Prisoner of Desire (24 page)

Her eyes narrowed because it was grossly unfair the way the man made her body so unruly. His blue eyes sparkled with mischief too, as if he understood Exactly what effect he had on her.

The man had been absent from the long dinner table but that hadn't kept her from searching the doorways frequently in search of him.

"Yes, of course it is."

Harrison frowned, glancing from his brother and back to her before snorting in frustration. "It's just not fair."

Lorena gasped, the assumption rubbing her raw. "Really, sir. You are quite presumptuous."

Harrison shrugged but leaned closer so his words wouldn't carry. "I only look young and innocent." His voice dipped down into that brassy tone she associated with Warren. Her cheeks burned scarlet at the knowing gleam in Harrison's eyes. He truly was more of a man than the boy his face had convinced her he was.

"Which is why she's going to marry me, little brother." Warren didn't lower his voice. He didn't raise it either, but it felt like he did. Each word set her muscles to tightening until her neck ached with strain. Several guests nearby heard him and their faces reflected excitement. The whispers began making their way from group to group.

Inside she cringed. Only desperate women snared their husbands with carnal pleasures. Wedding him would be little better than accepting payment like a prostitute did. Besides the man was announcing it in an effort to corner her. Maybe he called himself a merchant, but there was part of him that had more in common with a pirate. Taking what he wanted, when he wanted it.

"Excuse me. I believe I need a bit of fresh air."

The garden was peaceful, unlike her mood. She paced around a display of potted greenery, the silk of her gown rustling with her rapid movements. Forcing herself to stop, she pulled a few deep breaths into her lungs and tried to talk herself into sensible actions.

She failed miserably. She had no interest in logical thinking. Set along the back of the house, the garden was crafted to relaxe those who entered, but her temper wasn't interested in cooling.

The future was suddenly a blank page, and she stood holding the pen without a single idea as to what to write.

Which was ridiculous really. How many times had she railed against Godford and his controlling nature? She had her freedom now. All she had to do was decide what to do with it.

"Going for a stroll is a fine idea. I'll apologize to my mother later for deserting her celebration."

Warren's voice startled her. He stepped out of the darkness mere feet from her.

"The idea was for me to stroll alone, Captain, and you knew it very well."

He shrugged. The relaxed gesture conflicting with his formal attire. "It's not the first time you and I have held opposite views. Nor is it the first time you've resorted to calling me Captain when you want to avoid a conversation. Or push me away."

His lips curved into a mocking grin. Lorena felt her cheeks heat. Oh, she knew it wasn't the wisest thing to quibble with him, but something inside her rose to the bait faster than her common sense warned her to ignore him.

"Nor is it the first time you have resorted to ungentle manly conduct in order to have your way.

Captain." She fired off his rank and was rewarded by his lips pressing back into a hard line.

He took one long-legged stride toward her. The hair on her nape stood up. But it wasn't in fear.

At least not completely. Excitement clenched her belly.

"Be careful what you label me, Lorena. I might very well be in the mood to accommodate you. I haven't been back on land long enough for civilization to settle into me very deep."

"Do you plan then to apologize once you impose your will on me again? Somehow I believe tonight the situation is not so dire." Her skirts rustled again when her pace increased. With a huff she slapped the front of the dress. "I did not agree to marry you. I do not know what your plan is, announcing it to your friends and family. Indeed I fail to understand you."

He growled. The sound was low and rough, betraying just how frayed his temper was. "I plan to discover just why you are so opposed to marrying me."

The distance between them was only an illusion of safety. Warren shattered that with two steps.

He pulled her into his embrace, her hands barely having time to lift up before being trapped between their bodies. Being so close to him sent panic through her. Her reason was already

dissolving with the first hint of his scent.

"You don't want to marry me. It's only your conscience driving you to make the offer." Her words sounded hurt but she couldn't hold back the emotion. It bubbled up and out of her, her body shaking with it.

