Chapter Three #6
She couldn’t breathe. She did not want to.
All she wanted was for Alec to continue kissing her until the end of time.
He suckled and licked until her lips were raw and swollen, tasting all she had to offer and then some.
His mind was inflamed with the feel of her, the smell of her.
She gasped as his mouth left her distended lips, suckling the delicate line of her jaw and moving to the white flesh of her neck.
Peyton clung to him, incoherent, weak with the newly discovered heat of desire.
He tore away the cloak, revealing the soft swell of her white bosom.
He immediately plunged his face into the creamy flesh and Peyton moaned, nearly swooning with the sensation.
He ran his tongue along the valley between her breasts, suckling the silky soft curves.
His close cropped hair acted like an erotic brush, stroking her neck and chin seductively as his mouth worked eagerly towards the tender fruit of her breasts.
But the bodice of her dress was too snug and the material would not give, and all he could think of was removing her from her gown. He tore his mouth away from her breast and fastened them to her lips hungrily as his hands moved to the stays of her gown.
Peyton felt his hands, knowing he intended to disrobe her but not particularly caring.
The man inflamed such passion in her that she found she would forget her modesty and innocence all together if he would only continue to make her feel as if there was nothing else on this earth as wonderful as his skilled touch.
The virginity she had kept so carefully guarded against James was dangerously close to being plucked.
As his lips nibbled her earlobe, Peyton’s last thought stuck with her and she felt herself descending slightly from the lofty heights of desire.
Fear suddenly clasped her and she pulled away from him, her eyes wide.
The gleam in his sky-blue orbs nearly drove her to her knees, smoky and glazed with lust.
“No, Alec,” she whispered. “I cannot….”
His fingers stopped their advance, but he continued to hold her tightly against him. “You can and you will. Agree to the betrothal, Peyton.”
She shook her head and his mouth clamped down on her lips, draining her control. “Say you will marry me,” he demanded huskily.
“I….” she began and he cut her off with another brutal kiss until she was gasping for air.
“Say it!” he ordered.
“Alec….!” she tried to pull away from his consuming mouth but he would not allow her to.
“I shall have your agreement if I have to kiss it out of you,” he rasped, his tongue licking her mouth indecently.
She moaned and responded to his onslaught, but only momentarily before she returned to her slimly-held senses. “I do not want to.”
“But you will,” he suckled her lower lip furiously and her breathing came out in sharp little pants. “Say it.”
She gasped and his mouth closed over her lips violently.
She was only aware of Alec and his passion, of their tongues tangling, of the feel of him against her.
She could barely comprehend her thoughts, but she knew clearly that she wanted more of him.
For the first time in her life, she gave into the wicked world of desire.
“I shall…. I shall agree!” she breathed as his mouth released her.
He grinned, his eyes half-lidded with lust. “Promise?”
She could barely nod and her eyes opened slowly; she was positively dazed. He continued to smile at her and brushed her lips with his own, gently this time.
“Truly?” he murmured. “No regrets?”
She blinked and swallowed hard, her lucidity returning. “I said I would. What choice did you give me?”
“None at all,” he said honestly, kissing her deeply once more. “I may not be ready for marriage, and mayhap you aren’t either. But I shall be damned if another man will have you. I would regret it sorely if my father married you to another.”
She sighed raggedly, gazing into his sky-blue eyes. “Why?”
His grin turned wolfish. “Because you are a tasty morsel and I intend to have you all to myself. Besides, you are so beautiful that I shall find you very pleasant to look at in years to come.”
She stared at him, regaining her senses bit by bit until she realized he was holding her aloft without any trouble whatsoever. Her booted feet dangled a dozen inches off the ground and she attempted to release him, but his grip held her fast.
“Put me down, Alec,” she said quietly. The severity of her wanton behavior was bearing down on her and she was suddenly ashamed and confused. Moreover, she had just agreed to marry him and she wasn’t at all sure how to feel about it.
“As you wish, my lady,” he complied, but not before kissing her again. Good lord, he could melt her to the core with his sweet kisses.
He took her hand and led her over to the fire where the pot was boiling furiously. Still dazed, Peyton sat on the stump stupidly as he fussed with the contents of his satchel.
