CHAPTER 19
Duke paused, letting me ride the fading tremors, his heavy breaths matching mine — a raw, vulnerable rhythm tying us together. His forehead rested briefly against mine, a moment forged by pure connection.
He pressed a trail of kisses down my jaw, then along my neck — each one a spark — until his lips hovered just above the pulse that pounded there. “Alice.” His voice was gravelly, rich with understanding, with promises I hadn’t yet let myself believe in. “I’m not letting you go… not this time.”
He turned me slowly, reluctantly freeing his finger from me, then placing his strong hands on my hips. The silence was thick with temptation. His grip tightened just a bit — a wordless affirmation — then he drew me back against him. I felt the hard length of his arousal press against m
