Page 70 of A Courtesan Countess Worth the Scandal
It had been two months since the ball, and they had been the longest two months of Liam’s life. Before he could even propose to Nora, there had been the matter of his dead-yet-alive wife to contend with. However, the Magistrates had looked kindly upon his predicament and, as it had already been officially recognized that Élodie was deceased, they had granted him an annulment, leaving him free to wed Nora.
As for Edward, the Constables had come to retrieve his body from the clearing and, after all had been explained, the authorities had had no choice but to take Élodie away. After all, she had murdered a gentleman of nobility, regardless of his despicable behavior.
Now, she resided in the best asylum they had been able to find, which happened to be in London. With her there, they could be certain that she would not suffer any further mistreatment. Indeed, it had been Nora’s condition for agreeing to marry Liam, as well as him giving his permission to allow her to publish a story in the scandal sheets about his uncle.
To this day, it remained the talk of England… how a seemingly upstanding member of the nobility had revealed himself to be a devil of unprecedented proportions. As such, Liam’s Aunt had been forced to go into hiding, though he felt no sorrow for her plight. After Edward’s death, it had been revealed that she had been part of her husband’s scheme to seize Liam’s assets. So, as far as he was concerned, she had received her just desserts.
And so did Miss Jones—
Nora’s former friend might have evaded any scorn if Nora had not written about her part in the devious acts. Liam remembered how his beloved had flitted between wanting to punish Julia and wanting to give her some clemency. In the end, the betrayal had simply been too much, prompting Nora to add Julia’s lies to the story. As of now, no one knew where Julia had gone, though Nora continued to believe that the young woman would emerge again in due time, once the dust had settled.
Just then, the organ began to play, and the congregation rose as Nora walked into the church. Liam’s mouth fell open as he saw her, appearing like an angelic vision through the doors. Even veiled, he knew she was smiling, and he prayed there would never come a day when that smile faded.
* * *
Alone in their shared, marital bedchamber, with the snow still falling outside, blanketing the world in a spread of pristine white, Nora closed the door to block out the lilting music and the bubbling chatter of the celebrations that raged below. With the snow so thick, it had already been agreed that many of the guests would stay at Keswick Manor, but Nora did not want to think about them right now.
“You were radiant tonight,” Liam purred, as they walked to meet each other in the middle of the room. “I have never seen so many people enamored with one fine lady. Why, I almost felt envious to have to share you.”
She smiled up at him, sliding her arms around his neck. “You never have to share me. I’m yours, and yours alone, and don’t forget that else I’ll box your ears.”
“As I’m yours, and yours alone.” He dipped his head and caught her mouth in his, as his arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her tight to his body. In response, her lips pressed against his with a passionate fervor, as though she had been starved of joy for years and could not get enough of the taste.
Though they could not hear the music below, only the vague murmur of activity, their mouths moved as though heeding a private orchestra who played only the notes of true love. His fingertips, meanwhile, were those of a violinist, tracing up the length of her spine and running along the smooth nape of her neck before delving into her thick, wavy hair.
She gasped as he coaxed her lips apart and let his tongue explore, while his free hand pressed against the small of her back, pushing her hips into his until she could not ignore the hardened length beneath his trousers. Of course, she knew what to expect, but not like this. She had never allowed a man to slide inside her and bring her untold pleasures. And after two months of waiting for this moment, she knew she was finally ready.
“I love you,” she moaned, her skin singing with a delicious heat that flooded every part of her, the warmth intensifying with the friction of their bodies.
“As I love you,” he murmured back, as his lips found the slender line of her throat and kissed down to her breathless bosom. She clung to him as he pulled aside the neckline and the hard edge of her stays, and closed his mouth around one erect nipple, as he had done once before. Pulses of pleasure bristled through her, shivering down into the pit of her abdomen, where her muscles clenched in anticipation.
She squealed as he suddenly scooped her up into his arms and carried her over to their marital bed. She had chosen it herself, upon the insistence that they never spent a night apart, if it could be helped. He had agreed wholeheartedly, and she could barely contain her excitement as he lay her down upon the covers.
Entangling themselves once more in a frenzy of kisses and exploring hands, it was not long before they concentrated their attentions on one another’s attire. Nora’s fingertips made deft work of his shirt, cravat, and morning coat—casting them to one side once she had him bare chested in front of her.
“You’re so warm.” She smoothed her hands across the firm, sculpted contours of his torso, marveling at the way his skin felt beneath hers. “I could wrap myself up in you, instead of a blanket.”
He chuckled. “I hope you do.” As their eyes met, he paused. “Are you certain you want this? I am patient, My Love. If you do not feel ready, we can—” She put a finger to his lips to silence him.
“I want this, Love. I want you. All of you,” she reassured.
As though a fuse had been lit beneath them at her admission, Liam pushed his hands up the milky skin of her thighs, rustling her skirts up to her waist. All of a sudden, he ducked his head down and placed a kiss upon the scar she had gained during their first proper encounter. The sweet gesture brought a grin to Nora’s face, and as he lifted his head again, she helped him to peel away her wedding gown.
Turning, her breaths came in shallow pants as he unlaced her stays, his lips making sure to kiss along every exposed inch of her back as he removed the garment and threw it to one side. Finally, in a mutual display of charming awkwardness, they both reached for the other’s remaining attire. While he shuffled her pantalettes down her legs, she undid the clasp upon his trousers, and pulled them down his firm thighs with the undergarments beneath.
For a moment, he had to hop off the bed in order to discard his trousers, but he returned a second later, both of them naked and radiating happiness in the soft candlelight of the room.
“I feel so joyful that I could burst,” he admitted, as he maneuvered himself on top of her. As she brought her thighs up on either side of his hips, she let her hands slide over the taut rise of his buttocks, her teeth grazing her lower lip as she felt his manhood seeking out the slick entrance of her sex.
“I never knew it could be like this,” she replied. “I never knew there could be bliss in two bodies, joining together, skin upon skin.”
His head dipped to meet her mouth, their kiss deepening to new fathoms, as her hips lifted to meet the hardness between his legs. She could already feel a slick wetness between her own thighs, her hidden core pulsating slightly with anticipation of how he would feel inside her. And as his mouth moved away from hers, kissing all the way back down to her ripe breasts, her fingernails dragged along his muscular back as he sucked each pert nipple in turn, sending shivers through her.
A gasp escaped his throat as his hips pushed forward, the head of his thick length resting at her entrance. One more push, and he would be inside her, filling her up, body and soul.
“I love you,” he panted, his breaths quickening with desire.
“I love you,” she parroted, as his lips returned to hers with a passionate fury that prompted her to grip his firm buttocks and urge them downward.
