Page 35 of His Forbidden Duchess
Chapter Fourteen
Felix placed his hand against her back as he had a few nights previously, and he felt that same frisson of passion rush through his body. It was true that he had lain with many women in his past, but none, not a single one, had excited him as much as Eloise did.
And I have barely even touched her. Yet.
Together, they felt comfortable and natural. It was somehow right that she was in his arms and his alone, and he was pleased that the second set was a dance for two rather than a dance for all.
Eloise leaned into him, arching her back as he had shown her, looking up into his eyes. He returned her gaze, feeling himself falling deeper into her. If he wasn’t careful, his desire would overrule his reason, and he would take her regardless of her thoughts on the subject.
“I did not think you liked dancing at these events,” Eloise said as the music began, one eyebrow cocked quizzically.
“I normally do not,” he replied. “But I thought you might want the opportunity to congratulate your teacher on doing such a great job.”
She offered him a lopsided smile, her lips slightly pouted, and he felt that spark in his chest again. “Is that so?”
“Indeed. Why, it seems you have entirely bewitched Mortcombe with your newfound skills of seduction.”
Felix wanted to lean in and nuzzle his face into her neck, breathe her in, and taste her sensuous flesh.
“Whatever makes you so certain?” she asked.
He nodded over her shoulder, and she glanced in that direction. Mortcombe was dancing with Lady Arabella, but his eyes were rigidly fixed on Eloise.
“A gentleman does not ignore his dance partner quite so openly unless he is yearning for someone else.”
Eloise looked back at Felix, and he felt a flash of excitement. “You think his heart is yearning for me?”
Felix snorted. “I think his body certainly is.”
Eloise scoffed at his words, and Felix grinned devilishly. He found he rather liked it when she openly contradicted him. She was a feisty, determined woman in her own right. While he knew he’d never known her as he had known other women, he hoped he could convince her to give herself up to him willingly. It was that thought which excited him most of all.
The music continued as they turned around the floor together. Though she remained a few respectable inches apart from him, he could feel her body heat rolling off her and filling him. He could smell her lavender perfume and beneath that, something deliciously feminine.
His hand brushed against her body as they moved, and he felt a shiver race up his spine. Their eyes remained locked. Desire burned through his loins and, suddenly, also his heart.
The steps pulled them apart then together again, closer this time and he knew that he needed more. With the low growl of a man who knew he would get what he wanted, he pulled her into him until it was all but inappropriate. He smirked again.
“You are not as stiff as you were the other night, Eloise. Tell me, did you explore yourself as I had instructed?”
Eloise flushed and looked away, and Felix knew she had. The thought of her pleasuring herself set his heart beating and his loins stirring. How he wished he had witnessed her fingers working over her sex until she threw her head back in sheer ecstasy.
I will see it one day.
When she looked up at him, she wore a more composed expression, as though she was determined not to give in to his intrusive question.
“Well?”
“I have merely practiced being present in my body rather than my mind as you suggested,” she said.
He chuckled, knowing it for the lie that it was. “You are bolder than I ever gave you credit for, Eloise, though I should not be surprised. I suspect there are many sides to you that I have yet to see.”
“You do talk nonsense sometimes, Felix,” Eloise replied firmly and looked away from him again, her eyes focused on the wall over his shoulder rather than his face.
But he could tell from the glint in her eyes that she had enjoyed the moment. He had been with enough women to know when one wanted him, and the fact that Eloise was resisting her own hunger made him all the more determined to feed it.
“You know, you have learned so much in the previous weeks. I do not believe you need Mortcombe. Why, you could catch any gentleman’s attention if you continue as you have.”
Eloise looked at him sharply though her face lit up with hope and expectation. Felix’s eyes roved across her features, committing them to memory.
