If You Were Mine (10 page)

She was
frowning thoughtfully at the heavy snowfall beyond the window, when
as though sensing her disquiet, he appeared in the
doorway.

“
What’s wrong my dear?” Dominic queried, eyeing the
disgruntled scowl upon her face. He fought the urge to smile when
she turned her fierce frown in his direction. Clearly, she was
distinctly put out at something. Whatever had outraged her so much,
had given her the first tinge of colour to her cheeks that he had
seen since her arrival in his house. Her eyes spat shards of angry
blue fire as she stared moodily at him. She reminded him of a
disgruntled kitten. He knew that should he venture too far, he was
very likely to get scratched.

Still,
he was curious to discover how far he could go before his kitten
scratched him. Swallowing his smile, he leaned a nonchalant
shoulder against the door jam and raised a sardonic brow. It was
good to see her positively bristling with temper. It was a sign she
was returning to good heath.

Isobel
pointedly ignored his question, instead glared at his cheerfulness.
“You seem decidedly chirpy today,” she grumbled, eyeing his
windswept ruggedness as he slowly sauntered across the room. God,
he was handsome. Isobel eyed his tall frame as he casually wandered
towards her.

“
I have a lot to be chirpy about,” Dominic replied smoothly as
he sat in his customary chair beside the bed. “What are you so
disgruntled about?”

“
I am so very fed up of being in this bed!” Isobel replied,
giving in to a burst of temper. “It is time I got up.” Her scowl
deepened as he slowly shook his head.

“
You are not ready yet. You may have a relapse or something,”
Dominic casually propped his booted feet atop of the covers she was
trying to pull back, firmly securing her underneath.

Isobel
sighed, eyeing his booted feet with disdain. Briefly, she
considered thwacking his ankles until he removed them but eyeing
his long length sprawled so comfortably in the chair, she just
couldn’t find the heart to do so. Still, that couldn’t detract on
her dissatisfaction with her weakened state.

“
I am more likely to have a relapse if I lay in this bed much
longer.” She knew she sounded waspish and ungrateful, but felt
driven by something that refused to allow her to settle. “I want to
get up. I
have
to
get up. It’s driving me crazy being stuck in here.”

“
I can understand my dear,” Dominic replied sympathetically.
Given the length of time she had been recovering, he could fully
understand her mounting frustration.

“
Can you?” Her tone was dismissive. She felt certain he
couldn’t understand just how sick of feeling useless she
was.

“
Yes. When I was injured in Spain, I was tended to by the
locals. At first, I couldn’t move much. The inactivity of lying
there day after day was impossible to cope with and I was only
lying there for a week before I was moved to a ship and brought
home.”

Isobel
sat enthralled, suddenly too afraid to move and stop his
confidences. It was the first time he had opened up to her about
his injuries, which she knew he had sustained.

“
How severe were your injuries?” Isobel’s tone softened as she
considered his lying in a foreign country, badly injured with no
easy way of returning home other than a moving and swaying
ship.

Dominic
stared at her solemnly for several minutes clearly battling
something within. Isobel began to wonder if he would just ignore
her question until he suddenly stood up and moved toward the door,
closing it soundly with his booted heel. As he approached the bed,
he began to ease off his jacket.

Stunned,
Isobel watched closely, her temperature rising as he slowly
unravelled his cravat before placing it carefully with his jacket
at the end of the bed. Slowly, he undid the ties of his white
shirt, pulling the edges out of his riding breeches before swiftly
pulling it over his head.

Despite
the blush that marred her cheeks, her hungry eyes roamed the broad
expanse of flesh that greeted her. His shoulders were indeed wide
and firmly muscled. His broad chest was matted with a coarse dark
hair that tapered downwards over the rippling muscles of his
abdomen.

“
Oh Lord,” Isobel gasped silently to herself as she shifted
uncomfortably on the bed. She itched to reach out and touch him.
Her eyes slowly traced the large length of puckered flesh that ran
from under his rib cage around and across his abdomen below his
navel.

Pulling
the covers from her legs she eased upwards to sit on the side of
the bed, her eyes locked on the puckered flesh of his stomach. Her
eyes flickered upwards to find him watching her closely.

“
Does it hurt?” she whispered softly, her gaze dropping back
down. Gently, her fingers touched the flesh higher upon his ribs,
pausing briefly as he sucked in a startled breath.

“
No,” His voice sounded strangled yet another reassuring
glimpse of his face revealed a tension that had not been there
before.

Her
touch feather-light continued downwards following the trail of the
rugged and puckered flesh as it crossed him. His breathing had
increased yet he made no move to pull away. ilence settled around
them as she boldly explored him.

“
God Isobel, you unman me.” Dominic choked as her lips
feathered across his flesh. His treacherous body immediately
responded to her nearness. With the kisses she was bestowing upon
him, he was so hard and ready, he thought he would burst. If only
she didn’t look down at the thick bulge of his breeches, he mused
silently wondering if he had the strength to move away.

“
You must have been in so much pain.” Isobel’s voice held only
a touch of sadness for he would have considered it condescension
should she be overly sympathetic to his endurance. Her lips reached
the end of his scar directly in line with his belly button. Unable
to withstand any more of her curiosity, Dominic slid his hands into
the thickening mass of her hair and tugged her face upwards until
she was looking at him. Her lips were pink and glistening; tempting
him to taste and savour what was on offer.

“
We can’t do this,” Dominic offered. Everything within him
screamed at him to ease away. She had been so poorly, and was only
just getting back to full health. In a valiant attempt to capture
her attention, Dominic caught her hands on his and held them still,
waiting until her eyes met his. He could see the questions in the
beautiful blue depths, and mentally cursed as he felt the first
cracks in his self control begin to form.

