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“And I am…” She made a gesture with her hands, indicating curves then slapped her hands back over her chest when the gown draped enough to give him an excellent view of the very curves to which he suspected she was referring to.
“Beautiful?”
“I am…big.” She said the last word like she’d muttered something awful. A curse word or an insult.
“And beautiful,” he reminded her. “And utterly perfect, sweeting.” He took both hands in his and moved them away from her. It took all his willpower not to groan and press himself against the curves that so disgusted her. If only she could see herself as he did.
“No one thinks plump girls are beautiful.”
“No.” He shook his head. “The world wants you to believe that but it’s not true. It’s just an excellent way of making women feel awful about themselves but the fact is, no red-blooded male would find you anything other than beautiful right now.”
He forced his gaze up from her breasts, knowing he couldn’t utter these words and sound sincere if he was busy drooling over her body.
“And the fact is, Ivy,youmake your curves beautiful. You could be everything thetondesires but if it were not for the fact you are you, you would not be nearly as lovely as you are.”
Her brows knitted and a slow, hesitant smile came across her face.
“Does that make any sense at all?”
“I think so.”
“How can I make you feel more comfortable?”
She lifted a shoulder. “I’m not certain. I’ve never been naked in front of a man before. What if you find me hideous?”
Cillian motioned to his face. “I’m not exactly perfect and I can assure you, sweeting, I would never find you hideous.” He ran a finger along the uncomfortable length of the ribbon holding onto his eyepatch. “I’ll offer you a bargain. I’ll remove my eyepatch if you remove your dress.”
“My dress?”
“Justyour dress.”
Ivy slid off his lap. She hesitated and issued a long, shuddery breath then let the gown slip from her shoulders. The fabric pooled at her feet, and he froze. Her stays cinched in at the waist, highlighting her generous breasts and the darkness of her nipples against the light fabric of her chemise. Her thighs pressed against the fabric and made his fingers twitch with the desire to grab her.
Hands laced in front of her, she peered at him through lowered lashes.
“God, Ivy.”
It was all he managed before he was on her again. He rose to his feet and kissed her deeply, hungrily. Cillian urged her down onto the rug, his mouth scarcely leaving hers as he lifted her skirts and settled between her legs.
He urged fingers through her hair and tilted her head back enough to take her mouth hard. He sought out the laces at the front of her chemise loosening them until he could coax a breast out of the confines of her stays then dropped his head briefly to take a nipple in his mouth.
But not for long. When she pressed her hips up into him and he felt the soft touch of her body, he could wait not longer.
Meeting her gaze, he inched in, stretching her, filling her. To be so closely joined with her made his head swim. She wrapped her arms about him. The only thing that would have made it more perfect would have been had she been fully naked. Either way, he wouldn’t have changed it for the world.
Once they were as close as two people could get, he withdrew and pushed back into her. He groaned her name, and she stroked her hands across his hair, his back. He took her sounds of pleasure and swore to embed them in his memory. Though a building bliss grew deep inside him, he ignored it. She gripped his rear and urged him on, deeper, harder.
When he slipped a hand between their bodies and found her slick folds, she shuddered and called his name. With teeth gritted, he held out until her body tightened around him, and she shivered out an orgasm. He gave her a shaky kiss as he followed her, spilling deep in endless pleasure.
Cillian rolled onto his back, an arm looped around her.
“Is it always like that?” she asked, curling into his side.
He kissed her forehead and gave a low chuckle. “No. Most definitely not.”
Chapter Nineteen
Guilt tugged at Ivy’s insides as the carriage approached the house. She’d told Cillian she was meeting Lilly in Bath, but Gravesend was on the outskirts of Bristol and a good two-hour journey not including a rest and change of horses. Being able to hide this visit from Cillian was unlikely.
