Smiling, she took his hands in hers. “I wake up at dawn on most days. It’s been a habit since I was a little girl. If I stay in the bedchamber too long, I get restless.”
He relaxed. Good. It was only a restless spirit that had compelled her to leave the bed that morning. He hadn’t said or done something to make her wish she hadn’t been forced to marry him. Which meant whatever she had to discuss with Iris, it didn’t have anything to do with him.
“You’re free to go wherever you want to at any time.” Then, because the next thing he had to say was private, he lowered his voice and added, “What we did in bed…” Making eye contact with her, he struggled to find the right words. “Nothing that wonderful ever happened to me before.” Still holding her hands, he brought them to his chest and squeezed them. “Thank you.”
He lowered his head to hers and kissed her. She leaned into him and returned the kiss. If it were possible, he would have flown across the room from the sheer bliss of sharing something as wonderful as a kiss with her. This must be what being in love was like. He’d only heard his brother describe such feelings when he’d met Virginia. At the time, Landon had no idea just how uplifting such an experience could be, nor did he think he’d ever have something like it happen to him. But here he was on the day after his wedding, and now he knew why Guy had been so happy after meeting Virginia.
When their kiss ended, he noted the pink tint in her cheeks and the sparkle in her eyes. Maybe, just maybe, she was experiencing the same thing he was. He would ask her if he was certain her answer would be yes. But he wasn’t sure. And that being the case, he decided he’d rather think she was falling in love with him. At least that way, he got to remain in this state of bliss for a while longer.
“Have you eaten anything yet?” he whispered.
“No. I was waiting for you,” she replied, her voice just as soft as his.
“Good. Then we can eat together.” Slipping his arm around her waist, he led her out of the room.
***
Opal waited until the afternoon before she went to her brother’s townhouse. The twins were usually napping during this time of day, so she figured it would be the best time to talk to Iris without any interruptions.
She chose to walk there, thinking that by doing so, it would help her think over the kinds of questions she should ask Iris. She knew it was only a matter of time before she and Landon would be intimate again. There was no denying he had received pleasure from lovemaking, and he was much too sweet for her to ever deny him access to her body.
She hoped that Iris would assure her that her next time with Landon wouldn’t be painful. She’d hate to think she’d end up having to go through that particular experience every time they came together.
When she reached the townhouse, she knocked on the door. How strange it was to be knocking when she used to live here. But her new home was with Landon now, so she would have to get used to it.
The footman answered the door and greeted her. She returned the greeting, said she wished to speak with Iris, and then went to the drawing room. Shortly after she sat on the settee, the butler brought in tea and a bowl of fruit, her personal favorite to nibble on during the day. She smiled her thanks for his thoughtfulness and ate some fruit while she waited for Iris.
Ten minutes passed before she saw Iris. “Would you close the doors?” she asked as Iris passed through the doorway.
With a nod, Iris did as she wished then sat beside her on the settee. “I’m sorry I took so long. I was putting Stuart down for his nap when I heard you were here. Danielle was already asleep.”
“You weren’t long at all,” Opal hurried to reassure her.
Iris picked up the teapot and poured tea into their cups. “What’s troubling you?”
Opal glanced at the doors to make sure they were still closed. All morning, she’d been thinking of little else but talking to her sister-in-law, and now that she was here, it was hard to decide how to proceed.
“Are you unhappy with Landon?” Iris pressed, her voice laced with concern.
“No, that’s not it.” She accepted the cup Iris offered her. “Landon’s wonderful. I’ve never come across anyone so thoughtful or kind or gentle before. Well, maybe except for my brother.”
“Then what’s troubling you?”
After a long moment of staring at the tea in her cup, Opal finally blurted out, “Does it hurt when you’re with my brother? In bed, I mean.”
Her eyebrows furrowed. “Hurt?”
“Yes, between your legs. There’s this thing gentlemen have. It’s long and sticks out between their legs. Then they put it between a lady’s legs, and it hurts.”
“Oh,” Iris replied, her face growing pink. “Oh! Your first time hurt.”
“We didn’t do it more than once. To be honest, I was afraid to. I got out of bed before Landon woke up this morning and made sure I was fully dressed when he saw me.”
It was the only way she could think of to hold off on lovemaking until later. And since he hadn’t asked her to join him in bed, the technique had worked. But it was only a temporary reprieve. She wouldn’t be able to do this forever. Nor would she want to do something like that to someone as sweet as him.
“I should have told you what to expect,” Iris said as she set her cup back on the tray. “I debated whether or not to, but it’s such a personal topic that I wasn’t sure if I should.”
“Should I have expected it to hurt?”
“Since you were a virgin, yes. But now that you’re not a virgin anymore, it shouldn’t.”
“Why did it have to hurt at all?”
“The first time your body needs to…adjust to his penis. The penis is the long thing that sticks out. It isn’t always like that. Most of the time, it’s soft and hangs between a gentleman’s legs. It’s only when a gentleman is thinking of lovemaking that it grows.”
