Read Online A Sister's Quest by Jo Ann Ferguson - Free Book Online Page A

your blatantly suggestive question.” He chuckled as he sat on the bed, making her too aware of how intimately they lived during this journey. “I thought you might like to join us for a drink before you go to bed. I know you think Rusak and I have ignored you the past few days.”
    â€œNo, no.” That was a lie. The two men had said barely a score of words to her in the past week as the carriage climbed slowly through the mountains.
    â€œYou should not have to hide here alone every night.”
    â€œI do not want to disturb you two.”
    â€œ Liebchen , I would not call either Rusak’s or my reaction to you anything as tepid as disturbing.” His smile disappeared as he rose. “Come along. We need to speak of what awaits us in Vienna.”
    â€œWhy didn’t you say so instead of plying me with false compliments?”
    His finger traced her cheekbone. “’Twas not false, Liebchen .”
    She knew she should step away. She should fire some whetted comment at him that would remind him of his place and hers. When his finger slipped beneath her chin and tilted her mouth to his, she forgot all she should do and thought only of what she wanted to do.
    â€œYou look so lovely,” he whispered.
    â€œThank you.” Her breathless voice came from the depths of her heart.
    â€œThat was honest.”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œAnd are you being as honest when you look at me with a craving to be kissed?”
    â€œI am being nothing but myself.” She brought his lips to hers. She could not deny the longing that grew stronger each time he touched her, each time he teased her, each time she found a haven in his arms. Unhurriedly, delighting in every facet of her mouth, he lured her to soften against him.
    Her hands slipped up his back to stroke the powerful sinews covered by his coat. When she touched his skin above his collar, its rough texture teased her fingertips to explore further.
    Alexei muttered something and drew back, tugging her hands down to fold them between his. She regarded him with astonishment. She had not thought he would be the first to pull away.
    â€œAlexei?”
    â€œTurn around.”
    â€œPardon me?”
    He spun her so she faced away from him. When his hands ran along the back of her gown, she gasped and jumped away. If he had stopped kissing her for this , he must be shown what a mistaken assumption he had made.
    Before she could speak, he stepped in front of her. “Stop being a silly schoolgirl!” His laugh was serrated, cutting into her. “Your buttons are not done up correctly. Let me fix them. You certainly would not want anyone to think we had been surrendering to passion, although they are going to be curious after hearing that crash.”
    Her cheeks burned with embarrassment, but she did not turn. What, she wondered with a pulse of cold dismay, if he redid her gown wrong simply to serve as “proof” of his tale?
    That thought must have been on her face, for he whirled her so she could see the back of her dress in the cracked mirror by the door. “Look. Here.” He touched a skipped button among the score running along her back. “And here. And here. You need someone to help you dress, Liebchen . We shall have to think about finding you a husband.”
    â€œA husband? You think I want you helping me to find a husband?”
    â€œWhy not? You are the type of woman who would enjoy marriage.”
    Keeping her spine straight as his fingers struggled with the bead-sized buttons, she asked, “What type of woman is that? A Hausfrau ?”
    â€œThat is not what I meant.” He bent forward to fix another button. His words oozed warmly past her collar, and she leaned her hands on the footboard in front of her as her bones threatened to melt. “You have incredible passions within you that the right man would be a fool not to release.”
    She tried to pay his enticing touch no mind, but it was