Lisa Plumley (11 page)

“I hope we fit together,” Violet quipped. “Otherwise I’ve been woefully misinformed about what to expect.”

He raised his brows. “What do you expect?”

She breathed out, glancing determinedly away from him. “Some good things. Some touching. A bit of...pain.” Her gaze skittered back to his. “My married friends do confide in me.”

“Your married friends are the ones who are misinformed.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean lovemaking shouldn’t hurt.” Cade might not have indulged in the sentimental, hearts-and-flowers version of sexual relations, but he knew that much for certain. He knew it should feel good. “If there’s any pain, it should be brief and—”

“Oh, it won’t hurt
you
! Don’t worry about that!” Violet hastened to assure him. She gave a fretful titter, seeming concerned that she might have alarmed him unduly. “
You
will enjoy it, without a doubt! All men do. If my friend Adeline is right,
I
will enjoy some of what goes on between us too, so—”

“
All
,” Cade specified fiercely. “You will enjoy all of the things that go on between us. Or I’ll know the reason.”

Her eyes widened. “You sound so determined.”

That was because he cared about her, Cade knew. Because he wanted her to experience the kind of joy she deserved and had been denied until now...and maybe would be denied in the future, too. It wasn’t fair that Violet Benson had been overlooked just because she didn’t possess apple cheeks or an upturned nose. In that moment, Cade found her beautiful. He wanted her to feel that way, as well. He wanted her to feel...
everything
.

“
You
sound dubious,” he replied with another grin. “But that won’t last. I promise you that much.”

“Oh? And how will you—”

“Like this,” Cade interrupted, then pulled her into his arms. He’d dallied too long with chitchat and preliminaries. Now was the time to make Violet see what she’d been missing. So he did. He lowered his head and took her mouth with his, a prelude to everything that would come next and after. She felt good and warm and eager in his arms, and he felt that he could have kissed her for days and not come up for air. But eventually his lungs protested, so Cade stopped. He gave Violet a loving look, then kissed her once more. “With enough kissing,” he explained, “I think your inappropriate dubiousness will go away.”

“I’m not so sure,” she teased anew. “Perhaps you’ve lost your touch. Perhaps your kisses have lost their potency.”

“Minx.” Again he kissed her. And again Cade found
himself
caught up in their coming together. Kissing Violet was like jumping off a cliff...straight into heaven. It was like sunshine and blue skies. It was like needing and
needing
...and getting only a taste of something essential and true. “How do you feel now?”

Appearing dazed, Violet shook her head. “A bit more certain, I guess,” she judged with her usual vivacity. “More?”

“More?” She was going to kill him. Any thought Cade might have given to stopping now could not have withstood her provocation. Whether Violet knew it or not, she was giving him exactly what he needed to ignore any lingering doubts of his own.
More, more, more
, she urged him...and Cade wanted to give it.

“Yes, more.” She blinked. “Or should I undress first?”

At the thought, dizziness swamped him. The notion of seeing Violet in the altogether, bared and willing and eager, was almost more than Cade could stand. He swallowed. “I’ll do that.”

“But you’re already partly undressed.”

“I’ll undress
you
.” To prove it, Cade toyed with her bodice’s topmost button. He contemplated the secrets it hid, and felt himself grow twice as rigid as before. He’d considered what she would look like naked, of course. Any man would have, especially given the time they’d spent together...and the unexpected rapport they’d shared. But to be so close to the reality of that daydream... “Mmm. But first, another kiss.”

This time, their mouths met unerringly, in a newly practiced glide that paired heat and slickness and softness in ways Cade had never quite experienced before. With Violet, kissing felt new.
Everything
felt new. New and better than ever.

He raised his head, unable to quit smiling at her. She smiled back at him. Then her mouth made an O. She clapped her hand over her gaping dress bodice, her brows raised. “Oh! You’ve already started!” A dreamy chuckle. “I didn’t even realize it.”

“I did.” Wolfishly interested in the bare skin he’d revealed at her dress’s neckline, Cade traced his finger down the center of her chest. Her cleavage was modest and perfect. With effort, he lifted his gaze to her face. “You’re beautiful.”

Her expression changed. “I’m not beautiful, Cade. Don’t say that.
You
, of all people, know that I’m not—”

“Enough.” Sternly, he pressed his fingertip to her lips. It required a serious effort of will not to linger there...not to delight in the luscious softness of her mouth and the sweet bow he found there at her lower lip. But since there were things between them that were more important than simple carnal pleasures... “No more talk like that. I won’t have it.”

As punishment—and diversion—he deftly slipped a few more buttons free of their confining buttonholes. Her bodice gaped a bit more. The effect was enchanting. Her breasts swelled pertly above her tightly laced corset, ready and waiting and...

