The Reluctant Duke (14 page)

But maybe she didn’t need to take them off completely just yet.

She caught her bottom lip between her teeth as her gaze lowered to the black boxers revealed by parting the two sides of the zip, the soft cotton clinging lovingly to the hard bulge beneath. Its hardness pulsed and surged upwards as Lexie cupped Lucan there, before her fingers stroked that hard length with slow circular caresses that made Lucan harder still, allowing Lexie to feel that pumping surge of his blood against her fingertips.

‘Touch me, Lexie!’ Lucan’s voice was a harsh growl. ‘I need to feel your hands on my skin!’

‘Lie back,’ she encouraged softly, moving to kneel beside him once he had lain back against the pillows. He allowed Lexie to peel the two garments slowly down his body before she moved back between Lucan’s thighs and looked down at him admiringly from beneath lowered lashes.

Beautiful.

There was no other word to describe the hard and muscled contours of Lucan’s completely naked body.

Beautiful like a Greek statue come to life—every part of him in proportion: his shoulders and chest wide, waist tapered, his arousal long and hard as it jutted out from a nest of dark curls, his legs long and perfect.

Lexie’s hungry gaze returned to his thrusting arousal, her tongue moving moistly across her lips as that long and silken hardness instantly responded to her interest. She was able to see the blood surging beneath the surface as it pulsed, lifting up towards her in invitation.

An invitation she couldn’t resist.

He’d died and gone to heaven.

Where else could Lucan be when his imaginings on that
first day he had met Lexie, of having the mind-shattering heat and pleasure of Lexie’s mouth against his pulsing shaft, the lap of her tongue along his throbbing length, had come true?

Maybe he wasn’t in heaven, after all. Maybe he had just lost his mind.

If this was insanity then Lucan knew he would be happy to remain out of his mind for the rest of his life!

Lexie’s hands grasped him firmly as the rasp of her tongue moved slowly—excruciatingly slowly—along the length of his shaft from base to tip. Lucan groaned as it dipped and tasted the delicacy of the tip.

‘You like that, too…?’

Lucan could barely focus on Lexie, he liked it so much! ‘Does
more
answer your question? ‘ he groaned huskily.

‘Oh, yes.’ Lexie chuckled softly, her fingers curled lightly about that pulsing shaft as she sat back and caressed him, her eyes a deep navy blue as she watched his responses from beneath dark, silky lashes, her cheeks flushed and her lips—God, those plump and pouting lips!—once again driving him insane.

Lucan’s fingers clenched into the bedcovers beneath him as he watched the expression on Lexie’s face even as she watched him, watched his responses to her caresses. She was obviously enjoying pleasuring him as much as Lucan was enjoying being pleasured.

‘I want to be inside you when I come, Lexie,’ he told her gruffly when she gave him a slightly reproachful look as he sat up to lift her gently but firmly away from him, before moving to take her into his arms.

Lucan wanted to be inside her.

The sexual haze faded from Lexie’s head. Not because she didn’t want all of Lucan’s silken hardness inside her—
Lexie ached for that. No, her sudden wariness was for another reason entirely.

She was an avid reader, enjoyed nothing more than a good love story, and in every book she had ever read where the hero realised the heroine’s lack of experience only as he pierced her virginity the man reacted in one of two ways: accusing, because he suspected entrapment, or emotional at being the heroine’s first lover because he was deeply in love with her.

Lexie knew that Lucan wasn’t in love with her—which left only accusations…

‘Lexie?’

She moistened dry lips, a pained frown creasing her brow as she met his concerned gaze. ‘I think I ought to ask how you feel about being a woman’s first lover.’

Lucan stared at her blankly for several tense seconds.
‘Your
first lover?’ he finally realised.

She grimaced. ‘Yes.’

How did Lucan feel about being Lexie’s first lover? How would
any
man feel at the thought of being this beautiful woman’s first lover?

Probably exactly the way Lucan did—privileged. And a little surprised.

‘I had no idea,’ he murmured softly. ‘You’re so outspoken, so self-confident, it never occurred to me there hadn’t been another man in your bed.’

‘Yes… Well…’ A delicate blush heightened her cheeks. ‘Technically speaking, this isn’t my bed, either.’

‘For the moment it is.’

She nodded. ‘I just thought I ought to mention the thing to you before—well, before we go any further. Every woman has to start somewhere, right?’ She brightened. ‘So it might just as well be with a man who knows what he’s doing.’

