‘Oh, it’s like that, is it?’ he queried softly as he saw her wriggle her hips distractedly. ‘You really do want me badly, don’t you, Romy? I think you want me to do...this...’
Romy let out a tortured little cry as his finger alighted on the slippery surface of her bodice and almost negligently traced a line around the swollen mound of her breast.
‘Yes, you like that, don’t you?’ he mused.
His finger traced feather-light little circles, and Romy almost sobbed with frustration.
‘Yes,’ he said, in a deep, satisfied voice. ‘I know what you like best, Romy, but you’re not going to get it.’
Romy’s eyes flew open in genuine alarm. ‘I’m n-not?’ She stumbled over the words.
He smiled, but Romy thought how dark and how cruel his eyes looked. ‘No, indeed. I’m going to show you that making love can be a long, slow feast which works far more keenly on the senses than a quick wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am! And this dress,’ he mused quietly as he slipped one of the shoestring straps over her shoulder, ’is far too lovely to be ripped off.’
‘Dominic—’
‘Mmm?’
She had meant to plead with him. To tell him to put her out of her misery. To do it quickly and get it over with. Because the long, slow, erotic coupling she suspected he had in mind was far too dangerous to contemplate. For how could she contain herself and not blurt out the ridiculously soppy words of love she was longing to say to him?
‘What is it, Romy?’ he questioned.
Romy swallowed, aware that whatever she had meant to say to him it was now too late, because he was sliding the other strap of her dress down.
She shuddered in wonder as he began to peel the bodice down over the lush swell of her breasts, laying them bare to his rapidly dilating eyes.
‘Not wearing a bra, I see,’ he murmured approvingly. ‘That was very naughty of you, Romy. Did you think that it would save time?’ He dipped his head to dart his tongue out at one exquisitely hardened nipple, and Romy let out a little cry of satisfaction.
‘I do hope you bothered to put some panties on,’ he whispered as his hand roved experimentally over her satin-covered thigh. He rucked up the material with a practised hand until he was able to slide his fingers to the top of her thigh. And when he allowed them to brush against the lace and satin Romy almost wept with delight.
‘Oh, you are wearing some,’ he observed. ‘That’s good. Would you like me to take them off now, or shall we wait? Or shall we leave them on, perhaps? Just push that little scrap of fabric aside and let me drive deep into you. What do you say to that, Romy?’
She was powerless to speak; he could have done anything he wanted to right then, her body thrilling to every new touch and caress.
Dominic was slightly surprised by her passive capitulation, even as he revelled in watching her respond to his mouth and his hands, and very soon his...
He swallowed down his excitement. He had expected ...what? That once Romy had accepted that he meant to make love to her all night long then maybe she would demonstrate every erotic little variation on the act she must have learned over the years?
And yet this strangely innocent reaction—so at odds with her previous behaviour—was oddly thrilling. He had her entirely in the palm of his hand. And never had a woman made him feel at once so powerful and yet so vulnerable.
He found the zip to her gown and slid it down, pleased when he could finally peel the garment from her body and let it slither to the carpet.
She lay there wearing nothing but her panties, her stockings and suspenders and her high-heeled bronze shoes, and Dominic had to fight very hard with himself not to take her as quickly and as brutally as he had just vowed not to.
Sucking in a deep, hot breath of air, he managed to compose himself enough to rip the black bow-tie from his neck and drop it on top of her dress.
Romy’s eyelids fluttered slightly.
She was watching him; he knew that. And normally, given how much she wanted him, he would have taken great pleasure in demonstrating his control by taking as long as possible to remove his clothes.
But suddenly his control had flown, and he was not sure that he was able to tease her by stripping, even if he wanted to.
Because Dominic was suddenly overwhelmed by the most primitive sensation he had ever experienced, which went way beyond reason or even desire.
He wanted to possess her. To penetrate her. To impale and impregnate her... Dominic swallowed back his desire with an effort, and two mother-of-pearl buttons skittered over the floor as he pulled his dress shirt off with an impatient yank.
Romy saw some kind of struggle taking place on his devilishly handsome features. She didn’t understand it, but it touched some deep, hidden core in her. And she was unable to resist doing what she had wanted to do for so long now. She wound her arms sinuously around his neck and kissed him.
The kiss was like a lightning bolt shooting through his veins, and Dominic almost exploded with need. As unco-ordinated as a young boy on his first sexual exploration, he felt his fingers had never disobeyed him quite so much.
And then Romy began to help him, wiggling her toes so that she could help kick his shoes off. Still in her scanty bits of underwear, she bent to peel a black silk sock off each foot while Dominic struggled to pull his zip down over his ever-growing hardness—terrified that he might emasculate himself into the bargain.
When he was finally naked, Romy began to have second thoughts about the sofa. He seemed so wonderful—so excited and enchanted by her—that her fears over comparisons seemed strangely redundant.
He removed her panties more roughly than he had intended, and then moved to lie over her, but he must have sensed her uncertainty, for he paused and looked deep into her eyes and said, ‘What is it?’
‘If you want to go upstairs, I don’t mind.’
Dominic thought how ironic it was that when she spoke in that sweet, little-girl way she sounded almost virginal. He shook his head regretfully. ‘Afterwards,’ he promised. ‘If I try to take you up there now, we’re going to end up doing it on the stairs. And I can’t wait any longer, Romy, sweetheart—’
She heard the break in his voice as he began to thrust into her, all raw, virile, masculine power, and then the glaze of passion which had darkened his face in anticipation became one of horrified disbelief.
‘Dear God, Romy!’ he exclaimed in a strangled voice as the barrier he had only ever read about before made itself felt to him. ‘Why the hell didn’t you tell me?’
‘DON’T stop,’ begged Romy, not caring how desperate she sounded. Because if he stopped now she would die. ‘Please don’t stop, Dominic.’
She could see the indecision which darkened his features, and her body clenched with fear.
But the movement seemed to excite him, for he closed his eyes briefly, as if in despair, before beginning to move again. This time he broke through the barrier, and as he saw the tears which slid down from beneath her tightly closed eyes he could have cursed himself.
‘Did I hurt you?’ he whispered.
‘Only a little.’ And oh, if that was pain then she wanted a lifetime of it.
He stared down at her as he moved. Romy was a virgin! Dominic shook his head again in disbelief. And that was his last coherent thought as he began to employ every bit of skill and finesse he had ever learned.
He