"And you believe Mordaunt held affection for you?"

Now he sounded angry. But his words struck her as amusing, and she couldn't contain the small laugh that got past her lips.

"If the man knows the meaning of the word in relationship to another human being, I would be surprised." She sighed, her memory offering up an image of the lines of men suffering under the harsh tropical sun. "I understand very well he is more interested in my dowry than myself."

Which meant he'd likely turn to one of her sisters if she failed to go back to Northfleet and warn them. That idea distracted her from her anger. There was suddenly more at stake than just her desire to avoid pity.

She shuddered when his fingertips stroked her cheek.

"I assure you, madam, I understand the meaning of the word in relationship to you."

His mouth silenced any reply. But she really didn't have one. All of the heat swirling inside her leapt toward that kiss. The hands she'd

flattened on top of his chest to push him back, curling into the lapels of his jacket to hold him closer. She was hungry for his kiss. Starving for the touch of his skin against her own.

Warren didn't disappoint her. His mouth took command of hers. Demanding submission, but she didn't comply. Her lips moved beneath his, countering his kiss. He pressed her to open her jaw, one hand capturing the back of her head to hold her still. The moment she allowed it, his tongue swept deep inside her mouth to tease and tangle with her own.

She shivered, her body all too aware of what other part of him might enter her. But it wasn't enough. Not nearly enough to be had. She sent her tongue along his, dancing and toying with him while she rose onto her toes to reach him better. She wanted to push him, just like he did her.

Needed to know she wasn't the only one suffering from the insanity that gripped her whenever they touched.

He tore his lips away from hers, and his breathing was rough. The fingers gripping her head tightened while his eyes narrowed.

"Maybe there is only one way you and I can deal with one another."

He released her. But her freedom was short. He gripped one of her wrists and bent one knee to lower his shoulder to her waist. With a swift tug on her arm he pulled her right over his shoulder.

"Warren—" Her throat tightened when he straightened up and the ground looked too far away to risk being dropped.

He moved through the garden impossibly fast, his boots making only the barest sound on the

pavement. The blood rushed to her head while the hard shoulder she was bent over made

breathing difficult because her corset stays refused to bend.

"Put me down..."

Her tone lacked any true insistence. He ignored her, slipping into the house through a side door.

The stairwell he used was dark, but he'd carried her up it before she really gained any true picture of where they were going. His pace was so quick her body began to sway, making her dizzy. She reached for him, trying to grip his waist with her arms to fend off nausea. Her eyes closed in reflex, the ground moving too much for her to bear seeing anymore.

A door opened and closed. A few more strides and her body was dumped like a sack of grain.

But she landed on something soft. There was a faint groaning of rope and she opened her eyes to see a wide canopy above her.

"Warren..."

This time her tone was more incensed but also breathless.

"I do assure you, Lorena, my proposal of marriage is driven by much more than a guilty conscience." He tossed his coat and cravat across a chair before ripping into the buttons on his shirt. His expression was harsh, a muscle along his jaw line ticking. Pushing her hands into the bedding, she sat up. That keen stare hinted at just how dangerous he could be when the situation warranted it. She truly had pushed him past his patience.

A part of her enjoyed knowing it.

Right or wrong didn't seem to have any meaning at the moment. There was only the growing

need to press against him, to allow him to take what he wanted because it would give her the chance to meet him halfway. Her throat was tight, any words stuck while she watched him finish the chore of disrobing. He pulled every last stitch of clothing off without a hint of concern for being nude. Quite the opposite really. He shook his head, the tie holding his hair falling down his back to allow the strands free. There was something wild about him. The way he stood proudly displaying his body was primitive and it touched an equal desire deep inside her.

"I didn't lie with you in order to gain anything. Even marriage. Society might expect it but I don't," she insisted as she stood. There was a rustle from her silk skirts as she moved away from the bed.

