her arms around his neck and tugged. The momentum pulled him forward, held him in place until he took over with a groan, pressing until she was pinned between his hard torso and the soft cushion.
His fingertips skimmed the modest edge of her gown as if testing the barrier for weakness. Goose bumps rose in the wake. When, at her shoulder, he hooked a finger under the tiny cap sleeve and tugged, the fabric and shift gave way, easing down. Baring her shoulder. Teasing her senses.
As he licked and nibbled his way down her neck, she held her breath, her insides quivering. He nipped at the delicate skin of her collarbone then kissed it as if offering condolence for the rough treatment.
A tug and her gown loosened, only to be nudged aside. His mouth was questing. Nuzzling. The rough brush of his cheek abraded the tender skin just before his lips closed over her nipple. The moist heat caused her to gasp, and a shock of sensation raced down her spine like a lightning bolt straight to her loins. Her nipple peaked and his tongue curled around the tip, encouraging it to pucker so tightly as to be almost painful.
Angelica lost all sense of self. Of where they were. She could only focus on Julian laving her breast, and the fire the rhythmic licks set to her blood. She splayed her fingers across his head to hold him in place, to encourage him to continue that wild, tugging sensation. Never had she imagined such pleasure existed.
An impatient pull at his hair elicited a chuckle when he abandoned one breast for the other, now liberated from her clothing as well.
She was aflame, lost to the overwhelming feeling that raced through her like molten lead. She was restless, unsettled, and needed to move. To touch, feel, taste. She slipped her hands down, between them and under the folds of his jacket till she felt the crisp linen of his shirt, the heat of his skin through the thin layer of material.
Julian paused and raised up. “Stop,” he muttered, his body taut, frozen just inches above her flushed skin. “We have to halt. Now.” His rapid breaths stimulated her wet, sensitized nipples.
“No. I want you to debauch me as you promised.” There was no way she was going to let him cease. Not yet. It felt too good. She dug her fingernails into his back to prove the point, delighting in the strangled gasp it elicited, a sound of pleasure and pain.
“A servant could discover us.” His eyes flashed silver.
“They won’t. They’ve long since learned not to open closed doors in this house.” Was it wrong to enjoy the sight of Julian, his lips reddened and poised above her naked breasts? She was damp between her legs, impatient for more. She arched her back, straining to offer her flesh to him, silently begging him to accept her offer.
For the first time in a long while, Angelica didn’t feel so alone, didn’t feel as if she watched from afar as others experienced life. She felt connected. Vital. And she didn’t want it to end.
“Julian,” Angelica whispered, unable to keep any longer from begging. “Please.”
When he met her gaze this time, his eyes were nearly black, the pupils dilated till the gray was nothing but a halo around the dark depths that promised no quarter. “I want to lick more than your breasts, Angelica. Will you let me?”
She wasn’t certain what he was asking for, but if the result was anything like what she’d just experienced, she’d let him do whatever he wanted.
She gulped. “Yes, please.”
If it had started raining right there in the drawing room, Angelica could not have been any more surprised than when Julian pulled away and dropped to his knees. Her legs dangled off of the sofa, her position raising her hems much higher than was appropriate. Julian encircled each exposed ankle with his warm hands. Slowly, he ran them up her calves, raising her skirts along the way. For a moment he paused when he reached the garters tied at her knees, then his hands were hot upon the bare skin of her