“But it’s true!” Violet protested. “I’m not even pretty.”

“You’re
beyond
pretty,” Cade said, and in that moment, it became his mission to prove it to her. “You have something no other woman does, Violet. You have yourself, in all your glory, for me to delight in and laugh with and touch this way—”

“Hmmph. No other woman
wants
my so-called ‘glory.’”

“Some people are beautiful when you meet them,” Cade said, giving her an unyielding look. “Others become beautiful as you get to know them. You,” he specified with a lingering touch, “become prettier to me with every minute. You
are
beautiful.”

With that, her eyes filled with tears. “Truly?”

“Truly,” Cade said, and gave her a kiss to prove it. “I love your freckled face and your wonderful nose. I love your crooked, skeptical smile and your warm, giving hands. I love your body—” He broke off, too distracted to continue speaking as he dared to fill his palms with her breasts, now almost wholly freed from her wide, lace-trimmed bodice. He kissed her instead. “I love everything about you, Violet. And to demonstrate that, I’m going to love every bit of you, starting right now.”

Her smile enchanted him. “Even my ankles?”

“Even your ankles,” Cade told her, and he knew then that he had won. “So lie back and get ready,” he said as he gestured to the waiting bed, “because we’ve only just begun.”

Chapter Eight

W
ith an exuberance born of discovery and curiosity and almost unbearable hopefulness, Violet leaped toward the bed.

She landed amid the tangled covers in a veritable heap of calico skirts and lacy muslin petticoats. Her scandalously unbuttoned bodice allowed her bosom to feel the fresh air; her invigorated skin tingled at her first contact with Cade’s fancy hotel room sheets. Her mouth felt swollen and her legs felt weak and everywhere beneath her skirts felt uniquely warm—almost effervescently so—and she wasn’t sure how much more of Cade’s sweet words she could stand before she simply swooned with joy.

Because Cade Foster loved her. He
loved
her!

He’d just said so, over and over again.
I love everything about you
. And now, just as she had when she’d first heard those words from his lips, Violet felt overcome with gladness.

She’d done the right thing by coming here to be with him. If not for her burst of boldness today, she might never have known that Cade thought she was beautiful. That he thought she was irresistible. That he
loved
her!

“There!” Violet announced. Bravely, she pushed up on her elbows, then regarded Cade from her perch on his bed. Chirpily, she patted the bedclothes beside her. “I’m ready. Now what?”

“Now—” He gave her an adorably devilish eyebrow quirk...one that made her heartbeat race twice as eagerly. “I’ll join you.”

He did as he’d promised, making the mattress dip beneath his weight. Keeping her in his sights, Cade prowled his way from the edge of the bed to Violet’s place in the very center of it.

“You have lovely big muscles,” she observed, eyeing the rippled, corded movements of his arms and shoulders and chest as he approached her. Avidly, she let her gaze roam down Cade’s chest, following his dark chest hair to his taut belly, then lower to his... Not yet ready, she whipped up her gaze. “I like your muscles. No, I
love
them,” Violet said in fond mimicry of him. “I do. Especially when you use them to hold me close.”

“That’s one of the best uses for them,” he agreed.

“I don’t suppose it requires much strength to hold cards at a gambling table,” she mused aloud, “but still, you’re strong.”

“And you’re talkative.” A grin. “But that won’t last.”

“I can’t see why not.” Somewhat nervously, Violet watched as Cade stretched out on the bed beside her. “I’m pretty good at keeping a conversation going,” she said. “For instance—” She broke off, noticing then that Cade’s trousers had gaped a bit near the waistband. His movements made it evident that if he
was
wearing undergarments, they were exceedingly tiny. Which seemed unlikely. Which could mean only that he was naked under there.

Naked
. She’d never seen a naked man before. Enthralled by the notion, Violet tried to envision Cade lolling about in the altogether. She only got as far as his hip, which was probably best explained by the fact that she could actually
see
several inches of tawny, fascinating skin just above his trousers.
Hmm
.

Oblivious to her reveries, Cade trailed his fingertips over her arm. His touch incited a riot of goose bumps, but still Violet could not be distracted from her discovery. Naked.
Naked
.

Somewhere beneath his trousers, Cade was naked. Violet had a powerful urge to know what he looked like under there.

“You know, I seem to be at a disadvantage,” she ventured in an effort to satisfy her burgeoning inquisitiveness. “Because I am almost completely dressed at the moment, while
you
—” she gestured at his lackadaisically slipped-on trousers “—are...not.”

“That’s easily fixed.” Smiling, Cade kissed her.

