Page 21 of No Going Back

“I think it’s very dashing, although I am glad you keep it quite short and tidy.” She stroked his moustache with her thumb. “Bushy beards don’t work for me.”

“I’ll keep it trimmed then.”

She took a step back, a thoughtful expression passed across her face. “Actually, while we’re on the subject, can I ask you a personal question?”

“You can ask me anything.”

“I don’t want to presume too much, but…”

“But?” he prompted.

“Different people have different tastes, and I wondered if you had any preference.”

“In?”

“Your lovers being smooth or trimmed.” She took his hand, and with cautious care, laid it at the apex of her thighs.

“Either is fine.” He didn’t remind her that he’d already had the privilege and pleasure of seeing her semi-naked. “Is it important to you?”

“I want to know if it’s still… if it’s important to you.”

At one time it had been, but now that he was confronted with the question, he found he wasn’t bothered. “Like I said, either is fine. Is there anything else you’d like to declare, since we’re in a soul-baring mood?”

Her smile disappeared—another interesting reaction. She was hiding something, but he wouldn’t press her about it now. Besides, he couldn’t imagine anything, apart from a pre-existing partner, that would deter him from pursuing this relationship.

As for how long and how far he’d pursue it? He didn’t anticipate calling it a day any time soon.

“No skeletons, if that’s what you’re concerned about.” Her coquettish grin returned, and she adopted the air of a woman about to share a confidence. “Although I do know how to dispose of a body without leaving any trace.” She winked.

Dear God. She was going to be the death of him.

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Guy put the finishing touches to his bow tie, and cast a critical eye over his reflection. Good enough to impress Maddie? He hoped so. A lot was riding on this evening, and it had nothing to do with the charity the event was supporting.

The daunting truth was, this dinner was his first formal public date in more than a decade. As if that weren’t enough, to him, it was a significant milestone towards putting his relationship with Maddie on a more serious footing. No matter when they spent the night in the same bed—whether it was tonight or not—she wasn’t going to be a casual lay.

On the dot of seven-thirty, he knocked on her door—the one in the corridor, not the one that joined their rooms. The moment she opened it, he was even more captivated by her beauty, elegance and charm.

Her vibrant evening gown was a bold splash of colour next to his boring monochrome. What attracted him even more, though, were the silken tendrils of hair that had escaped from her loosely styled updo. He itched to wind their softness around his fingers, to delve into the thick, glossy mass and free it to tumble around her naked shoulders. The off-the-shoulder style of her dress suited her, while the creamy skin at her collarbone was a temptation he fought to resist.

“You look amazing. Shall we?” He offered her his arm.

“Thank you. I hoped this would be suitable for this evening.”

Guy tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow. “‘Suitable’ is a ridiculous understatement. I’ll be the envy of every man there tonight.”

“Now I know you’re a silver-tongued devil.” Maddie pulled her door closed.

“Devil, am I? In that case, I’ll have to do something to live up to my billing.”

With that, he pivoted to face her. Before they joined the genteel scrum, he needed one of her sweet kisses to see him through the evening, until he could get her alone again. Maddie’s honest, passionate response left him in no doubt that the attraction he felt for her was reciprocated.

“Do we really have to go downstairs?”

Her quiet question kicked his heartbeat up a notch. He touched his lips to her forehead. “Yes, we do.”

“For the sake of appearances?”