Page 66 of Wedded to the Beastly Duke
At the moment it became too much for her to bear, he raised his head, and the satisfaction in his gaze was the most exhilarating expression she had ever seen.
She loved it on him, even as he moved to kiss her, mindless of where his tongue had been.
“I want you,” he said against her mouth. Half drugged from the pleasure, she was incapable of doing anything but nod, her lips clumsy, teeth scraping against his lips. “May I, Emmeline?”
She let her head fall back to meet his eyes. “I told you, Adam. I’m yours.”
With a wordless, muttered curse, he positioned himself between her legs, and she felt his manhood nudge her opening. Soft and pliant, it was all too easy to slip inside, and he cursed again, body rigid above hers.
“This may hurt, my sweet.” He dropped his forehead to her own, and she felt his breath on her lips, hot and fast. All the playfulness in him was gone, replaced by tension. As though it would take a moment—a second—to make his resolve snap and make him plunge inside her. “And not in the way you like.”
It took her a moment to understand. This, her mother had warned her of. The pain.
She had not been warned of the pleasure.
“I will try to be gentle, but I am not accustomed to—” He gasped out a laugh as he slid further inside, and the sound turned into a groan. “I am not accustomed to bedding virgins, Emmeline.”
Her laugh was half surprise, half amusement, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. “I am honored to be your first.”
“As am I.” He pushed in abruptly, all the way to the hilt, and the sting that rocketed through her turned into an ache. “I am honored to be your husband, Emmeline. To have you.” He kissed her sweaty temple, his body still rock hard above hers, every muscle tight. “Are you all right?”
“I’m all right.”
She released a long breath and moved her hips experimentally. Yes, that felt good. The sting was already receding. She did it again, and Adam exhaled shakily, his hips flexing. She could almost sense his struggle to remain still.
“I’m all right,” she said again, kissing his jaw. “We may… proceed.”
The words made her laugh, though breathily, because he withdrew and slid back inside her. The pleasure was sudden and overwhelming. Different from when he had merely been using his fingers. His girth, the way he reached a place deep inside her that nothing else could—it was overwhelmingly wonderful. Perfect.
“Adam,” she gasped.
“Emmeline.” His voice was a growl, and he kissed her as he reached down for her knee, holding her leg open to give himself more room.
Emmeline rolled her hips against his, and she found a rhythm.
Perfection. There was no other word to describe it. They fit together as though they were meant to be together. They had shaved off each other’s edges, made them slot together like two pieces of a puzzle, and her chest swelled with the enormity of it. Of him. Of what they were doing.
Light rushed through her, the pleasure building, and she thought dizzily that this might be the end of her.
His fingers gripped her chin, tilting her face up to his. They were painted in shadow, slicked with sweat, and his was the most beautiful face she had ever seen.
“Look at me,” he said, every word punctuated with a thrust.
He was hitting the most wonderful place inside her, a treasure trove of pleasure that she was only just now opening. Even when his tongue had been on her, his fingers—nothing could compare to this.
The edge grew closer, and she gripped his shoulders as his eyes locked on hers.
“You are mine.” He pushed inside her again, again, and she was so close. Every breath was a moan. “You are my wife, and I will never let you go.”
Emmeline fell apart. Her legs quivered around him, and the pleasure was so exquisite that it was almost too much, like she might split apart with the force of her release. His fingers slid from her chin to her cheek, and he kissed her mouth, her cheek, her forehead, telling her how beautiful she was, how much he wanted her, how he wanted this moment to last forever, then at the same time told her how she brought him close to the edge so fast, how she made him lose control.
She held on for dear life, holding him tight as he pushed inside her one final time and called her name.
ChapterNineteen
The next week passed in a haze of summer sun and what Emmeline thought must be marital bliss. Adam had softened, both toward her and Rickard, and after long days of walking and riding and reading together, she and Adam retired to his bed.
All was perfect. And when Adam’s friend Nicholas and his wife arrived for dinner, she thought it would continue to be so.
