“There are ways, or methods as such,” he admitted as he caught one of the ribbons at her neckline. He ran the silky length gently through his fingers until it slipped free and fluttered back to her chest.
“Please, Richard, speak of these ways to me. I need to know.”
“Abstinence.” Grinning, he leaned in and touched his lips to her forehead. “Which would be my preferred method.”
“Yes, well I understand that.” A mumble under her breath. He could be so infuriating at times. “Tell me more.”
“There is the withdrawal method.” He lifted her from the squabs and settled her on his lap.
“Oh, that sounds intriguing.” She looped her arms around his neck, played her hands through his chestnut brown hair, the strands sliding so sensually through her fingers.
“It is a method by which the man withdraws his penis from the woman prior to releasing his seed, although it isn’t foolproof.” He caught one fluttering ribbon again and with a naughty wink, tugged the bow loose.
“Mmm, how interesting. Are there more options available?”
“We shouldn’t be discussing this, but yes.” He plucked at the top crossover of ribbon—with his teeth—which had her trembling in his arms.
“Do continue,” she gasped with a panting breath.
“Well, there are sponges, or if a sponge isn’t readily at hand, a plug of cloth can be used to capture the man’s release deep inside a woman.”
“Which method would you prefer to use, if we were to say…indulge in some conjugal activities?”
“Are you attempting to weaken my resolve, Lady Winterly.”
She couldn’t help but smile as he addressed her by her new title.
“I certainly am, Lord Winterly.”
He plucked another lacing free.
Chapter 10
“The withdrawal method would suit me the most,” Winterly admitted, his wife’s alluring silhouette outlined by the thin cloth of her chemise. “Rosamonde, if you do find yourself with child though, you must tell me, immediately, without any hesitation. Do we have an understanding?”
“Yes, Richard.” She purred his name in such a sensual way, which had his cock getting very hard very quick.
Their coach bumped along the road, the curtains swaying over the window.
It was just them, only them, both tucked up in a cocoon of warmth.
He itched to remove her last layer of clothing and expose her body fully to his touch. He trailed his fingers along the bare skin of her inner wrist, and she released a delicious shudder that had his cock hardening even further.
“I adore being with you.” She stared into his eyes, the blue-green depths of hers darkening with desire. “I don’t want to resist these new emotions surging through me. I want your mouth on mine, your fingers on me below, and for our marriage to be passionate and fulfilling for us both. It is important to me that I provide you with as much comfort and support as I can, through good times and bad.
“That is the kind of marriage I desire as well, to provide you with the same.” Gently cupping the back of her head, he drew her mouth to his and kissed her, tasting her enchanting sweetness. So good. She was his, the woman he’d made his wife, his countess and the new Lady Winterly.
He would bed her in his coach, but he’d do so with the utmost care for her virgin state, or at least he would attempt to do so. He would draw out her pleasure and safely tuck away every memory they made on their return trip home, then he would hold onto those treasured memories during the long days he’d soon be parted from her.
She tipped her head to the side, her lids lowering, her gaze lost to him for a few precious seconds. No, he needed to see her eyes. Just as he was about to ask her to look at him, she wet her bottom lip, her tongue darting out in an achingly nervous gesture. He wanted to nibble on her bottom lip, to see it swollen with fullness and know he’d caused it to become so plump and red.
Then her nervousness suddenly disappeared as she loosened the pins from her hair, slowly and deliberately. Long golden locks tumbled down her back in waves of silken glory.
His new wife was so exquisite to behold, her heart so giving, her lushly curved body made for the carnal pleasures he intended on indulging them both in.
“Do you want me, Richard?”
“I’m not certain how I’ve lived without you until this moment in time.” He intended on showing her exactly how much he wanted her this night. Raw and desperate need swept through him like an avalanche. “I would like to be wicked with you in this carriage. Will you be wicked with me?”
“There is no one I would wish to be wicked with, other than you.” A whimper escaped her throat. “I feel so hot.”
“So do I.” Heat pulsed through him, his cock throbbing as he slid his hand under the hem of her undergarment and cupped her mound with incredibly fierce possessiveness. It had been a long time since he’d last touched a woman in such an intimate way, two years to be exact, a time which coincided with when he’d rescued her and her kitten from a tree. Of late, he’d had to take his own cock in hand and pump himself until he’d released any sexual tension building within him. Now, he no longer had to. He lowered his mouth to the small raspberry mole on the upper swells of her breasts, flicked his tongue over the delicious spot and smiled as she moaned and arched her back. His cock wept to get closer to her. Gads, he hadn’t been this eager for a coupling since the first time he’d been with a woman. Sixteen, he’d been at the time, imbibing on enough liquor to give him courage as he’d fumbled about with a maid from the local tavern.
Rosamonde batted her lashes, the yearning look in her eyes making his heart jerk. She’d spoken the truth from her heart, that she wished for this joining and as he kissed her, she met him with fervent need, her mouth voluptuously soft as she seduced him with tender nips and licks.
