Authors: Elizabeth Squire
Hesitantly, he reached into his coat pocket and withdrew the volume of children’s stories; the ones that had elicited such bittersweet memories for her a short while ago. He placed it on the table and slid it over to her, his heart thumping wildly. ‘A small gift for you,
mon fleur
. Something for you to remember your mother by.’
And perhaps me
, a voice whispered from within.
Liliane reached forward and reverently picked up the book, her face betraying an array of emotions. Surprise, joy, sorrow?
‘Thank you, Sin. I shall cherish it forever. Not just for the memory of the stories, but also for your thoughtfulness.’
She opened the book and searched out a story. ‘
Puss in Boots
, my brother loved this story. He used to make Mama tell it to him every night. And by day, he would conscript the village boys to re-enacting various scenes.’
‘And where’s your brother now?’
She sat silently, staring unseeingly out of the window.
‘Liliane?’
‘He died. Both he and Mama died from an influenza epidemic two years ago. Mama had been nursing some of the villagers who had fallen ill; they survived but Mama and Jamie both succumbed.’
Sinclair reached forward and enclosed her hand between his own. Lifting it to his lips, he placed a gentle kiss upon her knuckles. She truly was alone. ‘Then,
mon fleur
, treasure the memories this book will bring you. And maybe one day you can teach these stories to your own son.’ He swallowed back a lump at the image of a reckless little scamp with mischievous blue eyes and a devil-may-care grin.
Liliane smiled up at him, tears glistening on her lashes. ‘Thank you, Sin. You’re not the person I originally thought you were.’
‘Is that a good thing?’
She reached across and placed a kiss on his cheek. ‘I’ll leave it up to you to decide. But three days ago I was more inclined to think of you as forbidding, solitary.’
‘And now?’
‘And now I’m not.’
Something deep within him loosened, something that had been chained tight in the years since Carolyn’s desertion. In less than three days this woman had a better sense of who he was than Carolyn had had in three years of marriage. And while Carolyn had been his wife in fact, Liliane was his wife in name only. So where in hell did that leave him now?
Liliane finished the last of her meal. The mussels were every bit as good as the waiter had promised, but they were overshadowed by the man beside her. He was not what she’d expected. He was unexpectedly complex, and so very perceptive. Her gaze dropped to the book lying on the table between them. She had hidden her heartache from the world, but in one morning he had recognised her loss for what it was. And he’d given her the one thing that could help to ease the pain. With a simple volume of nursery tales, he had returned her childhood memories to her. And with this book she could hold the memory of him close to her forever.
She delicately patted her lips with the napkin. ‘Mmm, those mussels were utterly divine. I could make a habit of dining here.’
Sin leaned over and pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth. ‘You missed a bit,’ he murmured against her flesh.
A lightning bolt of need shot through her and coiled low in her belly as he slowly slid his tongue across her skin to remove the offending drop of sauce. She sat upright and hastily looked around the restaurant to ensure that no one had seen Sin’s deliciously wicked kiss.
‘You shouldn’t do things like that.’ God, when had her voice become so low and husky? She sounded wanton. She felt wanton.
‘I shouldn’t kiss you?’ His low, heated drawl percolated through her to claim ownership.
‘You shouldn’t kiss me here …’
‘Then let’s go.’ This time he all but growled.
The inn was only a couple of blocks from the restaurant, yet Liliane’s heart raced as though she had run for miles. Damn the man for being so distracting; she had meant to look out for Henri Lyon’s stationery shop yet the town had passed by unnoticed. The only thing capturing her attention was the promise of Sin’s kiss. Her mouth watered as he guided her through the doors of the inn, his hand resting lightly on the small of her back. The heat flowing from him was filled with vitality, radiating from the point of contact to dissipate through her body and take control of her senses.
She took a deep breath. The climb up the stairs felt interminable, and the walk along the corridor to their doorway seemed even longer. Sin had barely said a word to her since leaving the restaurant but the tension in his body conveyed his every thought. He swung the door to their suite open and suddenly the prospect of being alone with him assailed her with doubt. Not at the prospect of becoming his lover, but the prospect of having to let him go.
