“Sweet Florence, I am not one of your pampered and vacuous uptown men. I won’t give you timid or soft.” He sank his teeth into the skin of her neck, biting down gently. She whimpered and grabbed his arms to steady herself. He nearly smiled. Yes, he knew how this was going to go. “You want a bit of trouble, princess? Here I am. And I promise I’ll give it to you anytime you like.”

He placed a kiss on the edge of her mouth, teasing them both, drawing out the anticipation. He was almost fully hard, his shaft pulsing as need rushed through him. The depth of his craving for this woman scared him, not that he’d ever admit it.

Then she tilted her head and sealed her mouth to his, her lips moving eagerly, and he forgot how to think. There was only her. With kisses that were bold and thorough, her hands gripping him tight. She didn’t wait for him to coax a response from her; she was an equal, demanding a response from him with her clever lips and slick tongue.

He loved it.

The kiss deepened, their hands gliding and groping in haste. He wasted no time and kissed her hard, urgently, and all the desperation he’d stored the past few weeks resurfaced to burn him alive. His tongue caressed and worshipped, telling her without words how much he’d suffered in wanting her. Her mouth was wet, a glorious haven. He could sink into it and die a happy man.

They stumbled a bit until her back landed against the wall, and she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed closer, his cock grinding into her corseted belly. It wasn’t enough. He needed her soft flesh, the friction of her channel gripping him. He needed her naked underneath him.

He needed everything.

Breaking off their kiss, he propped his hands on the wall above her head. His chest heaved with the effort to breathe. “I want to undress you.”

“Good, because I want to undress you.” Her hands traced his shoulders and chest and she licked her lips. He worked to maintain his size and strength—intimidation was his currency, after all—yet he’d never been more grateful for that effort than right now. For some reason Florence wasn’t scared away by his size or his scars.

Danger and excitement, remember?

Already coatless, he began unbuttoning his vest while she watched. His fingers worked fast and soon the piece dropped to the floor. Then he lowered his suspenders, removed his shirt collar. Next, the shirt buttons. When enough had been unfastened, he yanked the fabric out of his waistband and whipped the shirt over his head. Her attention never wavered, her gaze heavy-lidded and intent, her body slumped against the wall.