AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She did what felt good to her body and played with herself, and he seemed to enjoy it. He gripped her legs harder, his touch almost bruising as he began to thrust into her harder and harder until the slapping of their bodies filled the room.
For the first time in her life, she felt like a wild creature out in the woods being claimed by its mate. She let go of her inhibitions and fell deeply into every pounding rhythm of their lovemaking. Her body bounced from the force of their passionate collision. She had to grip the sheets to keep from sliding up the bed. Arthur was ruthless in his mating, never letting up even when he could tell she was close to coming again. Soon she was soaring, her mind separating from her body as the purest, deepest pleasure she’d ever felt simply took her over. She opened her mouth, but she could only gasp for breath as her blood roared in her ears.
Arthur pounded against her for a few heartbeats longer and then he shouted, loud and harshly before he relaxed, and for some reason the sounds he made caused her to smile. He rocked deeper into her, his body tensing a second as he groaned softly. He cupped her bottom with one hand, giving it a light, reassuring pat. Then he smiled down at her as if pleased with her. He was breathing hard, but that smile he wore was so honest, so real that it confused her and dazzled her. It wasn’t the cold, arrogant smile she expected after what they’d just done. It was intimate, private, almost sweet.
“You survived…” he said between breaths. “Was it as awful as you feared?”
“No… in fact… it was rather nice,” she admitted. She would have told him how much she loved it, if she hadn’t been certain it would increase the size of his sense of self-importance.
“Rather nice? Hmm… challenge accepted. I will endeavor to do better next time.” He chuckled.
Arthur stroked his fingertips up and down her thighs soothingly, and it made her body clench around his shaft in response with the secondary post-climax rippling of her inner walls. “That feels good, do that again,” he said.
Matilda squeezed her inner walls around him, and he groaned. Then with a little sigh of regret, he withdrew from her body and walked over to the washstand and wet a cloth in the white and blue china basin. She tried to close her thighs, suddenly embarrassed. Now that they weren’t intimately connected, some of her sanity was restored, and her shame.
“Now, now, do not turn into a prudish creature on me,” he teased as he cleaned between her legs with gentle hands. “You deserve to enjoy pleasure. You deserve to enjoy sex.”
He pulled back the covers of his bed and she sat up, her body weak as she tried to stand. It was clear he wished to sleep, and she was being dismissed. She bent to retrieve her clothes and attempted to lift her chemise over her head when his warm body came up behind hers and his hands settled on her shoulders.
“Where are you going?” he asked.
“Umm…” She turned around to look at him. “I assume you’re done with me, my lord?” He tucked his fingers under her chin and lifted her head up to meet his gaze.
“Call me my lord when I’m buried deep inside you. I rather like that. But when we’re like this, call me Arthur. Now why would you think I would let you escape?” he asked.
“Because you… you took me and now you’re done, aren’t you?”
His deep laugh was a rich sound that sent a delicious shiver through her.
“I’m done for tonight, only because I do not wish to hurt you. That was quite a lot for your first time with a man. I meant to be far gentler, but I lost enough control. You will likely be sore tomorrow, and I don’t wish to hurt you further. I do want to enjoy being with you and I want you to enjoy being with me, and that means holding your naked body in my arms tonight while we sleep.”
“Oh…” She blushed again when she realized they were standing there completely naked and talking. “You want me to get in the bed now?” she asked, hoping he would let her hide beneath the covers.
“Yes.” He scooped her up in his arms, set her on the bed, and then climbed in beside her. The lamps still glowed in the room, but he seemed not to care. He tucked her into the groove of his body as he resettled beneath the covers.
“Go to sleep. Stop thinking and worrying.” He pressed a kiss to her ear and let out a sigh and his body relaxed. She blinked in the dim light and wondered at the strange fact that she was in bed with the Earl of Castleton. He’d made love to her and made her feel the most amazing things. She was half-worried, half-excited about what tomorrow would bring. She was so exhausted after what they’d done, yet somehow she found peace and sleep in the devil’s arms.
CHAPTER5
Arthur wasn’t sure what woke him, but he reached instinctively for the warm female body in his bed. She wasn’t there. He blinked blearily and looked around. It was close to dawn, and pale light was filling the room. He heard a soft rustle of cloth and saw a feminine figure standing near the windows, its pale light making her a silhouette.
“Mattie?”
The woman at the window turned toward him in surprise. Neither of them knew each other well enough for such an intimacy, but he wanted a pet name for her, something that tied him to her, at least while she was here. He spent most of his life living cavalierly but when it came to mistresses, he always had a bit of a soft spot for them. He enjoyed spoiling them, being sweet to them. It felt good.
“Why are you out of bed? Are you feeling all right?” He’d been than a little excited last night, more than he had meant to be. He hadn’t been rough, but he hadn’t been gentle either. Perhaps he’d caused her more harm than just soreness?
“I’m sorry. I always get up this early. It’s a habit. I thought I should return to my chambers before one of your servants noticed that I’m missing from my bed.”
“I have two questions.” He sat up and ruffled a hand through his hair. “Why are you used to being up early, and why do you care what my staff think?” The thought of getting out of bed before midday usually gave him a headache.
She walked toward the bed, the silhouette turning back into a flesh-and-blood woman. She had donned her chemise and put on his banyan robe. It was strangely adorable to see the way the fabric dwarfed her, the cuffs rolled back on the sleeves several times so her hands weren’t covered. He had never allowed a woman wear his robe before. There was something primally pleasing about knowing she was wrapped in his clothing.
Matilda tied the collar of the robe closed at her throat in a way that reminded him that she had been a virgin until last night. He would have to find a way to encourage her to relax around him when they were in private.
“I’m used to being up early,” she shared simply, as if it made all the sense in the world that she should be up before a normal person would. “At Meadow Cross, it’s only my aunt and myself. We have to rise early to light the fire in whatever room we plan to spend the day in, then cook our meals and bring in freshwater from our well. Then there’s the chopping of wood, when I can find any, that is, and walking to the village to buy food…”
He stared at her in stunned silence. He hadn’t given much thought to what she’d have to do without any servants. He’d simply noted it and moved on with his own selfish thoughts.
