But before she could answer, his lips touched hers, and the fires that had been simmering since his first touch sprang back to life. John’s hand caressed her derrière, causing the spot between her legs to throb with want. Thankfully she had been told what to expect, but would he make love to her now?

One hand covered her breast and her nipples furled into hard buds. “I never gave much thought to stays before. I can’t say I like them very much.”

“At least they are short stays.” He deepened the kiss and she moaned. Everywhere he had touched, and some places he had not, tingled and became hot. She speared her fingers through his hair and rubbed her body against his, wanting relief from the tension building within her. His lips feathered kisses down her neck and over her décol-leté. “Do something.”

Never stopping his kisses, he backed her against a wall. “If I take you to my bed, someone will catch us.”

Eleanor cupped his face in her hands and kissed him, tangling her tongue with his. “You can do something else. I know you can.”

“Yes.” Slowly, he lifted her skirt, trailing his fingers against her thigh, and the throbbing got harder. Her hips pushed forward to meet his hand reaching the apex of her thighs. “You are so wet.” His fingers brushed past the sensitive nubbin. “You are so hot.” He slipped a finger into her sheath, and she thought she would die from the pleasure. His palm pressed on her pearl, and for a moment she lost her breath. “Come for me, my love.”

Suddenly, she convulsed around his finger and blissful relief coursed through her. She and her sisters had gone into whoops when Louisa had very seriously called it “a pearl of pleasure.” Eleanor would never laugh again. She rocked her hips forward, trying to capture every last wave.

The loud footsteps coming from the corridor was akin to having a bucket of cold water thrown over her head. “Someone is coming.”

John removed his hand and helped straighten her skirts. “Nothing is mussed. Take a few breaths.” He kept one hand on her as he dipped the other in a nearby bowl, then rubbed it against a towel. “Are you all right?”

Eleanor touched her lips. Her breathing was still too quick. “I am wonderful. It was even more magnificent than I was told.”

He didn’t have to ask, but he couldn’t help himself. “Your older sisters?”

She took in a deep breath and nodded. “Yes. They wanted us to know. That was how I was able to recognize the feeling I had whenever you touched me.”

Thank God he hadn’t been the only one having “feelings,” as she put it. “You are going to be the death of me. All I can think of now is how to get you into my bed to make love to you.”