She really loved his kisses. Therefore it took a while for her to summon an appropriate response. She had to wait to catch her breath. Then, “You’re not going to put on a shirt, are you? You know, to match up with my level of apparel wearing?”

That hadn’t been the point of her observation. Besides, she liked that Cade wasn’t wearing a shirt. It let her see his brawny chest muscles and his arms and his middle. Every single part of him was different from her. Intriguingly different.

To Violet, Cade looked as though he could shelter and protect her from anything—and would, willingly, if she asked.

A broader smile. “I’m going to undress
you
. Remember?” He eyed her bodice. “It’s past time we finished with that.”

“Yes,” she said brightly. “We should certainly finish!”

His amused look let her know that hers wasn’t the response he’d been expecting. But Violet couldn’t help that. She was too preoccupied with more vital things—with wondering about the rest of Cade’s arresting physique. His shoulders were bunched with muscles. His arms were sinewy with strength. His belly was flat, his hips were slim, his legs were long and undoubtedly flawless.

Even given all that wonderfulness, though, Violet felt
most
intrigued by what lay between all that. Lying next to him this way, together on his bed, she couldn’t help wondering...

Was his, well...
manhood
as muscularly proportionate as the rest of him? If so, how would it feel? Precisely?

Breathlessly, Violet regarded him. With an unreadable expression, Cade gazed at her—then at her chest. She remembered feeling his hands on her breasts, just a few minutes ago. Again her nipples budded with eagerness. She forgot to do anything except wish he would touch her there once more, just that way.

Instead, Cade kissed her.
Then
he cupped her breast in his palm, gently gliding his thumb over the pebbled point of her nipple, and Violet couldn’t help gasping against his mouth.

“Does that hurt?” Cade murmured, kissing her neck now.

“No.” Shocked to feel herself arching against him, Violet nonetheless continued to do it. She had to. “I like it.”

He nodded, satisfied. “I told you you would.”

“I do!” she confessed in a breathy voice. She flexed her hands against his back, needing to hold on. “I really do!”

“That’s good.” Sliding lower, Cade nuzzled the curve of her shoulder, then the angle of her collarbone. He nudged aside her dress a bit farther, then kissed the swell of her breast. “Mmm.”

Violet couldn’t help mimicking him. “Mmm-
hmm
!”

Never had she felt anything more wonderful or more right. With Cade, she
did
feel beautiful. She felt indispensible. She felt as though with him to offer his hand to her, she could fly.

Cade seemed to believe that was true, too. Because for the next several moments, he set about releasing her from everything that held her to her ordinary existence. Moving over her, murmuring sweet words, Cade made sure that Violet felt loved and beloved and needed. He made sure she felt
wanted
...passionately so. And despite the incredible unlikeliness of any of this happening between them, Violet couldn’t muster a single protest.

In fact, she couldn’t think of anything at all. She couldn’t say a word. All she could do was feel: feel Cade’s hands slowly stroking her, feel his breath fluttering over her, feel his mouth moving in an increasingly necessary and exciting arc from her breasts to her neck to her mouth and back again.

Caught beneath his incredible attentions, Violet simply gave in. This was real. It was true. It was right. Through half-closed eyes, she watched as Cade loved her...and she knew that she loved him in return, even if she hadn’t yet said so.

To celebrate that, even if only to herself, Violet clutched Cade’s head and kissed him back. Happily, she surrendered her high-buttoned shoes, her long dark stockings, her dress and her petticoats and even her corset. Or at least she found herself eventually without them—somehow Cade had peeled away all those garments with her scarcely noticing the movements of his clever gambler’s fingers. But she gave herself full credit for slipping beneath the bedclothes afterward wearing only her chemise—and for boldly, even cheekily, summoning Cade to join her there.

“Are you sure you’re ready?” he asked.

“Would I do
this
if I weren’t?” Saucily, she crooked her finger in invitation. “Don’t keep me waiting. I need you.”

For a fraction of a second, Cade seemed hesitant.

Then, “I need you, too,” he said. “
You’re
what’s left for me after all this is done. I didn’t know that until right now.”

Violet didn’t understand him. But before she could ask what Cade meant, he quashed her ability to ask questions by undoing his trousers and dropping them to the floor. If she’d thought his sporting man’s hands were clever before... She’d never imagined they could reveal a sight as fascinating as the one that stood proudly before her at that very moment.

“You
are
commensurately huge!” she blurted, wide-eyed.

This time, Cade was the one who appeared momentarily confused. Also, unabashedly pleased with his endowments. He couldn’t have known she’d been wondering if his entire body aligned with his impressive musculature. Yet somehow he seemed to. Otherwise, how else to explain the twinkle in his eyes?

