by P. O. Dixon
“That is not my intention. Have you dismissed your maid for the evening?” he asked suggestively.
“Yes, sir, I have,” she expressed.
“Excellent, then I shall have to attend to you tonight,” he said as he pulled her nearer and started letting her hair down.
“But, sir,” she weakly protested, for by then, she was fairly certain she would go wherever he might lead.
“Stop calling me sir, especially when we are alone like this,” he said as he guided her beyond the sitting room.
“But I shan’t call you Fitzwilliam. It makes me think of your cousin.”
“You will not think of him once I have made you mine,” he whispered softly in her ear.
“Is that your intention... tonight?” she asked, with deep uncertainly reflected in her tone.
“No, Elizabeth, tonight... tomorrow night, if you will allow it... I plan to make love to you, as I did this morning. I will make you completely mine on the night of our wedding, my love,” he said as he led her to the vanity. Taking her brush in hand, he sat beside her and stroked her long dark hair. Placing a gentle kiss on her neck, he spoke softly, “You are never to cut this.”
“Sir,” she whispered. To her way of thinking, his kisses along her neckline and his words of his intention were entirely out of concord.
“Not ‘sir’… Darcy, William, Highness,” he playfully insisted.
“I think I will choose William.”
“You shall be the only one to do so, Elizabeth.”
“Will you not call me Lizzy?”
“I think not. Have you not noticed how I adore your name? I feel as though I am caressing you every time I say Elizabeth.”
“If you insist,” she faintly expressed.
“I do,” he said. He looked to see her nightgown placed on the bed. “Is that what you intend to wear tonight?”
“Yes, it is, William.”
“Then, let us get you into it.”
“No, I do not think so,” Elizabeth responded hesitantly.
“Trust me, Elizabeth, and allow me to do this for you,” he said as he slowly began removing her clothes, adeptly, piece by piece, from head to toe. As she stood naked before him, her courage rising by the moment, Darcy sat down at the vanity to admire her beauty.
Pulling her into the space of his legs, he traced her body with his long fingers. Darcy was about to taste her hardened nipples when, impulsively, she said, “This is hardly fair. You are fully dressed... well, almost.”
“What would you have me remove, my love?” he asked as he stood to remove his nightshirt without awaiting her response.
Elizabeth reached out and touched the soft hair that covered his torso. Finally, having caught the slightest of glimpses during the past, when he was sans cravat, and wondering how it might feel, she now indulged herself. It is magnificent.
Her actions caught him completely off guard. As she moved her hands to explore his chest, he caught them in his and asked, “Shall I remove anything else?”
Elizabeth’s lips trailed her wandering hands. She whispered, “That will do for now.” Darcy could not believe his sweet seductress. Deciding that if he did not put a stop to things, he might make her his, completely, that very night, he led her to the bed, picked up her nightgown, pulled it over her head, and gently guided her arms inside the sleeves. He then watched as the gown cascaded to the floor.
“Is there anything else this evening, madam?”
“Well, my hair is not done. I normally wear it plaited, when I sleep at night.”
“Perhaps if you teach me, I can better accommodate your needs in the future,” he said, trailing his fingers through her long tresses.
She sat on the bed and said, “It will be my pleasure.” She slowly moved through the steps of plaiting her long hair, while looking seductively at Darcy the entire time. Once she had completed her mission, she leaned forward to retrieve a ribbon from the bedside table to secure her braid, thereby affording Darcy an enticing view of her bosom as her gown slid down from her shoulder.
Darcy quickly joined her on the bed and pulled her gown from both shoulders down to her waist. Upon completing an intimate inspection of her bosom with his soft, moist lips and his tongue, unselfishly giving his full attention to each breast, Darcy gradually moved towards her nipples. His warm breath sent chills through Elizabeth’s body. The more cherished he made her feel, the more she sensed what she wanted—nay, needed. With his body pressed against hers, she suspected his need.
Daringly, she uttered, “Take off your breeches. I want to see all of you.”
“Not tonight, my love,” he groaned, unwilling to cease his tender adulations.
“Do you not trust me?”
“I no longer trust myself. You know not what you do to me.”
