The Dark Lady (26 page)

They made their way up the sprawling staircase silently. They had said only those few wild words to each other after Ian had killed the man.

She was grateful to him. So grateful.

But nor could she quite fight the feeling that she was dragging him down into a dangerous world, rather than him pulling her up. It wasn’t a pleasant feeling.

“We’ll sleep in my room.”

She nodded her assent. The very idea of dwelling in one of the spacious town rooms by herself was unthinkable. They paused before his closed door and Eva realized he was giving her the chance to change her mind. To sleep separately if she insisted.

In answer, she reached out to the gold-plated handle and pressed down. It swung open silently.

She walked ahead of him into the unlit room, careful not to run into the darker shadows that were clearly furniture.

“Tomorrow, I’ll bring servants and guards in.” Ian headed straight to the fire, placed the candelabra on the mantel, then poured in a heap of coal. “Tonight we’ll have to make do.”

She didn’t respond to what seemed the obvious. Instead, she headed toward the four-poster bed and whipped the white duster sheet off in one swift move. The thick goose down coverlet was icy to the touch.

Within moments, the fire crackled heartily. Ian brushed his hands along his breeches and turned toward the bed. “There, now. We’ll be warm in no time.”

Eva tugged at her cloak string, but it had become absurdly tangled in their wild ride.

Ian’s eyes glowed a wicked green in the amber light, his large frame silhouetted by the fire as he came close. He didn’t ask. He simply stepped forward and brushed her hands away. Easily, he began to work at the knot.

His close proximity sent a shiver down her spine. They had avoided the slightest contact since their kiss on the lawn. Now his boot tips brushed hers. The scent of horse and light sweat filled her senses. It was surprisingly appealing. The nearness of him urged her to reach out and slide her hands up his strong shoulders. To feel the reality of him beneath her touch.

Ever so carefully, Eva looked up. She’d been so determined to let him go. For his own safety. But now she needed his embrace. She needed the comfort it could give her just as she was certain he needed her touch. Something happened within her when he laid his hands upon her body. Something sacred and sweet and full of healing fire. There was no fear when she was in Ian’s arms.

Tonight, she longed for that. Longed to know the fullness of it.

Ian was the only man she’d ever trust. The only man she could ever open her heart to. And if she gave him her heart, how could she deny him her body? She couldn’t. Not now.

Gently, she traced her fingertips over his jawline, then cupped his face with her palm. “I want you, Ian.”

His face was tense. Yet, under her touch, his gaze softened, heating. Heating with the promise of so much more than pleasure. Slowly, he turned his face, pressing a soft kiss against her palm.

A small, amazed breath escaped her lips at how that soft caress sent shivers of want over her skin. She lowered her hand, offering herself to him. Knowing he would guide her in the mysteries of lovemaking.

A few tugs and slips of the ribbon and her cloak whooshed to the floor. She stood quietly before him in the oversized stable boy’s coat and britches.

Eva’s chest rose and fell in quick breaths as his sure, strong fingers lingered over her collarbones, tracing them. She wanted him. Desperately. They had been racing toward this moment. They had been racing toward so many things, but this . . .

Slowly, she took his hands and moved them to the thin tie at her throat. Almost daring him to take the next step. To unlace the rough fabric and slip it over her head.

His eyes roved over her face, questioning, burning. “Eva—”

She placed one finger over his lips, then slid her hands down over his broad shoulders. Hard muscles tensed beneath her touch. The feel of him stirred the most powerful emotions within her. But above all was the wish for more. She arched up onto her toes. Taking her courage in hand, she pressed her lips lightly to his.

As though he had been holding back a veritable storm of desire, Ian pulled her against him, his arms enfolding her. The hard feel of his body against hers was always such a shock. Through layers of linen and wool, she could feel the strength of his ribs, the length of his muscled abdomen, and the hardening of his cock.

Sensation swept her up. Completely trusting, she gave herself to it. She wove her fingers into his thick hair. Ian’s warm mouth kissed her softly, slowly. Holding her as though he would never let her go, at once he coaxed and ruled her with his kiss. Fleeting, then demanding.

