“Holy mother of God!” she cried out before clamping her hands over her mouth and glancing down to gauge her husband’s reaction to her shocking language.
“In any other circumstance, that would be cause for immediate punishment. However, today I shall consider it a compliment. Let us see what other bawdy phrases I am able to wring from your saucy mouth.” Taking his own statement as a personal challenge, Lucas resumed his position with his face between her thighs, taunting the sensitive flesh of her private place.
Wave upon wave of pleasure rolled over Seraphina and she bucked her hips against his mouth until he finally grasped them between his palms and held them to the mattress, while he continued to lave the lips of her cunny.
“Bollocks! That feels so good,” Seraphina said so loudly she heard her own voice echo off the walls of the bedchamber.
In response, Lucas looked up from what he was doing, his mouth glistening with her essence. “Seraphina, that is a dirty word,” he said, seemingly delighted with her blue language. “Let us see what other words you know.” He reached up and grasped both her breasts in his hands and squeezed her nipples... hard.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” she said.
“Your wish is my command, my dirty-talking bride.” Lucas raised himself up and set his knees between Seraphina’s legs, pushed her thighs open and rested his cock at the entrance to her heated core. Before plunging ahead, however, he paused and cupped her face with his hand. “Thank you for this gift of your purity, my little bride. It is a great treasure and I shall value it, and you, always.”
With that, he slipped his length into her and instead of a streak of curses all she could do was sigh with contentment. He filled her to capacity and she suddenly felt more alive than she ever had before.
She turned her head and placed a kiss on the palm of his hand which cupped her cheek.
“Are you ready, sweet Seraphina?”
“Oh, yes.”
With a slow in and out motion, he pushed further and further into her until she felt the tip of his cock press against what could only be the barrier of her virginity. A flutter of fear worked its way through her. Lucas must have noticed the change in her... was there anything he did not notice?
“Please, do not be frightened. This may be a little painful at first, my darling wife, but I promise, it will be much pleasure as well. Do you trust me?”
And of course, she could only answer, “Yes.”
With one swift thrust, he broke through. There was a sharp pain and she gasped, but almost immediately Lucas began moving in and out of her, his fingers toying with the hard nub at the top of her womanhood and all thoughts of pain vanished as a crescendo of heated sensations wafted over her, thrusting her skyward until she shattered and slowly floated back to the ground. When she opened her eyes, her husband graced her with a beaming smile. “That’s my girl.”
Then, with a few more strokes in and out, she felt him let loose his essence in her, a look of sheer ecstasy upon his face as he called her name.
“I believe you missed a spot,” Lucas said pointing to the area of his body which he felt had been neglected.
“I have washed you there three times,” Seraphina said. “How can it possibly need more attention?”
“How could it ever need less?”
“You are incorrigible.” Seraphina giggled but dipped the sponge into the water and ran it thoroughly over her husband’s body yet again, paying special attention to one particular area where he insisted she be most thorough.
It had been three days since she had promised to bathe him. While that endeavor was cut short on their wedding night, she was making up for it this morning.
In the few short days since their hurried wedding, Seraphina and Lucas had fallen deeply in love. Seraphina was certain of it. She had never imagined it would be possible to be so happy, so content and at peace.
Ironically, this sense of peace and contentment had virtually eliminated the curse words from her vocabulary. Instead, she now seemed to be floating on air, humming with happiness.
And, if truth be told, she strongly suspected her husband felt the same way. She could hardly believe that upon first meeting him she had considered him rather dour. In fact, he was not only an attentive and thorough lover, but he was a loving and kind man with a bit of a sense of humor as well.
“Now, Seraphina, I have bathed you every day since we got married, have I not?”
“Why yes, Lucas, you have, and I have enjoyed it immensely. You are quite adept, and I have never been so clean in my entire life.”
“Then I think it only fair you should try to do a proper job when our tasks have been reversed. Do you not agree?”
Seraphina stood, fisted her hands and set them on her hips and gazed down upon her husband. “Are you saying you are dissatisfied?”
