by Sahara Kelly
But this love play, this erotic teasing—it was uniquely and sharply stimulating.
Minnie arched, reached for the wrought iron at the head of the bed and hung on, moving now as Pierce thrust forcefully against her. It took very little imagination to envision her wrists bound and tied to the headboard, an image which took Pierce to the edge.
His cock was sliding easily in and out of her, and at this angle he was almost certain he could feel a slight distension within her channel. A place inside that made her shiver each time the head of his cock passed over it. It made him shiver too.
She arched more, an almost impossible flex of spine and hips. He could go no deeper, only faster. His balls slapped against her pussy as his speed increased, his vision dimmed and the entire Brass Pluggit could have exploded around him and he probably wouldn’t have noticed.
He gave up trying to slap her arse, simply hung on to her hips, pistoning into her with all the energy of one of his own steam engines.
The sound of their bodies meeting rolled around the room, the rain pattering gently now against the windows, in syncopation to the rhythm of their passion.
Pierce wondered if he could stay like this forever. Stay naked with Minnie, sinking and withdrawing and then sinking again, balls deep, into the hot silk that was her body. Her buttocks were perfect globes, her skin cream and roses.
She was with him, around him, moving as if this was a dance they’d rehearsed all their lives. And his grip tightened as his lips peeled away from his teeth—his climax was on him, about to crush the breath from his lungs.
He roared, an exhalation that had nothing to do with civilization. It was the savage sound of a male claiming his mate.
Minnie screamed, her body milking his, taking all he could empty into her and demanding more with a clenching spasm that nearly pulled his spleen out through his cock.
On and on it went, each of them groaning and shuddering, sharing the ultimate experience of sexual release.
Eventually it ended, as all such things must inevitably do.
With a slickly wet and squishy sound, their bodies parted, Minnie slumping onto her stomach with a grunt. Pierce followed her down, landing on his side and doing his best to draw a breath.
“I’m dead.” Minnie’s voice was muffled by the quilt.
“Pass me my harp then, because I think I’m dead too.” He lay, exhausted and not a little sticky.
“I need a bath.”
“Me too.”
“I’m too tired.”
“Me too.”
Neither moved until Pierce maneuvered the quilt free and covered them with it. “Warm enough?”
She nodded and snuggled into him. “Yes. Thank you.”
“My pleasure.”
“Both our pleasures.” She chuckled sleepily. “That was really nice.”
“Minnie, you have a gift for understatement.”
They were asleep before the last of the rain faded away.
Chapter Seven
“Do you think Minnie knows I’m here?”
Felicia looked at the man next to her, the man who held her arm so carefully and guided her through the greenhouse as though she was the most precious thing in it.
“Does it matter?” Dusk’s voice was gentle. “You’re a grown woman. There isn’t a need to tell Miss Minnie your every move, is there?”
“Well no.” She thought about it. “But we are, perhaps, contravening some of the more accepted rules of behavior.”
“Not half as many as I’d like.”
“Pardon?”
“Never mind.” He patted her hand. “Here. Can you smell this one?” He brought their idle progress to a halt next to one of the racks of small plants.
Felicia breathed in and smiled. “Ahh. Rosemary.” She turned to the blur that was his face. “What was it that Shakespeare had Ophelia say? Rosemary for remembrance?”
“And pansies, that’s for thoughts.” He added more of the quote.
“Poor Ophelia.”
“Hamlet didn’t fare much better.”
“Depressing.” Felicia took a breath. “My fault. Or the rosemary’s. Do you have any lavender? That’s a favorite fragrance. Always cheers me up.”
“Over here. I keep my culinary herbs apart from the others.” Dusk led her farther down the greenhouse.
Thunder boomed and Felicia smiled. “I can tell that this is a good storm. Lots of flashes. Loud thunder. Nature being a showoff.”
Dusk’s chuckle was low but quite audible. “You have an interesting perspective on things, Felicia.”
“And you are an interesting man, Dusk. Multi-talented, knowledgeable about plants and clearly possessed of an excellent intellect. Yet you are, to outside eyes, employed as a servant to Pierce.” She stroked his sleeve idly. “I find that puzzling.”
“Do you?” He moved away from her a little and she heard the tiny snap as he broke off part of a plant. “Here. Cheer up.”
A sprig of lavender scented the air beneath her nose and she inhaled with delight. “How lovely. Fresh, wonderful…smells like summer and sunshine.”
Another roll of thunder echoed around them and it was quickly followed by the first large droplets of rain splashing onto the glass ceiling of the domed structure.
Dusk laughed. “One out of two. It’s summer.” He moved away. “Here. Try this one.”
She sniffed. “Mmm. Nice.” Pausing, she ran the scent through her mind, trying to identify it. “Tangy. Sweet. Lemon balm?”
“I’m impressed.” Dusk put the sprig back down and took her arm, curving it around his and bringing their bodies into close contact. Closer than before.
Felicia fought the urge to lean against him. She was quite used to doing for herself and actually felt a bit lost without the cane. But he’d taken it from her, telling her firmly that he’d be her guide in the greenhouse.
