Finally, the intermission arrived. His time was up. Turning to Althea, he murmured, “Our last conversation…my reaction…’twas not well done of me.”
Damn me, could I be less coherent?
Her right eyebrow arched.
“Mayhap I could call on you tomorrow? Day or night, your choice,” he said, hoping he’d do better with planning.
Finally, she answered, “Tomorrow, I am at the shop. Mayhap the day after?”
Evan breathed out a sigh of relief and nodded. He rose and sped out of the box, mumbling about seeing to refreshments. He sent a waiter in with champagne, returning only as the bell rang to signal the end of the recess.
Beth’s and Ford’s heads were together, whispering at a furious pace, almost over one another. He shook his head.
“They’ve been like that the whole time.” Althea’s voice was soft, tentative, next to him. She held out a champagne flute as though it was a peace offering.
He arched a brow and nodded his thanks, taking it to sip.
“Evan, I—”
“Oh, look, the curtain.” Nervous, not ready to dive into their last conversation in whispers in a dark theatre, he turned and focused on the stage.
The play reopened, but the couple in front of them did not notice.
Instead, Ford hauled Beth onto his lap, her back to his front, so they could both still watch the performance. Beth’s skirts rustled, and she gasped.
Evan squirmed in his seat.
Ugh. If he is intimate with her right in front of me, when he knows Althea and I had a falling out, I may kill him immediately after dispatching Michael.
His cock ignored his frustration, remaining focused on the woman beside him and the couple in front of them. Her enjoyment of watching others in intimate acts at the demi-monde party flooded his thoughts, inflaming his lust further. He squirmed again as his dress breeches grew uncomfortably tight. He slid a sidelong glance at her.
She too focused on the couple in front of them rather than the stage. Her breath gusted through parted lips, her tongue darting out to lick them. Her hands fisted in her skirt as her gaze darted to his lap where his shaft lay thick and obvious along his thigh.
It twitched under her regard, and it was all he could do to hold still and pretend oblivion.
Her back arched a few degrees, and he wanted to feel the pert tips of her breasts against his palms or flattened between his finger and thumb.
He groaned low, but she heard and turned to him, eyes wide.
And said the most shocking thing he’d heard from her. “I dare you.”
****
Althea’s dare fell between them as she continued to stare at Evan. Her temerity shocked her as much as his expression reflected.
She had not been prepared for him to walk into the box in his signature colors of bronze and gold. She wanted to be mad at Penelope, but lud, he looked and smelled delectable.
She sat next to him for the first act, looking blindly at the stage while fully aware of every play of muscle in his arm, the tensile strength of his thigh, the long nimble fingers that brought her so much pleasure so facilely. The scents of sandalwood and ginger from his preference in shampoo, combined with an underlying hint of starch and…Evan.
When Ford dragged her cousin onto his lap, she was lost. Her secret delight combined with the sexiest man alive next to her—who knew her predilection to watch—heated her body from head to toe. Glimpsing the iron rod of his cock fanned the flames. At his moan, her question of how to use Beth’s advice became clear. He’d just given her the perfect opening. She waited for his response.
He narrowed his eyes at her for a long moment before leaning forward and grasping the hem of her skirt and petticoat.
“Eyes on them.” His voice guttural, he dragged the fabric upward to expose her legs. “Imagine what they’re doing in that chair. Imagine what they could be doing without clothes in the way.” He tilted his head to Ford and Beth.
As she watched their heads next to each other, Ford’s tilted to put his lips to Beth’s—ear? neck?—she decided on the spot just under the ear. Evan lifted her leg and tucked it over his, spreading her open.
She dared to reach over and palm his erection. His free hand covered hers to squeeze it against his length and hold it still. She knew from past experience that meant he liked it so much he needed a moment for control, and she reveled.
