She smiled. “I would have the opposite problem.”
“Which one?” he asked.
“How to choose only one,” she chuckled. He instantly joined in. She loved the way their laughter merged together. They fit so well. But she banished the thought quickly.
“Come,” he suddenly called her over. Stiffly, she obeyed, standing by his side. He then proceeded to tell her about his favorite books, and she listened intently. “I love fairy tales,” he suddenly told her.
“You do?” she asked, her eyes wide with disbelief.
“Mhm,” he nodded, then shrugged. “I know it’s not what a man ought to read, but they remind me of simpler times when life was so much easier.”
“I know what you mean,” she said, washed over by melancholy. “My mother always used to read fairytales to us before bedtime,” she admitted. “For a very long time, I didn’t dare pick up that book which she read to us. It was frightful to know that her fingers would never touch it again, that her voice would never fill our ears. It… hurt.”
She was overpowered by sadness, and before she even knew it, she was locked in his embrace. She was terrified of this sudden emotion that bloomed inside of her, of this need to be worshipped by him, of this need to constantly be by his side. After all, was that not exactly the reason she was here?
She closed her eyes, allowing the moment to completely overcome her. Gently, his lips caressed her ear. It was a soft touch. She barely felt it at first. She thought she imagined it. But his tongue followed quickly enough. Her skin became inflamed instantly. They were the same flames she had come to recognize during the two previous times they kissed.
Unexpectedly, he pulled away then he walked over to the door, locking them both in the library. Lydia swallowed heavily. Her heart was not hers any longer. Neither was her body. It all belonged to him. However, that was a secret she did not plan on divulging right now. Perhaps not ever. As for the time being, she would live in the moment.
He wrapped his hands around her waist pulling her closer to him. She had fallen under his spell during that first kiss. She knew that now. His kiss was more passionate than ever before as it moved from her lips to her earlobe, down to her throat, nipping at it. He flicked his tongue over neck, leaving a wet spot that seemed to burn with heat that exploded in her chest, only to travel down her belly, landing right between her thighs. She knew this ache from before, but it had never been so powerful, so throbbing, so yearning.
His skillful fingers liberated her from her robe, revealing just a thin, silken nightrobe that barely hid the curves of her body from his sight. The look that he gave her was a look of desire, of complete surrender. She had to look away quickly because if she kept looking at him, she feared that he would set them both aflame, this entire library included.
But he would not let her look away. He took her hands and brought them to his lips. He sucked on her fingers tenderly then released them in order to remove all their garments, one at a time. She could not keep her hands off of him. Something else was in charge of her mind. Her fingers found his shoulders easily, caressing them up and down. He felt like a marble statue, only burning on the inside.
“I love it when you touch me, Lydia…” she heard him say, and his voice seemed to do something to her. She felt the same way. She loved it when he touched her. With a trembling hand, she did as she was told. His hand covered hers, leading her up to his shoulders then down his chest again, down his chiseled abdomen. There was nothing appropriate about this, yet there was also nothing wrong with this. Nothing had ever felt more right.
Suddenly, he lowered his forehead to hers. His stare was burning with intention. She knew what that intention would be. She wanted it as much as he although every modicum of honor bade her push him away and run. It was his tenderness that made her remain put. The tips of his fingers gently slid down her arms. His lips were on hers once again, and that was all she could focus on.
She chuckled loudly when he lifted her up and took her to the chaise lounge, laying her down onto it gently. He propped himself up, hovering over her. He didn’t want to look away even for a single second. Yet, she wasn’t ashamed. She was completely naked, her body glistening in the soft light of the candles, but she was unafraid. Unapologetic. His touch on her skin felt natural, the only thing she wanted right now.
Drinking in the sight of her, he lowered himself and planted his lips upon hers once more. She did not dare to open her eyes, to look down at what was poking her between the legs. She knew what it was, of course, and the very thought made her blush fervently.
For a moment, she wondered what he must think of her. She came to him in the middle of the night. She allowed him to disrobe her. She was kissing him back as passionately as he was kissing her and –
His fingers found her hardened nipples. Then, his tongue. Goodness, the things this man knew to do with his tongue. He kissed her breasts reverently as he kept himself propped up on his elbows, never too far away from her. The moment he took one of her nipples into his mouth, she gasped loudly. The lash of his tongue was unbearably pleasurable. Her fingers immediately raked through his fingers, keeping him close. Everything that he did made her feel as if she were riding a tidal wave of pleasure which she never wanted to end.
The more she felt his tongue on her body, the more her throbbing center yearned to feel him inside of her. As if listening to her most inner desires, she felt his hand trail an invisible line down her body, only to part her flower gently.
“Do you like this?” he murmured right into her ear.
All she could do was moan in response. Her entire body writhed in response to what he was doing. The sensation was unlike anything else she had ever felt before. It was so overpowering. She quivered uncontrollably as his finger slowly dipped into her most secret cavern. It was strangely pleasurable, and she could feel herself all wet and needy for him. He kept circling his finger on her tender bud, building up friction.
“Oh, my…” she managed to muster before she felt a sudden explosion inside of her, exactly where he had been touching her. His caresses became more tender, softer, but he did not stop. He kissed her gently as she felt herself float down from the cloud she just climbed up on. The pleasure he brought her was complete, it was indescribable.
When he broke their kiss again, she could see something in his eyes, something she always wanted to see. Was that love? Affection? Tenderness? A moment of heated passion? Or was it an amalgamation of all the above? She didn’t know much at a moment like this, but she knew one thing. Edwin was the one she loved, the one she lived for. Whether she would ever be able to admit her emotions to him… that was a different story.
“Tell me if you wish me to stop,” he said against her lips. She couldn’t imagine a situation where she would tell him to stop. She nodded, swallowing her breath. He could read the desperation in her eyes; she was certain of it.
He lowered his forehead to hers as her legs parted even more, granting him access to her most sacred place. His lips were on hers, kissing her passionately. Then, in a blink of an eye, the world ceased to turn. Everything changed. He slid inside of her slowly, tenderly. It was a sensation she would never be able to describe in mere words. It was painful and pleasurable at the same time. It was hot and cold. It was wonderful and terrifying. Nothing existed but this one moment in time.
She grabbed onto him as if she were clinging to her dear life. Her body reacted to his perfectly. She had never done this before, but her body knew what to do. He moved his hips towards her, thrusting. Every time he entered her more deeply, her desire took a stronger hold of her.
His pace slowly hastened. She clutched at him more hungrily. She bit at his lower lip. Her nails dug into his skin. Their rhythm was wonderful. It brought forth unspeakable delights. Suddenly, her body exploded once again, wrapped up in a more potent euphoria than the one before. She shivered. She trembled. She moaned against his lips. Several moments later, his own body stiffened. He pulled out, and she felt a hot sprinkle of something on her inner thigh.
Still breathing heavily, he lay down next to her, unwilling to release her from his embrace. She had no idea how long they were lying like that. The doors were locked, so she wasn’t afraid that someone might barge in and find them like this. Instead of being petrified at what this would mean, she almost chuckled at the idea.
She closed her eyes, relishing this moment because she didn’t know what would happen after it. She didn’t know, and she didn’t want to know. Not yet at least. She would hold onto it for a few precious seconds longer then she would accept reality whatever it might be.