After their coupling,they slept once more, his arms around her.
Their daze this time lasted longer—when she awoke, the candle had burned out and weak, early morning light filled the window. It occurred to her that he probably should not be found in her room.
“Augustus,” she whispered to him, “It is nearly morning.”
His eyes opened. He smiled at her.
“If you are found here, the news will be all over the servant’s quarters by breakfast.”
He looked towards the window.
“We have at least an hour until any servant stirs. I will not leave you a moment sooner.”
She laughed and inched closer to him. The warmth of their intimacy was not one she wanted to abandon, either. If she could, she would choose to stay in this room with him forever.
“I wish we could be like this all the time.”
“Me too.”
She appreciated that he did not say the obvious—that he did not point back to his proposal and how ayesfrom her would grant this wish.
“When we are like this,” she said, tentatively, “It seems so simple. But I know it is not.”
He said nothing and she sensed that he was waiting for her to say more. With him pressed against her, his warmth so fortifying, it seemed possible to share her anxieties.
“If I married you, I would not just be your wife. I would have to be a countess. Your rank—it is who you are and thus who I would be.”
“It is true,” he said, behind her, his voice soft and at her ear, “I cannot change that. I would give up the title for you if I could. If it made you more comfortable, I would trade places with a vicar or a ploughman in an instant. But it is not in my power.”
“I have no desire to be a countess. I was not born to it—and even if I exceled at it, I would never be accepted by your world. They would never understand why you married me, and our lives would be—extremely uncomfortable.”
“I understand your hesitation. But my family, my friends, they would understand. We would not have to engage with the rest of society.”
“Your familyissociety. You are related to most of the great families.”
“I know. I do not pretend that I can undo it. But all the same, I cannot lose you again, Olivia. I do not know how we will come to a solution, but I know that I cannot lose you. I will not stand for it. Not when you love me—and I would die for you.”
She sighed against him at these pretty words, so soothing, so wonderful to hear after years of thinking that the one man that she had ever truly loved had cast her off without a second thought. She felt his hard length against her backside once more and the sensation filled her with wicked thoughts.
“And I wantyouagain,” she said, not desiring to linger on the serious conversation they were having. Right now, she didn’t have a solution to their problem—and she didn’t want to waste time thinking about an issue that seemed so intractable, so irresolvable, when they had right now.
“You know how I feel,” he said, that roguish tone that was so natural to him creeping into his voice. “You just have to tell me how you want me.”
“I want you behind me. Like we are now.”
She needed to say no more. Before she knew it, he had drawn her up on all fours and he was behind her.
“Are you ready for me?”
“Yes,” she breathed. She felt his fingers begin to stroke her from behind.
“Hmm, I think we can do better than this.”
He continued touching her and, as he did so, she felt herself open for him.
“Do you know how beautiful you are, Olivia?” he said, “Especially here.” She felt his finger trail from her ass down to her core. “You have the most beautiful pussy in the world. So pretty and sweet.”
He pressed two fingers inside of her, the unusual sensation of the motion from behind her enhancing the pleasure.
