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Her blood pulsed through her veins, liquid fire, heating her skin and consuming any logical thought.

She wanted more. Allowing herself the glory of exploration, she slipped her hand from his shoulder to his neck, then delved her fingers into his silky hair.

Gripping the strands, she changed the angle of their kiss, plunging her tongue into his dark depths and tasting mint and coffee.

His hands were moving north again. One gripped her nape while the other bumped over her ribs.

He palmed her corseted breast, and Ivy was quite certain her spirit left her body.

She’d always felt mildly embarrassed about her chest. Hardly a shadow of her friend Millie’s luscious curves.

Barely large enough to fill the centre of her palm on the few occasions she had tested their weight.

She sometimes felt like her body was trapped in the silhouette of a child.

But when Edward rubbed his thumb over her hardened nipple, even through the layers of chemise, corset, and cotton, Ivy was caught in a conflagration of need.

‘Oh!’ She sounded like a panting animal, but her reaction seemed to further encourage Edward’s efforts. He rubbed again, harder, and a corresponding spark of sensation lit between her legs.

Madness!

She didn’t want it to stop.

Edward broke their kiss, his lips coasting along her jaw to her neck where he nuzzled and nipped, sucking the tender flesh into his hot, wet mouth.

Her gown was a simple summer day dress in a lovely soft green. It buttoned to the hollow of her throat. When she felt his kisses tracing along the lace trimming her neckline as his broad hand kneaded her overly sensitised breast, her heart hitched.

Edward froze.

No! I’m not so afraid. Don’t stop.

But he pulled back, his hand retreating to her hips.

‘Please, forgive me. You asked me last night for time to think, and I promised I would let you lead. Damn it.’

The hissed curse was her undoing. She understood shame on the deepest level. The last thing she wanted was for him to feel such a suffocating burden. Especially when she wanted this.

‘You’ve nothing to apologise for. Last night, you asked me a question.

I didn’t think I was ready to give you an answer, but I am now.

’ Speaking the words solidified the truth in her heart and mind.

Something about standing against the Devil’s Sons, stepping into her power as she fought to defend the orphans under her care, made it easier to be brave in other parts of her life.

Namely her sexuality. ‘I want to explore… i-intimacy. With you.’ Being brave didn’t make it any less awkward to speak the words aloud.

‘If we are going to war against the Devil’s Sons, anything might happen, and I don’t want to regret never knowing this part of myself.

’ Hearing the truth spill out of her own mouth before her mind knew the weight of it stunned her.

His fingers flexed against her hips, and she felt an urge to lean closer. His eyes, darker than the sky before a storm, widened. ‘Are you sure?’

Plucking his right hand from her hip, she felt ever so bold as she pressed his callused knuckles against her lips. ‘Quite.’

‘Shall I come to you tonight? After our meeting?’

Her heart fluttered. But not in fear. In some strange cousin to that emotion, one that made her skin buzz and her stomach fizz.

‘Yes.’ Though she wasn’t quite sure what she was agreeing to.

She released his hand. ‘What exactly shall we do? Tonight… when you come to me?’ The words sounded impossibly scandalous.

Edward’s lips quirked. ‘What would you like to do?’

Oh dear. What do I want to do?

‘Kissing, I think. And maybe more… touching. Perhaps I could try touching you this time. Do men like that? I mean, would you like that?’ Because this wasn’t about men.

It was about Edward specifically. And Ivy.

Just the two of them. And she wanted to bring him pleasure.

Which was astounding. Her whole life, she thought physical relations were all about the man doing things to the woman.

Unpleasant, painful, scary things the woman was forced to endure.

But she was beginning to understand she could do things to Edward.

Things that would bring him pleasure but would also grant her unexpected control.

The very thought created a liquid heat to bloom between her thighs.

His jaw muscle jumped. Catching her hand in his own, he brushed his thumb over her wrist, spiking her heartbeat. ‘I would like that very much. But this isn’t about my pleasure, Ivy. It’s about yours.’

She bit her lip. ‘Perhaps it could be about our pleasure. Both of us. If it’s all focused on me, I think I’ll be too… aware.’

He exhaled through his nose, shaking his head slowly while his eyes never left hers. ‘You are a wonder, Ivy Cavendale. So be it. Tonight will be for both of us. But you determine what we do and when we stop. On this we both agree. Yes?’

