Free Sarah's Surrender (Novella) by Lavinia Kent Page B

that devoured her and made her stronger.
    She had never been so weak. She had never been so powerful.
    Flying. She was flying, soaring.
    And then it was growing, growing, growing.
    In, out, he moved, faster, harder.
    It burst. Sunshine. Moonlight. Sun and Stars. Brightness and dark.
    Endless. Endless.
    Her body crumpled, collapsing back onto the rug. One last look, one last meeting of souls, and then her eyelids drifted closed, spent.
    She felt him give a final thrust, heard his cry, felt his weight upon her, as she drifted on a sea of fading sensation.
    —
    He didn’t know what to think. He didn’t know if he could think.
    His mind remained a blur of lust and satisfaction.
    He knew this night was far different than Sarah had ever dreamed, but it was far different from his dreams also.
    Who would ever have thought that sweet Sarah had a tigress within her? His back certainly had the scratches to prove it. He’d need to tie her to the bed to keep her still next time.
    Smiling to himself, he rolled his weight off of her. He pulled in breath after breath, waiting for his heart to slow.
    He closed his eyes, picturing her face as she’d come, the tight little gasps she’d made. He’d have to teach her to cry his name.
    God, she was beautiful, perfect. Better than he could ever have imagined and, if he was honest, he’d imagined plenty over the years.
    Lifting his arm to rest his head, he turned toward her. “Why did you decide to say yes now? Why after all these years?”
    She sighed, but did not open her eyes. “You were not here. How could I give in if you were not here?”
    “Surely there were other men?” He didn’t like to ask, but he needed to know.
    “No, not really. And besides, it has always only been you.”
    “I find that hard to believe.”
    “Nobody else sees me the way that you do.”
    A warm glow he had not felt in years grew in his chest. “I still do not understand. Why say yes so suddenly? Even if you had regretted your words of the past, surely you wanted more time to get to know me again before—”
    She smiled sleepily. “But I don’t have more time, once I tell Mr. Meyers that I will marry him I could never—”
    “Once you what?” He could not hold back his surprise.
    “I must tell Mr. Meyers I will marry him tomorrow, and no matter how little I like him, I could still never do this once I had actually promised myself to him, not that I expect he’ll hold to the same standard.”
    He sat up. “Let me understand this. You had sex with me knowing you will accept another’s proposal?”
    “Yes, it seemed such a brilliant plan. I don’t need to fear ruination or pregnancy. It will not be a long engagement, so I have no risk. Any child will be accepted as his.”
    He had not meant the question as a trap, but now ice grew in his belly. “You would give my child to another.”
    “It would not be your child. It would be mine. You don’t want anything from me but this. I don’t see why you should complain; you have what you wanted,” she said grumpily and rolled away from him. “Now let me sleep. I find my mind is slipping away.”
    His mind grew still. That she could so callously talk about letting another man raise his child, a man she even claimed not to like. Mr. Meyers, she’d said the name was. He could not place the man, which probably made him some type of rich Cit.
    So was Sarah marrying for money after all as she’d threatened all those years ago? Why had she waited so long? Had he avoided her clutches only to leave another man to them?
    The idea did not sit well with him, but he was unsure what else to think.
    She looked a sleeping angel, lying there, lashes dark against pale skin, soft flesh glowing in the firelight, long tangled hair spread about her. But no angel would have responded as she just had. No angel would have left the long marks down his back. No angel would have gasped her pleasure with such abandon.
    She would give his child away.
The thought would not