A Merchant's Daughter

by Arabella Sheen

  Chapter 10

  Emma turned and faced Aaron. They were alone with only the silence of the garden around them.

  “Why did you come here tonight?” she asked. “Was it to humiliate me?” Her voice was hushed. She could feel tears of anger and self-pity welling in her eyes.

  “How have I humiliated you?” Aaron asked, concerned.

  “You told Lord Stratton we are to be married. Did you say that to be rid of him, or was it to give me false hope? You said we had spoken of marriage, but that’s not true.”

  “Nothing I’ve said this evening is untrue. That is, not unless your proposal of marriage to me was insincere. When we were at The Stag and Hounds, did you not mean what you said?”

  “But―”

  “When you offered to help get Windhurst Hall out of the clutches of that bounder, Cuthbert Williams, was it a lie?”

  “No, of course it wasn’t a lie. I meant it. It’s just that… I thought you weren’t interested in me…in marriage…in us being together. Has that changed?”

  In the struggle with Lord Stratton, a sleeve on her silk dress had torn. And of its own accord, her dress slipped lower, revealing an eye-catching amount of décolletage.

  She saw Aaron avert his gaze, but not for long. The swell of her breasts was holding him captive, and she noted he couldn’t take his eyes from her.

  “Come, let us be seated,” he said. “And I will try to explain.”

  Aaron led her to the seclusion of the arbor. They were shrouded in darkness, and although the evening wasn’t cold, the night air had turned chilly. He removed his tailcoat and draped it solicitously around her shoulders. The coat was warm from the heat of his body.

  “Is that better?” he asked.

  He had not taken her into his arms. And he had not yet kissed her, as she longed for him to do. But the enveloping material next to her skin was a reassuring, comforting cocoon.

  “Thank you, yes. Much better.”

  “I’ve tried to find ways to raise the money to save Windhurst Hall, but there are none,” he said. “All the avenues I’ve pursued have come to a dead-end. I’m at a loss to know what I must do, and I have come to seek your help.”

  “I’m listening.”

  “Never before have I relied on anyone, especially a woman, to bail me out of trouble. I’ve always managed, but this time it’s different. This time I’m desperate. I need help. Your help, Emma.”

  Coming from Aaron, that was quite an admission. He had bared his soul, and she could see that saying those few words had been painful for him. His pride, his dignity, and his sense of worth had been bruised.

  “Of course I will help. Just tell me what I’m to do.”

  She touched his hand, hoping to give comfort. Their fingers linked.

  “Marry me,” he said. “If that arrangement is still agreeable to you.”

  Emma wasn’t quibbling. She wasn’t going to play the coy miss and start finding objections to the idea. She had made her decision long ago, and she knew that if Aaron should ever fall in with her proposal, she would marry him in an instant.

  “When would you like the ceremony to take place?” she asked.

  “First, I have to ask your father for his permission. Do you think he will oppose the match?”

  “I doubt it. He’s too eager for me to have children to challenge you. If he knows I’m keen on the idea of becoming your wife, more than likely he will thank you profusely and consent immediately.”

  “Then I think I shall seek him out tonight, this instant, and ask if I may call upon him in the morning. The sooner this is over with, the sooner I shall feel at ease. My only concern is that you will regret not having married Lord Stratton.”

  Aaron stood, and taking hold of her hand, he helped her from the bench.

  “You need not fear. I shall have no regrets on that account. Lord Stratton was not the man for me. He cannot make me feel the way you do.”

  Aaron and Emma followed the path and began walking back toward the lights of the house. The sound of the music could be heard, and she imagined everyone was too busy dancing to have missed them, yet.

  “And how do I make you feel?” he asked.

  She saw a smile in his eyes. Was he remembering how they had made love? Was he teasing her, or was he offering an invitation to indulge in a few flirtatious kisses, here and now, in the moonlight, in the garden?

  It was the wrong question for Aaron to have asked her. A burning heat overcame Emma, and she had to show him the urgent need and desire she was feeling for his touch.

