Page 66 of Foolish Bride
She looked in his eyes for a moment before touching a deep scar at the center of his chest. She pressed her lips to it.
A soft moan rumbled in his cheat. “A French spy a mile outside of London.”
Her chest tightened. She had never asked him about his time working for the crown. It was as much her fault as his that she knew nothing of what he’d endured.
He took her hand from the chest wound. “A woman, but long before I met you.”
“You could have been killed.”
“More than once.” He kissed her fingers before releasing her hand.
She trailed her hand along a rough patch of skin above his hip that stretched all the way to his ribs.
“Dragged by a horse after being shot in France. I am not certain who the shooter was.”
She moved around to his back and touched a round puckered mark on his right shoulder blade.
“The bullet that knocked me from the horse. Might have finished me, but the shooter must have been too far away.”
“Michael, why did you let them do this to you?” She touched another long, stretched-out scar across the middle of his back, imagining a whip or long knife that made the mark.
“It is what the enemy does, my love. I didn’t let them, on those days they hurt me, but on most days it was the other way around.”
“Not them.” She swallowed down the tightness clogging her throat. “England. Why did you work for England for so long? Why did you put yourself through all of this pain?”
His laugh was ragged and humorless. He pulled her back around to face him again. “To be honest, I really don’t know anymore.” He touched her face as if she were a fragile flower. “When I was young, I joined the service to escape my father. Later, I stayed away and tried to distinguish myself so that people would look upon Rollins name with more than pity or loathing. As to why I took that last assignment—I wanted one last moment of glory. It was selfish, childish, and I have never regretted anything more in my life. Except for the day that your father came to see me while I was still recovering. I should have held my ground, Elinor. I should have made him honor our contract. Forgive me.”
He cupped her cheek.
Part of her wanted to rail at him for allowing this to happen, and the rest wanted to coddle him until all his pain faded. She turned her head and kissed his palm. “He should have waited to see you. My father’s arrogance since becoming an earl has escalated to the point that he is unbearable. He had no right to confront you before you were well. I forgive you, Michael, but I do not know if I can forgive him.”
His mouth tipped up in a crooked smile. “He was only trying to protect you. Even if his motives were financial, they were still in your best interest. Let this pass, Elinor. Once we are married, none of it will matter.”
She sighed, pushing back the anger she harbored against her father. There would be another time to deal with him. “You are right, though it won’t be that easy. He has a lot to answer for.”
“Do you really want to talk about your father?” He raised his eyebrows.
She looked down at his naked body. His shaft stuck out straight from his hips, only inches away from her center. Her stomach tightened and her core tingled. Still, worry invaded. “No, not really, but Michael, your headaches.”
He looked away from her for a moment before refocusing. “I feel fine. I think perhaps you are a better doctor than all those experts. I should have listened to you.”
Boldly, she slipped the shoulders of her nightgown down. The white cotton shift puddled around her feet. She yearned for his touch. Her breasts ached with want.
He grazed the sensitive peak, following with his mouth. He pulled her nipple into his mouth, giving pleasure with just a touch of pain.
The attention pushed a moan from her lips that transformed into his name. Pleasure shot down her body and culminated between her thighs.
Pulling with his lips, he brought the little bud to a harder peak, and she gripped his head to pull him closer.
Everywhere he touched her sent new sensations through her body.
His hands were on her bottom, and he pulled her hard against him, bringing his cock to the place where she most needed him. His shaft slid between her nether-lips, and the delight made her lose her balance.
Elinor grabbed his shoulders for support as he slid forward and back, again and again, causing the air in her lungs to rush out. She gasped for more.
He walked her backward until she once again leaned against the bed. Then he knelt before her and pressed his tongue between her folds.
On fire, she arched her back. The entire world collapsed into this one moment with only the two of them. She parted for him longing for more.