“I trust you,” she whispered.
Darcy halted his actions. He looked into her eyes. After gauging her intentions to decide whether she was truly ready to see him in all his glory, he rolled on to his back. Encouraging her to sit up, he reached for her hand.
Darcy took Elizabeth’s small hand into his own and brought it to his lips to impart a light kiss, before studying it and intertwining her fingers with his. Then, spreading her delicate fingers apart against his larger ones, he ultimately drew her hand to his lips again and kissed her fingertips. All the while gazing intently into her eyes, he gently guided her hand along the desired path, very gingerly, for he had never experienced her soft touch in that fashion.
Their eyes locked as the effect of her gentle touch became increasingly evident. Elizabeth startled initially. Her bright eyes widened. She attempted to pull her hand away. He would not release it, and he continued to guide her touch in a most pleasing manner. Once she mimicked his actions by her own accord, he hurriedly unbuttoned the fall of his breeches and guided her hand inside to continue her strokes.
“I love this, Elizabeth, please do not stop.” He slowly lowered his breeches to his knees and showed Elizabeth how to increase his pleasure even more.
Elizabeth’s eyes honed in. Her body reacted in a manner that her mind could not fathom. Her heart palpitating, her small hand hypnotically stroking, she wondered how her body would ever accommodate her intended.
After some time, amidst his moans of ecstasy, Darcy kicked off his remaining garment altogether. Adjusting their positions thus so, he began kissing her, suckling her, and thrusting himself against her smooth silk nightgown. At length, Elizabeth initiated a passionate kiss that nearly proved his undoing.
Darcy beckoned all his strength to master his domain in the wake of Elizabeth’s passionate responses. Steadily, and unhurriedly, he persisted until they both succumbed.
The two lovers spent hours talking after he had assisted her into a fresh nightgown, and he had donned his breeches. They finally fell asleep in one another’s arms and slept until the wee hours of the morning. He woke her gently with soft kisses and more, and then, reluctantly departed in return to his own room.
~ Chapter 17 ~
Linger Too Long
Darcy rose as bright and early as he ever did, despite having slept in his own bed for a matter of minutes. Elizabeth and he had agreed that with his family arriving that day, there might be precious little alone time. He thereby secured her promise to meet him at the temple early that morning, before their guests began to arrive. Darcy even provided Elizabeth with a taste of what she might expect, as he persisted in gradually acclimating her to their marriage bed.
Lowering her nightgown beyond her waist, he took his time as he trailed his tongue from her lips, along her neckline, down between her breasts to her navel. Lingering there, Darcy lavished his attentions on her, arousing her overwhelmingly as enticing, exhilarating sensations reverberated throughout her nether regions, stimulating her so much so, that she arched her body repeatedly against his. He stopped. Smiling at her mischievously for her ardent response, he looked deep into Elizabeth’s eyes, ran his fingers through her loosened hair, down acro
ss her cheeks, and kissed her lips softly. He whispered, “Do not linger in bed too long this morning, my love.”
~ ~ ~
Elizabeth woke with a start. She could tell by the brightness of her room that she had overslept. When Darcy had left her room earlier that morning, she was unable to return to her peaceful slumber. She thought of all the liberties she had allowed her betrothed over the past few days. That led to thoughts of just how much more she might be willing to grant. She hardly believed that she had initiated the intimacy of last night that led to Mr. Darcy’s passionate release. Heretofore, he had always maintained such control during their amorous interludes. Though she was innocent, she had read a romance novel or two, but nothing she had ever read had prepared her for the joys she was experiencing with Darcy. She was somewhat peeved, and yet ultimately curious, that he had aroused her thoroughly earlier, and then he had left her yearning for more. The devilishly delicious grin he wore on his incredibly handsome face as he left her side suggested not only was it his intention to render her thus, but he enjoyed it immensely. Finally, she fell asleep to the most pleasantly arousing and contented dream.
Now, she was late for a promising rendezvous with the very object of her dream. She jumped out of bed and rang for her maid.