“Really?”
Iris smiled at her. “Really. Actually, you should take it as a compliment when Landon has an erection. It means he finds you very attractive.”
So that explained why his penis was sticking up under the blanket. He had referred to how little she’d been wearing, but she hadn’t realized he’d gotten erect because he’d found her attractive in her chemise.
“When you two make love again, it shouldn’t hurt,” Iris assured her.
“I can’t tell you how relieved I am to hear that.” She took a drink of her tea then smiled at her. “I hoped you would say it, but then, I worried you wouldn’t.”
“The act is meant to be pleasurable. It’s the ultimate expression of love between a husband and wife. You shouldn’t have anything to worry about next time. I wish I had discussed this with you before you married him.”
“I understand why you didn’t. Like you said, it is a private matter.”
“So, that aside, how are things between you and Landon? I worried about things after he ran off during the wedding, and I didn’t get a chance to see either one of you after Guy said you found him in the attic.”
“Things are going well. This morning, I didn’t have to look for him. In fact, he came looking for me.”
“Did he?”
Smiling, Opal ate some berries then said, “He’s mindful of my wishes, and he gave me the most wonderful kiss this morning.”
“He seems like he’ll make a good husband. Warren says he’s one of the few honorable gentlemen in London. Warren will be happy when I tell him how well things are going for you. He did worry that with everything happening so quickly that you would regret not having your full Season. He had this vision of you struggling to pick which one of the many lovesick suitors would be your husband.”
Opal chuckled. “I would have had a terrible time making a decision if they were all like Landon. It’s probably just as well that things happened the way they did.”
“Probably. But Warren is sorry the scandal took place at all, not that he blames either you or Landon for it. He blames Lord Asheley for getting involved in someth
ing that was none of his business.” Iris took a sip of her tea. “After you spent most of your life being a prisoner in the country, I think Warren wanted you to have all the freedoms and excitement a Season provides. He hasn’t said it in so many words, but I think he feels guilty for not bringing you to London sooner.”
“He didn’t know how things were between me, my mother, and Byron. I was never able to send out a missive, and I know none of them ever told him what was happening. I’m just glad all of that is behind me.”
“It is. Your mother and Byron will never hurt you again.”
“Sometimes I wonder if it’s wrong for me not to mourn their passing. I mean, they were my mother and my brother. I should feel something for them, shouldn’t I?”
“I suspect that given how much they hurt you, you mourned the loss of them long before they died.”
“You’re probably right.”
A moment passed and then Iris laughed. “Look at us! You just told me all about how wonderful Landon’s turned out to be, and we’re dwelling on the past. We ought to be celebrating the fact that you could very well have a love match.”
“Yes, we should.”
Feeling better by the change in topic, Opal gathered a strawberry and a couple of grapes before she started telling her sister-in-law about the possible items she and Landon were thinking of buying to make the townhouse they were renting more like home.
Chapter Eleven
The grandfather clock in the drawing room ticked at an abnormally slow pace. Each swing of the pendulum only emphasized how long Opal had been gone. When she left, she promised to be back “soon”, but so far, she’d been gone for two hours. If he’d been smart, he would have asked her how long “soon” was going to be.
No matter how much Landon tried to get into the book he was trying to read, he couldn’t concentrate. Maybe he’d done or said something to upset her. It hadn’t seemed like anything was bothering her, but he knew so little about people, ladies in particular, that he wasn’t sure he would have picked up on it if there was something he did to upset her. It was a shame Guy hadn’t been there to watch the two of them. Guy would know if something was wrong. He was good at that kind of thing. He just wasn’t good at keeping his money.
The clock struck three, and Landon turned his gaze to the window. He couldn’t see much of anything but the other townhouses from this view. With a sigh, he put the book down and went to the window so he could see the people who were coming and going by the place. To his relief, he saw Opal walking up the steps that led to their townhouse. She was smiling. That was good. Smiling was good. She looked like she was happy to be coming home.
Landon hurried to the door of the drawing room, just in time for the footman to make it to the entryway. In his excitement to see her again, he almost called out to the footman that he could get the door, but then, he decided against it. To come up with the words that wouldn’t require him to lisp would take too long. So he stood in the hallway and waited as the footman opened it.
As soon as she entered the townhouse, she went over to him. “I didn’t mean to be gone so long.” She kissed his cheek. “I thought I was only going to be an hour, but then the twins woke up and I wanted to spend some time with them. They’re adorable. When you feel comfortable with my family, you should come with me. Now that we’re married, they’re your niece and nephew. Of course,” she added with a grin, “your brother has a child. We can’t forget him. Or his wife. We should visit them, too.”
The doubts that had been plaguing him departed. She had returned to him with a kiss, and better yet, she was happy. In the future, maybe he wouldn’t be so quick to think the worst.
“I’m glad you had a good time,” he said.
