Page 43 of A Contracted Spouse for the Prizefighter

“Want me to go and sit in the chair?” he asked seriously.

She considered this a moment before shaking her head. “No.” She drew her hand away from petting his chest and rolled onto her back. Clem breathed slowly in and out before rolling onto his side and propping himself up on his elbow to watch her.

To his surprise, Dora hitched up her skirts without more ado. Her progress was not hampered by any cumbersome undergarments, so she simply slid some very plain cotton drawers down to her knees. They were not the crisp white he would have expected, and he guessed this was due to Dora’s lack of laundering prowess. They looked an indeterminate shade of blue-gray and were entirely without embellishment.

“Are you ready?” she asked gravely.

He paused, enquiring, “Are you not going to remove more clothes?”

She shook her head. “No, I’m not corseted, so I’m perfectly comfortable like this.”

He had not actually meant her top half. He would have liked to have seen her long, shapely legs again, especially just in stockings, but as he had not removed his own clothes, he did not feel he had the right to ask it. Instead, he just replied, lips twitching, “Ready when you are, Dora.”

She slid a hand between her thighs. Had he rushed things like this? He wanted to tell her to slow down, but somehow, he could not bring himself to direct her, not when she was being so open with him. “What are you thinking of?” he asked softly. “The illustrations?”

She hesitated, then shook her head. “Not this time,” she admitted. He could not decide where to direct his gaze, her flushed face or that juncture at her thighs where her fingers were busy. He was spoiled for choice.

“What then?” he asked. “What are you thinking about?” Her gaze locked with his and he stopped breathing. She wasn’t about to say what he hoped she would, was she?

“You, when you were … you know….” Christ. Clem’s heart pounded in his chest. Her words were breathy and far more seductive than he had ever thought Theodora Fields would ever sound.

“Did you like watching me?” he asked, and his voice came out gravelly and gruff, not coaxing like he had intended it to be.

She nodded. “Yes.” She didn’t even hesitate.

She was so truthful, even in this, Clem realized with something approaching a pang. Then he heard it—her wetness. Fuck. His head was going to explode. He drew in a steadying breath before asking unevenly, “Are you stroking your pearl, Dora? Did the pictures teach you that?”

“Yes,” she sighed. “They were quite lewd.” She bit her lip. “I had not even examined myself down there before I saw them.”

“You did not know you had a pearl?”

“No,” she burst out, then gasped. “Clem, I c-can’t talk and do this at the same time. I can’t concentrate.”

“Can’t you, sweetheart? Do you need any help?”

Her eyes darted to meet his. “Help in what way?” she asked in a strained voice.

“My fingers … or my mouth,” he offered.

Dora made a muffled sound, though it did not sound like a protest. Clem waited. “Um, yes, if you do not mind.”

If he did not mind? Clem had to swallow as he shifted carefully closer, his body leaning over hers. He slid his hand over her own, between her soft thighs, though for the moment he did not do anything else. Then he leaned down and pressed his mouth to hers. She sighed against his lips and Clem swept his tongue along the seam of her mouth. Dora froze, in surprise, he supposed. The lewd drawings had not dealt with tongue kisses, it seemed.

He sipped at her lips a while, before running his tongue along her lips again. Then he drew back. “Like it or not?” he asked.

“Your tongue?”

“Yes, my tongue.”

“It’s nice,” she answered cautiously. “I was not expecting it, but it’s surprisingly pleasant.”

Clem bit back his laugh. “I’d like to put it in your mouth,” he admitted. “If that’s something you’d be willing to try.”

“Your tongue?” Dora asked in astonishment.

“Yes, please,” Clem all but begged, staring hard at her lips. By this point, he felt like he’d die if she didn’t let him.

“And what do I do with it, when it’s in there?” a flummoxed Dora asked.