A touch of amusement radiated through him, that she’d had to convince him of this path. Slowly, gently, he smoothed his thumb over her nub below, and she wriggled her bottom in his lap and spread her legs wider. He kissed her, hard and deep, the taste of her mouth so sweetly intoxicating. It wouldn’t take long at all for him to get completely drunk on the taste of her, as well as completely greedy and overzealous for whatever she would offer him in the future.
There was her and only her.
Panting, he pulled back an inch and she smiled and began loosening his cravat, her eyes all dreamy and heavily lidded. No hesitation on her part, any nervousness of before now gone, and she surely didn’t appear as if she wished to change her mind. He certainly had no intention of giving her the chance any longer, not now he’d committed to this new pathway for them both.
As soon as she had removed his cravat and allowed the white fabric to slide from her fingers onto the squabs, he pressed one finger deep inside her then caught her shuddering moan with his mouth. “My wife, you are so beautiful.”
“I am also wearing far less clothing than you.” Her cheeks flamed a rosy red.
“I’d rather you be completely nude.” A dark craving for more heated his blood and he lifted her from his lap and laid her on the squabs. After gently plucking her slippers from her feet, he set her footwear on the floor and slid the hem of her chemise up her long legs, past her delicate ankles, over her slim calves and shapely thighs. Pressing one knee between her knees, he spread her legs wider and caught his breath when he found the small raspberry mole along the inner thigh of her right leg. Head dipped, he licked the mole and she grasped his shoulders, her nails digging in deep.
“Richard,” she whispered. “That feels rather illicit.”
“No part of your body will remain forbidden to me.” He pushed her hem higher, uncovering a thatch of golden curls covering her mound. Breathing in her ravishing scent, he couldn’t halt his need to take her fully and completely. Hell’s teeth, everything about his seductive bride called to him, as if she had always held a piece of his heart and he’d been waiting for this time in his life when he could finally claim her. He was
damned lucky she hadn’t been stolen away from him by another man over the last few years. No other could steal her away from him now either, not since he’d made her his.
“What are you thinking that has that suddenly possessive look in your eyes?” She released his shoulders and braced her hands on the squabs either side of her, her palms flattened against the plush burgundy seat coverings.
“I’m an idiot for not asking your father for your hand in marriage sooner. I haven’t even lain with another woman since the day I rescued you and your kitten from the tree.”
“In truth, I’ve longed for children this past year or two, to start a family of my own. That desire stirred within me the day you rescued me and my kitten.” She licked her lips as she smiled at him. “You’ve now come to my rescue a second time and there is only you.”
“You’re all I could ever hope for in a wife. You’re dedicated to your family, lively and loving, steadfast and loyal. You are my match in every way, Rosamonde, and now I don’t intend to allow even one inch of your body to go untouched tonight, not by my hands or my tongue. I will know all of you before we reach Hillhurst Hall.” He wriggled her chemise higher and she lifted enough to aid him as he exposed her hips and another tantalizing raspberry mole. He swiped his tongue over it before peeling her undergarment higher, over her breasts, her nipples all peachy-pink and hard. His cock pushed against the waistband of his breeches, the head escaping and poking out. “Arms up, my wife.”
Even though she was inexperienced and still blushing, she lifted her arms and he swept her chemise over her head. He dropped her chemise on the floor, all of her now exposed to his hungry gaze. His heart stuttered in his chest, then suddenly started pounding again.
“You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.” Under the flickering light of the lamp, her creamy skin held a soft glow that beckoned and he tentatively touched one finger to her neck and trailed down between the valley of her breasts. As she moaned and arched into his touch, thrusting her breasts out farther, he accepted the offering of her body and cupped their fullness. He licked one nipple then the other, then returned to the first and suckled it deep inside his mouth.
“Oh my.” She whimpered, her need for his touch clear to see.
“I’m not sure I can go as slowly as you require this first time.” He unbuttoned the flap of his breeches and gripped his cock.
She gasped, the heated look in her eyes capturing his gaze. Tentatively, she reached out one hand and touched the head. She swirled one finger along the slit, her brows lifting as she caught the drop of his essence on the tip. With great curiosity flaring on her face, she brought her fingertip to her lips and gazed at him. “Tonight you’ve changed the course of my future. I no longer have to fear the Marquess of Roth, not when I secretly carry your name.”
“I will never let him have you.” He couldn’t deny the depth of their connection, how fiercely it now roared to glorious life within him. She was his best friend’s little sister, but more than that, she was now his wife.
“Richard?” Between them, she reached and gently cupped his balls with one hand and wrapped her other hand around his shaft, her actions scattering any of his remaining good intentions. “I am yours, and you are mine. Join us together as one.”
“Yes, I’ll always be yours.” He leaned over her, captured her mouth and sucked her tongue between his lips. He kissed her and she moaned into his mouth, her grip tightening on his cock. Her touch was exquisite, as if she were attuned to him and understood exactly where he ached for her the most. His cock hardened and lengthened further, the shaft pulsing with a throb from root to tip that signaled he was running out of time.
