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However, she recovered quickly enough and said, “How should we… proceed?”
He adored the uncertainty in her expression, the wariness in her green eyes, but he intended to change that. “Finish your chocolate first. I should hate for it to get cold.”
She obliged and after a time, she pushed it to the side and clasped her hands in front of her, patiently waiting.
Miles stood and walked over to her. He held out his hand, which she accepted, and urged her to her feet. Her eyes seemed to dart all around him, looking at his hair, his shoulders, his chest, anywhere but his eyes.
“What do I—?”
He gently grasped her chin and ran his thumb over her lower lip. “Youdon’t have to do anything but relax and enjoy it and respond if you feel like doing so.”
She blinked. “Do you mean purse my lips?”
She attempted to do just that, and he smiled. “Not exactly,” he murmured, and when he drew closer, she closed her eyes as his lips touched hers.
Chapter Seven
Olivia was nearly expecting the same revulsion she had experienced with her assailant, but Mr. Stone’s approach was gentle and patient. He instantly made her yearn for more when his lips met hers. She didn’t want to withdraw or push him away. On the contrary, she wanted to grasp his lapels and draw him closer, to feel more of his heat.
She sighed lightly as the pressure gradually increased, his movements slow and unhurried. That swirl of heat warmed her belly and began to spread throughout her limbs. She tentatively started to kiss him back. It was as if her body knew what to do even if her mind was still a bit unsure.
When she felt the slide of his tongue along the seam of her lips, she gasped in surprise, only to have him slip inside of her mouth. The touch of his tongue against hers was so…foreignand yet… quite pleasant. He teased her until her toes began to curl in her slippers and her hands lifted to his chest. She could feel the strong beat of his heart beneath her palm, although it wasn’t racing as rapidly as hers.
Could it be that she didn’t affect him the same?
Almost as the doubt passed through her mind, he slid a hand up the nape of her neck, his fingers delving into her pinned hair. A few of them fell away, but she wasn’t inclined to care, nor when most of the weight of it tumbled down around her shoulders.
“Olivia…” He pulled away long enough to whisper her name and look deeply into her eyes before his gaze shifted and he toyed with a strand of her unbound hair. “You’re so beautiful.” She thrilled at the sentiment, as something told her that he didn’t offer them lightly.
She yearned to tell him that he was handsome in return, because he was, but she feared he wouldn’t believe her after he’d just given her a compliment.
Instead, she stood there and allowed the minutes to tick by, waiting for the moment when he would kiss her again.Thisshould have been her first kiss, and for the rest of her life, she would think of Mr. Stone and consider this as it.
Unfortunately, he pulled away from her, allowing the strand of her hair to slip through his fingers. His expression was carefully neutral. “I hope that wipes away any distasteful memories from earlier.”
Olivia didn’t want the embrace to end. She wanted to throw herself back into his arms and urge him to continue, but instead, she inclined her head. “Indeed. It was most… agreeable. Thank you, Mr. Stone.”
His lips twitched slightly, but he said nothing further as he turned his back and said. “I’ll return shortly after you’ve had time to prepare yourself for bed.”
Olivia swallowed thickly as she watched him depart. It had certainly been one of the most unexpected Christmas holidays she had ever had, and yet, it had ended rather… perfectly.
As she donned her nightdress and kept her chemise in place as before, she paused when it came to removing the pendant from Mr. Stone. Deciding to keep it on, she walked over to the bed and slipped beneath the covers, careful to remain firmly on her side of the mattress, even if she might yearn to snuggle into his warmth when he returned.
However, there was a decided divide between them. He was a common man, and she was the daughter of a duke, a lady of society by all accounts, and any sort of relationship, other than friendly acquaintances, would be all they could ever entertain. It might not be fair, but it was the way of the world they lived in.
But that didn’t mean she couldn’t entertain a few fantasies in her dreams.
Clasping the necklace in her palm, she fell asleep with a contented smile on her lips.
* * *
The next morning,Olivia woke up to the sun streaming through the window, similar to the day before. But this time, she heard more commotion going on outside.
Curious, she got up and walked over to the window and pushed back the coverings. Horses were being saddled and carriages loaded in preparation for heading out after the holiday storm. She clutched the curtain in her grasp, as that could only mean she would soon be on her way to Marlington Hall. While that was all she had thought about when she’d left London just two days ago, now she found that the nerves she had pushed aside upon her arrival had returned in full force.
When the door opened behind her, she turned, expecting to see the innkeeper, but it was Mr. Stone who had entered. He was fully dressed, his overlong dark hair pulled back into the usual queue, and he strode inside with purpose. There was a crease between his brows, but when he looked up and spied her, he stopped and offered her a polite bow. “Good morning, Lady Olivia.”
She was abruptly self-conscience as she faced him in her nightdress and unbound hair, even though she had shared the same bed with him for the past two nights. “Good day,” she murmured softly. “It appears that many of the travelers are leaving.”
