“Then one night is what you shall have.” He let out a sigh. “It is less than I would have hoped for, but realistically perhaps all we have. Is that is what you are telling me?”
“Yes.”
He touched her hair again. “Then I shall endeavor to make this night far surpass your expectations.”
He kissed her, which was a good start. Adele didn’t really have many expectations, except the few things she understood about how things should be between men and women and her own body talking to her. As Hugh trailed his fingers down the sleeve of her dressing gown, she felt warmth bloom in her chest and her heart begin to pound.
Unable to resist, she put her hands on his chest. “Is this all right?”
“Yes. Please, touch me anywhere you like.” He leaned close and nipped at her jaw. She closed her eyes and leaned into his touch. As he slid her dressing gown off her shoulders to reveal her nightgown, he said, “Please do anything to me that strikes your fancy. If I do not like it, I will tell you. And I expect the same for you. If I do anything that you do not like or that does not feel good, tell me and I will stop. Is that a deal?”
“Yes,” she said breathlessly.
“Good. Because a night like this should be about pleasure. I want you to feel good. Understood?”
“I understand, yes.”
“Perfect.”
He stood and held out his hand for her. So she stood up next to him, and as she did, her dressing gown slid off her arms and onto the floor.
“Leave it,” he said. “Raise your arms as if you and I are about to waltz.”
She followed his instruction and spared a thought for some fantasy world in which Hugh and Adele waltzed in a crowded ballroom with all of thetonlooking on. In her fantasy, the crowd tittered about what a beautiful couple they made, how happy they looked together, how plain Adele Paulson had blossomed in her marriage to the Duke of Swynford. She closed her eyes and touched his chest again, sliding the palms of her hands over the hard planes of it, and hooked her hands behind his neck.
“This is not proper waltz technique,” said Hugh.
“Do you mind?”
He grinned. “Not at all.”
He put his arms around her and swayed gently, as if they were dancing. Then he pressed a hand against the small of her back and pressed her against him. Only her delicate nightgown separated her bare skin from his, and she pressed against him, from her breasts to her knees. He kissed her as they swayed back and forth, which made Adele feel more certain of her decision. Whatever was about to happen would be magic. She wanted to remember every second.
Her nightgown was a flimsy thing. She’d chosen to wear it because it was barely there and she thought he might find it enticing. It was a little big on her, though; she’d likely lost a little weight in the time she’d been working for the countess. But that meant that Hugh could easily slide his fingers under the fabric near her neck. He undid the buttons that went down the front of the shift like he was unwrapping a gift.
She gasped at the realization that he was about to see her nude.
“Do not feel shame,” Hugh said, gently removing her fingers from where they clutched her gown closed. She hadn’t even noticed she’d done that. “Never feel shame. You are a beautiful woman. And most men love women’s bodies.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Most men?”
“Somehow I know that some men also like men’s bodies. Which is not… that is, I do not know if I am supposed to know that or if it is socially acceptable, but… well, suffice it to say thatIlove women, and what I know of your body arouses me, and I would like to see more of it. Do not feel shame.”
Adele was so touched she couldn’t speak. She was nervous, but she would push any shame away. Instead she dropped her arms and her breasts seemed to burst out from between the buttons. Something changed in Hugh’s gaze, darkened it. He ran his hand over one breast and her nipple hardened under his palm. He bowed his head and kissed her as he slid the nightgown off her shoulders and it pooled at her feet.
Instead of shame, she felt arousal. She’d experienced desire before, but this was something else entirely. As Hugh scooped her up into his arms, she felt her skin tingle everywhere, but especially near her breasts and between her legs. She wanted more of whatever this was, wanted it to grow stronger, wanted to go somewhere with Hugh.
He gently lay her on the bed and gazed at her for a long moment before his hands went to the placket of buttons at his waist. He leaned down and a little awkwardly removed his stockings and tossed them aside, then began to unbutton his breeches.
Adele stopped breathing.
She’d never seen a naked man before, but what she could see of Hugh was already striking. He had wide shoulders and a torso that narrowed like an inverted triangle. The rounded muscles of his arms seemed to flex as he moved. She liked everything shesaw, from the hair on his chest to the shape of his bare ankles and she wanted to touch him everywhere. But right now, all she could think about was what was under his breeches.
She resisted the urge to touch herself and instead focused on his hands as he undid those buttons. The act probably took a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity as her heart sped up watching him slide each button through its corresponding buttonhole.
And then he moved and pushed his breeches down his legs and stood before her in all his glory. He did not look entirely as expected, but she felt flush everywhere as she gazed on him.
He climbed onto the bed with her. She was almost glad that they were no longer displaying themselves for each other. She looped her arms around his neck and kissed him, and she felt him smile against her lips.
