Knowing he was the one to send her on her flight to ecstasy.
Her hips rocked in rhythm to his caress. Faster and more urgently, until she stiffened and cried out.
His teeth scraped her nipple, then he lifted his head and glanced down at the delicate creature in his arms. Bliss covered her features. Her moans made his rigid shaft ache. Desire boiled his blood.
Summoning every raw nerve he’d been taught to control, Giles wrestled with the desire to possess her. He quickly worked the buttons on the falls of his pants, and tore his trousers off, kicking them aside. Slowly, he moved between her knees, bracing his arms to keep his weight from crushing her.
“Alex, will you let me . . .”
“Yes!” she cried with no hesitation.
His breathing ragged, he thought to soothe her fears. But his golden nymph seemed as eager as he. “I don’t want to hurt you, but I’m afraid it is inevitable. You may feel some discomfort.”
“I am not completely uninformed. And I have been riding a horse since I was four.”
Her flesh cushioned his shaft. He angled himself, searching for the small entrance.
Holy Christ.
Raging want threatened to sweep him away. The urge to thrust bubbled in his blood.
Narrow, the way inside her, and so very tight. He nudged, retreated, and nudged a little deeper. Sweat broke out on his neck. Slowly, by tantalizing inches, he sank into her, stretching and filling her with his rigid length. He felt her stiffen, and wished he could save her the pain that pierced her body. Her breathing quickened, yet he was the one who trembled.
“Relax. I’ve got you.” He gazed into her eyes. There was no turning back now.
Sinking into her virgin sheath, he kept his eyes locked on her face, taking in her beauty, her passion enflamed expression. And with one last push, he thrust his full length through her maidenhead.
Pleasure spread from his cock through every nerve in his body. Blood roared in his temples. Rapture beyond his reckoning, his head threatened to explode.
He gasped for air in hopes to slow the impulsive urge to thrust and end his madness.
But her body clenched and stole his breath.
An explosion of fire singed his core. The world disappeared.
Her dark eyes flew wide while only a harsh groan escaped her lips. Her grip on him tightened. Then she smiled, giving him the assurance he craved.
Need forced him to move. Unable to remain still any longer, he drew out slowly, then carefully pushed back in, embedding himself deeper.
“Are you all right?” His voice barely more than a growl, he prayed she would not halt him now. For he had little control, and if she denied him, he’d surely die.
“I’m beyond fine. What are you doing to me?”
“I’m making love to you, little one. Am I hurting you?”
“No. You could never hurt me.” She sounded out of breath. “Oh, Giles. Do that again.”
“Sweet girl. I will do that . . .” He pulled out, then pressed in, driving deeper. “Again . . .” He took a breath, slid out and thrust in. “And again . . .”
She caught his rhythm and joined him, matching his thrusts.
“Now, you will make love with me.” He tangled his fingers with hers. “Together.”
He surrendered to the enchantment spell she wove around him, hungry for every ounce of her sweetness, her passion, all that he could have. Famished for so long, he became driven, enmeshed in his need with wild and free abandon.
God, her body gripped him so snugly. She clung to him, her fingers holding on to his. Her hips gyrated beneath him.
Heat and friction pushed him over the edge, the flame of his desire burning his reason to ashes. He kissed her again and again. He worshiped her with lips, hands, and the powerful embrace of passion. Her body arched, then her walls contracted as spasms of pleasure made her tighten around him. His vision faded and his belly clenched as he choked out a groan.
With one hard thrust, he embedded himself deep inside her. Wave after wave crashed with mind-numbing pleasure as her name wrung from his lips.
Tingling started in Alex’s stomach and radiated out toward her fingers and toes. Ripples of sensation coursed through her body—it was more than her mind could take in all at once. Whatever hesitation she might have had completely vanished under Giles’ careful guidance. She trusted him. Lost in his ministrations, she’d been eager to experience every emotion, every sensation.
Becoming a woman was not as terrible as she envisioned. With Giles, most pleasurable. She had wanted him so badly. She loved him. And he loved her. Even if he didn’t say the words.
With soothing strokes, the pressure eased. He kissed her cheek, her ear, her neck. Gathering her wits, she tried to digest what just occurred, that gentle, passionate joining.
He lowered his face to the curve of her neck. “Alex, I didn’t mean for that to happen.”
She sucked in her breath. “Do you regret what happened?”
He caught her wandering hand and linked their fingers together. Raising her hand to his lips, he kissed the back of her knuckles. “Not in the slightest.”
The anxiety in her chest eased.
“However, I should have behaved more in a gentlemanly fashion,” he added.
“Do you think me too wicked to admit I’m glad you didn’t?”
The outlandishly sexy smile he gave her set her belly fluttering.
Unsure of what to expect, still she’d wanted this. She’d yearned to make him hers. His touch charged her. Excitement shoved away any insecurity, any notion of anxiety, for the unbelievable rapture he made her feel.
Giles offered her nothing more than this moment in time. But she was determined to imprint her mark on him.
