A spurt of warmth hit Sutton rightin the middle of his chest. The feeling so intense, he restrainedhimself from rubbing his breastbone. His BadgerknewPortuguesewas spoken in Macao. She actuallyknewwhere Macao was. MissDunforth, while she didn’t know it, was the most exotic, seductive creatureSutton had ever met.
“I do speak Portuguese and Chinese.Jonas was my monkey, and he smoked opium like a fiend. I could not bringhim to England with me. When one is being shanghaied, one does not havetime to pack.”
“Shanghaied?”
“Kidnapped.”
“Oh, yes. It took ten men,tenmen, to bring you back.”
Sutton laughed. She imitated thetone of Lady Agnes Dobson to perfection.
“Why? Why did your grandmother haveto kidnap you? Didn’t you wish to come back and be a Marquess?” Herhonest question gave Sutton a thoughtful pause. He didn’t know how to answerit. The title and the money, even his looks, he considered of littleimport to who he really was. He’d lived by his wits in Macao.Penniless upon his arrival, he’d managed to build a successful tradingpost. He’d explored vast areas of jungle and studied the flora of thepeninsula. He traded with the Chinese, smoked opium, and generally did ashe chose. A Marquess had no such luxury.
“There is more to life than a title,Alex.” He didn’t shirk from her gaze. It was heresy for someone ofhis standing to say such a thing, but he didn’t care. Something told himAlexandra didn’t either.
Her gray stare shifted and ran along historso. He could see her mind working. She imagined thetattoo. Every woman in London knew about his tattoo, so it was nosurprise Alex did. Women found the tattoo erotic, it added to the allureof bedding Satan Reynolds.
The Badger shot him a curious, appraisinglook.
“It is indeed a greendragon. The eyes are red.”
Alex shook her head, mortified that he’dguessed her thoughts. “I didn’t mean –“
His hand stayed her. “It’s all right, Idon’t mind telling you. It covers the whole of my back and the tailswraps around the lower part of my waist.” He waited for her to blush andrun from him, as most young ladies of proper breeding would do if body partswere discussed. But Alex never looked away.
“Why did you have it drawn on you?”
“I don’t have it by choice. The tattoo waspainted on me as a type of punishment, to mark me. I was put incharge of some property for a friend, a Chinese warlord, while he saw to hisbusiness elsewhere. He did not appreciate the way I handled his propertyand decided I needed to be punished for my indiscretions. One of hisconcubines told him that the English called me Satan Reynolds. Thewarlord thought it a great joke that my own people likened me to thedevil. He decided to mark me so that all who saw it would know Iwas cursed.” Sutton had, in fact, nearly seduced the man’s young, fourthwife. If he had succeeded he no doubt would be dead now. Thepunishment was for the girl to tattoo Sutton with the face of the devil, butshe had no idea what the devil looked like. She chose a dragoninstead.
“Did it hurt?”
He nodded. “Like the bloody dickens. Istayed drunk for nearly a week, the pain was so bad.”
Her hand lifted, as if she would touchhim, but she quickly put it down. She smiled shyly. “Did thewarlord’s ‘property’ object to your punishment?” She met his gaze, andlooked into his soul without judgment, only concern and temperedamusement. He felt the pull towards her. Stronger. Insistent.
“No.” Slowly he reached a hand towardsher, as if she were a frightened animal he didn’t want to run from him.“She was the one who drew it on me.” His hand cupped the side of herface.
Her eyes widened in surprise at histouch, then fluttered closed. She gave a small sigh of satisfaction andtilted her head into his hand. Sheer need punched Sutton in thegut. Primal. Fierce.
Sutton reached swiftly with both handsand grabbed her shoulders. He stood up, drawing her small form againsthim.
Alexandra’s eyes popped open. Hermouth rounded in an “o” of surprise.
A shock of heat coursed between them astheir bodies melded together. His hand ran down her spine, clutching heraround the waist. One hand held her tightly as the other roamed down hertiny form to grab underneath her bottom, cupping her buttocks.Deliberately, he pushed her against the hardness nearly bursting through hisbreeches.
She struggled half-heartedly. Theaction rubbed her breasts against him in an agonizing rhythm. A gloved handswatted ineffectually against his chest. The hand stayed against hisshoulder, the fingers caressing him, seemingly of their own accord.
“Put me down, Lord Reynolds!” Itwas the same tone she used with him in Lord Dobson’s library. Two spotsof color stood out on Alexandra’s cheeks. Her body softened againsthim. She stopped struggling.
“You are depraved to think I wish to beaccosted by the biggest rake in London, in abookstoreof all places,next to a shelf of ..of... “ She peered over his shoulder and squinted. “Etiquettefor Young Ladies!” I know what you are about, and I have no desire tobecome yet another conquest of the great Satan Reynolds. As a plain girl,far beneath you socially, you might imagine I would welcome your amorousattentions, but I assure you I do not.”
Plain? Alexandra thought she wasplain? Sutton thought she sparkled like a tiny snowflake that had by merechance, landed on his tongue. Unique and beautiful. He pushed herharder against him, which earned his shoulder another ineffectual swat of herhand.
Alex’s chin lifted in a determined manner.She thought this a game to him. Sutton couldn’t blame her. He had arather black reputation, especially with women. Their mutual attraction to eachother confused her. He saw the fear of rejection in her eyes evenas he moved her against the fiercest arousal he’d ever had in his life.
“Shut up, Alex.” He wound his armsaround her, kissing her deeply and possessively. He nudged her mouthopen, touching her tongue to his. Gently he sucked her tongue into hismouth. Her body shivered in his embrace. He kissed her harder, all theneed he felt for her spilling into the kiss.
Alexandra wiggled her hips, whichhappened to be pushed against Sutton’s breeches. He pushed her againstthe hardness in his breeches and she wiggled back. He lifted his lipsfrom hers.
