In Venice, they made their way to the first address on her mother's list, and found themselves in the company of her mother's sister, an elderly woman who must have been much older than Alessandra's mother, they both guessed.
"Oh my dear! How wonderful to meet you at last. Your mother and I did keep in touch for many years, but then real life started to get in the way of writing, for both of us, and I have not heard from her for … oh at least 10 years I think," the woman said to Alessandra as they settled in a room like Alessandra had never seen, with its level of opulence. She and Edward had to strain to listen carefully, as the accent was far more intense than the lesser accent her mother had had.
"Oh, but Aunt, do you know that … my mother…" Alessandra started to say and the older woman leaned in to touch her hand lightly.
"I do know that my sister passed away, Alessandra. Your father sent word when it happened," she said and paused before continuing, looking closely at Alessandra. "You look much like she did at your age."
Alessandra shook her head.
"Oh no, my mother was very beautiful…"
The older woman touched her hand once more.
"Yes, Alessandra, she was … as are you."
Quickly Alessandra changed the subject, knowing it was not true but not wanting to cause offence. For the rest of that day they talked and talked, and Edward and Alessandra both enjoyed hearing about the life of her mother, from childhood right up until the time when Alessandra was born.
"She loved your father so much, sometimes I was quite jealous. Both of our marriages were arranged by our parents, and I loved my husband enough, but what your mother had with your father was something much, much more. I can see that you have that in you, too, Alessandra - I see the way you and your husband look at each other. Enjoy it - embrace it - and work hard to keep it so."
* * * * *
For the following week Alessandra met cousins and she and Edward felt like they were in a new world, being taken to see opera and dining in the most exquisite buildings they had ever seen. When it was time to start their return journey, Edward felt her sadness.
"We shall come back again, Alessandra. When the children are all grown much more, we will come back as a family," he assured her and felt her rest her head on his shoulder in their carriage.
"Yes, let us do that. But Edward, I should like to have more children by then," she replied softly and he pushed her away gently to look at her. They were both silent, deep in thought, whilst looking into one another's eyes. "Will you … tonight …?" she asked and heard him breathe out deeply.
"Yes."
* * * * *
On the return ship journey, Edward took his time pleasuring her, kissing her everywhere and using his hands and tongue to bring her easily to orgasm with the level of arousal she already had, and he revelled in the feelings once more of how it felt to be inside of her whilst the ship moved in its erratic way. More and more, he found that they both enjoyed the extended time that could happen with his withdrawal when he needed to, and then moving back inside her. And now that he knew she wished for another child, they moved together until he climaxed heavily inside of her.
"Oh my darling," he breathed out heavily as he felt himself have the orgasm, feeling the great moistness inside of her.
Alessandra held him close to her, appreciating that this level freedom would soon end. Their time together like this she appreciated so much, and loved the need she constantly felt to be close to him - to being able to touch him - to have him moving inside her.
She was ready to go home, though, she found. She missed her little ones, and longed to see them and to hold them.
Edward pulled out of her but stayed lying on top of her, kissing her lips and looking into her eyes.
"What is it?" he asked when he saw emotion on her face.
"I am looking forward to seeing our babies," she said, letting out a small cry, and he smiled at her indulgently.
"Oh my beautiful wife, and mother of my children, we will be home soon. Once we arrive at Dover it will be a short time indeed."
She smiled at him, her wonderful husband, and the love she felt made her pull his head down and kiss him again before pushing him onto his back, and taking much time to pleasure him with her hands and mouth, over and over, before sitting astride him and taking her time to move up and down on him.
Edward watched her moving, thinking that he would never in his lifetime see anything so beautiful as what his wife looked like right then.
Chapter Seventy Six
Pulling up to the manor, they saw both of their parents on the front doorstep, along with Margaret and the children, and Edward laughed at his wife's excitement as she started to squeeze his hand tightly, and move around on the seat.
Alessandra threw herself from the carriage and ran up to where her children were, first kneeling down to pull Elizabeth into her arms, her eldest daughter who had reached out with her arms for a hug, with a look on her face that said clearly that she hoped she would receive the desired arms of her mother around her.
"Oh how much I have missed you, Elizabeth! Are you well?" Alessandra asked and felt her daughter nod against her.
Alessandra hugged her tightly again before kissing her forehead and then standing to take Isabella from Margaret, and holding her close.
"Oh my, how you have grown, little one! And so heavy now!" she laughed, so happy to be home.
Beside her she saw Edward kneel and pick up Elizabeth to give her a hug.
"How have you been, my beautiful daughter?" he asked her gently and she shyly responded.
"Good, Father."
