Page 33 of Taming of the Rake
“Open for me, Regina … yes, just like that.”
She parted her lips wider, her fingers tightening around his as he pushed his tongue deeper, feeding off the sweet taste of her. The velvety rasp of her tongue meeting him, playing with him, learning how to do it right, made the tension in his groin nearly unbearable. The way she trembled in his hold, the soft sounds she made without realizing it, the subtle arch of her back … all of it tore him to pieces and exacerbated his desperation. If they were in her home instead of his, he’d likely have Regina on her back by now, well on his way to discovering if the rest of her tasted as good as her mouth.
David pulled away before he lost control, and not just because they could be caught by his mother or sisters. He would never allow himself to forget that he couldn’t simply pounce on Regina the way other women paid him to in the past. She required slow and gentle handling, and for him to keep his own desires tightly leashed—at least for the time being.
“How sweet you are,” he murmured, punctuating his statement with one final, short kiss.
Regina whimpered and chased his lips, prompting a chuckle from David. He doubted she realized what she had just done, or how she looked just now—lips swollen and slick, eyelids heavy, cheeks flushed. That stray strand of hair rested against her cheek, a flame-red coil of temptation. He’d never witnessed a more delectable sight in his life.
“I … um … thank you.”
It seemed like the most natural thing in the world to plant another kiss, this one on the tip of her adorable nose. “Don’t thank me yet. There is so much more for me to teach you.”
“Tomorrow night,” she said. “By the time we returned to my home the hour would already be quite late and I have already taken up much of your time this evening. You must be in dire need of dinner and rest.”
David wanted to argue that he was more than up to the task, but his belly and his aching head told him otherwise. A night of respite would better prepare him for her. “Tomorrow night it is.”
Regina’s lips twitched with a small smile. “If that kiss was any indication of what I can expect, consider me already intrigued.”
She collected her hat on the way to the door, and David walked her to her waiting carriage. The driver had lit the lamps, illuminating them in a circle of yellow light.
“Thank you for listening,” she said. “I was terrified to face you, and you somehow made our conversation bearable. I am grateful, David.”
“There is no need to thank me. Remember what I said. It is no more than you deserve.”
She allowed him to hand her up into the vehicle, peering down at him with one of her soft, rare smiles. “Good night. Until tomorrow.”
“Good night.”
David backed away and watched the carriage depart, though he lingered for a long while once it was out of sight. His earlier hunger, exhaustion, and irritation had been forgotten and now there was only anticipation. Tomorrow night couldn’t come fast enough to suit him.
Turning back to the house, David looked forward to a warm meal and his bed. It wasn’t until he made it halfway up the stairs that he realized Regina had come to him without the hulking shadow of Powell looming at her back.
Chapter 8
Regina was certain if she paced much longer she would wear a hole in the rug. Anticipation of David’s arrival made her flinch at every sound, her pulse swift and unsteady. Powell had been instructed to see David to her door, then take himself elsewhere for the night. The footman’s presence was no longer needed, as her courtesan had gone out of his way to prove she had no reason to fear him. Besides, she’d been mortified enough at the things Powell had overheard the last time. If David’s touch between her legs for a few minutes was enough to have her cries echoing from the walls, there was no telling what reaction he might elicit once she gave him permission to do more.
The footman hadn’t been content to leave her alone with David unless she agreed to accept his knife, which he had slid into a tear he created in the side of the mattress. Once Regina had demonstrated that she could quickly retrieve it if need be, Powell had agreed to her request for privacy.
Goose bumps prickled along Regina’s arms as her gaze wandered to her neatly-made bed, and she imagined what might take place there in a few short minutes. Truly, her imagination was sorely lacking, but it was Regina’s hope to see that change by the end of the night.
Clutching at the folds of her nightgown, she took a peek at her reflection in the mirror. In an effort to stop avoiding her reflection, she had given it a more prominent place in the bedchamber. Was her effort at tempting David to desire too gauche? She hoped he would not think her pathetic, but after the weeks he had spent with a cold, rigid version of her, Regina hoped to make amends. Reason told her it shouldn’t matter. She was paying him, and that meant he was required to do as she asked and nothing more. But some secret part of her longed to know what he would think of the way her hair hung loose down her back, a startling splash against the gossamer white gown draping her body. The design of the nightgown was simple enough, but it was the sheer fabric that made it decidedly sinful. The pink shadows of her nipples were visible, as well as the red triangle of curls between her legs. The firelight shined clear through the fabric, outlining the flare of her hips and shape of her legs.
She turned away from the reflection, debating the matter of changing into one of her demurer gowns. This one had been part of her wedding trousseau, though Randolph never laid eyes on it. Nor had he ever seen the other delicate garments meant to entice a husband to lust.
Running a hand over the costly, thin material, Regina smiled. She would keep it on, and perhaps she could wear some of the others on the nights David came to visit. After all, she had stepped into a new phase of her life—one in which she experienced all the things she had been deprived of. Randolph would surely have disapproved of her in the scandalous garment, much as he had detested gowns he claimed had indecently low necklines or skirts that were too thin. But David … perhaps he might find her alluring. Maybe he would even think her beautiful.
Her heart stuttered at the sound of a knock on the door, and she had to take a deep breath before calling out in a high, breathless voice. “Come in.”
Thankfully, Powell didn’t so much as peek into the room, the heavy tread of his departing footsteps indicating that she was completely alone with the man standing on the threshold. For the first time, Regina had lit every lamp and taper in the room, flooding it with golden light. And, oh, how that light loved David. It seemed to arc and strain to reach him, its facets gleaming off the black of his hair and highlighting the classical perfection of his features.
He paused halfway across the room as the light revealed her state of undress. His lips parted on a rushed exhale, fingers twitching at his sides as his gaze traveled over her from head to toe. Regina could not move, or so much as draw a single breath as she waited for him to speak, to act, to dosomethingother than stand there and stare at her.
“My God,” he murmured, his gaze snapping up to tangle with hers. “And here I was under the impression thatIhad come here to seduceyou.”
Her lips split in a smile she was helpless to stifle. “You … like it?”
David started toward her, running a hand over his jaw. “If I liked it anymore, I might not survive it. Consider me thoroughly captivated.”
