Free Marrying Cade by Sally Clements

eyes were almost navy. “I’m sorry it was so difficult for you.”
    He’d never kissed anyone who knew so much about his past before. For the first time in years he felt vulnerable, exposed.
    Her lips parted, and she leaned closer.
    Soft. Tempting. Inviting. He had to kiss her. He stroked along her jaw line, and then grasped her nape, pulling her closer to kiss.
    She tasted of honey. Of champagne. Of Melo. The scent of her perfume filled the air as his hands slid lower. Heat flared in his abdomen. His palms skirted over her shoulders, and when she moaned into his mouth, his desire flared out of control. His heart pounded and his breathing quickened. The elegant line of her neck arched in an invitation he instantly accepted, and she gripped his shoulders as if she was in fear of falling. Maybe she was—he sure was.
    Falling out of control, and fast.
    “Sit on my knee.”
    She couldn’t straddle him, not in that dress, but at least if she sat on him he’d have better access.
    She stood, towering over him in her high heels.
    The seductive curve of her mouth sent a wave of molten lust through him.
    Her gaze flickered to the open French windows. Muted music drifted in the air, and she swayed slightly to its beat.
    They could be seen from the doorway. It wasn’t nearly private enough. The dress had to go. He wanted to run his hands and his mouth all over her. Have her naked beneath him, as they’d been earlier.
    She pulled in her bottom lip, and bit gently.
    He reached for her hand, pressing a kiss into her palm.
    She shivered, but didn’t move. Cade got to his feet, wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close.
    “Let’s go.”

Chapter Six

    Thank God neither of them had to drive. The road from the Palazzo wound down the hill to the hotel, and there was no way he’d be able to pay attention to those curves, he was too fascinated with Melo’s.
    The driver concentrated on the winding road.
    Melo rested against Cade in the darkness. Her hand was on his thigh. He wanted it higher. With an intensity that had him sliding a hand down to caress the soft skin revealed by the deep dip in the back of her dress. It was too tight to investigate further; so he grazed the slide of her neck instead, loving the shiver trembling through her.
    “Here we are,” the driver said.
    They’d covered the miles in mere moments. Cade grasped her hand and was out of the car faster than a sprinter with the finishing line in sight.
    The large courtesy car turned on the sweep, spraying gravel as it accelerated up to the Palazzo again.
    Cade’s heart was thundering in his chest, but he had to ask. “Are you sure?” The velvety blackness surrounded them like a cloak. Perfumed with the lavender and rosemary, silent and seductive. Like the woman before him.
    “Yes,” Melo said huskily.
    Her sapphire eyes gleamed in the moonlight. No hesitation. No second thoughts.
    Her hand in his infused him with power, flooded him with a frantic longing. They walked silently into the hotel, not speaking until they reached the safe, private haven of his room.
    Melo turned at the click of the door. A tall, graceful mermaid, caught. It was difficult to breathe. Cade’s erection swelled as she gazed at him earnestly.
    “Where were we?” Cade whispered.
    Her mouth tilted at the corners. She raised her shoulders in a graceful little lift that pushed her breasts out toward him a little.
    He ran his tongue over dry lips. “Ah, I remember.”
    When she reached out a hand and undid his top button, Cade’s iron control melted. He groaned, her fingers fumbled. He reached around to slide the long zip down to the curve of her bottom. The straps fell from her shoulders, slid down her silken skin.
    She shimmied, and the dress pooled at her ankles. The green lace bra matched the dress perfectly, and a green garter belt spanned her tiny waist.
    His gaze scanned the triangle of green at the apex of her thighs as his hands gripped her hipbones, pulling her closer. She