“I’ll return you to your party, then,” he said graciously.
“No thank you.” She went to move past him in the small cloakroom.
“It’s my duty,” he said simply.
Sophie stopped. “I see. You kiss an unwilling woma
n and flirt when it isn’t wanted. Now you are the perfect gentleman escorting me back to my family because it’s your duty?”
“You were unwilling, mademoiselle?” He smiled.
“Of course,” Sophie assured him.
“So if you suspected I was going to kiss you now, what then?” He advanced upon her, backing her up against the cloakroom wall.
“I would say, ‘No thank you, you don’t interest me.’” Sophie’s heart was pounding.
“I don’t interest you?” Sebastian asked, his brown eyes so dark in the low light.
“Not in the least.” Sophie’s hazel eyes seemed almost green.
“Indeed?”
“I know this may shock you, Monsieur Fairfax, but I have no interest in being one of your Devil’s notches,” she returned.
He knew she spoke of the nickname, Dorset’s Devils, which the scandal sheets had given to him and his friends after the duke’s notorious and flagrant associations became known.
“Notches, mademoiselle?” Sebastian asked innocently.
“Yes, notches, monsieur.” Sophie swallowed lightly as she felt the wall behind her.
“What is a notch?” he asked again.
“You know very well.”
He had her pinned against the wall. “Notches…” he asked her, his head dipping to touch her ear and his hands framed either side of her head, “…as in a sexual conquest?”
Sophie felt her heart pounding as she pressed her hands against his chest to separate them. “I know about you. I know about your friends and your liaisons. If you think to add me to them, you’re sadly mistaken.”
“You think I want to add you to my…?” he asked, letting the question hang there.
“Liaisons,” she finished for him.
There was a beat of silence and then he said, “I do.”
With that his mouth dipped to find hers and found the taste of champagne and innocence on her lush lips. He almost groaned. She was sweet and lovely and he wanted to kiss her breasts and pull her into him.
Sophie had known this was going to happen. The minute she had come upon him she should have turned the other way. She would never be alone with him again. But as his mouth touched hers and his dangerous tongue met hers, it was too much. She wanted to pull her arms around his neck and at the same time, she wanted to scratch his eyes out.
She felt herself warm and wet between her legs and wanted him to pull her to him and do everything that wasn’t allowed. It was maddening. She knew this wasn’t right. She knew she should stop him. She wanted to stop him but didn’t.
Sebastian could feel himself harden with desire. It was as if she had lit a flame inside him and only she would do. He didn’t want any other woman. Only this auburn haired beauty—this little witch—would do.
She pushed away from him but he lightly pulled her arm back to him. “Sophie.”
“I don’t want you. I don’t like you,” she told him as she brushed her fingers across her lips to remove any trace of him. Her face was flushed and her lips were bruised.
“Don’t pretend there’s nothing between us.”