Page 76 of Temptations of a Wallflower
“The sleeping farmer and the dairymaid.”
He pushed the brim of his hat back with his thumb and raised an eyebrow. “There are rules to this game, I assume.”
“The first rule is that you cannot look up from under your hat.” Gently, she pushed it back down so that his face was once again covered.
“And the second rule?” he asked, slightly muffled.
“Don’t call me by my name,” she answered. “Just ‘lass.’”
“You’ve thought this through,” he said with amusement.
“It’s that wicked imagination of mine. It can take flight from time to time.”
He chuckled. “I think I like the sound of this game.”
“You’ll like it even better if you keep silent. Pretend to go to sleep.”
He affected a snore.
She swatted his leg. “Not like that. Quietly. Don’t move until the time is right.”
“How will I know when the time is right?”
She grinned, though she knew he couldn’t see her. “You’ll know,” she said with confidence.
When his chest rose and fell with slow, even breaths, she stood up. Glancing around, she made sure they were entirely alone and could not be seen. She walked away a few paces, then ambled slowly toward him. Anticipation hummed through her. She couldn’t believe she was about to do this, yet the prospect of trying was far too thrilling to turn back now. She’d planned something along these lines ever since she’d written this morning, her blood high, her desire keen.
“What a long day I’ve had at the dairy,” she saidaloud. “I’m so very tired. I could just lay myself down beneath this tree and sleep. Stop laughing,” she added, giving Jeremy a nudge with her boot.
“Who talks like that?” he asked, snickering.
“Never you mind!” she insisted. “If you don’t want to play, we’ll just stop right now.”
“I’ll play,” he said, raising his hands in surrender.
“No more interruptions,” she commanded.
“I’m silent as the night.” He resumed his “sleeping” position.
She cleared her throat. “This looks like a good place to have a little rest,” she said. “But wait—there’s someone already asleep there. A strapping young farmer.”
Indeed, she could almost envision Jeremy thus, with his lean muscles filling out his shirt and his long, sinewed legs stretched out in front of him.
“He’s not aware of me,” she murmured aloud. “I don’t even know who he is. But . . . I’m curious about him. So very curious. Perhaps no one will notice if I just kneel down here.”
She did as she said, kneeling beside Jeremy’s prone form. “I’ll just have myself a little look,” she said softly. “Never seen a man up close before.”
Jeremy’s chest rose and fell much more quickly now. He must have been getting into the spirit of the game.
“Never touched a man, either,” Sarah continued. “Wonder what he feels like.”
She stroked her hands along his arms, feeling the muscles tensing beneath her touch. Then she glided her hands up his calves, over his knees, along his taut thighs.
“He’s hard all over,” she murmured. With satisfaction, she noticed a growing bulge in his breeches lifting the fabric. “Mm.”
Continuing to stroke and massage his muscles, she allowed herself the pleasure of simply feeling him, the energy and vigor of his young, healthy body. A body that responded to her touch. His legs shifted restlessly, but he didn’t try to reach for her or speak. He continued to feign sleep as she caressed him.
“What’s this here, that’s becoming so thick and long?” she mused. She stroked between his legs and was rewarded with the feel of his hard cock beneath her hand. Though he didn’t speak, he hissed in slightly at her touch. “I like the feel of this. I like it very much. I’d like to look at it, too.”