He laughed softly at her timidness and kissed her cheek, and as always, determined not to push too hard with her to speak, as she seemed to suffer her mother's 'beetroot face' whenever the attention was put onto her too much, which he accurately perceived to be something that she was starting to be embarrassed about. Instead he just held her tightly against him until she was ready to let him go.
Finally Alessandra heard her mother-in-law usher them all inside. When all were settled in the drawing room, Alessandra with Charles now in her arms and Elizabeth cuddling into her side, and Edward with Isabella on his lap, they told all about the adventures they had had, and the family she had met.
"Oh Father, it was so wonderful meeting my aunt. She told me so much about Mother's upbringing, it was extraordinary hearing her speak."
Her father enjoyed the vision before him, of his daughter looking so completely happy, and he let himself think back to the early days of his marriage to her mother. But more and more he also felt an increasing sadness, that slowly he was forgetting what his wife had looked like.
He was sitting next to Edward's mother, and as if perceiving that moment to be a sad one for him, she reached out her hand and squeezed his. Edward saw the action, and the look that passed between the two parents, and felt a confusing array of feelings. He had never seen his mother be affectionate toward anyone other than his father so it initially caused a slight amount of anger, but then he saw the look in his mother's eyes, and knew he could not be angry at her. Looking at her objectively he could see that she was still a beautiful woman, and must be incredibly lonely with his father not around. But before he could dwell on it any more, the moment passed and was forgotten.
* * * * *
As the day moved on, Alessandra and Edward went with Margaret to the nursery, to settle the children down for the night, and Alessandra found herself pulled into a hug by Elizabeth.
"Please don't go, Mother," she asked in her timid little voice, and Alessandra gave her an extra hug and kiss.
"I am not leaving again, Elizabeth. Your father and I are back to stay now. When you wake up tomorrow, we will still be here. Now cuddle down there in your nice warm bed and close your eyes."
Edward stood near the door, waiting for her, but Alessandra felt inclined to stay for another moment with her daughter, to make sure she was alright. When she was sure Elizabeth was relaxed
and falling asleep, Alessandra stood up and walked to her husband, put her arms around him and they stood in a quiet hold for some time, looking at their family before them, before quietly leaving the room.
"I enjoyed our time away immensely, but it is also good to be home, Edward," Alessandra said as he started to help her undress. "Although I am so tired."
He smiled at her and kissed her softly.
"Well it has been a very active few weeks, my love," he said, and she accurately understood his double meaning, making her giggle. "Perhaps tonight, in our own bed, we might … rest."
Alessandra laughed with him, while blushing slightly.
"Perhaps."
Chapter Seventy Seven
"I don't understand, Mother. What do you mean you are leaving?" Edward asked, uncomprehending of what was being said to him.
She looked at her son - still a man she would never consider handsome but who had made her so proud because of the man, the husband and the father that he was.
"Alessandra's father wants to go and live at Missinger Estate with his son for a while, to spend time with him, and he has invited me to join him."
"But you have a home here."
The two of them were talking in the 'glass jungle room', away from the rest of the family.
Edward heard his mother take a deep breath, and let out a sigh.
"Edward, you are settled with your own family now, and while you and Alessandra were away in Italy, I found myself missing your father deeply, and Alessandra's father was there. We are good companions and we have both lost our loved ones. Why should it surprise you that we wish to spend more time together?"
His mind wandering, Edward found it difficult to feel happy about what was happening, but did not want to express displeasure to her. Not when she had given him so much in his lifetime.
"Do you … love him?" he asked as one final question, trying to understand.
"I think I am beginning to, yes. I have been lonely, and he understands that loneliness very well. It makes things easy between us. And when I look at you and Alessandra, I do, in the depths of my soul, want to find that again before I leave this world, Edward. I want to feel loved."
Edward did not say anything more, and they sat together peacefully, each thinking about their own views and their own needs.
* * * * *
At the same time, walking out in the garden, Alessandra found herself drawn into a similar discussion with her father.
"I love her, Alessandra. I did not think I would love anyone again, but when it was just the two of us here, I found her to be a good person to lean on in my loneliness," he was saying, but somehow the news did not surprise his daughter at all. "And I do want to spend time with Nicholas while I can, so moving to Missinger Estate is the easiest way for me to do that."
He stopped walking and took both of his daughter's hands in his.
"Say something, Daughter. I do not wish to upset you."
Alessandra looked at her father and smiled at him.
"Oh Father, no! You have not upset me. After all you have been through, it is only natural that you should want companionship, and if Edward's mother is the lucky woman to secure your attentions, I am very happy for you both," she said and they started to walk once again. "And it is only fair that you go and spend time with Nicholas. I have had you all to myself all this time - it is certainly time he had his turn."
