“I love you.” Truly, there was nothing more to say, and that was extremely freeing. When she rose onto her knees, he guided the head of his member to her opening, and as she slowly, oh so damned slowly, impaled herself on his length, a shuddering sigh left his throat. This woman was his, now and forever, and for the first time in a long while, he was… happy.
Perhaps more a grateful sod was a better description.
Up and down, she moved her body, sliding with exquisite perfection along his shaft, over and over and over with her gaze holding his with each pass. “This is an interesting position, of course,” she whispered against his lips and then was apparently distracted in kissing him or learning the secrets of his mouth. “But I need more. To feel you… more.” Passion drugged her arctic blue depths. “I want to feel protected by you, wrapped up in everything that you are, know that beyond a doubt, you would have chosen me despite the quickness of our courtship.” The tiny sliver of worry in her voice tugged at his heart.
“All right.” Gently, he urged her off his lap. If he weren’t careful, he’d explode, and their outing would end in embarrassment. With his lips at the shell of her ear, he said, “Lie on the floor and hold your knees to your chest.” As she did so, he followed her down. He settled between her splayed legs, planted his elbows on either side of her to encompass her body within the cage of his arms while holding her head in his palms. “Is this better?” With one powerful thrust of his hips, he speared into her, burying himself in her tight heat until they were irrevocably joined.
“Yes! Oh, goodness, yes.” Tears filled her eyes as she wrapped her arms about his shoulders and tucked her legs about his. “I can feel all of you now, and it’s, oh it’s…”
“I know.” Then there was no more need for words. William set out to worship her body with his, to show her how much he adored her, and that he’d always choose her.
Again and again, he stroked into her sweet passage. Over and over, he lost himself in the glory of his wife-to-be. She held him close, encouraged him even closer with the subtle tightening of her fingers and legs, and he obeyed with an alacrity that both surprised and amused him. The rocking of the carriage, the clatter of the wheels over the road became an almost soothing backdrop. This woman held his heart in her more than capable hands; she’d never break it, but he couldn’t imagine a more perfect place to rest it. As he stared into her eyes and she looked back, pieces of his soul flew into her keeping. What was more, he became distinctly aware that she’d given him the same gift. Much like the day they’d made love in her drawing room, this joining told him that everything he’d fought for had been worth it if only to land this exquisitely flawed woman who made him better, accepted his flaws, with every day that went by.
Emotions clogged his throat. His pulse roared in his ears. “I’m so damn grateful for you.” William pressed his forehead to hers, and when a moan escaped her, that tiny little sound broke the hold on his control. Need tingled through his stones, drawing them tight to his body. His rhythm changed, quickened, rubbing against her nubbin, and he stroked into her with more authority, hoping to send her flying before he spent.
Hiccup!Her body convulsed from the reaction, and he needn’t have worried.
Already primed, Francesca slipped over the edge into bliss with a cry of surprise. William kissed her, selfishly taking her sounds of release for himself, and with another forceful thrust, he hurtled into the abyss where the vortex sucked him under, and bright stars burst behind his closed eyelids.
Hiccup!
William snorted with laughter. Good Lord, she was incredible as well as adorable. He ground his hips into hers in an effort to prolong the wild sensations coursing through his body. What other wonders would he discover about her in the future?
Eventually, his shaft ceased to pump, and he lay still with her cradled in his arms. There was something to be said for intercourse after emotions had been engaged. It was quite a transcendent experience, and he felt closer to Francesca than he ever had before. “Pardon me for being the cad and taking you on the floor of the carriage,” he whispered into her ear.
“Oh, la!” She playfully smacked his shoulder while a few tears fell to wet her cheeks. “I am as guilty as you.”
“Perhaps.” In this they were well-matched. He kissed away the moisture on her skin. “You don’t have regrets about marrying me when you could have had someone—”
She pressed two fingers to his lips. “I’ve made my choice and I’m so happy with you that I could burst.”
“I believe you already did that, at least twice just now,” he added in a barely-there whisper.
Hiccup!
Hiccup!
They both dissolved into laughter. A loud guffaw from George sent them into another peal of giggles, for how could anyone not laugh? The hiccups were endearingly funny. William pulled himself onto a bench. He wrapped his arms around her when she joined him.
“I can’t wait to marry you. My grandmother told me shortly before she died that I’d marry a powerful man and be a grand lady.” When she pressed her lips together, her chin quivered. “I don’t need a title or to even be a lady, for I’m content with who I am, but she was right about the other thing.”
“Oh?” He could scarcely breathe.
“Yes. You are a powerful man, William, and you take my breath away at times. I adore the way you make me feel wanted, protected… cherished.”
“You are, all those things, to me.”
“Good.” She brought one of his hands to her lips and pressed a kiss into his palm. “I can’t wait to see what the future will bring us.”
“And I can’t wait to see how else you’ll manage to surprise both me as well as all of London.” He sighed against her hair. “But I must warn you. The Storme family is a bit much to take all at once.”
An unladylike snort escaped her. “I’m already aware of that. I met them at the Christmastide house party, and Jane has told me enough about them. We’ve been friends forever.” She laid her head against his shoulder while she tugged her bodice into place. “Besides, she is married to your cousin Finn. Jane can help me navigate the waters if things go sideways.”
“True.” There was a certain comfort in that. “Francesca?” He did up the buttons of his frontfalls.
“Hmm?”
“I don’t want you to stop being a reporter merely because we’re married. Your father issued that ultimatum, and—”