crossed between surprise and desire.
âI want to take you here and now,â he said. âI would if we didnât have so many witnesses.â
His directness sometimes had a way of throwing her off balance, and it took a bit to mumble a response. âYou say such bold and wicked things, husband.â
âThereâs not a person in this world that I care for as I do you. And now, you are officially mine.â His hand shamelessly curled around her ribs, his thumb brushing the underside of her breast as he held her close.
Amelia curled one arm around his shoulder. âAnd I adore you above all. I would not have married you otherwise.â
Nick pressed her back against the bench, holding himself above her with a look in his eyes that almost dared her to stop him. âDo you honestly believe you had a choice in the matter?â
It was not a question. He was making a statement.
She shook her head. Marrying him had been the one thing she wanted from him as much as she wanted his commitment and love. When she thought about the past few weeks, she couldnât believe her luck in finding a man she adored and loved so much.
âAnyone can see what we are doing.â Including the driver, though that didnât need to be said aloud, for he was thankfully facing the open road and seemed to be ignoring them.
âLet them all know Iâm enamoured of my new wife. That I canât keep my eyes off you, let alone my hands.â He lowered his face, his lips hovering above hers. âOr my mouth. I want to kiss every blushing part of your body and drag my tongue around every curve of skin and taste the pleasure you feel.â
Hearing those daring words tumble so easily from his lips should have her pushing him away, but she liked his strength and virility so strong above her. Nick wasnât the kind of man to lie, and it wasnât above him to take whatever he wanted when he wanted it.
She nudged his arm. âYou are a beast.â
âI like the ring of that,â he said with a growl.
âYou will have to prove that point when we are ensconced in our bedroom,â she teased. The simmering look in his eyes told her he would show her what heâd said and so much more.
Nick sat on the bench beside her, their thighs brushing. He looked like a man deprived of the one thing he wanted. She was glad that was her.
They remained in companionable silence the rest of the short ride back to their lodgings. Nickâs hands rubbed small circles at the base of Ameliaâs back. His intent to claim her lipsâand her bodyâwas clear in his gaze. He only broke eye contact with her when the carriage stopped outside the inn.
Amelia took his hand on her descent. Her feet didnât have time to touch the ground before Nick swooped her up into his arms.
âPut me down.â She was laughing as she made her request. âI feel absolutely ridiculous.â
âI plan to carry you over every threshold in this house and do not plan on setting you down until you are in my bed.â
She grinned. âYou mean our bed.â
âYes, our bed. No walls will ever set us apart again.â
Nick practically ran into the inn, but just before they hit the stairs that led up to their room, Amelia placed one hand over the side of his face. She turned him enough that she could kiss him full on the mouth now that they were in the relative privacy. Though their kiss was chaste, it stirred desire deep in her belly.
When their lips parted, Nick took the stairs two at a time to their room, easily opening the door and then kicking it shut behind them. She was holding on for dear life by the time they entered their bedchambers. She was laughing so hard that her ribs ached in her tightly laced corset. But that laughter died in her lungs when he set her down on the bed.
Nerves assailed her every sense. Her reaction seemed ridiculous considering everything theyâd already done. But