Monty releases a long-suffering groan. “For fuck’s sake, Daph, we are never sharing a suite with them again for the rest of this tour.”
“Agreed,” Daphne says.
As soon as the common room door closes behind them, my lips crash into Edwina’s. My fingers find the ribbon at the back of her dress, and her bodice falls away. I waste no time tugging the skirt over her hips, then sliding down her undergarments. There’s no slow teasing this time. No waiting. Edwina reaches for my cravat, tugging it loose while I shrug off my jacket, then my waistcoat. In a matter of seconds we’re both naked.
I prop her on the kitchen island, and she falls back, hooking her legs around my hips as I position myself before her. She’s already dripping wet for me, eager and open. I pause with my tip at her entrance, coating my head with her arousal, before I slide into her with a single thrust. I take her there on the counter, over the loose papers, over all the evidence of her love for me. I slam into her until she quivers with release. Then I slide out of her and carry her to my bed, where my kisses turn tender, my pace slower as I lower myself on top of her and enter her once more.
I grasp her hands in mine, pinning them to the mattress as I breathe in the scent of her skin, the taste of her lips. She holds my gaze as I make love to her as slowly as I can, in tandem with the languid rock of her hips, sating her every need with my movements. Only when she tightens her legs around me, herwalls squeezing my cock, do I quicken my pace. Her moans rise, mingling with mine as she writhes beneath me. She throws her head back, lips parted, as the sweetest fucking whine I’ve ever heard escapes her throat. She unravels around me, her warm slick heat tightening in her orgasm. My next thrust has me spilling into her, my moan in harmony with her final whimpers. I shudder with the euphoria of our shared climax, a sensation that tears through me like never before. It’s so potent I can barely hold myself up in the wake of my spend.
I lay back with her cradled against my chest, but almost as soon as I close my eyes, I’m aware of a floral scent and something that tickles my neck.
Edwina notices it at the same time, lifting herself halfway and plucking something out of my hair. “Is this…”
I squint at it through the darkness of my unlit room, but it isn’t hard to guess what it is. “A flower petal.”
She lifts a handful of more petals she finds beside my head, then lets them fall.
I look to the side, finding more petals all around us.
Edwina arches a brow. “Will, did you just ejaculate flower petals all over the bed?”
I bark a laugh. “First you ask if it’s poop, now you ask if it’s cum. It’s neither. More like…spontaneous unintentional flower creation. I swear, that doesn’t normally happen.”
She takes another handful and lets them slip through her fingers. “Well, you said the same thing about the three-second handshake I gave your cock, and you were right. You’ve lasted much longer ever since.”
I shift her onto her back again. “You are not supposed to bring that up.”
Her grin turns mischievous. “I said I wanted it on a plaque over my mantle, and I mean it.”
“You’re a vulgar woman.”
Her smile softens. “But you love me anyway.”
“Yes, Edwina,” I whisper, planting a kiss over her temple, then her cheek, then her mouth. “I love you anyway.”
CHAPTER FORTY
EDWINA
The next day, I get to collect my auction prize—my date with William. It also means I must part with two hundred sapphire rounds, which is practically everything I have on my person in that currency. At least it’s for a good cause, serving not only the Faerwyvae Literary Society but also keeping William all to myself.
However, he insists on delivering the date exactly how he’d planned if I were a stranger. I’m even required to sign an agreement when I hand over my funds, promising not to engage in a number of behaviors with my chaperone, including kissing, hugging, or any form of touch outside of that between a proper escort and his charge.
Furthermore, he refuses to ride with me to our meeting place. Instead, I hail a hansom outside the hotel and give the coachman the address. As unfamiliar as I am with Darlington Hills, I haven’t a clue where our date will take place.
My cab heads in the opposite direction from where Cassie is staying, taking me down roads I haven’t traversed yet. There are more storefronts and lovely buildings with those sloped tiled roofs, more flowering trees. Then the buildings become sparser, the plant life more plentiful, and I catch sight of crystal-blue water in the distance.
The coachman lets me out before a gated sidewalk lined with swaying willows. I can’t see what lies beyond the gate or the trees, but many of the pedestrians around me carry picnic baskets and blankets. I follow their lead as they head through a towering archway in the gate, composed of latticed wood sprouting tea roses. As I cross under the arch, I find a sprawling green lawn surrounded by more willows and a wide rippling lake at the center. A promenade circles the lake, and all around it are the most beautiful blossoming trees in the most stunning pink hues, casting shade over the walkway.
I lightly lift the hem of my blue walking skirt as I make my way down the stone staircase that leads to the promenade, awed by the beauty around me. The water is as clear as the sky, dancing beneath the most perfect gentle breeze. Swallows swoop from flowering branches, chirping and chittering. Lovers stroll arm in arm or lounge on picnic blankets. It’s not unlike a public park in Bretton, yet it’s somehow a thousand times more dazzling.
“Love at first sight yet again?”
I’m so distracted I momentarily forget why I’m here. But now the sound of William’s voice has me shivering with joy.
I whirl around and find him with a sly grin on his face. He’s dressed in the same ensemble I first saw him in, an emerald-and-sage suit with a cream cravat. Just like that first glimpse I had of him, at his table in Flight of Fancy, I’m struck by his beauty. Will I ever not be struck by it?
With a shake of his head, he dons a more serious expression. “Pardon me, Miss Danforth. That was a brash thing to say to a stranger.”
