Marriage by Mistake

control, because she knew she'd been the one to set everything off. Meanwhile Troy's hands, strong and assured, circled her buttocks, then skimmed up her sides. His tongue was deep in her mouth when he curved his thumbs over the surface of her breasts. The sensation was so sharply exquisite Felicia flinched.
    Fortunately, that didn't stop Troy. He moved his entire hands over her breasts, massaging, testing, squeezing. It was heavenly. Felicia had to wrench her mouth from his and throw her head back.
    Thank God he didn't stop. She could hear him breathing heavily as his head lowered to her breastbone. She felt his lips there, hot and wanting. His fingers squeezed her nipples.
    Felicia groaned deeply. This was beyond anything. Who knew? Surely nobody could have convinced her before tonight that such activity could be so marvelous .
    "Oh! I say!" A deep male voice suddenly intruded on the delightful scene. Felicia felt as if she were being jerked awake from a deep sleep. Both she and Troy froze. "Do excuse us," said the voice, but sounding annoyed, as if the opposite were the case. One of the older club members, apparently, and not amused.
    Felicia could hear feet moving, clothes rustling. The intruder had stalking off. Meanwhile, Troy pressed his forehead against her collarbone. His hands stilled on her breasts. "Okay," she heard him murmur. "Okay, okay."
    Fighting a physical pain that was almost equal to the pleasure that had come before, Felicia drew her hands from his hair.
    Slowly, he lifted his head. Slowly, he let go of her breasts. He let go of all of her, and straightened.
    "Ho, boy," he breathed, and looked down at her.
    Felicia self-consciously straightened her silk bodice. Her gaze flitted up at him, then down.
    "That really didn't work," Troy muttered.
    Felicia simply nodded. There was no point belaboring the obvious. Why, she'd nearly let the man have his way with her—on the public terrace! She, Felicia, who'd always thought she was frigid.
    It appeared she was nothing of the sort.
    At least...not with Troy.
    Felicia frowned. There it was again, the grand contradiction, that this should be happening with Troy, the most irresponsible, least safe man she knew. Her whole life had been spent trying to avoid involvement with a man like her father, the kind of man who'd desert his wife and family in everything but name—and here she was throwing herself straight into the arms of just such an individual.
    Meanwhile Troy was looking as grim as Felicia felt and shaking his head. "We really have to avoid doing that again."
    Felicia cleared her throat. "Agreed."
    "So, at the risk of acting responsible for once in my life, I have a suggestion." Troy pulled down his shirt. "We don't have anything to do with each other. No conversation beyond 'hello' and 'goodbye.' And we absolutely never, ever, be alone together."
    Felicia drew in a deep breath. "Agreed." Of course she agreed!
    "Because," Troy went on, getting puritanical, "there is no way we could have any kind of a thing going between us."
    "A—a relationship?" Felicia's eyes widened. "Definitely not."
    "Right." Troy's gaze flicked away and he pulled down on his shirt again. "It would never work."
    "We're far too different."
    "You are a goody-good."
    "And you're unreliable."
    Troy's gaze shot toward her, then flew away again. "Right. So. Ahem. I'm going to go inside now. And you...you just take your time out here, giving me enough time to, uh, clear out. Okay?"
    "Okay."
    He turned to go then, but not before shooting her one last look, a look that belied everything he'd just said, a look that told Felicia he'd be ever so glad to kiss her again, and more, if she were so unwise as to let him.
    And she, crazy woman, came very close to doing just that as if—as if she had no sense of self-preservation. As if she hadn't just found out, both tonight and on the sidewalk outside the restaurant in Boston, that she had the capacity to play the fool for this man.
    She could easily make the same mistake with him that her mother had made with her father.
    So Felicia managed to stand her ground as Troy walked away. She didn't move as he went through the lounge doors. She stood outside for a good long while, making extra sure that Troy would, indeed, have time to clear completely from the Club's grounds before she dared go back inside the lounge, herself.
    Her heart pounded painfully all the while. Close. That had been so awfully close.

    CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

    The morning