Page 76 of Second Duke's the Charm

He rested his hands on either side of her head, trapping her against the trunk. He leaned in, pressing himself against her, and a delicious shiver of anticipation raced through her body.

This man.How could he affect her so? It wasn’t fair.

His lips quirked. “Oh, I intend to do my very best.”

Tess closed her eyes in anticipation, but the fiend paused just before his lips made contact with hers.

“Our first kiss was standing up like this. At Careby’s. Do you remember?”

“Yes.” She breathed it against his lips. “I thought you were a professional gamester.”

He gave a soft snort of derision. “Gambling’s for fools. The surest and quickest way to lose a fortune. I never bet on anything unless the odds are significantly tipped in my favor.” His lips brushed hers, petal-soft. “I thoughtyouwere a whore.”

She gave his lower lip a teasing nip and he grunted in pleasure. “I know.”

“We were both wrong, then.”

“Yes.”

Tess opened her mouth and he swept inside, fusing them together. The bark of the tree was rough against her back, but she didn’t care. She wrapped her arms around his waist and kissed him with an urgency that made no secret of her desire.

His passion was almost overwhelming. She craved him like a drug, needed the rush of intense, heart-bursting joy that he alone could provide.

A deafening crack shattered the silence.

Tess gasped, even as she ducked automatically, flinching away from the sound.

“Bloody Hell!”

Before she could even make sense of what was happening, she found herself flat on the ground, her face pressed into the damp leaves and mud, Justin’s heavy body sprawled on top of her.

“Stay down!” His voice was rough and urgent in her ear. “Some bastard’s shooting at us.”

Another shot boomed through the trees, and a shower of wooden splinters rained down as the pellets of a shotgun decimated the branch above them.

Tess could hardly breathe. Justin was crushing the air from her lungs. She tried to lift her head but he shoved her roughly back down.

They both stilled, listening for any telltale rustle of leaves; and the diminishing crash of footsteps to the east indicated the shooter was rapidly making their escape.

After a full minute of silence, Justin slid off her, and she took a welcome, gasping breath.

“Stay here,” he whispered, so softly she could barely hear. “It could still be a trap to draw us out.”

Tess nodded, still scarcely able to believe what had occurred.

He crawled forward on his belly and risked a glance around the tree, scanning the area for further signs of life, but when nothing else moved, he slowly rose to his feet and reached down to pull her up.

“Are you hurt?”

“Just a little shaken, that’s all.”

Tess exhaled deeply and brushed the leaves from her skirts. Her hands were shaking and she felt vaguely sick. She wished he would take her into his arms, but he didn’t move.

“Whoever that was can’t possibly have meant to shoot at us,” she said. “It must have been a poacher, thinking we were deer.”

Thornton’s narrow-eyed look suggested he didn’t share her opinion.

“You don’t think so?” she pressed.