In shock, she stood motionless while his hands traced her jaw, moving down her throat. He parted the edges of her cloak, and with each touch, he rekindled the memories.

Unwanted feelings welled up inside her. Every cell in her body was attuned to him, as though he were still the same boy in the stable. But that couldn’t be true. Not after all these years.

“You’re not responsible for me,” she managed.

Though she tried to break free of him, his hands caught the edges of the floral shawl she’d cut from the sofa. “This is a hideous wrap.”

“Have you a better one I could borrow?” she shot back.

A faint smile caught the corner of his mouth. “I might.” He removed his coat and set it across her shoulders. She could feel the warmth of his body, and his spicy scent surrounded her.

“You’re—you’re going to be cold without it,” she warned.

His gray eyes were unfathomable, and his hands moved to her waist. She wanted to run from him, to gather up the pieces of her traitorous heart and try not to remember all the reasons she’d loved him so many years ago.

“You’re even more beautiful than I’d remembered,” he said. With his knuckles, he grazed her temples, taking her face into his hands.

“We haven’t seen each other in a long time.” Her voice was barely above a whisper, her heart trembling in her chest.

“Too long.” His mouth moved to her throat, gently kissing the bared skin. With the touch of his lips on her nape, her body rose up, straining for something she couldn’t understand. When at last his mouth covered hers, heat flared through her body. This wasn’t an adolescent kiss or a tangle of inexperienced mouths. No, he conquered her mouth in a way that brought back every unrequited feeling.

Desire and need poured over her, and her skin ached to know more, her body awakening in ways she’d never expected. Gooseflesh rose on her arms, her breasts tightening against her gown.

She kissed him back, tentatively learning the shape of his mouth. He reacted with a slight jerk of motion, as though she’d startled him. His tongue moved against hers, sending an unfamiliar ache between her legs. She shifted restlessly, caught up in the forbidden moment. Without thinking, she released the feelings she’d held trapped for the past ten years. The kiss turned hotter, hungrier.

The change in Stephen was immediate. He brought her up against the wall, trapping her in his embrace. His kiss grew more insistent, while his hands moved over the thin tarlatan gown, making her imagine all the wicked things a man might do to a woman. He drew her lower lip into his mouth, tasting her as though she were a delicious confection.