The feeling of her thumb on his face was softly thrilling, and Alfred grinned in response. "Well, who's teasing now?" he asked. He let his hands move from the sides of her face down to her neck, then to the inside edges of her shoulders. He kissed her lips again, then pulled back enough that his eyes could trail down her neck, where he'd kissed her on that night in the garden.

"You're going to get me in trouble," he accused, then leaning in to kiss her very lightly just above her collarbone.