Page 56 of Five Nights with a Rakish Duke
“I do,” he said with a mischievous smile as he dipped the strawberry in melted chocolate. “But I could be the one to feed it to you,” he continued playfully. She bit her lip for a second, coloring those lips even pinker than before.
“Maybe I am full from our lovely dinner?” she teased him as she angled her face away.
“Would you refuse a strawberry and chocolate?” he asked, leaning toward her. She giggled and looked back at him.
The day following the dinner party, they had retired to the sitting room after their dinner, where Penny had clearly not expected what Asher had up his sleeve next. Walker had presented them with the sparkling wine, strawberries, and chocolate before hurrying out of the room. Now, they both sat on the rug in front of the fireplace with the bucket of strawberries between them and their faces lit by the firelight.
“Hmm, perhaps the idea is too tempting,” Penny said, tilting her head to the side a little. Asher smiled and lifted the strawberry dipped in chocolate for her to eat from his fingers. To take a bite, she had to angle her face up toward him, elongating the soft curve of her neck. He was far too distracted in admiring the curve of that neck to notice her reaction to eating the strawberry. “Well, you were right; that was delicious!” she said around the bite of strawberry as she lifted her handkerchief to mop away some specks of chocolate from her lips.
“I know a few things of how to make a lady smile,” he said, picking up a second strawberry and dipping it in chocolate again. “Chocolate is a certain way to make any lady smile.” She giggled at his words and turned her body more toward him.
They were facing one another with Asher’s legs outstretched and one knee lifted a little. With Penny sitting so close, she was practically in the crook of that knee. She leaned a little more toward him to eat the second strawberry, but he hesitated, holding it out of reach.
“You are tormenting me with chocolate now,” she said mischievously, pretending to frown at him, though the expression did not last long.
“Come closer,” he whispered to her. She rolled her eyes but did as he asked, inching forward until her body was in line with his raised knee.
“Is that close enough?”
“There are many ways I could answer that question.” He kept his voice deep. “I could say you are not as close as I would like you to be, but for eating strawberries, it’s close enough.” He watched as she smiled, her cheeks blushing all the more as he fed the second strawberry to her. She made a sound as she ate it, distracting him completely. It was so like a moan she could make if she were pleasured that his eyes drifted down her body, going from one thing to the next.
“Are you not eating?” she asked as she finished the strawberry.
“I brought them for you to eat, not for me,” he said, reaching toward her.
“Oh! You get enjoyment out of watching me eat them?”
“You would too if you could see the way you arch your neck and make that little moan.”
“Audacious man,” she laughed. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her even closer to him, so that their chests were nearly flushed as they sat together on the rug. “We should not be sitting like this.” Her voice became a whisper, all trace of laughter gone.
“Why not, when we are both happy here?” he asked, turning his head to whisper in her ear.
“Because you are cour…” She trailed off as he settled his lips at the top of her neck. He placed small kisses to her skin, travelling them further south around her collarbone. She gasped, apparently all thoughts of her objection gone from her mind. When he placed a kiss to the part of her chest just above her cleavage, he felt her small hand tighten around his shirt sleeve, the excitement palpable in the air.
Then it was over. She pushed on his arm, urging him back.
“Do you not like to be kissed, Penny?” he asked quietly, looking down at her as she looked up to him, her eyes glacial in the firelight.
“Can’t you tell that I do?” she challenged back with a turn of her head. “Yet, we should not be doing this.”
“Why not?”
“Because…” She seemed to think better of her words as she reached for the bucket of strawberries. “Because we have strawberries to eat, and you cannot have all the fun.”
“Oh, I see; you wish to torment me too?”
“Yes,” she said with delight, dipping one of the strawberries in the chocolate and hovering it near his lips. “Your turn.” He turned to take a bite, but she pulled it away at the last minute. He laughed and reached for it, but she turned it away completely, teasing him by taking a bite herself instead.
“You ate my strawberry!”
“You said you bought them for me,” she shrugged playfully.
“I was quite looking forward to the taste after all.”
“You should have been quicker then.”
“Or I can think of another way to enjoy that taste.” He reached for her waist again, nestling his arm against the crook there and pulling her toward him, finding her lips with his own easily. He could taste strawberries and chocolate, making him yearn for her all the more. He moaned into the kiss, lifting a hand up to her hair and tugging softly on the locks, urging them out of their updo. She responded instantly, her body curving against his until her breasts were pressed into his chest. He longed for her body to be free of her stays and dress, but he would not push her that far.
