Chapter Twelve
D amnation.
Chase flung back the coverlet and crawled out of bed. He was a fool to think he would get any sleep tonight. Images of Tessa haunted him as he’d stared up at the canopy overhead, and he couldn’t drive them from his mind, although a selfish part of him didn’t want to. He didn’t dare let himself think where their encounter in the attic might have led had the storm not chosen that moment to intensify and jolt them back into reality.
“But it wasn’t a ghost,” he grumbled as he yanked on his trousers. No, it was much worse than that. “It was a duke who couldn’t keep his bloody hands to himself.”
He snatched up the bottle of whiskey on this bedside table and splashed a generous pour into the glass, then took a gasping swallow of the stuff. Gentlemen do not drink whiskey , he remembered his mother berating him when he’d gotten himself foxed to the gills with friends on one of the rare times he’d bothered returning to Cuillin during a holiday from Eton. She hadn’t been upset that he’d gotten drunk but that he’d had the audacity to not do it with cognac. Since that night, whenever he had wanted to become blindly drunk and numb to the world, he’d chosen whiskey. Tonight was no exception.
Except that he was no longer some green lad on the cusp of manhood, and he knew that all the whiskey in the world wouldn’t ease the oppressive weight on his shoulders. The only thing that had managed to do that was Tessa, and she was the same reason he now needed the whiskey in the first place.
Still, he carried the glass to the window and looked out at the dark night. Not a sign of dawn anywhere in sight. Not that he wanted to see any. Dawn meant the morning was starting, and in the morning, Tessa and Winnie would leave. He’d be alone again. He hadn’t realized until Lady Bentley made the announcement that they would be returning to town how much he would miss them. In the few weeks they’d been at the castle, he’d grown used to having them with him and dreaded the idea of being alone again.
He froze, the glass raised halfway to his lips. His eye caught a movement below on the terrace—another figure in white. But this warm night had no moon to play tricks on him as it had done before, no breeze stirring any bushes. His chest squeezed. This time, he knew exactly who was haunting him.
He set down the glass, pulled on his breeches and stomped into his boots, and hurried from his room, down through the castle toward the terrace.
He flung open the French doors and paused on the terrace to take in the night around him. No moon or stars were visible through the thick layer of clouds overhead, the terrace as dark as could be, and stillness hovered over everything. Only the dense banks of white fog gave a false sense of light in the darkness, yet even they were motionless, as if the entire world was holding its breath, waiting…
The oppressive silence was broken only by the faint sound of his boot steps on the stone as he walked across the terrace, then down onto the lawn. His heart pounded rapidly, coursing the blood through his ears, and with each step he took toward the garden, his gut tightened until his breath turned ragged.
He reached the edge of the garden and stopped. Tessa.
She walked toward the pond’s edge in the shadows, her white dressing robe blending with the fog. She reminded him of an angel gliding across the ground without her feet seeming to touch the earth. Unable to resist, he followed silently behind, helpless to the magnetic draw of her. Around them, the night was still, with not even a trickle of water in the pond or a nightingale daring to break the silence.
As if sensing him behind her, she stopped and slowly turned toward him. The shadows were too deep for him to see whatever expression crossed her face at finding him there, but she didn’t flee into the night. Instead, she remained as still as one of the old statues of Greek gods scattered throughout the gardens as he approached her. Fitting, he supposed, because every inch of her resembled a goddess.
When he reached her, she whispered, her voice barely a breath on the air, “I couldn’t sleep.”
“Neither could I,” he replied, his own voice just as low as hers. Yet after the fright she’d suffered in the attic… “Aren’t you afraid of the darkness?”
An embarrassed smile curled her lips. “The castle might be haunted, but there are no ghosts in the garden.” She tilted her face toward the sky. “And no stars, no moon…only peace and quiet.” She closed her eyes for a moment to breathe in deeply. “And the perfume of night-blooming jasmine.”
He stared at her, mesmerized. An angel in the darkness… She opened her eyes and caught him staring like a love-starved lad, but he couldn’t find it in him to care that she had.
“We’re leaving in the morning.” She cast a longing gaze across the shadow-filled gardens, taking them in as if wanting to imprint the memory on her mind. “I wanted to walk in the gardens one last time.”
“You shouldn’t be out here alone.”
“I’m not alone. I’m with you.”
He corrected somberly, “You shouldn’t be out here alone with me.”
She stared at him, as if she simply couldn’t fathom him, her lips parting in soft surprise. It wasn’t an invitation to be kissed, but God help him, that’s exactly what he what he wanted from her. And more.