To her surprise, she’d agreed. And she was enjoying this rare opportunity to be alone with a man and feel…safe.
“This way.” He tugged a little and steered her to the left where she could see the flashes of lightning getting brighter. The storm was a strong one and she guessed he was taking her to the outside wall of the greenhouse. “I have a seat here. I like to watch the ocean in the evenings when the plants are at their most fragrant.”
He gently eased her onto one side of a garden chaise, sitting down on the other. It was a snug fit and her thigh pressed warmly against his.
“Talk to me, Dusk.” The rain intensified, a rush of drops muting the sound of the thunder. It was as if they were completely isolated in the glass bubble around them. “Tell me about yourself. Tell me…”
“About the mask?”
“I…”
“It’s all right. Really. You’d have asked sooner if you’d been able to see me in greater detail.”
“I would not.” She poured outrage dramatically into her words and rested a hand on her bosom. “That would have been appallingly bad taste.”
He was quiet for a moment, and then she grinned. “Just joking.”
His body relaxed, and she sensed the tension drain away. “You are very good at that.” He tapped the back of her hand with his warm fingers. “Bad girl.”
She laughed. “Sorry. But I did mean it. Talk to me. This is…an evening I want to remember. Help me?”
He took a breath. “There’s little to tell. I always loved science, but my background wasn’t the sort to land me in university. I had the benefit of a basic education, but there was no real money to send me any further. Going into service seemed the most logical course. I wasn’t interested in the military as a career.”
“Don’t like guns?”
“Don’t like to be told what to do.”
“Ah. And yet you’re still working for somebody else. Amazing.” She snickered.
“Hush.” Dusk nudged her. “Save your teasing for when I’m finished.”
“Sorry.”
“I was very lucky. Some might even say blessed. I fo
und a position with a scientist in Oxfordshire. A young man, about my own age, incredibly brilliant and committed to his research with total focus and complete dedication. He was fascinated with various compounds, how they blended, what sort of synergistic interaction they produced…that sort of thing. We ended up working side by side—almost as colleagues rather than master and servant.”
“You enjoyed it. And you liked him.”
Felicia’s eyes were closed as she listened, her acute hearing picking up the nuances of his words. She felt the slight motion of his body as he nodded. “I did. Right on both counts.”
“There was an accident, wasn’t there?”
“Right again.” Dusk paused for a moment. “I suppose it was inevitable. Neither of us knew as much as we should have about the compounds we were using. The wrong proportions of some of the ones we had on hand—disaster in a beaker.”
“How bad?”
“As bad as it gets. It literally blew me out of the small laboratory, through the French doors and out into the garden.” His arm moved and Felicia opened her eyes. She saw the motion of his dark arm as it lifted to his face. He was touching the mask.
“It also lashed me with half a container of chemicals. They…they burned.”
She touched him then, daringly resting her hand on the strong thigh next to hers. “And your master?”
“Did not survive.”
Silence fell, broken only by the sounds of the storm as it roiled overhead. The thunder was weakening, being replaced in ferocity by the pounding rain. Snug inside, Felicia waited, letting the sadness of Dusk’s tale wash over her.
“I’m sorry. I’m depressing you again.” Dusk shifted fractionally, moving his thigh away from hers.
She sensed his unspoken withdrawal and would have none of it. “Give me your hand please.” She held out hers, palm up.
Hesitantly, his warmth surrounded her, and she folded her fingers together. “There,” she said with satisfaction. “Better. Now I feel like I am truly sharing a special evening with a special friend.”
“Thank you, Felicia.”
“Silly. There’s nothing to thank me for. Just finish your story please?”
He sighed. “Not much more to tell. I spent some difficult months healing and trying to deal with my disfigurement. Then, one day when I was about ready to look for work once more and my family about ready to throw me out of the door, I met Dr. Pierce. He was brilliant in his own sphere, electromagnetism, about which I knew little. He was looking for a servant—more of an all-purpose fellow—and lived here, on the Isle of Wight. What more could I ask for?”
“Your mask?”
“Well yes. It wasn’t long before he asked if he might try something…he was very good at making an order sound more like a suggestion. And although I was hesitant, I let him try his hand—this is the result. As soon as I put it on…well, it may sound stupid, but I suddenly felt like a man of mystery, not a man to be pitied. It seemed as if my presence changed overnight from frightening to intriguing.”
“Can I touch it, please? If you don’t mind?”
“Of course not.” Dusk turned and took her hand, lifting it and placing her palm against the cool metal that covered half his face.
As before, she closed her eyes, letting her fingers “see” the detail. She moved slowly, stroking the different textures, noting the tiny hairs comprising an eyebrow and the strong cheekbone beneath the opening for Dusk’s eye. Something warm stirred inside her and she raised her other hand to his unscarred side. “And this too, if I may?”
He murmured something unintelligible as she cupped his face, her hands caressing in a matching fashion. His open cheek was warm, slightly rough as his end-of-day beard was starting to show through. She touched the delineation between clear skin and mask and then worked her way downward, daringly touching his lips with feather-light brushes of her fingertips.
She felt them part, then felt them tense into the lightest of kisses. She smiled at the gentle caress.