“I did, but it’s nice to be back.” She slipped her arm around his and led him to the staircase. “I think it’s too late in the day to shop for items to make this place our home, but it won’t be too late to go to Hyde Park. We can take a stroll or ride horses.”
“What do you want to do?” he asked as they ascended the stairs.
“I want to do what you want.”
“I’d like to go riding.”
“Then we’ll go riding.”
They reached the top of the stairs and walked down the hall in silence. Had this been yesterday, he would have considered such silence to be awkward. But since she was content to be with him, he felt at ease with it.
When he entered his bedchamber, he fully expected her to go to hers so they could change into their riding clothes, but she shut the door to his room and went back over to him. He was trying to think of the best way to ask her what was wrong without having to use a word with the letter ‘s’ in it when she kissed him.
On its own accord, the memory of last night, specifically how good it’d felt to make love to her, came rushing to his mind, and his body made it no secret that it would much rather be in bed with her than taking a horse ride through the park.
Ending the kiss, she whispered, “I hope you don’t mind if we slip into your bed before we change into our riding clothes.”
Then to further demonstrate what she had in mind, she let her hands slide down his chest and to the part of him that hardened in anticipation. He hadn’t thought they’d be doing this until the evening. Sure, he’d been thinking about it all day, but he didn’t dare imagine she’d want to be with him before dinner.
“Do you mind if I see it this time?” she asked as she traced the length of his erection.
“No,” he whispered and unfastened the buttons on his breeches.
Last night, he never would have been brave enough to do this. But now, his excitement in being with her was prompting him to do whatever she wanted.
His penis was soon exposed to her, and she reached out to cradle it in the palm of her hand. From there, she proceeded to trace the length of him with her fingers. Her touch was soft, akin to the brush of a feather along his shaft. Her fingers then went to the tip of his penis, which made him shiver in pleasure. It was definitely a lot better when she touched him instead of him doing it himself. He closed his eyes and let out a moan.
“Did I hurt you?” she asked.
“No. It feelth good.”
He winced. It was hard to focus on the right words to say when she was touching him so intimately. But he didn’t want her to stop, so he squeezed her shoulders in silent encouragement then lowered his head to hers and kissed her.
She parted her lips. Accepting the invitation, his tongue slid into her mouth, allowing him to deepen the kiss. Groaning again, he interlaced his tongue with hers. She, in turn, continued her exploration of his erection. Yesterday, he didn’t think it was possible that he could be so open to her, but there was something about making love to her that made it safe for him to be vulnerable. She was accepting him. All of him. It really didn’t matter to her if he couldn’t speak eloquently like other gentlemen. She liked him just the way he was. And for that, he was grateful.
In his enthusiasm, he wasn’t paying much attention to who took off which garment or in what order. All he knew was that by the time they were in bed, their clothes were strewn about the room in a haphazard manner. It hadn’t been at all orderly like he had envisioned when he’d thought about taking her to bed that night.
But he supposed it didn’t matter. She was soon on top of him, and she took him into her body. She let out a soft moan, murmured something about how wonderful it felt to be filled by him, and then proceeded to make love to him. He brought his hands to her hips and guided them so that she was moving up and down his shaft, and he couldn’t help but notice that he was able to thrust inside her with more ease than he had the night before.
He tried to hold off on the inevitable. He wanted this to last as long as possible. But between the exquisite feel of her flesh, the image of her breasts bouncing above him, and the way she moaned in pleasure, he couldn’t put off his release. Giving one last thrust deep into her core, he cried out and grew taut as he filled her with his seed.
When his head cleared, he realized she was kissing his cheek and then his neck. Though out of breath, he managed, “Do you need to climax?”
She rose so that she could look at him. “Would you mind touching me like you did last night?”
“I’ll do anything you want.”
She got off of him and rolled onto her back. He rolled onto his side and took a moment to get a good look at her. There was no better sight than seeing her completely naked beside him. He brought his hand to her breast, cupping it for a few seconds, and then he brought his hand between her legs.
With a contented sigh, she parted them. He slid two fingers into her, and she rewarded him with a groan. Recalling the technique he’d used last night, he stroked her core. He lowered his head to her mouth and kissed her while he continued his ministrations. This was even better than last night because this time, he was more confident in what he was doing.
Before long, she stiffened against him and let out a cry to let him know she’d reached her peak. His fingers stilled inside her, and he took the moment to enjoy how her core clenched and unclenched around him. Just like last night, it was nice knowing he had been able to bring her pleasure. He wanted her to look forward to being in bed with him as much as he looked forward to being with her.
She relaxed against him, and he pulled his fingers out of her. Remaining on his side, he brought her into his arms. Being with her after they made love was just as wonderful as it’d been last night. He was afraid to voice the thought, but he hoped she wanted to spend every night with him. Even if they didn’t make love, he at least wanted to hold her. Just being with her made him feel complete. Until now, he hadn’t been aware that a part of him had been missing. She truly was his other half.
The Reclusive Earl Page 9
