“We were just discussing how well the party went,” Abigail said. “You were such a help today and I wanted to tell you how much I appreciate it.”
Ophelia blinked. “I…thank you, Abigail. You did wonderfully, I must say, under what I know were trying circumstances.”
Abigail’s blush said how much the hard-won compliment meant to her. “Thank you. Er, you looked like you had a nice time.”
Ophelia nodded slowly. “I did, actually. I reconnected with some old friends and got to spend some time with a few new ones.” She glanced at Rhys, Pippa, Celeste and Owen with a wink. “In fact, Rhys and Pippa have been kind enough to invite me to stay with them for two days, and I’ve accepted that lovely offer.”
“Stay with them?” Nathan said, glancing at the pair. “Why?”
“We thought you might want some time alone as newlyweds,” Rhys said.
Once again, Abigail shifted, as if the topic made her uncomfortable. She was forever looking for material to build a wall. And he shouldn’t have cared so much about that fact.
“That is kind,” Abigail said at last, her cheeks brightening to pink.
“Well, consider it my wedding gift,” Ophelia said as she leaned up to kiss Nathan’s cheek. She pivoted to Abigail and for a moment the two women simply looked at each other. Then Ophelia reached out and squeezed her hand briefly. “Congratulations, Your Grace.”
Abigail laughed. “I’m still getting accustomed to that.”
“And now we should leave the happy couple to their peace,” Celeste said. “Why don’t the rest of you join Owen and me for supper tonight?”
“That sounds delightful,” Pippa said as she caught Rhys’s arm. The crowd of them moved toward the door, talking and laughing.
The final goodbyes were said and the carriages loaded and then they were off. Nathan and Abigail stood beside each other on the step, waving them into the increasing darkness of the late afternoon. When they were gone, Nathan turned toward his wife. His wife. She looked up at him, eyes wide with uncertainty, but also anticipation. He saw the desire in her, felt it echoed in himself.
He held out his arm. “Are you ready, Your Grace?”
She blinked, and it was clear she took his meaning. Then she slipped her hand into the crook of his arm. “Yes, Nathan.”
Abigail could barely breathe as Nathan led her through the massive carved double doors at the end of the hallway and into the antechamber of his chamber. Their chamber. This set of connected rooms were their chambers now. He released her and she moved forward into the big sitting space. A private parlor with comfortable-looking furniture.
Behind her, he cleared his throat and she turned to face him. He arched a brow and then very deliberately locked the door. She laughed at what had become one of their little in-jokes.
“Not that I think anyone would dare try to intrude on our wedding night,” he said. “But better to be safe than sorry.”
“It’s a pretty room,” she said.
He nodded. “I agree. I’ve always liked this little private space. I often read here in the evenings.”
She smiled. “Well, perhaps we will read here together.”
Something in his expression softened at that suggestion, but then the corner of his mouth lifted in a wicked half-smile. “But not tonight.”
Her breath caught, and she glanced past him toward the closed chamber door. There was another behind her, and she wasn’t sure which was the duke’s bedroom and which the duchess’s. But they would enter one of those two and then…well, they would finally get to purge all the unfinished business between them.
It was a powerful thought. Almost too powerful, and she struggled to reduce the meaning of that moment. “You don’t want to read tonight?”
“No,” he said softly.
She lifted her gaze to him. “What would you like to do?”
He tilted his head. “What I would like to do, wife, is to take you into that room—” He jerked a thumb behind him toward the door. “—my room, strip you out of that very pretty gown, lick your entire body until you are shaking and then finally do the thing I’ve been dreaming of for far too long.”
She swallowed hard. “And what is that?”
“Take you,” he said softly as he moved toward her a long step. “Fit myself inside of you and claim you.” He moved again. “Make you scream this house down and scandalize the servants and the neighbors.”
They were mere inches apart now, and he reached for her hand, tracing his fingers along the top, then in the cup of her palm. He lifted it to his lips and pressed a warm kiss there.
“You’ve a very high opinion of yourself,” she choked out, her voice trembling far too much to pretend she wasn’t moved by him. He turned her hand over and kissed her palm, kissed the place where her thumb and forefinger met. “What if we aren’t good at this?”
He barked out a laugh. “We’ve been very, very good at everything that came before,” he said. “I have great faith in our abilities. But I suppose we shall see, won’t we? Come on.”
He tugged her toward his door and opened it without releasing her hand. They moved forward together, him backing her in, his mesmerizing gaze never leaving hers. Finally he released her hand and she realized they had moved into the middle of his chamber.
As he went back to shut the door, she took in the space. She should have been admiring every detail of the room, but all she could look at was his bed. His very big bed with the tall posters and gauzy curtains drawn back.
“Big enough?” he whispered, close to her ear suddenly.
She jumped. “That remains to be seen,” she teased.
He laughed as he wrapped an arm around her waist and turned her into his chest. “Minx,” he whispered just before his mouth met hers.
It might have started as a gentle kiss, but it quickly escalated. She opened to him and he took, claimed, plundered. She gripped the lapels of his jacket and lifted into him, wanting to be closer as his hands tightened on her hips. When they broke apart, they were both panting, and seeing that she affected him the same way he did her was powerful.
“I know it’s been a long time,” he said softly, his fingers tightening and loosening against her body in a rhythmic way. “So if you want me to stop at any point, you only have to tell me.”
Her brow wrinkled. “This is…this is your husbandly right, Nathan.”
He recoiled slightly. “Is that what he told you? This is my deepest pleasure, Abigail, but only if it’s also yours. If you want to stop, we stop. No recriminations, no questions. We stop.”
Tears stung her eyes, and she stared up at this man she had once despised and now continually surprised her. It would be very easy to care for him deeply. To risk herself far more than she wanted to do. She would have to tread very carefully here and always strive to keep what her body wanted separate from her heart.
“Please touch me,” she whispered. “That’s what I know I want.”
His pupils dilated as he cupped her jawline gently, tilting her face for better access, and then kissed her again. There was something about it, something that shifted and told her that they wouldn’t stop again until they’d shared each other completely. Until she was truly his bride, until she had shattered in pleasure the way she craved to do.