To Save a Fallen Angel (The Fallen Angels series Book 2)

by Julianna Hughes

  She tilted her head. "Luc," she breathed. “Kiss me.”

  His name more a moan. Her voice sultry and sexy. Unlike anything she had heard from her lips before.

  She was no English rose that would fall apart at the first touch. She was French. Or at least the part of her that counted. And she was a Malveaux in her heart. And if that was not enough, she had been raised by two of the boldest Barbary pirates to haunt the Mediterranean seas. So she wasn’t going to fall apart because of an enthusiastic lover.

  Peggy could feel Luc's right hand scorching her back where he was making little erotic circles with his fingers. She doubted he even knew what he was doing. Tremors flowed off his fingers and created a turbulent storm within her. Waves of pleasure washed downward and culminated at the apex of her legs.

  He breathed, raggedly. A sigh escaped his throat. Or was it a moan? Maybe the sound emanated from her and not him. Then the hand that held hers momentarily tightened and slacked as his other hand, the one holding her body upright, drew silent. She watched in fascination as his throat swallowed and then regret seemed to fill his eyes.

  Suddenly, his left hand released hers and hesitantly slid downward to lay listlessly on the curve of her hip. His eyes closed and his mouth formed words that he did not utter. He was going to withdraw. She knew it in her heart and soul. And her body screamed in protestation.

  "Luc?" she demanded. His eyes clinched shut and he swallowed the words gathering in his throat.

  "Luc!" she said more forcefully and raised her hands to cage his face.

  His chin dipped and he exhaled deeply against her skin. The warm air washed over her and prickled where it caressed her bosom. A wetness and tingling had invaded the area just above her legs. She would not let him withdraw from her.

  "Lucien - Artemis - Sean - Stoughton, you are not going to deny us this pleasure. I have been dreaming about this for the last three days. Do you hear me?" she demanded.

  Luc's heart swelled and his mind whirled. Peggy’s responsiveness was more rapturous than the fireworks that had been set off over Covington Gardens last month. So bright, in fact, that it nearly obliterated the disquiet over her use of his entire name. But not quite.

  "How. . ." He began to ask how she knew his full name, but sighed instead when her fingernails gouged a path across his chest and ended with the hem of his shirt clutched in her fist.

  "No more talking," she demanded.

  She jerked the loose-fitting sailor’s shirt up, exposing his chest to the humid salt air. Pure unadulterated lust swam in the depths of her Cerulean and cobalt blue eyes. His body couldn't help but respond. He was on fire and his cock pulsated painfully against the increasing tightness of his pants. He would ask her his question later.

  Peggy didn't know if she exposed his body to her view trying to forestall his question or to appease her need to touch more of his bare skin. Regardless of the reason, he quivered when she pulled the shirt up. He was no longer interested in asking questions as he quickly took over and jerked the shirt over his head and tossed it away. Of that she was sure.

  His eyes darkened and his body became as hard as steel. Peggy knew what the hard bulge in his pants meant, and reveled over the hold she had over this powerful man. Luc's hands rose, sending little tremors of pleasure throughout her body. When he reached a point just below her breasts, his hands splayed open. His thumbs paused and hovered above her nipples. The anticipation of his caress hardened them further.

  Peggy's breath hitched as he moved his hands inward, finally covering her breasts. Even through the layers of cloth and whalebone corset, his touch was as if she were naked before him. And then his thumbs flicked over her nipples. She was startled to discover just how sensitive they had become.

  For a fleeting second, her mind conjured the last time a man had touched her thusly. Gustav's touch had not engendered such pleasure. It hadn’t disgusted her. It just left her feeling unfulfilled.

  Luc gripped the edge of her gown and she quickly covered his hands. There was no mistaking his intent. He had every intention of returning the liberty she had just taken with his clothes.

  "It's my only dress, she entreated.

  His right eyebrow rose cynically.

  Peggy felt her face light up. "Fine,” she snapped, “it is my favorite dress."

