Read Online Lillian's Light Horseman by Jasmine Hill - Free Book Online Page B

you went missing.”
    The only sounds in the stillness were the hiss and crackle of the fire as he waited with bated breath for Lillian to say something.

Chapter Nine
     
     
     
    I should keep my distance and protect my heart. But even as those words rang through her head, Lillian felt herself relaxing into William, seeking comfort from his embrace. It felt too good to be in his arms. The feel of his solid chest against her back was making her belly flutter wildly and she was suddenly very warm, her skin flushed and feverish. Perhaps she could let him hold her for a while. She needed the physical contact after her frightening experience. In fact, she realized with a jolt, she hadn’t had any physical contact since her aunt had died. There’d been no one to offer her sympathy or a friendly shoulder to cry on. It had simply been her and her aunt’s lawyer. All of their friends had distanced themselves when her father’s debts had become public knowledge.
    Sensing her change in mood, William nuzzled her, his voice soft at her ear. “Are you all right?”
    She sighed and attempted to stop the weepiness that threatened to overwhelm her. Tears started to form as she thought of her aunt and everything she’d experienced since her death. Quickly, she swiped them away. “I’m fine,” she said quietly. “Just hold me, please.”
    Air hissed between his teeth as he pulled her closer. His warm breath at her ear sent little shivers rippling down her spine and heat flaring low in her belly.
    “You’re warmer now,” he commented.
    Unfamiliar sensations swelled deep within her. “Oh, my,” she whispered as her nipples pebbled into hard points and her breathing grew erratic.
    William tensed for a moment then swept his mouth from her ear to her neck, kissing the delicate skin then licking a slow, deliberate path to her throat. She arched her back and pressed her neck closer to him, desperate for more of the feelings that were raging madly through her body.
    He groaned, swept her up into his arms and stood in one swift movement. Lillian gasped at the unexpected motion and his strength to hoist her so easily. He brushed a feather-light kiss over her lips then allowed her to slide down his body until she found her feet. He pulled the blanket from around her shoulders and laid it on the ground in front of the fire, which had banked to a low, steady glow. Then, removing the oilskin coat, he added it to the blanket and pulled her body to his. The feel of his muscular chest flush with her breasts had her nipples peaking once more and her eyes widened at the sensation as she gazed up at him. She could just make out his features in the firelight, his chiseled jaw rigid with tension, his hazel eyes heavy-lidded and intense.
    He caressed her cheek gently and ran his thumb along her lower lip. Grasping her hip with his other hand, he pulled her hard against him. She closed her eyes and melted into his touch, moaning at the contact. When he rolled his pelvis into her, she could feel his pulsing erection and she shivered at the sensation, both delighted and intimidated by its size. Dipping his head, he swiped his tongue lightly along the seam of her lips. She grasped his upper arms and let her head fall back in supplication, totally immersed in his kiss.
    “Open for me,” he demanded, swiping his tongue across her lips once more. “Let me in.”
    She opened her mouth to him and he tightened his embrace, crushing her body to his. Smoothing his hands down either side of her torso, he grasped her buttocks and pulled her pelvis tight toward him. He licked his tongue into her mouth, caressing her before he took the kiss deeper, becoming more demanding as he slanted his lips desperately across hers. He was taking her, branding her mouth with his own. Her insides liquefied and she became boneless and pliable in his arms, giving herself up to the sensations swamping her. She was no longer cold, but hot and feverish everywhere William touched