The Duke's Secret Wife. Kate Walker

      He should never have taken off that damn cloak, Luis told himself furiously. Should never have exposed himself to temptation like this!

      Oh, it had been bad enough before. Simply seeing her face, the blonde sheen of her hair, the emerald brilliance of her eyes had been hard enough. The sound of her voice, soft and slightly husky in his ears, had awoken memories best left buried. It had set his pulses thudding, reminded him of hunger he preferred not to recall.

      But now…

      ‘What happened to us?’

      It was just the faintest thread of sound, so thin that without thinking he dropped his head instinctively to catch her hesitant words.

      And immediately regretted it.

      His cheek was now lying against the softness of her hair and the temptation to turn, just so, and press his lips to the silky strands was almost more than he could resist. The scent of her body rose towards his nostrils, flowers and rain; the sweet, subtle aroma of her skin, tormented him with the recollection of how it had once been so that his body stirred, hardened, demanded. His senses were swimming, swirling on a warm sea of desire, and deep inside the hunger of physical need clawed at him remorselessly.

      He couldn’t fight it any longer. Couldn’t hold back, couldn’t hide the way she affected him.

      Slowly his proud head lowered, and, sensing his intention, Isabelle lifted her own face to his, her mouth softening, lips parting instinctively in anticipation of his kiss.