Page 79 of Texas Glory
Immediately the door opened a crack, and he wondered if she’d been waiting for him on the other side. She peered out, her brown eyes large, her smile tremulous. Then she opened the door wider and stepped back.
He walked into the room. Her lavender fragrance permeated the air, along with the lingering scent of her bath.
She clicked the door closed, and his mouth went dry. Sweet Lord, he hadn’t been this nervous when he had visited a whorehouse for the first time, not really certain what to expect.
And he realized with sudden clarity that he had no idea what to expect tonight. He only knew that he wanted to give to her as much as he had to give, wanted to ease the way for her, wanted to keep the fear out of her eyes.
He turned and looked at her. She was wearing the white gown she’d been wearing that first night. Every tiny button was captured snugly within its corresponding loop, clear up to her throat where the lace rested beneath her chin. Why did he find that bit of innocence more alluring than any half-clothed woman he’d known in his youth?
He held up the bottle and glasses. “I brought some wine. I thought it might help you relax.”
She smiled timidly. “I’m incredibly nervous.”
“Yeah, me, too.”
Her eyes widened in awe. “Are you?”
He nodded and walked to the dresser, setting his offering down before the bottle and glasses slipped from his sweating hands. He wiped his palms on his trousers and pulled the cork. Then he filled each glass halfway.
He picked up the glasses, turned, and handed one to her. He clinked his glass against hers. “To our son.”
Her cheeks turned a lovely hue of crimson, reminding him of the sunset. Staring at his chest, she touched the glass to her lips and took a small sip. She released a tiny gasp and lowered her gaze to his bare feet.
“Dee, look at me.”
She lifted her eyes to his. “I’m sorry. I forgot this is business.”
He took the glass from her hand and set their glasses on the dresser.
“It’s hardly business.” Threading his fingers through the black hair she had brushed to a velvety sheen, he braced the heel of his palms on either side of her face and lowered his mouth to hers.
He skimmed his tongue over her lips. So soft. He tasted the wine that lingered and felt the tiny quivering of her mouth beneath his, wondering if she could feel the tremors racing through him. Like a cowboy with a trick rope, he swirled his tongue over hers in a figure eight.
She took a step nearer, her gown brushing against his chest. An unexpected pleasure shot through him with a gesture that coming from her was as bold as brass.
He angled her head, running his tongue along the seam of her lips, teasing her mouth until it parted slightly. The he plunged his tongue into the welcoming abyss of warmth and flavor unique to her.
He felt her hands moving between them. He continued to plunder her mouth, waiting for the moment when her hands would touch him, his breath locked in his chest, his body straining for her touch.
But all he felt was the strange knotting and unknotting of her hands.
He drew away from the kiss and glanced down. Raised above her knees, her gown was bunched in her fists.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
Confusion plunged into her eyes. “Boyd told me I was supposed to lift my nightgown for you. I … I wanted to do this right.”
He slammed his eyes closed and hurled silent curses at her brother.
“I’ve made you angry,” she said quietly.
Opening his eyes, he brushed his knuckles along her reddened cheeks. “No, you haven’t made me angry, but your brother is a fool. I want you to forget everything he ever told you.”
Reaching down, he pulled her gown free of her clutched fingers, watched as the white linen fell back toward her bare ankles, and wished he were a man of tender words.
He lifted his gaze to hers and could see that she was fighting the fear lurking in the corner of her heart. He cupped her face in hands that were too rough for her smooth skin. “Dee, when a man and woman come together … there is no right, no wrong. It’s simply a matter of doing what each of us is comfortable with.” He stroked his thumbs beneath her chin. “If I do something you don’t like, all you have to do is tell me and I’ll stop.”
“And if you do something I like?”
