Page 65 of The Lost Lord
He reached for her hand. Miriam clasped his gently with her elegant fingers. “I am sorry,” he whispered. Miriam allowed him to draw her closer.
“I apologize for bringing Lizzie into your life. Without my stupidity she wouldn’t have had a reason to manipulate you the way she did,” Miriam said earnestly.
Richard tugged her closer. His wife came near enough that his knees brushed her skirt. “I forgive you. Let’s place the blame squarely where it belongs—on Lizzie.”
He stood up and brushed a curl back from her cheek. Miriam turned to meet his touch. “Agreed,” she murmured. “I wish to begin again. Tonight.”
She nipped the pad of his thumb. Richard’s entire body shuddered with delight. He traced the upper arc of her lip, lingering over the little bow at the top. He felt lightheaded with desire as though all the blood in his body had shifted south. The familiar sweet ache of desire pooled in his belly.
He captured Miriam’s face gently between his palms. She inhaled which pushed her pert breasts against his chest. Their tips brushed teasingly against him. Richard slanted his mouth over hers as she tilted her face up to meet his. He gave her the kiss he’d yearned to give her for weeks. Unreserved. He licked her lower lip. Impatient with his gentleness, Miriam moaned and opened to him.
Richard plundered the warm heat of her mouth as he’d dreamed of doing every night. It was glorious. “Miriam,” he whispered against her, “Stay with me tonight.”
“Yes,” she murmured as she slid her hand beneath the loose hem of his shirt. “That is, after all, why I came here.”
Richard’s chuckle was silenced by her renewed kiss. “I had hoped as much.”
“I never want to leave your side,” she whispered. Richard found the soft mound of her breast and palmed it through the voluminous soft white fabric. “I don’t wish to request an annulment. I want to work this out with you the same way we have been working through the business. As partners in everything.”
“I love you, Miriam,” Richard ground out. “I love you far too much to permit you to risk your health.”
“Then help me manage it,” she demanded, pulling back. “At Briarcliff I found your conservatory. The air inside was lush and green. I always feel best when I am working in my garden. I must choose the plants carefully, but I know that living in the city would be manageable if I had a…a place to rest my lungs and recharge every day. I made my father add windows and plants to our house in New York. It made so much difference. Why couldn’t it work here?”
Richard chuckled. “My little hothouse flower.” He kissed her forehead and wrapped one forearm around her back to pull her closer. “It’s worth a try.”
“I also want to consult with doctors here to see if there are other treatments to help me. I loathe blacking out the way I did a few days ago.” Miriam’s nose crinkled. Richard’s heart swelled. He rubbed the bridge of her nose with the tip of one finger.
“Not to mention the severe fright you gave everyone.”
“That too,” Miriam grinned. “I do apologize.”
He kissed her. “Don’t leave me.”
“Take me to bed,” Miriam pleaded. Richard scooped her into his arms and crossed the few steps to the large bed curtained in red velvet. Her white gown spilled out across the cover. She sat up with a smile.
“There,” Richard teased. “Are you happy now?”
“Not yet,” Miriam smirked. She dragged her night rail up to reveal creamy calves. Her thighs appeared next, followed by the patch of tight curls at their apex. Richard’s breath hitched. If he’d felt lightheaded before, he was now on the verge of collapse.
“Miriam,” he gasped.
“Do you want me to stop?” she asked deceptively.
“No, keep going. In fact, do it slower. Torture me.”
Her eyes widened. Her movements slowed. Next came the indentation of her waist. She dropped the material as she struggled to raise the garment higher. Then there was a glimpse of the full bottoms of her breasts. Richard’s mouth watered. He groaned.
“Do you wish to see more, husband?” Miriam asked breathlessly.
“Everything, Miri. I want to see it all.” He gripped the bed post so hard that the carved wood bit into his skin. Miriam let go of the bottom of her nightgown and for one heart-stopping second, Richard thought she was refusing him.
“I can’t get the buttons in the back undone,” she said softly. “Help me.”
Miriam shifted onto her knees, back facing him, and held her thick curls to the side. Richard fumbled with the tiny buttons.
“Do you remember the last time I touched these?” he asked.
“You stole the ribbon that gathered the front. It took me a full hour to thread through its replacement,” she sighed. “I thought about your kiss the entire time.”
