Page 69 of Second Duke's the Charm

She turned her head to look at him. His eyes were closed, and a faint flush warmed his cheekbones. Her heart gave an odd little patter.

Her limbs felt like lead. She wanted to sink into the bed and sleep for a week, but the cool air was starting to make her feel chilly.

Would he join her under the covers? Would he sleep with her all night?

She rolled onto her side, toward him, and he opened his eyes and fixed her with a sleepy stare. His lips curved upward.

“Now what?” she whispered.

His gusty sigh made his chest rise and fall. “Now we sleep. For a little while.”

“Are you staying in here? With me?”

He rolled onto his own side to face her, and she tried not to flush at the reminder that they were both naked. He reached out and stroked a strand of hair away from her temple.

“I know it’s not usual for a married couple to share a chamber, and I certainly don’t plan on joining you every night, but I would like to do so tonight.”

Tess nodded, trying to look as if she was well versed in postcoital etiquette. Was she supposed to get up and clean herself? She needed to use the chamber pot. Embarrassment heated her cheeks. How should she suggest—?

“I’ll give you a moment to clean up, and then I’ll join you.” He rolled off the bed and she almost kissed him in relief for anticipating her needs.

“Thank you.”

He didn’t bother to pull on his shirt as he strode back to the connecting door and she couldn’t help but admire the musculature of his buttocks and back. Her fingers itched to touch him.

He must have spent some time without his shirt—maybe on board ship?—because there was a distinct demarcation between the darker tanned skin of his upper body and the level that would indicate the waistband of his breeches. For some reason it made her smile. It made him more human, more approachable.

Less perfect.

She made quick work of using the chamber pot and used a handkerchief to wipe the evidence of his pleasure from her skin. She still expected to see a hint of blood on the white cotton, but there was nothing to betray her secret and her heart soared with relief.

This must be how jewel thieves or criminals felt after a successful heist: this heady sense of delight at getting away with something utterly improbable. She quashed the urge to giggle like a madwoman.

To give Thornton his due, he might not have reacted as badly as many men if hehadguessed her secret. He had a pragmatic sense of self-preservation himself. He might have understood. Still, she was glad she didn’t have to put it to the test.

She retrieved her silk nightgown from the floor and slipped it back on, which was probably a pointless gesture, since he was doubtlessly only going to remove it again, but she might as well get her money’s worth. She slipped beneath the covers moments before he reentered the room.

He was still naked, and she studied him, unashamed by her curiosity. He, in turn, seemed perfectly at easewith his nakedness. Not that he had any reason to be ashamed—he was gorgeous.

He stopped a foot from the side of the bed, and since she was already lying down, his privates were almost at eye level. Heat filled her cheeks as she realized he was becoming aroused again, and she bit her lip to stop a smile as she remembered Daisy’s old complaint about Greek statues and small fig leaves. Thornton certainly wasn’t inthatcategory.

“Looked your fill, Your Grace?”

Tess pulled the covers up to her chin and tried to sound bored and sophisticated. “You’ll do, I suppose.”

He tugged back the covers and she squealed as he slid in beside her. “Cheeky wench. Come here.”

He slid an arm around her waist and pulled her into his embrace, and she shivered in pleasure as their bodies met. The musky scent of him, of them, filled her nose and made her stomach somersault.

She flattened her hand against his chest, and smiled up at him.

“What?” he asked, brows raised.

“Whoever said you were lacking a heart was wrong.” She leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his warm skin. “I can feel it beating right here. For me.”

Justin stared down into Tess’s eyes and felt as if he was diving deep into the ocean. Or falling from a height. Some mildly uncomfortable sensation, at least. One that squeezed his lungs and pressed on his chest.

Usually after bedding a woman he felt nothing but blissful exhaustion. A desire to roll over and fall asleep. But with her he didn’t want to waste a single minute.