He might never be hers completely. He wouldleave. But for tonight, she could pretend that all was how she wanted it in the world. His arms were around her and that was all that mattered.
Their kiss deepened. Their tongues met and teased each other. Their hands began pulling at laces and buttons.
Why was it that whenever she was with him, she was so needy for his touch? He had set his brand upon her.
Harry spread out the fur blankets. The patch of moonlight from the window fell upon them as he brought her down to lie beside him. Their fingers intertwined; he covered her with his body. His weight felt good upon her. She cradled him with her legs. He positioned himself, kissed her cheeks, her nose, her ears, her mouth ... and slid into her.
The first moments of their joining were always overpowering to Portia. She adored the feel of him, the connection. It was as if their souls were mating and not just their bodies.
Harry began moving in her. He whispered in her ear, telling her how lovely she was, how desirable, how perfect.
Didn’t he understand? Her love for him transformed her from plain, sensible Portia to a creature of light and being. She offered herself wholly and without reservation.
She took from him in the same manner. She circled his waist with her legs, bringing him deeper.
They were moving harder, faster. He held himself up over her. Sweat formed on their bodies. He held nothing back. Portia would not have it any other way. She strove with him, a spiral sensation beginning to form within her. It began where they were joined, growing tighter and tighter until she could take it no more.
Portia cried out his name, pulling him even closer to her. The sense of completeness overwhelmed her. She felt as if she’d reached the highest heights in the heavens and had then shattered into a shower of stars; glorious, bold, sparkling stars.
She was not alone. Harry came with her. She felt him stiffen, felt his release. They’d been so careful, but they were not this night. This night, they were both caught up, and to have cut any of this short would have been unthinkable.
His seed was a wondrous thing. And Portia knew in this moment that they truly had become one. She would bear his child, but she was not afraid. Suddenly, her life made sense. Creation made sense. She’d found her destiny.
Harry held her fast. He rolled over onto his back, carrying her with him. His whiskered jaw felt good against her fevered cheek.
The air smelled of the fragrant night and their bodies.
She kissed his lips, the underside of his chin, his neck. His lips curved into a smile. “You are magic,” he whispered.
No hosanna could ring louder than this praise from her lover.
He brought the blankets up around them. The air might be cold, but snuggled close to him, she was warmer than she would have been in her own bed. “I swear, if I had the finest sheets, they would never feel as good as your skin against mine,” she whispered.
Harry kissed the top of her head. His arms held her as if he would not let her go and that was completely fine with Portia. She couldn’t have gone anywhere. She was spent, pleasurably exhausted.
His hand stroked and played with her curls.
No matter what would come their way, she knew she was his. It was her choice ... or perhaps not. Perhaps they had been destined to be together.
“Harry, have you ever been afraid?” she asked.
“Many times,” he answered.
“Are you afraid now?”
The movement of his hand paused. “No. This feels right. Itisright.”
She smiled and held him tighter. She knew sheshould move. She needed to return home before she was discovered missing.
But being with him like this, being in the moonlight and the night air, felt too good for her to move.
And then he was making love to her again. He lifted her up, placing her astride him. He knew she liked this. Watching the changing expression on his face as he lost himself in her made her feel bold, pagan, all-powerful.
He was her man, and she loved him.
When they were done, Portia fell upon his chest, her spent body as languid as a cat. His arms around her, she fell asleep, but not before she murmured the words upon her heart, “I love you.”
He did not respond. She had assumed he was asleep and would not know. But she had to speak them aloud. Their truth could not be denied.
