Page 68 of A Lady in Name

“Sugared almonds,” she managed, as her teeth and tongue made short work of the pleasurable sensations. “I had been wishing for something sweet.”

Stefan held out the bowl. “Enjoy them, then.”

Lucy took hold of the bowl, but Stefan did not release it into her grasp. Instead his eyes roved her face, settling on her mouth, watching her lips move sensually as she chewed on the last of the sweetmeat.

He groaned in spirit. He should not have stayed so long in the dining parlour, lowering the level of port in the decanter, else he might successfully have fought the dangerous urge to come near the girl.

Without intent, he took another almond and held it to her lips, glancing up to meet her eyes as he did so. Lucy’s delicious mouth opened as if at his command, and he slipped the sweet inside, the tip of his finger lingering, caressing the wetness of her inner lip.

Her tongue touched his fingertip and Stefan hissed in a breath as flame danced in his loins. Lucy’s eyes darkened and he knew his desire was echoed within her. She did not move, making no attempt either to pull her mouth away from his intrusive finger, or to prevent the exploration he could not stop himself from making.

Lucy felt powerless under the gentle probing of his single fingertip. It ran lightly across the edge of her teeth and traced back along the line of her lips. Her veins were rich with heat, and in her depths a pulsating force held her motionless with yearning.

At last the finger left her and Stefan’s hand released the dish into her grip. But his eyes held hers, and slowly, slowly his face leaned down towards hers. Lucy closed her eyes as she felt the touch of his mouth. It was wholly without pressure, light as the brush of silk against her lips. But Lucy felt as if she were drowning in sensation.

An aeon passed. Then his lips left hers and Stefan was shifting, his back against the door. Her eyes flew open. His gaze seemed to burn in the candlelight, his voice was roughened, his breath uneven.

“I had better go before I disgrace us with conduct unbefitting us both.”

Lucy could not argue. She was in as much danger of forgetting all she had learned from Papa’s patient nurturing. Yet all she’d thought she was had been overturned. Out of a desperate need, she uttered foolish words.

“Perhaps it befits me.”

Stefan’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t speak like that. I won’t have you putting yourself down.”

Lucy swallowed. “I don’t mean it. Don’t be angry with me.”

“I am not angry.” He threw a hand out as if he would touch her, and quickly withdrew it again. “If I am angry, it is not with you, Lucy, but with those who would seek to lower your dignity.”

Lucy’s head came up sharply. “They cannot do that. I am mistress of my own dignity.” She bit her lip and drew on all her reserves of strength. “But you must not kiss me again, Stefan.”

His eyes left hers, ran over her face and rested briefly on her lips. His gaze came up again to meet hers, and Lucy was startled by the depth of feeling she saw there. Was it tenderness?

“But I want to kiss you,” Stefan said, his voice low and caressing. “Thoroughly and without ceasing. The difficulty is, Lucy, I am in love with you.”

His words echoed in Stefan’s mind. He had said them with no prior concept. His head felt light and his heart free, as if he was released of a terrible burden.

Lucy’s features registered utter disbelief. Stefan could not blame her. Until this instant, he’d had no inkling of his own feelings. He felt off balance, out of control. A hazy laugh escaped him.

“By God, it’s the truth! I am so mindless a fool, I have only just recognised it. I love you.”

He did not know what he expected of her. He hardly knew what to expect of himself. Lucy’s fixed regard shifted to her hands. She looked at the glass and dish he had given her as if she knew not what they were.

Urgency engulfed Stefan. He reached out and took the objects out of her hands. “Let us, for God’s sake, be rid of these!”

Hunting the chamber, he spied the tray on the chest. Within a few seconds, he had divested himself of the offending articles and was able to return to where Lucy stood. A wave of tenderness came over him as he took in the bemused look in her face. He went to her. With infinite care, he took her face between his hands.

“I have shocked you, have I not? No more than I have shocked myself.” He could not forbear a shuddering laugh, borne out of astonishment, or his love for her, or both. “My darling Lucy, you have turned me inside out and upside down.” He loosened his hold, letting his fingers caress the softness of her cheeks. “You are brave and resourceful. You are infinitely fascinating to me, and your passionate nature is like to torture me into madness. But the only thing I want in this world is to marry you.”

He had said it without thinking, as a natural consequence of the discovery of his feelings. But to his consternation and dismay, Lucy snatched away from his hold, throwing up a hand as if to ward him off.

“Oh, stop! Say no more. You know it is impossible.”