She entered the room and walked across to stand before the window, placing her gloves and the slim bound volume of stories on the bureau as she passed it. The garden below was lit with the subtle light of late winter’s afternoon sun.
She felt the warmth of Sin standing behind her. His hands came around her to unclasp her cloak and she shuddered as he lifted it from her shoulders and tossed it onto the nearby chaise. His fingers returned to begin gently drawing the pins from her hair until it lay as a glossy sable cloak around her shoulders. Each brush of his hands against her scalp ratcheted her awareness of him up another notch higher.
‘Turn around.’ His breath washed against the back of her neck and sent sparks shooting through her body. She was likely to combust before he worked his magic on her.
She trembled and tentatively turned to face him. His overly long hair lay in windswept disarray across his brow; he looked almost piratical—almost reminiscent of the man she’d seen standing on the deck of the
Lady Boadicea
. Her fingers itched to brush it back from his face and feel the graze of his stubble across her palm. He had removed his coat and cravat and stood before her in just his shirt sleeves and breeches.
Her breath hitched at the sight of him. The fine white linen of his shirt lay open to reveal the golden skin of his chest with its light sprinkling of crisp dark hair. When had he begun to look so very familiar?
She reached forward and dragged a forefinger across his lips. They were firm and warm to her touch. His eyes darkened imperceptibly. He opened his mouth and sucked her finger deep inside. Her gasp echoed against the silence of the room, the sound raw and wanton, even to her own ears. His teeth held her lightly, trapping her in his warmth as he wrapped his tongue about her and caressed. It was all she could do to remain standing as the wet heat accompanied by the hot glide of his tongue sent a shudder coursing through her body.
He released her and smiled knowingly. ‘Kiss me, Liliane.’
She swayed towards him as his words seeped through her like hot treacle. She skirted her tongue across her lower lip. How could she even think to resist his invitation? There was only here and now, and nothing else mattered. She leaned in and kissed the edge of his jaw, tracing a line of kisses upwards until she reached his ear. She inhaled deeply. He smelt of musk and sandalwood, a heady combination. Reminiscent of her own perfume, but masculine, exotic.
She reached her tongue forward and licked, tasting the saltiness of his skin. He let out a barely audible hiss against her neck, impelling her to continue her exploration. She sucked his earlobe between his teeth and bit gently. His body tensed against hers and she revelled in the power she held over him.
Liliane looked up at him. ‘Shall I continue?’
‘Please do.’ He nuzzled her throat and her toes curled inward as she submitted to the drag of his whiskers against her sensitive flesh. The rasp of his unshaven jawline was intoxicating. She lifted her chin to encourage him to do it again. Her nipples hardened into tight beads and she stifled a groan at the throbbing that built deep within her. Her body undulated of its own accord, and between her legs the scorching heat intensified.
She arched her back with the suppleness of a cat, driven by the need to twine her body about his. Moving closer she kissed him in a hot, open-mouthed encounter and purred with satisfaction. He tasted divine. Her tongue parried with his, tasting, exploring. Her hands slipped beneath the fabric of his shirt and traced the breadth of his chest.
Sin rewarded Liliane’s efforts with a hiss through clenched teeth, emboldening her to go further.
Ah, to touch the strength that lay sheathed beneath that wall of perfection.
She peeled his shirt wide and licked a hot path up his sternum and along his throat before returning to his mouth.
She sought to repeat the action but Sin held her pressed hard against him. A solid ridge nudged her, pulsating and hot against her stomach. Experimentally she pushed her hips closer, feeling him quiver at the movement.
‘More, Sin, show me more,’ she begged.
Sin stilled beneath her hands. A low growl sounded against her throat and pulsated through her in an intoxicating wave. She felt the fastenings on her dress give way beneath possessive fingers and sparks flew across her skin as it dropped to pool at her feet, followed closely by her stays and chemise.
Sometime during the encounter she had ceded control to him. If she had every really had control at all. His hands, firm and possessive, delved into her thick tresses, pinning her against him as he kissed her deeply, steadying her as he guided her backwards until she was lowered onto a satin-covered chaise.
