“I… I did not expect you.”
“I can go.”
“No. No, it’s all right.” She folded her hands at her waist and took a deep breath of her own before gesturing to the other chair. “Please, sit down.”
Awkwardly, he lowered himself into the armchair, discreetly readjusting his banyan to conceal the instant response of his body upon seeing her form caressed by the firelight. He had of course seen pictures and statues of nude women, both artistic and crude, but never in real life. And they had never been his wife. Georgie.
How could he have been so blind as to not see the gentle curve of her breasts, the swell of her hips, the softness of her skin, even though she had been in disguise? Perhaps he had not been ready to see her as she truly was.
She settled into the opposite chair, drawing her legs up and wrapping her arms around them as she gazed into the fire. Acomfortable silence settled between them, but Peter was aware of an undercurrent of sensual awareness.
It was like their nights together in his drawing room, except they were both in their nightclothes, and he was all too aware she was a woman.
Clearly, he must take the lead despite his lack of experience. He extended his hand to her. “Would you like to come sit with me?”
She froze for a long moment and he feared he had offended her.
Then she rose from her chair, her steps halting, and took his hand. He helped her lower herself into his lap, his arm curving around her waist as her head came to rest in the hollow of his shoulder. He felt a curious mix of emotions, somehow protective and lustful all at the same time, wanting to ravish her while keeping her safe.
“Have you ever… ?”
Her voice trailed off, but he knew what she was asking. He picked her hand up and toyed with her fingers as he decided how to frame his reply.
“No,” he said. “I knew from the time I was a young boy that I was destined for the Church, and I wanted to honor that. I knew other young men who decided to fill their time before taking holy orders with debauchery, but for myself, I needed to go in with a whole heart and truly dedicate myself. I… waited, so I could come to my future wife as I wished her to come to me.”
“Oh.”
Now he was at the difficult part. Peter cleared his throat.
“But I did have, er, lessons.”
“Lessons?” She pulled back to look him in the eye, and he knew he blushed.
“Yes. I went to a famous courtesan before I was ordained and paid her to, er, explain things to me so I would know how toplease my future wife. With pictures and descriptions,” he said hastily. “She remained clothed the whole time, as did I.”
Georgie was still staring at him, and for a dreadful moment he worried he had shocked her too badly for them to proceed.
“She is the one who gave you the book!” A giggle bubbled up from her, turning into a full laugh until they were laughing together, a welcome release from the tension of the past few days, and he knew it would be all right.
“She didn’t quite give it to me. She, er, sold it to me. One of her past protectors had given it to her and she had never so much as opened it.”
Georgie wiped at her streaming eyes with the sleeve of her nightdress and relaxed against him again. “What did she think?”
“She thought I was a madman, of course. But she also seemed touched that I was thinking of how to be a good husband in that way, and she set to the task quite enthusiastically once I convinced her that was all I wanted of her.”
Her laughter subsided, and she turned her pensive gaze to the fireplace. “I don’t know much about how husbands and wives behave when they are alone together. Mama and I had a talk before my first season about not allowing myself to be caught alone with a man, but she did not, er, give me details. And Mrs. Clarke… well, she tried to be helpful.”
“That may be all to the good, that we don’t have many preconceptions. We won’t need to restrict ourselves to what we think we should do or what others think we should do. We can decide to do what pleases each other.”
“I like that.” She took a deep breath, her soft breasts rising and falling against him, and his cock hardened a little more. She turned her face back to his, her eyes shimmering in the glow of the firelight. “Let’s try.”
Peter lowered his head and kissed her. Her lips were damp, a little open, and clung to his as he pulled a few inches away.
“One of the things Millie told me was that lovers will sometimes kiss using their tongues.”
“Their tongues? How?”
“I’m not sure. Do you want to try?”
