Page 40 of How to Ruin a Rake

“I’ll tell him to mind his own business, but from what my friends say, it’s highly unlikely he’ll notice.”

He went to speak, and she talked over him. “Come on, Max, you swore to me that you were good at this, and if I am to be a fallen woman, I’d like to be toppled by the best.”

The corner of his mouth twitched upward. Encouraged by this, Allegra leaned forward.

“Please, Max?”

He sighed. “Fine.”

Allegra leaped to her feet and punched the air. “Yes!” She rushed over to Max and threw her arms around him. “Thank you; you won’t regret it.”

“I’m regretting it already,” Max muttered as he put his finger under her chin and raised her face to his. “You’d better kiss me quickly before I change my mind.”

Allegra went up on tiptoes and placed her mouth against Max’s, his lips parted, and she kissed him deeply. His response was gratifying. He wrapped one arm around her hips, hauled her close, and kissed her back with an intensity that made everything female in her shout with joy.

The kiss went on for a long time, and Allegra learned how to breathe through her nose while her hands roamed over Max with a freedom she’d never experienced before. He was all hard muscle, bone, and strength, and she wanted to yield to him. She relished his groan as his hand cupped her bottom and pressed her against the hardness concealed behind his breeches.

“Clothes,” Allegra murmured. “Take them off. I want to feel your skin against mine.”

Max’s fingers went to the back of her gown and worked on the laces while she undid his cravat, pushed off his coat, and unbuttoned his waistcoat.

“Wait …” After her gown fell to the floor, he spun her around so that he could see the back of her stays. “Let me …”

His fingers were warm against her skin, and her breathing became erratic. When she turned back, he’d undone the placket of his breeches, and was pulling his long shirt over his head.

“Oh …” Allegra put her hand on his chest. “You are … beautiful.”

“Hardly,” Max said, and picked her up. He set her on the bed and climbed up after her, his expression serious. “Are you still sure about this?”

In answer, Allegra pulled off her shift. His eyes widened, and he came down on top of her, the coarse fabric of his breeches igniting all kinds of sensations within her. Her body seemed far more certain about what to do than she did, and for the first time in her life, she forgot about reason and went with her emotions.

Max kissed his way down her throat, cupped her breast, and set his mouth on her. Allegra almost cried out at the intense feelings he created within her; her hips rose off the bed, and Max took the opportunity to slide one hand between her thighs.

“You’re wet for me,” he murmured against her ear as his fingers did something incredible to her womanly parts.

“Don’t … ​stop,” Allegra begged him as he stroked her in time to his deep kisses. “That’s …”

He increased the speed and pressure of his touch, and she stiffened under his hands as the first burst of joy emanated through her.

“Max.”

He bit her ear as she came, and she shuddered in his arms.

“I should’ve known you’d be responsive,” Max said, his palm still pressed against her throbbing flesh. “You’re passionate about everything, aren’t you?”

Allegra looked at him. “Will you take your breeches off?”

He grinned at her. “All in good time, my lady. I have other things to explore first.”

“What could you possibly—?” Allegra gasped as Max lowered his head between her thighs. “You can’t mean to—”

She almost screamed as his finger penetrated her and his mouth settled over her throbbing bud, sucking it and tonguing it until she forgot about being ladylike and simply existed in the chaos of desperate need Max had aroused within her. The second climax was more intense than the first, and Allegra didn’t even mind when Max added a second and then a third finger, stretching her for his future pleasure.

She knew she looked like a wanton, but she didn’t care. This was her time and her night, and whatever went on between her and Max was worth it.

“I’ve changed my mind,” Allegra said, which made Max raise his head to look at her.

“What?”