His Lady Mistress

282 His Lady Mistresssomething like that? You should have been his responsibility.Not the other way around. It wasn’t your fault!’He tucked her head into the curve of his shoulder and wenton, tenderly stroking her hair. ‘As for my stupidity lastnight—that was my fault. My responsibility. And it’s over.You’re mine. And I want you. Now.’Every fibre in his body raged with longing for her. Withthe need to press her down beneath him and give what hehad denied them both for so long. To feel her mouth underhis, her body yielding and soft as he slid into her and claimedher. With a groan he lowered his mouth to hers in fiercepossession.Struggling she broke free and flung herself away from him,her breath coming in ragged gasps.She didn’t want him. The knowledge pounded into himwith every beat of his heart. He had thought he knew whatpain was. He’d been wrong. This was pain, this dreadful rackingknowledge that he had finally driven her away completely.Last night had been too much. She had trusted himonce too often.‘I won’t be your whore again.’The low words slammed into him.She went on. ‘You told me—you didn’t want a wife. Andeven if you did want one—you wouldn’t want a woman whowould, who did, consent to be your mistress.’Understanding twisted inside him. She believed that hethought of her as a...he couldn’t even think the word now.That he had ever, in his hurt fury, used it, horrified him. Heconfronted what he had done to her—he had convinced herthat he thought her a whore. Worse—he had made her believeit, all the more easily because of what she believed aboutherself.She had come to him an innocent, trusting him in a wayhe could barely comprehend. In return he had stripped her ofher innocence in every way possible. Words weren’t going