  He returned her smile without releasing the edges of her gown. Pushing her slightly away, he gazed down and admired the dress. His eyes traveled downward to the hem and then slowly rose. Peggy marveled at the appreciative gleam in his eyes. And then . . . they fell on the low décolletage of the gown. The blue of his eyes sparkled and turned to the deepest of blacks.

  "This is a bedroom dress. I’ve thought so since the first time I saw you in it," he said. The desire in his eyes grew and his breathing became labored. His gaze snapped to hers and the mischievousness she was coming to know lit his eyes.

  His arms flexed and his grip on her gown tightened. Peggy restrained his hands, halfheartedly. "Luc, it's my only formal gown. If I have to receive visitors, I won't have anything to wear."

  The right corner of his mouth kicked up, but he loosened his grip nonetheless, sliding them down to the hidden closures in the front of the gown. "And just whom are you expecting to come a calling?" he asked.

  Peggy felt his smile all the way down in her groin. She struggled to form the innocuous words, swallowing the dryness in her throat twice before she could get them out. "We're in port, Luc. The harbor master, the custom's Officer, or any of a number of government officials might suddenly demand permission to board."

  His fingers released her dress and he trailed a line across the edges, raising gooseflesh in their wake. “You are the captain of the Coral Sea. You have a dress uniform; I’ve seen you in it.” The blue in his eyes darkened and another quiver raised more gooseflesh on her arms. “And this isn’t a London ballroom; wear your uniform.”

  She smiled up at him and marveled at his obtuseness. "No, Lord Stoughton, in the eyes of your countrymen, I’m not the captain of the Coral Sea, you are. Yer War Department and Sir Walter made sure of that. So I won't be greeting our guests as the captain of the Coral Sea, you will. I'll be greeting them as just one of your passengers." She hesitated and her composure slipped a little, "And. . . as the daughter of the Fourth Earl of Kiterman."

  Chapter 24

  Peggy shivered in Luc’s arms, and he knew it wasn’t from his caresses. The irises of her eyes constricted to pinpoints and then in the blink of an eye, her natural color returned, and she refocused on him with determination. Luc wanted to wipe away whatever painful memory she’d just had. Or at the very least, replace it with something more enjoyable.

  He admitted he didn't want to just distract Peggy, he wanted to spend the entire night showing her what true love was. Maybe then she would be a little more amenable to his marriage proposal.

  He blocked out the disquieting questions that whirled in his mind, his chest expanding and collapsing rapidly with each breath he took. Her nails scored angry red marks across his chest. Slowing down or trying to be gentle was not going to happen.

  His eyes locked on the cleavage of her breasts as they disappeared enticingly into the décolletage of her gown. Luc’s mouth became dry as he anticipated savoring the delicious morsels.

  "Are..." He swallowed and licked his lips. "Are you sure the gown is necessary?"

  He hesitated a moment and she filled in the breach by reaching back up and caressing his face. "No. . ."

  His hands grasped the dress's edge in a vise-like grip. Peggy pressed her body against his and locked her elbows against his forearms, smiling enticingly at the same time. The combination prevented him from ripping the dress from her body which, even through the befuddlement of his lust-drenched brain, he knew had been her intention.

  "But I would really rather not have to greet anyone in one of the dresses I have left or my-" She hesitated and looked down. Luc saw the mischievous twinkle in her eyes. She continued, "-my sailor's togs, if
I can help it."

  He released his hold on the edge of her dress and allowed his hands to drift downward. The softness of her breasts transmuted as his hands shaped them to his touch. Another shudder racked her body. She moaned deep in her throat. His groin pulsated painfully. He flexed his fingers, digging them into the material that separated them from her flesh. Her body trembled and canted closer to his, pressing her breasts more firmly into his seeking fingers.

  Peggy was overwhelmed by the sensations coursing through her as his hands played her like a harp. Gustav had not brought her such pleasure, only pain and discomfort. Something, thanks to Lady Peri - as the first Captain Peri preferred to be called - Peggy had expected her first time to not be pleasant. Especially, if the man did not take the time to prepare the woman. And Gustav had not even tried to prepare her for his invasion.

