Page 39 of Lord Ashley's Beautiful Alibi
“Ashley,” she called, her hand behind his head drawing him near. Then she opened her legs in raw invitation for more. He went, drawn, fool that he was, lost to her spontaneity and pressed between her thighs. She was at the right height to squeeze her legs together and lock him in. But she was too far back along the stone to feel the power of his cock, rigid and full of his delight in her.
He tore his mouth from hers. Breathless, he put his lips to the hollow below her ear. He would absorb her, all of her, insidehim and never have to leave her to others and the uncertainties of their world.
*
“We must stop,”she murmured, though like a besotted girl, she arched her neck to give him greater access. She could not wish him gone—and oh, how she wanted him to stay and give her more of his lips and his arms and the stories of his childhood. Through those brief tales, he had become a boy, a solemn and vital person whom she could trust for the moment, for the task, for her needs.But no more. Not a bit more…
He lingered, his lips on her throat and her shoulder as he seemed to inhale every essence of her. With a small blessing of his open mouth to the hollow of her throat, he drew back.
He took his time, his enchanting eyes examining her. With deft moves, he fluffed the ruffle at her bodice and pulled down her skirts over her knees.
“Thank you,” she said with a true smile, though she breathed rapidly, in no way recovered from his thrall. “We have done a good job of displaying our interest.”
“Have we?” His bass voice was gruff, the question asking a thousand more things than the obvious.
She nodded, hiding her gulp. “Yes, just now, two have come to the doors and left.”
“Polite of them,” he said, and cupped her cheek. “We cannot go in yet.”
“No?” Her mind was too full of him, her question too whimsical.
“You are flushed. And I am not fit to face anyone.” His brows rose by little degrees to reach the black shock of hair that had fallen—with her help, she was sure—over his broad brow.
She giggled.
He rolled his eyes and, hands on his hips, considered the stars.
“How long do you need?” Lured, she glanced down.My, my.She flashed him a wicked pout.
“Hours, if you keep that up! You may not have had lovers, darling, but you’ve learned how to entice a man!”
She smarted, sobered. “I—I didn’t mean…” She waved a hand.
He caught it midair. “I know. What I meant to do was make you laugh more. Not imply that you are loose.”
“Thank you. Again. I am grateful for you. For this agreement we have.”
He lifted her hand to his lips and, turning it up, dropped a kiss into her palm.
That too set her insides gushing with a new, wild need. His affection could become a habit.
“I should go in,” she said with regret.
“Yes.” He straightened a few tendrils of her hair from her temples to hang along her cheeks. “Otherwise, they will say we did more than kiss.”
She slid to her feet. “I am no longer pink?”
“No, my darling. You are simply stunning.” He breathed slowly, deeply, while he seemed to memorize every aspect of her face. He turned to one side and extended his arm. “Go in. Leave me.”
She shook out her skirts, avoiding looking at him, hating to leave him. “We must discuss our plan. You will come to call on me tomorrow, I hope?”
“What time will do?”
Any. Come home with me. Or I will go home with you.“Oh, I don’t know!” She had a hand to her cheek, blushing and confused. How could she want him to linger? To kiss her and… “Ugh! What hour does a lover call?”
“An eager man calls at dawn.”
“Well, that won’t do. If this party drags on, I won’t be home until three.”