Without warning, the black sky overhead burst open, and large drops of rain poured down.
Chase grabbed her hand and pulled her with him as he ran toward the old folly temple at the end of the pond. Tessa followed him up the short steps and darted with him between the columns to reach cover from the rain beneath the overhanging pediment. Laughter spilled from her, the sound nearly lost beneath the drumming rain as she spun around to face him. She was breathing hard in the cool air, her wet dressing robe and night rail beneath soaked through to her skin and clinging to her curves. Her loose hair lay wet around her shoulders, with the raindrops that had gathered on her lashes and cheeks shining like diamonds in the darkness.
She pushed a wet strand of hair off her face, and her laughter died beneath his heated gaze.
She swallowed, the soft undulation of her throat making him long to put his mouth right there on her damp skin, to feel the hum of her pulse beneath his lips. “I’m not afraid to be alone with you.”
“You should be.”
Cool raindrops glistening on her warm skin, white material outlining her body in the shadows as if the wet cotton wasn’t there at all, brave yet so vulnerable…the contradiction of her undid him.
Losing the battle for control, he stepped forward, pinned her between his body and the stone column, and lowered his mouth to hungrily capture hers.
*
Tessa struggled to keep her breath as his lips plundered hers, her arms lifting to encircle his neck as she arched her back against the column in a silent plea for him to come closer, to bring himself fully against her. She wanted his strength and warmth, craved his hard muscles—craved so much more she simply couldn’t put to words but instinctively knew he could give her.
When he pressed against her with a shift of his hips, a soft sigh left her, only for it to turn into a moan as his tongue slipped between her lips and deepened the kiss. He took long, seeking sweeps through her mouth as if exploring her, only to transform the kiss into something decidedly wanton when the long sweeps became pulsing thrusts that seemed to come in time with her throbbing heartbeat. Her fingers dug into the damp hair at his nape in encouragement, and her mouth softened beneath his in pliant surrender.
When she could no longer breathe, she tore her mouth away and panted hard for breath, but he gave her no quarter and placed open-mouth kisses against her neck. Each kiss was punctuated by a gentle nip of his teeth on her flesh that shivered warmth through her, down into her breasts which grew heavy and hot, and down even further below, where an insistent tingle formed between her legs.
“Chase,” she pleaded in a whisper against the storm raging around them, although she didn’t know exactly what she was asking for, except that she needed more. More kisses, more touches, more of him .
“I know,” he murmured against her ear, his voice husky rough. “I want that, too.”
She frowned, confused. If she didn’t know what she wanted, then how could he possibly—
His hands closed over both breasts and massaged them through the layers of wet clothing, and the question poised on her tongue turned into a jerky gasp. Beneath her wet night clothes, her already-taut nipples began to ache from the heat of his hands, helped in no small part by the way he teased at them, rolling them between his fingers, tugging, and pinching, until she squirmed. All the while, his mouth worshipped her neck, her bare shoulder where her robe had slipped down, and even along her collarbone to the hollow at the base of her throat, where he touched the tip of his tongue to her racing pulse.
A soft whimper escaped her, and his mouth found hers again, drinking up the wanton sound.
His left hand continued to caress her breasts as his right slid down her front to the robe tie, which came loose with a small tug. The wet material clung to her, and he had to pull it open to expose her night rail beneath. Expose …because the white cotton of her gown had been soaked with rain and now lay plastered against her skin, nearly transparent and revealing every secret inch of her despite the shadows. He slipped his hand beneath the robe and slowly stroked up her body. Damp heat trailed over the cold cotton in the wake of his touch, all the way up her fluttering belly to her breasts.
Then his hands at her bosom changed their ministrations—she couldn’t see them, but she could feel them, no longer massaging or teasing at her nipples but tugging at her night rail. The satin bow that held closed her neckline came undone, and he wiggled his hand down beneath the wet cotton to capture her breast. The bare skin of his hand on her cool flesh formed goosebumps across her chest and down both arms and legs, followed by a delicious shiver. Nothing separated his fingers from her now, and the teasing of her nipples that had so thrilled her before now made them ache unbearably.
Seeking relief, she arched her back against the stone column to bring herself harder against his hand. Her breath came ragged and fast, and her racing pulse echoed in her ears like a speeding drum. Shamelessly, she buried her fingers in his hair and tugged his head down to her chest, to allow his mouth to follow after his hand.
When his lips closed around her bare nipple and sucked, a spark of electricity shot through her, from her breast straight down to the space between her legs, where the tingle stirring there flamed into a throbbing ache.
