He stilled, looking back at her mouth. It was a fleeting glance, as if he caught himself and looked away as soon as he could. “If I was? I am not.”
“Yes, I know, but look at it as an exercise in theater. If youwerea rake, might you be so forward as to state your desires?”
There was a pause and a light breeze passed through the gardens, forcing Charlotte to wrap her arms around herself for warmth. William couldn’t help but laugh. He rubbed a palm against his forehead. “Alright. For the sake of theater, yes?”
“Yes, the theatric arts are dying, Lord Holdford.” She was only half telling the truth. The last time she had gone to the theater was particularly grueling, but that may have had more to do with her seatmate breathing heavily through his mouth the entire time and not any fault of the actors themselves.
“If I am on stage? On stage I am attracted to you,” he said.
“Oh dear, now that is very interesting.” She held a hand over her lips for a moment. “You see, on stage, I am attracted to you too.”
“But that is where it ends?”
“Oh yes. I couldn’t imagine you being any more than a thrill.”
William cleared his throat and stood up. “Ah, but alas, we are not on stage, so we must never act upon it.”
Charlotte couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. She wasn’t one for marriage, but she would still find her blood ran just as red as anyone else’s. “How presumptuous of you, to think I even considered it.” She was starting to think that she might actually contemplate the theater with how effortless it was to lie to men.
“I apologize,” William said. “Do you believe I had considered it?”
Charlotte stood up, turning to him, to match his closed off stance with her own. “Men are not capable of much less, I am afraid.”
“There you go!” he shouted. “You are always making generalizations. Do I look, act, think, breathe, like anyone else you have ever met?”
Charlotte wanted to draw back once she stirred his ire, but she stayed firmly in place, posturing to look more commanding than she was. “How should I think you to be any different? Have I missed something that sets you apart?”
He opened his mouth to respond, but no noise came out. He simply stared back at her, dumbfounded by her reply. She did not miss him accidentally looking at her mouth again. That was right. He was just like the rest. He wanted one taste of her, and then he’d discard her with the remains of his last feast. It seemed after all of their conversation, he couldn’t get her out of his head. That might have made Charlotte feel good, if not for the fact that she wanted him just as desperately.
The voices of two or three men startled them into quiet. By the sounds of it, they were just around the corner and none the wiser of who they were about to run into. William reached out, grabbing ahold of Charlotte, and pulled her towards him in the shadow of the alcove. She whimpered and he pressed his hand against her mouth to quiet her. They stilled and so did the sounds of the other party.
“Did you hear that?” One of the men said.
“Might be a cat?”
“Do you suppose it is hurt?”
“I am not sure. Can you see it?” Rustling followed their voices as if they were looking into the shrubbery and flowers.
Charlotte’s heart hammered away in her chest, so loud that she feared they might hear her. She thought she wasn’t afraid of being found, but now all she could think of was the reputations of her family if she were caught in such a way. The fact that they had shared an improper conversation made it all the more inappropriate. If people called her a lightskirt, then maybe she was one, after all.
“Shh,” William whispered, his warmth permeating his fingers and warming her lips. His scent was intoxicating, like sandalwood and lavender. Just that was enough to get her lost for days in thoughts of him. He was a troublesome man, but his countenance could certainly make up for all of that if he didn’t speak.
The men shuffled around more, their voices getting closer. Charlotte’s heart nearly jumped out from her chest when they passed by the hedge corridor, However, due to their spot in the shadows, they remained hidden and before long, the voices faded.
William removed his hand from her mouth, steadying her body against his. They were still pressed up close against one another, the heat from each other’s body warming them through the early April chill. In the space between their mouths, the air fogged up, a visual representation of just how hard they were breathing now that they had crossed a line of physical touch that they were never meant to.
Now it was Charlotte who was admiring his lips. He had given her the idea and it was starting to sound like a tempting one. She exhaled, melting against him. He leaned towards her. In the most hesitant of ways, his nose brushed against hers. She parted her lips, and together they moved, as if wanting nothing more than to meet, but realizing with every part of their minds that they shouldn’t.
While they hesitated, their hands moved, roving over the other’s body. Exploring his muscles and the curve of his waist, the rigidness of his hips and the strength in his shoulders was thrilling. Charlotte bit her lip, feeling frustrated. She wanted him in a way that she wasn’t supposed to. She wanted him in a way that was strictly forbidden and yet that only made her more hungry.
The pull was too much. Once William’s lips met with hers, their kiss was intense, pulling every last bit of reservation under the surface and drowning it. His lips were hungry, his tongue searching, his hands pulling at her shoulders as if he couldn’t get her close enough. She ran her hands down his chest, wishing that she could rip apart the fabric and take what she could before she was forced to move on.
His lips were soft, yet strong at the same time. Guiding her, drinking her in like she was sugar water. She pushed up against him, until he was leaning on the not-so-sturdy branch of the topiary. His hands ran down her back-across the valley in between her shoulder blades, over her spine, across the small of her back before stopping. She wouldn’t have objected if he had gone further, but she had surely made it sound as if she would.
She shivered, whispering his name back into his mouth. She dragged her fingernails down the back of his neck, causing him to lean back and exhale softly. She pressed her lips once more to his and thrilled in the taste of his mouth. It was impossible to describe, as indelible as the scent of someone. She stilled, savoring in the moment while he continued to kiss her lips and jaw. She gasped, closing her eyes, parting her lips, and savoring the moment as if it was only designed to end.
He pulled away, hesitantly. Their eyes were closed, both afraid to look at the other. Their hands released each other and drew back, almost in a gesture of surrender. They both knew what they had done was wrong, but it had felt impossible to avoid. Coming to, Charlotte stepped back, nearly tripping over the concrete bench and falling into the topiary on the other side. She caught herself before hiking up her skirts. She looked back at William sheepishly and he appeared to take a deep breath.