  Peggy had never fully understood what Lady Peri had been talking about. Until now.

  Her hands flew from his face to cover his where they roughly stroked and caressed her breasts. She grasped them and pulled. Then she groaned and pressed them back with all her might when he went to pull away.

  She thought she heard him laugh and was warmed by the pure joy on his face. His eyes were locked on hers and passion radiated from him in waves that washed over her and made her hum with pleasure.

  "Luc," she whispered. Peggy squeezed his hands once, twice, and then she quickly released her grip.

  The gown now strangled and smothered her. Of their own volition her hands rose to the hidden closure and began fumbling with the tapes and hooks.

  His hands covered hers, and then took over the task of freeing her from the gown. Peggy closed her eyes and enjoyed the feel of his hands as they brushed against her overheated skin. Cool air caressed her breast, and she opened her eyes to stare into the mirror on the wall across from them.

  Her eyes were frozen, glued to the image she and Luc presented. His head, his beautiful head, was bent to his task of freeing her from the special corset she had had made. The two of them made a striking tableau. Particularly him, with his profile presented to her as it was. He was devastatingly handsome.

  Suddenly the sleeve of her dress slipped, sliding even closer to the edge of her shoulder. She gasped, ceasing to breathe, and his hands stilled. Involuntarily her shoulder rose, and the dress hung suspended.

  Her eyes were fixated on the edge of her dress as it teetered. Then she looked up and knew what she would find. Their eyes locked and she grew warm. A shudder passed through her despite the inferno raging inside of her. Then the dress slid a fraction down her shoulder. Both their eyes snapped to the gown's edge as it hung suspended by an invisible thread.

  Slowly her gaze rose to his once more. He must have sensed the change. His eyes then rose, an inch for each of her heartbeats, until they collided with hers. Peggy saw the desire, wanting, and passion burning there. And she breathed.

  The dressed slipped loose of its moorings and slid down unnoticed by either of them, pooling at her feet. Peggy knew she shouldn’t be feeling self-conscious about being nearly naked in front of him. He had seen her thusly the first night he had been on board. But that night had been different. She had been challenging him. Daring him. Now she wanted to make love to him. Taking a breath, she forced her uncertainties away and concentrated on the man before her.

  Peggy gave in to the dream, the desire that had tortured her for days now, as she relaxed her body and snuggled against his bare chest. It was not enough. For either one of them. Luc's hands, clasped tightly to her upper arms, pulled her tighter against his body.

  He groaned. She moaned. Identical smiles lit their faces. He then dipped his head and kissed the side of her neck. A shiver wafted down her, and she feared she would lose her moorings. And then his lips trailed kisses upward until he reached the lobe of her ear.

  He breathed her name and warm air stole across her face. Suddenly he sucked the lobe of her ear into his mouth and bit down. Her knees went weak and she clung to his strong arms as he suckled her earlobe.

  Peggy's world condensed to the erotic pleasures rocketing through her. She barely comprehended what he was doing when he ceased his seduction of her ear and moved her away, leaving a wetness behind.

  Then he dipped one of his thumbs beneath the edge of her corset and rolled it over her nipple. Peggy’s knees gave way and she heard him chuckle or groan. The sound vibrated against her cheek and caused the wetness between her legs to grow.

  Suddenly her corset went slack, and her chest expanded with freedom. Her breasts seemed to swell beneath his hand. Cool air wafted across her breasts, leaving gooseflesh and pebbled nipples in its wake. Her eyes closed from the sheer pleasure coursing through her. She drew in a shallow breath and exhaled. And then she drew in a deep, shuddering breath and opened her eyes to the erotic tableau reflected in the mirror. A woman she barely knew stood before a Greek god.

  Luc felt his breath catch in his chest. His heart pounded fiercely against his ribs. The absolute beauty of the woman before him was beyond his wildest dreams. She was unique. Exotic. Incomparable to any other woman he had known before.

  Her breasts were larger than he had remembered. Much larger, as a matter of fact. She had criminally bound them way too tightly beneath the cleverly constructed corset. Angry red marks marred the porcelain white perfection of her breasts. And yet those held his attention but a moment.

