Page 14 of His Scandalous Lessons
“She’s enjoying it,” Anne whispered.
Richard’s cock was hard. How could it not be? Anne was staring at that painting as if she were imagining herself as Psyche — her head thrown back in ecstasy as her winged lover pleasured her. It was one of the most erotic things he had ever seen. He wanted to do that to her. He wanted to see her expression when she came. What would she look like when he plunged inside her? How would she sound?
“Now you see why there would be a scandal.”
As if remembering herself, Anne stepped away from the painting and cleared her throat. “Yes. I can.” She pressed her lips together. “Shall we begin a lesson?”
Christ, he could certainly use the distraction, but what he had planned would not help the issue of his cock. Even so, he wasn’t some green lad just out of the schoolroom. He could control himself.
“Come.” Richard gestured with his fingers. “Let’s start with a dance.”
She wrinkled her nose. “A dance.”
“You do dance, don’t you?” he asked, taking her hand.
“Well, yes, but—”
“In a few days, all the other guests will arrive, and the house party will formally begin with a ball. That is where you will make your impression. Now place your hand on my shoulder.”
She sighed and did as he asked. An unexpected jolt went through him at her touch. Of course, he was used to a woman’s touch, but hers was soft, hesitant. Her gaze was downcast and he found himself wanting to meet her eyes, to see into their depths. To know everything she was thinking in that remarkable mind of hers.
Richard drew her closer. “There. Easy enough.”
“I already know how to dance,” she told him. “And there’s no music.”
“We don’t need music. Watch.” He began to move the steps of a waltz, and she followed, reluctantly at first. She was a fine dancer, light on her feet. Graceful. “Seduction begins here,” he murmured close to her ear. She smelled like roses. He loved it.
“With a dance?” Was that a smile in her voice?Look at me, he thought.Look at me.
“A dance,” he said. “A conversation. A look.” He tightened his hold on her. “A touch. Just enough to leave them wanting more.”
Small things amounted to so much. He could have told her she was something of an expert already. That what she had shared with Richard made him curious enough to imagine her in his bed, his cock inside her, her screaming his name.
“How do I do that?”
Her question drew him from his reverie.Focus, Richard.“Look at me.” He felt her exhale before she raised her eyes to meet his. God, that look. Those beautiful eyes. Brown with flecks of green, deep enough to hold a universe of secrets. She needed someone who could meet them directly. “That’s it.”
Her lashes fluttered as she lowered her eyes once more. “Kendal and my father said men prefer—”
“Men who are like them. Not like me.”
“Very well. Men like you, then. What do men like you prefer?”
“Shall I be honest with you? In frank language?”
“Yes. Always.”
He couldn’t help but press his cheek to hers, the slightest of touches. “I prefer to meet a woman’s gaze directly. When I converse with her, and when I fuck her.” He felt her start. “Have I shocked you?”
Her smile was small, barely there. Somehow, it felt like a victory. He had won it out of her; it had been freely given. He wanted to make her smile more. To—
No, not him. Not him. It would be some other man.
“Not shock,” she told him. “I’m not accustomed to such plain speaking. I like it.” She laughed. “Does that make me scandalous?”
“Yes,” he told her. “But I enjoy a bit of scandal, don’t you?”
Now she met his eyes, and they were bright with laughter. Yes, freedom agreed with this woman. “I’m beginning to think I do.”