Meanwhile, as Elizabeth was running to and from, rushing to get dressed to meet Darcy at the temple, he was downstairs welcoming his sister and her husband to Pemberley. They had arrived hours earlier than expected, such was Georgiana’s eagerness to see her brother. She knew from her letter from Richard that Darcy had not been himself since her wedding. She could only attribute it to his anguish over Elizabeth’s departure from Darcy House in June. Lord and Lady Matlock also arrived earlier than expected, leaving Darcy with no opportunity to steal away to the temple.
When Darcy told his sister that, not only were Elizabeth and he engaged to be married, but that she was at Pemberley, Georgiana headed straight for Elizabeth’s apartment.
At such an early hour, the light knocks on the door startled Elizabeth initially. She could not imagine it to have been Darcy. Understandably, seeing Georgiana standing there caught Elizabeth by surprise. The younger woman entered the room excitedly and embraced Elizabeth.
“Congratulations! Fitzwilliam shared your happy news with me, that the two of you are to be married, tomorrow, here at Pemberley. It is all so exciting! It is the best news in the world. I never imagined that something as wonderful as all this awaited me upon my return!”
“Georgiana, thank you so much for your kind words. I too am very excited, and I am glad for your return. I wish for you to stand beside me, as a ‘matron’ of honour of sorts.”
“Of course, I will. It will be my pleasure. Oh Elizabeth, we only have today and so much to do. However, do not worry; I shall stay by your side all day.”
“Actually, Georgiana, I was just on my way out for a…” Elizabeth paused abruptly. She was not about to admit that Darcy and she had made clandestine meeting plans. Instead, she asked, “So, does your brother remain with Lord Harry, or did he perhaps go out?”
“He is with my uncle and aunt, as they arrived shortly after Harry and me. I understand that your Uncle and Aunt Gardiner are here, as well. I so look forward to meeting them. Let us hurry down to join the family for breakfast. Then, you and I will spend the entire day together. I imagine there are hundreds of things to do today, and as your ‘matron’ of honour, I want to share every moment of it with you.”
“It seems a fine plan to me, but I do not know what your brother might say to such a scheme,” Elizabeth said in jest.
“I have missed you terribly these past weeks and starting tomorrow, Fitzwilliam will have the rest of his life with you. Besides, Richard will be here shortly. I suppose he can keep my brother occupied most of the day.”
Elizabeth and Georgiana arrived downstairs in the breakfast room to find that Lord and Lady Matlock, Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner, Lord Harry, Richard, and Darcy had assembled and were waiting for them. The Fitzwilliams were prompt in offering their felicitations to Elizabeth that she was to become Mrs. Darcy. Darcy introduced Georgiana to the Gardiners, whom she delighted in meeting after many months of hearing of them. The atmosphere was quite amiable as Georgiana spoke enthusiastically of her wedding journey and her excitement over her brother’s impending nuptials.
At the end of breakfast, Georgiana announced that, as Elizabeth’s “matron” of honour, she would be attending to her all day. She encouraged Richard that he might spend the day with her brother, although that would normally go without saying as the two were always inseparable when in each other’s company. Somehow, Georgiana sensed that her brother might have other plans for his last day of bachelorhood. The Gardiners planned to spend the early part of the day in Lambton, calling on old acquaintances, and the afternoon, touring the various sights of Derbyshire.
Georgiana and Elizabeth strolled along, with the former regaling the latter with details of the many adventures of her wedding journey. Georgiana and Elizabeth headed for the idyllic spot of Elizabeth’s birthday picnic the year before, there to gather wild-flowers and catch up on girlish talk. It was a glorious midsummer’s day, as it had been all week. Elizabeth was positive her wedding day would be just as beautiful. Little over an hour had passed, when the young women caught sight of Darcy, Richard, and Lord Harry approaching their lovely refuge on horseback.
Georgiana barely waited for her husband to dismount before hurrying to his side to greet him. She led him over to the spot where she sat with Elizabeth. Darcy wasted precious few seconds in joining Elizabeth at her side, as well. Richard reluctantly followed. He was exceedingly annoyed, as it had been Darcy’s idea that they go out riding in the first place, and in that particular direction, no less. Though the conversation started out well enough, Darcy and Elizabeth soon became lost in their own intimate repartee, as did Lord Harry and Georgiana, much to Richard’s exclusion.