  She stopped and turned to face him. Her arms came out from beneath the folds of his tailcoat, and daringly, she encircled his waist, resting her head against his broad chest.

  “Complete,” she answered. “You make me feel complete.”

  Nothing was new to her. Touching him, caressing him, kissing. She had done it all before when they had made love in the stables and shared a bed at the inn. But this felt different. People were nearby. They could be discovered in the seclusion of the garden at any moment―and that felt illicitly sinful.

  Not caring what Aaron might think, and considering only her own wanton cravings, she drew him with her and hid behind the thick trunk of an old oak tree. Her arms circled his neck, and as she pulled his head down toward her searching lips, his tailcoat fell from her shoulders, landing unheeded on the grass at their feet.

  Eagerly, her hands pulled his shirt from his waistband, and slipping beneath the covering, she began caressing him. His skin was hot to the touch, and as she stroked the taut muscles of his chest, she heard him gasp.

  “We shouldn’t,” he whispered.

  His hands found hers and halted her movements.

  Emma didn’t know if she was being too forward. Did he not like what she was doing?

  “Is it because I’m not Miss Hunter? Do you still wish for her? If she were not married, would you―”

  “What do you know of Charlotte? Who has been talking, and what have they said?”

  “Why…nothing very much. Only that you once had a great fondness for her, and it was presumed at some point in time the two of you would marry. Only you didn’t. You went to war and she…I believe she is now known as Mrs. Preston.”

  “Hush. Let us not speak of Charlotte. Not now. All I can say is that you have nothing to fear from her. It is true that there was once affection between us, but that was over long ago. She means nothing to me, Emma. It is you who holds me spellbound. You have bewitched me. And ever since we met, I can think of nothing and no one but you. You are constantly in my thoughts. So much so, that I have to make love to you here and now. Is that so wrong of me?”

  “No, my love. It isn’t.”

  Her hand slid down to his groin and held him there. He was erect and throbbing. Beneath the barrier of his clothing, she could feel the swell of his hard shaft and knew he wanted what she was offering. He desired her completely. And the hold Charlotte Preston might once have had on Aaron was soon forgotten.

  Aaron groaned in defeat. Covering her mouth with his, he kissed her. Silencing any protest she might unwittingly make, his tongue invaded and explored. A sigh of satisfaction escaped from between her lips, and she knew she was willing to do anything and everything to have him inside her once again.

  His hands gently traced the curve of her cheeks, then splaying his fingers into the curls of her hair, he held her fast. She was captured, and for once she liked the sense of helplessness.

  Carefully, he moved them both a few paces back until she was resting against the trunk of the tree. With her back against the hard bark, and his hips pressed firmly against hers, she was trapped.

  Aaron’s mouth sought hers, and she returned his hungry kisses with unrestrained eagerness. His hands reached for her breasts, and when the tips of his fingers brushed aside the torn material of her gown, her nipples were soon exposed, and she was ready for his mouth to devour.

  The tight peaks of her breasts were hard, and when he took one int
o his mouth and sucked, she whimpered. Heat invaded her loins, and she was in urgent need of relief. She wanted him inside her, filling her, stretching her like he had done before.

  Aaron lifted his head. Their eyes met. But it was only a brief glance that tentatively sought permission. Lowering his head once again, his tongue lapped, taking first one swollen bud into his mouth and then the other.

  His touch felt so good. She had missed the feel of his skin next to hers. And with an aching, desperate need, she’d lain in bed of a night frustrated, while her thoughts drifted to feelings like these. Feelings of longing and desire. She’d ached to have him beside her and had yearned to relive their fleeting encounter over and over again.

  Aaron nipped the soft, dark tissue of her nipples. As he sucked, intense heat and a demanding longing spread throughout her body. She couldn’t wait much longer. She wanted his hard rod to fill her and plunge deep inside. She needed to have him penetrate her…now!

  With practiced swiftness and ease, Aaron lifted the muslin skirts of her gown until they were bunched at her waist. Her legs were exposed to the cool night air, and when he dropped his hands to her hips and pulled her pelvis up against the solid hardness of his arousal, she almost collapsed.