* * * * *
That night in bed Edward was assertive in his attentions to her, as if driven by an even greater need than normal. As he lay down next to her, she looked closely at him, wondering what he was thinking.
"Are you upset by the news of our parents?" she asked him tentatively, not wishing to upset him.
He looked at her and pulled her closer.
"No. It does make me feel a little … strange … but I cannot be upset at them. Whenever I think of losing you, I can imagine the deep feeling of loneliness they each must feel at times, so I know that I need to be happy for them. For now, it is just … odd."
They lay quiet but Alessandra determined that he would not go to sleep with that conversation the last thing in his head, so moved herself to kiss him everywhere - his lips, his neck, down to his nipples and over his belly, before taking him in her mouth and giving him the kind of pleasure he had not taken for some time.
"Oh my love…"
Chapter Seventy Eight
The final goodbyes were said and on the manor doorstep Alessandra and Edward each hugged their individual parents tightly, not knowing when - or if - they would ever see them again.
Alessandra's father laughed at his daughter.
"We will not be that far away, and it is your house we will be staying at, Alessandra, so come and visit us there. This is not goodbye forever, my child," he said, hugging her once more.
Then they were in a carriage, and driving away, leaving two lost souls standing and watching them disappear in the distance. When they could not see them anymore, Edward turned to his wife.
"The house will not be the same now, with it just being you and I, my lovely wife. And our three children, of course," he said, turning and giving her a full hug, holding her tight.
"Not for long I do not think, Edward," Alessandra said, quietly in his ear as she returned the hug.
He breathed her in - her scent, the feeling of her cheek on his, the feeling of her breasts against his chest - and he started to feel aroused at being so close to her, until the words sank in.
"What?" he asked, pulling away abruptly. "Who else is leaving?"
Alessandra laughed at him joyfully and he was entranced by the happiness on her face. She did not answer him, but let him think about things in his own time, as she started to kiss him all over his face, smiling brilliantly all the while.
He pulled away again and looked at her with a grin beginning.
"You are … pregnant?" he asked and she laughed again.
"Yes, I think so. In fact I am very certain, my wonderful husband. Our family of three will soon be a family of four."
Edward looked at her, knowing he should feel simply happiness at the news, but somehow it fuelled him more and he dismissed the idea of doing any work for the rest of the day, as he took his wife's hand and led her inside, and upstairs, to show her exactly how happy she made him.
* * * * *
The End
Thank you!
Thank you so much for reading my book, 'Alessandra'. I greatly enjoyed writing this story and I appreciate your enthusiasm for reading it.
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New Release: The Golden Desires
By Ann M Pratley
He wanted to escape. They needed to survive.
When Isabella starts to dream of a stranger, she is awakened inside with feelings she has never felt before. She knows he is not someone she has ever seen before, and he is not of her village. He is a stranger, and she is desperate to determine if he is real or he is a part of her imagination.
Far away a businessman desperate to escape the noise and stress of the city, embarks on a journey to find peace and the solitude he increasingly needs and desires. But at his destination he will find much, much more.
Introducing: Painful Deliverance
(PAINFUL DELIVERANCE SERIES - BOOK #1)
By Ann M Pratley
She just wasn't made to inflict pain.
She knows it is nothing abnormal. She knows others enjoy it. But with every new level of pain he directs her to deliver to him, Alexis feels another piece of her soul die. He has wealth and he has power, and she knows he won't easily let her go.
But she has to leave. Escape. Move on. Forget. She has reached her limit of wha
t she can do. The plans are in place to get away. She just has to hope that wherever she goes - whoever she meets - she won't find herself in exactly the same situation again.
Introducing: Darkness Of Heart
(PAINFUL DELIVERANCE SERIES - BOOK #2)
By Ann M Pratley
She thought he'd stopped looking. He hadn't.
She got away from him to start a new life. She moved on. But in his mind, he still loves her and needs her. He still believes that she loves him. That she is meant to be his. That he is meant to be hers.
He will not give up searching for her. He will not give up fighting for her. He will pursue her and stop at nothing to get her back. But it will come at a cost … a sacrifice much greater than he will see coming. A sacrifice that will finally wake him up and bring him back to stark reality.
Introducing: Friendship Of Desire
(PAINFUL DELIVERANCE SERIES - BOOK #3)
By Ann M Pratley
Tom and Samantha. Feisty friends from childhood who feel like they know each other inside out, until the day comes when one of them suggests they go to a BDSM club together, and become formal play partners. Pushing the limits of what each of them can individually stand in their lifelong friendship, they attract and repel like magnets, until the time comes when they must choose how they will relate to one another - and what kind of relationship they will go on to have in the future.
Alessandra Page 28