Page 129 of Bound By the Duke

Aurelia fought the urge to look down. To watch his fingers slowly trace her arm. Even though she was nearly drowning, she still looked him in the eyes.

There was a tenderness in those blue depths. But beneath it, there was hunger. Desire. That fire that could reduce them both to ashes.

He broke the silence again. “I missed you. So much that I cannot bear to spend a night without you.”

Her lips parted at the emotion in his confession. The words were raw, heartfelt. Her mouth opened to answer when his lips descended. Not to claim her mouth, but to brush her forehead.

The kiss was unexpected, and it touched her deeper than any fierce embrace ever had.

She couldn’t help the tremulous smile that curved her lips. The delicious turn of power. How beautifully the tables had turned.

She melted in his embrace, holding his wrists as his hands slid dangerously close to her breasts. She swallowed hard before mustering the courage for a shameless confession.

“I… I don’t want to be apart from you either. Not for a second. I want to sleep next to you. Always.”

Her words were hesitant, but they burned with truth.

He slid his hand further up to trace the slope of her collarbone with a patience that made her want to arch into him. She swallowed when his hand moved lower, not pulling away.

A moan tore from her throat when his hot, wet mouth pressed against the side of her neck. He sucked lightly, almost making her knees buckle. She clutched his shoulders, her nails digging into the fabric of his shirt as if to mark him.

“Percival…” His name came out as a plea.

She arched against him, shameless and needy.

“Take me,” she begged, unable to bear the torture. “Take me to your bed.”

Percival froze. For one agonizing second, he simply held her there. His lips brushed the side of her neck, his breath tickling her skin.

Then, his voice came out, horse and honest. “I am not sure… I am not sure I could stop, Aurelia. Once we start, once I stop holding back, it will consume us both. And you…” He paused, the mere thought of hurting her making him sick in the stomach. “You are still recovering.”

Her fingers tightened on his shoulders, and she tilted her face up to his, close enough that he could see every tremor.

“I can handle it,” she whispered fiercely. “All of it. I want everything you have to give. Break me apart, Percival.” Then, with a reckless smile, she added breathlessly, “We will be careful not to make children.”

Percival lifted his head, his eyes sweeping over her face like a map he had memorized. His expression darkened into something stronger than longing, a mixture of promise and warning.

Without a word, his lips trailed from her throat to her jawline. The command was instant. Her eyes fluttered shut, her lips parting on a whimper.

And when his lips finally hovered over hers, he murmured, “I am done being afraid.”

His words were somber. Most importantly, they carried finality.

“Not because of Lottie. Not because of duty. But because ofyou. Because I want it, too. I want to love you wholly. To prove it with more than words. To create proof of our love. Children.”

His confession landed like thunder and lightning at once. Her heart swelled, thudding so hard that she thought it might burst out of her chest.

But she couldn’t speak, not when his mouth finally claimed hers. Whatever words had been hanging on the tip of her tongue faded into moans.

There was nothing soft about the way her husband was kissing her. It was raw, hungry, desperate.

His lips moved against hers like a forgotten lover who had been recently found. Like her mere kiss assuaged his deepest fears.

It was the kind of kiss that seared and soothed at the same time. And she melted into it without a second thought. She offered herself without pretense, whimpering wantonly.

He groaned into her mouth as his tongue dueled with hers, his hands tightening on her waist. Their warm breaths mingled, and Aurelia knew there was no turning back.

The night had only just begun.