One Enchanted Evening (Marriage by Fairytale Book 2) Page 8

  “I won’t do anything to make you regret choosing me,” she vowed.

  “I know you won’t. I would have regretted only marrying for money, but I won’t ever regret marrying for love. We’re going to have the kind of marriage Stephen and Patricia do. We’re going to be happy.”

  Every time he spoke like this, it was as if her past had never happened. He made her forgot all of the things behind her. Instead, she was looking toward the future, and it was so much better than anything she could have hoped for. He was asking her to get lost in that wonderful world of his where all they needed was each other for things to turn out right. And she wanted to be here with him. She was tired of living in the past.

  “I want to be happy,” she whispered.

  “We will be.” He took her hand. “Together.” Then he guided her the rest of the way to his bedchamber. Once there, he set the candelabra on the dresser. “I should get back to the coachman so he doesn’t have to walk up here in the dark.” He lit another candle and carried it to the doorway. With a glance in her direction, he added, “Make yourself comfortable.”

  She watched him as he left. It wasn’t until she saw the light from his candle disappear in the hall that she removed her hat and shawl. After a moment, she set them on a chair. She wasn’t sure if she should undress or not. She’d be spending the night in bed with him. She didn’t see any point in slipping into her nightclothes. But she wasn’t sure she was ready to remove the rest of her things and get into the bed yet.

  So she did the only thing she could think of to pass the time: she decided to inspect the room. The bed was a large one. The mattress felt nice. The oak headboard and blankets were good quality. The armoire, dresser, and other furnishings were equally nice. Lewis might not have much money now, but it was apparent that he used to have a lot of it. Or at least his family did. The things weren’t exactly new, but they’d been well-cared for over the years.

  She opened his armoire and saw a lot of clothes, most of them clashing with each other. Stephen had commented on Lewis’ poor fashion sense on occasion, but she thought it was rather cute that Lewis chose the colors he did for his outfits. If Lewis’ bad fashion sense was the worst of his sins, then he was a much better person than she was.

  “Just put it over here,” Lewis said.

  She turned from the armoire as Lewis showed the coachman where he wanted him to put her trunk. Lewis put his valise on the dresser.

  “Will there be anything else, my lord?” the coachman asked.

  Lewis handed him the candle. “No. We’ll be fine for the rest of the evening.”

  The coachman gave them both a bow. It was strange to have someone bow to her again. In an instant, she was brought back to a time when she’d taken it for granted that servants did her bidding anytime she’d wanted it. She’d been a maid for so long, she’d almost forgotten that kind of life. In a way, she was glad they would start out their marriage with only a coachman. She wasn’t all that comfortable with someone doing her bidding anymore. It was going to take her time to adjust to it.

  Lewis shut the bedchamber door. “I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted.” He set his hat and coat on the dresser. “It’s been a long day.” He glanced her way and smiled. “It was probably the best day of my life. No. I amend that. It was the best day of my life.”

  She returned his smile and went over to him. He had such a sweet way about him. Was it any wonder that she couldn’t help but fall in love with him? “It was the best day of my life, too.”

  In fact, there wasn’t anything she could think of that would have made the day better. Everything had been like a fairy tale.

  Lewis brought her into his arms then pressed his lips against hers. She melted in his arms, finally feeling complete.

  In the past, she’d told herself that the desire to be with him would fade. She’d told herself that he’d only been the object of a young girl’s fantasy. She was sure nothing would come of it. She kept expecting the feelings to go away. They hadn’t, though. For some reason, they’d only grown stronger, as if she and Lewis were meant to be together…as if everything they’d been through before getting married had all been designed even before they were born.

  His hands came up to her shoulders. She sensed that he wanted to bring them to her breasts but was too shy to make the move. She pulled away from him enough so that she could take his hands. She placed them over her breasts, her skin flushing with pleasure at the intimate contact. Before she lost her nerve and backed away from him, she leaned into him again and resumed their kiss.

