Nathan, his eyes smoldering with unbridled passion, positioned himself above Gemma, his throbbing member poised at her entrance. His forehead touched hers, seeking permission, seeking affirmation that she wanted this connection as much as he did.
Gemma's response was a whispered “Please,” her voice heavy with longing and need. In that moment, their bodies became one, a culmination of desire and connection that transcended the physical realm.
He entered her slowly, allowing her to adjust to the fullness of him. Her breath hitched as he filled her completely, stretching her walls to accommodate his size. The sensation was both overwhelming and intoxicating, the depths of pleasure beckoning them both to a realm beyond imagination.
They moved together in a slow, deliberate rhythm, their bodies attuned to each other's desires. Nathan's thrusts were languid yet purposeful, each movement driving them both closer to the edge of ecstasy. Gemma's moans filled the air, mingling with Nathan's low growls of pleasure, as their bodies melded in a dance of passion and connection.
“Take it…my good girl,” he whispered to her, his primal urges threatening to consume him.
Time seemed to lose its meaning as they lost themselves in the moment, their bodies moving as one, a symphony of desire. Gemma's nails raked down his back, leaving marks of their shared passion, as he held her hips, guiding her to meet each of his thrusts.
Then, in one smooth motion that seemed to catch her off-guard as she let out a squeal, he exited her and spun her around so that she was on her knees, baring her rear to him. Nathan’s hands glided teasingly over her spine before settling on the nape of her neck and pushing down her face into a pillow.
His other hand on her waist, he guided himself inside her again, and this time, he entered new depths, his member pulsing inside her sex and eliciting from her a cry of carnal pleasure. But he did not move. He waited for her to beg him to give her this release.
“Please…show me everything…use me and don’t hold back…” she moaned breathlessly against the pillow.
Gemma could not stifle her cries as their bodies clashed together. Nathan could not control the surge of lust that drove him to thrust forwards, just as she could not control the same impulse that made her drive herself onto him. She began to move, steadily and with increasing speed. Her moans, muffled by the pillow, grew into a perfect symphony with Nathan’s grunts as he reached deeper into her depths with each thrust, and their bodies were set aflame in agonizing pleasure. He knew that women often felt pain at this first union and wanted to slow his passion.
But Gemma had not allowed it. She pushed back harder and faster, begging him in a desperate whisper. “More…” was all she could say.
Nathan’s dark world became lit by a lustful and carnal desire at that. Abruptly, he leaned forward over her, and whispered against her ear. “You tempt me too much.” He found her hands that had been scrunching at the bedsheets and pulled them behind her back. A squeal left her lips before she fell flat against the bed, and Nathan, with a newly ignited desire, pounded into her wetness with savage ferocity. Each thrust was torturously slow but harder than the last, jerking her forward again and again. And each moan that escaped Gemma’s lips stoked the fire within him that could no longer be controlled.
The moments stretched to infinity and then Gemma was crying out as her body convulsed, waves of pleasure crashing over her, and Nathan continued to drive into her with unrelenting hunger, using her as she had desired. He held her tightly, his own release washing over him like a tempest, and he spilled himself deep within her, marking her as his own.
Their bodies trembled with the intensity of their shared climax, their souls entwined in a moment of pure bliss. They collapsed onto the bed, breathless and spent, their bodies still intimately connected. Nathan languidly fell on top of her, crushing her to the bed but careful not to overwhelm her. Then, he spun her over once more, so that she lay atop him, her head resting on his chest.
They remained together for a long time – their heartbeats in sync, their skin glistening with a sheen of sweat. No words were spoken. None were needed. Nathan savored the feel of her body against him and around his own. He held her fiercely and felt that embrace returned. He did not know what was about to happen, could plan but not be completely sure. There had been just as much need in him as there had been in the woman he now saw as his wife. Both had needed this in case the next few hours saw them separated forever.
Reluctantly, as the clock chimed eleven, Nathan kissed Gemma’s neck and spoke her name. She nodded, knowing his intention. He shivered with pleasure as she withdrew, the feel of her body against his still sending raw pulses of pleasure through him.
“I must be ready,” he said simply.
“As must I. Be careful.”
* * *
By midnight, Nathan had descended to the study on the house’s ground floor. He had bathed and changed, reluctant to lose the feel and memory of Gemma’s body from his own. He had not expected Gemma to come to him but it had felt right. It had felt natural, as though pre-ordained. There was no fire in the fireplace and the room was becoming cloaked in a deep chill. Nathan had not wanted any sound to distract him.
The clock had been removed and all servants, except Marshall, ordered to their rooms for the evening. Nathan listened to the almost imperceptible sounds of men attempting to be still and quiet. Those sounds came from an adjoining room. He listened to the sound of a man struggling to contain his own nervous energy. That came from within the room, which lay in utter darkness, the curtains drawn.
That darkness meant nothing to Nathan but would be disconcerting to men of sight. Then the sound reached him that he had been waiting for. Marshall’s footsteps, followed by the steps of two others. Both men by the weight of their tread. There was a snigger of laughter from one of them and a stern word from the other. The door to the study opened without announcement or knocking.
CHAPTERTHIRTY-SEVEN
“He is in there,” Marshall said.
“Hamilton!” Dunkeswick exclaimed as he entered the room.
“Dunkeswick. I see my butler has betrayed me once again. I thought better of you, Marshall.”
“Ha! Every man has a price,” Stamford crowed. “It didn’t take much of a bribe to persuade him to let us in by the back door.”
Nathan smiled in the darkness. Both men had spoken loud enough that he could look directly at them. The door clicked closed behind them. Of Marshall, there was not a sound, but Nathan knew he was there, silently waiting for his master’s signal.
“What the devil!” Stamford exclaimed. “I can’t see anything in this blind man’s house!”
“Let’s not waste time, gentlemen,” Nathan said calmly. “You have an ultimatum to give, I presume? I’m going to assume it involves handing over Emily to me in exchange for Gemma.”