His teeth nipped at her, and she gasped at the unexpected jolt of soft pain. Then he caressed her nipple with the flat of his tongue, like a cat lapping at milk, and the gentle sensation soothed away the prick of the bite…until he did it again. This time, her gasp was little more than a throaty moan of pleasure, a silent beg for more.
“Sweet Lucifer,” he whispered, a touch of awe in his voice, as he tugged down her night rail and exposed her upper body to the cold air and shadows. “You have no idea how breathtaking you are.” He nuzzled her breasts with this cheek, his evening beard deliciously rough against her smooth skin. “How wonderful you feel.”
He slipped his hands behind her back and pressed her closer to him. The thin damp cotton made her feel as if nothing at all existed between her body and his, and when her bare breasts rubbed the coarse hair dusting the flat plans of his bare chest, the realization of how little clothing still remained between them slammed her heart against her ribs. But she wasn’t frightened or ashamed. Being with him felt more right than she could ever put into words.
“How wonderful you make me feel,” he corrected as his hands drifted up and down her back.
“And how—” Her voice broke when his hands squeezed her buttocks. “How do I make you feel?”
“You comfort me, the way no other woman ever has.”
“That’s not comfort,” she challenged. “That’s—”
He pulled her hips forward, bringing her pelvis tightly against his. “This is desire,” he instructed pointedly. She couldn’t mistake the hard bulge pressing into her or what it meant. “Need…frustration…want.” He gave a throaty groan and swirled his hips against hers. “ Lots of wanting.”
Tessa caught her breath, stunned at his reaction to her. “Chase—”
“But this,” he murmured, releasing her hips to rest his fingers against her chest, right over her heart, “and this,” he added as he lightly touched her temple, “heart and head…that’s comfort.” He cupped her face between his hands. “Y ou bring me comfort, Tessa.” He took her bottom lip between his and suckled gently, drawing the ache from between her legs up through her body until she shivered against him. “You know exactly the kind of man I am—the devil himself wouldn’t be prouder of the way I’ve behaved throughout my life. Yet you accept me anyway.” He licked her bottom lip. “Wickedness and all.”
His words weren’t compliments, she knew. They were a brutal confession. She thanked God that her tears were hidden by the raindrops that still clung to her lashes.
“Let me take comfort in you, Tessa.” He nuzzled her ear. “If only for a short while.”
“Yes,” she whispered, her lips trembling from the enormity of the permission she was granting, “if you’d like.”
He murmured something in her ear that was lost beneath a loud roll of thunder, lost beneath the way his mouth captured hers and once more stole her breath away. But her heart heard— I’d like that very much.
His mouth trailed down her throat, taking his time to place heated kisses along the side of her neck and across her bare shoulder, then down to her breasts again. But this time he didn’t stop and moved even lower, so low that he had to drop onto his knees before her to keep his mouth nuzzling her belly.
Around them, the storm raged, and the wind picked up, howling through the trees and matching the volume of the rolling thunder and the pounding surf beyond the castle that formed a low, constant rumble reverberating into her bones. But Tessa could only focus on Chase and the way his hands found her calves, then slid up the backs of her legs, how his warm palms caressed her cold skin and left goosebumps in their wake.
He slowly peeled the hem of her wet night rail up her legs, and with every slow inch of skin revealed to the stormy night and to his dark eyes, her breath came shallower, her heartbeat even more rapid. She trembled as his fingers flared out wide across her thighs and nudged her night rail higher.
She closed her eyes from nervousness, only to discover that his touch was even more intense when she wasn’t watching him, when all she could do was stand there with her back against the cold stone column and feel the heat of his hands seeping into her bare flesh. Each caress was both wantonly exciting and oddly soothing, a delicious contradiction that swirled from her belly out to the tips of her fingers and toes. She felt daring, electric, alive—
His lips touched the soft folds between her legs.
She gasped, her eyes flying open and her hands grabbing at his shoulders. “Chase! What are you—”
“You’re beautiful, Tessa,” he murmured against her as he continued to place delicate kisses to her most intimate place. “So bold and audacious, so opinionated and confident…everything a lady shouldn’t be.” He nuzzled his mouth into her feminine curls. “It’s what I like best about you.”
“No, you don’t,” she protested nervously, but her hands at his shoulders didn’t push him away. Instead, her fingers curled into the hard muscles. “You find me difficult…a challenge.”
“Those are compliments.” His warm breath teased at her wet folds, his fingers sifting through the springy curls guarding them. “What man in his right mind wouldn’t want a woman who challenges him?”
