Page 68 of His Scandalous Viscountess
“You looked tired. I didn’t wish to impose.”
“Pleasuring you is never an imposition. Now, tell me what you came to ask for.”
He snared her gaze with his and refused to look away.
Her nipples beaded, pressed against the silky fabric of her robe. “I wanted you to tie me up and…”
He pushed up off the wall and stepped into her. She trembled and stared down at his chest, trying to come to grips with her doubts. Then he reached up and tucked a finger beneath her chin, tilting her head up until she looked at him.
“And?”
“Spank me.”
Determined to see this through now, she held his gaze and tried to gauge his reaction. It wasn’t as though she expected him to balk. After all, he’d done that to her before, but she had not specifically asked for it, and had not participated in it with the express intent to break down her walls and open herself up to him.
He licked his lips, desire darkening his gaze. “Why?”
“What do you mean, why? Because I enjoy it.”
She blustered in hopes he wouldn’t delve too deep. She still wasn’t completely sure she could do as Marie suggested, but she thought this was her best chance.
He shook his head. “No, my dear. If all you wanted was a little slap and tickle, you would have no issue with demanding I tie you up and spank you. There is something more at play here. Tell me what you are after.”
His command made her knees weak and her breathing shallow. How could he be so perceptive,so aware of what was happening even as his cock stood hard and demanding against his trousers? “I- I-”
He took her hand and led her over to the fireplace. Then he sat down and pulled her into his lap. Once they were settled, he stroked her neck and pulled the pins from her hair. With the mass of her tresses down, he ran his fingers through it in the most soothing fashion. Slowly, he lulled her into a trance-like state. Her heartbeat slowed, and a sense of lethargy stole over her. Long minutes passed—maybe even hours—and then he asked again. “What were you after, love?”
She sighed as he continued petting her with a soothing touch. “I wanted to bridge the gap between us. To make myself trust you with all of my past. Withourpast.”
He grunted softly. “Do you trust me now? In this moment?”
She tensed up, fear stealing in to rob her of her resolve. “I- I- I want to.”
“You’ve told me of your time with Wallthorpe. And I am aware of how my desertion hurt you as deeply as your parents’ betrayal. Is there more you need to tell me?”
There was a note of worry in his voice.
She nodded. “Yes. I hated you back then. Hated you for leaving me to my fate. But then, while I lived with Tariq, I came to realize that had you come for me that night, I would have become a different person.”
He snarled at the mention of her lover, but she ignored his jealous display and continued.
“Granted, I am closed off from everyone, but I am strong. Independent in a way I would not have been had you rescued me from my fate. Which means while I hated you for a time, I know I am who I am now because of you, and I am grateful for that. But I am also scared. Scared that if I rely on you now, make myself vulnerable to you, I shall turn back into that woman I was. The one who allowed her parents to bully her into a marriage she didn’t want. And Icannotbe that woman ever again.”
He laced his fingers through her hair and pulled her closer, then placed a kiss on her head. “Thank you for telling me how you feel. I do not want you to be dependent on me. I adore the woman you have become, and while I am sad to know how deeply I hurt you, and how long the damage has lasted, I wouldn’t change who you are today. I have no need of a simpering, dependent woman in my life. I have always wanted apartner. Someone to share my life with, not merely my name and my bed. You, Jules, are an amazing partner: strong, intelligent, and brazen, when required.” He sighed softly against her hair. “And I owe you an explanation for what happened that night so many years ago.”
“Wolf, no.”
She tried to sit up, but he pinned her against his chest.
“Stay here.”
He returned to stroking her hair.
Worry settled in her chest. Fear that he might say something that changed this moment of accord into something else. Did she truly want to hear what he had to say?
Chapter 27
Fear slammed against Wolf’s ribs as he held Jules tight in his lap. She had made herself vulnerable, had opened herself up to him. He owed her the truth now. Taking a deep breath, he said the words he’d feared her hearing since she’d come back. Perhaps, if he were honest, the words he’d feared her hearing for over a decade.
