Noble Scoundrel (Peril & Persuasion Book 1)

by Amy Sandas

  “Is there anything else?” Her question sounded strained. Would he know it was due to the desire rioting inside her?

  Green eyes lifted to hers. His grin was unabashedly sensual. “Not unless you’ve any frustrations you’ve a need to take out on me?”

  Her fingers curled around the edge of the door as though to brace it against his entrance, but the greater risk was of her flinging it wide to allow him freely and shamelessly into her bedroom.

  She’d already acknowledged to herself that some deeper emotions had somehow gotten tangled up with her desires when it came to this man. And standing here now, looking into his tempting eyes, she couldn’t ignore the more tender feelings swirling through the heady lust.

  But he wasn’t a man for tenderness, was he?

  She angled her chin upward. “Do you think me the type of woman to be seduced by nothing more than a roguish smile and the beckoning curl of your finger?”

  “You wouldn’t be the first woman to succumb to the curl of my finger.” The roughness of his lowered voice and the wickedness in his expression suggested a deeper meaning to his words. Though she didn’t understand the innuendo, it still made her inner muscles clench.

  “Do you really believe grouping me in with your prior lovers is a good idea?”

  “Prior lovers? Does that make you my current lover?”

  The pure, dark heat in his eyes as he said the word nearly brought her to her knees. “Don’t be presumptuous.”

  “Shall I be crudely blunt instead?” The hard angles of his face darkened as he lowered his head toward her. “I’ve not been satisfied by such an inadequate taste of you, luv. You’ve inspired an insatiable hunger inside me. One that won’t be eased until I’ve had every inch of your delectable body beneath my mouth.”

  Breathless fire burned through her at the raw sexual tone of his voice. Gravelly rough, explicit, and bone melting.

  She wanted every inch of her body beneath his mouth. His perfect, wicked, ravenous mouth. Her pulse raced at the thought. Her sex ached.

  No, she didn’t just want it, she craved it beyond reason.

  “You need it, too,” he murmured thickly. “I see it in your eyes. In the pulse at the side of your throat. The way you stare at my mouth. Are you imagining where I’ll kiss you first? No doubt the truth will shock you.” His lips tilted. “But I promise you’ll love it.”

  She believed him.

  Emotions could be managed. Just because she felt certain things didn’t mean she had to express them. Or indulge them. She could have this. A few hours in the dark privacy of her bedroom. Just for pleasure. Just for her.

  “This is a terrible idea,” she muttered.

  “It’s a bloody brilliant idea,” he argued. “Let me in.”

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Katherine pushed the door open wide enough to admit his large form as she backed into the shadows of her bedroom. Keeping her eyes on him, she didn’t stop until he closed the door quietly behind him.

  And there he was, intensely present in her candlelit bedroom. As though he belonged. As though it were his. As though she were his. His stare devoured her. For a moment, she felt like a lamb facing the jaws of a starving wolf. But instead of frightening her, the raw violence of his desire excited her.

  Yes. She needed this. Him. The closeness and strength of him. The surrender and the claiming.

  She lifted her fingers to release the tiny buttons at the neck of her nightgown and was surprised to realize her hands were shaking.

  His low sound of satisfaction thrilled her and she smiled.

  In rough, rushed movements, he shed his coat and waistcoat, tossing them toward the vanity bench without looking to see if they made it. Then he reached behind his head to grasp a fistful of his shirt, pulling it off over his head in one swift action, baring his body from the waist up.

  Katherine stilled, once again dumbstruck by the sight of his muscled form.

  How could a man be so hard? She allowed her gaze to travel leisurely over his fascinating body. Across his chest, down his rippled abdomen. Every inch of him was an enticement, begging her to run her hands over him. Those lines angling over his hips drew her gaze downward. To the long, thick swell of his erection.

  Her heart stopped at the sight. Her belly swirled. As she stared in astonishment, it swelled even more, until the broad tip of it extended past the waistband of his breeches.