As she had been for most of the last seventy-two hours, Seraphina was utterly nude. Her husband looked up at her from the depths of the tub, his eyes smoldering as they took in a head to toe inspection of her unclothed body.
“Oh, I have been more than satisfied, as you well know, my naughty little wife.”
“Lucas!” Seraphina said, doing her best to appear indignant at such scandalous comments but unable to stop herself from laughing.
“Come now, my dear, for I believe the water has gone cold. Besides, I have a few other things in mind.”
“Well, you will have to catch me first.” And Seraphina took off trotting across the room, laughter spilling from her lips.
“Oh, you naughty little minx, the things I’m going to do to you once I catch you.” Lucas hoisted himself out of the tub and without bothering to towel off or put on his dressing gown, he hurried after Seraphina who had run to the other side of the bed and had, perhaps intentionally, gotten herself cornered between the bed, the wall and her formidable husband.
Shivers of naughty anticipation ran through her body and Seraphina giggled nervously as Lucas bore down on her, his dark eyes gleaming and his cock, now thoroughly clean, stood rigid. She swallowed hard and licked her lips while she gazed upon it. In a rather short time, she had become completely enamored of her husband’s stiff rod and the many ways in which it could bring her pleasure. Something in her had been unleashed, a passion and wantonness which she had glimpsed in herself before but had always quashed down for fear of being considered brazen or unladylike. But her husband found her eagerness enticing and encouraged it.
“What are you going to do now, little wife? It would appear you are trapped. You certainly are not skilled at games of hide and seek.” Lucas took a step toward her, the water from the bath glistening on his muscled chest, running in rivulets down his body.
Much as she was eager for her husband to impale her upon his cock, she was not quite ready for this game to end. Glancing to her right, she dived onto the bed intending to cross it to freedom on the other side.
However, she underestimated her husband’s determination and agility and before she had made it even halfway across the bed, he had hold of her ankle and dragged her across the mattress, flipped her onto her stomach and swatted her bottom with his hand that was still wet from his bath.
“Ouch! Oh! Lucas!”
He continued to pepper her bottom with fast smacks. None of them were particularly painful, but they did sting and soon Seraphina had second thoughts about the wisdom of taunting her husband.
“I am sorry. Please, Lucas. Please, stop.”
He flipped her onto her back and spread her legs. She smiled, assuming he meant to pleasure her, either with his mouth, hands or cock. Or ideally, all three. Instead, he gave her two slaps on her cunny, causing a delicious sting that sent jolts of heat through her nether region. She raised her hips, pushing her aching core toward him. In return, she got another slap on the swollen lips of her cunny.
“Lucas! Please. I-I need you.” She looked up at him pleadingly. “Truly, I apologize for teasing you. But now I feel—I cannot describe it—but I feel almost wild with d
esire. Please, you must help me. Please.”
She shifted on the bed to make room for him to join her, held her hand out to him in a silent invitation.
“You make me wild with desire too, my naughty wife. I do not believe I shall ever have my fill of bedding you.” Lucas moved onto the mattress and positioned her so she straddled his hips, then lifted her and slid her down atop his thick cock.
Seraphina inhaled sharply at the sensation of his cock filling her. Some of the wildness calmed, but once Lucas grabbed her hips and pistoned her up and down while he moved his hips and shoved his cock into her at a rapid pace, the wildness returned and she shouted, “Yes, oh yes. More. Harder. Oh, yes.” And when Lucas ground into her with one last pounding motion, she came in an explosion, quickly followed by her husband’s own powerful climax, his seed filling her until it trailed down the inside of her thigh.
14
Seraphina sighed contentedly. She was seated at the rough-hewn table in the kitchen of Cherry Grove Manor watching Mrs. Boyd knead a large ball of dough which would soon be a hot loaf of bread meant to be eaten spread with butter and copious amounts of Mrs. Boyd’s homemade jam. The housekeeper had been baking all day and loaves cooled on a shelf near the window.
