Tempted By a Rake (Wicked Widows’ League #21)

Chapter 22

Chapter Twenty-Two

He teased her while they were in the kitchen but only because she had never washed a dish before.

It was a reminder of how pampered she had been her entire life and that she had no idea how to take care of a household because there had always been someone to do that for her.

She hoped that Demetrius did not look down on her because of her lack of skill, but all he did was smile and tease, his brown eyes warm with humor.

“I will return shortly.” He kissed her cheek then pulled on his coat. “Max has been left alone for too long and if Cal is not given enough attention, he will break things.”

Lavinia nearly offered to go with him but reconsidered. She needed to change her dress and do something with the tangles in her hair. But mostly, she needed time with her thoughts.

“I will see if there is any chocolate that we can brew while you are gone. If not, I will make a fresh pot of tea.”

She followed him to the door leading to the terrace and watched as he hurried down the steps then turned toward his own cottage, all the while her heart aching.

Oh, she had been smitten in London but it had gone beyond that after she arrived in Seaford. It wasn’t because of last night either. Yes, she had been curious about desire and passion, but it was in their conversations that she had fallen in love and last night he had taken her heart completely.

How could she ever return to what they were, with him delivering documents to her brother, which Lavinia would review and correct, and engage him in discussion while pretending as if their holiday in Seaford had been nothing more than being neighbors?

She couldn’t, and she did not want to, but she also knew that she could not pretend in London either. He would see right through her and there was nothing worse than a woman who could not let go when the man had moved on after a relationship had ended.

He would pity her and Lavinia could not have that, but what could she do?

Did she simply not return to London?

She could live here, whether Leopold approved or not. But who would watch over her sisters?

Her heart ached over the future she would not have. Demetrius was her lover for only a short time, and she must be happy to have this, and she would simply need to determine how to move forward when their time came to an end.

An air of melancholy had come over Lavinia as they finished the dishes and Demetrius did not know why.

Was she beginning to regret what they had done, or was she ready for them to end?

When he returned, he found Lavinia lounging on the settee, her feet on the seat beside her and a blanket over her legs. She had changed her dress and a fire burned brightly casting warmth into the room. In the center of the table was a tea service and she had an open book on her lap.

“Is this how you plan to spend the day?” he asked.

Did she want to be alone? Had he assumed too much in returning?

Except, there were two cups for tea.

“What else is there to do?” she asked.

“I can think of many things,” he offered as he shrugged off his coat and crossed to the settee.

“I think I already know what you have in mind,” she said. “But as I do not know when Mrs. Trenton plans on having another basket delivered, this is where I will stay, and fully dressed.”

The properness that he had always associated with Lavinia had returned. Except that Lavinia would not be seated as she was now and both feet would be on the floor.

“Do you know why I admire dresses so much?” he asked as he settled at her feet and slipped a hand beneath the blanket. “One can engage in all manner of pleasure and be put to rights in an instant if caught.”

“Is that so?”

He took the book from her lap as he slid his hand up her leg. “I will be happy to prove it to you.”

“I believe you already are.”

Her breath hitched as she adjusted her thighs ever so slightly to allow him closer access to her desire. When he touched her, Demetrius nearly groaned.

As soon as his thumb brushed across her point of pleasure, Lavinia moaned and with her encouragement, he continued to pleasure her until she arched as her release swept through her body as she cried out. As she recovered, Demetrius moved the blanket away, freed himself, then pulled her onto his lap.

Her eyes widened and he suspected she’d never been in this position before.

When he probed her entrance, she gasped and he guided her hips down until he completely filled her.

“Goodness!”

He chuckled.

“What do I do?”

“Whatever feels best to you.”

She placed her hands on his shoulders then rose slightly before settling again.

She also watched him, staring into his eyes, and he didn’t know if it was because she was unsure or needed guidance, and as much as he wanted to guide her hips up and down, Demetrius did not. He wanted her to discover this pleasure for herself, to have control.

Again, she lifted further then moved down again and slowly discovered a rhythm that he also enjoyed. She wasn’t rushed but steady as her eyes closed and her head fell back. Demetrius leaned forward and kissed the skin just above her bodice. If it were him, he would be quicker to reach the end, but her steady rhythm just built and brought him more pleasure than he had expected and allowed him to last longer.

Only when he slipped his hand beneath her skirt again and caressed her center did her movements increase as she rode the waves of pleasure, and when she crested, he grasped her hips and took over, moving her as she clung to him until he pressed deep and spilled his seed deep within.

Lavinia then collapsed against him, head on his shoulder, breathing heavily in his ear as he smoothed a hand up and down her back.

“Goodness!”

He smiled because he had come to associate that word with Lavinia being surprised with pleasure and he hoped to hear it many more times.