  A heavy groan brought her gaze flying back up to meet his. “See what you do to me with just the touch of your eyes? To have your hands on me...” He stopped, breathing hard through his nose. “You could destroy me so easily.”

  Destroy him?

  She didn’t believe it possible. But the words still sent a rush of power through her. She tugged at the neck of her nightgown, which had been loosened enough to draw down past her shoulders, then lower.

  The moment her breasts were exposed, his gaze fell to them. Her nipples puckered painfully, readying for his mouth.

  “Ah, duchess,” he growled softly. “You’re a dangerous woman.”

  She felt dangerous then, seeing how she affected him. How his hands fisted at his sides and his breath expanded and contracted his wide chest. The way the muscles of his stomach tensed and tightened and his eyes flashed with hunger.

  She freed her arms from the nightgown and it fell to the floor in a cloud of soft cotton.

  “Fuck.”

  She didn’t mind the crudeness of his whispered word. That her naked body could draw such an unfiltered expression from his lips was nearly as exciting as the way his low-textured voice formed the word.

  In three long strides, he reached her. Wrapping his arms beneath her buttocks, he lifted her high against him. She gasped at the heat and smoothness of his skin against hers, touching her from her breasts to the tops of her thighs.

  Looking down, she watched him take one of her breasts fully into his mouth and suckle. Hard. Her head fell back and her spine went soft as she braced herself against his wide shoulders. The luscious tug and the wicked edge of his teeth on her nipple made her mindless.

  She didn’t even know he’d carried her to the bed until he lowered her upon it, releasing her as soon as her back hit the mattress. His strong hands gripped her thighs, parting them wide as he settled his shoulders between them. Tensing in surprise, she lifted her head to see his harshly handsome face drawn taut with a look of reverence and animalistic hunger.

  “Gorgeous.” The heat of the harshly breathed word bathed her sensitive flesh a second before his mouth covered her with an open kiss.

  The sensation was unbelievable. The wet and the warmth. Then the hot flick and thrust of his tongue, the gentle suckling. All accompanied by the demanding sounds of pleasure he made deep in his throat. As though the act aroused him as much as it did her.

  She didn’t know how that could be possible.

  His mouth was pure magic.

  She never would have guessed this was what he meant when he’d suggested she’d be shocked to know where he wanted to kiss her.

  But he was wrong.

  There was no opportunity for shock when every lush glide of his tongue along her sex sparked such delicious sensations. Every suckling, demanding tug on her soft, swollen folds sent molten heat through her center. His large hands gripped hard to her thighs, holding her firmly in place as her legs began to tremble and a restless, reckless urging rose higher within her. Tingling jolts of pleasure shot out from her core, up her spine to the back of her skull. She clutched and released the bedding in a mindless attempt to stay in place while everything in her threatened to spin off into the wild storm he’d created.

  “Bloody hell, woman,” he snarled against her flesh. “You taste like heaven and sin. I can’t get enough of you.”

  “I can’t...” she panted. Arching, she pushed herself more firmly to his mouth, and he responded with swift thrust of his tongue. “I... Oh, God.”

  Reaching down, she grasped his head, holding him to her.

&nb
sp; “Don’t worry, luv. I know what you need.”

  With a husky groan, he covered the bud of her sex with his mouth, suckling sharply before soothing with a twirl of his tongue then a long, flat lick. He continued the torment. Until her body tensed and strained. Until she could no longer think. Until all she knew was intense, deep-searing pleasure. Until that pleasure exploded with a blast of tingling light rushing along every nerve, leaving her trembling and gasping for breath.

  As she lay with her legs shaking around his great shoulders, he shifted to press a tender kiss to the softness of her belly. After dipping his tongue into the sensitive well of her navel, he trailed his lips along her ribs until he reached her breast.

  Katherine could barely breathe. She felt like he’d scattered her into a million pieces and she could do nothing but lie there as she reformed beneath his tender kisses.

  That he could be so wonderfully attentive after displaying such a ravenous hunger stirred something deep in her soul. Despite his denial, there was a great deal of gentleness in him. A wealth of it, and he was bestowing every ounce upon her.