Even more than the enjoyment of fresh baked treats, Seraphina had found in Mrs. Boyd the kindly mother-figure she never had. Both Mr. and Mrs. Boyd were dear people and she could understand why Lucas was so fond of them. In turn, it was clear they had great affection for him. Mrs. Boyd, in particular, had a mother hen sort of attitude toward her employer. “Oh, thank goodness he has found a wife. It will take the two of us fussing over him to make sure he takes proper care of himself. All the time running around the countryside caring for everyone else and lets his own health suffer,” Mrs. Boyd had confided to Seraphina shortly after her marriage. “I can see he is quite taken with you, as well he should be, so I hope you will have some sway over him.”
Mrs. Boyd’s words had warmed Seraphina’s heart and since then she had taken every opportunity to spend time with the kindly older woman. Or at least when she was not enjoying her husband’s company. And not only in the bedroom. He had taken great pleasure in showing her around the grounds of Cherry Grove Manor as well as the village of Briar Glen. Their presence on the streets of the small community had garnered a fair bit of attention from the villagers.
“Ah, no doubt you will be feeling the wrath of several of the young ladies of the village,” Mrs. Boyd had said to her when Seraphina had mentioned it to her. “More than a few of them had set their caps for the doctor. But he showed them,” she said with a laugh, “found himself a proper bride, not like the scatterbrains around here.”
Somehow Mrs. Boyd had a way of saying just the right thing to ease Seraphina’s mind. One of the young ladies they had encountered, Miss Fisk, had seemed particularly piqued at Seraphina’s presence. Seraphina had not mentioned Miss Fisk to Mrs. Boyd, nor had she asked Lucas about her, though she had noticed his body had stiffened next to her—and not in that special way she liked—when they had crossed paths with Miss Fisk as she was coming out of the small dressmaker’s shop on the main street of Briar Glen.
Regardless, she vowed not to give Miss Fisk any more thought. Seraphina was finished with doubt and negative thinking.
Mrs. Boyd brought out a fresh loaf of bread which had cooled enough for eating, sat down with Seraphina, and cut them each a thick slice of the yeast laden confection. Life at Cherry Grove Manor was quite cozy indeed.
Much as she had enjoyed the luxury of life at Primrose Park with its vast estate and innumerable servants, Cherry Grove Manor was home. She could not imagine even the very friendly Lady Tempest and Lady Calliope sitting down with the servants for a cuppa. No, that would not do at all.
The people of Cherry Grove Manor were her family.
“The doctor was gone all night, again?” Mrs. Boyd dropped a dollop of jam on her bread.
“Yes, the third night in a row,” Seraphina said. “I guess I got spoiled with Dr. Thorpe handling things the first few days after we married. It appears the honeymoon is over.” She smiled ruefully.
“Now, don’t you be talking like that. You know good and well the doctor would rather be home with you than anywhere else in the world. I’ve seen the way he looks at you, especially when he thinks no one is watching. Aye, Mr. Boyd used ta look at me the same way. Still does every now and then,” Mrs. Boyd said with a chuckle.
Once when Seraphina had ventured to the kitchen—back when Mrs. Boyd was accustomed to being undisturbed in her domain—she had caught a glimpse of Mr. Boyd giving his wife’s plump bottom a swat as she handed him a cup of tea. It had been the sweetest thing Seraphina had ever seen and she hoped when she and Lucas had been married as long as the Boyds, he would still want to grab her arse too.
“Mind my words,” Mrs. Boyd said, patting Seraphina’s arm, “the doctor is a good man. The best there is. A man of his word and you can’t say anything finer about a man than that. You ain’t had many men in your life who kept their word, have ye?”
“No,” Seraphina said. She had not shared much about her past with Mrs. Boyd and the housekeeper had not asked. She wondered if she ought to confide in Mrs. Boyd? Then she remembered what Lucas had said, the past is in the past. This is a new life for her.
“I hope nothing comes up to keep him from taking me to the assembly ball next week.” Seraphina changed the subject. She did not wish to think about her past, she was looking to the future.
