Addie stared at herself in the mirror with astonishment. She looked like a bride! Something she had quite given up on a few years ago.
The virginal white gown and veil didn’t look so bad after all. Addie would have preferred a nice new gown in a lovely blue or rose that she could use for formal affairs with her new husband. Husband.
She gulped.
She and Mother had argued over just about everything having to do with the wedding. Addie’s newly acquired confidence from being on her own and making her own decisions as a successful businesswoman gave her the courage to do something she’d never done before, and that was to go against Mother’s wishes.
It started with announcing that she and Grayson wished to be married as soon as possible. Mother was appalled, even though she had heard from numerous sources that her daughter was on the brink of ruination.
“I don’t agree with this, Adeline. If you have a rushed wedding, gossip will start up again, and everyone will be watching your waistline for months.” Mother threatened.
Addie sighed and continued to lick the envelopes for the select fifty or so invitations to the wedding breakfast that Mother had written out. “Mother, the gossip is already there and will continue until the next scandal erupts. Lord Berkshire has a very good reason for a quick wedding.” At her mother’s raised eyebrows, Addie blushed. “No. Not that. He has a legal issue with his son that he must concentrate on.”
Mother sniffed and crossed another name off the list as Addie handed her the envelope. “Nothing should be more important than a man’s wedding.”
“His son is very important to him. And I think as a good, responsible father, he made the correct decision.” Addie didn’t add that she also wanted the whole thing over with as quickly as possible. Never having been the center of attention, she found she did not enjoy the idea of everyone watching her every move. Lord knew her moves were clumsy at best.
Addie’s thoughts came back to the vision of herself in the mirror. She had made some concessions to her mother and had agreed to keep her somewhat happy by wearing the newly traditional white wedding gown and veil, even though at her age she felt ridiculous. Some compromises needed to be made and she could live with this one.
“Oh, my, you look beautiful,” Lottie gushed, as she and Pamela burst into her room. Her friends had arrived two days before and they’d spent as much time as possible catching up on things Addie had missed in her time away. The women were fortunate enough to find someone they trusted to mind the bookstore while they traveled to London and attended the wedding.
“I look like a bride.” Addie smirked.
“Yes. And that is what you are. Who would ever have guessed when Lord Berkshire walked into your bookstore that morning, he would end up your husband?” Lottie shook her head.
“I am sure stranger things have been recorded throughout time.” Addie adjusted the top of her veil, containing fresh flowers that Mother must have had a devil of a time finding at this time of the year.
Lottie had declined acting as a bridesmaid not wanting to call attention to herself. Which was utterly impossible, since Lottie was the most beautiful woman Addie had ever seen. But she’d noticed a distinct sense of unease in her friend from the moment she had arrived in London.
Lottie had once confessed to Addie and Pamela that her mother was well-known in London and they’d had terrible falling out before Lottie had quit London to take up residency in Bath.
Pamela would act as her witness and bridesmaid, and Grayson had asked Mr. Carter Westbrooke, his solicitor from Bath and a close friend, to act as his witness.
“Adeline, it’s time to leave for the church, dear.” Mother entered her room, studying her hands as she pulled on her gloves. She looked up and came to an abrupt halt. To Addie’s dismay, tears filled Mother’s eyes. “Oh, my.”
Addie felt her own eyes moisten and prayed she could pull herself together and not arrive at the church with a blotchy face. “Oh, Mother, please don’t.”
They crossed the room toward each other and embraced. “You are a beautiful bride, Adeline.” Mother leaned back and looked at her. “And a wonderful daughter. Be happy, my dear.”
By now all four women were patting the corners of their eyes. “Enough of this,” Lottie said, waving her hand around. “I believe it is time to leave for the church.”
Mother had fallen in love with Lottie and Pamela as much as Addie had. In fact, her mother had told her at breakfast a couple of days before that if she knew Addie had such good friends in Bath, she would not have worried about her so much.
