Ellen was of a mind to have a little fun with her beloved. “I do take offense,” she said, twisting in his arms so that she faced away from him, her back pressed against his chest.
“You do?” Joseph tensed with worry and lifted slightly to gaze over her shoulder at her.
“Yes,” Ellen said with mock seriousness. “And I think you apologize and make it up to me.”
“Yes, yes, of course, darling. Just tell me how,” he said.
Ellen grinned at his near panic. “Like this,” she said, reaching for his hand, which rested on her hip.
She lifted her leg up over his thigh, parting hers enough so that she could guide his hand down to her clitoris. She wasn’t certain if he knew what his touch would do to her, but if she was going to teach him to be the sort of lover she wanted, then it was the perfect place to start.
“Oh, are you quite certain—” Joseph started, his hand tensing as if he would pull it away, as she placed his fingers where she wanted them.
He stopped protesting and let out a shaky breath as she moved his hand in exactly the right way, then sucked in a breath as ripples of pleasure radiated through her. She let the breath out on a sound of pleasure that Joseph echoed with a heavy breath and moved her hips to increase the sensation.
Joseph caught on swiftly. He followed her unspoken instructions at first, then, perhaps driven by curiosity, he explored her body more fully. It was intimate and sweet. She guided him by the sounds she made and by her body’s involuntary reaction to his touch. His breath turned ragged against her neck and shoulder, and he kissed her a few times as he learned how to drive her wild.
He might have been a novice at pleasuring a woman, but it was more than enough for her. In no time, the coil of pleasure within her burst, sending shuddering waves of pleasure through her. Joseph groaned as well as ecstasy enveloped her, and just as she reached the height of her orgasm, she felt a warm wetness spread across her lower back and the top of her backside.
“Oh, God, I’m so sorry,” Joseph groaned, catching his breath.
Ellen laughed, then twisted to face him again. “Sorry for what?” she giggled, brushing one hand over the side of his heated face and leaning in to kiss him.
“I…I lost control,” he admitted with the most beautiful, sheepish look Ellen had ever seen.
She continued to grin and giggle as she kissed him. “Isn’t that what you’re supposed to do when you’re being naughty with someone?” she asked, gazing at his flushed face with adoration.
“I thought the point was…to…inside,” he said, adorably bashful.
“I think the point is to enjoy each other,” she said, kissing him again. “And I enjoyed that immensely.”
He seemed to turn a corner in his mind, and instead of continuing to feel sheepish, he rolled her fully to her back and kissed her until they were both breathless.
It was a magnificent way to wake up—one Ellen hoped to repeat many times over. She truly didn’t mind the mess or the lack of coordination. She felt closer to Joseph by haphazardly feeling pleasure with him, whether it was through conjunction or not, than she ever had with that ranch hand.
Evidently, that wasn’t a secret she would be able to keep, though.
Once she and Joseph got out of bed and washed, as he dressed in his suit from the ball and she donned a simple skirt and blouse, he said, “You’ve been with someone else before, haven’t you.”
Ellen glanced to him with a bashful smile from where she had just taken up her hairbrush. “Yes,” she admitted, “but only once.” She could see the slightly lost look on Joseph’s face, so she rushed on with, “It was silly, really. He was a ranch hand on my father’s ranch, and I was bored and feeling lonely. It just…happened.”
“Did he take advantage of you?” Joseph asked, looking as though he would swim across the ocean and march to Wyoming to deal with the man.
“No,” Ellen laughed. “Just foolish. We both felt awkward afterward, and neither of us told a soul.” She finished brushing her hair and walked over to help him straighten his tie. “You don’t need to feel badly about it one way or another,” she said. “It happened before I knew you existed. If I had known, I would have waited.”
Joseph let out a breath and glanced down for a moment. “If I had known you would come into my life and be so wonderful, I wouldn’t have waited.”
Ellen’s eyes went wide, and she looked up at him. “You wouldn’t have?”
“No,” he said, standing a bit taller and caressing her face. “Because I should have been better for you. I should have known more and had more experience so I could give you more pleasure.”
Ellen’s heart melted at the unusual sentiment. She slipped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his shoulder. “Like I said, I have no complaints at all. I don’t need some lothario who knows everything about pleasuring women, I just need one wonderful man that I love.”
She felt Joseph take a breath, then glanced up to see his smile.
“I truly do love you,” he said, cradling her face for a moment, then kissing her soundly.
“Good,” Ellen said, shifting moods and stepping back from him. “You’re going to need that love to keep you strong as you attempt to leave this house when my sister and brother-in-law are probably sitting in the breakfast room at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for the two of us to emerge.”