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Iris swallowed hard. No, no, no... She didn’t need him to desire her. If only he had looked at her this way a year ago. Before he broke her heart... “Stop,” she said in a harsh tone.
“I wish I could.” The tone in his voice was filled with so much need. “I keep telling myself to walk away, but I can’t. I just can’t.” He stepped toward her and pressed his palm to her cheek. “You’re so lovely it hurts to look at you.” Lord Hampstead set the snifter on a shelf and then trailed his fingers through her hair.
What was happening? She should step back before anything else happened. Her heart beat heavily inside her chest and she was having trouble breathing. This was all too much. “Lord Hampstead...” She could barely utter his name.
“Daniel,” he told her. “My name is Daniel. Say it.”
Iris shook her head. “I...” She took a deep breath. “I can’t do that.”
“Yes,” he said. “Iris. Say my name.”
She didn’t. If she did, she would not be able to walk away from him. It didn’t matter that he wanted her to say it. Hell, she wanted to say it. But she knew, just knew, that once she did, there was no turning back. “Why are you doing this?”
“Because I’m weak,” he said. “And I need you.” He didn’t give her a chance to say anything else. He lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers. That kiss a year ago didn’t compare to this one. It was all raw hunger and desire. He kissed her as if he were dying and this kiss was the only thing that could save him, and she fell into it with a wild abandon. She should have run out of the room to prevent this from happening.
Because now she knew the truth. His desire could not be feigned. She didn’t know the reasons he had pushed her away before, but she wouldn’t let him do it again. This kiss stole everything and she couldn’t fight it if she wanted to. But she couldn’t let it go any farther. Not now. He would not be happy he had given in and kissed her. If Iris had any chance of winning him, she had to fight him. Starting with this kiss.
She pushed back and stepped away from him. Iris met his gaze and wiped her mouth. “Don’t do that again.” She clutched the book to her chest and walked out of the room. It hurt to do it, but he had to realize he couldn’t take what he wanted without a thought to the consequences. She had a fortnight, and she would use it to make him fall in love with her. He had to fight for her or she would never believe he did.
