She leaned forward and put her mouth on his, shocking him, as she’d done that day in the garden. No, it wasn’t shocking like that. He’d never imagined they would share a kiss before that. But in every moment since, he’d hoped for the chance. Now, it was here.

Cupping the side of her head, he brought his other hand to her side where he splayed his fingers along her back and tucked his thumb beneath her breast. He slanted his lips over hers, rising slightly from the settee.

She curled one hand around his neck, clasping his nape. He brought his thumb forward and pressed against her chin. Pulling back for the barest moment, he whispered, “Open your mouth just a bit so I can show you—”

Her lips parted, and once again she shocked him as her tongue met his. She gasped at the contact, and he lost himself in the wonder of her response. He forced himself to go slowly, to show her every divine progression of this ritual, of the sweet and dazzling moments when one first learns a lover’s terrain. Perhaps she would find it was like studying a new map. He hoped she found it that entrancing.

The kiss deepened, each of them exploring the other. Her fingers dug into his head and neck, and he thrust his hand into her hair, desperate to pull the pins away so he could bury himself in her softness.

He did not, however, because to do so would be to completely lose himself. That, he could not do. She was his ward, and while they were in a private place, the door to his study was not closed.

Despite that, he did not pull away. He didn’t want to interrupt this magnificent moment. Pressing her back into the corner of the settee, he brought his hand to her front where he cupped her breast. She gasped again but didn’t withdraw. In fact, she clutched him more tightly and arched up against him.

A deep growl rose in his throat as he tore his mouth from hers. Not to leave her, but to further survey the map before him. He kissed her chin, her jaw, then her mouth once more, eagerly devouring her. She tipped her head back and pulled on his hair as he trailed his lips down her throat. He clasped her breast more firmly and dragged his thumb across the bare skin above the neckline of her gown. How he longed to rip the garment, and those beneath it, away, to expose the landscape of her body.

“Oh yes.” She let out a delightfully dark and gritty moan followed by a whimper that made Tobias even harder. He licked along the edge of her bodice and suckled her flesh.

She cried out and he put his hand over her mouth. Looking up at her, he saw the stark desire etched into her features and nearly lost all control. He put his finger against her lips. “Shhh.”