  “Please, Aaron, take me. Don’t make me wait. I need you.”

  Lowering her hands, she squeezed them between their bodies. Fumbling for the fall flap on his pantaloons, she speedily released the buttons on his fall-front, and then her fingers slipped inside. She found him. He was hard and ready, and wrapping her hand around his swollen rod, she pulled his penis from the confines of his pantaloons and began to rub. She heard him give a long, low groan of pleasure.

  Emma moved her hand slowly up and down his shaft, and the smooth, silky tissue of his rod began to swell and lengthen even more. He was large. Larger than she remembered. And as he jerked and jolted within her grasp, she wondered if she would be able to take him deep inside. There was only one way to find out.

  Her pelvis rubbed against his swollen penis, and spreading her legs, she positioned him at her wet entrance. She was hot. She was ready. And she was eager for his penetration. But Aaron didn’t press his manhood forward. She wanted him inside, but for some reason, he was waiting.

  Instead of invading her and making her his, his fingers slid down and brushed over her femininity until he found her womanly lips. Her juices were oozing from her, and as he spread her soft folds apart and dipped first one finger and then a second inside, she shuddered with contentment. He was where she wanted him to be. He was touching her where she burned with desire. Where she knew he belonged.

  The ball of Aaron’s thumb pressed down, rubbing hard on the rigid nub of her clitoris, and with two fingers buried deep inside her womanly cavern, he held her prisoner. She was his to do with as he wished.

  His lips showered her with kisses, and with his body pinning her back against the tree, he was master of the situation and she was his captive.

  “Please, Aaron,” she begged. “I need you to… I need to…”

  The fast beating and hot friction of his fingers were too much for her. She couldn’t struggle against her desires any longer. Desperate for release, she needed to climax.

  She was on the brink of an orgasm, and she couldn’t hold back much longer. If he didn’t penetrate her soon, she would come, and her need of his manly services would be over.

  His fingers slipped from her wet hole, but instead of inserting his penis, he crouched and began to kiss her exposed thighs. She felt his warm breath against her quivering legs, and when he pushed her skirts even higher to expose the triangle of hair covering her mons, she wondered what he was about to do.

  “Ever since we parted, I’ve had regrets,” he told her.

  Not knowing where to put her hands as she stood over him, she rested them on his shoulders.

  “Regrets about what? About me? About us? About what we did at the inn?” she asked.

  Emma felt a sudden sense of panic. Didn’t he want her? Had Aaron not enjoyed making love to her?

  “No, not about you. Not about us. They were regrets that I didn’t kiss you here…and here.” His mouth was nuzzling against her mons, and his tongue began exploring her crevice.

  She had never expected him to kiss her there. But the erotic swirl of his tongue and the gentle nip of his teeth as they brushed against her clitoris was sending her into a wild frenzy. Her hands moved from his shoulders, and burying them into the dark curls of his hair, she held him close.

  His lips suckled and his tongue probed, and she couldn’t take much more. Her legs were trembling, and she was about to collapse.

  Then Aaron stood, and positioning his hard, erect penis at her entrance, in one swift, forceful stroke, he penetrated her.

  His hands went behind and captured her buttocks. Holding her in a firm grasp, he plowed in and out of her wet crevice with urgent, frenzied strokes. There was no mercy in his actions. No gentleness in his deeds as his shaft ground hard against her throbbing clitoris. The hot friction was almost too much to endure. He wanted her, and he was taking what he needed. His rhythmic pounding was carrying her with him on a tide of desire, and she was a willing participant in his quest for release.

  Then voices could be heard in the distance.

  “Quick…we must be quick,” she whispered.

  Aaron thrust his shaft into her and withdrew, repeating the action over and over again. And knowing they were no longer alone in the garden, and at any moment could be discovered, was deliciously exciting. Alarmed, yet unwilling to stop, she couldn’t call a halt to their lovemaking.

