Valiant (Gentlemen of the Order 3)

She removed her gloves, though did not slip them down slowly to seduce him into submission. She tugged them off as if braced for a challenge. He liked that. He liked the fact she aroused him without the fake artifice. And while she shuffled the cards like a novice, she drew with the skill of a cardsharp.

“The ace of spades.” She flashed the card, though it was impossible to see it clearly against the dim firelight. “There is little point drawing a card for you. Do you concede?”

“An ace? Madam, let us hope you’re not about to rob me of my pocket watch while my attention is diverted.” Another ace would force her to draw again, but he wasn’t playing to win the game of questions. He was playing for a far greater prize. “But yes, I concede.”

“Excellent.” She paused while deliberating, yet he knew the question she longed to ask. “Why did you enter my bedchamber last night without seeking permission?”

The truth filled him with the same warm—yet confounding—tenderness he’d experienced last night. “I was drawn here, drawn by a feeling I cannot explain. But the need to see you sleeping peacefully after the stresses of the day brought surprising comfort.”

She touched her hand to her throat but didn’t speak.

“Draw again, Vivienne.”

After some fumbling with the cards, she pulled two from the pack. “Ten of diamonds. You have the seven of clubs. It’s my turn again, Mr Sloane.”

Evan rubbed his thighs. “Let me save some time. You want to know why I left you alone in the drawing room and came upstairs. Why I didn’t devour your mouth when I’ve hungered for you all day.”

She stepped closer and gripped the bedpost. “Have you? Have you hungered for me all day?”

“Is that your question?” he teased. “For it is unlike you to ask something which is so blatantly obvious.”

“A woman is often plagued with doubts.”

“Then why do you think I came upstairs?” He doubted she had the measure of the situation. Indeed, he had only just come to the logical conclusion himself.

“Seeing Mrs Worthing tonight brought a marked change in you.” She sat on the edge of the bed, shoulders slumped, still holding the post as if expecting devastating news. “You must miss entertaining your friends, miss the freedom that comes with doing as you please. Know I will not outstay my welcome. Soon, I shall be gone, and you can continue as before.”

Gone!

The word hit him like an uppercut to the jaw. Gone. It meant to be left alone, lost and hopeless. Gone. Nausea bubbled in his stomach. His lungs screamed for air, yet he was still breathing.

Evan sat up straight. “Loneliness can make a man behave indelicately. A man might make excuses for the incorrect choices he makes when his heart craves companionship.”

“I know what it’s like to be lonely. I’m telling you I understand. You wish to surround yourself with people, and I am in the way.”

“I wish to surround myself with you, Vivienne, no one else.” He wanted her bare skin pressed against his, her hands smothering every aching muscle. He wanted to bury his face in her hair, his cock so deep in her body he would never feel alone again. “I seek a meaningful connection with my wife and am not interested in tupping a harlot.”

The crackle of the fire echoed the sparks of sexual tension in the air.

She pushed to her feet. “I am not your wife yet, Mr Sloane.”

“That’s a mere formality.” He stood, prowled towards the nymph shimmering in the muted light like the surface of the ocean. So enticing. So damn inviting. “Pick a card, Vivienne.”

Fate would grant him a boon.

Her fingers shook as she shuffled the pack. She fanned them in her hands, forced him to choose. Evan drew the king of hearts—a gift from the gods. When she pulled the eight of hearts, he was almost knocked off his feet by a rush of euphoria.

He smiled. “Eight signifies new beginnings.” Making love to Vivienne Hart would be a novel experience. “And now I believe it’s my turn to ask a question.”

She bit down on her bottom lip, and he resisted the urge to pull her close and suck on the plump flesh. “Then ask it.”

He spent a few seconds raking his gaze boldly over every delicious curve, over the soft swell of her breasts rising rapidly to torment him.

“Do you want to make love? Do you want me to pleasure y

ou in ways beyond your wildest imagination? Do you want to ease my loneliness, Vivienne, let me ease yours, let me prove I’m not a bore in bed?”

The glazed look of desire in her eyes said she did.