‘Just as well,’ Lucan echoed gruffly, not sure that he wasn’t going to smile at this typically Lexie comment, at the realisation that no other man had ever made love to this lovely woman in the way that he had. In the way that he was going to.

And Lexie had never touched another man in the intimate way she had him just now. Just the thought of that possibility was enough to increase the aching throb between his thighs.

‘And I can really do without you getting either angry or sentimental over it,’ she warned him firmly.

‘Angry or sentimental…?’ Lucan repeated dryly.

‘Well—okay. It’s unlikely, you being you, that you’re going to feel the second of those emotions.’ She gave a rueful shrug. ‘But I don’t want to take any chances.’

Lucan looked down at her quizzically. ‘Me being me?’

‘You know, Lucan, this conversation would go along much quicker if you just stopped repeating everything I say!’ She glared at him reprovingly.

It was no good. Lucan couldn’t hold back his smile, his laughter, any longer.

He should be annoyed at that crack—’you being you’— but the truth of the matter was he was too damned bemused by this woman to feel annoyed about anything she said.

In the past, lovemaking had always seemed rather a serious business to Lucan. Something to be mutually enjoyed, certainly, but ultimately lacking in any emotion except the need to satisfy the lust he and his partner felt for each other. Only Lexie, a woman like no other woman Lucan had ever met, could bring him to task, make him want to laugh, in the middle of lovemaking.

‘I’m not sure I want to be laughed at, either! ‘ She gave him a reproving frown.

‘I’m not laughing
at
you, Lexie,’ Lucan assured as he took her gently in his arms and held her. ‘I’m laughing
with
you!’

That would certainly be a change, Lexie acknowledged ruefully. A very pleasant one now that Lucan knew she was a virgin.

‘You’re an extraordinary woman, Lexie Hamilton,’ he murmured into the thickness of her hair.

‘Something else we agree on!’ she came back sassily as her self-confidence returned.

‘No, you were right the first time: we
do
end up arguing every time we talk!’ Lucan gave her a wry smile. ‘And to answer your question,’ he continued huskily, ‘I would very much enjoy being your first lover.’

Her eyes widened. ‘You would…?’

He nodded. ‘Very much.’

It suddenly struck Lexie as being very funny that she was sitting there stark naked, with a man equally naked—with
Lucan
gorgeously, wonderfully naked—engaging in a conversation as to whether or not they should continue making love together. How ridiculous was that?

‘Lexie…?’ Lucan prompted indulgently as she let out a sudden burst of laughter.

‘Sorry. I just—It’s—’ She broke off as she was consumed with another bout of laughter.

Out of sheer relief, probably, Lexie recognised ruefully, at Lucan’s unexpected but very welcome reaction to her revelation of still being a virgin. Whatever the reason, she couldn’t seem to stop laughing—and seconds later she felt the reverberation of Lucan’s chest against her as he also began to chuckle.

‘H
OW
do you feel about going downstairs for a late-night snack?’ Lucan lay back on the bed, Lexie’s head on his shoulder, her arm across his abdomen. He held her curved tightly against his side, their laughter having finally subsided.

Cathy Barton had prepared a delicious meal earlier this evening, but Lucan really hadn’t been hungry enough to do Cathy’s cooking justice following his argument with Lexie. He had a feeling that Lexie hadn’t eaten anything this evening, either.

Besides, he would like to savour the thought of being Lexie’s first lover a little longer.

‘What? ‘ A slightly bemused Lexie raised her head to look up at him.

‘Did you eat anything after I left earlier this evening?’ Lucan prompted softly.

‘Well… no. But wouldn’t you like to—? I mean, I know
I
did—several times—but you certainly didn’t, and—’

Lucan shifted slightly so that Lexie was the one who now lay back on the pillows, with him looking down at her. ‘Lexie, if you’re trying, in your own inimitable style, to say that you had multiple orgasms earlier, and I haven’t had any yet, then—’

‘Lucan!’ She buried her flushed face against his chest in obvious embarrassment.

Endearingly so, Lucan recognised indulgently. ‘Well, are you?’ he prompted teasingly, and was rewarded by a muttered ‘yes’ against his chest. The warmth of Lexie’s breath was a warm and sensual caress on his bare flesh. ‘There’s no rush, Lexie. After all, we have all night,’ he assured her huskily.