  He let out a moan and cupped her more firmly in his hands. She wrapped her arms around his neck and parted her lips, silently encouraging him to deepen the kiss. He obeyed, and before long, their tongues were interlacing in earnest. For someone who seemed timid, he was quickly warming up to her. And that was good. She wanted him to be comfortable with her. She wanted him to lower his inhibitions completely and reveal just how passionate he could be.

  Fortunately, he didn’t take much prompting. After kissing her for a couple of minutes, he started to remove her clothes. Having never been intimate with a gentleman, she experienced a slight bout of shyness, but she wanted to be with him more than she’d ever wanted anything so she helped him. She wasn’t sure if seeing her naked would cause his own shyness to resurface since it was such a personal thing to happen between them.

  As it turned out, however, he didn’t give any indication of being the least bit shy. He made no attempt to look away from her, nor did he hesitate to touch her. Both his gaze and his hands went over her body. Despite the cool air in the room, her skin warmed in excitement and pleasure. He liked everything about her, and he was making no secret about it, which was absolutely wonderful.

  “I’ve never seen anything more beautiful than this,” he whispered then brought his mouth to one of her nipples.

  His hand went down her stomach until it settled to the patch of curls between her legs. She parted her legs, and he traced her opening with his fingers. His touch was so gentle that she almost didn’t feel it, and in some ways, that made the action that much more intense.

  She closed her eyes and held onto his shoulders. In this moment, he was adoring her. He was loving her in the way she’d longed for him to love her for years. Right now, the rest of the world didn’t exist. It was just the two of them. And she wished they could stay here forever.

  His tongue brushed her nipple one more time before he left a trail of kisses to where his fingers were. Renewing her hold on his shoulders, she parted her legs further for him. He slid a finger into her and then kissed her sensitive nub. She let out a soft cry. He couldn’t possibly know how good that felt. She knew he had no experience with another lady. Everything he was doing was out of curiosity. He was simply learning how her body was different from his. And it was the most pleasurable thing she’d ever been through.

  He slid another finger into her and explored her a while longer. She made no secret that she was enjoying what he was doing. She didn’t think she could hold back her excitement. The ache building up deep inside her prompted her to let him know exactly how much she wanted him to continue.

  When he slipped his fingers out of her, she cried out in protest.

  He straightened up. “I’ll get back to what I was doing.”

  Something in his heated gaze sent a shiver of anticipation through her. He felt the same surge of passion she did. There was nothing he wanted more than to make love to her. Thrilled, she helped him out of his clothes, no longer feeling shy at all. How could she feel shy when she was too aware of her arousal?

  Once he shrugged out of the last of his clothing, he picked her up and carried her to the bed. He settled between her legs and kissed her again. His tongue brushed hers in a way that let her know he was as excited about what they were about to do as she was.

  Eager to explore him, she reached between them and touched his erection. He shifted his hips so his penis was more fully in her palm. Intrigued
, she cupped him in her hand with one hand and traced the tip with her free hand. A bead of moisture came at the tip. With a moan, he slid partly out of her hand and then back in.

  He did this several times before he brought his hand to her entrance and slid his fingers back into her. Needing to feel his penis more intimately, she angled his tip at her sensitive nub. He continued moving in her hand, and every time his tip brushed her sensitive nub, she felt the most thrilling sensation sweep over her.

  At one point he gasped and pulled away from her hand. When she studied his face to figure out what was going on, he said, “I want to be inside you when I peak. I almost did it just now.” He lowered his gaze and cupped her breasts in his hands. “I want to enjoy all of this. I’ve never been with a lady before, and I want the first time to be perfect.”

  “It is perfect,” she whispered, her nipples hardening under his caress. She ran her hands up his arms. “Everything you’re doing is wonderful.”

  He knelt forward and kissed her again, but this time, his lips didn’t stay there. He straightened back up and asked, “What would give you the greatest pleasure?”