His words stunned her. “You… want me?”
He didn’t answer, his mouth returning to her wet flesh. Teasing kisses gave way to tantalizing strokes of his tongue and to the soft sucking of his lips, and the ache throbbing between her legs grew into a drumming beat right below his mouth.
She closed her eyes again to concentrate on the wonderful feel of his lips, on the way his kisses grew stronger and his tongue explored her. Persistent flicks across her folds turned into long slides that delved deeper into the depression at her core, and his hands stroking up and down her inner thighs nudged her legs further apart.
With a sigh of surrender, she stepped them apart to give him access to her most private place, and an appreciative groan rose from his throat. In reward, his fingers parted her folds, and his tongue plunged deep into her core, so deep she gasped with surprise, only for her gasp to turn into a throaty moan of sheer pleasure when he began to thrust wickedly inside her.
Her hands dug into his shoulders as she clung to him to keep from falling away. Never— never had she felt before the intimate sensations his mouth gave her, or the persistent throbbing just below his lips that had become all-consuming. He flamed a heat inside her that was beyond her control, yet she somehow knew he could also extinguish it.
She dared to open her eyes and look down at him, watching as he worshipped her. The sight of his mouth buried between her thighs was the most wicked, most wonderful thing she’d ever seen, and the erotic sounds of his mouth that reached her above the noise of the storm only added to the shamelessness of what they were doing and thrilled her even more.
Tessa clung to him to keep from falling to the ground. The flaring ache at her core became nearly unbearable, and she bit her bottom lip to keep down the persistent, increasing sensation that she was running into the storm engulfing them, right toward the pounding surf and whipping winds. All of her shook now, and she could barely breathe against the oncoming force of the storm. Yet she inexplicably craved its power and cried out his name to beg for more, her voice mixing with the rolling thunder sweeping in from across the sea.
Giving her what she craved, his lips closed around the sensitive point at the top of her folds and sucked hard.
Her hips bucked against his mouth as a bolt of electricity flashed through her, sparking out from beneath his lips. Her entire body tensed. “Chase…”
But he gave her no quarter and instead slid his finger inside her. She gasped at the strange invasion, but before she could question what he was doing, his lips closed around the little nub and sucked again, harder than before.
“Chase!” This time when her hips pulsed against him, all the little muscles inside her clamped down hard to clench around his finger. Then they released in a rush of exquisite pleasure that flooded over her and turned his name into a panting moan.
Hot liquid spilled through her veins, and she collapsed against the column, her knees too weak to support her, as pleasure undulated through her. Each successive wave of release came less intensely until she was finally able to catch back her breath, but his mouth remained on her all the while, placing affectionate kisses and soothing licks to her hot, wet folds.
When he finally slipped his finger from her warmth and stood, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held herself pressed against him for fear her knees might just buckle beneath her after all. His hands gently caressed her body, and she realized he was easing down the wet hem he’d lifted to her waist. Oddly, she wasn’t ashamed at all of what they’d just done. In fact, a reckless, wanton part of her wanted him to do that again. And more.
His breath came hard and rough against her neck as he buried his face against her shoulder, and beneath her hands, his shaking muscles were so taut as to be rock hard.
“Are you all right?” he murmured into her ear.
She nodded. Oh, she was simply marvelous! But him… “Are you?” She placed a kiss to his forehead and tasted the salty perspiration on his brow. “Are you comforted?”
He grimaced, as if pained. “Yes.”
Even her release-fuzzied mind knew that was a lie. “Something tells me you’re not relieved at all.” She ran her fingertips through the damp hair at his nape. “What can I do to help?”
He gave a jerking shake of his head. “If I let you do that,” he warned, his voice rough, “this night will not end in a way that is good for either of us.”
She curled her fingers into his chest muscles, unwilling to let him go just yet. “Will it feel as nice as what we just did?”
“ Nice? ” He gave a strained laugh and muttered, “Oh, so much better than nice.”
Her lips fell open in surprise, and his dark eyes stared heatedly at her mouth. For one desperate moment, she wanted to defy him. She wanted to claim those better pleasures and once more shatter against him.
“But we can’t,” he told her, stepping back just out of her reach. “I can barely protect you now. I’ll never be able to protect you then.”
She felt suddenly cold, shamefully exposed for the first time since they’d started kissing, and her empty hand reached to tug her dressing robe back into place. “I don’t need protection. Not from you.”
“More than you realize.” His gaze was piercing in the faint flashes of remaining lightning as the storm drifted toward the horizon. “ Especially from me.”