Читать книгу The Champion - Heather Grothaus - Страница 1

“Your words are bold,” Nick said, sidling closer to her until he could feel her heat. “’Tis a shame for a woman of such passion to be paired with one so aged and dwindling—he will never make you burn.”

“Do you think you might accomplish that task if given the chance, Nicholas FitzTodd, Baron of Crane?”

Nick was shocked into silence. Then, reaching out a hand, he laid it alongside the warm, soft skin of her neck, forcing her to look up at him. He heard her soft breath at the physical contact and smiled when she would not meet his eyes.

“Verily, Lady du Roche,” he began, “I—”

“Simone,” she amended in a husky whisper, glancing into his eyes for only an instant. “My name is Simone.”

“Simone,” Nick repeated, drawing out the syllables of her name even as he pulled her closer. “Shall I demonstrate my abilities for you?”

Just when Nick expected her retreat, Simone reached her hand from beneath the confines of the cloak and laid it upon his chest. Her eyes found his, and the invitation he saw there, the raw need, tested his resolve to move slowly.

She licked her lips, a fleeting dart of pink tongue. “Please do…Nicholas.”

He dropped his mouth to hers and pulled her fully against him. She tasted of honeyed wine and autumn’s chill, and the sweetness of her small hands cupping his face shook Nicholas in a way no other dalliance with a woman had…