The Duchess Diaries by Barbara Dawson Smith

Author:Barbara Dawson Smith [Smith, Barbara Dawson]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Fiction, Romance, General, Historical
ISBN: 9781429937597
Publisher: St. Martins
Published: 2004-12-31T16:00:00+00:00

15

A shiver of unruly desire suffused Sophie. She feared she might collapse into a wretched heap at his feet, not from a weakness of resolve, but from the unsteadiness in her knees. A bone-deep longing for him consumed her. The taste of his kiss lingered on her lips… nay, her kiss, for hadn’t she begun it?

Grant was only playing a game, she reminded herself. He had cast himself in a role akin to his own rakish nature. In the flickering lamplight, he certainly looked like a scoundrel shunned by decent women.

The play of shadows gave his face a dangerous aspect. His dark eyes gleamed and his masculine features had a harsh intensity. The swift, strong beating of his heart played against her breasts. Through the layers of their clothing, she could feel the spike of his manhood pressing to the place that ached for him.

Something hot and wild leaped inside her. With her fingertips, she followed the line of his strong jaw and relished its rough texture. She’d had enough of games; now she wanted the real man. “If I truly had met you for the first time tonight,” she whispered, “I would have come here with you, Grant. Truly, I would have.”

“And I would have moved heaven and earth to ensure you did.” A corner of his mouth lifted in a wolfish grin. “We will move heaven and earth tonight, Sophie. I promise you that.” A hint of calculation edged his smooth tone. But Sophie no longer cared to speculate on his hidden purposes. She would allow nothing to sully the rise of exhilaration. Curving her lips in a come-hither smile, she murmured, “Shall we proceed to the bedchamber, then? I find myself eager to hold you to your word.”

Turning, she grasped her skirts and ascended the polished oak staircase. Aware of him right behind her, she swayed her hips and glanced over her shoulder. He followed at her heels, his gaze focused exactly where she wished, and Sophie wanted to laugh from the sheer joy of his admiration.

Over the years, other men had looked at her, gentlemen who gave only covert glances to the happily married wife of a duke. Some of the bolder ones had flirted with her, hinting at their desire for an assignation, but she had been repelled by the notion of breaking her wedding vows. She detested the infidelities that ran rampant in the upper classes. Despite the daunting reality of her own marriage, she still nurtured the core belief that matrimony was a sacred trust. Sophie had remained celibate because she believed a wife was bound to her husband, for better or for worse.

But now she was no longer a wife. She was free to do as she wished.

On the landing, she stopped for another deep kiss designed to entice Grant. She wanted to tempt him, to tease him, to make him lose control. He groaned deep in his chest, and her body throbbed in response, demanding relief from a swelling desire.

Desire for Grant alone.

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