Read Online 1939912059 (R) by Delilah Marvelle - Free Book Online

face.
    Thérèse pinched her lips together and stared out into the forest, listening to the rain rustling through. She had encouraged this overly amorous libertine by letting him yank her bodice down in the middle of a forest and lick her almost to the nipples. Not even days out of Giverny and she was already a strumpet.
    He shifted closer and peered up at her.
    She ignored him and shifted away, fully aware she was already on the edge of the blanket.
    Leaning in, he scraped his lower teeth against the sleeve of her slightly damp gown.
    Her body trembled from heightened awareness. She pressed her knees together to ensure they didn’t fall open.
    He nudged her with his chin. Twice.
    Lord save her, he was acting like an animal seeking attention. “I am not doing this.”
    “Why not?” He reached over her and gripping her waist, hoisted her up and toward him. “We are beyond attracted to each other, and you know it.” Setting her onto his lap, he intently held her gaze and wrapped each of her legs around his waist, forcing the heat of his large body against her own. “You and I met in this forest for a reason. Ask me what that reason is. Go on. Ask me.”
    His nearness and the intensity of those steel blue eyes and that rugged face made her so weak she almost just wanted to flop. “I…fate?”
    He shook his head from side to side. “No. Not even fate could have devised something as perfect as this.” Still holding her gaze, he dragged her skirts up higher. “If you help me, o darling actress of mine, I will help you. Say yes to me in what I want, and I will give you everything you ever wanted out of life. Everything. ”
    Thérèse grabbed hold of his muscled shoulders hard, torn between wanting to stop him and wanting him to continue so she could thoroughly explore this fabulous whole idea of ‘everything’. She was no fool. There was no such thing as getting everything in life, but this was fairly darn close to it.
    He was gorgeous. And… gorgeous .
    Deny it though she may, this was her definition of the ultimate fantasy. He was rich, muscled, beautiful, and he desperately wanted her. Not in that oh-look-at-what-I-can-do sort of way. But rather in a you-will-never-forget-me-for-life sort of way.
    Maybe, just maybe, she was about to become a strumpet.
    Tilting her head, she walked the tips of her fingers across his solid chest, trying to appear in control of what appeared to be a most promising situation. “Define everything.”
    He sensually rubbed her thighs as his full mouth drew near. “You can have zebras and velvet-lined carriages along with whatever you want or need. And if you want your own theatre with your name on it, with a script written for you and only you, I can make it happen by quietly tossing a few thousand at the right people. Théâtre Française is the most prestigious venue in all of France. I know half the people there, and they owe me more favors than I know what to do with. Give me a month, and you will be famous in three.”
    She searched his face in between half-breaths. He was damned serious. Théâtre Française was every actor’s dream. It was the same stage that made Mademoiselle Raucourt famous. It was where the best of bourgeoisie, and now the new Republic, congregated, and would make her a real actor. Not a variety show. Her legs would never be on display. Only her talents.
    She would have a chance to prove to the world she was more than a face and a pair of legs. “You could make that happen?” she rasped in disbelief. “You could actually get me onto the stage of Théâtre Française ?”
    He nodded. “Oh, yes.”
    Holy God. “What if I wanted my cousin to manage Théâtre Française ? Is that at all possible? Because I cannot abandon him. He and I are very close and—”
    “Consider it done. He will be the new manager. He will, however, have to prove to the owner of the theatre that he can maintain the position.”
    She dragged in an uneven breath. This was almost too