She blinked her eyes open and her gaze collided with his. Never had anyone looked at her with such fervent, focused heat. Such avid intensity.
"I want you to see me touching you, Carolyn." One of his hands skimmed down her torso, over her hip, then down to hook under her thigh. He lifted her leg and set her foot on the padded chair cushion.
An all over blush suffused her at the sight of herself so exposed, but any embarrassment she might have felt evaporated with the first brush of his fingers over her glistening sex.
A long "Oooohhhh" of pleasure escaped her and she arched her back in a silent plea for more.
"You're so beautifully soft," he said to her reflection, one hand lazily playing with her breast, while the fingers of the other slowly caressed her swollen folds. "So wet." He buried his lips against her hair, breathed deep, and gave a low groan. "And you smell so incredibly good. Feel so incredibly good."
She lifted her arms up and back to encircle his neck. "You make me feel so incredibly good," she whispered, darkly fascinated at the wickedly arousing sight of his hands pleasuring her.
He continued his slow but relentless assault on her body, slipping two fingers inside her, slowly pumping while pressing his palm against her sensitive nub of flesh with just enough pressure to make her tremble but not give her the relief her body desperately craved.
Her breathing turned shallow, rapid, and with a groan of desperation she undulated against his hand, seeking, needing, more. Panting, her head lolled against his shoulder. Lost in a fog of need and sensation, her eyes drifted closed.
"Open your eyes, Carolyn. Look at me."
His voice was a low, harsh command, and she did as he bid. His gaze, hot and intense, met hers in the mirror. "Say you want me."
She licked her lips, fought to find her voice. "I do. You know I do."
His fingers touched her just a bit deeper. "Say it."
"I… want you." Dear God, couldn't he tell? Couldn't he tell she was one touch away from wilting?
"I want you, Daniel" he said, his gaze never leaving hers.
"I want you, Daniel," she whispered, feverishly pressing against his hand, seeking relief from this brink of madness where he dangled her.
"Again."
"I want you, Daniel." She slid one hand from around his neck and insinuated it between their bodies to wrap around his erection. "I want you, Daniel. So much. Now. Please."
Dark satisfaction glittered in his eyes. Without a word he slipped his fingers from her and sank to his knees, settling his backside on his heels. He then urged her down with him until she knelt, straddling his thighs. Still facing the mirror, he positioned the head of his erection at her wet opening.
Watching in the mirror, while his hands cupped her breasts, Carolyn sank slowly down, dragging a long groan from both of them.
For several seconds neither moved. All she could do was stare into his eyes in the mirror and absorb the incredible sensation of him pressing deep inside her. Looking at him, and at herself. At them. Together. It was such a moving, stirring, beautiful, and deeply intimate sight her throat swelled.
She rested her hands on top of his where they cupped her breasts. And whispered, "Daniel."
A groan that sounded ripped from his throat echoed in her ears. "Carolyn. My God, Carolyn…" He rolled his hips and she moaned as he surged deeper inside her. She turned her head and their mouths met in a deep, lush, tongue-mating kiss. He stroked inside her with increasingly demanding upward thrusts, each one pushing her closer to a pinnacle of pleasure that remained just tantalizingly out of reach, building a ferocious need in her the likes of which she'd never before experienced.
Breaking off their kiss, with his gaze fastened on hers, he grazed the fingers of one large hand down her torso, over her abdomen and between her thighs. He tormented her exquisitely sensitive nub of flesh, his touch perfect and magical and relentless. Her climax didn't merely throb through her, it attacked her, bombarding her with an intense pleasure that had her crying out. Her fingers raked over his thighs and she drowned in the waves of her release as they washed over her. Her breaths were still coming in rapid puffs when Daniel's body stiffened behind her and through glazed vision she watched his release overtake him, his face taking on a utterly beautiful intensity as she felt his body throb and spill into hers.
"Carolyn."
Her name, sounding like a heartfelt prayer, whispered by her ear. Then he rested his forehead against her temple. His skin glistened in the firelight and his ragged breaths blew over her flushed skin.
She lifted one limp hand and skimmed her fingers through his mussed hair. "Daniel."
Their gazes met in the mirror. A surge of tenderness raced through her, so strong it shook her, and she trembled.
His arms tightened around her. "Carolyn, I-"
His words broke off and he swallowed. Twice. Something that looked like confusion ghosted over his features. Then his expression returned to its normal teasing warmth. "I think that will last me. For a few minutes."
"For a few minutes," she agreed.
"But the night has just begun."
Anticipation shivered through her and she latched onto the sensation. And firmly pushed aside the unexpected and unwanted tenderness that threatened to undo her. She knew very well where tenderness could lead, and that was a path she could not, would not, allow herself to travel down with this man. Tenderness had no place in their temporary affair. And so long as she remembered that, all would be well.
But as her gaze held his in the mirror, she very much feared that she stood in mortal danger of forgetting.
Chapter Nineteen
I found the best way to keep my lover interested was to maintain an air of mystery-to have my little secrets, make certain he knew I had them, but never quite tell him what they were. And, of course, finding clever ways and locations to make love also ensured he didn't grow bored.
Memoirs of a Mistress by An Anonymous Lady
Reclining on a blanket beneath the shade of a century-old willow, with skeins of afternoon sunshine dappling through the breeze ruffled leaves, Daniel closed his eyes and heaved a contented sigh. He'd never before considered what would comprise a perfect day, but today had met-nay, exceeded-any criteria he might have dreamed up.
Earlier, when the first mauve shades of dawn had streaked across the sky, indicating it was time to leave Carolyn's bed, he found it nearly impossible to do so. He didn't care for the thought of not seeing her for even several hours. And after spending such a perfect night with her, wrapped in the private cocoon of her bedchamber, where they'd been free to talk and laugh and make love, he craved more of the same.
Although he told himself he could spend the next night with her, he simply didn't want to wait that long. He wanted to spend the day with her. Talking. Laughing. Walking. Touching. And he wanted all that away from the prying eyes of London society.
He wanted her all to himself.
And so before leaving her bed, he'd invited her to spend the day with him at Meadow Hill, his country estate in Kent, a three hour journey from London. She'd accepted, and they left directly after breakfast with plans to return to London after dinner. And thus had begun the most perfect day he ever could have imagined.
Holding Carolyn as she slept during the carriage ride, snuggled against him, her head nestled on his shoulder, one hand resting on his chest, right over the spot where his heart beat. Arriving at Meadow Hill, where he'd given her a tour of the house, including his bedchamber, as it had been more than an interminable five hours since he'd made love to her. He'd never brought a woman to his country home before, had never considered doing so. But bringing Carolyn had been… right. The instant she stepped into the foyer, she'd filled his home with sunshine, chasing away darkness he hadn't even realized dwelled there. She'd taken the familiar-that which he'd lived with for years-and made everything seem bright and new again.