Her gaze flew back to his face. „Afterward?“ Her voice
sounded strange, breathless. The excitement was blossoming,
growing. Her breasts were lifting and falling with the
shallowness of her breathing, her sensitive nipples rubbing
against the soft velvet of her bodice.
„I’m not such a fool that I don’t realize what’s of first
importance to both of us.“ His voice was thick. „Just as you
do. Do you think I don’t know what you’re trying to do to me?
You wanted me angry enough to take you without your
consent so that you could have your pleasure and still nurture
your resentment.“ He slowly shook his head. „No, Silver,
you’re going to have to admit that you want me as much as I
want you, that you can’t even wait until we get back to the
Rose for me to take you, that you want me here and now.“
„Here?“ She could feel her eyes widen and the color rise to
her cheeks.
„Why not? We have a good forty-minute ride until we get
to the levee, and I’ve done without you for almost two weeks.
I have no intention of waiting any longer. Merde, I almost took
you on the pallet in that damn circus tent.“
„I have no intention of giving you anything you want.“
„Because you’re angry with me for taking you away from
your friends? But you won’t be giving me what I want, you’ll
be taking what you want. Do you think I don’t know you by
now?“ He suddenly leaned forward and he began swiftly
undoing the tiny covered buttons that closed the flame-colored
velvet bodice.
„No, I…“ But he had been too quick and the bodice was
pushed aside to reveal the swollen fullness of her breasts. Then
he was leaning back in his seat again, his gaze hot and intent
upon her. „There. I’ve been watching those pretty breasts
shake and quiver ever since Mikhail started the carriage
moving. I thought at times you’d fall out of that little jacket,
but unfortunately you never did.“ Then, as she made a motion
to close the jacket, he said sharply, „No, I’m not touching you,
I’m only looking at you. We both know how much you like me
to look at you.“ He leaned forward and took her hands in both
of his. „I like that costume, it appears to be a singularly
convenient garment for our purpose. Tell me, do you have
anything on underneath it?“
She didn’t answer him.
„No?“ He smiled. „How delightful. I’ll have a dressmaker
fashion several for you and you can wear them for me when I
visit you at your house in St. Petersburg.“
„I’m not going to St. Petersburg.“
„Scarlet is a wonderful color for you,“ he said, ignoring her
reply. „Your nipples are just that color after I’ve sucked at
them for a long time. Do you remember how long I did that
the night before you ran away from me? I love your breasts. I
love to look at them. I love to touch them. I love to watch
them swell and ripen as you become excited.“ His gaze never
left her breasts. „As they’re doing now.“
She had no need for him to tell her this. She could feel
herself blossom, tauten under his gaze. The slight jouncing of
the carriage on the cobblestones sent a quiver through every
muscle of her body and pulled at her heavy, sensitive breasts
like a toying hand. Nicholas’s hand.
„Give me your foot.“
A ripple of surprise went through her. „Why?“
He reached into his pocket and drew out a pristine white
handkerchief. „You accused me of getting your feet dusty. I
thought I’d try to make amends.“ His smile held an entrancing
sweetness. „I thought it would please you to see me do so
menial a task.“
She slowly lifted her leg and stretched out her left foot to
rest on his knees. He enfolded it in the handkerchief and ran
the soft fine linen over her sole. A little shiver went through
her. He looked up. „Did I tickle you?“
„No, I’m not ticklish.“
„The other foot.“ He began running the white cloth over
her right foot. „You exaggerated. You’re not very dusty at all.“
His gaze rose to her face as he ran the handkerchief over her
sole with deliberate slowness. „And you may not be ticklish,
but you’re extremely sensitive here. Many women are, you
know.“ He tossed the handkerchief carelessly on the seat
beside him and, holding her ankle in one hand, he ran the tips
of his fingers lightly from her heel to her instep. She
experienced a tingling in her foot that spread up her leg. The
muscles of her calf bunched and then hardened. „You see?“
She attempted to draw her foot away from him, but he
would not release it. His grip tightened on her inkle. „You
have lovely feet. Strong and well shaped.“ His finger rubbed
gently at the curve of her instep. \nother shiver ran through her
and she felt the muscles of her entire leg tauten. A familiar hot
tingle gnited between her thighs.
She suddenly became aware how open and vulner-ible was
her position. The moonlit intimacy of the:arriage, the
nakedness of her breasts, Nicholas’s ;trong hand holding her
ankle captive, and his fingers moving with teasing delicacy , , ,
He would stop and wait until the anticipation built and then
would start again. His whisper-soft touch came gently,
intimately, on her instep.
This time a shudder ran through every muscle of her body.
Where had he learned this skillful, subtle manipulation of a
woman’s body? A flash of resentment came and then was gone
as his fingertips once more moved over her instep and the
muscles of her stomach contracted as if on command. She
moistened her lips with her tongue. „Stop, Nicholas.“
He ceased immediately and set her foot on the seat beside
him. „Certainly.“ Then before she could draw her leg away, he
was kneeling on the floor of the carriage before her between
her thighs, pushing up the filmy scarlet skirt with one hand
and gently shifting her other leg to the side with the other. „I
think it’s time we went on to other pleasures anyway.“ His
head slowly lowered, his gaze on the soft darkness awaiting
him. „And this is very pleasurable for you, remember? That
night you screamed…“
She wanted to scream again as his tongue touched and then
began to stroke her with painstaking slowness. She arched
helplessly toward him, her fingers reaching out blindly to bury
themselves in his golden hair. Searing hunger tore through her
as her head fell back against the cushions of the seat. She
couldn’t get her breath. Heat. Tingling. Clenching.
He lifted his head. „You’re so pretty here.“ He blew gently.
She inhaled sharply as she felt his warm breath exploding
against her pulsating heart. His hands were lifting, his palms
cupping her round buttocks as he slowly lowered his head
again. „It’s not enough. I’m hungry for you. I want to taste
you.“ His mouth opened, enveloped, sucked.
Her lips opened, the tendons of her throat strained, but she
could make no sound. She felt as though she were bathed in
fire. The dizzying tempo of the blood running through her
veins was almost as painful as the intensity of pleasure she
was experiencing.
Nicholas head rose and his hands left her. He fumbled
quickly at the front of his trousers and his manhood burst free
of restriction. He laid his head on her stomach, his breath
coming in harsh rasps. He rubbed his hard cheek against her
flesh, luxuriating in the softness of her. „Silver…“
Then he was suddenly gone, once again sitting across from
her. His fair hair was tousled and his ebony eyes blazed as he