Page 75 of I Do, I Do, I Do
And then it was so good. He was gentle and tender, kissing her as he moved, caressing her, whispering endearments. Because she was reckless and uninhibited, a woman willing to dare anything tonight, she let her fingers slide down his back, and she touched his bare buttocks, hoping the brazen move didn’t shock him too badly.
If he was startled, he didn’t reveal it, but continued kissing her, continued his gentle lovemaking. Emboldened, she opened her eyes a tiny bit and snatched a quick glance at him. He was watching her. Oh, my. She’d assumed that he, too, would have his eyes closed.
“Is something wrong?” he whispered when she stopped moving.
The light was dim but clear enough that she could see his tousled hair and the perspiration shining on his forehead. “Is it decent to have our eyes open?” she asked, also whispering.
“Dearest Juliette. Whatever gives two people pleasure is decent.” Lifting on his elbows, he looked down at her and then kissed her in a way she had never been kissed before. His tongue parted her lips and tasted her mouth. Her eyes widened, then snapped shut, and she gave herself to the sensation.
“Do that again,” she whispered. “If you’re sure it’s decent.” It felt too exotic and too arousing to be proper, but she didn’t give a damn. “Do it again.”
The new way of kissing made her feel wild inside, strange and hot and urgent and then, and then, and then her body shuddered and the heavens exploded inside her mind. When the moment faded, she found herself shaking and drenched in perspiration.
“I don’t know what happened,” she said, peering up at him, “but it was wonderful. Did you make that happen?”
“I hope so,” he said with a smile, brushing a damp tendril off her cheek.
“Did you?…What I mean is, I know that I…but, did you?…”
“It doesn’t matter.”
Oh, she loved him so much. “If you’d like to go on a bit longer, I wouldn’t mind.”
“Then I believe I will,” he said, kissing her. She had an idea that he struggled not to laugh, but she couldn’t imagine why he would laugh. She must be wrong.
Afterward, Ben pulled on his trousers, and she stepped back into her shimmy, and he insisted on serving the first course in bed. They sat shoulder to shoulder sipping dried mushroom soup, watching the lamplight reflect in the block of ice at the window. It was the most intimate moment of Juliette’s life. And then she noticed that he was dipping the soup spoon away from him. And he didn’t make a sound when he swallowed.
“Ben?…”
He recognized her expression at once, set aside their soup bowls, and reached for her. The second time was even more amazing than the first. This time he positioned her on top of him where she just sat, feeling confused, until he placed his hands on her hips and rocked her back and forth, up and down. At once she grasped what was expected, then discovered the delicious thrill of being in control. Best of all, she could peek at his face and read how much he liked this movement or that.
When they came together again between the fish course and the meat, Ben curved her fingers around him, and Juliette thought she would faint from the velvety feel of him and from her own bold daring.
Between the meat dish and salad, he bathed her in the tub, then toweled her dry, placed her back in bed, and kissed her all over. All over. She screamed in shock, then screamed with pleasure.
After wine and dessert, they made love lazily and slowly as if they were longtime lovers, then they wrapped themselves in blankets and ran outside to see the strange greenish blue lights flickering across the northern sky. Still wrapped in blankets, they warmed themselves before the living-room fire and sipped from snifters of brandy.
“I couldn’t have imagined a night this amazing and remarkable,” Juliette said, gazing at him with soft sated eyes. After her marriage, she had considered herself an experienced woman, uninhibited even. Now she knew her experience had barely scratched the surface of what was possible, and she hadn’t had an inkling of what uninhibited really meant. Tonight had been astounding, splendid, unbelievable.
“I’ve imagined you a hundred times looking as you look now,” Ben said with a smile.
Her hair streamed down her back, her face was rosy and happily drowsy, and the blanket revealed her pale shoulders and a small valley of cleavage.
“I love you, Juliette. You belong to me now.”
Leaning forward, she kissed him and then covered a yawn, and he laughed.
“When we finish our brandies, I’ll tuck you in bed, then I’ll leave.”
“You’llleave?”
He nodded. “Remember what you said about wanting privacy and solitude? The next two days are yours, my Christmas gift. Luc or Henry will come by several times a day. If you need anything, place your snowshoes outside the door, and they’ll knock.”
She clapped her hands. “The cabin is mine for two whole days?”
“Miss Klaus and Miss Wilder are aware of the surprise. They packed a bag for you. It’s under the bed.”
She threw her arms around him and kissed him soundly. “Ben, that’s the nicest gift I’ve ever had! Thank you so much!” They kissed again at the door when he was ready to leave. “I don’t know what to say about this evening,” she said, pushing her face into the fur of the hood surrounding his face.