  He spent long, lovely minutes lavishing her breasts with attention, and soon the tugging heat of his mouth began to angle down to the still throbbing flesh between her thighs. The restless yearning returned to her blood. She shifted her legs against his hair-roughened thighs. Then tilted her hips upward to where his abdomen rested, forcing her legs wide as she ran her hands ran up and down the hard planes of his back.

  With a final, teasing flick of his tongue on her aching nipple, he shifted higher along her body.

  Her eyes fluttered open to see his broad, handsome face hovering close above hers. His lips were parted for his ragged breath and his eyes glittered wickedly. “I knew you’d love it.”

  Despite the languid pleasure still flowing through her body, Katherine rolled her eyes. “Must you always be so arrogant?”

  “Absolutely. There’s nothing more satisfying than knowing I’ve pleasured you.” He dipped his head to take her mouth in a hot, searing kiss. “But I’m not nearly done.”

  “What—?”

  He cut her off with a deep thrust of his tongue past her teeth. While he kissed her senseless, he shifted his weight to one side, allowing him to slide his calloused hand down the length of her body. Shivers coursed in the wake of his touch.

  When he combed through the soft curls guarding her sex, she whimpered.

  The soft sound of distress had him chuckling.

  Katherine frowned, but anything she might have said in response to his humor dissolved as he ran the blunt tip of his finger along her wet seam.

  She moaned.

  He did it again and she rolled her hips. Even after the pleasure he’d already given her, she wanted more. The man had made her greedy.

  “D’you want to feel me inside you, luv?” His voice was a harsh whisper, full of sinful temptation. He tapped the flat of his finger against her slick opening. “Here, where you’re so hot and wet for me?”

  Her core tightened deliciously in response and another soft sound escaped her.

  He circled the swollen bud of her clitoris. Increasing the pressure with each lush stroke. “Tell me,” he commanded roughly.

  Katherine shuddered and curled her hand around his taut neck. Pulling him down until his mouth barely touched hers, she looked intently into his wicked green eyes. “I want to feel you everywhere.”

  He grinned. “Everywhere?” He slid his finger between her folds, coating it in the wetness of her climax. Then he lifted his hand to spread her own moisture around the tip of her nipple in spiraling circles. “Here?”

  “Yes,” she gasped, arching into his teasing touch as the peak of her breast puckered.

  His murmur of appreciation was immediately followed by the swipe of his tongue as he lapped up her essence before it could dry on her skin. Then he delved gently between her thighs again, using two fingers to part her labia, to soften and massage them. His purposeful, skillful touch spurred her arousal as he gathered more of her slick heat.

  This time, he pressed his thumb to the center of her bottom lip and gently drew it down, urging her to open her mouth. Holding her gaze, he slid one fingertip past her teeth. She instinctively closed her lips around him and held him against her tongue.

  His eyes flashed bright and hot above her. “What about here...against your pink tongue?”

  It was odd at first when she realized she was tasting herself on his finger. But the captivated look on his face and the urge to explore had her twirling her tongue around his fingertip before she nipped at the fleshy pad as he withdrew.

  Only then did she understand what other part of his body she might explore with her mouth. The dawning understanding had a fierce blush heating her cheeks as a fresh rush of lust flowed through her blood.

  “Did you enjoy that?” His roughened voice suggested he had. Very much.

  She nodded.

  His breath was ragged and short and his smile was tight, as though he struggled to retain his usual careless humor. Still looking in her eyes, he slid his finger along her sex again, pressing more intently against her core. “Would you like to feel my caresses here, inside you?”

  Her reply was a trembling whisper. “Yes.”

  With a gravelly moan, he took her mouth in a swift and passionate kiss. His tongue plunged and stroked along hers. Her fingers fisted in his hair as she answered every thrust then sucked his tongue into her mouth. His grunt of pleasure was empowering, and she released his tongue only to close her teeth on his full bottom lip, testing her hold on him.

