Her eyes widened at the casual words and the humor lacing them, but when she saw the proud look on his face, she couldn’t help but laugh.
“Was that supposed to be a joke?” she asked.
“I am only completing the last item on yer list.”
She furrowed her brow, trying to recall which item remained. As far as she was concerned, he had completed it already.
He leaned in then, surprising her.
“Isnae this how English lords flirt?” he asked.
She gasped. Was he trying to… flirt with her?
She laughed again, throwing her head back, unable to help herself, but when he ran a lone finger up her arm, she choked.
“I daenae think gentlemen take kindly to being laughed at when they’re trying to flirt with a beautiful woman,” he cautioned, voice as silky as sin.
Violet swallowed, wondering who this suave man was in front of her. His eyes were alight with mischief, and he had a naughty smile on his lips, which she found even more beautiful than the other looks he gave her.
“Why?” she asked.
His eyes were on her lips when he spoke. “It makes one want to try harder.”
She swallowed, feeling her heart racing in her chest.
There was a tension between them akin to what she had felt that night in her chambers, and instantly her body warmed, remembering how he had touched her.
She had missed him in the days that followed, burning with a need she could now name after every brief touch they had shared and at the sight of his shirtless figure.
She eyed his chest again, now safely covered with a crisp linen shirt. She wanted to see him again, wanted to feel his hands on her body.
“And what if I wanted him to try harder?” she asked boldly.
He reacted as she had hoped, and when his lips met hers, she sighed with relief. It had been too long since he had last kissed her, and she had missed him.
It seemed he felt the same, for he moaned as well, his hands cupping her face almost desperately. She buried her hand in his hair, and he groaned, shuddering.
His reaction to her ministrations emboldened her, and she fisted her hand in his hair once again. This time, his lips left hers and went to her chin, then her neck.
There was a frantic urgency to his movements, as though he couldn’t control his desire for her, and she felt some pride that she could affect a man like him.
She leaned back, and he climbed over her, kissing a trail down her neck to the swell of her breasts.
“There is nay time, or else I’d have undressed ye here so I may feast on ye,” he whispered.
Yet his hands were not deterred, roaming over her body and gripping her in all the places she yearned to feel his hands on.
“Ye’re a bonny lass, Violet,” he rasped against her neck. “Yer scent and taste have haunted me dreams endlessly.”
She bit her lip, not knowing what to say in response.
His eyes were wild with a need she knew would be reflected in hers, and the brashness of his tone showed he was only trying to rein in his self-control.
She kissed him then and felt him stiffen for a moment before his hands roamed lower, hitching up her skirts. The kiss of the cool wind against her thighs had her stiffening, but his touch eased her anxiety.
Seeing his head dip was almost too much, and the graze of his teeth against her inner thigh made her back bow off the ground.He stilled her with a firm hand on her hip, but it wasn’t enough to keep her from writhing when he buried his face in her sex.
She felt her breath hitch, her nails sinking into his scalp as his tongue and lips drove her to near madness with pleasure, and when his fingers slid into her, she gasped.