“We will break the night’s fast with broth and bread and then I shall take you back to Blackstone,” he said.
Peyton stared at him, taking another look at his profile.
She’d noticed that he was handsome before, but she did not stop to realize precisely how handsome.
His features were sculpted and perfect, lending credit to his aura of pure strength.
In spite of his size, he moved with awesome grace and agility.
It was an extremely pleasing combination.
This man is to be my husband, she thought as if the full impact of the idea had just occurred to her. She felt defeated and giddy at the same time.
“Which way did Ivy go?” he asked, putting the broth into a tin cup.
“South, to the woods,” she replied dully, still caught up in her own thoughts.
“We will go and search for her, then,” he handed her the broth and a hunk of brown bread. “’Tis not safe for her to be traveling the woods alone, although from what I have seen she can take care of herself.”
Peyton sipped the broth and devoured the bread; she was starving. Alec stood several feet away, chewing on a large piece of bread and looking thoughtful. “Are your sister’s ideas on marriage the same as yours?”
“Very much so,” Peyton said firmly. “She doesn’t like men.”
Alec snorted, chewing. “My sister’s ideas are much the same.”
“I did not know you had a sister.”
Alec finished the bread and brushed the crumbs off his hands. “I have a younger sister and an older brother.”
Peyton drank the last of the broth, feeling warm and satisfied by the food. Alec cleaned up the remnants of the meal and stashed them away in his satchel.
Dousing the fire, he emitted a piercing whistle from between his teeth and the charger bolted from its grazing spot in the bramble, trotting towards his master.
Peyton watched, impressed, as the massive horse came to a halt and Alec strapped the bag onto the saddle.
When he was finished, he turned to Peyton expectantly.
“Shall we go, lady? My father will be most anxious to see you.”
Begrudgingly, Peyton rose. “Most anxious to take a tassel whip to my backside, I shall wager.”
Alec grinned as he held out his hand. “If he is going to lash anyone, ’twill be me. And I shall take your lashes for you, have no fear.”
“Why do you say that?” she put her hand in his, feeling the heated energy flow between them. How on earth a touch could affect her so powerfully was baffling.
Alec lifted her onto the destrier, avoiding her gaze. “Because I…. well, it’s not important. He shall be ecstatic to hear that you have agreed to our betrothal.”
He was evading her question and she reached out her hand, pulling his great head up to face her.
Timid fingers absently touched his stubbled jaw.
“Because why? If we are to be married, my lord, I will demand one thing from my husband. That you always be truthful with me. I do not like secrets or lies.”
He met her gaze, feeling himself being devoured by her great sapphire eyes.
She was so very fragile and delicate in appearance, like a beautiful blossom.
But her words were sound and firm, and he was compelled to agree with the philosophy; honesty was an important trait in a marriage.
He cleared his throat, forcing reluctant words to his lips.
“Because I was running away. I was fleeing north because my father and I had an argument.”
Peyton looked at him closely, seeing his sheepish expression. A faint smile creased her lips. “Because of me?”
He nodded hesitantly. “I did not want to marry you and he was insistent that I accept the betrothal. Hell, I took to the woods because I thought the soldiers on the road had come after me. ’Twas only by chance that I came across you.”
Her smile broadened. “Then it would seem that your father will be glad to see the both of us.”
He returned her smile sheepishly, embarrassed at his admission.
“I still do not want to marry you,” she said after a moment.
“And I do not want to marry you.”
“Then why are we agreeing to this betrothal?”
He looked thoughtful a moment. “I do not know. I suppose because I must marry eventually, and so must you. We might as well marry each other and breed an entire keep full of Summerlin heirs.”
“We will be living at St. Cloven. It is not that big.”
“It will be after I have expanded the base. I have got big plans for my keep, my lady.”
“It’s my keep, my lord.”
He lifted an eyebrow at her, moving to mount the charger. “Not for long.”
He mounted behind her, settling himself in the saddle and then pulling her soft bottom onto his thighs.
She squirmed innocently to find a comfortable position, but Alec was quickly succumbing to misery; feeling her supple backside against his thighs and groin was torture at the very least. He waited with thin patience, biting off a groan as she fussed.
“Are you finished?” he demanded weakly.