First Kiss Friday with Jude Knight
Thank you so much for stopping by my First Kiss Friday blog! I’m also so happy to welcome back my dear friend Jude Knight who has a first kiss scene from her story The Widow’s Christmas Rogue. Isn’t the cover stunning? Happy reading and enjoy, my lovelies! Take it away, Jude!
This excerpt is from The Widow’s Christmas Rogue. My hero is trapped in a cottage with a widow. Jessica Lady Colyton (yes, Aldridge’s half sister Jessica, who appears in Melting Matilda), despite her undeserved reputation, has not experienced pleasure in the marital bed and has no other experience. This excerpt starts just after she seeks the help of Martin Viscount Tavistock to remedy the lack (some of you might recognise him as Chloe’s brother, from Desperate Daughters).
Excerpt:
Martin’s trousers had felt tight a couple of times already this morning, but they filled even more in reaction to that hesitant embarrassed statement. Still, he had to be certain. “Jessica, are you inviting me to make love to you, and to bed you if you like the results?”
He could no longer see her face. Only the crown of her head. He had never before been aroused by the neat centre part of a woman’s hair. He yearned to put it in disarray, to pull out the pins that fastened the snood at the base of her neck and release the rest of her hair from the confines of the net bag. How long was it? The snood was large and full—he would wager her hair reached her waist, at least.
The nod she gave in reply to his question was miniscule, and the noise she made not much more than a high-pitched hum. “Hmmm.”
Her obvious nervousness helped him wrestle back control of his appetite. She needed him to be calm. “I am honoured,” he told her. “Shall we discuss the particulars as we break our fast?”
Her head came up at that and he found himself gazing into hazel eyes wide with—what? Fear? Anxiety? Uncertainty? “Breakfast? Now? I thought…”
“We have plenty of time,” he told her. “Let us eat, play another game of chess, perhaps kiss a little, and see how things develop. And Jessica? Just to be clear, you can stop me at any time. At any time at all.” A thought occurred to him—a set of words she could use to make her feel more comfortable. “You can say stop, or slow down, or wait, or no. And I will listen. I promise.”
Some of the small lines around her eyes relaxed and smoothed away. “Stop. Slow down. Wait. No.” She repeated the words in an undertone, as if memorising them. Then, in a sudden transformation, she said, “Breakfast. Martin, I made griddle cakes.” She was in motion again, all crisp housewife, as she picked up a jug containing a smooth cream batter. We can eat them with bacon and eggs, if you wish, or with butter and jam. Also, I have mashed some of the vegetables left from last night. I can fry the mash, if you choose the savoury option.
“Bacon, eggs, and fried mash,” he agreed. “Do you want ale or tea, Jessica?” And he cupped her cheek and bent to press a tender kiss to her lips. Closed-mouthed, short, and gentle, but his head reeled as he straightened again.
It was because she was so vulnerable. How could their first kiss not be important, innocent though it had been? She gazed up at him, her eyes wide again, this time with wonder, unless he was much mistaken.
He could not resist a second kiss, this time slightly less innocent, since he swiped his tongue along her lips. “Mmm,” he said. “Sweet.”
She blushed again. “I had a spoonful of the jam, just to be sure it was tasty. Raspberry.”
“Raspberry and Jessica,” he commented, and risked a wink. “Yum.”
Her blush deepened, but he saw her lips curve in a smile as she turned back to the stove, saying, “Rogue.”
“Did you like it, though?” he asked, and waited anxiously for her answer.
Her smile reassured when she glanced at him over her shoulder. “You must know you kiss very well,” she said, her voice sharp but her eyes soft and warm.
“That was barely anything,” he told her. “There is more. Much more.”
The Widow’s Christmas RogueBy Jude Knight
Jessica Lady Colyton has no intention of being a wicked widow and no time for rogues. Her father, her brothers and her husband were rogues enough for a lifetime. However, she has joined the Wicked Widow’s League, seeking help after her husband’s will proves to be just one more blow from a controlling and manipulative man.
It has been a difficult year. When her new friends organize a holiday in a country cottage for her, she blesses them—right up until she finds a naked rogue in her bed.
Martin Lord Tavistock is no rogue, unlike his father before him. The man’s early death in sordid circumstances brought him a title and a barrow-load of responsibilities. His uncle’s strict upbringing has given him little taste for pleasure and no skill in making friends.
He wants only to go home to Yorkshire, shunning the Christmas house party to which his matchmaking sister has invited him, and the beauties she has undoubtedly lined up to tempt him. When he wakes up in a strange lady’s bed, naked, tied down, and clueless as to how he arrived at her cottage, he wants no part in whatever plot is underway.
Trapped by a snowstorm, he and his furious hostess must form a reluctant alliance to survive, and that will be the end of their acquaintance. Won’t it?
Buy Links:
https://books2read.com/u/m26zvd
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CRQ5CTT4
https://books.apple.com/book/the-widows-christmas-rogue/id6475911189
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-widows-christmas-rogue-jude-knight/1144608404
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-widow-s-christmas-rogue
Meet JudeJude always wanted to be a novelist. She started in her teens, but life kept getting in the way. Years passed, and with them dozens of unfinished manuscripts. The fear grew. What if she tried, failed, and lost the dream forever? The years since 2014 have brought 17 novels, 16 novella, 6 volumes of short stories, a number of awards, and hundreds of positive reviews. The dream is alive.
Website and blog: http://judeknightauthor.com/
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