He loved her. The thought of once again falling should have terrified him, should have given him pause. Instead, he knew that nothing in his life had ever felt so right. In spite of his resistance, the hardening of his heart, love had found him. This remarkable woman had broken through the barriers, destroyed his defenses, and won him over.

Every word she voiced came from the depths of her soul. He’d never known anyone as open and honest. Not only with her words, but with her body as well. He’d never known all the aspects of any woman as thoroughly as he knew every facet of her. This woman in his embrace held nothing back, kept nothing hidden. He could only hope that she would understand why he’d kept a portion of himself hidden from her.

In the beginning it had been because he wanted an escape from Society. As he’d come to know her, the right time had never arrived. On the morrow, he would make it arrive.

Dragging his hand down her back, he cupped her bottom. “I already want you again.” His other hand joining the first, grabbing her hips, he urged her onto him, straddling him. Then he cradled her face. “I think I shall always want you again.”

She traced her fingers over his jaw, his lips, his nose, his forehead with such deliberation that it seemed she was striving to memorize every line, dip, curve, and hollow. “And I shall always want you.”

Lowering her mouth to his, she took what he wasn’t certain she realized she now owned. He understood that he would never find as much satisfaction with any other woman. Not that it mattered. He intended to never have another. From this night forward, she was the only one who would ever grace his bed, the only one he would ever pleasure.

When she lifted away from the kiss, he was surprised to see that she had a look of shyness about her. “What’s wrong?”

She licked her lips. “I want to be wicked.”

“You don’t think being here is wicked?”

“More wicked. Like we talked about when we went boating.”

He slammed his eyes closed. “Christ.”

“I want to kiss every inch of you.”

Opening his eyes, he spread his arms wide. “Who am I to deny you so simple a request?”

Her laughter floated around them, and he wanted to harness the sound and place it in a music box so he could listen to it whenever he wanted.

She pressed her lips to his forehead, and it was his turn to laugh. “You don’t have to be literal with the every inch.”

Holding his gaze, she gave him a stern look. “Shh. I’m counting how many kisses you’re comprised of. So every inch it shall be.”