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"I can think of better places for them, if ye trustdoatchful eyes that still held the sea She put her hand over his

After placing a careful kiss in his palm, she whispered, "I trust you"

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Thoentleness he’d used cradling her dainty teacups His eyes went hooded, and he leaned over to dust her lips with his Shivers raced through her at the touch It entle and soft, but the proone shadoith theher time to bolt, to break away To turn fro, and with a slow, curling sed His mouth slanted over hers with firm purpose as his hand slipped to her jaw Whatever had one, her body rooted to the earth and yearning toward his The kiss was long, slow, and tasting, and she opened her eyes to watch hiolden hairs on his forearht where they fell over his cheeks, and tiny webs of wrinkles sprang fro But he wasn’t laughing now, and he ran his thu the corner of herwithin She closed her eyes Now she was the one struggling not to fall apart

Charles had kissed her, and those kisses had excited her, but never like this Charles had : quickly, sharply, selfishly, and with aand anxious to please to consider that theremore to how bodies met Thoh he subtly sidled over, his hip pressing against hers with lazy suggestion His tongue explored her, pressing sweetly and gently and playfully but with a slow tenderness that was half pleasure, halfher into his rhyth her to lap at his mouth with the same sly fascination, the same unhurried surety She reached for his hair, for the tender back of his neck exposed beneath his collar

When he pulled back, his thumb still pressed to the corner of her lips, he smiled down at her with a new heat "Ye didn’t bolt"

She just shivered and shook her head no

Without the press of his body and the touch of his mouth, Frannie felt exposed, her skin alive and on fire under the thin cotton of her gown She hadn’t thought it through, bringing hi Still, it was strange to see the hills and shadows of her body through the worn cheht would show hi to her, the dusky shadows of her nipples and her thatch, farther down She felt lush and fearless in the night air, laid bare for him as all her secrets noere

"Ye look like a selkie dusted in starlight"

His hand traced down her face and neck,over ever so slowly, he planted a kiss there, and the breath caught in her throat as her back arched toward him

His palm traced down her arers to hers, one to one, a look of wonder," he y cut of his hair, just grazing broad shoulders, to the V where his work shirt hung open, showing a patch of gold hair even lighter than the rest He was stretched out beside her, bigger in every respect, at ease on his side with his kilt draped haphazardly, showing gold-dusted knees and his heavy work boots, carefully polished for their visit to the theater She ached to touch hied to feel his callused hands skim over her every curve

With a satisfied ruainst hers froh The kiss started deeper, faster this ti in the pressure of his lips and the fir one of hers and ht his, breaking past soft lips in a quick, tender caress, just testing the waters Heinto her ers splayed over the whisper-soft gown

"No corset Gods, woman," he murmured, his palm hot as he explored the valley froers He pulled her to her side, and she slid her leg over his, pressing pearled nipples against the planes of his chest, back arched and still bearing the dah the blanket

Tho her hair aside and brushing the tiny curls with a finger between soft presses of his lips Heat shi her ache inside for htened around the tense knot of his bicep He ski a trail of kisses down to the ribbon tie as his hand cupped her breast, his thuh the cloth She felt heavy in his ar when the sun rose Slowly, so slowly, he pulled the ribbon at her throat as his h the thin fabric, an echoed heat pooling between her legs and ently rolled her to her back and slung a leg over to straddle her thighs She watched the play of his kilt and grinned, stretched her hands overhead, and reveled in the strange, leisurely pleasure, languid as a purring cat His tongue returned, hot and wet through the gown, her nipple still peaked to his touch With both hands free, he cupped her breasts tenderly and bent his head to lavish the other nipple arh the cotton When Frannie ran her hands up the hard planes of his thighs, she was surprised to find that underneath his kilt he wore nothing at all

"Goodness," she rinding his pelvis against her to demonstrate with no question that there was actuallyquite a bit of soasp in surprise, he found her nipple again, teasing with his teeth andher writhe