Of course, Mother’s next question about her friends had been to ask why they were not seeking husbands. Addie dodged that question by suggesting they could use another pot of tea, and quickly left the room to fetch it from the kitchen.
The four women made their way downstairs where Father and Addie’s brother, Marcus, waited to escort the ladies to the church.
“What a bevy of beauties,” Marcus said, as he made his bow to the ladies.
“Indeed.” Father’s face glowed with happiness, which made Addie proud.
They all trooped down to the two carriages to carry them to the church. Grayson had loaned them his rented carriage, so they could all travel at the same time to St. Paul’s Cathedral where the wedding would take place.
Mother, Father, and Addie took one carriage. Lottie, Pamela, and Marcus the other. Marcus had been quite the host since her friends had arrived: joking, teasing, and flirting with them. She felt it necessary, however, to warn them that Marcus had managed to dodge the parson’s noose for years and she had no reason to believe he was ready to succumb anytime soon.
Of course, both girls waved her off with assurances that they had no intention of pursuing her brother. Or any other man for that matter.
Only a handful of friends had been invited to the ceremony with another fifty guests to join in the celebration at the wedding breakfast to follow at the Mallory townhouse.
Mother would have liked to double the number of guests at her only daughter’s wedding, but there was simply not enough time to plan for a wedding breakfast of that magnitude in the short time allotted for the preparations.
Addie was hit with a wave of panic as they drew up to the church. Her hand felt damp under her gloves and her stomach cramped. This was it. What she’d wanted as a young girl and decided she would never have as a young lady.
How well did she even know Lord Berkshire? Since their hurried betrothal they’d spent very little time together, and almost no time alone. He arrived the day after his meeting with Father, with a beautiful opal and diamond ring that had been in his family for years.
He had been careful to assure her that it had not been worn by his deceased wife. It stung that he’d been remarkably silent on that subject. Did he not trust her with that part of his life? The little she knew she’d heard from gossip: that his wife had died under scandalous circumstances. Being an unmarried lady, she was not privy to what those scandalous circumstances had been.
He was a good man. That much she knew. Did she love him? Probably not, but there was a very good chance she would. She doubted if he loved her, but hopefully love would grow there, too. From what she’d seen so far, they certainly shared passion. That was one part of her upcoming nuptials that she had to admit she was anticipating.
Also, in just a matter of minutes she would be a mother. Something she’d always wanted. That part was exciting. Despite all the frenzy about the wedding she had managed to spend as much time as possible with Michael and the tutor, Mr. Graves, learning sign language. The boy was progressing remarkably fast, and Mr. Graves told her that her word blindness—which he said had now been termed ‘dyslexia’— actually made her a good candidate for sign language.
Her mind back to the matter at hand, she took a deep breath as Pamela shook out the back of her gown and the organist began to play. Father stepped up to her and after giving her a kiss on the cheek, placed her hand on his arm and they began
the walk down the aisle.
She immediately spotted Grayson standing next to who she assumed was his friend, Mr. Westbrooke. Since he hadn’t been due to arrive until this morning, she had not yet met him. Her knees were shaky, and she was grateful to have Father’s arm to hold onto.
Was she doing the right thing? Should she abscond back to Bath and take up her comfortable life?
They reached the sanctuary and she looked into Grayson’s deep brown eyes as he looked back at her. His crooked smile did strange things to her insides. He was so handsome it hurt her eyes to look at him.
Her groom’s wedding attire fit his large body perfectly, and his hair, although slicked back for the occasion, had already begun to settle on his forehead. She licked her lips and leaned in as Father kissed her and then handed her off to Grayson.
He squeezed her hand. “Relax, sweetheart. It will be over soon.”
“I am afraid not, my lord. This is just the beginning.”
Grayson took Addie’s hand in his and they turned to face the vicar. He tried not to think about the last time he’d done this very same thing and it had ended so badly. After Margaret’s death, he swore he would never do it again, but here he stood.