  “This.” She took his hand and brought it back between her legs. She encouraged him to put his fingers back inside her. She let out a moan. “Yes. That’s much better.” She lifted her hips and her core clenched around him, bringing him deeper into her. “I’d like your mouth here.” She touched her sensitive nub.

  She barely had time to finish the sentence before he lowered his head between her legs. She might have found his eagerness funny if she hadn’t been so aroused. His tongue traced the length of her nub, and she cried out to let him know she wanted him to keep doing that.

  She lost track of time as he proceeded to caress her. And then, when she reached the peak, she gripped the blanket under her and cried out. Wave upon wave of pleasure crashed into her. She had no idea she’d experience such intense pleasure in bed. She knew she was going to enjoy being with him. She loved him, after all. Always had and always would. But this unexpected sensation of being swept up in pure bliss came as such a shock that she couldn’t focus on anything but her orgasm.

  After the waves ebbed, she murmured for him to enter her. He knelt over her and brought the tip of his penis to her entrance. She was so wet that he slid in with no effort. Groaning, he pulled slightly out of her and then went back. He repeated the action again and again. It took her a moment to realize he was using the same rhythm he’d used when he was in her hand.

  She held him close to her and guided him along. He stilled a few times, his body tense, and he waited for several long moments before he resumed his thrusting. He was delaying his climax, and she couldn’t blame him. The journey was exquisite in its own right. She hadn’t been in any hurry to reach her peak, either. But after several times of doing this, he finally gave into the need and let his thrusting grow faster and faster until he climaxed. He cried out her name and stilled, his penis throbbing as he released his seed.

  With a satisfied sigh, he collapsed in her arms. She pressed her cheek against his. No one would know it to look at him, but he was a very passionate lover. He was probably passionate about other things, deep down. He was probably passionate about his friendships and about things he believed in. He wasn’t the type to do something halfway. He either didn’t do it, or he gave everything he had into it. That being the case, he would love her, and he’d love her just as passionately as he did everything else.

  She kissed his cheek. She was reluctant to part from him. He must have felt the same way, for he remained inside her as he brought his mouth to hers and kissed her. She liked this kind of intimacy. She never wanted it to end. If only she could take this night and make it last forever.

  After a few minutes, he slid out of her, drew her into his arms, and fell asleep. She, on the other hand, spent a good amount of time awake, going over every wonderful thing that had happened that day.

  Chapter Ten

  The next morning after she washed up, Marcy chose one of the few dresses she had acquired from her life before she worked as a maid. The muslin day dress didn’t have any frills in it, but it would be acceptable in polite society should Lewis want to leave the townhouse.

  She wasn’t going to be able to change clothes as often as noble ladies did. But then, she wasn’t used to changing clothes anymore. When she’d put on her maid’s dress, she was in the habit of wearing it all through the day. Judging by the amount of clothes in Lewis’ armoire, he probably changed at least twice a day. If she recalled right, when he stayed at Stephen and Patricia’s, he would wear one set of clothes early in the day and then another set in the evening for dinner. She didn’t know if he’d do that now, but she didn’t mind the laundry. She was with him, and that’s all she really cared about.

  Once she was finished getting ready for the day, she went to the door connecting her bedchamber with his.

  “Where are you going?” Lewis asked from where he was shaving.

  “I thought this would be a good time to put my things away in my bedchamber,” she replied.

  She touched the doorknob, and to her surprise, he hurried over to her. Half of his jaw was still covered in lather, and he was holding his razor. With his free hand, he pulled her away from the door.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  “That’s one of the worst rooms in this house,” he said. “I don’t think you should go in there until I’ve had time to make it more presentable.”

  “Are you hiding a lady in there?” she teased.

  He edged her further from the door. “No, of course not. It’s just that no one’s been in that room for about twenty years. I hadn’t planned to marry, so I didn’t have the maid clean it when I came to live here. My brother chose to stay in the country. He never had any use for this townhouse.” He shrugged and turned his attention back to shaving. “I figured someone might as well be here. Besides, I was bored out in the country. There’s a lot more things to do here, and some don’t even cost anything.”

