How baffled and frustrated he sounded.
“I bet you say that to all the ladies,” she whispered, leaning toward him.
“Only the ones I want to seduce.”
As his words hit her, Cressida gasped and pinched the underside of his arm. An ineffectual punishment, for the man was pure muscle.
The rogue laughed, the sound husky and warm. “Vengeful wench, I tease you. Only you have ever inspired this madness inside of me.”
Before she could retort, his mouth caught against hers in a kiss that sent Cressida’s senses spinning. His tongue stroked over hers, and a disgracefully erotic beat thumped between her thighs. The shock of that aching sensation pushed a whimper from her throat, and Nicholas swallowed the sound. He took in all of the sounds that came from her in moans and gasps whenever she broke their kiss to suck air into her lungs. He did not allow her much of a breathing break, and he kissed her again, walking her backward until the back of her knees hit the chaise. He bore her down and as cool air wafted over her shoulders, Cress dazedly realized the blanket had fallen from her shoulders onto the cushions. The material of his shirt brushed against her breasts. The prickly sensation made her hot and restless, and she pressed closer to him. This time it was Nicholas who groaned. She swallowed the sound, drinking down his lust. Cressida could actually feel his hunger deep inside her body, an echo of her own awakening desire. The intensity felt frightening but also thrilling.
“By God, you are beautiful,” he breathed, after pulling his lips from hers. “Do not move, Cressida.”
He dashed from her and went back to his canvas. Their gazes collided, and he dipped his brush into the paint and stared at her, an energized air about him as he tried to capture whatever he saw in her face. A smile bloomed on her mouth to witness his joy and passion in painting her. Whatever self-consciousness had lingered over being naked before Nicholas vanished as she became swept up in his invisible energy.
Several minutes later, he set down his paintbrush with a sigh of pleasure. It whispered in the air and washed over her.
“I am done for the night. Thank you, Cressida, for your patience.”
She pushed to her feet, grabbing the robe from the floor, and slipped it on. Cressida padded over to the canvas and peered at what he had done so far.Oh!Astonished, she stared at her face, awed by the hint of mischief revealed in that half smile, the provoking sensuality in her green eyes flecked with gold. He had not finished her face but had moved on to the arch in her neck, the slope of her breasts and the shadows leading down to her navel.
“You’ve rendered me far more beautiful than I am.”
“I only capture what I see. Nothing more or less.”
Cressida was painfully aware of Nicholas beside her, staring at her as she stared at the painting.
And this is how you see me…so beautiful and daring?An unexpected lump of emotion swelled in her throat. “It is beautiful,” she whispered, reaching out. “Your talent is breathtaking.”
“Be careful, the canvas is wet.”
She lowered her hands and shifted to face him. “Your talent is incredible. That…it looks like me yet not like me. It is sovibrantand…I do not know how to explain it, but the expression in my eyes makes my heart twist and ache, Nicholas.”
He tucked a wisp of hair behind her ear. “You are an incredible subject.”
There was a moment of silence, and then he smiled. An undefinable feeling stirred inside her chest. “I should go.”
“If you like, we could play a round of chess. Do you play?”
“I…yes.”
His eyes crinkled at the corner. “Do you want to?”
“Perhaps another night. I only had a few hours from the ball I sneaked away from. My sister’s carriage should already be awaiting me, I’m afraid.”
He dragged his thumb across her lips, as if testing their fullness. “We are going to be lovers, you and me.”
Oh, God.Her knees weakened terribly.
“But not tonight,” he murmured. “I want hours to linger over you.”
Cressida stared at him, a frightfully intense heat flushing through her. She wanted to be his lover, she realized with a jolt. And not because she wanted to be ruined, simply because she wanted his kiss and the swirl of sensations he evoked within her body. Would another gentleman ever make her feel such wanton cravings again?
A sigh of pleasure whispered from her when he dipped and kissed her forehead. When he straightened, she could tell that his own actions surprised him.
A smile bloomed on her mouth. “Sleep well, Nicholas.”
“Rubbish,” he said tenderly. “I will be tormented by dreams of you. I wish the same delightful hell upon you.”