She moaned into his mouth. He stole the opportunity
to slip his tongue between her parted lips. Eva gasped, still astonished by the passion he could fire within her. All else she’d known of lovemaking had been perfunctory. A duty. Something one did lying still in the dark.

Nothing like this.

Now there was no turning back.

They both knew there was no one to interrupt them. To stop this foray into passion. Unlike before when they’d kissed, this passion was slow, a smoldering flame being tended carefully. She opened herself to him, allowing him to gently stroke her tongue, then suck it into his mouth.

Taking up his seductive challenge, she licked at him tentatively, tilting her head to better receive his kiss. Her hands moved from his soft hair to his back, her fingers digging through his coat, pulling him tighter.

In one swift move, Ian had her in his arms, cradled against his chest. Without breaking the hot kiss, he carried her the few steps to the bed and set her down gently. He eased her back, kissing her again and again, in slow, hypnotic movements. Giving. Not taking.

Eva closed her eyes, longing to be lost in sensation. In fire. She wanted to be lost in fire. Burned with desire. Alive. Truly alive at last.

She reached for his coat, shoving at the shoulders. Ian pulled back from the kiss. Never letting his gaze leave her face, he sat back on his heels. Quickly he yanked the garment off and flung it to the floor, flinching only slightly, though his knife wound must have pained him. Without fear or hesitation, Eva sat up, slid her hands to his waist, and tugged his linen shirt free of his trousers.

Ian looked down at her, his eyes half closed, full of wonder. Her fingers brushed the naked skin of his taut abdomen. Instantly, heat coiled down her spine, urging her to work faster. To touch more. She slipped the shirt up and then over his head.

She let her attention drop to his chest. Each of his breaths seemed to come with slow, powerful control. It was beautiful, the way his muscles contracted and expanded with each movement. Little nicks and scars were scattered over his chest. Eva winced at this new revelation. How had he received them? He’d never once mentioned being wounded.

Without thinking, as though she could somehow heal the raised flesh, she leaned forward and kissed a jagged scar just above his ribs.

Ian tensed. Coiling back, he reached down and pulled her away.

They’d both known so much pain. Neither of them wanted to remember. Eva lifted her hand to his face and cradled his jaw. The soft stubble of dark beard scratched at her hand. He was so strong. So strong. Yet it was just below his surface. The pain that drove him.

He curved his face into her palm, his eyes closing. Peace hovered over him for a moment. “Eva.” He breathed against her.

God, how she wanted to speak. Wanted to tell him how much of her heart he had stolen. She couldn’t. Not yet.

Though she could not give him her love, there was something else she could give. For one ashamed moment, she hesitated. Her body was no longer that of a young girl’s. She’d borne a child . . . . Her body wasn’t lithe and perfect.

But no matter what she’d been through, no matter what her body had endured, she wouldn’t be ruled by fear. Not with Ian.

Deliberately, Eva took handfuls of her shirt and drew it over her head. The fabric dropped from her fingertips. Cold air caressed her skin. She’d changed too fast for a chemise or corset. She was glad of it.

Ian’s face lit with desire as his gaze wandered over her body. “I have never seen a more beautiful woman.”

She started to laugh, but he shook his head and her laughter vanished.

“Every mark, Eva, every scar . . .” He caressed the lines at her hips and stomach that had formed during her pregnancy. “These are proof of what a strong, beautiful woman you are. A woman, not a girl.”

She couldn’t draw breath. His words moved her so powerfully. “You truly find me beautiful?” she whispered.

He leaned forward, the power of him urging her back against the bed. It was easy to follow his lead. As she lowered herself back to the bed, he pressed open-mouthed kisses along her neck, nipping ever so slightly at the hollow of her throat.

“Ian?” she said when he didn’t answer.

He paused. “Beautiful?”

Eva glanced down at him. Confused.

He lingered over her heart. His dark hair hiding his face. Slowly, he pressed a kiss to the soft flesh. “I feel it beating,” he murmured. “Your heart. It beats fast and strong and free. Your beauty begins here.”

He pressed another kiss to the spot just above her heart.

Gently, Eva slid her hands to his back, wanting to offer him so much comfort. The kind of comfort he was miraculously giving her.

“But your beauty,” he said, “doesn’t stop there. It is in every part of you.”

