub. That friction sent wicked hunger clawing through her veins. Her lover used his thumb to rub that nub over and over, filling that bundle of nerve with piercing pleasure. Something dark and hungry unfurled inside of her, and her hips arched into his caress.
“Max, please,” Amalie cried, not sure what it was that she demanded.
“Just like that,” he muttered hotly against her mouth. “I need you so wet for me, my Amalie, so wet.”
And she was mortifyingly so. A sob of need lifted in the drawing room as the tension low in her belly drew tighter until she shattered into a million stars. Then something hot and hard pressed against her aching sex. He gripped her hip and drew her tortuously slow onto his cock. Her muscles burned, and stretched, and she held onto his shoulders as if her life depended on it, never removing her gaze from his.
The cool night air kissed her skin, but it did little to calm the fire that burned inside her. She was painfully aroused and gripped by emotions she had never felt before. She felt suddenly vulnerable, completely exposed. This was Max touching her, kissing her, joining their bodies together. A knot formed in her throat. “Do you feel as I do,” she whispered.
“Scared?”
“Yes...desperate.”
Something undefinable flashed in his eyes. “Hungry.” Then he thrust up and pulled her down onto his length in one smooth motion. She gasped at the fiery burn and the sweet agony.
His hands tightened on her hips almost painfully, and with a rough shout he hugged her to him as he emptied his seed deep inside her body.
She slumped against his chest, her tender flesh still throbbing with unfulfilled need and desire. The soft folds between her thighs were tender, sensitive…aching, but she still craved his touches. Then a soft giggle slipped from her. “I gather that wasn’t supposed to happen again?”
He grunted, pushing damp tendrils of her hair behind her ears.
Soft humor lit into his eyes and he smiled sheepishly. “Once again I spent like an untried lad.”
She kissed his nose, then his mouth. “I am so very glad we waited on each other.”
He thrust his hand in her hair and angled her head slightly so they stared into each other’s eyes.
“I did,” he said gruffly. “It was not by chance, I could not...there was no other who could evoke a response within me. It has always been you, Amalie.”
She took those words and buried them deep in her heart. “And it has always been you, Max.”
They kissed, and an odd but welcoming sensation sank into her heart. The feeling was more than sexual desire. She felt...completed.
Oh, silly, silly heart.
Chapter 9
Max brushed his thumb against Amalie’s cheek tenderly. She smiled without opening her eyes. “Has the wind picked up?” she murmured sleepily, twisting so that her head was pillowed more comfortably on his thighs.
“Not as yet, based on the movement of the clouds we will be able to fly our kites soon.”
Another gusty sigh escaped her. “It is getting chilly.”
They had slept entwined in each other arms last night. It had been so natural for her to slumber on his chest, though he had been painfully aware he had left her unfulfilled. She had reached her pleasure once when he had prepared her, but once again he had fumbled and released too soon. The memory of how tight and wet and just bloody delightful she had felt around his cock had him biting back a moan. It had taken him a long while to fall asleep, as some anxiety had lingered about his performance.
What if that is how he would always react? A brush of her finger on his manhood, or as he entered her quim he would release? Christ. Many of the acts he had observed on his travels had taken several minutes to even hours of sensual play and delight. He felt he was cheating her. His Amalie did not know any other lover so she did not realize how badly he was an inadequate lover. He had slipped from the sheets to re-read his own book and hadn’t gained anything new.
They had woken early to ride their horses across the lanes of the estate. Max had been befuddled by how contented he had been with her by his side and had found himself wondering what if would be like if she were there always. After a picnic in the afternoon, they had found two large kites in the attic and waited under the large willow tree by the lake for the wind to pick up.
“I feel happy,” she said, opening her eyes and staring at the thick canopy above. “It has been years since I have felt such contentment, Max.”
He leaned his head against the thick trunk of the tree. “Are you able to stay with me here for the rest of the season?”
She started in surprise, “That is weeks!”
“We are having an affair,” he said smoothly, “How long did you expect it to last?”
“I... I never gave it much thought. Did you?”
Forever. “I’ve never had an affair before, these waters are also uncharted for me.”
