Read Online [Cornick Nicola] The Last Rake in London(Bookos.org) by The Last Rake in London - Free Book Online

as well as he—and be prepared to indulge their mutual passion. He forced his hands into his pockets and ruthlessly reined in the feelings that threatened to drive him to madness and prompted him to take her, here and now, against the wall.
    Out in the garden the path wound its way between rose bushes decorated with paper lanterns that swung gently in the summer breeze. Even though the night was warm, Sally shivered.
    ‘You’re cold,’ Jack said. He slipped off his jacket and put it about her shoulders.
    ‘No, I—’ Sally clutched the lapels of the jacket close. In the shadowed darkness her eyes were very wide and dark. ‘I think that we should go back inside.’ She sounded hesitant, as though the strength of his desire had communicated itself to her and was making her nervous. ‘This was a mistake. Besides, Connie may have returned, and—’
    ‘Damn Connie.’ The abrupt reminder angered Jack and he spoke more roughly than he had intended. He put a hand on Sally’s arm. ‘I don’t want to talk about her. In fact, I don’t want to talk at all. Sally?’
    In response she tilted her face enquiringly up to his, which was exactly what he wanted. Her breath feathered across his cheek in a gentle caress. He could smell her perfume, as light and fragrant as the summer flowers that surrounded them.
    He bent his head and kissed her. As an exercise in calculated seduction it was practically perfect, a textbook example of rakish behaviour of which, under other circumstances, Jack might have been justifiably proud. What was completely unexpected was his reaction. He had thought that this time he would be prepared, in control, but as soon as his lips touched hers, all logical thought processes vanished, drowned out in an excitement and a need so violent that it almost floored him.
    Sally caught her breath and for a moment she went rigid in his arms, then she relaxed and her lips parted beneath his. Jack caught her to him then in an embrace as possessive as it was demanding, wrapping his arms about her, absorbing the taste and touch of her, each kiss both intense and seductive. Her palms were pressed against his chest and she responded to him without resistance, without artifice. She tasted faintly of chocolate and sweet innocence and it was so intoxicating Jack almost lost the final shreds of his self-control and plundered her mouth without reservation. But he was an experienced man, not a boy; he held on to his restraint by a thread, forcing himself to take it slowly, exploring her with a thoroughness that was gentle, yet ruthlessly determined beneath. This time he knew he had to court her response, not demand it. This time he needed to get her to the point where neither of them wanted to stop.
    The suit jacket slid from her shoulders to the ground and he felt her shiver and drew her closer. The pink gown was smooth and silky beneath his hands, but it was not what he wanted to feel. He wanted her, her nakedness beneath him, her bare skin against his own. He wanted to uncover all the curves outlined by the dress, to trace them and learn them and give her exquisite pleasure.
    ‘I want to make love to you.’
    He said the words against her mouth and she drew back with a little gasp. He sensed it was purely instinctive and it was not the reaction of a sophisticated woman. He felt a tremble rack her body and then she had stepped back, out of his arms.
    ‘Jack, I…’
    ‘You want me too.’ He knew it was true and he was arrogant enough to want to make her admit it.
    ‘Yes—’ she did not hesitate, but her tone held him at arm’s length ‘—I do. But we cannot, Jack. Have you forgotten Connie, and your cousin, and that about three hours ago you threatened to destroy my business?’
    He had forgotten, forgotten everything in the blazing heat of holding her and kissing her and wanting her. He thought about it for a split second and discounted it all. He reached for her again, not bothering to reply, seeking to persuade