her rather giddy to imagine them exploring hers. He continued to stroke her neck, which mesmerized her and had her nodding before she could stop and think better of it. Jackson took control and pulled her into his arms.
Jane, a force of nature who had made even dukes tremble, melted in this man’s arms as he kissed her. She had forgotten how she loved to be kissed, to be the sole focus of a man’s passion.
“Good Lord,” Jackson groaned as he buried his face in her neck.
“Yes?” she teased as her hands roamed over his chest and back.
He returned his mouth to hers, stealing little nibbling kisses. “I could kiss you for days.” He parted her dressing gown to explore her curves. She was shy about her body, which was no longer as young and firm as it once had been.
“Would you let me look at you, my darling?” Jackson asked.
My darling. She could have swooned. It had been too long since a man had used such an endearment for her.
“Jackson . . .” She breathed his name as her senses spun.
“Yes?” He feathered kisses along her jaw as his heated body pressed against her own.
“Take me to bed,” she commanded in a whisper.
He lifted her up, carrying her straight to his bed. She lay back as he closed the door to his room.
Heavens, he was a beautiful man. There was something to be said about a man who kept his physique. He was strong, sturdy in a way that most younger men were not. There was a promise that he knew his body and a woman’s and she would not be disappointed with the outcome. He took his time, removing his trousers as she looked on.
“Your turn,” he said as he approached the bed.
Jane sat up and removed her dressing gown. She loosened the ties of her chemise at her throat, and the fabric dropped off her shoulders. He reached up to stroke his fingertips over her skin just above the chemise, which still hung over her breasts, before he carefully pulled it down to her waist to expose her fully.
Jane was blushing as red as her hair. Her body was not that of a young girl’s. Her breasts were larger, heavier with the passing of time and nursing children. She wondered if Jackson would find her disappointing, but she was stunned to find only heat in his eyes.
“Exquisite,” he said as he brushed his thumb over one nipple. Jane’s body came alive after years of being dormant.
He moved closer, laying her back on the bed so he could pull the chemise down the rest of her body and drop it to the floor.
“Jane, you are a vision.” Jackson groaned as he leaned over her and stepped between her parted thighs.
“As are you.” She gazed in admiration at his strong, muscled form and the boyish grin that covered his lips. “What is it?” Jane asked as he caressed her breasts before sliding a hand down her body to her folds. She hissed as he sank a fingertip into her, testing her readiness. She was ready—there was no doubt of that.
“I feel like an untried youth being allowed a night with a most beautiful buxom maid. I want to leap on you and take you fast, but I also wish to savor every moment. It’s been a very long time since I felt that way.” There was an undeniable softness behind the heat in his gaze. It made the moment between them so much sweeter.
“Let us savor it. It has been a long time for me as well, and I am honestly not sure I remember how to do it properly.”
Jackson laughed and leaned over the bed to capture her mouth. Just like that, they rushed headlong into the moment together. He thrust into her body. He was slow and gentle at first, and Jane threw her head back on the bed. His eyes drifted over her as he withdrew and entered her again, making love to her at a leisurely pace, and she started to beg him for more. As the pleasure built between them, Jane let go of every thought and simply surrendered to her feminine needs.
She cried out Jackson’s name as she came apart, and he followed her a heartbeat later, shouting her name. He held her hips as she trembled with the aftermath of pleasure.
If she was being honest, she hadn’t gone without private moments of satisfaction all these years, but there was nothing better than