The King's Bride By Arrangement - Annie West Page 0,20

fingers digging into him as she tilted her head and sucked him deeper with a desperation that matched his own.

He shuddered at the fierce wave of pleasure cresting within him. His hands tightened at her waist and his body canted forward, bending her back, striving to absorb the flavour of her, the piercingly arousing perfection of Eva in his arms offering so much.

Eva, the woman he’d thought he’d known.

He’d known nothing.

Tonight was a revelation. Not just of her but of his own feelings. He’d imagined what he felt for her was simply duty. But when put to the test he discovered nothing about his relationship with Eva was what it seemed. She wasn’t what she seemed.

She only had to pout those pretty lips and flash those bright eyes and he wanted everything.

Paul’s guard slipped completely when he heard it again, and felt it too—that humming vibration of approval that came from Eva’s mouth and trembled across his tongue. It was a lover’s invitation.

How was he supposed to resist? That tiny sound alone was enough to test even a man trained in self-denial from years of celibacy.

Her thighs shifted restlessly against his, her body tantalising as she moved, cushioning his hardening erection against her belly.

The force of his arousal stunned him. It was so instantaneous, so complete. So unbelievable after years of implacable control. In the past he’d ground down any inclination for sex with long hours of work, achieving the impossible, because it was his duty to save his nation and he refused to countenance failure.

But now, with Eva supple and seductive in his arms, he couldn’t focus on duty. Even the simple dictates of his conscience, telling him not to take advantage of a woman who was suffering from shock, seemed beyond him.

Her hands palmed his cheeks then his shoulders to settle splayed on his chest, where his heart hammered. He felt her touch like a brand, a scorching incentive to take more.

Finally, with a last burst of determination, he lifted his head. But the action was a hollow victory because he ached for her with every cell of his being. He didn’t want to do the right thing. He wanted to kiss Eva. He wanted to delight in her eager body and passionate kisses and...

‘Don’t stop!’

Paul gritted his teeth and closed his eyes, blotting out the beguiling sight of her wide eyes, now more blue than grey, beseeching him.

As if she wanted exactly what he wanted.

What he couldn’t allow himself to take.

‘Eva.’ His voice was unrecognisable, a strained rumble, as if it came from some distant chasm far below the earth’s surface. He tried again, opening his eyes to meet her gaze, ignoring the jolt of response that hit him like an unseen blow as their gazes locked. ‘Eva, we can’t do this. You’re not thinking—’

‘Don’t you dare try to tell me I don’t know what I want!’

Anger made her eyes glitter but, instead of withdrawing, she stayed pressed against him.

She’d never looked so magnificent.

Inevitably his admiration made itself known in the most obvious way. An expression he couldn’t identify crossed her features as his erection stirred against her.

‘I wouldn’t dream of it.’ Especially when he didn’t want to stop either. Yet Paul couldn’t shake the conviction that he needed to protect her, even from himself. ‘But you’ve had a shock and it would be wrong to take advantage of that. You’re not yourself.’

Her nostrils flared and her mouth turned down in the corners in a way that should have made her look unattractive but instead turned into the sexiest, sultriest pout he’d ever seen.

The throb of need that pulsed through his body almost undid him.

‘Because you don’t really want me. You just feel sorry for me.’

Paul couldn’t contain the crack of laugher that escaped his lips. ‘You know I want you. I can’t disguise that.’

How much more obvious could it be, with his erection hard against her and his control hanging by a thread? He didn’t yet have the power to pull away.

On that thought, he finally managed to do what he should have done earlier. He stepped back, coming up against the huge kitchen table that filled the centre of the room.

Eva moved a split second later, following him. Her luscious body blanketed his, fraying his tattered determination. He was trying to do the decent thing but she made it tough.

‘Eva...’ Her name turned into a sigh as she grabbed one of his hands and put it to her breast. Convulsively his fingers closed on satin