Richard attempted to interrupt the love festival. “Gentlemen, are we to ride out for a spell to enjoy the Derbyshire countryside, or not?”
Receiving no response, a very put out Richard declared, “Fine! I know when I am no longer needed. Lord Harry and Georgiana, I leave it to you to chaperon these two. I am off!”
Lord Harry and Georgiana proved poor chaperones indeed, for not long after Richard raced off, they set upon a secluded path that led away from the field of wild flowers, leaving their charges completely unattended. Darcy released a deep sigh as he pulled Elizabeth into his arms as soon as they were alone.
“I am sorry we were unable to meet at the temple this morning. I had a very special treat in mind.”
“I so love treats. Perhaps, you can present it to me now.”
“I fear not. What I had in mind requires far more time,” he kissed her brow, “and privacy,” he added with a kiss to her cheek, “than this spot allows. Not to mention that Lord Harry and Georgiana might return any moment.”
“Then, perhaps a tiny sample might suffice. I too am distressed at not seeing you this morning, as we had planned,” Elizabeth said as she pressed a kiss to the lapel of his riding jacket.
Darcy stood and took a step back to gauge Elizabeth’s attire. A light and pleasing muslin, hardly restrictive, he thought. In fact, her gown was quite conducive to what he had in mind. He assisted her to her feet and then led her by the hand to a spot where the flowers grew even more untamed, offering some degree of privacy, as well as an advantageous view of the path taken by his sister and brother should they return. Darcy pulled Elizabeth down to sit in his lap, in the midst of the relatively high grass.
Darcy started out slowly, spreading kisses along her neckline and tasting her earlobes. Tentatively, he trailed his fingers from her mouth (which she impetuously sucked), along her neckline, her bosom, and ultimately to the hem of her gown. Beguiling her with deep probing kisses, he slowly inched his hand up her slender legs, caressing her firm thighs, pausing just before reaching his true destination. Elizabeth had requested a
tiny sample, and he intended just that. Brushing his hand near her sensuous folds without actually touching her, softly massaging her hips, her small waist, and her belly, and teasing her relentlessly, he slowly began gently massaging and stroking her. The moment he felt her harden and heard her soft moans, he ceased his actions completely, removed his hand to her face, and kissed her.
“A sample, my love,” he whispered. “Did you like that?”
“Exceedingly so, perhaps another sample is in order,” she beseeched.
“I promise you that and more... but not just now. Tonight, after everyone has retired for the evening, I will come to you.”
“By all means, please do.”
In the meantime, Lord Harry and Georgiana were enjoying the many splendours of the path that they had chosen. Harry assured her she needed not be concerned that Darcy and his intended would happen along any time soon.
~ ~ ~
The couples arrived back at the manor house to find that Lord Robert and Lady Elise had just arrived. Lady Matlock was busy organising things for that evening’s dinner party. Ever the consummate hostess, Lady Matlock set out to meet Mrs. Reynolds, immediately upon her arrival, to commandeer the planning and arrangements for the wedding festivities.
For the rest of the day, Elizabeth and Darcy could find no time alone. Georgiana knew she was monopolising Elizabeth’s attention at the expense of her brother. The longing looks that he bestowed upon his intended when their paths crossed, left little doubt. It did not bother her one bit.
Of course, Elizabeth was mindful that Darcy had ignited her passions twice that day and both times, purposely left her longing—first at dawn in her apartment and then again, in the field of wild flowers. She decided that two could play at that game. She teasingly enjoyed arousing him with every opportunity presented.
Fortunately, the two lovers sat next to each other at dinner. Elizabeth stepped up her teasing antics by resting her hand on Darcy’s thigh throughout the initial courses of the meal. He did all that he could in removing her hand from his leg due to its devastating impact on his composure. Finally, he gave up trying to dislodge her hand from his person. He placed his hand on hers and moved it directly upon a different point... a point which seemed to have a mind of its own. Suddenly flustered, it was now Elizabeth who was the one trying to remove her hand. Once Darcy released her hand, she quickly returned it to her own lap.