  He chuckled softly and countered with a sharp nip of his own, followed by the soothing attention of his tongue. He continued to tease and rouse and challenge with his kiss, engaging her fully until she felt the first bit of stretching pressure as his finger began to push past her virginal opening.

  She broke from the kiss with a hoarse gasp at the unexpected discomfort. He immediately paused and pressed light kisses to the side of her throat. “Shall I stop?”

  “No,” she answered quickly, clutching his forearm to hold his hand in place between her thighs. “Keep going. Please. I need to feel you inside me.”

  He muttered something incoherent as he pressed deeper into her.

  By the time his finger was fully sheathed, she felt no more discomfort. Instead, she experienced a satisfying fullness and the distinct awareness of how right it felt to allow him such intimacy with her body. And when he slowly withdrew before gently pressing forward again, she sighed. The wet glide of his touch along her inner channel awakened new sensations and a deeper craving.

  Her fingers tightened, curling into the roped muscle of his forearm as her spine arched beneath him. Tension tightened her limbs and shortened her breath.

  The way he stroked and stretched and curled his finger inside her was building that pleasure once again. But it was somehow more intense and yet not enough all at once.

  And then suddenly it was more. Her spine bent into a bow as she pressed her head into the mattress.

  Two of his fingers were now sliding in and out of her. Stretching and softening, tantalizing her inner flesh, stimulating the sensitive nerves. And then he pressed the heel of his hand to her clitoris, grinding it in circles as he thrust his fingers.

  Wanton and wild, she rocked her hips into his hand, feeding the rhythm he’d started. On one deep roll of her pelvis, she felt the hardened ridge of his erection pressing hot against her thigh. On instinct she reached for him, covering his length with her palm in a clumsy stroke.

  His body jerked and his breath left his lungs in a heavy puff against her bare shoulder.

  She stroked him again. This time, her thumb inadvertently brushed across the exposed tip above his waistband. She was stunned by the scorching heat and satiny smoothness of his skin. Intrigued, she ran the flat of her thumb over his tip once again, discovering the small slit and the bead of silken moisture that rested there.

  His head dropped heavily beside
hers; his breath was ragged and sharp. Though his fingers continued to delve and stroke her inner flesh, the rest of him had become powerfully still, as though he were afraid to move and dissuade her from her current exploration.

  There was no chance of that, however. Katherine was fascinated.

  But his breeches wouldn’t allow her to discover much more of him, and she suddenly wanted very badly to feel everything. Finding the fastenings, she fumbled in her attempt to release them. With a sound of frustration, she muttered, “Remove your breeches.”

  He laughed softly, roughly. Pushing up to his elbow, he shook his loosened hair back from his face and grinned down at her. “Is that an order, duchess?”

  Not the least bit bothered by the nickname, she smiled up at him. “An urgent one.”

  “Then I dare not delay.”

  He leapt gracefully from the bed to stand beside it. Katherine rolled to her side, cushioning her head on her bent arm as she watched his hands fly over the fastening of his breeches. A moment later he was shoving them down past his taut and narrow hips. Bending forward, he quickly removed his boots and stockings then tugged the breeches free.

  When he straightened again, she held her breath, savoring the moment.

  Magnificent.

  It was the only word that came to mind at the full sight of him. Every inch of him was the embodiment of masculine strength and beauty. Even the arrogant tilt of his mouth and the blaze of sexual fire in his eyes. And especially the long, hard curve of his erection standing proud against his belly.

  Katherine realized with sudden shock that that thick and throbbing part of him was supposed to somehow fit inside her. Though the mechanics of it seemed utterly incomprehensible, it didn’t stop her body from reacting to the thought of experiencing that sexual intimacy with him.

  “Intimidated now?”

  Her attention flew back to his face. Though his lips were twisted into a smirk of arrogance, she thought she saw vulnerability flickering in the heat of his eyes.

  But that couldn’t be right.

  This was Mason Hale. Undefeated in the ring. A fearsome scoundrel of London’s East End. There was likely nothing in the world strong enough to bring him down.