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Still smiling, Nic slipped into dreamless, painless sleep.
Chapter 25
Olivia rose quietly from the bed, slipping her shawl about her naked body, her toes curling on the cold floor. It was early morning and the mist was rising from the river, drifting like smoke over the lawn toward the house. She stood at the window, enjoying the view.
Nic had slept well last night, only waking once. They’d made love quickly, silently, and she could not help but wonder if he even knew who she was. At least she did until he kissed her mouth, sleepily, and said, “Sweet Olivia. Olivia Lacey.” Then, with a chuckle, he’d gone back to sleep.
Now she stood, lost in thought, not hearing him come up behind her until his arms slid around her waist, making her start, and she felt his warm, naked body pressed against hers. He reached inside her shawl and cupped her breasts, fingering her nipples until they were as hard as his cock, jutting against her rounded bottom.
“I thought you were asleep,” she said breathlessly, trying to turn in his arms so that she could see him.
He held her where she was, against the sill. “How can I sleep with you standing in front of the light so that I can see every beautiful curve of your body.”
“I didn’t realize—”
“I know you didn’t. That’s part of your charm, Olivia. You didn’t realize, you never do. I find that kind of innocence very erotic.”
His fingers stroked the under curve of her breasts, then slid down over her ribs to the gentle swell of her stomach, and farther, to the curls between her thighs. As he probed the opening, teasing the bud, he felt her legs tremble.
“Nic,” she gasped.
Olivia realized she could see their reflection in the old glass, wavy and smudged about the edges. Her body looked like alabaster, the shawl a red blur, and behind it his bigger form. His hand moved, touching her, slipping his fingers inside her. Her thighs fell open and she leaned back against him, watching as he bent and began to lap at the side of her neck. Seeing what he was doing increased the pleasure, and she groaned.
He squeezed her gently, rolling the bud, pushing her to the edge. When he knew she was about to reach her peak, he withdrew his hand and, clasping her hips, eased her back so that she could bend over with her hands still gripping the sill for support.
Olivia felt vulnerable, her body open to him, and yet she was excited, too. Nic’s hand rested on her lower spine, and then he eased her thighs apart, and she felt his shaft against the slick flesh between them. He held her hips firmly and began to ease himself inside her, a little at a time.
In this position he seemed able to enter her farther than before. He filled her completely. The heat of his chest seemed to scald her back, his hair abrading her, while he thrust with increasing rhythm deep into her body.
He reached around to cup her breasts, and then his fingers slid into the cleft within her curls and began to tease the sensitive bud once more. A ripple of pleasure sped through her and she lifted her head, crying out, her knuckles white as she clung to the sill. Beyond the window the mist was leaving as the sun brightened.
Nic waited until her breath had steadied and then he began to move again. Olivia realized he wasn’t done. A moment later she was glad of it. Her body began to ready itself for more pleasure, and she pushed back against him, eager for Nic to have his peak, too.
He kissed her nape, licking the salt from her skin, and she felt his hips shift slightly. Before she knew it, she was crying out, unable to stop herself, as he touched some spot deep inside her. He’d done this before, she remembered, and it seemed he’d committed that particular place to memory. He didn’t even hesitate as he pressed again, harder and deeper, and this time she screamed. She couldn’t help it. A pleasure so violent gripped her she would have fallen if he hadn’t been holding her. As her body clenched and spasmed, Nic was pushed over the edge into his own completion.
The two of them staggered back to the bed and fell upon the mattress, bodies trembling and chests heaving, and slept until the sun was high in the sky.
Estelle pressed her ear to the door but there was no sound, so she made her way down again to Abbot, waiting in the downstairs servants’ parlor. He looked up at her entrance.
“They’re still asleep?”
“Yes.”
“Lord Lacey is a very sensual man, my dear, and it seems he has found a perfect mate in his wife. Leave them to sleep and enjoy their time together. Once we reach London, things will be different.”
“You mean they will have to rise before noon?” Estelle said dryly.
“Are you bored already?” Abbot pulled her down onto his lap.
“Of course not.” She settled herself comfortably, smiling up at him. “I want to see London and all the sights—the Tower and Hyde Park. Do you think we will have time to visit them, Abbot?”
Abbot pursed his lips. “Hmm, perhaps. You will have much to do, Estelle. There will be dinners and balls and visits to the opera and the theater. Now that Lord Lacey is respectably married he will want to show off his new wife to London society.”
“So you don’t think he will go back to his old ways?”
Abbot tucked her head beneath his chin, wrapping his arms about her plump body. “I hope not, for Lady Lacey’s sake. I think he will do his utmost to be the gentleman he was brought up to be.”
“And what of the other one?” Estelle asked quietly. “The woman and the child you told me about?”
