“Pleasant. We have a lot of tourism in the autumn months,” he replied.
Something touched the top of my thigh, brushing over my garter, and I jerked, barely able to keep my body still. I looked down before I could stop myself. My thigh was bared by the slit in my dress and the deep purple and black garter was exposed. Peregrine’s fingers were looped beneath the lace, caressing my bare skin with slow circles. His touch burned like fire.
Olivia caught my gaze across the table and her brows drew together in a silent question. I frowned and she jerked her head to the door, getting to her feet.
“I’m going to grab some more wine,” she said, bending to kiss Lucien’s temple. “Lia, will you lend a hand?”
In the hall, she turned to me, her brows scrunched.
“What was that? You jumped a foot in the air,” she whispered.
I looked down, pushing aside my skirt. “It was just Peregrine touching my leg, but I’m so jumpy around Merrick that it scared me.”
“I don’t like him being here,” she said. “But apparently it’s very important they make a good impression with him.”
She chewed her lip and ducked into the kitchen and returned with another bottle of wine. “Shift your chair away from Merrick when you sit down. I’m sorry you ended up having to sit next to him.”
When we returned to the table, the conversation had shifted to the economy of Providence. It was a boring conversation that dragged on forever. Outside it began raining in earnest, the wind whipping against the windows. Mrs. Greene brought out dessert wine and spiced rum cake. I was beginning to feel a little dizzy from tiredness and alcohol and I found myself sinking back against my chair.
“Will you stay for the Autumnal Feast?” Lucien asked.
I looked up, frowning. Unsure what they were talking about.
“I hope to,” said Merrick. “It depends on some business I have at home. My ward graduates college next year and this fall break is my last chance to see her before spring. I’ll be gone for Christmas.”
I watched him quietly, wondering what the Autumnal Feast was and why Merrick had a strange expression on his face when he talked about his ward.
“Shall we discuss business?” Lucien said, rising and pulling out Olivia’s chair. “I believe Mrs. Greene has prepped the guestrooms so everyone has a pleasant place to stay tonight. No need to go out into the storm.”
“I’m exhausted,” Olivia said, rising with her hand on her belly.
She wore a stretchy white dress that accentuated her growing stomach. I caught Merrick’s gaze on her as Lucien helped her to her feet.
“When is the baby due?” he asked.
“Around Christmas,” Olivia said, smiling. “It can’t get here soon enough.”
He dipped his head as he rose. “Your husband is very lucky, Mrs. Esposito, you wear your pregnancy very well.”
“I am,” said Lucien coldly.
Upstairs in our shared bedroom, I lay beneath black silk and listened to the faint sounds of the men talking downstairs. In the corner, the angel stood in shadowy silence, a buffer against my roiling thoughts. After a few hours, the door opened and Peregrine walked in and began undressing. He slipped between the sheets and his hard, lean hand reached for me in the dark.
“Open your legs, kitten,” he said hoarsely.
His voice was thick with something desperate. He smelled of whiskey and his short beard was rough as he kissed up my throat. He pushed my slip up and bent over my pussy and spat onto my sex. His fingers slipped over my entrance, spreading his saliva, and then he pulled my hips down toward his cock. His length was hard and insistent as it entered me, leaving ripples of pain in his wake.
He pounded into me and I lay beneath him and took it, shamefully aroused by his need. My nipples were hard and I ached with pleasure as his cock stroked the deepest parts of me. Even the scent of alcohol on his breath was erotic, like I was getting a taste of his desperation.
“You’re mine, Rosalia,” he said through gritted teeth. “My wife, my woman. Do you understand me?”
“I do,” I whispered, frightened.
He thrust, his face like stone. “Mine. My pussy. My fucking pussy. Tell me it’s mine.”
“It’s yours,” I said, clinging to him in a sea of confusion.
He groaned, almost snarling. “Tell me that you’re my property. Say it just like that.”