Page 52 of Taken By the Icy Duke

By the time they reached her bedchamber door, her fingers were already tugging at the buttons of his coat, while he fumbled for the latch. Their shared urgency lent a kind of clumsiness to the moment, punctuated by soft laughter whenever their handscollided or a button snagged. At last, the door clicked shut with a firm finality.

Without breaking their kiss, Gilbert guided her backward until her calves met the edge of the bed. Her skirts tangled around her ankles as she eased down, the soft billow of fabric rustling in the stillness.

He followed her onto the sheets, one knee braced on the mattress as his hands cradled her face for another searing kiss. Every brush of his fingers against her skin sent a fresh wave of need through her. She could feel his heart pounding beneath his coat in the same erratic rhythm that drummed in her own chest.

Their breaths came faster, mingling with the rustle of their clothing in the noiseless room. The flickering glow from a single bedside lantern cast shifting shadows across the walls, illuminating the fervor in Gilbert’s eyes each time he broke away from her lips.

Bit by bit, each layer of clothing was shed, their urgency mounting with every loosened button and discarded piece of fabric. Although they had shared intimacies before, that particular evening’s passion felt different; sharper, more demanding, as though their playful camaraderie throughout the day had transmuted into intense desire.

When he murmured her name against her throat, Diana’s stomach clenched. She sank her hands into his hair, her own whispered endearments mingling with his ragged breathing. A fragile sense of security fell over them, cocooning them from therest of the world. Their heady surrender belonged solely to them, free from the constraints of extraneous obligations.

“You have no idea how much I have desired you all afternoon,” Gilbert breathed against her neck, making her shudder.

His kisses trailed across her collarbone and down her chest, scattering embers of fire across her sensitive skin. She clung to him, each sense heightened by the weight of his powerful body pressed intimately against hers. He bent his head down and flicked his tongue across the tips of her breasts, making her gasp. When she moaned, he lifted her in his arms, moved her to the middle of the bed and hovered over her with a heated look.

His lips crashed down upon hers, instantly erasing all thoughts from her mind. All she knew, all she could feel, was Gilbert, positioning himself between her legs, gliding his swollen member into her wet, welcoming entrance, and thrusting deep inside.

“Gilbert…”

She groaned, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and locking her legs behind his knees as his rod stroked her tight canal. Diana grew dizzy from the intense desire emanating from her loins and spreading up her body.

She gripped the bedsheets tightly, then bucked and lifted her hips in an urgent plea for him to enter her more deeply, the speed of their rhythmic movements increasing with each thrust.

Diana’s entire being was completely focused on the slide of their slick bodies and the force of his enormous member as it pounded into her. The rasp of her tender, erect nipples against his chest intensified her mounting euphoria.

She clung onto his arms, desperately awaiting her imminent release, holding her breath as she exploded, and her rapturous orgasm swept her away.

Diana’s release continued to ebb and flow in dizzying waves. Her heart hammered violently; her breathing was ragged as her body throbbed and vibrated of its own accord.

Gilbert groaned, and she felt his body stiffen and shudder as he tightened his grip on her hips. A low, husky moan escaped him as he pressed into her, then dropped his head into the crook of her neck.

For several minutes neither of them stirred. Diana’s heart still thundered, each beat reverberating in her head like a distant drum. A languid warmth claimed her limbs as she cradled Gilbert’s head against her shoulder, feeling the dampness of his brow and the jagged cadence of his breathing.

She continued to twitch with tingling aftershocks and closed her eyes, struggling to orient herself.

Gilbert shifted, pressing a long, tender kiss to her temple. “Diana,” he murmured unsteadily. “You are… incredible.”

She smiled at him, soft laughter escaping her throat, then paused as she caught a glimpse of unease lurking behind his tender expression.

He rolled over and lay beside her, panting faintly while tracing random patterns along her arm, as though he too was discovering newly awakened feelings.

They crawled under the sheets, the hush of the late hour surrounding them. Diana nestled her head on his shoulder, soothed by the steady thump of his heart. Neither seemed truly ready for sleep; too many questions and emotions floated just beneath the surface.

When they finally spoke, their voices were hushed and intermittent; uttered murmured endearments, and half-formed sentiments. Diana’s heart brimmed with a fragile tenderness for this man who had once seemed so distant. She once again found herself pondering the peculiar notion that she might be falling in love. The thought both exhilarated and frazzled her.

As the lamp burned low and the fireplace embers began to grow faint, she felt Gilbert tense as though he had suddenly recalled something of importance. He inhaled deeply, rested his hand against the curve of her waist, then swallowed.

“I…” His voice came out strained, stumbling over the word. “I should not have…”

Diana blinked, stirring from the edges of drowsiness.

“Should not have what?” she asked, drawing her brows together in confusion.

Gilbert’s jaw clenched. He spoke in a subdued tone, worry creeping into the corners of his voice. “I neglected caution, Diana,” he confessed. “I never intended to… to finish inside you.”

She vaguely recalled that he dreaded fatherhood, that he had vowed never to risk it, but was unable to grasp why it was so dire. Softly, she ventured, “I do not quite see the harm. We are wed, after all.”

Gilbert appeared distressed, though she sensed he was trying to hide it from her.

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