Page 33 of A Touch of Fate

I wished he’d at least say something. When I was done, I paused and peered toward my husband in the mirror. Our gazes locked, and the intensity in his halted my breath. I swallowed, not sure what to do. At that moment, it seemed impossible that only eight years separated us.Eight years and a lifetime of experiences.

Undressing would be next, but I’d need his help with the dress, and considering this was our wedding night, he should be eager to get me out of my clothes and into the bed. Samuelbriefly looked away, and when he met my gaze again, his expression was stone.

I swallowed my disappointment and my pride. “I need help with the buttons.”

“Of course.” Samuel walked over to me, and my fingers on the counter tightened. My legs grew tired from standing. My muscles were not strong enough to carry my weight this long after a day like this.

“Do you need to sit down?” Samuel asked as he towered over me. He was much broader and taller than me, and my insides liquefied at his strength.

“Yes,” I said quietly. “But then you won’t be able to reach the buttons.”

Samuel considered me for a few seconds. “If you lie down on your stomach on the bed, I can unbutton your dress.”

My stomach fluttered. “That sounds like a good plan.”

A small, tense smile graced Samuel’s face, and he surprised me when he lifted me and carried me over to the bed. I wasn’t sure where to put my hands, suddenly overwhelmed with the situation, so I cradled them against my stomach. When we reached the bed, he paused, and I looked up. My belly twisted at the look on his face. I wasn’t sure what it meant, but my pulse sped up nevertheless. He tore his gaze away and put me down. As I lay before him in my dress and he stood over me, my nerves bustled in my body. I rolled over, presenting my back to him, and he perched on the edge of the bed. His fingers brushed the skin between my shoulder blades when he reached for the top buttons of the dress, and I stifled a soft sigh as I rested my head on my forearms.

Samuel worked on my buttons in silence, and every so often, his fingers brushed my skin as he loosened the buttons. I could feel his accidental touches in the deepest pit of my belly, wakening something I had never felt before. When he reachedthe last third, I stilled. Those buttons were positioned right over my ass, and my heart sped up when I realized that Samuel would soon see me like no one had ever seen me, half naked with only tiny lace panties. He kept opening my dress, but his fingers lingered often now, soft against my skin.

“Done,” he said with a slightly rougher quality to his voice that I couldn’t place.

I lifted my head a few inches and peered over my shoulder at him. “Thank you.”

Samuel dragged his eyes up from where his hands still rested on my backside, half on the fabric of my dress, half against my skin. He gave a tense nod. For a moment, neither of us said anything, and my confusion rose because his expression was one I’d never seen on his or any man’s face before.

“Why don’t you turn on your back? Then I can help you out of your dress.”

My breath stilled in my throat. I could have pulled the dress down myself at this point, but I nodded and rolled over on my back. Samuel’s eyes slid along my body before he stood and bent over me, grabbing the straps of my dress. My breathing quickened with nerves. Samuel gazed into my eyes, noticing of course, and he didn’t look away when he slid the straps down my arms. He halted briefly before hooking his fingers under my neckline and slowly pushing the dress down.

Surprise followed by something darker flashed in his eyes when he saw that I wasn’t wearing a bra. The dress didn’t allow for one.

My nipples puckered, and goose bumps covered my body. I resisted the urge to cover myself and lay still under Samuel’s steady gaze. I wasn’t self-conscious about this part of my body, and his lingering attention filled me with a strange warmth. He pushed the dress farther down along my legs until I lay before him in nothing but my panties. His eyes traced my legs. Theydidn’t look different from other people’s legs, a little less in control and less muscled, but nothing was obvious when I lay like this. They filled me with insecurity anyway.

He pulled his eyes away from my body, and disappointment filled me. I’d tried to keep my expectations low so as not to be disappointed, but I’d still secretly hoped for a real wedding night.

“We should talk,” Samuel murmured.

I nodded, swallowing hard, barely able to look him in the eye. I knew what was coming. He’d now explain to me that he couldn’t be with me because he just wasn’t attracted to me. I had expected something like that. Ours wouldn’t be the first fake marriage.

I reached for my nightgown. “I can—” I was about to tell him that I could dress myself in my nightgown before we had this talk, as my nakedness didn’t serve any other purpose than to make me feel even more vulnerable. Samuel stopped my hand with a gentle touch.

I frowned at him, confused and acutely aware of his dressed state and how close to my mostly naked body he was. “You don’t have to justify yourself,” I whispered. “Don’t give me any long-winded explanations.”

Samuel narrowed his eyes in contemplation. “I’m not sure what you’re saying.”

I swallowed, feeling almost sick from embarrassment and hurt. Did I really have to spell it out for him? “I don’t expect you to consummate our marriage if you’re not attracted to me. I realize men can’t just fake being attracted to someone.” I crossed my arms over my breasts, wishing I could walk and make a quick escape.

Samuel leaned back slightly, his brows climbing his forehead. He shook his head, looking as if I’d lost my mind. “You think this talk is about me not wanting to have sex with you?”

I blinked. His half-amused, half-aghast tone threw me completely off.

“Trust me, that’s not the case, and I won’t have to fake being attracted to you.”

“Okay,” I said hesitantly. “Then what did you want to talk about?”

He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes trailing over my panties, my exposed stomach, and my hands still clutching my breasts. “I wanted to make sure I’m not taking advantage of you.”

Now it was my turn to be completely taken aback until it dawned on me what he meant. “Because I’m in a wheelchair, you worry wanting to sleep with me is taking advantage of me?”

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