Page 92 of Discovering Her Earl

But they had this moment.

They kissed as if they had all their lives to do so. But other desires became insistent. She began making needy noises and their soft touches became desperate.

“Elaina,” he said her name as a question. Always the gentleman making sure she wanted this but never doubting her answer.

“Yes.”

When he slid inside her body he whispered in Gaelic, words she guessed were curses or promises.

“For as long as I live, I’ll never experience anything as wonderful as the feeling when we join together. It is as if I’ve come home,” he said as his body moved inside her.

Her hips rose with every thrust, meeting him, welcoming him. She was amazed at how perfectly they fit together. How right it felt to be with him in this way.

And then he reached between them to touch that place he alone commanded. He knew exactly how to touch her to make her world fracture and collapse in complete bliss.

The pressure built and broke, as echoes of delight surged through her body and into his.

“You are perfection,” he said as he thrust into her as deeply as possible before pulling away completely as he gasped his release.

As much as she wanted to hold him closer at that critical moment, she understood the strength it took for him to protect her in that way. She was grateful if not also bereft from missing out on the connection.

He lay next to her, his heart pounding as quickly as her own.

When their breathing slowed, he shifted so he was looking down at her, his fingers stroking her skin softly. These moments afterward were a quiet pleasure.

“What are you thinking?” she asked, unable to help herself when he remained quiet.

His fingertips trailed lightly over her face, down her throat, and across her sensitive nipples. She thought he might not answer. When he did, his voice was rough.

“How much I hate my father.”

She knew how she felt about the man who had injured Julian in the worst way without ever placing a hand on him. She hadn’t ever met the man, but she despised him for the damage he’d caused.

Still, she didn’t know why Julian was thinking of his father in that moment after they’d just shared themselves on a level beyond the physical. Perhaps these thoughts never left him.

“I have never hated him more than I do at this moment.”

“Why?” she had to ask.

He blinked and focused on her.

“When I was young and I displeased him, he would punish me by taking away something I enjoyed. A book or a toy I showed favor to. It didn’t take me long to figure out how to manipulate him into thinking I liked one thing more than life itself while hiding away the thing I truly cared for.”

“You are so clever.” She smiled and brushed his hair back from his forehead.

“I thought so.” He offered a small smile that was gone too quickly. “But he has won this round, the most important one yet. He has managed to take the thing I favor most—rather the person I love more than life itself.”

She felt the hot tears gather in her eyes and spill over on her cheeks.

It wasn’t fair.

Part of her wished he’d never told her how he felt. It just added to everything she would have to give up. But knowing he loved her…

It was everything.

She leaned closer and kissed him softly. When she pulled away, she saw his eyes glistened in the lantern light.

“I love you, Julian. I know what we have must come to an end. But the love…” She shook her head. “He can never take that from us. Never. I will hold it in my heart for the rest of my days.”