Page 55 of A Duchess to Unravel
“Must we go to London, though?” She whimpered.
Alistair let out a throaty chuckle as he grazed his teeth over her nipple, then glided the tip of his nose from the underside of her breast up to the peak.
“Aye,” he rumbled, “We have work to accomplish there. I promise ye though, I will bring us back home as soon as possible.”
He skimmed his lips over her ribcage, down to her navel, and over the small crests of her hip bones. He would not tell her that he’d enlisted Dominic’s help in finding her stalker, and he hoped their search would prove fruitful. He wanted to wait until he was sure the matter was taken care of before he told her.
“Ye like it here?” He murmured, trailing kisses over her mounds.
A breathy sigh escaped Theo’s lips as he dragged his lower lip up her seam, and he looked up to see her smile.
“It is not so bad,” she said, her tone breathy.
Alistair let out a deep chuckle, and then turned his focus to more delicious things.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“Do your husbands allow you to touch them?” Theo asked.
Seraphina and Amelia’s heads shot up from the fabric they were perusing, their eyes wide with shock. Theo glanced around the familiar modiste’s shop, the one she used to frequent when living in London. There was no one else shopping at present, and the modiste was in the back, preparing for the fitting of their new ball gowns.
Admittedly, Theo understood that the question was rather abrupt and not quite suited for such a public place, but the inquiry had grown so loud within her head that it simply burst from her lips.
“Um,” Seraphina faltered. She pressed her lips together. Looked toward Amelia, then back to Theo. “How do you mean?”
“As in holding your hand?” Amelia asked, drawing closer to Theo. “Or embracing?”
Theo glanced once more around the empty shop, then came around to join them by the collection of silks and linens.
“I mean in moments of intimacy,” she answered, dropping her voice down to a whisper, just in case.
“Do they allow you to … explore?”
Amelia and Seraphina shared a glance, then Amelia spoke first.
“When Dominic and I discovered that we were drawn to one another, there was an exploration of sorts,” she replied. “We had not found our feelings toward one another yet but there was a draw to … to touch one another. Is that what you mean?”
Theo shifted on her feet. In truth she was not sure. Though what Amelia had described sounded familiar. She and Alistair argued often, especially at their breakfast ritual. Yet, she still found herself coming to him in the evening every day for her lessons. She greatly enjoyed his teachings, the way they left her body feeling sated and relaxed.
“I suppose Alistair and I have the same draw,” she agreed. “But while he seems most ready to please me, I have noticed that he does not allow me to do the same for him.”
“He does not allow you touch him at all?” Amelia asked.
Theo shook her head.
“He seems fine when I touch above his waist, but when I try to go further, he stops me.”
“Hmm,” Seraphina hummed.
“Hugo was the same way with me at first,” she confessed.
“What changed?” Theo asked quickly. “Do you know why he was like that? How were you able to turn it around?”
Seraphina’s eyes dashed to the floor as her cheeks turned rosy.
“All I will say is it takes patience. Understanding. And conversation. Talk to him.”
Theo was not exactly thrilled by Seraphina’s answer, but she nodded. The rumors about Hugo had swirled around for years. The beast of Merrivale with devilish appetites. Only Seraphina knew the truth and had been able to tame him into the doting husband he now was. Though she wanted to know more, Theo respected the way Seraphina protected her husband’s privacy, and reminded her of how Alistair was protecting her own.
