Page 81 of An Earl's Christmas Seduction
She had been trying to imagine what it must have been like for Nicholas to discover he had a brother and for Edmund to discover the same. In her fears over what she had overheard between her mother and the other women, Amelia had even entertained the extraordinary possibilityshecould have been Nicholas’ sister, though how glad she was to discover she was not.
“We did, yes, but we’ve made our peace. He’s happy as long as I allow him to ask for Clara’s hand in marriage, that is. Which I will,” Nicholas replied.
Amelia smiled. She was glad the confusion was resolved. There was no doubting the obvious affection between Clara and Edmund, even as Amelia had felt sorry for Isobel, in being pushed aside.
“And what about Isobel?” Amelia asked.
Nicholas laughed.
“Oh… I suppose you’re a little out of things… but she and Harry… well, I rather suspect the two of them are growing fond of one another,” he said, and Amelia smiled.
“How wonderful,” she said, for it pleased her to think both her friends had made a match.
But now, with his hand still clasped in hers, he smiled at her.
“But their concerns aren’t ours, Amelia. I was going to wait until morning. I didn’t want to disturb you. But… oh, I can’t hold back. I don’t want you to leave. I know it’s an impossible situation… I was going to say as much before your maid burst in on us. Must you leave? Can’t we make it work?” he said, and Amelia’s heart skipped a beat.
These were the very words she wanted to hear. They were the words she had pondered herself. What would happen when the time came to leave?
“I… think we can, yes. Perhaps my mother and I could stay a little longer. We have to do things properly, Nicholas. But… why shouldn’t we be together? There’s nothing to hold us back. Not now,” she said, and Nicholas breathed a sigh of relief.
“You don’t know how happy I am to hear you say that, Amelia,” he said, and Amelia smiled, their gaze meeting as now he leaned forward and kissed her, running his fingers through her hair.
“Do you really think it can be?” she said, as their lips parted.
“Why should we hold back? We’ve known one another just a few days, and yet it feels like a lifetime. The things we’ve shared… aren’t we meant to be together?” he asked.
Amelia felt the same. There was nothing to hold them back. The threat of the past was gone, replaced by a future they could create for themselves. The threat of scandal was passed. What did it matter if the truth about Nicholas was revealed? He was still the Earl of Wesston, and Edmund was his brother. Their father’s actions made no difference, and it was as though a great burden was lifted.
“I think so, yes. Before I came here, before I met you, I thought… well, I thought I’d never fall in love again, or allow myself to do so. But you’ve changed all that. You’ve proved to me it’s possible, and now I have,” she said, their lips meeting in another kiss, both their hands clasped together.
She loved him, and there was nothing simpler to be said than that…
“I love you, Amelia. I know it’s madness to say so, and you probably think I’m deluded after just a few days, but I can’t hold back. I don’t want to hold back. I want to tell the whole world, but I’m telling you first, of course,” he said, and Amelia blushed.
“It’s not madness. Isn’t it… the truth? I feel the same. I love you, too,” she said, and Nicholas closed his eyes, breathing out a deep sigh, as though overwhelmed by what she had just said.
“Thank you,” he whispered, and now he drew her into his embrace, lifting her to her feet, their lips pressed together in a passionate kiss, their hands still clasped together, caught up in the joy of the words they had just shared.
Amelia could not have felt happier nor more certain of what they had shared. There was no doubt in her mind as to his feelings for her, nor any doubt in her mind as to her feelings for him. Love had blossomed so unexpectedly, even amid the bleak midwinter. But it was a love she embraced, a love she desired, and a love she could no longer imagine being without.
“I want to tell everyone,” she said, as their lips parted.
“So do I, but I don’t think they’d appreciate our waking them at such an hour just to do so. But… Amelia… will you spend the night with me? I want to hold you in my arms. I want to show you how much I love you,” he said, and Amelia nodded.
She wanted the same, to feel his arms around her, to be protected in his embrace. She did not want to return to bed alone, and now, arm in arm, they made their way upstairs to Nicholas’ bedroom, cautious lest they meet anyone along the way.
But the house was quiet, and they met no one on the landing, closing the bedroom door behind them with a sigh of relief. Nicholas turned the key in the lock, slipping his hand around Amelia’s waist, as he placed the lighted candle he held on the mantelpiece.
“I suppose we must still be cautious,” she said, and he smiled at her.
“But not with one another,” he replied, their lips meeting in a kiss.
She felt him stiffen against him, her own arousal now growing, their arms around one another, as he she arched her back, his lips now tracing a trail down her neck to the collar of her robe. Without the complicated ties of a petticoat and dress, the robe and nightgown slipped easily to the floor, exposing her naked form to his touch. She shivered, clasping at him, his hands running down the length of her body, their lips meeting in a further kiss, their tongues entwined.
She fumbled at his belt, pulling it off, his breeches falling, exposing him to her touch. She ran her hands along the length of his shaft, causing him to gasp as now he pulled off his shirt, exposing the taut muscles of his chest, their undress now completed in a frenzy.
“I love you,” she gasped, as now he led her to the bed, the two of them falling onto the blankets, pulling them over themselves, their bodies as one as they clasped at one another, kissing frantically, each stirred up to the heights of arousal.
