The Devil's Thief Read Free Page B

low and crass, and rather frightening. Her
pulse was racing and a chill raced down her back. Was she really going to do
this?
    She
allowed him to pull her close and press her hard against him. He smelled
wonderful. Like . . . man, she supposed. It was odd not to smell linen water,
or tobacco, or the myriad other scents that attached themselves to a man’s
clothes, masking the wonderful smell she was deeply inhaling. She smelled
spice, and heat. Did heat have a smell?
    The
warmth of his chest burned through the thin shirt she was wearing, and she felt
the press of him against her stomach. She knew what the act entailed. There had
been many maids and tavern girls who had been more than happy to explain it to
her as they helped her sneak her father in and out of the beds of married women
throughout her youth. But she had never before been tempted to give herself to
anyone.
    But
Mr. Sharp was temptation itself. From the first moment she’d seen him, he had
tempted her more than the pearl. And now she would have him. The real Julianna
would never get this chance.   But
tonight, and tonight only, she would indulge this strange, inconvenient
passion. She would give him what no one else would ever have, what no one else
had wanted. And he would give her the pearl. It was a fair bargain.
    “I
want to taste you, little thief. All of you.” His voice was so low it was
almost a growl. He bent his head and kissed her neck, nudging her shirt collar
out of the way as he did so. She felt a hot, wet swipe there and then his mouth
latched on to her neck and he sucked. The feeling was not unpleasant. Julianna
rose on her tiptoes and tilted her head to give him better access. His mouth
was warm and soft, and she knew he was being gentle.   But the caress was still rough and base
and Julianna was enjoying it.
    She’d
heard a few women talking behind their fans the other night about his rakish
reputation, and the undesirable group of friends he associated with. They had
called them the Saint’s Devils. Was he a rake? A libertine? As he stopped his
gentle suckling and then licked the spot lightly, she wondered, did she even
care?
    “Did
you like that?” he whispered. “I think you did.” She could hear a smile in his
voice and she smiled back into the night. “We are going to enjoy one another
immensely, little cat.”
    He
pulled her toward his bed, walking backward with his hands wrapped around her
wrists, and she followed willingly. She was determined not to show any reluctance
or he might suspect her inexperience. And it would be silly to show a
reluctance she didn’t feel. She wanted to be on that bed with him, entwined in
his arms, letting him suck on her all night. She felt wicked and hot and
desirable and powerful. It was amazing, what he made her feel with just a
glance, a few words, his hands on her wrists.
    “What
shall I call you?” he asked quietly as he stopped beside the bed. He reached
out and began to slowly pull her shirttails out of her trousers. For a moment
she panicked, worried he might find the pearl. Her breathing hitched when she
realized he meant to undress her. She answered him quickly, trying not to think
about what was to come, only concentrating on his question.
    “Juli—,”
she began without thinking, only to stop in horror at the magnitude of her
slip. She’d nearly given him her real name. How utterly foolish she was
becoming in his presence. “Juliet,” she mumbled.
    Mr.
Sharp chuckled and pulled her close again, laughing against her neck as his
arms wrapped around her waist and one hand swept down to caress her bottom.
“Juliet is it? And am I your Romeo?”
    His
embrace and caress were offered so casually that Julianna was confused. How was
she to react? She’d never been the object of such attention before. Did men and
women often do this when they were alone? After a brief hesitation, she
snuggled into his embrace, earning another chuckle from him.
    She
tentatively laid her fingertips on