Holly’s chest swelled with hope at his implacable tone. How long had it been since she’d felt safe? Truly safe? ‘Thank you...’
He touched her face with a barely there brush stroke of his bent knuckles. His eyes had a tender look that made the base of her spine hum. ‘I can’t imagine how difficult your life must’ve been compared to mine,’ he said. ‘No wonder you came in that first day with your fists up.’
‘Yeah, well, sorry about that, but I like to get in first in case things turn out nasty, which they invariably do,’ she said. ‘Maybe it’s my fault. I attract trouble. I can’t seem to help myself. It’s automatic.’
‘No.’ His hands took hers again in a firm but gentle hold. ‘You shouldn’t blame yourself. Your stepfather sounds like a creep. He belongs in jail, not you.’
Holly looked at their joined hands. Hers were so small compared to his. She slowly brought her gaze up to his. His eyes meshed with hers in a look that made her legs feel fizzy. ‘Why are you looking at me like that?’ she said.
‘How am I looking at you?’ His voice was a deep, resonant rumble.
‘Like you’re going to kiss me.’
He brushed an imaginary strand of hair away from her face. ‘What gives you the idea I’m going to kiss you?’ His mouth was half an inch from hers, his breath a warm, minty breeze against her lips.
‘Just a feeling.’
His lips nudged hers in a playful manner. ‘Do you always trust your feelings?’
Holly slipped her arms around his neck and pressed herself closer. ‘Mostly.’
His mouth brushed hers, once, twice, three times. ‘This is crazy. I shouldn’t be doing this.’
‘This being...?’
He rested his forehead against hers. ‘Tell me to stop.’
‘No.’
‘Tell me, Holly. I need you to tell me.’
‘I want you to kiss me,’ Holly said. ‘I want you to make love to me.’ As soon as she said the words, she realised how much she meant them. How from the moment she’d met him she’d been drawn to him like a moth to a bright streetlight on a hot summer’s night. The desire he triggered in her was unlike anything she’d ever felt before. She wanted him. She ached for him. She burned for him.
He looked at her with darkened eyes, the pupils wide with desire. ‘Why?’
‘Because we’re attracted to each other and we might as well make the most of it.’
One of his hands cupped her face, the other rested in the small of her back. ‘Why me?’
‘Why not you?’ she said. ‘You’re single. I’m single. What’s the problem?’
He was still frowning. ‘Is once going to be enough?’
Holly stroked the side of his jaw. ‘Do you have to think about everything before you act? Don’t you ever just go with the flow?’
He turned her palm towards his mouth and kissed it, all the while holding her gaze. ‘Do you ever stop and think before you act?’
She shivered as his kiss travelled all the way to her core. ‘I’m thinking we should make the most of the fact that Sophia’s away with her sister.’ Is that why he’d sent his housekeeper away? Perhaps it was unconscious on his part but he had cleared the way for them to indulge in an affair without an audience.
He framed her face with his hands, his expression darkly serious. ‘I want you like I’ve never wanted anyone else.’
‘Same.’
His head came down, and his mouth sealed hers in a kiss as hot as a flashpoint. Heat pooled between her legs as his tongue drove through the seam of her mouth to find hers. Lust raced through her blood as he stroked and thrust and cajoled her tongue into play. His body crushed hers to his, every hard contour of his enticing every softer one of hers. Her breasts peaked against his chest, her pelvis thrumming with want as she felt the thickened ridge of him.
His hands moved over her lightly, touching, exploring, discovering. He came to her breasts, lifting her top out of the way so he could access them. He swirled his tongue over and around her nipple, making her ache with longing as his teeth gently nipped and tugged at her flesh.
His hands skimmed down the sides of her body to grasp her hips, holding her tightly against the throb of his need. He made a deep sound at the back of his throat as she moved against him. A sound of approval, of want, of raw, primal lust.
‘Not here,’ he said as he swept her up in his arms and carried her towards his suite.