Page 89 of An Unwanted Widow for the Duke
Of course not.
She blushed at the thought.
“I understand why you didn’t know what to do with Hector. You are doing wonderfully now, Gerard. That’s what’s important.”
“Thank you, Mina.”
She put her brush down and turned around to face him. To focus on him. His eyes had that telltale sadness that she could not figure out. Some people might simply consider it snobbishness. He was, after all, a wealthy duke. But she had never really thought of him that way.
“We should be talking like this. It’s normal.” She gave him a lopsided smile.
She meant it to be ironic. After all, they had an arrangement, but they were trying to be as kind to each other as possible.
Did she sometimes wish that he’d like her a little more? Yes, she did. But some things could not be forced, and when things happened just so, they could be more satisfying. It was just like this conversation. He came freely, and she was glad.
It was bittersweet.
“You’ve tried your best all your life. I may only know you based on what you show me, but I know you’re a good man, Gerard,” she added.
He rose to stand next to her and took her hand in his own. He looked at it in wonder, almost as if he could not believe it was there. His fingers gripped hers tightly.
“Solitude was my constant savior. Or so I thought,” he said. “Yet, these days, it makes me wonder. Whenever I hear you and Hector laugh, I want to be there, too. I want to find out what is making you so happy, and wish I could revel in it.”
Wilhelmina felt her heart swell.
“Perhaps we both learned things wrong,” she murmured.
His thumb traced her jaw. It was a slow, deliberate path that seemed to carry a question. She savored his touch, closing her eyes.
“Mina.” Her name sounded like a prayer.
She no longer knew who had invited whom first, but the space between them quickly vanished. Their lips met.
This time, it wasn’t a quick, claiming kiss. This was an exploration.
Wilhelmina melted into him, her hands pulling at the lapels of his robe. She liked how the rich velvet felt under her fingers, but she loved the heat of his body more. A strangled sound escaped her lips, and he deepened the kiss.
The taste of his tongue was intoxicating, with just a hint of brandy. She cupped the side of his neck, letting her thumb brush over the stubble on the line of his jaw. His pulse quickened under her touch, sending a thrill through her.
Eventually, he broke the kiss. “I have wanted to do that again for a long time. Every time you smiled. Every time you mentioned his name. I want you to forget everything else with my kiss, but that’s just being foolish.”
“No, that’s not foolish at all,” she whispered, her voice shaking a little.
“I was afraid that I would be frightening. Overwhelming. I can be.”
Her response was to pull him back to her and kiss him fervently. He kissed her back like a man starving, and she responded accordingly. It was hard to admit that she felt this strongly about him. But yes, she did.
His hands moved to the neckline of her nightdress, pulling at the buttons there. He paused, a silent question in his eyes.
She nodded.
Yes.
He undid the top buttons, revealing her breasts. She arched toward him, offering herself. With his eyes on hers, he licked a nipple. Slowly.Teasingly.
She bit her lip and whimpered as the strokes became more urgent. He was chipping away at her self-control bit by bit. Then, he sucked her nipple into his mouth. She bit back a scream.
Gerard was relentless. He released her nipple with a pop and moved to her other breast to give it the same attention, while he kneaded the first one.