Liliane broke from the kiss and gasped into his ear. She shivered, her mind grasping to decipher the delicious contrast of the sensuous fabric against her heated flesh.
He knelt before her, his eyes smouldering like blackened coals as they caressed her. ‘You’re beautiful, let me touch you.’
‘Yes.’ Yes to anything he asked of her.
Sin palmed each of her breasts, lifting them high before licking first one then the other. Rolling the nipples between his thumbs and forefingers, he kissed her again, softly, gently, possessively.
‘I am going to kiss every inch of your delectable body,’ he murmured against her mouth. His words incinerated her and scalding liquid pooled between her legs.
Liliane whimpered as he dragged a hardened nipple into his mouth and sucked, his tongue scouring the sensitive bud. She was rendered mindless to everything but his touch. She dropped her head back and arched forward, unable to suppress the hum that rose from deep within her throat. As he alternated his touch from one breast to another his hands traced her curves, kneading, stroking and caressing each sensitive hollow and crevice.
She lowered her head to watch as he trailed a line of kisses from her breasts to her navel. Mercy, she gloried in her strength, made all the more powerful by the sight of him supplicant and on his knees before her.
He looked up at her, held her eyes knowingly, and ran his tongue around the hollowed surface of her navel. But he had only just begun.
The satin at her back cooled her heated body while his hands seared a blazing trail down the backs of her legs, then moved upwards again to delve between her thighs, spreading them wide. His mouth traced the sumptuous curve of her belly until he hovered above the darkened curls at the juncture of her legs. She instinctively squeezed them together but she was deluding herself to think he would so willingly cede control to her.
Gently, he pulled her hips to the edge of the chair and looked up at her. Liliane met his gaze, uncertain of the question he was asking.
‘Trust me.’
Oh good God, surely he wouldn’t?
And then he kissed her. He delved deep with his tongue, parting her sensitive folds and tasting.
Liliane whimpered, the sound escaping unbidden as the stubble on his jaw lightly abraded the delicate skin of her inner thighs. The wickedly delicious sensation almost brought her undone. She bit her lip, her hands grasping for purchase against the arms of the chair.
Sin’s exploration was relentless. His teeth gently nuzzled the nub high at the juncture of her folds, his lips sucked the sensitive flesh into his mouth to meet with the onslaught of his tongue, and then he did it again.
Liliane groaned, long and hard. Every nerve ending in her body ended at that spot where Sin’s tongue slid back and forth. She started to pant and her back arched. This was so positively indecent. She reached forward, threading her fingers through his hair, uncertain whether to hold him to her or draw him away. Bowing her head back she spread her legs further, desperate for reprieve.
Sin took advantage and moved his hands to spread her lips wider. His eyes lifted to meet hers, and held for long moments. Liliane trembled, embarrassment at being so exposed mixed with need and wanting. The heat between her legs intensified and she shifted, silently begging for more of his touch.
Sin lent forward and placed a delicate kiss on her abdomen, dragging his tongue down to taste her essence once again. As he held her open for his inspection, he angled his hand and gently slid a finger deep inside her. Liliane felt herself clamp about him, holding him to her.
‘Shh, relax sweetheart, let me take care of you.’ he soothed. ‘Let me take you to the stars and beyond.’ He lapped at her again and began to move his hand.
Liliane’s eyes fluttered closed as she relaxed to accommodate the exquisite pressure of his finger combined with the worship of his mouth. She gasped, the noise echoing against the silence of the room. The sensations intensified until they coalesced to form one unassailable need. She was beyond reprieve, her barriers decimated as she submitted to him, completely, irretrievably.
She flung her head back and sobbed as she fractured. White heat pulsated from her core, spiralling outward, consuming her in its intensity, claiming her for eternity.
Consciousness returned slowly. She lifted heavy eyelids to look at the man on his knees before her. Her breath stalled as he stood and held out his hand to her.
‘I want to make love to you, to bury myself deep within you and pleasure you until you scream my name.’ His voice was hoarse from the passion that gripped him. He leaned forward and gently kissed her on the mouth, resting his forehead against hers. ‘But only if that’s what you want. It’s your choice.’