Page 23 of Married to the Icy Duke (Duke Wars #3)

His words sent a ripple of awareness down her spine, so sudden that she exhaled sharply, eyes widening. She stepped back, almost without thinking of it, and abruptly her back bumped up against a tree. She gasped, eyes widening.

At once, Isaac was leaning over her, his gaze dark. His eyes slid up and down her frame, seeming to take everything in, making her shiver once more.

“I must say,” he murmured, almost to himself, “you don’t look particularly scared.”

“That is because I am not afraid of you,” she breathed, not entirely sure where the words had come from.

He grinned. He lifted a hand, ever so gently, and pinched her chin between thumb and forefinger.

“Are you sure?” he murmured, his voice a low rumble in his throat. “Not even now?”

The back of his knuckles ever so gently skimmed the curve of her throat, so when she swallowed, she was sure that he could feel the movement.

“Not even now,” she breathed.

He grinned, wolfish. Then he kissed her.

It was different from the kiss they’d shared before—was it really only last night?

—but the heat was so much more intense. The tip of his tongue slid at once over her lower lip, almost teasingly, and she felt his long fingers curl around the side of her neck, cool and firm.

She gasped against him, and almost without her knowledge, her hands slid up the curve of his chest, coming to rest on the slope of his shoulders.

The hand moved down from her neck, one fingertip tracing the line of her collarbone. It inched lower, tantalizingly so, until his warm palm settled entirely over the curve of one breast.

Heat pulsed in Charlotte’s chest, driven wild by his touch.

She heard a moan hitching in her own throat, swallowed down and tucked behind his teeth.

The hand cupping her breast squeezed, just the tiniest amount, barely more than a touch of pressure.

A rush of pleasure shot through her, causing Charlotte’s eyes to fly open.

He pulled back abruptly, eyes so dark she could not read them.

He chuckled, low in his throat, and the hand slid lower, past her waist to cup her hip, squeezing tightly.

“No,” he murmured, his voice a quiet rasp. “You don’t look afraid at all.”

He leaned forward to kiss her once more, his lips hot and insistent.

Charlotte squeezed her eyes shut, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

She wanted him closer and closer, although she felt the closeness she wanted was not going to be enough.

She felt his heart pounding in his chest, and something firm and hot pressed against her hip.

Isaac growled against her lips, pressing her harder against the wall.

Somewhere in the distance, out of sight, a woman laughed loudly. The sound cut through Charlotte’s reverie, replacing the flush of pleasure with cold, hard fear.

What am I doing? What am I doing ? More importantly, where am I doing it?

Charlotte placed her hands on his chest and pushed as hard as she could. She succeeded only in propelling herself backwards, as pushing Isaac was like pushing on a stone wall. She staggered sideways, putting distance between them, and their lips were unceremoniously pulled apart.

She felt shaky, her breath coming hard as if she’d been holding her breath.

Passing the back of her hand over her forehead, she swallowed hard and dragged her gaze up to Isaac.

He was staring at her, his expression dark and hungry, a sort of hunger that made desire coil in her chest once more.

She wanted to kiss him again, wanted to feel his large hands on her, wanted …

No, no, no! What am I thinking? What am I doing?

“I am sorry,” Isaac’s deep, heavy voice woke her up from her reverie. A flush of arousal still lingered across his cheeks, and Charlotte couldn’t forget the hardness she’d felt from him, pushing against her. “I should not have done that.”

“It wasn’t supposed to happen,” Charlotte heard herself say, her voice ever so slightly strained. Her whole body thrummed with desire, no matter how firmly she tried to push down the feelings. “It must not happen again. Perhaps we should revisit the terms of our agreement.”

Now, why had she said that? It could sound as though she wanted stricter terms regarding their ‘no touching’ agreement, but it could also mean the opposite.

“It matters little,” Isaac responded, some of his composure returning. He straightened his waistcoat with an impatient jerk. “You are marrying me, and that’s that. The marriage is inevitable. We might as well wait until after to discuss these matters.”

The hairs on the back of Charlotte’s neck prickled. “I can still refuse to marry you.”

He chuckled dryly. “That would be inadvisable. You would lose everything.”

She smiled grimly. The feelings were not fading away. If anything, they were increasing. She suddenly found herself longing for the busy bustle of the street, where she’d be forced to compose herself. A little brisk walking would calm her down.

“I have already lost my freedom,” she heard herself say, turning on her heel. “Come, we should return. The others will be wondering where we have gotten to.”

I must get away.

Hurrying away down the path with most unladylike strides, Charlotte heard him follow her after a moment.

He caught up quickly, walking beside her as if he were escorting her, as a gentleman should.

His presence seemed to heat her up from the inside out, and Charlotte was obliged to grit her teeth and walk faster.

It did no good, as he kept up with her easily.

Oh, heavens. What on earth have I gotten myself into? What on earth is going to happen next? I dread to imagine—what will he be like after the wedding?

No answers, unfortunately, presented themselves.