Page 56 of How to Wed a Courtesan

His hands cupped her breasts, his fingers finding her nipples. She cried out, and her thoughts finally went blank.

Quickly, before anything could resurface in the dark expanse of her mind, she worked at the buttons on his jacket. They slid free easily and she shoved the garment from his shoulders.

He retaliated in the most delicious way, by popping free the small buttons at the back of her gown. Their mouths remained locked with one another as they tore at each other’s clothing. The shoulders of her gown loosened and it was dragged down her body to pool at her feet.

Her fingers navigated blindly, unravelling his cravat and impatiently casting it to the floor. Next she pulled his shirt from where it was tucked into his trousers, even as he undid the small bow under her bosom, holding her chemise closed.

With a growl, he bent and kissed the area just over her breasts, delicately flicking his tongue along the low neckline. Lottie gasped with pleasure and tugged his shirt over his head. His lips shifted from her skin for only a brief moment, to allow the muslin to pass over his face, before he resumed kissing her.

His powerful back rippled with muscles that shifted and flexed as he wrapped one arm around her to draw her closer to him and his free hand loosened the ribbon on her petticoat at her waist. It quickly joined her gown on the floor. Her stays came next, leaving only her shift, which she divested herself of.

In the six years since they had last been intimate, her body had changed. She’d become softer after her pregnancy, her curves more ample, and delicate silver lines traced over her lower stomach.

Before self-consciousness could whisper its poison into her mind, Evander stepped back and regarded her as though she were a work of art. He issued a low curse under his breath.

‘My God, you are beautiful, Lottie.’ He wrapped his arms around her and his hands glided over her skin. ‘Even lovelier than I remember.’

She pushed up on her toes and kissed him. Their bodies stretched against one another, her nakedness against his bare chest, where the sprinkling of auburn hair rasped against her nipples. Being this close to him, being held, being cared for by someone who truly loved her, brought a peace to her she hadn’t known since before Lily’s death.

Lottie’s body burned for him—not only for his closeness and his intimacy, but to have him possess her totally and completely. She reached for the fall of his trousers and a muscle worked in his jaw.

The last time they’d been together had been too fast, and she had been too innocent. She hadn’t looked at him. Now she was a different woman, and as the placket of his trousers fell open her gaze slid down his body to where his arousal jutted from a thatch of copper hair.

She moaned as she reached for him, stroking the thickness of his arousal, revelling in the silky heat of his skin. Her fingers curled around him and glided from base to head. Evander groaned and closed his eyes. He was so hard, like steel. For her.

‘I want you,’ she whispered.

He opened her eyes and reached for her, lifting her into his arms before carrying her to the large bed. Gently, he laid her on the mattress and covered her with his body. He fitted over her perfectly, his weight comfortable, the press of his arousal against her stomach almost more than she could bear.

His gaze locked on hers. He was saying with his eyes what she couldn’t bear him to say aloud.

I love you.

He ran his hand down her cheek, her neck, to her breasts, where he swept his fingertips over her nipples and then further past her navel.

Her breath came faster as his touch found the aching spot between her thighs. Pleasure shot through her and she cried out.

Most men would take her then and there. But not Evander. He eased a finger inside her while his thumb worked over the sensitive bud at the top of her sex. She gasped in delight, moving her hips in time with his ministrations, until release caught her in the most delicious grip.

Her hands fisted in the bedsheets beneath her, as though somehow they might keep her grounded even though she felt as if she was floating away.

Evander removed his hand and shifted over the top of her, the tip of his arousal nudging against her. She nodded, eager for them to be completely together, united in their desperation for comfort, in the love they’d once shared. Regardless of what happened afterwards, she needed this. In this moment, she needed him.

Chapter Seventeen

Never had Evander wanted something more than he wanted Lottie at that moment. It wasn’t simply a physical desire, it went far deeper. Powerfully poignant.

He watched her as he pushed inside her, noting how her lashes lowered with pleasure, her soft exhale. Her core gripped him as he shifted back and thrust into her once more. A groan tore from his throat and he pushed the fist supporting his weight into the mattress, in an effort to rein in his control.

It had been six years since he’d been with a woman—when he’d last lain with Lottie. There hadn’t been anyone else he wanted. Not like her.

Her arms slid up his back and she pulled him down to her.

He resisted. ‘I don’t want to crush you.’

She shook her head. ‘You won’t.’

Finally he acquiesced and lay against her, skin on skin, hot with desire. Sensual.