She curved her hand around his neck and pulled him in for another kiss. Her pulse pounded in a wild rhythm. She had longed for this. His mouth over hers, his arms holding her, his flesh against hers. He gave her a squeeze, then his body eased away as he rolled to his side and gathered her within his embrace. His hands, strong yet gentle, caressed her shoulders and back. Her head rested on his silky furred chest, and she smiled, ecstatic. This had to be the most wonderful feeling in the world.
He’d made love to her. With her.
Alex emitted a heavy sigh and curled into his warmth. Her body still tingled. Lying together, his arm around her, she now knew what it was to be one with a man. One heart. One body. One soul.
They didn’t speak of their thoughts, or the sentiments in their hearts. But he had to feel the same as she.
Sinfully good.
Wavy tendrils of her hair streamed over her arms, onto his chest. He reached for a curl, worrying the strand between his fingers. “Your hair is the color of champagne shimmering in the sun.” His voice thick with contentment, his lips vibrated her scalp as he mumbled into her hair.
Curled against his body, Alex basked in his love. She raised her head. “I am deliriously happy,” she giggled.
“Judging by the smile on those well-kissed lips, I’d agree. But we mustn’t tarry. Someone could come upon us.” He stretched, reaching for his trousers. “I would not want to meet any of your brothers.”
“Please.” She stayed him. “They don’t know of my secret lagoon.”
He dropped a kiss on the end of her nose. A deep sigh escaped his chest as he wrapped her in his warmth. She curled her fingers in the scattering of hair angling down his nicely firmed ribs, a few tuffs trailing to the . . . “Oh, my,” Alex sighed.
She must be in heaven. To lie with him like this, her head on his shoulder, skin against skin, silk against her fingertips. He held her for long moments. She wanted more. Raising her head for another kiss, she ran her fingers through his raven mane, and tugged.
When he met her lips
, white-hot heat filled her again. She crawled over him, but he lifted her away.
“We must talk, Alex. We need to get dressed.”
She didn’t like the tone of his voice. Its timbre sounded too much like her brother when he threatened to chastise her. She eyed Giles warily.
“Don’t look so worried,” he said as he tugged a golden strand lying over her breast. “You tempt me beyond good sense.”
Fearing he regretted their interlude, she gulped.
Troubled eyes stared down at her.
“I don’t regret what we did,” Alex blurted out.
“Neither do I.” One corner of his mouth lifted in a smile while his fingers traced her cheek.
She heard the words, saw the sincerity in his expression when he spoke. Still, a pending doom threatened her peace of mind. Suddenly, she didn’t want to hear what he seemed determined to say. Her breath came out in a rush as she threw her arms around his middle, merging their naked flesh together. Could she keep him here forever if she held him tightly enough?
“You do realize this changes things.” His voice rumbled under her ear while his sturdy arms cradled her. Warmth. Security. Safe. Loved. She felt every emotion exuding from his body to hers.
She leaned back. Afraid to ask, needing to hear. “What do you mean?”
“I must speak with your father.”
“You don’t mean to tell him?” she shrieked. “You . . . You can’t!”
“Alex. I won’t tell him I took your virginity. But I will speak with him and ask for your hand.”
Excitement flooded her and made her head spin with happiness.
“You want to marry me?”
“Yes. Are you so surprised?” His grin melted her heart and curled her toes.
“A bit, yes.”
“You chased me until you caught me. Now you don’t know what to do with me?”
“Oh, I know now what to do. And you’ll not get a chance to change your mind.” Suddenly, a thought popped into her head and her mouth pursed with worry.
“What is it?” He placed one finger under her chin, lifting her gaze to his.
“Is it because I threw myself at you? Is it because you took my virginity? Do you care anything for me?”
“I care more for you than I ought. I care more for you than I’ve ever felt for any woman. You charmed your way into my heart, little one. What we just shared, nothing compares to the ecstasy I received in your arms.”
“I love you, Giles. I knew you’d be mine.”
His dark hair fell over his brow. Her rugged, strong duke, with his devilish smile. Hers. All hers.
“It’s a shame we wasted so much time.” His thumb caressed her chin.
“We?” She punched his shoulder. “You mean you. If I had known then what I now know, I would have attacked you.”
“You did,” he teased and pulled her back into his arms.
“Sooner. When you were more vulnerable.” She cuddled closer, rubbing her hand over his chest. “Which is not even in the realm of possibilities, for there is not a vulnerable bone in your body.”
“Wrong, my dear.” He smoothed a curl over her shoulder. “You were too damned tempting. I finally had to succumb.”
“What about now?”
“Hmmm?”
“Can we, um . . . do that again? You um . . . look like . . . Giles? Can I touch you?”
If eyes alone could start a fire, his heated gaze would burn her to cinders. Her hand trembled with want. She couldn’t seem to pull away. Her gaze lowered to him . . . there.
“Please, Giles.”
“Yes. You can touch me, Alexandria. I’d like that very much.” She loved the way he said her name, drawing it out like a caress. Looking into the depth of his penetrating stare, she could fall in love with him all over again.