She nodded, assured that if they reached a point where her fear eclipsed her curiosity, he would stop. ‘Yes.’

What a wonder. To trust a man to stop when I ask.

He lifted her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss against her palm, his teeth catching the fleshy heel, creating a pulse of heat in her most vulnerable of secret places.

A part of her body she resolutely ignored unless she needed her chamber pot.

If she refused to acknowledge its existence, it would stay hidden.

And safe. Only now, the foundations of her understanding were shifting.

Because with Edward, she already felt safe.

I must speak with Millie. Before tonight. I have questions.

And she couldn’t very well ask Edward what they were supposed to do when he just gave that power to her. The very idea inspired a new wave of heat to rush through her. No doubt her skin was turning three different shades of crimson.

She watched Edward’s gaze dip to her neck and knew he saw the splotchy patches. Pressing her hand against the stain, she tried to hide the evidence of her embarrassment. He gently gripped her wrist, pulling her hand away.

‘Don’t. Don’t hide from me. One day, perhaps you’ll show me how far that beautiful blush travels over you.

’ He pressed his lips together and dropped her wrist, as though wishing he could call back his words.

But it was too late. She was already imagining it.

Standing naked in front of Edward, letting his eyes roam wherever they chose as desire and innocence painted her skin in patterns of red and cream.

She should be repulsed, but instead, the pulse in her cleft grew sharp. ‘Forgive me.’

She shook her head. ‘I don’t think I will. Nor will I forget. The ideas you inspire, Edward.’

His pupils dilated as he took a careful step backwards. ‘Then I shall take my leave and allow you privacy for your wonderings. Though, I do hope you’ll share them with me later.’

Scandalous man!

‘Farewell, Edward.’

Cutting a sharp bow, his eyes never left hers. The intensity of his gaze nearly burnt her to a crisp.

‘Farewell for now, Ivy. Until tonight.’ And with that, he turned and left.

Ivy picked up her teacup in shaky hands and listened to his footsteps.

She waited until the front door shut before she abandoned her tea and raced to her room.

It was imperative she dash off a missive to Millie.

Immediately. With any luck, her friend could arrange to arrive before the others.

Much needed to be discussed before their meeting, and very little of it concerned the investigation.

* * *

‘I still remember the days when punctuality meant something.’ Reading didn’t look up from the report he was writing as Edward strode past and banged open the door to his office.

‘I still remember the days when assistants assisted instead of buzzing away in my ear like an annoying little bee who has lost his honeypot.’

‘Bees don’t have honeypots. They have honeycombs.’

‘They also have queens who expect them to complete the tasks they’ve been given, and that – although I owe you no explanation – is the cause for my tardiness this morning.’

That and a tryst in the kitchen with Ivy that had my blood so hot, I ordered a cold bath at my townhouse before dressing and coming into the office.

Edward still hadn’t managed to adjust his morning schedule while sleeping at the orphanage, but the added hassle of returning to his townhouse to change back into his gentleman’s clothes was worth the time and trouble if it meant Ivy was learning to trust him.

Based on their conversation today, she might be feeling safe enough to take a terrifying leap.

No price was too high for the immeasurable gift of her good faith.

But I’m certainly not going to share any of that with Reading. The man is impossible as it is. I can’t imagine how miserable he would make my life if he knew how far I’ve taken things with Ivy. Or more importantly, how far I want to take them tonight.

Once he caught the scent of a secret, Reading was like a dog with a bone, relentlessly chewing until he reached the marrow of truth. So, Edward carefully guarded his expression.

‘What exactly were you doing for the Queen this morning?’ Reading looked up from his desk, placing his quill on the inkstand and shaking sand on the parchment to dry his carefully scribed words.

‘Moving one step closer to catching the Wolf. I’m sure of it. But I can’t explain this to you now. There is much to be done. If only I could find an assistant who spent less time worrying about my whereabouts and more time focusing on his work.’

Reading stared at him for a full five ticks of the clock.

Edward removed his coat. ‘Nothing to say? That’s not like you.’

‘I’m trying to formulate an adequate response to such a load of tripe.’

Striding into his office, Edward felt a remarkable sense of well-being at besting Reading despite the damning evidence he and Ivy had uncovered.