Her new husband patted her back until she waved him away.
“Foxford—”
“How about Matthew?” he said.
She nodded but didn’t want to be deterred from her request. “Could we get directly to it, Matthew? To the swiving, I mean?”
He’d been untying his cravat but stopped and stared at her. Then he cocked his head.
“Are you saying you don’t wish to follow proper bedroom etiquette?”
Purity had never heard of it. Instantly, she regretted not asking Clarity more questions.
With her fingers twisting in her skirts, she said, “Much as I believe in adhering to etiquette, as you know, I would as soon set everything aside and dive right in.”
He shook his head. “Impossible,” he said. “These things must be done correctly. You have taught me that. Or the whole thing will be ruined.”
“Ruined?” she repeated. “Very well. What must we do before we get into bed?”
He sighed heavily. “There are a number of things. I should have made a list for you. That was badly done of me.”
A list!“I have a decent memory,” she said. “Why don’t you tell me or simply begin?”
“First thing to do,” he started, then paused and looked around the room, “is we turn down the bed so we can fall easily into it.”
After drinking his brandy in one large swallow — which she found monstrously impressive — he set his glass down. Then hestalked to the four-poster bed and tugged at the counterpane, followed by the next layers of blanket and sheet. She joined in on the other side, neatening the mess he’d made.
“Then we plump the pillows,” he said.
Purity stared in amazement as Matthew attacked the pillows with gusto, squeezing, kneading, and thumping each of the four pillows until their down innards had been duly rearranged.
“Next we make sure the curtains are drawn to avoid drafts when we are unclothed.”
“Surely, your maid always does that when she lights the coals in the hearth and turns up the oil lamps.”
“It’s on the list,” he said, tapping his temple, “in my head.”
“I fail to see what any of this has to do with etiquette,” she said. “It’s more like housekeeping duties.”
On the other hand, the mundane acts had succeeded in driving away her anxiousness.
“Now we must undress one another, a single piece of clothing at a time.”
That seemed reasonable and fair. “But you have removed your coat and were already untying your cravat,” she pointed out.
“True. However, my coat is considered outerwear, and my cravat is ornamental and hard to remove if you don’t know the knots. In any case, the man gets to start.”
He drew close, raised her arm by her wrist, and stripped off her glove, then her other.
Purity shivered, feeling immediately naked without her silken hand coverings. Moreover, the skin at her wrists tingled where his fingers touched her.
“Weren’t they two items?” she asked, despite being happy they had begun the more intimate tasks at last. “Not that I am complaining.” In case he said they had to beat the rug or look under the bed for dust before they continued.
“Gloves, stockings, and shoes count as one article each,” he explained, “since they always come in pairs.”
“You removed your gloves in the front hall,” she said.
“That was remiss of me, wasn’t it?” His gaze caught hers before lowering to her mouth. “Between my gloves, jacket, and undone cravat, you may remove two items from me.”