He said yes.
Nerves and anticipation churned within her.
At the touch of her finger, his hardness jerked. A soft sound of surprise escaped her throat. Excitement spurred her on. She covered him with her palm. Hot. Hard. Silky soft.
She stroked him from the satin head down to the base. To her further amazement, it grew. Bigger.
“Careful, my love.”
She glanced up into glazed midnight eyes. He gritted his teeth.
“Am I hurting you?” She tried to withdraw, but he covered her hand with his own.
“No, love.”
Love. He’d called her ‘love.’ Not once, but twice. In her elation, her fingers tightened around him.
He groaned. Such an intense reaction from such a fleeting touch. A fuse fizzled along her nerve endings, flaring to life. She quivered in anticipation of doing it again.
“I want to please you.” She caressed with her hand while her foot slid along the tense muscles in his legs.
“Anxious, my love?”
“Show me,” she whispered. Rising up, she ran her tongue over his lips, hoping to create a like sensation in him as when he’d created a fire in her blood hot enough to burn through her veins.
“Right there. Stroke me.” While one hand gave direction, his other shoved through her thick hair. He covered her mouth with his, devouring her lips with such passion, sleeping areas of her body flared to life.
Her strokes grew more determined, more forceful. Eyes closed, his head thrown back, his rigid body shuddered. She glanced up to find a grimace on his face.
“Good God, Alex. Tell me you did not practice this.”
“Only with you.” She gripped his shaft tightly and stroked him harder. She needed, wanted more. The tips of her breasts, the pit of her stomach, and . . . oh, between her legs ached.
As if he knew her need, he covered her mound, slipping his finger deep. Her mouth opened in an arousing sigh. His hand teased, gliding in a wicked rhythm that had her writhing and twisting. Yearning.
“Alexandria,” he gasped.
The sound of her name from his throat thrilled her. Heat shot through her body. She pressed closer to his relentless fingers, her hand groping him while a moan slid from her lips. Giles taught her cravings of her own body she’d never realized existed. The depth of this euphoria took her breath.
She clung to him, and kissed him with mindless abandon.
A groan escaped as his tongue twirled with hers. His fingers plunged deep. Pressure burst and shattered in a million tiny pieces. Her limbs grew heavy.
Giles stood and swept her into his arms.
“Hold on to me.”
Limp and sated, she threw her arms around his neck. Snug in his embrace, he carried her to the spring. With each step he took, every beat of her heart sang with love. As the cool water covered them, he swung her legs around his hips. He took her mouth again, his thumbs rubbing the underside of her breasts. His lips left hers and kissed a path over her cheek and along her jaw. He placed a hot, open-mouth kiss in the curve of her neck, holding her tight. In one swift move, he thrust. Sheathed to the hilt, he filled her completely.
And branded her as his forever.
Chapter 18
Giles glanced down the curved mahogany staircase with deliberate intent. No time like the present. Alex wasn’t the sort of wife he’d thought to acquire. But suddenly, she was the only one he wanted. Once he made up his mind he wanted something, he saw no reason to delay. He’d never been one to avoid confrontation. Not that he expected one, but he doubted Carmichael would be thrilled, or give up his daughter eagerly. Giles was about to meet a lion in his own den and ask for his cub.
He’d thought of nothing else since yesterday afternoon when he’d made love with Alex in the secluded lagoon. A buzz of sensation quivered down his spine. He could still smell her essence. Still feel her smooth skin against his fingertips, her soft cries of ecstasy echoing in his ears.
God, she’d wrapped around him like a tight-fitting, velvet glove.
While he held her cradled in his arms, deep in his soul he knew she was the one. The woman he belonged with. The only one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.
His mind spun with possibilities.
He had a conscience. He’d taken her virginity. A precious gift, though seized in a heated moment, was not to be trampled upon. His honor declared he do the proper thing. Admittedly, his honor had very little to do with wanting Alex. Accepting the difference in their ages, he finally conceded he cared for the girl.
Cared? He’d bloody well been captivated. He might feel guilty for his rashness, but some part of him had been remarkably pleased, for now she was bound to him. The idea created an unsteady rhythm in his heart. He’d spoken the truth when he told Alex his proposal was not because he’d taken her virginity. Deep down, he wanted her. Amazing, how much delight he received at the thought.
Asking her father for her hand in marriage was no hardship at all. Actually, he looked forward to shackling himself to the spirited vixen. Life would not be dull.
With a spring in his step, he trekked down the stairs and went in search of his host.
“James. I wonder if I might have a moment.” Giles felt at odds greeting him with such a casual address, but the man insisted he be called by his given name. He respected Carmichael and due to the topic Giles wished to discuss, even more reason he should formally address the man properly.
“You have the look of a serious discussion,” James said.
“This is a matter of great import.”
“Very well. Let’s go into my study.”
Giles followed James down the hall into the large room and closed the door behind him. The click of the latch resounded in the silence. Two leather chairs faced a huge oak desk.
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