Page 77 of Dare to be Wicked

“Oh, nothing,” she replied as her gown slithered to the floor with a soft shushing sound and a flurry of lace. Lottie undid the ties of her little linen bustle and tossed it away. “Just something Mama said.”

The fingers that had been making quick work of her heavy crinoline petticoat stilled. “Lottie.”

“Yes?”

“Your mama, she… she did tell you…?”

Lottie glanced over her shoulder to see an expression of horror on his face. It was so comical she burst out laughing.

“Oh, Cass,” she said, clutching at her corset, which was suddenly far too tight. “Oh, take it off, take it off!”

“Well, I would if you’d keep still,” he grumbled, snatching at the ties of the crinoline again. “But there’s about two dozen petticoats to get through yet. I declare whoever designs women’s fashions is a damned sadist.”

Finally the crinoline sagged, though it was too stiff to fall, made thickly of horsehair and linen. Lottie pushed it down and stepped out of it, then waited impatiently as Cassius fought with the two remaining cotton petticoats. He muttered wrathfully under his breath and Lottie bit her lip, trying not to laugh or fidget. Finally, they were gone, and his clever fingers were tugging at the corset strings.

“Thank the Lord,” he said with a sigh as the corset came loose. Lottie threw the busk aside and pushed the corset to the floor, folding her arms over her breasts as she turned to him, aware that her shift was so fine it was nigh on see-through.

“You’re not shy, Lottie?” he asked in surprise. “Not with me?”

“N-Not shy exactly,” she said, and then saw the wonder in his eyes as he looked at her, the tinge of colour high on his cheekbones, the way his chest rose and fell.

“My God.” He breathed the words, reverent.

“No,” she said, as any last inhibitions fell away, because this was Cassius, whom she’d adored her entire life. This was perfect and there wasn’t the slightest thing to be shy or anxious about. “No. Not the least bit shy.”

To prove it, she stripped off the chemise and let him look at her, watching him as he took her in. His throat worked, his beautiful turquoise eyes darkening with desire.

“No words,” he said, his voice hoarse.

He shook his head helplessly and laughed, a slightly choked sound that made her heart soar. So she ran to him, flinging her arms about his neck as she always wanted to do when he was near. His arms tightened around her, the cold press of buttons a shock against her overheated skin as he pulled her flush against him.

She sighed as his mouth went to her shoulder, her neck, leaving a trail of fiery kisses that lingered for a while at the tender skin beneath her ear, making her shiver. Then down the trail went again, an inevitable path to her breast where he dallied longer still, teasing the tender buds with his lips and tongue and teeth until she was flushed and breathless. He knelt before her, staring up the line of her body.

“This is my favourite shade of pink,” he said, his voice impossibly low and deep, the sound rumbling through her, his words stirring sensation deep in her belly. Cassius touched a finger to one taut nipple. “All the best and most wicked parts of you are pink. Deliciously, devilishly pink. Such an innocent colour everyone believes it, but it is dreadfully sinful.”

Lottie’s breathing hitched as he kissed her belly, his tongue swirling a circle around her belly button. She would have laughed, as it tickled, but the sensation was more than ticklish as his mouth moved lower. She knew what came next.

“Let’s find somewhere else that perfect shade of wicked, shall we?” he murmured against her skin, and then he was nuzzling into the golden curls between her thighs, and then his tongue was there, and then….

She was dizzy, one hand flailing to grasp the bedpost as his tongue insinuated itself deeper and stroked and….

“Cass… Cassius….”

He continued, teasing and tormenting and though she had never swooned in her entire life, she felt very certain her knees would give out.

“C-Can’t stand,” she managed, breathing hard, her knuckles white as she clutched at the bed post. “Cass….”

He chuckled, warm breath gusting like a cool breath against her too hot skin. Goosebumps ran over her in response.

Cassius got to his feet and guided her to the bed. “Lie down then, love, before you fall down.”

He looked horribly smug about that, the devil. Not that she cared. If he kept making her feel that way, he had every reason to look smug.

Lottie collapsed against the pillows, desperately impatient that he should join her but… but then she realised he was getting undressed, and that was worth watching.

She had seen him all but naked once before, when she had hidden his clothes after he’d swam in the lake. He’d still been wearing his small clothes, which had been so sodden they hid little, but he’d covered his most interesting parts with his hands, much to her consternation. This time he was hers, her husband, and she was free to look her fill.

He moved quickly, his coat and waistcoat slung on the nearest chair in a manner to ensure his poor valet would be in fits when he saw them, and then tugged the shirt over his head. Lottie’s heart gave an erratic thud and it was hard to breathe. She took in the sight of powerful shoulders, that magnificent broad chest and the wiry hair there, that caught the late afternoon sun and shimmered copper and gold. Finally, she could touch him as she had longed to do. Her body ached to have him closer, to have the weight of him upon her, inside her. That thought made the place between her legs throb, a clamour of desire that only became more insistent as she watched him disrobe. He was down to his small clothes now, and then they too were gone, and he was striding for the bed.