Free Payton's Woman by Marilyn Yarbrough Page B

his chest and gripped at his shoulders
for support.
    “Or here?” he said while
moving his mouth down her neck and over her collarbone.
    She tossed back her
head. Her spiral curls tumbled over her bare skin. The brush of her hair over
the sensitive skin on her back heightened her excitement. Her head turned from
side to side as if she could deny the heat gathering in her body. At the same
time, she savored every kiss, every nibble, every lick of his tongue across her
bare skin.
    His lips blazed a fiery
trail across her naked flesh. His hand moved from her back. His fingers skimmed
across her ribcage until he cupped her breast. She sucked in her breath at the
exquisite touch.
    He edged his fingers beneath
the bodice of her gown, but she didn’t possess the will to resist. A fire
ignited in her body when he captured her nipple between his fingertips. She
grabbed his wrist with the intent of pulling his hand away, but her thoughts
scattered at the startling sensation. Instead, her hand merely encircled his
wrist.
    He tugged at the bodice
of her gown. His fingers pealed back the hemmed edge, exposing more of her
breast. His tongue followed, seeking her out. His lips closed around the taunt peak.
He sucked her nipple into his mouth.
    A white hot bolt of lightening
pierced her body. Something melted in her belly. Her mind went numb, but her
body came alive. She tingled all the way to her toes.
    “No, Payton, please,”
she begged, but she couldn’t push him away.
    Her heart beat wildly.
Her legs wobbled. A shiver rocked her body. She stood in the arms of the only
man to ever make her burn. She slipped one arm around his waist to hold him to
her while her other arm moved to his neck. Her fingers wove through his thick,
dark hair.
    Suddenly, his mouth
covered hers. His tongue parted her lips and thrust inside. Over and over he stroked
his tongue into her mouth. She moved her own tongue across his and circled him.
The texture felt like velvet, the underside smooth as silk.
    Their kiss ended when he
turned his head. He put both arms around her in a gentle embrace and pressed his
lips close to her ear. “You must’ve cast a spell on me.” He spoke in a ragged,
husky voice. “Every time I kiss you, I want you.”
    “I think it’s the way
you kiss,” she answered in a voice just as frayed. “No one has ever made me
feel this way. I don’t know what to do,” she said in desperation.
    “You’re in luck. I do
know what to do.”
    “No, Payton,” she said,
even though her will to resist had faded.
    “Ahem.” Sylvia forced a phony
cough.
    Julia jumped at the
sound. Her back was to Sylvia, but she recognized who stood behind her. Quickly,
she straightened the bodice of her gown. She took a deep breath in an effort to
calm her body.
    Payton relaxed his embrace.
His arms slipped from her waist. “Has the music stopped again?” he asked in an innocent
voice.
    “I’m afraid so.”
    A huffing sound, as if
from haughty satisfaction, spilled from Sylvia’s lips. “Julia darling, I am
surprised. It appears as though you are actually enjoying yourself for once.
But I’m afraid the entertainment must end. Elizabeth is asking for you. She’s
ready to leave.”
    Keeping her back to
Sylvia, she nodded. Tomorrow she would be grilled for details on her behavior,
but tonight she didn’t want to share this moment.
    She glanced at Payton. His
eyes blazed with desire. His mouth opened slightly. His tongue licked at his lips
as if savoring her taste lingering there.
    Her body ached for his
touch. She longed to return to his arms, but Sylvia stood nearby. She forced
some degree of calmness into her body and hoped her voice sounded normal when
she spoke. “It’s been very nice meeting you, Captain Tyler.”
    He smiled a wicked grin.
“It’s been a pleasure for me also. I look forward to our next meeting.”
    Sylvia waited until Julia
walked away before turning her attention to Payton. “Captain, is it?” Her gaze
moved over him,