Then gasped as they parted again and he sucked one of her fingers deeply into his mouth.
“Oh.” A shiver coursed down her spine at the sensation of his hot wet tongue circling her sensitive flesh. And again “Ohhh…”
He released her. “I’ve been wanting to do that for ages, it seems. I’ll apologize for the liberty if you wish, but I hope you won’t ask me to. I hope you found it…pleasant.”
“Pleasant is a masterful understatement.” She choked out the words, every nerve ending she possessed jumping around and on the verge of screaming in shocked delight.
She heard his low chuckle and knew he was closer to her now. Close enough to slide an arm around her waist and lift her—up, up onto his lap. “Then forgive me if I do this, as well…”
Without further ado, he kissed her.
His mouth moved gently at first, learning her, pressed warmly to hers. Then he sighed, and his tongue flicked out to lick the seam of her lips and force its way inside.
Force wasn’t necessary. She was opening for him even as he delved within, as eager as he to learn, to explore, to find that wet warmth and that unique taste lurking there. He was solid, his arms banding her like steel, encompassing her in his heat, holding her possessively within his embrace.
She’d never been so aware of her diminutive stature, her sensitive fingers or her womanhood. Dusk was appealing to all three. He held her easily, felt good beneath her hands as she stroked whatever part she could reach, and started a fire low in her body that threatened to engulf her from her eyebrows to her toenails.
He made a sound of pleasure. “Oh yes, Felicia. I knew. I knew as soon as I picked you up from the quay and felt how right you were in my arms.”
“Dusk, I…” she stuttered, her heart stuttering at the same time.
“I know. I won’t rush you. But fair warning, I will be kissing you at every opportunity.”
Laughter and desire warred beneath his words, and her own desires leaped to life. It scared her. “I’m not a young woman, Dusk. No longer attractive or appealing. I’m a widow as well as being almost as blind as a bat. I don’t know if I can give you what you need.”
“When you’ve figured out what I need, I’ll let you decide.” He pulled her back against his chest. “Sometimes the heart can see better than the eyes. Look with your heart, Felicia. Everything else is unimportant.”
“In that case…” She paused, knowing her next words could change matters between them. “Please—kiss me again? Without your mask.”
She sensed his stillness, his utter immobility. And prayed it was simply due to her unexpected request—nothing more. She didn’t want to be a conquest or another name on a man’s list of women he’d bedded. If Dusk were sincere, he’d be ready to reveal himself in more ways than one.
Then, after what seemed like a lifetime, he moved and reached for his face. Her heart thudded so loud she swore it rivaled the storm outside.
He made a tiny sound, more of a sigh than a word.
And kissed her again. Without his mask.
The storm that had swept over the coastline of the Isle of Wight left little evidence of its fury in its wake. There were puddles, of course. One or two branches blown down, but overall no damage to the Brass Pluggit or its environs.
Minnie smiled happily at the brilliant blue sky and the sunlight glittering off the ocean as she walked into the large living room, appetite sharp and emotions sizzling with energetic bliss.
She nearly tripped when she caught sight of Felicia there before her. And if Minnie wasn’t mistaken, Dusk had just dropped a kiss on her hand before pouring tea in her cup.
Well, well. Wasn’t this interesting?
Minnie cleared her throat. Loudly. “Good morning. What a perfectly marvelous day.” She pulled her chair out and sat down. “How are we all this morning?”
“Tea, Miss Minnie?”
“Yes please.” She glanced at Dusk, who was imperturbable as always. “Did you sleep well, Felicia?”
Minnie snickered.
“What?” Felicia asked the question with a properly and delightfully inquiring tone.
Minnie snickered some more. “Well, I’m sitting here grinning from ear to ear and you’re sitting there with beard burn.”
There was a moment’s utter and complete silence. A silence so loud it was deafening.
Then Dusk made a muted sound, which was probably a laugh he was trying to strangle.
And Felicia’s lips began to curve.
Within moments all three of them were laughing, something which obviously pleased Pierce who chose that moment to join them.
“A happy group this morning, I see.”
More laughter greeted his statement, and he blinked. Then he took Minnie’s cup and sniffed it curiously. “Hmm. Smells like tea. But you’re all giggling like it was a double shot of my best brandy. Including you, Dusk, which is highly irregular.”
Minnie leaned toward him and smiled, feeling as if the sunshine outside had settled inside as well. “It would appear that Dusk and Felicia also…um…enjoyed the storm last night.”
“Uh…pardon?”
She rolled her eyes. “Felicia and Dusk. Together. Enjoying. The. Storm.”
Pierce looked confused. Then he straightened and threw a disbelieving glance at his friend. “Dusk?”
“Sir?” Dusk stared back imperturbably.
“You devil.”
Felicia put her head down on her hands and howled with laughter.
It took a little time to restore order to the breakfast table. Blushes were finally set aside, laughter controlled and it was a cheerful foursome who shared the marmalade and drained the teapot.
However, it wasn’t too long before personal matters took a backseat to their project and plans for the day.
“I’d like to get a look at the Godolphin property.” Minnie glanced out the window. “Do you think we could manage that?”