Page 43 of Once a Scoundrel

No, it was only because of Stephen. No other man could have made her feel as beautiful and wanted as he did, so feminine and desirable...soloved.

He stilled and held himself poised over her. With his eyes squeezed closed, he whispered her name as he lowered his mouth to cover hers. Then he thrust his hips forward and plunged fully inside her.

She gasped at the sharp pinch inside her, and her body tensed around him at the fleeting pain.

But when Stephen began to move his hips against hers in slow, steady strokes, the discomfort faded, replaced by a tingling ache that grew more and more demanding. The same tingling ache which had engulfed her when he’d caressed her with his fingers, and oh how wonderful that had been! If he could do that to her with just his hand, to think what he could do to her with his body—

Heaven.She rolled back her head and arched herself beneath him.

A growling sound of pleasure tore from his throat. He wrapped his arms tightly around her and began to thrust deep and hard. The same engulfing tension as before sped through her, but this time it was so much more intense than before. It tightened every muscle in her body from the tips of her toes to the top of her head. She rose up against him to meet every thrust, craving more,needingmore. The throbbing ache inside her swelled like the tightening of a coiled spring—

She broke with a cry. Pleasure rushed through her in a wave. The world around her vanished, until all she knew was the exquisite release pulsing through her and the joy of having his body enveloping hers. When her pulse slowed and the deafening rush of blood pounding in her ears subsided, she felt his lips at her ear whispering over and over how much he loved her.

She could do nothing more than cling to him as he continued to stroke into her, her arms wrapped around his neck and her ankles locked together at the small of his back. As his tempo increased, so did the intensity of their joining, and each thrust now came as a jerky, grinding drive of his hips against hers.

With a low groan, he plunged deep inside her and held himself there for a heartbeat, then with a shudder poured himself inside her. At this new, wholly wonderful sensation of his life’s essence flowing into her, a pulse of joy swept through her, and a tear slipped down her cheek.

He rested his forehead against her bare shoulder as he struggled to regain his breath, trembling and covered with perspiration. When he recovered, he placed a tender kiss on her lips. His eyes glistened in the moonlight as they stared down into hers, their bodies still joined below, and their hearts beating fiercely into each other’s chest.

“I love you, Faith,” he whispered, his mouth so close to hers that she shivered at each warm breath that stirred across her lips. “I’m going to prove to you that I deserve your love, that I will always keep you safe.” He kissed her. “And I’m going to spend the rest of my life making you happy.”

She blinked away tears of joy and breathed, “You already have.”

He kissed her, softly and tenderly, then shifted his weight off her to lie beside her on the bed. She snuggled into his arms, never wanting to leave their warm embrace. When he pulled the coverlet over them, to keep away the chill of the night and tuck them together, she rested her palm against his chest and reveled in the strength of his heart beating beneath her fingertips.

Fate had given them a second chance at love, and the future they would create together would be one of happiness, home, and family.

Family. Her belly tightened. She knew how children were created— “We didn’t...take precautions,” she whispered, embarrassment heating her cheeks.

He grinned at her. “We certainly did not.”

The faint warmth flared into a full-out burning blush. She rested her cheek against his chest to hide her face, afraid he might be able to see her reaction even in the moonlight and know how happy the thought made her that she might have gotten with his child.

“So I guess you’ll have to make an honest man of me and marry me, or my reputation will be ruined,” he teased with mock solemnity. “I’ll never be able to wear white gowns and be presented at court now.”

She swatted gently at his shoulder, but he caught her hand and raised it to his lips. He placed a kiss against her palm, then set about sucking on each of her fingertips until she trembled. All the teasing between them vanished.

“Youwillmarry me, Faith,” he assured her as his lips moved from finger to finger, stirring a new ache between her legs and leaving her to wonder how long they had to wait before they could makelove again. “You will be my wife, my marchioness, and the mother of my children.” He trailed his mouth down her inner wrist. “And I will always be your dutiful husband. In.” He placed a kiss on her forearm. “Every.” Another kiss in the crook of her elbow. “Way.”

With a sigh of happiness, she rested her cheek against his chest. “In every way,” she repeated. A happy smile played at her lips as she whispered, “My husband.”

Nervous butterflies danced in her belly when she thought of it. And what they’d just done. It had been absolutely wonderful! Now she knew why her older sisters gazed on their husbands in that dreamy way they did, why her parents insisted that she and her siblings find love matches. Oh, love was divine!

Her heart felt so full that she wondered how it didn’t burst. She’d never been happier in her life as she was at that moment, knowing that Stephen loved her. That they would marry and spend the rest of their lives together.Simply heaven.They would have to be careful—they weren’t married yet, and God help him if either of her parents caught them together. Again. But for this moment, he was completely hers.

Stephen Crenshaw wasfinallyhers.

It wasn’t the way she would have ever imagined a romance between them playing out, but love had blossomed after all.

They had so much to discuss, not least of which was asking Papa’s permission to marry her. Formally this time, the way the duke expected of him. But that could all wait. Right now, she cared about nothing more than simply being with him.

She rested her cheek against his chest, closed her eyes, and drank in the delicious pleasure of being in his arms. Within his embrace, comforted by the lullaby of his heartbeat, Faith slipped into peaceful sleep.