She looked up at him with wide blue eyes. ‘All night…?’

‘Now
who’s repeating everything I say?’ he teased.

‘Well, yes—but…
All night,
Lucan?’ Her tone was a mixture of awe and anticipation.

‘I don’t see why not—as long as you feed me the occasional morsel of food to keep my strength up,’ he drawled softly.

‘Let’s go and eat!’ She moved out of his arms to sit up.

The sight of Lexie’s pouting and naked breasts instantly caused Lucan to review his decision concerning a need for food right now. They could easily delay eating for another fifteen minutes—possibly half an hour… an hour….

An option he had realised too late, as Lexie stood up to modestly turn her back towards him and pull a robe on over her nakedness. Her uncharacteristic shyness instantly reminded Lucan that for all her outspoken self-confidence, Lexie really wasn’t one of the sophisticated women who usually shared his bed.

And they really did have all night….

Lexie was amazed ten minutes later at how relaxed she felt, sitting in the warmth of the kitchen with Lucan, snacking on the cheese and biscuits Cathy Barton had included in the box of food yesterday, and drinking strong coffee.

It made Lucan seem less like the powerhouse of energy she had first met, and more like the man who was about to become her first lover….

Possibly helped by the darkness of his hair still falling rakishly across his brow rather than being brushed back in the severe style he usually favoured. Or it might have been the casual denims and jumper he had pulled back on before coming downstairs. Or the comfortable way they had set about preparing the food and coffee together a few minutes ago. Or the warmth of the smile that curved the corners of Lucan’s sculpted mouth every time he glanced across the table at her.

Whatever the reason, Lexie felt at ease in his company. ‘This is nice.’

‘Yes.’ He nodded. ‘Yes, it is.’

‘There’s no need to seem so surprised!’ Lexie laughed softly.

Lucan
was
surprised at how pleasant it was just to sit there and eat a snack with Lexie. At how pleasant it was to just sit there and do anything with Lexie.

He felt completely relaxed—a rare commodity in a life that was usually hectic in the extreme, with no time for just sitting back and ‘smelling the roses’, as his mother had put it the last time she’d lectured him concerning his need to relax more and work less.

Considering the tension between them from the beginning of their acquaintance, Lexie Hamilton was the last person Lucan would ever have thought he could relax with. And in the kitchen at Mulberry Hall, of all places!

‘It’s very good, Lexie,’ he assured her huskily.

She returned his gaze quizzically. ‘But you
are
surprised?’

‘You’re always surprising me, Lexie,’ he stated truthfully.

Which was probably part of her attraction, Lucan recognised consideringly; he never knew what Lexie was going to say or do next!

‘In what way? ‘ she prompted curiously.

‘In every way!’

‘So.’ She looked over at him from beneath dark lashes. ‘Will I be your first virgin?’

Lucan’s laugh was completely spontaneous as he stared across the table at her incredulously. ‘Will you be—? ‘ He gave a slightly dazed shake of his head. ‘I really haven’t met anyone quite like you before, Lexie.’

‘But that’s good, isn’t it?’

Lucan wasn’t sure that ‘good’ was exactly the way he would have described this experience. It was certainly novel to talk in this frank and open way with a woman he had every intention of making love to—several times—before the night was over. Tomorrow, too, if he could persuade Lexie into reconsidering their decision to leave in the morning.

‘It’s certainly different,’ he finally conceded dryly.

‘Good or bad different?’

‘Good. I think,’ he added with a frown.

Her eyes glowed with laughter. ‘But you aren’t sure?’

‘I don’t think I’ve been really sure of anything since the moment I first met you,’ he acknowledged ruefully. ‘You obviously weren’t present when they were handing out the reserve gene!’

‘Oh, I was probably just hiding behind a door,’ she dismissed unconcernedly.

‘Right.’ Lucan straightened in his chair. ‘Then, yes, Lexie, you will be my first virgin.’

She tilted her head. ‘And how do you feel about that?’

‘Nervous.’

‘What?’ She sat back to eye him disbelievingly, absolutely
astounded that Lucan had admitted to feeling nervous about anything.

The very first thing Lexie had noticed about him had been the air of power that he wore like an invisible cloak. An inborn self-confidence that said he knew who and what he was, and dared anyone to challenge that knowledge.