However, comparing Margaret with Addie was more than foolish. Margaret had been all things evil. Things he’d never seen in her when they were courting and first married. Love had blinded him to her vain, selfish nature. In her eyes, nothing came before her wishes and desires. Not even her baby son.
Addie, on the other hand, was a loving, caring person, and he knew in his heart she would never betray her marriage vows.
The actual ceremony seemed to be over rather quickly. He spoke clearly the words that would bind him to Addie for life, and then slid a wedding band on her finger. He gave her the expected chaste kiss and they turned to face the friends and family gathered in the church.
It was done. He had a wife again. God help him.
Later that evening, Grayson paced the soft deep brown carpet in his bedchamber waiting for word from the newly hired lady’s maid that Addie was ready for him. They were spending their wedding night at his townhouse, and in the morning, they would leave by train for a short wedding trip to Brighton Beach. Michael was in good hands with Mrs. Banfield, and Mrs. Mallory had already taken on her role as grandmother and been delighted to learn a little bit of sign language herself.
Grayson ran his fingers through his hair and admitted he was anxious to bed his new wife. The bit of passion he’d felt in her when they’d kissed had stirred him in a way that he hadn’t felt since he and Margaret were first married.
Truth be told, even Margaret had not brought him to the edge of losing control as Addie had the few times they’d kissed.
There was something about the voluptuousness of her body compared to Margaret’s slender form that appealed to him in a way he’d never expected.
“My lord, Lady Berkshire is ready.” The demure young maid gave a quick bob and fled, her face red. Ah, the innocence of youth.
He tightened the belt on his banyan and entered the sitting room separating the two bedchambers. He gave a slight knock and entered Addie’s room.
He realized that they’d not even had enough time together since their betrothal to discuss where she would sleep. He much preferred to have his wife by his side all night, but Margaret had been adamant that she could never enjoy a good night’s sleep with him tossing and turning next to her.
Whenever they made love—in his room—she would quickly dress and hurry away. Since his parents had a stilted relationship and to his knowledge never shared a room, he didn’t find that so unusual. Since then he’d made friends with men who eschewed the ‘sleep apart’ nonsense and he hoped he could convince his new wife of the benefits of that.
One benefit, of course, was knowing who was occupying one’s wife’s bed.
Addie stood before the fireplace, bringing his thoughts and movements to an abrupt halt. She was achingly beautiful. Her silky hair flowed over her shoulders and ended right at her full breasts. She wore a deep rose satin nightgown that clung to her curves in a scandalous manner. It was cut low, with only two narrow bands of fabric over her shoulders holding the entire thing up.
“My mother picked out my nightgown.”
Grayson slowly walked toward her. “Remind me to buy her a dozen roses and a very expensive bracelet.”
“You like it?” She looked as if she wasn’t sure, which only convinced him the woman did not own a mirror.
“Oh, yes. Yes, indeed.” His steady continuous advance caused her to back up.
He reached his hand out. “Stop, sweetheart. If you get any closer to the fireplace, we will spend our wedding night at London Hospital.”
Addie chewed on her lip and took his outstretched hand.
“Come here.” He gave her a slight tug then wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her to his chest. “Are you frightened?”
She tilted her head and studied him. “No. Not exactly. Curious, certainly. Well, maybe a bit nervous.”
“I had a bottle of wine brought up earlier. Would you care for a glass? It might relax you.”
She shook her head, and then to his amazement, wrapped her hand around the back of his head and pulled him down to meet her lips. If Addie was indeed a bit nervous it did not show in the way she enthusiastically, albeit innocently, devoured his mouth.
Not wanting to deter her, he allowed her the freedom to explore his mouth, her soft tongue tentatively touching his, then moving to reach further inside his mouth. Her lack of experience, along with her eagerness stirred him more than any mistress or courtesan ever could.
