Aurora’s bravado wouldnot falter. She refused to allow Worth to push her out the door, not without some sort of satisfactory conclusion.
Chapter four was as far as she’d read thus far, deliberately choosing not to read any further. Instead, Aurora had reread this portion ofThe Bloom of the Roserepeatedly for the past few days, and again only moments ago on the carriage ride to Worth’s. There was a reason she hadn’t been sleeping well at night.
Worth on his knees before her.
That golden head wedged between her thighs.
She nearly tore her skirts in her haste to lift them.
A sound fell from his lips. Slightly feral and not at all like the elegant, charming rake Aurora had come to know. The blue of his eyes darkened so dramatically Aurora could no longer make out the pupils. He stared pointedly at the spot between her thighs.
“Lift your skirts higher,” he rasped softly. “Orleave.”
Arousal sifted low in Aurora’s mid-section, her body responding to that command given in such a low, dangerous timbre. She obeyed without hesitation, only pausing when he spoke once more.
“Stop. Do so slowly.”
“I don’t think—” Aurora meant to ask what moving the fabric up her legs at a snail’s pace had to do with anything. She was farmore curious about what came after her skirts were up around her waist.
“Chapter four, Aurora.Specifically, page twenty-six.” Worth’s voice held just a touch of menace.
Bits of sensation lit across her skin at the sound of him. “Page twenty-six,” she repeated stupidly.
“Do you wish it or not?” Worth drew in a long breath, the look in his eyes mildly frightening. As if he’d tear her apart with his teeth.
Good lord, she would let him. Desire washed over her in a wave. She nodded. “Yes.”
“Then do as I ask.”
Slowly, Aurora pulled the fabric of her skirts upward, every brush of the silk tickling her calves in a sensual caress. The lace at the hem of her skirts caught against her stockings, dragging in a seductive manner until she paused the hem at her knees. Her nipples tightened into small, painful buds. The pulse in her neck fluttered so dramatically, Aurora was sure Worth could see it.
Worth waved his hand. “Up.”
Aurora rucked her skirts higher, stopping again at her waist.
“Keep it there. Don’t let go. Part your thighs.”
Aurora inhaled softly, hesitating only a moment before she obeyed. She had never felt so exposed in her life.
His eyed drifted down the length of her form to her splayed legs, fixing on the soft tuft of hair over her mound. Worth came down to his knees before the settee, wedging his larger body between her legs. His lashes fluttered over the sharp line of his cheeks. A deep sigh, one of restrained longing came from him. Worth’s beautiful, graceful hands trailed over the silk-clad length of her legs, pausing to trace the delicate curve of her ankles, before gently exploring the lines of her knees.
“Worth.”
“Don’t make a sound.”
One palm stretched over her thigh, warm and solid, holding her in place. Leaning forward, he blew a light stream of air over the soft hair covering her sex.
Aurora gasped softly, jolting at the unfamiliar, sinful feel of his breath.
“Page twenty-six,” he whispered. “It has been some time since I’ve readThe Bloom of the Rose.I’d forgotten her encounter with a nameless gentleman before she leaves home. He seduces her in the drawing room.” The fingers of his free hand tangled in the hair covering her mound, tugging gently. “With his mouth.”
“Yes, and I—Lady Bryant seemed so enamored of this act, that day in the maze and—”
“She is unimportant.” Worth’s chin dipped without warning, his tongue moving along her exposed flesh, lazily traveling through her folds. Licking gently. Savoring her. A most marvelous sensation that traveled up and down her limbs.
Aurora fell back against the cushions of the settee.
Worth groaned, pressing his lips more fully against her. The pad of his tongue moved, teasing along the small bit of flesh now open to him. With great care, Worth parted her folds, his breath warm and gentle, like the kiss of a butterfly.