“
Isobel, we mustn’t do this, you are too poorly,” he
whispered, resting his forehead against hers for several moments in
a silent plea for understanding.

Isobel
didn’t know whether to hit him, or kiss him. Drawing back, her gaze
slid over the broad expanse of muscle on his chest. Her fingers
positively itched to slide through the crinkly hair and see for
herself if it really was as soft as it looked.

“
Dominic, please?” she whispered. Although she was tired, she
wasn’t
that
ill.
She had spent several weeks doing nothing but rest. Her energy
levels were getting better with each day, and if she had to lie in
the bed next to the man who held her heart in his hands for any
longer, she would not be held responsible for her
actions.

A bigger
man would have manfully withdrawn and re-donned his shirt. Dominic
knew she already had command of his heart. He ruefully acknowledged
that his body appeared to be hers too, if his immediate response to
her nearness was any indication. His manhood ached with the need to
relieve the pressure that was building beneath his
breeches.

“
Kiss me,” she demanded, pushing herself onto her knees upon
the bed. She could sense his hesitation; his silent battle with his
need to protect her, and his desire for her.

Before
he had left for Norfolk several months ago, she would have been
aghast at such wanton behaviour. Now, having endured life with
everything familiar and dear to her cruelly snatched away, she had
learnt to savour every opportunity. She wanted that opportunity
now. She wanted him.

Sensing
his hesitation, and with a boldness that surprised even her, she
slowly slid her palms upwards across his chest, delighted at the
hiss of his breath between clenched teeth at her progress.
Emboldened by the fact he didn’t move away, Isobel slowly explored
the dips and hollows of his chest, smoothing, seeking, committing
each ripple of muscle and broad expanse of tanned flesh to memory
as she traced the broad width of his shoulders. The need to reach
upwards brought her face closer to his until she could feel his hot
breath upon her cheek.

She
moaned aloud as his hand tightened in her hair, tipping her head
backwards to reveal her neck. His questing lips sought and found
the long column of her white throat, his hot tongue laved the
hollow at the bottom with his hot tongue. Her breasts tingled with
anticipation as she brushed against his masculine heat.

“
Isobel, we have to stop my darling,” Dominic groaned, placing
tiny kisses upon her jaw. Inwardly, everything screamed at him to
tumble her backwards and take what she was offering. The gentleman
within him; the warrior; the protector; didn’t want to put any
demands on her already recovering body.

“
More please Dominic, I need you.” Isobel was unable to
restrain the surge of recklessness that swept through her.For
months, she had thought he was out of her reach, belonging to
another. Since he had left for his secret mission her body had
ached to feel his possession once again. She had cried and grieved
for everything she thought she had lost. Now that she had it back,
she was determined to savour every second of their time
together.

“
Isobel, you tempt me so.” Dominic tipped his head backwards
to gaze blankly at the ceiling as she began to trail kisses upon
the sensitised skin of his chest. His chest hair crinkled beneath
her questing lips. Every nerve within him was quivering until he
thought he would go quietly mad.

He drew
her head upwards, and gently swept his over hers. His mouth was hot
and demanding as his tongue probed deep into the moist recesses of
her mouth. His hands shook when he slowly drew the long nightgown
over her hips, breaking the kiss only long enough to pull it over
her head and toss it carelessly onto the floor, before tumbling her
backwards onto the bed and following her down.

Isobel
moaned softly as the sensitive tips of her breasts brushed the
coarse hair of his chest. Moist heat pooled between her thighs
causing her to shift restlessly against the growing emptiness
within her belly. She needed him to ease the ache. Only he would
do. Gasping at the delicious sensations he was creating, she arched
her back in mute appeal as his lips moved lower. Everything within
her shook as his lips caught and teased the sensitive nipple,
laving it carefully until she thought she would go quietly mad. The
tugging sensation low in her tummy tightened as the moisture
between her legs built.

Somehow
he had loosened his breeches and broke away from her long enough to
kick them off along with his boots before resuming his place upon
the bed.

Sliding
a hand along the slender curve of her side, he caressed the satin
smooth skin from her shoulder to her hips, revelling in the warm
softness. She shifted restlessly as his hand began to explore her
flesh. Tugging his head upwards her lips explored his wantonly
making him groan with delight.

“
We need to slow down darling.” Dominic’s voice was a hoarse
whisper in the silence of the room.

“
No, I need you Dominic. Please don’t wait,” she gasped
rubbing her breasts against his chest. Her hands swept down the
length of his sides, desperately tugging him closer. As he
complied, she felt the rigid length of his manhood against her
thigh and paused. Curiosity drove her to look down at the large
shaft, moist and glistening in readiness. With a shy glance upwards
she gently trailed a finger down the silken heat, delighted as it
quivered in response. Dominic groaned at the delicious sensations
her curiosity was causing but knew he could not withstand the
torture.

She
moaned softly as he eased her legs apart before settling himself in
between them. His probing fingers searching and finding her slick
heat. Raising her hips in mute appeal she was rewarded as his
finger moved deep within.

Her body
was slick with sweat, every nerve taught and quivering in readiness
as she lay open to his delectation. Anything he demanded of her now
she would readily give. Instinctively, she opened her legs wider to
allow him access and cried aloud as his mouth rubbed over her
nipples again and again.

“
Please Dominic,” Isobel gasped, unsure what she was asking
for but knowing only he could give it. In answer to her plea she
felt the broad head of his shaft at her opening. Her body stretched
to accommodate him until she was certain she could take no more.
Sliding her fingers into his hair she held on to him as he placed
random kisses around her flushed face. Her eyes met and held his as
he gazed softly down at her while claiming his place inside of
her.