It became obvious she didn’t know where to go from there, so he took over, pulling her close, feeling the warmth and softness of her breasts pressed up against his chest.
Her heart beat a thunderous rhythm against his body, and slight moans came from her as he plundered her mouth. Grayson pulled away and scattered kisses over her jaw, behind her ear and down to the tops of her magnificent breasts. He slid the two thin straps over her shoulders and moved back to watch the satin slide slowly down her body, revealing inch by inch what he’d been dreaming about for weeks.
She was magnificent. A goddess waiting for her subjects to worship at her feet. Every inch of creamy skin was there for the taking. “Damnation, you are beautiful. I could stare at you all night and never get enough.”
A slow blush crept up her body from her soft middle all the way to her face. “I’m not comfortable with you staring at me.”
“Oh, darling, you better get used to it. I could gaze at you for days.” She was soft in all the places where he was hard. She had full, magnificent breasts with pouty pink nipples. Her slightly rounded belly, full plump bottom, and strong legs that he couldn’t wait to feel wrapped around him drove every single drop of blood in his body to his cock.
He bent her over his arm, giving him access to her breasts which he suckled, teasing their peaks into hardness with his tongue.
“Shouldn’t you be undressed, too?” Her raspy, breathless voice stirred him into action.
“Indeed, I should, and shall.” He picked her up and walked to the large, comfortable bed in the middle of the room, dropping her so she bounced. And giggled.
Before he could loosen his belt, she rose up on her knees and stopped his movement. “Let me.”
Yes. This virtuous wife of his had a wanton streak in her that he planned to encourage. She studied his face, her eyelids heavy and a satisfied smirk on her lips, as she undid the belt to his banyan and opened the flaps to push the garment off his shoulders, leaving him as bare as she.
She ran her palms over his chest, stopping to rub his flat nipples with her thumbs. He sucked in air between his teeth and closed his eyes. She was going to kill him. He wanted nothing more than to push her back onto the bed and thrust his aching cock into her until she screamed with pleasure.
But this was her wedding night, and she was a virgin. He wanted it to
be as pleasurable for her as possible since this could very well set the tone for the rest of their marriage.
Slowly, he eased her onto her back and rested on the bed alongside her, partially covering her with his body. “I want you to enjoy this. I assume your mother has told you what would happen tonight?”
“Yes. And I pray she was wrong.”
A soft smile played at his lips. “Why?”
“Because she told me it was not very pleasant, but it was my ‘duty’ so I should lay back and—”
“Think of England,” he finished.
They both laughed.
“I don’t want you to think about anything except us, our hands and mouths, and the pleasure we will give each other.”
She grinned. “I’m ready.”
He pushed back the hair that had fallen on her forehead. “Oh, yes, my love. And so am I.”
Chapter Thirteen
A week after the wedding, and a very rambunctious and pleasurable wedding trip, Addie and Grayson returned to his London townhouse, both of them anxious to see Michael.
Addie was amazed at how well she’d taken to marriage and to the marriage bed. They’d spent more time in bed than they did taking in the sights in Brighton Beach. Because it was well into autumn, they couldn’t partake of the waters anyway, but that only gave them more of an excuse to remain indoors.
In bed.
So far, marriage had been wonderful. Grayson was a thoughtful and considerate man, who treated her well, constantly asking after her welfare. They dined in the best restaurants, strolled along the beach, and eventually ended up in bed wrapped in each other’s arms.
Now she was ready to assume her position as Countess of Berkshire. Getting through the court hearing for Michael and making sure she could communicate with the boy effectively was the priority upon their return. Grayson had learned some sign language, but she had picked it up much faster, even more so than Mrs. Banfield.
Once the hearing was over, they would return to Bath. Addie was anxious to see how her store had fared in her absence. There would be much for her to do with the upcoming Christmas season, when the prior owner, Mr. Evans, had told her she could expect a great many sales.
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