Read Online Through The Leaded Glass by Judi Fennell - Free Book Online Page A

his neck. He shuddered when she flexed
her fingers, as affected by her as she was by him.
    She kissed him back, intertwining her tongue
with his. Any thoughts about slowing down flew out the tent flap as
he swept his arms around her, crushing her to the hard steel of his
armor.
    She gasped as Alex rubbed his cheek with its
hint of five o’clock shadow against hers. His tongue flicked out,
sending shivers up her spine as he licked along her jaw to the
sensitive hollow beneath her ear, his hot breath warming her damp
skin. It’d been so long since she’d felt like this, desired and desiring.
    His hand stole to her chest and she couldn’t
breathe as her breast filled his palm, fireworks exploding from
every stroke of his fingers. His thumb slid to her nipple, back and
forth, the friction causing the hollow in her stomach to fill with
a cyclone of butterflies. Her legs threatened to give out, as every
sensation spiraled to the very center of her. She squeezed her legs
together, trying to ease the ache, and ended up pushing her hips at
him, clutching his well-defined backside, and dragging him up
against her.
    That damn armor prevented them from getting
closer. She tugged at his collar. “Alex—”
    Alex covered her mouth with his again, and his
hands explored her back, then her backside, pulling her gown up her
legs. So much for not having a fling . She trembled with the
sensations running through her. She’d never felt like this so
quickly before, as if her nerve endings were dirty dancing under
her skin.
    It scared the hell out of her.
    She broke away. Alex, damn him, his mouth
twisted to a mocking smile, held on to her dress.
    “ Do you mind?” She yanked the
fabric.
    “ I do,” Alex said, pulling just as
hard and bringing her back against him. “You have a child, have had
a husband. You can’t claim maidenly virtue.”
    She couldn’t help the anticipatory shiver that
raced up her spine when his breath fluttered over her ear. Damn him
for being right. But she mustered her self-esteem and shoved him
away. “Look, I agreed to the engagement. Sex doesn’t come into the
bargain—got it? We are not doing…” She waved her hands between
them. “This.”
    Alex dropped her gown. “Pity. This would be pleasant.” He stepped back. “But, unfortunately, I don’t
have the time to pursue it. We must devise an explanation for your
sudden appearance.” He walked toward the table, too damn composed
for her liking. “You are widowed—”
    “ Divorced.”
    He turned. His eyebrow arched. “Widowed. From
a nunnery.”
    “ A nunnery? Aren’t nuns supposed to
be shy and quiet? And pious? I’m about as pious as your broadsword.
And as for shy and quiet, let’s get one thing straight. I’m not
about to go ‘my lord’ing you all over the place. There’s no
way—”
    “ Kate, you have some interesting
ideas on my world. I’d like to see yours someday to discover where
you learned such things. But a nunnery is an acceptable place for
you to have resided after your husband died.” His arched eyebrows
dared her to contradict him, but Kate let him finish. “I stopped
there in my travels and it was then that we met.” He studied her
and Kate felt like something under a microscope as he rubbed his
chin. He sighed. “It will be a love match.” He sighed again and
closed his eyes briefly.
    “ A love match? I can’t go around
here pretending to be in love with you. I’m not that good an
actress.” Now, lust, on the other hand, was a whole different
matter, but she didn’t want to do that either. At least,
consciously. Her subconscious, though, was jumping up and down in
agreement. She willed it to shut up.
    And almost succeeded.
    “ We must present a love match,
Kate, or no one will believe I turned aside Isobel and her lands
for you.”
    There was an ego stroke. Not . But she
shoved her pride out of the way. “Fine. Whatever. We’ve got a
bigger problem on our hands, though.” She would have smirked at