She braced her hands against his shoulders, slowing his penetration, and he allowed her. Rhys wanted her to feel every inch of him as he slid into her. Wrapping his arms around her, he drew her down on his aching length in slow degrees of penetration until she was seated on his cock as deep as he could get.
A soft cry spilled from her, and her nails bit into the muscles of his shoulders, leaving behind an erotic sting. His cock got even harder on a pleasurable pulse. The feeling was exquisite, and the tight fit of her had him groaning. What was even better was, despite the fact that she had to be very tender from his earlier loving, her face was a study in pleasure.
Her arms wound around his neck, and she fused their lips together, whimpering into his kiss and steadily increasing thrusts. Her body seemed to have been fashioned to meld with his, to fit so damn perfectly with his as they strained toward ecstasy. She arched above him, crying out as her release swept through her, and he tumbled with her.
“No one needs to know—we will be very discreet,” Rhys suggested, hating the idea of keeping their passion a guarded secret, but he wanted her that badly. Very stupid of him, for certainly nothing would ever come of it, even if he were to be bloody knighted. She was unexpected, a beautiful distraction from his plan to secure an unmatched future for his sisters, but it was impossible for him to shut away the urgings blazing through his dreams and waking moments. “This will be between you and me, no one else.”
“Yes.”
His damn heart stopped for seconds before roaring to life. “Yes?”
Her wide, generous mouth curved. “Oh yes. I’ll have an affair with you.”
He wrapped his arms fully around her, acutely aware of her slight femininity. The incredibly unique, utterly feminine scent of her body invaded his lungs. He felt almost at a loss what to do. “How long?”
“I…I’ve never had an affair before.”
“A week, a month, a year?” Forever?
“I…just until it ends.”
And for now, that would have to be enough.
She pressed trembling fingers to his lips. “I desire you in a manner I have felt for no other man, and I doubt I will ever feel again. Though I know we cannot last, I want to take and cherish whatever time we will have. And…and I want more than just you in my body pleasuring me,” she said, a flush coloring her face. She gave him an odd, searching look. “I am inextricably drawn to you. Who are you, Rhys? I want…to know you. Perhaps we might even be friends.”
He took her lips in a searing kiss and proceeded to make love with her slowly and for a long damn time.
Rhys watched Georgiana as she slept. Her hair spilled like a curtain of obsidian silk across the sheets. She was curled on her side, lightly resting against his stomach. He was sitting up on the bed, his back braced against the headboard, one of his knees drawn up and the other stretched out in a tangle of her feet and the silken sheets.
He’d exhausted her. Hell, he’d exhausted himself, taking her several times. She had been like an innocent, and he felt like a corrupter recalling all the luscious things he’d demanded of her. She had fallen into slumber, and he had been reluctant to disturb her. It was less than an hour till dawn, and he needed to slip away. He’d promised discretion.
He ran his finger down her cheek, and she did not stir. She looked so peaceful; he was glad he had given her that. The fear that had bled from her earlier had vanished. Rhys would ensure all threats to her and her son would be removed. He didn’t want to examine why it was so important to him that she felt secure and safe from worry.
The small sounds of contentment she made in her sleep soothed him. The way her lashes fluttered against her cheeks entranced him. She was such delightful company, intelligent and savvy, yet there was a sweetness she couldn’t hide. He liked her at his side. Unusual that. He was so used to being alone in the world he’d carved for himself plotting and watching, waiting for the sins of people to make their way into his arsenal. His sisters and mother had no idea of his reputation in the underworld, only knowing he was a businessman with several profitable investments. The duchess knew the thin veneer of gentlemanlike qualities he showed to the world was just that, a facade. Yet she had given herself to him so unreservedly, with such passion. He had the unnerving desire to find out what made her happy and simply lay all her hidden desires at her feet.
Perhaps this was what obsession felt like.
Georgiana stirred languidly against his chest. Her eyes fluttered open. She smiled with unconcealed pleasure. “Hello,” she murmured sleepily.
“Georgiana,” he replied.
Her eyes were drowsy, slumberous, staring up at him with an inescapable hunger.
“The dawn is breaking.”
Her gaze slashed toward the wide windows overlooking the palatial lawns of the estate. “So it is.”
