Matthew must have known it, for he moved down the front of her body, trailing kisses and nips on her sensitive skin until his head was suddenly between her thighs. She was about to put voice to a protest when his tongue found the troublesome spot and stroked it.
Her hips bucked in response to the unexpected sensation, and she let out a cry of surprise.
“Breathe, my love,” he said, his breaths warm against her thighs. “I shouldn’t want you fainting.”
About to ask why, she understood his meaning almost immediately, for when his tongue once again flicked over her womanhood, a sharp dart of pleasure had her gasping. He didit again, several times, causing the darts to merge into a single sensation so intense, she was sure she would faint.
When his tongue entered her most private place, she cried out, “Matthew!” as waves of pleasure coursed through her abdomen.
She was unaware of how he had already pulled away and was suddenly over the top of her, his manhood replacing his tongue as her body continued to spasm.
Sure he was too large, she sucked in a breath as he entered a few inches and then retreated, as if he, too, knew he couldn’t possibly fit inside her. Then he entered her again, this time more slowly.
“Breathe, my love,” he whispered, his lips leaving a trail of kisses along her jaw.
Catherine did his bidding as she resisted the urge to hiss. Although she didn’t feel pain, she did experience a moment of feeling his fullness, of feeling as if she would burst. When he moved again, though, she relaxed. When he entered her yet again, this time she knew he had pushed his manhood in as far as it would go. The sensation of his ball sac pressing against her quim had her inhaling sharply, and not from pain.
He must have noticed, for he dipped his head until their foreheads were touching and said, “I am in heaven.” Whilst kissing her on the lips, he began the rhythmic motions of an ancient dance, one that Catherine was soon able to match, her hips lifting to meet his thrusts, her thighs lifting to cradle his hips.
Matthew’s growl filled the bedchamber, the sound the only warning Catherine had of his impending release. She watched in wonder as he suddenly stopped moving and threw his head back, his breaths loud in the night.
“You are heaven,” he whispered, lowering his body to hers before he rolled off of her. He landed on his back, his eyes closed.
Catherine stared at him, a combination of concern, disappointment, and the sudden loss of his heated body causing her to turn and lift herself onto an elbow. “Are you well?” Despite the chill, a sheen of perspiration covered his body.
Raising a bent arm and dropping it above his head, he chuckled. “Very well.” He turned his gaze on her. “Oh, dear. Were you…? Did I hurt you?” he asked, raising himself onto an elbow.
She shook her head. “No. It didn’t hurt,” she claimed. “However, I think I should…” She glanced around the room.
“Wash,” he guessed. “Yes.” He rolled off the other side of the bed. “Stay there.”
Watching as he disappeared into the dressing room, Catherine worried she had left a stain on his bed linens. When he emerged, he was wearing a light dressing robe and carrying a much heavier one.
“Let’s put this on you. It’s a bit cold in here,” he said.
She stepped off the bed and winced. “I’m so sorry. I think I…”
“It’s all right,” he said, wrapping the robe around her shoulders. “There’s hot water in the bathing chamber,” he said. He grabbed the lantern and indicated she should follow him.
Surprised, Catherine wondered what he meant by hot water until she stepped into the chamber and saw a candle flame beneath a large jug sitting atop a metal frame. A spigot hung over a sink, and on a counter on the other side of the sink was a pitcher and ewer.
“Hot, cold,” he said, pointing out the two sources for water. He handed her a bath linen before helping himself to another. “Do be careful, though, for sometimes this is too warm,” he warned.
He turned the spigot to wet his linen, testing it. “You should be fine.”
Catherine watched as he used the linen to clean his manhood. Not wanting to get caught staring, she quickly turned around and helped herself to the warm water. Before she could begin her own ministrations, he pressed his chest to her back and placed a kiss on the side of her head.
“I’m going to warm the bed,” he whispered.
A shiver passed through her, and she knew it wasn’t due to the chill in the air. “I’ll be there in a moment,” she replied.
She waited until he was gone before she began cleaning her thighs, wincing when the linen touched her tender quim. After a moment, the warm sponge bath had her restored to rights, and she sighed with appreciation before she returned to the bedchamber.
Although the lantern had been extinguished, more coal had been added to the fireplace, the flames casting the room in a golden glow.
“Are you all right?” Matthew was sitting up in the bed, his lower half covered with the blankets.
Catherine experienced an odd sensation at seeing him, the frisson reminiscent of the one he had caused with his earlier foreplay, and she gasped softly. “I am now,” she murmured, shedding the robe and joining him in the bed.
