But fear clung to the edges of that love, and her eyes fell shut with her shuddering exhale.
He cupped her chin, lifting her gaze to match his. “You’re afraid.”
“I’m not afraid,” she lied.
“You’ve never backed down from me, but you are now.” He brushed his lips over her cheek, her temple. “What’s frightening you?”
She didn’t answer, instead catching his mouth with hers, nipping at his lower lip before she slanted her lips across his and turned the kiss greedy.
Philip growled low in his throat. “Don’t try to distract me. I need you to talk to me,” he grumbled against her mouth. “Tell me what you want.”
I want you to stay forever. He could promise this, but the only evidence she possessed was his leaving her, forgetting her for eight years. And as much as he’d changed since the night he left, her stubborn pride wouldn’t allow her to give in the final degree. She could enjoy his body, let him enjoy hers, but keep herself safe. He could only hurt the parts of her she allowed him to see.
Lily slid off the counter, her breasts pressing against his chest as she unbuttoned his trousers and slid her hand down the solid length within. Her lips curled into a satisfied smile when he grunted, his cock throbbing in her hand. “I want to make you come. I want you to make me come.”
His Adam’s apple bobbed, but he shook his head even as his hips rocked against her palm. “That’s not what this is, and you know it. I’m not going to make you come and walk away.”
Her chest lurched as though her heart were tossing itself towards him. Or perhaps the foolish organ was making a desperate flight for safety.
She wrapped her free hand around the braces holding up his open trousers and pulled him against her, his turgid cock trapped between their bodies. The ache between her thighs intensified as he kissed her. How quickly she could lose herself in this, in him, in the fire burning so brightly between them.
The door to the china room swung open without warning, and Philip pulled her tight against his chest as Timothy burst in.
“Did you find the bandages yet? James burned—” He cut off with a gulp, and she peered around Philip’s side to see him in the doorway staring, wide-eyed. “Shite, my apologies. You’ve been gone long enough, so I should have guessed—”
“Please go, Timothy,” Philip barked. Lily almost chuckled at the pained restraint in Philip’s tone, and at the fear that flashed over Timothy’s features.
“Of course, yes.” He hesitated. “But James…”
She twisted sufficiently to reach the salve on the counter beside her, capping and tossing it into his hands.
Timothy caught the tin and saluted the pair with a wink. “Shall I assume you’re not returning for a second round of snapdragon?”
“Good assumption,” Philip growled. “Now go.”
Timothy’s laughter echoed behind him as the door snapped shut.
But Philip had it open a moment later, pulling her along as he headed towards the servant stairs. She jogged alongside him,her knees weak beneath her skirts from unrealized desire and a bubbling sensation she recognized asjoy. “Where are we going?”
“To our room.”
To our bedremained unspoken, but it danced in the air between them and sent molten lust surging through her bones as they rushed down the narrow hallways to the back of the house.
He surged up the stairs, only slowing at the landing when she cried out, her legs tangled in her skirts.
“Fuck,” he hissed, grasping her waist and spinning her so her back pressed against the wall. “I can’t wait with you.” He pulled at the fabric around her ankles, lifting and gathering it in his hand. He was kissing her again, with hungry nips and pulls at her lips, and she gave as well as she received, driving her fingers into his hair and holding him close. Scratching his scalp as he rasped his teeth along the tendon between her neck and shoulder.
She felt his choked inhale when he had lifted her skirts high, his hands finding the exposed skin above her stockings.“Christ, wife.” His breath escaped on a moan against her collarbone where he’d pulled the neck of her shirtwaist open. “Where are your drawers?”
“In our room.” Her voice caught on theour.
He must have heard it, because he curled his hands behind her thighs to pull her flush against him and slanted his mouth over hers again. “I won’t make it to our room.”
His arousal pulsed between them, and she shifted, seeking some of the friction she needed, would surely perish without it. “Neither will I.” She scrambled to open the tented fabric of his trousers and released the buttons of his union suit. His cock fell free ofhis undergarments, heavy and long in her hand, and she hesitated. “The last time I touched you like this, you were gone by morning.”
He curled his hand around the nape of her neck, pulled her close as he kissed her soundly. “You know that’s not why I left.”
“I know, but I…” Logic supported his assertion, but her battered heart couldn’t forget years of thinking she’d been inadequate, her lack of experience driving him away.
