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CHAPTERSEVENTEEN
Clara waited till the house was quiet before she snuck from her room. Even then, she risked encountering some errant maid about the house. Arming herself with a book and prepared to cry a trip to the library, she made her way to the far end of the hall where Ralph had been placed.
She softly opened the door and slipped through, closing it behind her. Turning, her heart jumped in her throat to find Ralph already in bed and…shirtless.
Muscles rippled and she noted the dark hair sprinkled across his chest. Her fingers itched to slide over that skin. Would the hair be silky or rough? But instead of moving toward the bed, she stood frozen as her eyes jumped over every detail.
He tossed back the covers and she gasped despite herself, which pulled a chuckle from his lips. “Clara.”
Underneath, he wore breeches, and she let out a deep breath. She was ready for intimacy, she was, but she might need a minute or two to adjust to a nude man. She touched her throat as he rose from the bed and crossed to where she stood. “Second thoughts?”
She shook her head. “No. I just…” Her gaze drifted down him, noting his tapered waist, the bulging muscles, the size of his hands, so large and yet so comforting. “Not at all. This is all so new, I had a moment of fear.”
He slid his hand around her waist, pulling her close. “We’ll do as much or as little as you wish, my love. For you, I have all the patience in the world.”
His words made her squishy inside and as her hands slipped around his neck, she lay her head on his shoulder. “Thank you for that.”
“We’ve got plenty of time too. I’m not sure we’ll wed before you’re five and twenty.”
“How do you know?” she asked, pulling back to look into his eyes.
He reached up to stroke her cheek. “I had a talk with your father.”
Lifting up on tiptoe, she kissed him then. It was an apology of sorts and an affirmation that she felt the same now as she did before, no matter what her father had said. The kiss went on and on before they finally broke apart. “He’s a good man,” she finally said. “He’s just very protective of me.”
“I understand completely,” Ralph said, holding her close, his hand stroking up and down her back.
“You do?”
“I’m not certain how’d I feel about my daughter marrying me, either.” He gave her a smile.
Clara raised her brows. “You ought to support it. You are a man that a woman can count on. To keep her safe. To make her feel loved.”
He drew in a deep breath. “Luckily, I’ve got time to decide how to financially support you. I can’t continue to be my brother’s valet. You’ll not be a servant’s wife, and as you pointed out, I’m not particularly good at the job.”
She laughed. “Of course you’re not. Who wants to serve his sibling?”
“Still.” He smiled in return. “I’ll find a future worthy of you, Clara. I swear it.”
She didn’t need a large home or a title. “Just promise me to keep being you.”
He kissed her again, their lips, breath, and tongues mingling until they were both breathless in each other’s arms.
Ralph, never breaking the kiss, led them across the room until they tumbled onto the bed, limbs tangling as the kiss went on and on.
Clara slid her hands from around his neck, doing exactly as she’d wished earlier. She ran her fingers over his chest, feeling every muscle and the surprisingly soft hair on his skin.
And as her fingers brushed over his thudding heart, her own rose to meet the fast beat of his.
Their hearts were meant to beat together, she knew that as her palm rested on the rapid thud.
In answer, he pulled the hem of her night rail up over her knees, skimming her thighs in a way that made her shiver with anticipation. But he didn’t brush his hands over her flesh like last night. Instead, he rolled her onto her back and then began kissing a trail down her body.
She gasped when his mouth closed over her still-covered nipple, the sensation that rocked through her making her body tremble with pleasure.
And then he kissed lower, over her stomach, and the hem of her night rail continued to rise.
She gasped as she realized his intent. He wouldn’t really…