“Do not fret, Mrs. Spencer. I have no doubt the doctor is looking forward to showing off his beautiful wife to all the people at the ball. Nothing will keep him from it.”
“I hope you are right. Will there be many people there?” Suddenly Seraphina felt a bit nervous about being the focus of so many people’s attention.
“I imagine ‘bout everyone in the county will be there. Folks ‘round here do not have too many reasons to celebrate so an assembly brings everyone out.”
“Will you and Mr. Boyd be there?” The idea of facing so many strangers would be a bit more palatable if there were a couple of friendly faces in the crowd.
“Of course! We are not in our dotage yet.”
“My apologies,” Seraphina said. “I did not mean to offend.”
“No offense taken, child. You will have to try harder than that to put me off.”
Seraphina smiled at Mrs. Boyd. She was a gem.
“When will Mrs. Shepherd have your gown finished? I canna wait to see you in it.”
At the thought of the glorious pink gown which was being made especially for her, Seraphina’s mood lifted dramatically. “She has promised it no later than two days before the event. That should allow time for alterations, if any are needed.”
“Maxine Shepherd does outstanding work, I will give her that. ‘Tis a shame she got herself stuck here in Briar Glen. No doubt she could have done quite well for herself in London. More ladies to dress and more ladies with the money to spend.” Mrs. Boyd sighed. “Ah well. There is nothing to be done for it now. Her lot is set.”
“What do you mean?” Seraphina had seen as much of London as she ever cared to, though she realized her experience did not include the best places... by far... which the city had to offer. Still, how could anyone find fault with Briar Glen?
“Maxine Shepherd was born Maxine Forester and a more beautiful girl there never was—and her figure!” Mrs. Boyd paused. “There was none could match it. All the men in the area were batty over her. But she had a flair for sewing and dressmaking and had dreams of going to London to make a name for herself.”
“What happened?” Seraphina leaned forward, wondering about the story of the local dressmaker.
“Her father promised her to Joseph Shepherd. Seemed he owed Joseph money and when Joseph demanded payment and threatened Maxine’s father with debtors’ prison, Maxine’s father offered her up to settle the debt.”
“How awful.” A shiver ran up Seraphina’s spine. She envisio
ned the whole thing, only with Mrs. Hartpence and Lord Ross playing the primary roles.
“Fortunately for Maxine, the nasty beast died of the fever within a few months of their marriage, but by then she was expecting. She wore mourning garb for the man, though if you ask me, she ought to have celebrated.” Mrs. Boyd paused to sip her tea. Seraphina had never seen her so agitated, though it was understandable with such a tragic story.
How close she had come to a similar tragedy. Once more she sent up a silent prayer of thanks for the timely intervention of Colonel William St. Clair in her life.
Lucas checked his watch, though he wondered why he bothered. Over the last several days, time had been of no matter to him. He slept when he could, sometimes on a sofa in a patient’s house while he waited to see if his medicines and treatments had been of any use. More than once he had dozed off while on horseback. Thankfully, his horse, Marcella, seemed to sense his fatigue and kept a steady gait while he caught a few moments of rest.
Finally, he had a bit of a respite. He handed Marcella off to the stable hand with instructions for her to get an extra ration of oats and headed to Cherry Grove Manor and his wife... nothing warmed his heart like the thoughts of having her to come home to. As the village doctor he was often called out at all hours of the day and night and had become accustomed to it and did not necessarily consider it a hardship for he cared about his patients and their health. However, marriage had changed him and he felt the absence of his wife’s company, her sweet body curled up to him in sleep, her happy smile when he entered the room and the glorious release of making love to her until they both writhed in ecstasy.
As he looked up at the facade of Cherry Grove Manor, he felt an extra spring in his otherwise weary steps, knowing what—and who—awaited him inside. His heart filled with gratitude for the little vixen who had captured his heart.
Lessons for His Bride (Regency Matchmaker Book 3) Page 12