  “When did you come to live here?”

  “I came here with my father when I was fourteen. I returned to the estate once a year to visit, but I made this place my home.”

  “You didn’t miss your brother?”

  “I did. That’s the only reason I went back with my father. But my brother was a recluse. He confined himself to his bedchamber. After a couple of years of trying to coax him out of there, I gave up. When I returned to the estate, I would talk to him through the door of his bedchamber, make sure things were in order, and go back to London within the week.”

  Her eyebrows furrowed. “Your brother never left his room? Ever?”

  He shook his head then ran the razor along his jaw. “He was terrified of leaving it. He was sure as soon as he did, he would die.” He finished shaving then wiped his face with a hand towel. “It turns out the gypsy’s son who was stalking Patricia crept into his bedchamber and strangled him. I suppose there’s no escaping fate. When your time comes, it’s going to come regardless of what you do. My mother died within weeks of giving birth to me. I have no idea what killed her. My father never told my brother or me the details. He just started drinking all the time and keeping more and more to himself as time went on.”

  “That’s awful.”

  She knew Patricia had had her share of sorrows in the past. To a lesser extent, so did Stephen. And now she was learning Lewis’ past hadn’t been all that pleasant, either. All this time, she’d thought she’d been the only one who had shadows in her past she’d rather forget. Perhaps everyone did to some extent. The only difference was that the shadows in her past were those of her own doing.

  “When I was fourteen,” Lewis began as he put his shaving supplies away, “I made the decision that I wouldn’t follow in my brother’s or my father’s footsteps. I didn’t want to live my life holed up in fear or misery. I made the decision to enjoy the days granted to me. Everyone has to die at some point. There’s no escaping it. We can’t cont
rol when or how it happens. The only thing we can do is enjoy things when we can. That’s why I married you. I knew I’d enjoy my life much more if you were in it.”

  Pleased by his words, she wrapped her arms around him. She wanted what he wanted. She wanted to enjoy being with him. And she would. He was right. Whether or not she was happy was a decision she could make. And she would make it. Right here, and right now. The past was the past. There was no changing it. She didn’t need to let it rob her of her present or her future.

  “You’re like a beacon of light,” she whispered. Was it any wonder why she’d been drawn to him? She had needed him to save her from the prison she’d put herself in. She just hadn’t realized it until now.

  He lifted her face and kissed her. “We’re a good match. We might not have much, but we have each other, and that’s what matters.”

  She returned his smile and nodded. “It is.”

  After a moment, he glanced at the door connecting her bedchamber with his and said, “Maybe you should see that room first. Once you do, the rest of the townhouse won’t look so bad.”

  “Lewis, I keep telling you I was a maid. Stephen’s manor wasn’t always as clean as you see it now. I was one of the first maids he hired. There was a lot of work to be done in that place, and this townhouse isn’t as big as his manor. I can handle it.”

  “You’re a countess now. You’re not a maid. You shouldn’t have to clean the rooms.”

  She shook her head. “It’s worth it since I can be with you. As you said, the thing that matters most is that we have each other. Fortunately for you, I happen to have plenty of experience cleaning up dust.” So that he wouldn’t feel guilty, she kissed him then gave him a playful pat on the behind.

  As she hoped, he chuckled. “All right, but I plan to help you.”

  “If we’re doing it together, it’ll go quicker.”

  Any chore went faster if she was with someone she liked. There had been times when she’d done laundry with another maid, and since the maid had been a talker, the time had flown by. She much preferred doing tasks with that maid because of it. The maid had decided to go back to Scotland so she could take care of an aging relative. Marcy had missed her for months after she left. At least with Lewis, he wouldn’t run off to another country to take care of a relative. He would stay here with her. They had the rest of their lives to enjoy being together.