  Stark delineation of darker, sun kissed skin heralded the border between the untouched and unseen globes of her breasts. Luc wondered about the reasoning for hiding such beauty for a fleeting second. Then knew the answer. On a ship full of men what else could she to do to avoid unnecessary distractions? No, he understood but it was still a crime against nature to harm them in such a way.

  He slid his hand from her breast and allowed his fingers to pass over the cruel indentations. She sighed and leaned back towards his chest, her eyes closed in pleasure as he traced each line downward. Yet when he reached the one over her right breast, he could not stop from soothing the injured skin. Her areolas were also marred by the red welt. So he soothed them as well.

  His middle finger brushed over her engorged nipple. It instantaneously pebbled from one brush of his finger to the next. A low moan rumbled through her as she arched her back and pressed her breast firmly against his fingers.

  The movement brought the triangular thatch of golden blonde hair protecting her sex into view. His heart thundered and his cock throbbed. He swallowed and replaced his right hand with his left. Pulling her tightly against him, he dipped his hand downward. His fingers followed the red welt that arrowed down toward the flat of her stomach.

  When the lines ended, he splayed his hand wide and reveled in the softness of her skin. Luc pulled her tighter and felt, as well as heard, her moan deep in her throat. Her tight butt snuggled his groin, and he was torn between continuing his journey downward or moving so as to see the part of her that now cradled his cock.

  The need to touch her won out. His fingers circled her stomach once, twice, and then thrice before continuing downward. He brushed against the edge of the enticing dark blond triangle and held his breath.

  The blissful pleasure he engendered when he began to sooth the angry welts on her chest made Peggy long for him to touch her in other places. Forbidden places. Places that only one other besides herself had ever touched.

  Peggy's skin had become hypersensitive. Each touch, each caress, and each callus on his fingers as they glided across her was thrilling. Warmth and cold followed in the wake of his fingers. Erotic tremors washed downward and gathered in ever increasing intensity at the apex of her legs.

  A warm wetness seemed to be gathering there as well. This was the prelude to enjoyable intimacy Lady Peri had told her about. What she hadn’t experienced with Gustav.

  Then her mind was torn from her musing to the hesitation she once again felt in Luc's fingers. His fingers brushed against the hair guarding her mound and then retreated. Her head tilted backward, and
she gazed up at him. A question lurked in his eyes. A question neither one of them could put to words.

  So Peggy did the only thing she knew to do, she covered his hand with hers and pressed it downward. His fingers brushed over the folds of her sex and then hovered there. She smiled and closed her eyes as she curled his fingers through the folds to the place she needed him most.

  She moaned. Loudly.

  His moan rumbled from his chest and vibrated into hers. And then his fingers continued their journey. They pressed deep into her. Then retreated. Her hand clinched around his and pressed down. He laughed as he once again inserted his finger deeper into her body.

  "So wet," he breathed into her ear. "So perfect. So ready for me. God, Peggy, I want you. . ." He took a deep breath and drew air across her heated cheek. "I . . . I don't know if I can wait any longer to be inside of you."

  Since she was of the same mind, Peggy grasped his wrist where it lay across her mound and pulled with more strength than she thought she had. His finger slid out of her and then across the nub at the top of her sex. She moaned loudly. Luc turned to stone, and his finger retraced the path to the hidden nub and circled it until her knees nearly gave out.

  "Luc!" she cried, now desperate to be joined with him.

  He chuckled deep in his throat. But he withdrew his finger, and this time Peggy involuntarily stayed his movement to savor the erotic feelings he had unleased. His left hand settled over her left breast and found the hardened nipple there. He pinched it once and then rolled it seductively between his thumb and forefinger.

  "Lu-cee-in," she huffed between cries of pleasure.

  Once again he chuckled, the sound vibrating through the both of them. Beyond desperate now, Peggy wrenched away and spun around to face the instigator of her torture. Her eyes flew to his even as her hands grasped the closure of his pants and began ripping buttons free.