Page 75 of Suddenly a Bride
She tilted her head to look at him and then gave him a smile. “Edmund, won’t you close the door?”
He did so as if in a daze, then leaned back against it.
“I have nowhere else to sleep,” she said softly.
He must have stared at her with stupid incomprehension, because her smile became tentative.
“I gave my chamber to my parents. I shall have to sleep here from now on.”
As if in a dream, he walked to her and stopped at the edge of the tub. Although soap bubbles floated on the surface, he could see beneath the water easily. He stared at the lush roundness of her pink-tipped breasts, her delicate waist, the slim curve of her hips framing a triangle of golden-brown curls.
“I’ll be done in a moment,” she said.
“You’re done now.”
Gwyneth gasped as Edmund reached down into the tub and lifted her out of it. Water from her body soaked him, but he didn’t seem to notice as he stared into her eyes.
This was the night, she realized with relieved delight. She was almost glad that they’d waited, because she felt only desire for her husband instead of fright. She looped her arms around his neck, watched as his gaze dropped to her wet breasts. With a gentleness that reassured her, he set her on the bed, and she dropped back on her elbows to look up at him. He put both hands into her hair and began pulling out the pins until the mass of wet hair fell about her shoulders and down her back. He looked at her, unmoving, for so long that she felt her whole body blushing. She shook her hair forward, meaning to cover herself.
“Nay!” He said the word almost harshly, and then whispered, “Just let me see you.”
While she lay there naked, he began to remove his garments with such haste that she heard a button pop at his neck. He threw them on the floor, never taking his gaze off her. As more and more of his skin was revealed, she felt her breathing become more difficult, knew her heartbeat had accelerated to a dizzying speed. When he was wearing only the narrow undergarment at his hips, he seemed to hesitate. His eyes locked with hers, and he let the last garment drop.
Gwyneth couldn’t help staring at his penis, surrounded by dark, curling hair. It was larger than she had thought it would be, very different to look at, and it did seem rather amazing that it would fit inside her. Then she remembered how his first wife had behaved and knew why he hesitated. Smiling, she lifted her arms up to him.
With a groan, he came down on top of her, and she whispered his name in joy at the wonderful feeling of his hot skin on hers. Bracing himself on his elbows, he held her head while he kissed her hard, entering her mouth, sucking her tongue, nibbling at her lips. She felt his erection against her thighs, and in her fevered excitement, she parted her legs so that she could experience again what it felt like to have him touch her there. But instead of his hand, she felt his hips slide between, felt his heavy erection rub against her. She shuddered and cried out beneath his kiss, clasping him hard against her.
She was amazed to hear him chuckle.
“You are going too fast, Gwyn. We have all night.”
“But I want—I need—”
He shushed her with kisses. “Right now I want and I need to taste you.”
She lifted her head up and kissed him, then arched her back when his mouth traced her jaw and her neck.
Into her ear, he whispered, “There are other parts of you I want to taste.”
Just the thought made her body shiver beneath his, and she moaned as his erection slid lower, rubbing against her in the most provocative way.
He echoed her moan as he began to work his way down her wet body with kisses. When his head was between her breasts, she hugged him to her. As he sucked her nipple into his mouth, she arched her back and offered up everything to him. She whispered his name over and over as his tongue teased her breasts. When he slid farther down her body, she felt bereft and tried to pull him back. He laughed at her, white teeth gleaming in the firelight, pale blue eyes shining, as most of his body dropped off the tall bed and he braced himself against the floor. Only his chest was between her legs, and even that slid away from her.
When he started kissing her inner thighs, she shuddered with each touch. He lifted her knees, pressing them up towards her chest, exposing her in a way that should have felt embarrassing but wasn’t, because she trusted him so completely. When he kissed her there, letting his tongue part her flesh and swirl across her swollen wetness, she cried out his name and gave herself up to the passion that overwhelmed her.
When she finally came back to herself, sprawled so languorously beneath him, she realized that he was watching her face intently. She pulled on his arms, wanting him to come back onto the bed, onto her body, but he resisted.
“Edmund?” she whispered uncertainly.
And then she knew that still he worried about her, that maybe some part of him thought he’d hurt Elizabeth with his lovemaking. She would disabuse him of that notion. She’d only experienced half of a wife’s pleasure, and she wanted it all.
“We’re not done yet,” she said firmly, sitting up. Her legs dangled over the edge of the bed, and he straightened as he stood between them. She reached out and took his penis in her hand.
She heard his breath leave him in a gasp, felt his erection pulse against her. He was hot and hard, yet silky soft, and she wanted to give him the same pleasure that he’d given her. With her free hand, she grasped his hip and pulled him toward her. When she bent her head, he groaned and held back.
“Gwyn, nay—not now. I couldn’t—last.” His words sounded hoarse and forced out of him.
“Then let us do it together.” She slid both of her hands up his hard stomach and rubbed his nipples between her fingers. He groaned, obviously liking the feeling as much as she did. He pushed her back on the bed, and she scrambled into the center. He came up beside her, then over her, settling between her thighs, his large palms on either side of her head. It wasn’t enough, so she lifted her knees to feel even more of him.
