Gentlemen Prefer Spinsters (Spinsters Club #1)(58)
He clutched the drink in his hand and eyed the liquid before throwing it back and savoring the warm burn as it slid down his throat. He placed the glass on a side table and shook his head. “Surely you know me better than that, Merry?”
Merry looked to the floor then lifted her gaze to his, a soft smile gracing her lips. “Yes, I do.” Before he could quite fathom what was happening, she was in front of him. She put hands to either side of his face and leaned over. “I do know,” she insisted. Her lips grazed his, sending a lightning bolt of sensation through him. He remained frozen. If he moved, he might put an end to all this and he’d be damned if he ruined this moment.
“I know it all,” she murmured. “I know what a fool I was to keep denying you. I know that you are not who you were when you were younger. I know that you were right about us.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Merry drew back to look into Harry’s eyes. She held her breath. He was annoyed with her, and rightly so. She had doubted him over and over, despite knowing the truth. Harry was not the rogue he once was, and even then, he had always been good and kind to her. And with her friends’ blessing, she had no reason to continue denying this to either of them. She kissed him again before drawing back.
“Do you know that I love you?” he asked, his voice hoarse.
Relief nearly overwhelmed her. She laughed and pressed her forehead to his shoulder. “Yes, yes I do.” Lifting her head, she grinned. “And I love you, Harry. So much it hurts. I do not even know how that happened.”
His lips finally curved into a grin and he smoothed his hands up and down her back. “I do. You bewitched me.”
She tilted her lips. “I do not think anyone in their right mind would accuse me of being capable of bewitching men.”
“Perhaps I am not in my right mind.”
“That sounds more plausible.”
He pressed his hands under her bottom and eased her onto his lap. His hands came up to cup her face. “I will not take no for an answer again, Merry. You will marry me.”
She briefly debated teasing him for such an abrupt proposal but did not have it in her. Thank the lord, he had not sent her away. Thank the lord, he still loved her. She gave him a swift kiss instead of replying.
“Is that a yes?”
Nodding, she uttered breathlessly, “Yes.”
A grin cracked across his face. “You will not regret it, Merry.” He pressed his fingers up and around her face to draw her down to him. “I promise you will not regret it.”
“I know,” she murmured against his lips, allowing herself to become lost in the warm taste of him. She knew it all. As soon as she had heard he’d returned, she’d known...
She had to try to apologize, she had to hope he still felt the same about her, that he was not too angry at her that he would not forgive her. She’d known she could not live with herself if she passed up the opportunity of a life with Harry. Spinsterhood, it seemed, was not for her after all.
He groaned when she flattened her palms against his chest and pressed the kiss deeper. Her skin felt itchy, her clothes too hot. The scent of books mingled with his cologne, creating a heady fragrance that almost had her giddy. He kept hold of her face as though he never wanted to let her go while he kissed her over and over, taking everything she could possibly give. She rocked against him, causing another groan to rumble up in his throat. The sound sent skitters through her and made her stomach twist with excitement.
She broke the kiss and saw the uncertainty in his eyes as she slid off him. She backed away a few steps then smiled, turning her back to him.
“Help me with the laces, Harry.”
The muffled sounds of voices in the garden and the sound of her faltering breaths filled the air. She could not bring herself to turn around and face him. Merry pressed her hands to her ribs, willing her breaths to slow. Had she gone too far? Had he changed his mind? Lord, would he not touch her already?
A creak of a floorboard had her heart threatening to burst from her chest. She swallowed hard and dropped her hands to her side. Warm fingers brushed her hair from the back of her neck and she shuddered.
“I will not ask you if you are certain, Merry. I know you never do anything of which you are not certain. But I will remind you that if I do this, you will be mine—forever.”
She smiled to herself. “A sacrifice I am more than willing to make.”
He chuckled and pressed his lips to her neck. Shivers skimmed down her spine. She moved her head into his touch. His fingers worked on her laces and she could feel a little uncertainty in his movements. Air fluttered over her shoulders.
“Stop,” she said softly, when he had unbound her dress down to the base of her back.
He halted, and she twisted to view him. His jaw ticked, he stared at the ties in his hands. Merry reached up and grazed a hand across his jaw, drawing his gaze to hers. Her dress slid from her shoulder and his gaze dropped to the revealed skin there.
His hand shot out and it hovered above her shoulder, his hand shook.
“Have you changed your mind?”
He snapped his gaze up to hers and she noticed a hint of vulnerability dancing in his expression. “God, no,” he rasped. His hand closed the gap in a sudden rush of movement, pulling a gasp from her while he groaned. “I was just thinking that once I touched you, there would be no going back, and I would be taking you like the rogue that you think I am.”