Page 74 of Broken

Lilly sighed against his bare chest and ran her hands over his body, lighting fires she had no right to encourage, given her current state. But her breathing settled into a normal, deep rhythm, and he did his best to fall asleep too.

* * *

Lilly woke to find her body trapped under something heavy. She breathed deep, and drew in Giles’ scent so close to her. His arm draped over her chest and his hand covered her breast. When she shifted a little, so did he. He rolled and pulled her tight against his hot skin.

It took Lilly a moment to get over the shock of skin-on-skin contact. Giles burned. Lilly swallowed nervously, then wished for a drink to be rid of the horrible taste in her mouth. Swallowing again didn’t help, so she lifted Giles’ heavy arm, attempting to escape him.

“What do you want, Lilly?” he murmured.

“Water. I have a terrible taste in my mouth, but I am capable of getting it, you know.”

“It’s either the laudanum, or the brandy I made you drink. Let me look after you. You know I enjoy it.” Giles kissed the side of her face and moved out from behind her. Glass clinked in the dark.

The bed creaked when he returned, and he felt for her face, clumsily offering the glass for her to drink from. She downed the lot and handed it back.

Glass rattled against wood, then Giles crawled back under the blankets. When he had them arranged comfortably again, he kissed Lilly’s shoulder before falling back asleep. His light snore made her laugh because it tickled her neck so strangely.

While Giles slept, Lilly lay awake and wondered how she had come to be in this room. Yesterday was another blur, just as if she had taken the medicine for her pains. Had she been tricked into consuming laudanum again? Giles had said she had. But she didn’t remember accepting the potion. As she puzzled over what had contained the brew, she twirled her fingers around the swirls of hair on Giles’ forearms.

The arm around her tightened, then stroked down her torso. She had woken Giles with her restlessness. Heat shifted behind her, and she became aware of a hot spot on her bottom.

“Can’t you sleep?” Giles whispered as his lips pressed against her neck, along her shoulder and back again.

“No. I was attempting to remember yesterday.”

“Don’t worry. I’m not going to let anything happen to you again, darling. From now on, you stay with me,” Giles promised.

Lilly grinned. Staying with Giles was a nice fantasy.

Giles’ hand stopped its random wandering and soothed her stiff muscles. Lilly rolled over without any prompting and Giles set to work on her back. Oh, Giles was so good at this. When he had turned her senses to putty, Lilly turned over to stop him by pulling him down for kisses. He sank his full weight against her and she eased her legs apart to accommodate his lower body.

Heat scalded her skin. A strip of her inner thigh burned. Giles moved his hips while they kissed and slid along her skin. When he changed position so his body lay beside hers, she tried not to be disappointed. How wicked am I to want more?

Very wicked.

When Giles ran his hand over her skin, Lilly explored him in return.

Chest hair was such a revelation. The hairs seemed long and soft, so she played at smoothing them, only to encounter a male nipple. When Lilly’s fingers brushed the peak again, Giles let out a groan. Lilly giggled.

“Wicked temptress.”

Lilly kissed his cheek. “You only have yourself to blame.”

He rewarded her impertinent reply by returning the favor. Lilly arched at the sensation of his pinching fingers, and then his lips settled on the tip and suckled.

This was not like the last time she’d shared his bed. Giles was less reserved, more demanding in the way his hands skimmed her curves. He tortured her with his lips and tongue. She purred when he swapped to her other breast and used his fingers to tease the wet nipple he’d just left.

She shifted her legs restlessly on the linens until Giles trapped one of hers with one of his, wedging her legs apart just when she had started to hum at the junction of her thighs. He abandoned her nipple and his breath caressed her skin. His fingers slid to her belly in twisting patterns until they rested on the top of her curls.

If only he would just move a little lower, she thought, squirming up the bed toward those clever fingers. He did not move them, but caught her lips again and kissed her like a starving man. Perhaps he was just that. Lilly was certain that he had no lover here at Cottingstone. She had seen no sign of one. Until Papa came, they had been together most nights.

Muscles flexed and twisted beneath her hands as she explored Giles thoroughly. She stroked his chest, down toward his belly button, following the line of hair. Giles’ mouth lifted from hers. He shifted his hips and deposited his erection right into her hand.

As he kissed her, Lilly got over the surprise. She made a hesitant stroke over his soft skin. Giles groaned his encouragement. His teasing fingers slid into her curls then pushed into her cleft, driving her mad.

As Lilly learned how to pleasure him, he stroked her until she gasped. She tightened her grip on his length and moved in time with his own fingers.

“That’s it, my darling. Just like that.”