Something flashed across his eyes. He froze for a moment, indecision on his face. "It matters to you?"

The disbelief in his tone hardened her resolve. It cut through the need flickering to life along her skin. It gave her the strength to look him in the eye instead of allowing her gaze to slip down his body to where his cock already thrust out.

"Yes. I meant what I said, Warren. I was glad to have assisted you and your brothers home.

Besides, I have sisters back in Northfleet. I

must return home before my stepfather sends one of them to Bermuda."

He closed the gap between them. She backed up, intensely aware of how warm he was, how hard he was. Her body felt soft and made to fit against his. Once again the desire to touch him was pushing all reason aside, like she'd never had another thought except to lie with him. It was so tempting to just let him decide matters for her, but it was also the coward's way.

He cupped her face, his palms gently cradling her cheeks. "I'll take care of your sisters too."

"You promised me the choice once we reached your home."

His lips curled away from his teeth but it wasn't a smile. There was nothing friendly about the expression at all. She gasped, jumping away from the challenge lurking in his eyes. She stood too close to the bed and her first step knocked her knees out from under her. Warren followed her down, his hands pressing into the thick coverlet on either side of her body.

"You've got a choice all right." He paused, his body looming over hers. "You can choose to have me toss your skirts up and take you fast enough to drive all this nonsense out of your mind or..."

He reached out and stroked her cheek with a tender hand. She shivered, the touch sending a

ripple of pleasure down her back. It traveled over her breasts until her nipples puckered behind her stays.

Warren leaned closer and she felt his breath teasing her ear. "Or I can show you what it's like to make love in a bed. Think about it, Lorena. I want to undress you and kiss every patch of skin I uncover before I tumble you among the silk sheets."

She gasped, more excited than shocked.

"Is that a yes to seduction?" He lifted his head, cupping her chin in a firm grasp. "Or an invitation to ravish you?" His grasp tightened

and one of his knees hit the bed. "That is your choice."

He was too sure of himself. "You are arrogant, Warren Rawlins."

His expression said he agreed with her and was completely unrepentant. Something inside her snapped, breaking through the control that everyone except Warren saw. Reaching down, she

curled her hand around his thick length. It was bold and ungentle, but satisfaction swept through her when his breath caught. Slipping her hand up to the crown of it, she closed her fingers so that his width was completely wrapped in her grip. His lips curled back, showing her gritted teeth.

"Perhaps it is time for you to listen instead of giving out orders, Captain. We are on land after all." Pressing her hand all the way down his length, she drew it back to the crown in a slow motion while watching his face to see how it affected him. The man could drive her insane with one finger on her spread sex. It seemed quite time to discover if his body was as receptive to her hand.

"I'm interested in entertaining your argument." His tone was still arrogant.

Working her hand up and down his length, she listened to his breathing. Her cheeks burned but she refused to stop.

"Maybe..." Words failed her for a moment, because she'd just never envisioned such a conversation before. But excitement tightened her belly, urging her onward. "Maybe you should lie on your back and wait for me."

"Wait for you to what?"

He was toying with her. A soft kiss landing on her neck before she heard him chuckle. A

frustrated huff left Lorena's lips and her hand froze on his staff. "You shall never know if you do not follow my instructions. Captain..."

The bed rocked as Warren rolled onto his back. His lips were set into that roguish grin

and he folded his hands behind his head. The pose looked so relaxed, but she didn't trust it. The ridges of lean muscle covering his body reminded her of a tiger she'd once seen at the menagerie.

The animal could jump ten feet in one leap.

"I await your whim.. .Lorena."

There was a dark promise in his voice. But there was an equal need inside her. With no rules, and no one judging her, the opportunity his body presented was too much to ignore. She wanted to touch him. Wanted to be the one pushing him past his resolve.

"Touch me." His voice was tempting now, a hint of need turning it raspy. Hunger flickered in his eyes. Eyes that he kept on her face. "Take control."