“Amelia, look at me.”
She brought her gaze from his pantaloons to his face.
“You must be gentle around a man’s male parts. They can be damaged easily.”
Her cheeks heated that she hadn’t known that. It was probably in the writing in the book, but she never read it, only studying the images. “Did I hurt you?”
“No, but if you continued as you were, you may have. Will you allow me?”
She gave him a nod, embarrassed that she’d been so intent on seeing his nude body again that she hadn’t considered what it was like for him. She didn’t think she had any parts that could be hurt simply by undressing, though as she watched him continuing the chore of unbuttoning, the tips of her breasts felt extra sensitive to the fine linen of her shift. Seeing no need to wait to undress, she pulled her shift over her head and dropped it on the table. Finally, she found some patience as she stood in her stockings and shoes and nothing else. How odd that it didn’t bother her.
“Amelia.”
At his breathy word, she looked at Andrew to find him studying her from the tips of her toes to the tips of her breasts. His pantaloons were finally off, and his gaze had darkened.
“Yes?”
“You would make a far better portrait than I.”
Paint herself? It was an interesting challenge. “I’d never thought of doing a self-portrait. I suppose I could if I had a mirror in here.”
He groaned.
Looking askance at him, she noticed his shirt was held out from his body by what could only be his manhood. She reached out to touch it, but snapped her hand back. She didn’t want to hurt him. “Are you sure you aren’t hurt?”
He closed his eyes for what had to be at least ten seconds then opened them. “I am not hurt. I am excited to make love to you, but I want to go slowly so that you enjoy it as much as I will.”
She cocked her head. “If it is anything like what you did to me in my studio, then I know I will.” The shirt jerked in his groin area. “But I do hope you plan to take that off.” She pointed to his shirt, tired of waiting to see all of him again, especially now that she could touch him freely as his wife.
“You really don’t understand slow, do you?”
She was saved from answering by him lifting his shirt and dropping it on top of the rest of their clothes. Oh, it had been a long three weeks. Without preamble, she ran her hands over his shoulders and down his chest, fascinated by the puckering of his nipples. Tiny sparks of excitement seemed to pop throughout her body, causing her own nipples to harden.
He pulled her against him, trapping her hands between them. “Has anyone ever told you that you look at things differently than the average lady?”
The shock of his naked body touching her naked body took away all thought at first. His was warm and hard, and her own soft curves seemed to accommodate him. She felt his hardness against her abdomen and rocked her hips toward him.
“Amelia!”
Startled, she pushed back, and he let her go, but he grabbed her hand, keeping her from going far. “What’s wrong?”
He ran his free hand through his hair. “Nothing is wrong. In fact, everything is right. You’ll understand better after. It’s just that seeing you like this, touching you, having you touch me, makes it hard for me to go slow.”
Her heart thumped in her chest. “You mean you want to consummate our marriage as quickly as I do?”
He grimaced, but nodded. “Yes, but as I said, if we go slowly, we can enjoy it more.”
She wasn’t sure it would be worth the wait. “Cannot we simply do so again and go slowly then?” She doubted she’d want to, but maybe she would.
His body reacted to her comment, and she grinned. “Maybe we should just get to it.”
“I…We…hell.” He pulled out the chair from the table next to them and sat, pulling her toward him. “I’m all yours.”
Though he meant it in the vein of copulation, his gaze told her there was far more meaning to his words.
It made her heart ache with happiness, but it also heated her to know he’d allow her free rein of his magnificent body. She walked around him, pulling her hand from his grasp and placing both on his shoulders. Running them down his torso, she kissed his neck, in the same spot he’d kissed her before.
As her hand roamed lower to his abdomen, she could feel the tension in his body. Finally, she got to the place she wished most to touch, and gently grasped him in her hands. The smooth texture and heat of it surprised her. It was a wonder that he could grow so much.