“I’m glad you’re pleased,” he said as he lifted the rumpled bedclothes to join her atop the sumptuous mattress, “but the proof is in the feeling, not in the seeing.”

Still awed, Violet sneaked another glimpse. “I’m enjoying the seeing!” She bit her lip, then lifted her gaze to his magnificent, handsome, beloved face. “But I’m curious about the feeling, too,” she confessed. “May I touch you...there?”

Cade closed his eyes. His groan rent the stillness.

“Oh! If that’s not done, then I apologize!” Violet said hastily. “It’s just that you’ve done
so
much touching me that I’ve enjoyed, and I can’t imagine why I wouldn’t want to do the same for you. Why I wouldn’t want to make
you
feel beautiful—”

His gaze met hers. “Then you
do
feel beautiful?”

“I mean
handsome
, of course,” she nattered on, “so I...” Struck by Cade’s needful expression, Violet paused. “Do you truly not know?
Yes
, I feel beautiful.” Warmly, she squeezed his hand. “When I came here today, I wanted the experience of lovemaking. But what you’ve given me is the experience of being
loved
. It’s so much more than I ever could have hoped for.”

“I see.” His voice sounded husky—whether with unshared emotion or with passion, she couldn’t guess. Cade cleared his throat. “But we’ve barely gotten started,” he reminded her.

“I know! Just think how much better it will get!”

His smile dazzled her. “I don’t think it can get better than that look of joy on your face right now. But I’ll try.”

As though proving his intentions, Cade cradled her face in his hands. Tenderly, he kissed her. A bit less tenderly, he slid his tongue against hers in that special way that made Violet’s belly turn somersaults and her breath quicken. Grabbing his shoulders with both hands, she returned his kiss as passionately as she could. She
loved
kissing Cade. She loved touching him and looking at him and being next to him. Now all that remained was...

The rest of him. The wholly male, enormously interesting rest of him. Which, at the moment, was hidden by the coverlet.

“So...” Shyly but determinedly, Violet slid her hand down Cade’s bare chest. His dark, springy hair tickled her fingers. Already today, she’d dared to touch him quite intimately. She’d even stroked his belly, delighting in the taut feel of his muscles tightening beneath her palm. But none of that contact could compare with what she had in mind now. “May I touch you?”

He knew exactly what she meant. Gazing into her eyes, Cade swallowed hard. He tightened his hand in her hair, then kissed her again. “If you do, I don’t know if I can stand it.”

“But won’t it be nice for you?” Honestly confused, Violet stared at him. Her hand stopped its descent midway to her intended destination. Cade’s skin felt
very
warm and a bit more coarsely textured than her own. He looked quite sun-browned, too, in comparison with her, she’d noticed. “Won’t you like it?”

“I know I’ll love it,” Cade said with utter conviction.

“Then what’s the matter?” Wriggling with newfound freedom in her nearly sheer chemise, Violet blinked. “Because
I
feel, honestly, as though I can’t get enough of your touching. It’s as though my skin somehow
needs
to be next to yours. My breasts feel all full and tingly,” she elaborated, trying to explain, “and my—” She stopped, at a loss to account for the sensations of heat and pulsing she’d been experiencing elsewhere. She pressed her thighs together, though, and somehow that made Cade understand. “The rest of me seems to need you, too. So why—”

“
Yes
,” he breathed. “Do it.
Please
. It can’t be any more torturous than hearing you explain why you want to do it.”

“Truly? You’re sure?”

“Violet...”

“Perhaps you should kiss me first.”

Another groan. But Cade complied, exactly as she’d known he would. Because when it came to her, her honor-bound gambler seemed unable to refuse her anything. Even this new intimacy.

Daringly, Violet slipped her hand lower. She encountered Cade’s hip, then his thigh, then...
Oh, my
. Silken hardness, a sense of throbbing liveliness and a surprising velvety fullness met her grasp. Thrilled, she stroked the entire length of him. Then, full of exploration and curiosity, she encircled his hot, hard girth in her fingers. Mmm. She quite liked the feel of him.

Cade stiffened. Another moan burst from him. Much too soon, his hand closed on hers, stopping her movements. On the verge of asking him why he’d done that, Violet felt herself being pressed into the mattress. With new urgency, Cade kissed her...and then he just went on kissing her, rolling them both together across the rumpled sheets until she could scarcely reckon out where she stopped and he began. Their limbs tangled; their breath mingled; even their hearts seemed to beat in unison. The only things lacking were fulsome words. But as Cade went on kissing her, as he went on touching her, additional conversation seemed less and less necessary. Everything they needed to share could be conveyed with a look, a moan...another tender touch.