  Emma clung tightly to Aaron. With her arms wrapped around his neck and her legs spread wide, she pushed her pelvis out toward him and surged with the waves of his rhythm. Now that she had him deep inside, she couldn’t break free. And unwilling to let go, she wrapped a leg around his waist as he continued lunging.

  She wanted him and needed him. And she wasn’t going to forgo the chance of Aaron taking her to the heights of passion until she had climaxed.

  Ignoring the approaching voices, her arms circled and locked even tighter around his shoulders. Her lips met his, and their kisses deepened. As their tongues frantically explored, she felt the muscles of her womanhood clamp down hard on his solid manhood. Spasm after hot spasm engulfed her, and she knew she was about to come.

  The giggling, chattering voices passed by, heading further into the darkness of the garden’s undergrowth. Emma and Aaron had gone unnoticed. Cloaked in the shadow of the tree, they had not been seen.

  Aaron was withdrawing his shaft. But just as he was about to leave her, with ruthless, uncaring vigor, he rammed back deep inside to the hilt once again. Pressed against her, he was inside her completely and totally, and there was no room to spare. They were locked together as one.

  And then shudder after shudder took over her body. She was climaxing. Aaron gasped, and his body trembled.

  “I can’t stop,” he told her. “I’m about to spend. I can’t hold back any longer.”

  “Do it. Just do it,” she pleaded.

  They were at the point of no return and heading toward a climax…together.

  As Aaron held her tight, pumping short, harsh thrusts into her womanhood, he spilt his semen deep into her cavern, and her juices flowed to meet his.

  Exhausted, drained, and weary from their intense lovemaking, they clung together.

  Tenderly, she held him pressed against her body, waiting until he recovered from their tempestuous encounter. He was hers. She knew it without a doubt. Deep inside, she knew they were meant to be together. They were so in tune with one another’s needs and desires that it was almost unreal.

  Stepping away, Aaron straightened his clothing and bent to retrieve the tailcoat that had fallen to the grass. He wrapped it carefully around her shoulders, concealing most of her exposed décolletage.

  As they moved in the direction of the house, soft candlelight and music spilt out toward them. Looking through the
French doors, Emma could see people were still dancing and laughing. She was surprised to see that it didn’t appear she had been missed. She was the hostess of the evening. The daughter of the house. Yet it seemed her absence had gone unnoticed. Thankfully, no one had come looking for her, only to discover she and Aaron had been in the garden…making love.

  “Come on,” Aaron said, and draped an arm tenderly across her shoulders. “I think it’s about time I spoke to your father and offered to make an honest woman of you. Do you not agree?”

  “I think that’s an excellent idea, but first I need to change. I can’t return to the party looking like this.” Emma gestured to the torn fabric of her gown and her disheveled hair. “If I do, everyone will know what you have been doing to me.”

  “And would that bother you?”

  “No,” she whispered and smiled. Pressing herself firmly against the solid wall of his chest, she reached up and pulled his head down toward her lips.

  “You have to stop. We have to stop. We can’t continue doing this,” he told her. “If you keep kissing me, I won’t be answerable for the consequences.”

  Regardless of who might see them, Aaron took her hand and rubbed it against his groin. He was hard. His penis was once again stiff and throbbing, and she knew he desired her.

  “Then if you are not fearful of pistols and being shot at dawn in defense of my honor, come with me.”

  Hurriedly, Emma pulled Aaron along behind her until she reached a wooden door in the garden wall. Pushing it open, they passed through and entered a lane. Across the lane was a stone outbuilding. It was a stable block.

  “Are you sure?” he asked.

  Aaron had wrapped an arm around her waist. With a hand cupping her tenderly beneath her breast, he gazed lovingly into her eyes. She smiled up at him. He was so tall, so handsome, so utterly striking. And she could never get enough of his caresses.

  “Do you remember you once promised there would be another time and place when we could make love in a stable?” Emma caressed Aaron’s face, running her fingers lovingly through his hair. “I told you I’d grown to like bedding down with a man…my man…you…between bales of hay and straw.”