Her lips curved in a small. �
�Perhaps we could try to garner a deeper understanding of our particular arrangement. You are the embodiment of a most eligible gentleman and will be expected to marry soon. Should...should we continue our affair de coeur until you’ve selected a wife? Or do we give our time together an end date?”
The tightening in his gut eased, and Max suspected he would delay seeking a wife for years to come. “I presume once I’ve become affianced our affair will end?”
“You presume right!” she said tartly, sending him a fierce frown.
“I would never ask you to be my mistress,” he said softly. “You are infinitely more precious than that.”
She pushed up to her elbows on the blanket and then shifted so that she faced him. “Thank you for that,” she said softly, her eyes soft with emotions he could not name. “Let us promise we will be friends always and to be there for each other.”
That he could not promise, and at his silence her eyes grew wide and uncertain. “Max?”
“Let us talk about this another day.”
Her chin lifted stubbornly. “What is wrong with now? We are still waiting on the wind to fly our kites. Tell me,” she urged.
“No.”
“Why not?”
Bloody hell. “I do not wish to lie to you, nor do I wish to hurt you.”
She paled alarmingly. “You do not wish to associate with me once our affair has ended?”
At his silence she stumbled to her feet and spun away from him, then she walked rapidly to the lake’s embankment.
“Amalie!”
She ignored his call and with a silent curse he jumped to his feet and hurried after her. Gripping her shoulder, Max urged her to face him. Placing a finger under her chin, he lifted her face so he could peer into her eyes. The pain he saw there crushed him. “It is not what you think,” he said.
“You are not privy to my thoughts, my lord, to speculate on them!”
“I do not want to cheat...to dishonor my vows or my marriage when I do commit. You are a weakness for me and will always be. Once you are in my life, I will do everything to spend my days with you and my nights deep inside your body. Even if you try to tell me no... I do not think I will be able to resist, and I will ruthlessly seduce you to my way of thinking. You would be my mistress!”
She lifted her hand, placed them on his chest and pushed. “So, you can stand to see us forever parted?”
“How can I in good conscience be friends with a woman who has me in knots? That disloyalty I could not permit myself to show my wife even if I do not love her.”
Tears trembled on her lashes and her skin went even paler. “I understand.”
“Do you?” he asked urgently, hating himself in this moment.
“Yes. When I married the viscount...every day and night you were in my thoughts. It haunted me yet I could not let you go. I would seek you out at balls and invited you for tea and afternoon chats knowing my heart and emptions were hopelessly entangled with you. It was unfair to my marriage and to the viscount.”
He stroked the soft hollow behind her earlobe with his thumb. “Or perhaps I should just marry you. What is really keeping us from taking such a leap?”
She gasped. “That is not a matter to jest about! Your family would hate me for ruining your expectations and surely you would come to resent the loss of your reputation and goodwill in the ton once we are associated so intimately!”
“Are you saying you would not marry me if I asked?”
The tears spilled over and she gasped as if she hurt.
Damn it! “Amalie, I... let’s not talk about this today.”
She nodded frantically, and he drew her into his arms. They stood by the lake, hugging, until a gust of wind whipped the skirt of her dress around their legs. He wanted to say much more but was uncertain as to exactly what he wanted to say. Max had never felt this uncertain about anything in his life before. Why can’t I marry you? He silently asked. The memory of his mother’s frantic worry about their families’ reputation danced in his thoughts. Is that all, he snarled, his mind darting to find a solution that would make everyone happy.
She pulled from his embrace and gave him a smile that seemed strained. “We agreed to an affair, Max, please let’s not muddy the waters with talks...with foolish talks. Now, the wind has picked up! Let’s fly our kites.”
Amalie hurried away to the tree where they had rested their kites and picnic basket. He followed slowly, turning over her determination to not go deeper than the surface affair. Was it that she was afraid, or did she not love him? His steps faltered. Do I want your love, Amalie?
As if she heard him, she turned around and their gaze collided. With a flush she glanced away and peered at the two kites skeptically. “Did we do a decent job? Do you think they will fly?”
At his silence, she glanced up at him.
Her lips parted. “You are staring.”
“You are an astoundingly beautiful lady. I am inspired to stare.”
