Free Sapphires Are an Earl's Best Friend by Shana Galen - Jewels of the Ton 03 - Sapphires Are an Earl's Best Friend

grabbed her arms, cutting her off. “You cannot possibly think of tying yourself to him. Allowing him to paw you, leer at you, rut with you nightly.”
    “So that is what marriage involves! Thank you for enlightening me. Well, in that case, I will return home immediately. Move aside.” She gave him a little push.
    “Lily…”
    “ Andrew . I told you the matter did not concern you. Let me pass.”
    Light footfalls sounded, and he turned to listen.
    “Someone is coming,” she chided him. “The servants must need this room. We should go.”
    He nodded his assent, and then his eyes narrowed. “Not so quickly. I rather like being in here with you.”
    She frowned at him. “Why?” The steps grew closer. She did not want it reported to the duke that she’d been closeted with his son. Her gaze flicked to Darlington. But that was exactly what the earl wanted. “Out of my way,” she ordered, pushing him aside.
    “Why, Lily,” he said, looking down at her hands on his chest. “I had no idea you felt this way.” His arms went around her, and he pulled her hard against him.
    “No.” She pushed against his chest to no avail. “Let me go.”
    “I can’t,” he whispered as his mouth descended on hers.
    She wanted to fight him. She wanted to kick his shin or bite his lip or knee him somewhere tender and vulnerable. But she didn’t. His lips pressed against hers, and she forgot how much she hated him. She forgot that he’d tried to have her killed, that he’d insulted her, that he was only using her. She forgot everything but the feel of his mouth moving against hers, the pressure of his hands on her back, the hardness of his chest pressing against her breasts, the warmth of his leg where it met her thigh.
    She closed her eyes, and her world swirled and tilted. When his tongue touched her lips, she clutched his shirt to keep from falling. Lily couldn’t stop a moan. She couldn’t stop her lips from opening to him; she couldn’t stop herself from kissing him back. And now his hands dug into her back, pulling her closer, while his mouth took possession, kissing her deeply. She’d never been kissed like this, with such intensity. It was a kiss that demanded her surrender, and she found herself giving in.
    Heat swirled through her, pooling in her belly with a delicious heaviness. Her body began to throb and ache and reach for… something. Needs, long neglected, bubbled uncontrollably from their depths, and she remembered this feeling. Desire. Arousal. Yearning. But it had never been painful before. It had never been desperate and clawing and frantic. She spread her hands on his chest, feeling the solid heat of him through his clothing. His heart pounded against her palm, and his knee parted her thighs, pressing against her lightly. Oh, yes. Please.
    He pulled back suddenly, and Lily stumbled and gasped in a shallow breath. Her vision was unfocused, but she would have sworn he looked flushed and as bewildered as she. He raked a hand through his hair, disordering it. “What are you doing to me?” he rasped.
    “ You kissed me .” She could barely speak. Her voice was weak and shaky.
    He shook his head in denial. “You kissed me back,” he accused.
    “I told you to let me go.” She was very aware that she was still standing in the circle of his arms, still flush against his chest. “Let go.”
    “That’s not possible. Not now that I’ve tasted you.” He bent to kiss her again, and she found some semblance of willpower and leaned back.
    “Stop kissing me.”
    “Lily.” He cupped her face. “I cannot.” And his mouth, sweet and persuasive this time, claimed hers again. She wanted to fight him. She wanted to question his cryptic statements. She wanted to escape before they were discovered, which was surely his plan all along, but she simply stood there and melted against him. She let his mouth overtake her, his arms hold her, his body warm her.
    “What is—?”
    Lily sprang away from Darlington, bumping