down the front of her gown, awkward with eagerness, clumsy with desire. Careless of folds and fastenings, Alec rid himself of his neckcloth and shirt and boots, scattering them heedlessly on the floor. She thrust her fingers through her hair, scattering hairpins like rain over the coverlet.
Then Charlotte sat before him in only her shift, her gold-coppery hair foaming over her shoulders, her eyes glinting in the last light of sunset that slanted through the window. Fighting his pounding heart and throbbing need, Alec forced himself to slow down. He sat beside her on the bed, nestled her close with an arm around her shoulders, and cupped one breast with his other hand. Savoring her gasp of pleasure as he teased it, as he took her mouth again. Through another long kiss, he eased them down onto the featherbed.
Her hands caressed his chest, his ribs—feather light, yet leaving trails of fire wherever they went. His own fingers found their way under the hem of her shift and delicately along the silk of her inner thigh. She moaned softly and opened to him, pushing up toward his touch. The sound she made when he obliged half maddened him. Her arms tightened around his neck, deepening their kiss beyond anything he’d ever known. He let his fingers flicker and tantalize until Charlotte’s breathing became a pant in his ear.
“No,” she protested when he removed his hand to free himself from his breeches, unbearably constricting. He made quick work of it, then resumed his teasing. Only when she stiffened and cried out in joyous release did he give in to his own raging desire and slip inside her.
The pleasure and relief of it was exquisite. He plunged into that glorious warmth and… through an unexpected resistance. Alec drew back; Charlotte’s arms pulled him closer. Far too aroused to think, or to stop himself, he moved again. She met him eagerly. Together, they found a rhythm that mounted and built until the world blurred into ecstasy. Somewhere in the glory of it, Charlotte cried out again. And Alec heard his own voice join hers as release carried him away.
Only when the storm had passed and they lay enlaced, breathing, did Alec acknowledge what his body had discovered. She’d been a virgin. Not an experienced young widow wise in the ways of intrigue. How had he imagined she was, with all he knew of her marriage? He hadn’t wanted to think of it, he admitted. He’d wanted… her. Desperately. Far too late, he wondered what the household had heard, what ruin he had brought upon her by yielding to his desires? And hers, yes, but he was the more experienced, and thus responsible, one. And what the hell was he going to do about it now?
Charlotte felt her pulse slow in tandem with his. She pulled in a deeper breath and let it go. Every inch of her felt wonderful. There had been a flash of pain, but it was nothing compared to the tide of amazing sensations that had come before, and after. She pushed her hair back from her face and stretched sensuously. Suddenly, she was ravenous. She sat up and lit the candle by the bedside. By its light she saw him, naked in her bed, his lean muscled body sculpted by the dancing golden illumination. “Are you hungry? The servants left a cold supper in the dining room.”
Sir Alexander—no, Alec; she had to think of him as Alec now—rose on one elbow and looked at her. Charlotte smiled at him and got no smile in return. “Left?” he said.
“They are all out.” She started to explain about Ethan’s cousin, then didn’t bother. She was too contented to form the words.
“Are they?” His expression was peculiar.
“Yes, we are all alone.” She ran a hand down his arm, enjoying the feel of it under her fingers.
“So you… planned… this?”
Something in his tone, his face, made Charlotte draw back. Suddenly, she felt naked and exposed. “I… no. I… took advantage of… the circumstance.” She hadn’t thought beyond the moment; now she was beyond it, and in uncharted territory. The way Alec was gazing at her—did he despise her for giving in to her desire? Had she become quite another sort of woman in his eyes?
“This is… I must apologize for my conduct…”
“No. You must not.” Without conscious thought, Charlotte’s hand reached for her shift. In an instant, everything seemed to have changed in the room. Tender intimacy had dissolved into awkwardness. She slipped on