She arched toward him, her breasts taut now with need. The tenderness of his touch more erotic than anything she had ever known. His hands caressed her ribs, curving to rest along her sides, teasing at the marred flesh. He stared down at what she’d considered to be so ugly. Pure worship shone on his face. “It is here.”

“And it is here,” he whispered before he kissed her breasts, then took a nipple into his mouth, teasing it with his tongue.

Eva gasped, shocked he would do such a thing. She dug her fingers into his back, desperate for more. Without even thinking, she curled her legs around his waist. The hardness of him pressed against her core. Eva closed her eyes, no fear, just need.

Ian’s careful touch became more insistent, rougher, and then his fingers were working at her breeches. He eased them down, then pulled away from her as he worked his own trousers off.

Completely naked, Eva savored the feel of warm skin on warm skin. She had not been this close to anyone, this loved—

She blinked back tears. This was making love. She knew it with utter certainty. And she had not been loved in so long.

This time, Ian eased himself down farther along the bed. His slightly rough hands caressed her calves. He lifted his eyes to her as he kissed the inside of her thigh. “I want you to look at me.” Nodding, Eva bit down on her lower lip, completely alive with sweet anticipation. He massaged her calves as he kissed and nipped his way up her thighs.

It was so tempting to close her eyes. To lose herself in the feeling. Though he had not said it, Eva knew he wanted her to lose herself in him. So she kept her eyes on him. When he pressed her thighs ever so slightly farther apart and lowered his mouth to her, she tensed. Stunned. And then a cry of pure pleasure flew past her lips.

Ripples of shock and hunger rushed through her. As if he couldn’t get enough of her, Ian took her hips in hand and kept her in place. His lips and tongue teasing her until she couldn’t bear it.

She twisted her hands into the sheets with all her might as pleasure stole through her body. Any moment, she would shatter and disappear.

“Now,” she whispered. “Now.”

Ian lifted himself and rested his cock between her thighs. Eva’s breath hitched and grabbed his shoulders. She felt the need to anchor herself. He pressed his head against her and a moment of alarm swept through. It had been so long. Perhaps she would be too tight. Perhaps it would be pain, not pleasure.

Ian gently rubbed himself along her slick core until she arched against him with hunger. At last, he began to rock against her, not inside, but easing against her tight passage.

Eased with the renewed pleasure he’d created, Eva locked her legs around him, pulling him forward. One smooth thrust and he filled her. The fullness of it, the tantalizing pressure stole her breath away. As he thrust into her body, intense pleasure coiled in her abdomen. With each sure stroke, she climbed higher and higher.

His mouth claimed hers.

Eva gasped, her fingers digging into his back. Somehow. Somehow she wanted to climb inside him. In response, he pulled her torso up off the bed, his arms circling her. The pressure and speed of his tempo increased.

“Please,” she whispered. “Please, yes.”

“I never want to let you go.”

Eva looked into his eyes, her heart so full she didn’t know how she could survive it. “Then don’t.”

A growl tore from Ian’s throat and he lowered her back down. He gripped her hips and thrust long and hard. Eva bit her fist, unable to hold back her cries of pleasure.

Finally, Ian circled his fingers over her folds as he simultaneously circled his hips against her.

What was happening to her? The intensity of it threw her from height to height toward something she didn’t understand but desperately wanted. She panted, holding on tight to Ian, trusting him. And at last, she couldn’t fight the moan of sheer ecstasy as her world spun into perfect joy. Ripple after ripple of pleasure hummed through her.

“Oh, God, yes.” He moved faster against her, tilting her hips up toward him. “Yes, Eva.” Ian tensed, a harsh groan ripping from his chest as he climaxed.

She stared up at him in wonder. Never had she experienced anything like what had happened between them. She’d never even known such a sensation was possible for a woman. Her heart beat fast and hard with delight that it was Ian who she’d shared such a thing with. It was always meant to be him.

He tried to roll to the side. Eva grabbed on to him, holding his weight to her. It seemed impossible, but happiness washed over her. Pure happiness, as she held him.

It had taken her years to find it. Now she had it in her arms. She smiled into the darkness. Nothing would ever take it from her again.