She grinned and he smiled. He ambled over and stared at the kites they had taken an hour to build after luncheon. “They had better fly,” he muttered darkly.
She giggled and lightly punched his arm. “You were the one who insisted we should not rouse a few of your staff to assist us.”
“I blame you for not discouraging me from that folly.”
“I think we did a wonderful job,” she said, lifting her kite, slowly releasing the strings to fly.
He grabbed his kite, and they ran out onto the open lawn and gave their kites the freedom to soar. Max wasn’t certain how long they ran with their kites as the wind tugging them further away from the estate, but he didn’t want the day to end.
He found he did not want to ruin the serenity with chatter, but he had to tell her. “Amalie?”
She cast him a sidelong glance. “Yes?”
“I too feel happy.”
A bewitching smile curved her lovely mouth before she looked back to the kite flying against the backdrop of the lowering sun.
“Max, please,” Amalie screamed, slapping a hand over her mouth, and gasping raggedly.
“Please what?” he murmured, blowing his breath softly over the curls protecting her clitoris.
Her entire body shivered. He’d given her the order to take a rose scented bath after dinner and lie naked on the bed and wait for him. She had blushed frightfully but when he had entered the chamber, she had done exactly as he had instructed. His body had reacted with a violent wave of need, and he dearly hoped that immersing himself in her scent and taste would garner him more control when he finally entered her quim. Just thinking about that welcoming, wet heaven had his cock pounding with greed.
He’d dreamed of taking his lips on a journey over her bare shoulders, down until he could use his lips and tongue to do wicked things between her thighs for the long night. And that is exactly what he would do. Max had been slowly arousing her body for the last several minutes with kisses on her neck, breast, belly, her hips, the back of her knees. Who knew her body was so sensually sensitive and attuned to him? But even if it killed him he would bring her to completing a few times before taking her.
“I am burning alive. I need you in me,” she cried, griping the sheets with her fingers.
“Not yet,” he said, kissing the shadows of her inner thigh. “How soft you are. I swear you taste like peach.”
“I do not think you’ve ever eaten peaches,” she said with a light giggle.
Max pushed her legs even wider and he smiled to see her entire body turning pink, from her toes to her hairline at the lascivious sprawl he arranged her limbs. He had written about kissing a woman on her sex, and the pleasure she should feel. Max dearly hoped he had not been sprouting nonsense.
He dipped and pressed a kiss to her mons.
“Max?” Her cry was one of shock.
“What are you doing?”
Now she sounded like a mouse.
He shifted so that he could see her features. The lush sight of her body once again arrest
ed his gaze, and he couldn’t help staring at her exquisite shape. His Amalie was lush all over, her curves mouth wateringly sensual. Noting his stare, her lids fluttered, her lips parted wider as she panted.
“You’re so damn beautiful, so lushly sensual. I want to kiss you everywhere. And when you’ve climaxed, to do it all over again.”
She flushed prettily; a delicate pink blush spread across her cheeks then encompassed her entire body. “Tell me what you are planning to do!”
“It seems you have not reached chapter thirteen in my book,” he said with some amusement.
“No,” she wailed. “I... I am at chapter ten! Surely this cannot be decent, oh Max—”
Her words transformed to a wild cry as he ran his tongue over her petals up to her nub. The taste of her was indescribable. The sweet, addictive taste of her had his thoughts scattering for several seconds. The arousal pulsing through him felt darker...needier as if her flavor was an aphrodisiac. Fuck! He reached down and gripped his twitching cock and squeezed, trying to control the desperate need to spend.
He repeated the motion and her hips came up off the bed. He slipped his hands underneath her lush buttocks and brought her sex to his mouth. Max used her cries and shivers to guide him. He licked and nibbled along her folds, before taking her nub between his teeth.
She screamed and he paused. He sucked that button, and she gripped his hair and pulled...more to her. He groaned as her scent and sweet flavor pushed his lust higher.
“Max!” her cry was at once guttural and breathless.
Her thighs started to violently tremble and then she flew apart in his embrace, convulsion jerking her body as she powerfully released. He rose above her and with trembling fingers released the flap to his trousers and with impatience fully stripped.