Except he needed to aid her in finding her own pleasure first, which currently seemed like an impossible mission when he wished to explode. Although it was a mission he intended to accept and see to fulfillment.
Chapter 11
Rosamonde lost her sweet grip on Winterly’s cock as he reared back onto his knees between her spread legs and swept his burning gaze over her body. She should be nervous about what was about to unfold, but she’d managed to set that emotion aside not long after it had arisen. Winterly was her childhood hero, a man who would never intentionally bring her any harm. From the moment he’d returned to Hillhurst Hall, he’d been intent on changing the course of her future. He’d detested the thought of her being wed to Lord Roth, and he’d become determined in his pursuit of her.
“What is going through that beautiful mind of yours?” Winterly kept his gaze locked with hers, his hands smoothing up and down her legs as he knelt between them, the tails of his black jacket flaring out behind him, his fine black breeches molded to his legs.
“Amazement that we’re together, gratitude for the many ways in which we came to arrive at this point in time, and immense wonder that you are still dressed while I am utterly and completely nude.” Their carriage bumped along the road in the dark of the night, the brazier still emitting warmth from the hot coals and the lamp providing a soft, gentle glow which cast his face in a sensual light.
“Then I’d best dispatch of my clothing.” He unbuttoned his jacket and shrugged out of it, his white shirt impeccably pressed underneath.
She desperately wished to tug his shirt off him too, to have his bare chest pressed against her breasts. She opened her mouth to insist he continue disrobing, but closed it again as he suddenly lowered his gaze to her folds below and licked his lips. What on earth could be going through his mind to cause that kind of look? A devilish glimmer flickered in his eyes, then he bent his head. Surely, he wasn’t going to—
He licked her slit and she lost her breath.
“Oh my.” Eyes squeezed shut and her back arched, she twisted on the squabs as he teased her folds with hungry flicks of his tongue. Each of his swipes caused liquid heat to flare in her core, one fiery bolt of pleasure after another rocking through her. “Richard, I feel too much.”
“No, I want you feeling far more than this. Relax back and enjoy what I’m doing, my love.” He licked her sensitive slit again and again, rolled his tongue over her nub until she whimpered for more. More, he gave her.
He sucked her nub in pulsing spurts and her legs collapsed to the sides of the seat as she lost all ability to control her body. A mountain arose before her, one she began climbing. Higher and higher, she ascended until she held firm to the peak at the top. He drew back a touch and blew warm air over her folds, pushed two fingers deep inside her and swirled them about in a scissoring motion. She teetered on that edge, wishing to soar yet also wishing to hold onto this exquisite moment for as long as she could. As he added a third finger, she panted roughly, her moans escaping her as both pleasure and pain roared through her.
“Are you still comfortable?” He whispered the words as his cock saluted her high from the flap of his breeches, his shaft now even larger and longer than before, the plump head darkening to a deep raspberry color.
Not long ago, she’d swiped a bead of his essence from the flaring tip and a mixture of hungry and needy sensations had taken ahold of her. She’d wanted to do more than just wipe that bead away. She’d wanted to taste it, to take his shaft inside her mouth and suck on him, exactly as he’d just sucked on her.
“I’m asking,” he continued, “because I need to prepare you fully for what’s about to come, of my cock driving deep inside you.”
“You are doing a wonderful job of preparing me.” Still panting, she tried to stay in the present as his balls drew up tighter and higher into the thatch of dark curls at the base of his shaft. “I ache for you, Richard.”
“That is the answer I seek.” He licked her flesh again, in the most intimate way as he thrust three fingers in, his touch moving into a deep and delicious rhythm she completely adored. Every flick of his tongue and stroke of his fingers had her returning to that teetering peak at the top of the mountain, the sensations building higher and higher.
“Take me, please,” she begged. Instinct roared to life and she
wanted to let go, to take all that he offered and claim it, but not without him.
“Wait for me, Rosamonde.” Hissing under his breath, he rubbed his cock along her slick folds, pushed against her thin barrier and thrust deep.
She gasped at the incredible fullness.
“Are you well?” he asked, holding still.
“Yes.” Only a pinch of pain assailed her, his preparation having eased the way, his shaft buried as deep as it could go. “This feels so right.”
“It is pure ecstasy.” Hands planted on the squabs either side of her head, he eased out then slowly pushed all the way back in again. “I’ll try to go easy. Hold onto me.”
She clutched his backside, her folds getting wetter as he rocked so sublimely inside her. Covering her mouth with his, he kissed her until she arched into his body, then his kisses turned voraciously hungry as he picked up his speed and pounded into her. Moaning helplessly, she hooked her legs around his hips as he grinded into her. Gripping fistfuls of the back of his shirt, she held on and three strokes later, relentless waves of pleasure swarmed her. She came apart with a heartfelt cry, while he pulled out and left her bereft as he wrapped his handkerchief around himself and grunted as he came into the cloth. “Come back to me,” she pleaded.
“I will.” He tossed the cloth aside and pushed back inside her, his shaft not as rigid as before but she still basked in his return nonetheless, her inner channel continuing to throb and squeeze him.
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