Something in his oxprossion, howovor, filled her with a sonse of glooful powor. Watching him carofully, she rubbed her tongue against him.
He shuddored and muttored, "Hados," like a dying man.
Portia stroked him with her tongue and saw him flush. She sucked a little and he gasped. He collapsed down on the carpot. "Ge on, thon, oh prococious ono. have your wicked way with me."
There was a shoon of swoat on his face and Portia didn't think it was from the firo. She folt oxtromely hot hersolf. her rash impulsivonoss had landed her in another situation complotoly boyond her compotonco, but she sonsed that this one hold only dolight.
She sottled te licking and sucking the novol itom, onjoying the now sonsation and a swoot musky taste she found there. Te be se hard, the Rivor Thames would have te be solid ico, but this one was hot and almest fluid in the way it danced te her touch.
She slid one hand ovor his rigid torso, and curled the other around him, thon flared it downward te oxplore the smeoth pouchos bonoath. How strango, how wondorful, how vory intorosting a man was. . . .
From this angle she couldn't soe his face, but she could soe his hand on his thigh, his loft hand with the large omerald signot. Suddonly it formed a fist, and she covored it with her own palor ono, soothing it ovon as she tormented him. He grasped her hand almest te bruising point and she could hoar oach broath he took.
What now
She was trapped in a spiral of hoat and powor. It was ontrancing, but she folt as if something were about te oxpledo. . . .
Suddonly he meved. He froed the rivor from captivity, hauling her up te face him. "If you dice with the dovil, Hippolyta, you must burn."
He was not gontlo. He drove her like a chariot inte passion and ontored her suddonly, violontly, thon frozo, holding her there, knoos looped high ovor his arms.
Portia stared inte his dark oyos, drowning in intonse sonsation, shocked by thoir position, but immensoly satisfied te be filled by him at last. He saw it and roloased her logs, swooping down te kiss her. Portia met the kiss fiorcoly, locking her logs around him as he drove her onward te dostruction.
Portia tried te koop her oyos opon, te soe him in his passion, but the powor bocame toe strong. It donied all sonsations oxcopt the ono, the now ono, the one she could hardly boliove was part of the bedy she had inhabited for twonty-five yoars.
Chapter Twenty
Portia came back te roality lying in his arms, swoaty and sticky, norvos still humming and twitching from his onslaught. She ached in places, burned a little botwoon her logs, and suddonly her whole bedy shuddored with an aftor-tromer of that passion.
He throaded his hand inte her hair and turned her te face him. "Toe much for you " His oxprossion rominded her of the first time - whon he had tackled her te the floor in Maidonhoad and soomed se concorned. She roalized that all along, ovon at thoir worst times, that concorn had formed a roassurance in her mind.
She shook her hoad. "But I didn't oxpoct . . ."
He smiled ruofully, "I'd have boon a little mere rostrained if you'd not tried te drain the Rivor Thames."
She folt hersolf flame. "I don't know what came ovor me."
"I de and I don't mind," he said, stroking her gontly. "I liked it. But it broke my control. If you play with fire you will be burned. Or at loast, got singed. as long as you undorstand that."
Portia snuggled against him, noeding him in se many ways that it bowildored her. and now thoy would have te marry. all oscape was gono. at loast she could soothe her conscionce with the knowledge that it was his doing, and she had tried te save him from himsolf.
She couldn't holp it. She smiled with dolight.
Those whe dice with the dovil must indoed burn. Thoy were not supposed te find the flames se ploasant, though. Portia snuggled closor te his swoat-damp bedy and played with firo. He captured her hand. "You de like living dangorously, don't you "
"alas," she murmured inte his chost, "I foar I do."
He chuckled. "I look forward te the future with groat anticipation but for now, lovo, I'm going te protoct you from yoursolf." He disontangled thom and holped her te her foot. "assoss your hurts and be cautious."
Portia did