This moment without passion almost felt awkward. He’d never had an attachment before and hardly knew where to start. “I’ll be leaving soon.”
She slid up in the bed, dragging the sheets with her, hiding her nakedness from him. His duchess leaned against the headboard, combing her fingers through her tangled hair, the gesture nervous and unexpected. She darted him a quick, searching glance. “Rhys, I cannot thank you for what you did for me. I—”
He pressed a finger to her lips. “You already thanked me.”
“It is not enough.”
His hand framed her cheek, his thumb running over the slightly swollen curve of her lips. “It is. You do not owe me eternal gratitude.”
Her chin lifted stubbornly. “Yet you shall have it for as long as I live. Do you think I am unaware of the burden and scrutiny you saved me, my son, and my family from? The scandal of a trial, the fear of wondering when Lord James would strike again. You removed that shadow from our lives at a great cost to yourself, Rhys.”
A fist closed itself over his heart. “I’ve killed before, duchess.”
She jolted, and her eyes widened. Her hand reached up to touch his face. Warm fingertips brushed over his flesh before they touched his lips. “Why?”
With a soft grunt, he released her and once again leaned against the headboard. “It is of little consequence.”
“I would not betray your confidence, if that is your worry.”
He considered her and the need in her eyes for a greater connection between them than fiery passion. It felt far too personal, lying there amongst twisted sheets, sharing intimacies with her he’d never told a soul. Joanna’s enraged screams had alerted him, and as he’d raced down the lanes to the small house that they had lived in in Lambeth, those minutes before he’d reached her had been the darkest hour of his existence. She hadn’t been raped—he had blessedly prevented that horror from befalling his sister.
He reached over and tugged Georgiana to him. His hands slid down and cupped her bottom and then pulled her into the hollow of his hips so her back was flush to his chest. Her skin was so soft, like a rose petal. “A man assaulted my sister.”
She took a deep breath. “Will you tell me?”
“Joanna was fourteen at the time of the attack. She fought back, and he scarred her face. I rescued her before he stole more from her, and I killed him. It did not haunt me, duchess, nor was I filled with remorse that I rid the earth of such vermin.”
She touched his forearms lightly. “I, too, have a younger sister. Ellie. When she was only thirteen years…her music tutor…he did something rather frightening. She told Simon, and though duels are illegal, he challenged the man for the dishonor of touching her. Simon killed him. I assure you, it is always honorable to protect those we love. I was not about to give judgment.”
Rhys smiled, never expecting such a perspective from a lady of polite society.
She twisted and shifted so that she faced him. “Tell me about the sister you wish for me to sponsor.”
“Lydia. She is three-and-twenty, she is full of charm and life, despite her imperfections, and I would see her wed to a gentleman of honor. It will be a chal
lenge, for Lydia is deaf. She lost her hearing several years ago from a fever. Her gentleman will need to be kind and understanding. I will break him if he ridicules or harms her.”
Compassion softened his duchess’s features. “I’m terribly sorry for her pain. I’ll look forward to bringing her to the notice of society. My friendship with her will go a long way in securing her a gentleman of esteem.”
Her kindness had an ache rising inside. “Thank you. You befriending my sister is more than I would ask. You may not like her.”
Georgiana grinned. “I am sure we’ll get along famously. There were several invitations to balls I’ve been ignoring. I will return to town to attend a few events. I’ll see that a few invitations are also secured for your sister.”
He pressed a kiss to her nose. “Thank you.”
“Some of town society can be thoughtless. Is…is she prepared to mingle with the ton?” his duchess asked delicately.
“All my sisters have ballgowns, jewelry, and assorted fripperies to rival a queen. Their dowries are thirty thousand pounds each, along with shares in certain businesses I am invested in.”
She gazed at him in frank astonishment. “Goodness, they are heiresses.”
“They’ve had the best tutors in dancing, Latin, French, and how to walk, talk, and dress like ladies. They have been prepared for years.”
Her eyes searched his face. “You were only waiting for the door to unlock…you were waiting on me.”
“I was, duchess…I was, in more ways than one.”
Her smile became glorious. “We have some time before dawn.”
“About one hour.”