Night Filled With Kisses

Horror-filled blue eyes regarded the man who stared back at the frozen woman with a concerned tilt of his head.

"Are you alright, Lady Rhea? You look pale."

"Apologies, my Lord! I didn't mean to.... that is....."

Rhea stuttered as she yanked herself out of his arms but her long skirt caught underneath the heel of her left shoe and she was sent falling backwards.

"Easy!" Grand Duke Holloway exclaimed as he caught her before she tipped over the edge of the balustrade, his strong arms cradling her dizzy form.

"You can barely hold yourself up. How much have you had to drink?"

About five glasses or so, her drunken mind supplied but she still had enough of her wits to know it would be best to keep that information to herself.

"A little," Rhea lied, cringing when the slight squeak in her voice gave her away.

He chuckled, softly, large chest vibrating beneath her palm. "I doubt that, my lady." The Grand Duke teased and she shivered at the way his voice caressed the words 'my lady', like it was something vulgar and secretive.

Her cheeks flushed as she imagined what else he could say with his voice, and her attention was drawn to his hands still steadying her by the small of her back.

What was she doing? She was still a married woman, her circumstances irrelevant, and no respectable Lady with a husband should be so comfortable in the arms of another man.

"I-I.... Apologies for the interruption, my Lord. I am ashamed to say I am not at my best, and.... "

She trailed off as she took notice of the white flecks in his dark grey eyes, like little stars twinkling in a galaxy somewhere far away and yet to be discovered.

Gods, he was beautiful.

"Lady Rhea?" He whispered, his voice snapping her out of her trance.

"It is the alcohol," she defended, wrenching herself away from him and this time moving her dress out of the way.

"Why don't you stay?" The Grand Duke offered as she tried to make her clumsy escape down the short flight of stairs. "At least until you are sober."

She shook her head, feverishly, the action causing her to sway, dangerously, and grab onto one of the support beams for support. "I have already taken up enough of your time and I need to get to bed. There is much to do tomorrow."

She lied, her second time that night to the man who easily saw through it, his grey eyes narrowing.

"Then allow me to escort you back to your bedroom," he insisted as he approached her, his hand resting on the small of her back.

"I shouldn't," she tried to refuse, stubbornly avoiding his eyes because of the fear that she would get lost in them and make a bigger fool of herself.

"I have already...."

"Taken enough of my time, yes," he interrupted, with an amused curl of his lips. "That being said, I believe it is only fair you give me the pleasure of seeing that you do not accidentally hurt yourself on the way back. Don't you?"

Rhea wanted to refuse and inform the nobleman that no matter how drunk she was, the Manor would never be a maze to her but something caused her to pause.

Rhea Montgomery was many things but at the end of the day, she was only human. Her heart hurt from Lonan's betrayal. Her belly clenched with the need to vomit from her reckless drinking and another part of her, tucked beneath the etiquette and manners, wanted the feeling of his strong arms around her waist, holding her to his criminally firm chest.

She shouldn't give in to such an obvious temptation, whether or not the Grand Duke intended it to be one, but the thought of Alice's swell, housing what should have been her and Lonan's baby, made the terrible decision so much easier for her to make.

"Alright," she whispered, softly, keeping her head low, to fight back the ugly shame that welled up inside her.

"Would I be overstepping my place if I were to carry you?"

"Carry me?!" She squeaked, her head snapping up to stare wide-eyed at him, then flushed when her voice echoed in the night air.

"It would be a lot faster than having to guide you when you are so intoxicated. And as you said, there is so much to do tomorrow."

It might be the alcohol talking but something about the way he stared at her, with a sharp focus, that seemed to bore through the layers of clothes she had on, had her feeling the Grand Duke wanted her in his arms as much as she wanted to be there.

"Okay," Rhea agreed, so transfixed by his eyes, that she barely made a sound when he swept her up into his arms and began to walk away from the gazebo.

The two remained silent during the journey to Rhea's bedroom, except for her whispered directions in the Grand Duke's ear that caused his hold of her to tighten when her breath tickled the sensitive area.

When they arrived at her bedroom door, Rhea felt her heartbeat pick up, thoughts on what would happen next racing through her mind.

The Grand Duke set her down, gently but his left hand remained on the small of her back, supporting her as he waited for Rhea to make a move.

"Would..." She glanced nervously at the brass doorknob, then up at the waiting man. "Would you like to come in?"

Rhea could not remember who had made the first move and she did not bother to, too distracted by the feeling of the Grand Duke's soft lips moving against hers.

She squirmed when his hand went underneath her blouse, his cold palm pressing against the heated flesh of her waist, causing goosebumps to rise.

Grand Duke Holloway suddenly pulled back from the kiss but remained close enough to swallow Rhea's laboured breaths.

"May I?" He whispered against her lips, his voice now deep and eyes dark with want.

"Y-yes," Rhea stuttered in response, overwhelmed by how fast things were moving and how heated they had become.

Long fingers began undoing the buttons of her blouse, slowly exposing her heaving chest to the night air.

A moan, muffled by Rhea's palm pressed over her mouth filled the dark room when Lord Holloway pressed his lips to the line of her neck and began sucking kisses into the soft skin.

"Lord Holloway," she whimpered with her eyes squeezed tight, her hands wounding around his large frame and fingers digging into his back.

"Augustus," he corrected as he pulled away from her neck, pride in his undoing of Rhea glowing in dark grey eyes. "Call me, Augustus."

"Augustus," she repeated, her tongue caressing the words in a way that caused him to shiver on top of her.

Augustus lifted her by the waist and quickly unclasped her brassiere then allowed her body to flop down, now fully exposed.

His eyes zeroed in on her chest and Rhea smiled, shyly, pride in her size overshadowed by her worry that, like Lonan, Grand Duke Hollo... Augustus would think they were too large for a Lady.

Rhea was startled out of her thoughts when a large hand suddenly caressed her right breast like one would stroke a lover's cheek. A blush grew on her cheeks at the feeling of fingers playing with her pebbled nipple.

She turned to the side, unable to stare into the intensity of his gaze, then grew deathly pale when her eyes fell on the divorce papers resting on the nightstand.

"STOP!"

Startled, Augustus immediately complied, his hand leaving her chest. He followed her panicked gaze to the divorce papers.

Without saying a word he climbed off of Rhea and reached for the papers that he then began to skim through.

"You have not signed them." Augustus pointed out with a confused scrunch of his brow.

Overcome with a sudden protectiveness over the documents, Rhea snatched the papers out of his hands and clutched them to her naked chest.

"I think you should leave, now." She whispered, her eyes on the rumpled fabric of her skirt that had been rucked up her thighs sometime in their kissing.

He hesitated, his hand reaching out for her but seemed to change his mind about whatever he had planned to do as he got off her bed and made his way towards the door.

Rhea glanced up at the exiting man who was illuminated by a stray moon beam.

His hand rested on the doorknob, and he paused as if waiting for her to stop him

The words slipped past her lips, high-pitched and filled with longing before she could stop herself.

"Goodnight, My lord!"

He turned to her, a delighted smile on his lips that made him look so handsome and ethereal under the moon's white glow.

"Will I be seeing you tomorrow at breakfast, My Lady?"

Lonan had made it clear that he did not want Rhea anywhere near Augustus during his stay, but defying Lonan's command seemed so juvenile compared to allowing the Grand Duke touch her breasts.

"Yes," she called out with a shy smile, suddenly feeling like a schoolgirl with her crush.

"I look forward to it, then," he said in parting then exited the room, leaving the half-naked room to stew in her shame, regret and sinful longing for sensations her marriage had denied her.