Just for that, he closed the remaining distance between their bodies, cupped the back of her head, and yanked her hips flush with his using the hard band of his other arm around her trim waist. In response, Alaina slung her arms around his neck, simultaneously raising herself and pulling him down to meet her.
“Do you want me to stop?” he teased against her lips.
“No,” she breathed. “No.”
Sterling dragged his lips down her jaw, taking advantage to nibble the underside when her head fell back. He pressed hot, open-mouthed kisses to her throat and then licked his way back up to the delicate shell of her ear. He nearly groaned when she shivered as he nipped the lobe and then soothed it with a kiss.
“How about now?” he growled.
She shook her head and found his lips again, devouring him with deep, hungry kisses that set Sterling’s blood on fire as if he’d been nothing but a bundle of dry powder until Alaina had come and dropped the spark. He swore he could feel every vein and artery in his body firing with that volatile heat.
As if with a mind of their own, his hands slid lower to squeeze appreciatively the perfect mounds of her bottom and then fist in the shimmering fabric of her gown. He flexed his hips and rocked the thick, hard ridge of his arousal against her softness. He was rewarded by her pressing back into him. She didn’t retreat—if anything, her body seemed to reach for his and beg for more.
Sliding his knee between hers, Sterling pulled her up and over his leg so she straddled him. He nearly came just from the heat of her sex through the layers of their clothing. Trapping her between his body and the balustrade, she had no choice but to allow him to grip her bottom and drag her across his thigh in long, slow strokes. He slowed the pace of his kisses to match the languid teasing of her cleft. He knew he found the proper pace and pressure when Alaina’s nails dug into his scalp, and she began to gasp and shudder.
“And now?” he asked wickedly.
“Don’t…you…dare…” Alaina whimpered, clutching his head and his shoulders as if he were the only thing keeping her tethered to the world.
The pounding of Sterling’s heart was deafening in his own ears as Alaina found the right angle and rode him. He wanted to bury himself deep inside her. He wanted to feel her body wrapped around his, to know how she felt with every drag and pull of their flesh. He had waited his whole life for Alaina, and it was killing not to lift her skirts and take her right then and there, but he knew she deserved better. His wife deserved better. Besides, he wasn’t sure he wouldn’t embarrass himself and finish instantly if she allowed him to take her fast and hard in a dark corner with others lurking not all that far away.
He’d add that to his mental list of all the ways he wanted Alaina, but it was not for them this time.
“That’s it,” he hissed through gritted teeth, trying with everything inside of him to hold onto the tattered remains of his sanity. “This is only a hint of what I could make you feel, Alaina. I want to explore together. I want to touch you everywhere, to learn your taste, to give you nothing but pleasure.”
She sobbed deep in her chest and Sterling read it as she was nearing her peak. Quickly, he slanted his mouth over hers to muffle her cries, lest they be overheard and someone came outside to investigate. He held her flexing rear in a bruising grip as she worked herself over him. He helped her maintain her pace even when she faltered, her legs trembling too badly to provide the leverage she required. He needed her to find her climax even though he would deny himself that pleasure. This was about Alaina and showing her that she could trust him and that he wanted only to satisfy her, to give her the life she should have had for the last eight years.
Alaina’s breath quickened and caught, but Sterling continued to urge the relentless pace. He nipped and nibbled her mouth, stroked her deeply with his tongue and she met him each time. She was his equal. She burned as hotly as he did, she pulsated with it just as he throbbed with need so painful it was nearly debilitating.
Suddenly, Alaina tensed and shuddered, her nails leaving crescent-shaped bites on the back of his neck as he kissed her deeply and drank her cries of joy. He crushed her to him, molding her soft, full breasts to his chest and running his hands along every one of her tantalizing curves, caressing and tasting her until her tremors stilled and her breathing gradually grew more even. Eventually, Sterling placed another kiss on her parted lips and then pressed his lips to her forehead, simply breathing her in.
Alaina melted in his arms and buried her face in his chest; Sterling closed his eyes and simply allowed himself to be. He reveled in her nearness, cherished the faith she’d placed in him, and struggled to calm his own raging arousal.
Alaina tilted her head back and his breath caught in his throat. His wife was glorious. “That was…”
“Amazing,” he finished for her.
She pulled her lips between her teeth and lowered her gaze. Unable to bear the thought of her being at all ashamed of what they’d just done, Sterling crooked a finger beneath her chin and lifted her face to his.
“Just like kisses, it is your right to demand pleasure from me.” His words were soft, but firm, leaving no room for her to misinterpret him. “And I heartily encourage you to ask for it whenever—and wherever—the fancy strikes. I am far from shy.”
Alaina blushed in the most becoming way before she straightened her spine and disentangled herself from him. While she did her best to shake out her skirts, Sterling tilted his gaze to the dark sky overhead, and, placing his hands on his hips, he inhaled the thick night air deeply and tried to cool his ardor.
“I am hopelessly wrinkled now, thanks to you,” Alaina grumbled, frowning down at the crumpled state of her skirts.
Sterling grinned at her. “A small price to pay.”
“Do try not to sound so pleased with yourself,” she bit out, moving past him to reenter the ballroom.
“How can I not when you can hardly walk a straight line?” Sterling caught up to her and leaned in closer so his breath tickled the nape of her neck. “Imagine what will happen when we finally get our hands on one another in privacy.”
He was rewarded with a stuttering step and a vicious glare from Alaina when he caught her elbow so she didn’t land face-first in the doorway. He couldn’t stop his chuckle when she wrenched her arm away and plowed into the room toward a clutch of women.
She could present all the bluster in the world and Sterling would still know he’d made some headway with his wife. And he couldn’t wait to be alone with her again.
The carriage rideback to Morton House hadn’t come quickly enough for Sterling. It was the wee hours of the morning before they were able to leave the Finchley home and, rather than take the rear-facing seat across from Alaina, he’d dropped down beside her. He felt her stiffen, but she didn’t sidle away. He’d count that as another victory—his second for the night—tallying it up alongside his very pathetic number of wins when it came to Alaina and their relationship.
Overall, the evening had to be considered a success. There were no incidents, raucous arguments, or verbal sparring in public. That had to be progress, didn’t it? And he’d been able to dance with her, hold her close, openly lay claim to her once again, announcing to all thetonthat he was back, this was his wife, and he had no designs to go anywhere. After eight long, exhausting, dangerous years, he was finally where he belonged.
