Page 59 of In the Prince's Bed
It took a supreme effort of will—and an extra circuit of the ring—for him to beat his feverish lust into submission. How was he supposed to think when all he wanted was to strip her bare and take her right here in the ring? That wasnotthe sort of show the crowd had come to see.
Oblivious to his agitation, Katherine brandished the pear she’d been hiding under the cloak. França’s loud voice called out to the crowd, “Mrs. Black tells the captain that she kept the last of the winter pears for him, but now he will get none. She will eat it herself.”
That was Alec’s cue. But as he rode toward her, he noticed the trembling of Katherine’s arm as she swung the pear in the air. She held the fruit with the tips of her fingers. The pear was plenty big enough for his purposes, but judging from how her eyes nervously followed his approach, she didn’t believe that.
Just trust me, sweetheart,he admonished silently as he cantered toward her.
Within seconds, he’d made his first pass, cutting the top half of the pear right off. The crowd applauded loudly.
Katherine was supposed to pantomime outrage, but she only stood frozen as he circled the ring again. Thankfully, the audience thought that was part of the routine and laughed.
But Alec worried about the next part, where she was to lift the other half of the pear to her mouth while he rode up to skewer it with his sword, then canter from the ring with her racing after him on foot.
Though she awaited his second approach gamely, every bit the trouper, her eyes showed her apprehension. Blast. What if she moved as he thrust? At best, she would ruin the routine. At worst, she might move into danger.
He couldn’t risk it. Time for a change of plan.
Chapter Fifteen
Don’t wait until conditions for a seduction are ideal. Seize your chance whenever you can.
—Anonymous,A Rake’s Rhetorick
He knows what he’s doing,Katherine repeated to herself as Alec circled back toward her.He won’t hurt you, he won’t.
Now, if she could just convince her hand. She couldn’t keep it still. The half a pear lookedsosmall. But if she gripped it any closer to the edge, she’d drop it. Probably just as he went to skewer it, and then he’d skewer her hand instead.
She was supposed to lift the pear to her mouth, right?Lift the pear,she ordered her hand.
It ignored her. Apparently, her fingers balked at being chopped off.
Too late—he was here, sword in hand…rising up in the stirrups…coming nearer…nearer…Wait, why was he leaning out like that?
Before she could react, he bent his head to snatch the pear with his mouth.
The crowd clapped, but she just stood there bewildered as he continued the circuit. She watched as he thrust his sword into the sawdust. What should she do? Run after him as they’d originally planned? But he wasn’t leaving the arena, so that would look silly. Of course, this was supposed to be funny…
Then he was approaching her again with the pear half still gripped in his mouth, and next thing she knew, she was soaring aloft, being hoisted into the air onto the front of the extra-deep trick saddle.
She threw her arms about his neck to keep from falling, which sent the crowd into wild applause until Mr. França’s quickly improvised patter broke in. “Will Mrs. Black forgive her wayward husband?” he called out as the audience fell silent to hear him. “Or will she send him packing?”
She and Alec were making another slow circuit of the ring. Eyes alight with mischief, Alec offered her the pear half with his mouth. Compelled forward by the invitation in his hot blue gaze, she bit into the fruit, bringing their lips together in a kiss.
The crowd roared, loving a good romance. She heard them cheering even after Alec exited through the back doors with her in his arms and his mouth pressed to hers around the pear half.
Behind the amphitheatre was a hive of activity as horses lined up and riders put the finishing touches to their costumes, preparing for the big finale, but Katherine hardly noticed as Alec reined in with her still clinging to his neck.
He bit down, breaking the pear in half again, then drew back and chewed his quarter, his eyes smoldering at her as she chewed hers, too, and swallowed. His gaze followed the motion of her throat, then darkened, and before she could even think, his mouth was on hers, kissing her deeply, hotly…thoroughly.
She didn’t care. Her blood still thrummed from the excitement of the ring and the thrill of performing with him. Straining against him, she returned his kiss eagerly, nearly knocking off her mask. She tasted pear juice on his tongue, sweetening their kiss even more as she twined her tongue with his to seek the deepest sweetness.
Heedless of the performers around them, he kissed her as blatantly as a lover, lingering over her mouth, tangling his tongue with hers, making her so dizzy that she—
“Sorry, sir, but we need the horse.”
They broke apart, with Alec looking as dazed as she felt. Then they both glanced down to find a groom tugging on the reins of Alec’s mount.
The groom smirked up at them. “For the finale. We need the horse.”
