Page 43 of Lady of Providence
"You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen," he whispered, and she raised an eyebrow.
"Do you say that to all the ladies?" she asked, and her words cut into him for a moment, but he shook his head truthfully.
"Never before," he said, fully meaning it, and he could see she was fighting back a slight smile.
But when she spoke, her words made him laugh more than anything, for they were so practical, so Elizabeth.
"I'm cold," she said, narrowing her eyes when he chuckled, and he sobered, nodding as he pulled back the blankets and she crawled in.
He followed, bringing a hand forward to cup her cheek.
"That's what you get when you chase after a man in the rain at midnight," he teased, and she pinched him.
"I was not chasing you," she said, and he chuckled as he leaned in, ready to capture whatever words were coming next with his mouth.
"Say what you want," he said, "but either way, Elizabeth — you've caught me."
He didn't allow her to respond, but fused his lips upon hers, stroking, loving, and promising what was to come. Her hands were upon him, seemingly everywhere, and he grasped them in his own as he wasn't sure how much longer he could take her touch.
He trailed his lips down her neck, over her collarbone to the swell of her breast, where he began to lavish his attention upon first one pink bud and then the other. She bucked up against him, and he grasped her hips in order to still her.
Elizabeth, however, was having none of it, and she positioned herself beneath him, begging him to enter her. He slipped a finger between them to ensure she was ready for him and finally gave in to what she wanted, filling her in one swift stroke.
Elizabeth cried out in pleasure as Gabriel stilled for a moment, unsure of just how long he could restrain himself, to keep control over his pace.
He had imagined this moment over and over again for the past few months, but nothing could have ever prepared him for how it would feel to join with her again. It was indescribable magic, and nothing in his life had ever felt so right.
Gabriel always seemed to be reaching for something, trying to entertain himself through his schemes, his plans, his… well, yes, his manipulations, though they were always for the right reasons. It was the only way he seemed to be able to find satisfaction in his life. Until now. Now he knew that everything else was just a facade, and this was the truth he was looking for.
At Elizabeth’s urging — damn, the woman was impatient — he began moving back and forth in long strokes, intent on providing her with all of the raptures he was feeling himself.
Her hands seemed to be everywhere — in his hair, over his back, sliding along his hips and down his thighs.
“Elizabeth,” he groaned, and when he didn’t think he could hold back any longer, she tightened around him, crying out, though what she said, he had no idea, for he let go himself.
After a moment of recovery, Gabriel rolled over to take any weight off of Elizabeth but stretched an arm behind her head to draw her in close to his side.
She lay there next to him, her head on his shoulder, and yet he could sense the tension that remained within her body as she didn’t allow herself to completely relax against him.
But that was his Elizabeth, he thought with a smile. Never completely allowing anyone in, keeping her guard raised for fear that without it, she would be hurt.
“Elizabeth,” he murmured, leaning down to kiss the top of her head. “You are magnificent.”
She chuckled slightly and placed a hand on his chest. “I can’t say I did much of anything.”
“You were here,” he said simply. “You came to me.”
“I shouldn’t have,” she said, her voice just above a whisper now. “I didn’t even realize what I was doing, if I am being honest. It was as though something drew me here, something… unexplainable.”
It was their desire for one another, he wanted to tell her, but he knew that too much explanation would only scare her and drive her away. Gabriel could already see that passionate fire beginning to ebb, to be replaced by the cool exterior she used as a shield. He wanted nothing to do with it. He wanted her to be open with him, to allow him to know her thoughts as he had known her body. But it was clear that Elizabeth wouldn’t be having any of that tonight.
She was silent for a moment, and Gabriel readied himself for the words that he knew were coming next.
“I should go home.”
“Of course you should,” he said, smiling slightly, and then winked at her, knowing it would only irk her. “That doesn’t mean you have to.”
“Gabriel!” she exclaimed, pushing herself up now and looking at him with wide eyes. “Of course I have to. I shouldn’t even have come here to begin with. It was foolish. It was impulsive. It was—”
