Page 62 of If the Duke Demands

“You are so beautiful, Miranda,” he whispered against her temple, and his sweet words made tears gather at her lashes.

“So are you,” she choked out.

He laughed softly at her slip of the tongue and kissed her, so heatedly, so possessively that she shuddered at the intensity of it. How could she not care for this man when he made her feel this special? Did he even realize the effect he had on her? She slid her mouth away from his to caress her lips across his cheek so that he couldn’t see the flash of emotion on her face, because she knew that she could never tell him.

He groaned, and his large hands grabbed her hips, guiding her in a shared, primal rhythm. Her body instinctively knew what it needed from him, arching off the bed to eagerly meet each thrust of his hips with her own until she nearly exhausted herself. Yet she still craved more, still yearning for the wondrous release he had given her earlier, the same release she was certain his body was capable of giving her now.

“Sebastian,” she whimpered, shifting beneath him in an attempt to bring him impossibly closer to the throbbing spot inside her, helpless against the aching intensity spreading through her body and the warmth blossoming in her heart.

“Yes, sweet,” he murmured, as if knowing exactly what she needed. He hooked his arms beneath her knees, lifting her legs and rolling her onto her upper back. “Whatever you wish.”

He lifted his hips and thrust hard, grinding his pelvis against her and shooting a jarring shudder of pleasure through her. She gasped at the intensity of having him so far inside her at such a new angle, joining the two of them impossibly closer and stealing her breath away.

He pulled back until only the tip of him remained inside her, then he drove forward again. And this time, oh, sweet heavens,thistime—

Dark spots flashed across her eyes. Sparks shot through her, flying out the ends of her fingers and toes. Her body convulsed violently around his, her intimate folds quivering as all the tiny muscles inside her bore down around him, then released with a shudder so intense that a cry of pleasure poured from her.

He kissed her and drank in her cries as he continued to stroke inside her, but she was unable to do anything more than simply lie there trembling as the undulating waves of release spread over her. Now his thrusts came fast and deep, soft little growls of his own need for release filling her senses, swirling inside her head and engulfing her.

One last, powerful thrust—then with a groan, he pulled quickly out of her. His arms clasped her tightly to him as he shuddered, and she felt a rush of liquid warmth against her inner thigh as he spilled himself onto the mattress beneath her. He collapsed on top of her, his heavy body pressing against hers and his forehead resting against her bare shoulder as he struggled to regain his breath.

Amazed by what had just happened between them, for a moment not believing that it hadn’t been only a dream, Miranda lifted her hands to caress his back. Beads of perspiration wetted her fingertips. She smiled as she kissed his temple and tightened her arms around his trembling body. How could she have ever been wary of this wonderful, amazing man when she had the power to make him tremble so helplessly like this? How could she have been so blind to him for so many years?

Caught up in the exhilaration of being in his arms and of the astonishing pleasures he brought to her, she laughed a soft little giggle of pure happiness.

He lifted his head to smile down at her, his blue eyes bright with satisfaction and soft with affection. “What is it, sweet?”

“I was just thinking,” she admitted as she brushed her fingertips at the sweat-dampened lock of blond hair that fell across his forehead, “that a love scene would have madeHamletperfect.”

He laughed and lowered his mouth to hers, to kiss her with a sultry languidness that tasted of happiness, pleasure, and…Was that possession? But she supposed he had a right to feel that way, since she’d given herself to him tonight in every possible way, all the way down to her soul. And she didn’t regret a moment of it.

But when he shifted his weight away to lie beside her on the bed, Miranda knew she had to be careful with her heart. Sebastian would never think of her as belonging to him beyond the physical passion they’d just shared. He’d been very clear about that. Oh, certainly he would be kind and caring as much as he could, but they could never have more than this. She knew that; she’d accepted that before she came here tonight. And yet, as his strong arms wrapped around her and drew her back against his chest, his lips nuzzling against her nape, she had to admit that belonging here with him was nice.

Verynice, in fact.

So nice that she could easily become used to being with him like this, the protective strength of his arms encircling her, the warmth of his breath tickling against her neck, his heartbeat pulsing quietly into her bare back. As if he didn’t want to let go of her.

But she couldn’t stay, and even now her eyes stung at the thought that this would be the most he could ever be to her. A friend, a lover…someone with whom to share laughter and affection but not a future. Sebastian might find joy with her, but the Duke of Trent had to find a life with someone else.

She blinked hard. “I should leave,” she whispered into the dark shadows as the ache in her chest began to grow stronger.

“Stay.” He reached down to draw the coverlet over her to keep her tucked into bed with him, then placed a delicate kiss on her bare shoulder. “We have all night, remember.”

She latched on to the only excuse she could give without revealing her heart. “I need to return to Audley House before the servants wake and see me slipping in through the cellar door.”

“I’ll make certain you return home safely without any problems.” His arms tightened around her. “But for tonight I want to hold you right here.”

Even as he said that, though, his words slurred from exhaustion, and his voice thickened with sleep. So she stayed, because she knew he would soon fall asleep and then she could slip away without disturbing him. And without him seeing the tears she was certain would fall. Not in regret—never. She wouldneverregret a moment of tonight. But she knew she would mourn for what more they would never share.

Sebastian Carlisle…Whoever would have thought she would have surrendered her innocence tohim? All these years her heart had been infatuated with Robert and never once considered that it might very well be Sebastian whom she wanted to kiss her instead, with whom she wanted to engage in scandalous conversations at operas and plays, whom she…

Loved.

Her heart skipped hard as the utter hopelessness of their situation washed painfully over her.

He was an impossible choice, yet she’d known when she came here that what she felt was so much more than simple physical attraction. Somehow, creeping upon her so slowly that she never saw it coming, she’d fallen in love with the other Carlisle brother.

And there was no hope for it.