“What you do not know is the reason for it.” He shook his head to himself. “When my brother died, when I learned that I was to inherit the estate, I discovered that our father had left us in incredible debt. I was young then, angry, and I convinced myself that I did not care about what people thought of me.”
She laughed. “I noticed.”
“I never wanted to be a duke, so why should I care about what I did as one? The gaming hell was a means to claw my way out of debt. I knew that it would be looked down on, but I did not care about that. I also convinced myself that if I did it the right way, the honorable way, that it might go unnoticed by my peers. All anyone cares about anyway is money, so what should it matter how it is made?”
“And now…” she pressed.
“I was right, for a time,” he said with a dark chuckle. “Oh sure, people talked, but few truly cared. And the fact that I did not concern myself with what other people said went a long way toward silencing the few who dared to speak out.” He exhaled further. “I had found a balance that if things stayed the same, I could exist in peace.”
“And Lord Grundon? Where does he come in? Does he owe you money? Did he lose at your establishment?”
His brow furrowed. “I am not sure. I do not think…” He shook his head again. “I can only assume that he resents me for who I am. Likely, he believes I ought to be punished or… or that I should be taught a lesson.” He sneered. “And Millicent is the perfect way for him to do so. Celestine…” His chin began to wobble. “If this ruins her, if what I have done… I cannot let this ruin her life. I need to find a way.”
Celestine looked up at Edward and never had she felt such pride in her husband. She did not care about his past. She did not care about some silly gaming hell. What she cared for was who he was as a man.
Who she saw as she looked at him was a man worth caring about.
And maybe more than that…
“Tomorrow,” she said. “We will think of something.”
“I cannot wait that long.”
“You will.” She looked at him pointedly. “What you need to do now is relax. Anything said or done tonight will only make it worse.”
“Relax? How can I possibly relax?”
He sat over her. His breathing was heavy. His thick chest and shoulders rose as his body remained red and coated in sweat. It was an odd thought to have in the moment, but Celestine once again could not escape how attracted she was to him. How much she wanted him…
She sat between his legs. Her hands on his thick thighs. And as her eyes roamed his body, an idea came to mind. A most wicked one, but the best idea often were.
Anything that might bring him calm…
“Oh, I have an idea…” She ran her hands up his thighs.
“What are you…” He turned stiff. “Celestine, now is not…”
“Now is exactly the time,” she purred as her hands reached for his buckle. “You are stressed. You need to relax. And I can think of only one way.”
He looked down at her in surprise, as if he was only then seeing her for the first time. “How did I get so lucky as to call you my wife?”
“I often wonder that myself.”
He stopped fighting her then. He stopped allowing himself to work up his anger. He knew what she was doing, he was not one to resist such a thing, and even if he tried…I doubt he would be able to stop me.
“I do not want to stop you,” he said as he looked down at her, a hungry look in his eyes. “But I do wonder if you might need some…” He flashed his eyes. “Instruction.”
Her heart skipped a beat. “Anything to help,” she said innocently. “Anything to make you feel better…”
He chuckled deeply. “There she is, my wife.”
His pants came undone and Edward lifted himself up just enough so that he could slide them down. As he did, his member came free, and as Celestine expected, it was already hard and throbbing. She had seen it so many times. She had felt it just as many. But for some reason, in that moment, it looked even better than she remembered.
She licked her lips as she took it in her hand. She squeezed its girth, relishing how it made her husband stiffen and moan. She looked up at Edward, a question in her eyes.
“That’s right,” he eased her, his breathing already heavy as she squeezed his girth. “But it’s your mouth I want to feel. Those lips…” He groaned. “Show me what you can do.”
She loved how it felt in her palm, the way it throbbed, the way he trembled. And she loved how eager he was to help her, just as she was eager to do right by him.
