Chapter Twelve
What the devil had possessed her? A thrill skittered through Theodosia, terrifying and exhilarating.I am kissing Sebastian.If she fell for this man, when their journey ended, as it inevitably would, her heart would shatter. Theo sensed it with every part of her being. Yet she did not pull away from the devastating pleasure of being in his arms, of being kissed senseless. No, she pressed even closer to him, taunting him to kiss her deeper with small glides of her tongue, and little nips against his lips when they broke apart.
Theo stepped back from the precipice of recklessness she’d just hurled herself toward. Or she tried to. The duke’s hands were clamped firmly on her hips, holding her close to his body. His eyes glittered in the dark, and the half-moon casted his face in shadows of harsh, almost frightening carnality. His breathing was harsh, and Theo could feel the tension inside his body. “I…I do not know why I did that,” she murmured against his mouth.
“Liar,” he said, just a softly and even a bit affectionately. “You have been wanting to kiss me again since we last tested our curiosity. I know for the taste of you has been stamped into my very bones.”
The words burned themselves inside her. It felt good being with the duke. He made her feel alive. A startling notion for whatever connection they had would not last beyond finding Perdie. Alive…a very odd awareness to be sure, but it was only now Theo realized how many desires she had suppressed. Now they slowly stirred, leaping to life with mere conversations, a fleeting touch, a longing look.
He did a lot of that—gazing at her. She found it somewhat disconcerting but also wonderful because that intent stare made her feel beautiful.I must not fall in love with you…that way I’ll be able to bear it when we part, and all this will be a wonderful memory.It was unimaginable to have this awareness darting through her, so much so she willingly danced close to the duke’s fire.
“Admit it,” he coaxed, still holding her scandalously close to his body.
“Yes, when you kissed me I hated that a few hours later I lost the taste of you.” It was a mere murmur of sound from her lips, but he had faltered into remarkable stillness. But not his heart, that beat a furious rhythm against her body.
“I kissed you now because I wanted to remove the shadows from your eyes and replace it with something else. I did not want you to go into the night and the waters with torment and doubt chasing you.”
“So, you wanted to replace my worry with a hunger that fucking torments me?”
She jerked at the sensual crudity, quite aware of the blush engulfing her body. “Is it not a better torment?”
“One will not do.”
Her heart started to beat faster, and though she knew what he implied, Theo still asked, “One will not do?”
He dragged her up his body, almost violently, and with a gasped she clasped his shoulders. The sensation that she’d roused a sleeping tiger invaded her senses. She drew a silent breath and held it for a few moments before releasing it slowly.
“One taste of you willnotdo,” he said against the corner of her mouth.
A startling warmth invaded her, and shock sent prickles all over her body. A swell of yearning went through her heart and Theo feared it was reflected in her gaze as she stared up at him. The harsh sensuality of his features softened, yet somehow became more carnal…more tempting. A terrible weak-kneed feeling assailed Theo.
“Open for me,” he said.
Theo gave Sebastian her mouth and he consumed her. With a muffled moan of pleasure, she rose onto the tip of her toes, sinking the front of her boots deep into the wet pebbles, to twine her arms around his neck, returning his kiss with fiery passion. Heat spiraled through Theo with each tangle of their tongues, with each wordless murmur and impatient yet desperately needy sighs. His mouth teased, but it also ravished, leaving her mouth bruised. He promised such pleasure, but she sensed should they ever make love, he would not always be a tender lover.
An answering hunger rose inside her when he cupped her buttocks and dragged her even further up, so she felt the proof of his arousal. The waves crashed around them, and she distantly felt the cold water lapping at her half boots and dress. As the sensations almost overwhelmed her, Sebastian’s mouth grew gentle, his kisses turning coaxing and seductive, drawing Theo deeper into a world of feeling and need.
Their kiss broke, and she made a soft sound of protest at the loss of his lips against her. The cool breeze rushing over the surface of the sea to violently whip at her dress, brought Theo firmly to her senses. She stepped back, though it was so very hard to do being engulfed by such want. Theo touched the corner of his mouth, absurdly pleased to see his lips were also swollen. “Dream a little of…me tonight and worry less.”
Then she turned and walked away, shatteringly aware of his piercing gaze upon her back.
I dared a little…and God help me, but I want to dare so much more.
* * *
After travellingfor two days with little rest in between, Theo and the Duke arrived in Dunston, a small, picturesque village nestled in the southern part of Kent. They canted through the village square and were treated to openly curious stares by the villagers.
They dismounted, leading their horses by the reins. Several people recognized him and offered greetings which he returned. He even exchanged a few words with the vicar’s wife—Mrs. Bryant, who had appeared fit to burst at the seams from that delight. He also spoke briefly with the squire’s wife—Mrs. Adams, a vision of fashionable elegance who was traveling with two maids who assisted her in handing out food baskets to some of the villagers. Almost everyone ogled Theo, and Sebastian introduced her to Mrs. Bryant and Mrs. Adams as a friend. Even being a widow, it was dreadfully improper travelling alone with the duke like this. And perhaps it was for that very reason, Theo found herself enjoying being with him, even with the gravity of the matter before them, and the judgmental manner in which the squire wife had stared.
“Elise has missed you quite dreadfully, Your Grace,” Mrs. Adams said, smiling prettily up at the duke.
Theo was glad for the veil which covered her face, for she glared at the lady and the way she swayed toward the duke, delicately resting her hand on his arm. Jealousy spurred through Theo, and she sucked in a soft breath, before she grinned. How ridiculous she was!
“I have missed Elise as well. I do hope she will call upon me soon.”
Mrs. Adams beamed at the duke as if he had just handed her a chest of rubies. A loud bark sounded, and a large shaggy dog loped across the lawns in great leaps and set its front paws up against his legs.
“Horatio,” the duke said, laughing as he stooped to scratch behind the dog’s ears. “How I’ve missed you.”