First Kiss - Angel in My Arms by Victoria Gray

My new release, Angel in My Arms, is the story of Amanda Emerson, a Union spy undercover in Richmond, and Union officer Steve Dunham, the man she enlists in the daring rescue of a double agent from a Confederate prison and imminent execution. As the danger surrounding them thickens, every moment he’s with her jeopardizes their lives, but they discover a passion that’s worth the risk.

She was tired. She was cold. And she needed to get away from him. It was bad enough when he frightened her. But now, the husky rasp in his voice stirred a warmth she couldn’t afford to feel.

“You’ve made your point very clear.” She veiled her eyes with her lashes. “You’ve also convinced me that seeking your assistance was a fool’s errand.”

“You sure are stubborn when you get riled.” He tipped her chin with one finger, keeping one hand planted firmly at her waist. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a pretty girl get so angry with me.”

“I doubt there are many girls, pretty or otherwise, who’ve had as much justification.”

“In my defense, I thought you were leading me into a trap.”

“You don’t think that’s the case now?”

He shook his head. “If it was, I’d be dead by now. DuBois isn’t a patient man.”

Amanda trembled when he drew his fingertips very lightly along the curve of her face. Her top teeth grazed her bottom lip. His touch should repel her. But it didn’t. The sensations rippling through her body were not shudders of revulsion. To her horror, the sweep of his skin against her flesh was pleasant. Too pleasant.

Her teeth sank into her lip as she twisted against his restraint. “You shouldn’t touch me like this. Your behavior is most improper.”

“I suppose it is,” he agreed, his husky voice deepening.

“You need to let me go.” She held herself rigid and prayed he couldn’t feel the tiny quivers coursing through her body.

“I will.” The pad of his thumb swept over her bottom lip. “But you’re too damned pretty to resist.”

And then he kissed her.

Amanda’s knees went from weak to jelly. To her horror, she made no attempt to fight him. She stood transfixed, savoring the taste of his lips, the gentleness of his possession. This brute of a man claimed her with a tenderness she’d never felt in her twenty-four years. She could only remain a captive in his embrace, savoring his heat and his caress.

He released her slowly. Reluctantly. His hard body pressed to hers, stirring needs she’d buried on the brutal day she became a widow.

If his breath and the tension in his body were any indication, he’d been as affected by the kiss as she had. His fingertips traced over her cheeks. He watched her in the moonlight as though he’d discovered something rare and precious.

“Christ, tell me you weren’t acting,” he murmured against her lips.

“I’m not that good an actress. Remember?”

He nodded, his expression growing solemn. “I shouldn’t have taken such an improper liberty.”

Amanda couldn’t help but smile. “Absolutely not.”

She could see his eyes twinkle in the moonlight. “You really did come after me for my help.”

Amanda set her mouth in a rigid line. “Yes. I tried to explain everything—”

He pressed a finger to her lips. “Do you remember what I told you about a man’s willingness to risk his neck for a pretty girl?”

She nodded primly. “You were quite eloquent as I recall.”

Captain Dunham brushed his lips over the bridge of her nose. “Tell me what you want me to do.”

To learn more about Angel in My Arms and read another excerpt, please visit my website, www.victoriagrayromance.com and my blog, www.victoriagrayromance.blogspot.com .  Angel in My Arms is now available in print and as an eBook from The Wild Rose Press, www.thewildrosepress.com .