Maid to Match by Deeanne Gist

Author:Deeanne Gist [Gist, Deeanne]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, pdf
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 0100-12-31T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER

Eighteen

The crisp night air felt good against Mack’s skin. Tillie skipped ahead of him, then tilted her head back, flung her arms wide, and spun. Her skirt belled. A tendril of hair escaped from her pins. Her long, creamy neck lay open and bare.

“What a glorious night,” she breathed. “Look at the stars, Mack.”

She stopped as suddenly as she’d started, then thrust her lip out in an exaggerated pout. “But you’ve already seen the stars. Lots of times. Haven’t you?”

Leaning to the side, she frowned at the ground as if to ascertain why it was moving, then took a step to catch her balance. “Haven’t you?”

“I have.”

“How many times?”

“Several.”

“With how many ladies?”

“Several.”

“And did they try to seduce you?”

He sighed. “We’ve been over this, Tillie.”

But she wasn’t listening. Placing her hands against her bodice, she moved them down her torso. “Were they covered in diamonds?” She took a step toward him, molding her shirtwaist into the evening gown she described. “And satin?” Another step. “And smelling of delicate perfume?”

She stood inches from him. Her eyes lazy. Her lips puckered. Her hands touching places he wanted to.

His mouth went dry.

“Was their hair just so?” She lifted her arms, bracketing her head, then made twirly motions with her fingers. “Did they brush against you, pretending it was an accident?”

She slinked around him, her arm barely grazing his. Her fingernails scraped along the back of his waist.

He jumped.

“Did they, Mack?”

When she stopped in front of him, they were as close as possible without touching. “Did they?”

He swallowed. “Some of them.”

She rested her hands on his chest. “And what did you do?”

Covering her hands, he guided them up around his neck.

“I picked my nose.”

Gasping, her eyes widened and her body jerked stiff. “You didn’t!”

He tilted her chin up, tracing her jaw with his thumb. “It’s all right. I had my gloves on.”

She dissolved into laughter. Deep, hearty, from-the-gut laughter. Breaking away from him, she gripped her waist, rocking so much he had to steady her.

“Oh, please. You didn’t really. Did you?”

He chuckled. “Worked every time.”

Tears poured from her eyes. Her guffawing turned to hiccups, which caused her to laugh all the more. When she finally wound down, she collapsed against him, exhausted.

Her forehead rested against his chest. Bits of hair tumbled about her waist. He rubbed her back, shoulders, and arms.

Occasional giggles erupted like an earthquake aftershock. “I think I’m falling in love with you, Mack.”

His hands stilled. “Me too.”

She lifted her face, propping her chin against him. “You think you’re falling in love with you, too?”

He burrowed his fingers into her hair. “Come here.”

This time, without the audience, he did what he’d been wanting to. He explored, tasted, nipped, hoping it would relieve the tension which had built inside him since he’d first seen her. Instead, it made him hunger for more. Much more.

With an effort, he dragged his mouth free.

Her eyes remained closed. “Oh, that was nice. Would you do that again, please?”

Groaning, he crushed her to him, kissing her more deeply, reveling in the feel of her.

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