The memory of his hand on my wrist sends heat spiraling through my body. Something electric passed between us in that garden.
I close my eyes, and heat builds inside me as all the memories come back.
I've never felt this way before.
This desperate, aching need that starts deep in my core and radiates outward is terrifying and exhilarating all at once.
I pull a pillow to my chest as I wonder what it would be like to have him here in my bed. Would he be gentle or demanding?
Suddenly, he's here with me in my imagination.
His lips press against mine, not tentative but sure.
Claiming.
In my mind, his hands cup my face before sliding down my neck, tracing the curve of my shoulder, dipping lower...
My breath catches. I've never been kissed, but somehow, I know Alessandro would kiss me like he means it.
Like he wants to devour me whole.
My hand drifts to my neck, tracing the path I imagine his lips would take.
Down my throat, across my collarbone. Lower still.
I shouldn't be thinking this way.
Shouldn't be touching myself like this, imagining it's him.
But I can't stop.
Don't want to stop.
My fingers trace the swell of my breast through the fabric of my dress, and I gasp at the sensation.
Is this what it would feel like if he touched me?
Better?
Worse?
Our wedding night looms in my mind, and it’s no longer something to dread but something to anticipate.
Will he be as controlled in bed as he is in life?
Or will he finally let his careful restraint slip away?
I press my thighs together, trying to ease the building ache between them as my exploration continues, guided by instinct and desire.
My fingertips drift lower, tracing the curve of my hip, hesitant at first but growing bolder as the ache grows. In my mind, Alessandro's voice whispers encouragements against my ear.
"Let go," he would say. "Show me what you want."
I slip my hand beneath my dress, my breath catching as I imagine his touch instead of my own.
The fantasy grows more vivid.
Alessandro's weight pressing me into the mattress, his hands gripping my wrists above my head, his lips trailing fire down my neck.
