Free His to Hold (Regency Scoundrels Book 1) by Marly Mathews

friction against her. She tried swallowing past the large chestnut sized lump that had suddenly lodged in her throat. She wanted to slide away from him, but he still had his one arm holding her against him.
    He leaned down toward her, and kissed her lightly on the cheek. She slanted her mouth to meet his, and his lips smacked against hers. Seemingly startled, he broke the kiss before it could even begin.
    “Why won’t you kiss me?” The question spilled out of her mouth before she could even help herself.
    “Because a true gentleman never kisses anyone but his wife.”
    His cruel rebuttal stung her, and was in complete contradiction to the way that he had behaved the day before.
    “And here I believed that you had full intentions of ruining me, and then forcing me to marry you.”
    “A man does not need to kiss a woman, in order to ruin her.” He gave her a wicked grin, and made a tingling shiver race up and down her spine.
    “You are a despicable scoundrel. You’re no better than a blackguard!”
    His eyes glowed to a deeper blue, and his nostrils flared, while the one muscle in his cheek twitched. His one hand moved lower to lift the hem of her dress that was tangled around her legs. He swept his hand up to rest on her bare upper thigh. She snagged her bottom lip, as his gentle touch sent a delicious thrill through her.
    Her bosom swelled with indignation, and she struggled to free one arm. Uselessly, she tried to slap his wandering hand away.
    “Stop that!” she snapped out, making his hand freeze in mid-motion. For one brief second, she could have sworn that she noticed a mischievous glint enter his eyes. The glint gradually faded, to be replaced by a sobering gaze.
    “Of course. You are not ready yet. I shall not make love to you, unless you are begging me to. And, my dear, it shall not take me long to urge you to that point.” Smug satisfaction glinted in his dancing eyes.
    “Keep dreaming, sir.” She tried to move her hand, and cursed indelicately when her hand slipped, and swerved down to lightly brush against the private place between his legs.
    Rafe stiffened, and she smiled, watching as his face gradually became mottled with colour.
    “You, miss, are treading a very thin line. If you do not take care, I will have you here and now in this bed. I assure you, that I will not need much more convincing!” As it was, neither would she.
    Feeling the maddened energy boiling within her, she pushed against him with all her might, and sent him rolling off the bed.
    He hit the floor with a grand thud, and the ensuing silence was so still, that she found herself edging to the side of the bed to peer over. In one fell swoop, he sat, up, reached for her, and pulled her to down to straddle him. His deep rumbling laughter filled the cabin, and she couldn’t help but smile in return.
    She swallowed again, and felt her heart skip a beat. As it was, Rafe did not make idle threats, for she could feel the burgeoning evidence of his desire straining against her. His eyes danced, and he was just about to run his hand up the back of her dress, when a loud urgent rapping was heard at the door.
    “Captain, we have a bit of a situation brewing up on deck.” She didn’t recognize the young man’s voice, though she could tell by the sound of his voice that he couldn’t be much over twenty.
    “Aye, Mister Roberts,” he muttered, frustration lining his face. “I was about to have a merry situation going on down here as well.” He dropped his voice so that only she could hear him.
    “How do they know that you are in here with me?” she hissed, slapping him soundly against the chest. He grunted, and then pushed her off of him so he could sit up.
    “My men always endeavor to keep abreast of the situations pertaining to me. If possible, I shall order a bath be drawn for you later on. Right now, I’d suggest changing into a clean dress. It might serve to freshen you up a bit.”
    “Are you insinuating that I do not have