Page 40

“I can be a patient man from time to time,” Ezra replied.

His lips were closer to her now, caressing her outer lobe with each word he spoke. With one hand still anchored on her waist, he rose the other to the ties at the back of her dress and slowly pulled the strings loose.

“Fetch another sheet of paper from that stack of vellum over there, and we shall begin again.”

His tone was patient, but she still picked up on the slight lilt of amusement beneath. This time, though, instead of annoyance she felt a burst of arousal in her lower belly.

Taking a steady breath, Lydia moved the ruined letter aside, pulled a fresh sheet of paper from the vellum as commanded, and picked up the pen again.

“I think I might know what happened last time,” Ezra whispered as she felt her dress being pulled down her shoulders.

She shivered at the brush of air against her bare skin, and instinctively pressed into him. Instead of letting her linger there he gripped her biceps and made her sit forward just a little, revealing her back.

“Please explain,” she managed to say, her eyes fluttering as she felt her corset strings coming loose, “for I cannot seem to get my mind to work correctly.”

Ezra chuckled into her ear; a low, taunting sound as his fingers slipped up the back of her corset and slowly pulled so that the many crisscrossed strings would release as one. Relief poured through her as she felt the pressure on her breasts and ribcage release, and she could not help the moan that left her lips.

“You poor thing,” he purred, his voice dripping with mock pity as he splayed his full hand against the nakedness of her lower back and began to press upward.

Like a feline, Lydia moved her spine with his touch, and when he ended at the nape of her neck and circled his fingers there, she let out another helpless whimper and shivered. Yes, right now, she was a pitiful thing, and she could not deny it.

“You are not used to such multi-tasking, it is obvious,” Ezra continued, stroking his thumb along the left plane of her neck as he moved her back to his chest again. “Therefore, some education simply needs to be provided.”

His hand slipped around the front of her throat then, his grip firm but gentle as he moved his other hand to lightly trace the line from her throat to her navel. Large, dewy drops of her juices began to slip from Lydia’s petals as his fingers made lazy circles around her navel, and she found herself pressing her thighs together even tighter. As she did so, she felt Ezra’s member throb once more against her backside.

“This type of learning is best absorbed through application,” he continued calmly as her mind continued to unravel.

He then pressed a kiss to the tender spot below her ear, and she let out a soft cry. How could a touch so soft be so intense? So powerful?

“Shhhh,” he soothed, moving his hand over the one that held the pen. “You’ve proven exemplary at everything else you have shown me. I am confident this will be no different.”

His grip on her hand tightened then, and he let his lips trace down the nape of her neck and up again before he whispered more adamantly, “We will do this over. And over. Andoveragain, until you complete your task perfectly. Do you understand, Lydia?”

“Yes,” she whispered quickly, her grip tightening on the pen.

“Good,” he praised, his voice thick as he moved her hand to dip the pen into the inkwell.

“Now, let us begin again. And this time, no matter what I do, you must not allow yourself to become distracted.”

“I am starting to think you are making mistakes on purpose,” Ezra teased, pinching Lydia’s right nipple.

He was rewarded with another delightful sound from her throat as her hips squirmed in his lap. As it had done for the last hour, the sensation made him grit his teeth and thrust his hips in response.

“Well, you are making it quite difficult to succeed!” she gasped, then moaned as his rigid length thrust against her glistening mons.

Though he still had trousers on, her juices had coated through the fabric, making it wet and uncomfortable around the head of his manhood. The combination of pleasure and discomfort was driving him mad, and hewasbeginning to lose patience with this lesson.

Lydia had been deliciously responsive to his touch; so much so that at times even the barest scrape of a singular nail made her gasp. In truth, he too had become distracted at first. Fascination and wonder had overtaken him several times as he traced lightly over her bare upper body, and he became entranced with watching every movement and hearing every sound she made.

He remembered that she was pure and completely untouched. Ezra let the pressure from his hands gradually grow firmer and his touch became increasingly sensual. No man before him had ever touched her or seenher before he had. He truly was her first for everything.

So, he had been gentle at the beginning, allowing her to become accustomed to his touch, his voice. But, as her writing grew steadier, his grip became harsher. His slow kisses transformedinto scraping teeth and sharp nips, and his gentle fingertips began to intermittently pinch or lightly slap.

“I suppose I am being a little unfair,” Ezra admitted, releasing her nipple from his firm pinch.

Lydia whimpered as he quickly began to knead and massage the bruised, sensitive bud back to life and felt another splash of her juices spread across the crotch of his trousers. He hissed in a breath at the sensation, and for a moment he paused and leaned his forehead against the sensual contours of Lydia’s back.

He had started this game to punish her for disobeying his commands, but now, as he felt ready to explode, he realized that he was punishing himselfvastlymore than he could ever chastise her. Heneededthe game to end if only to remove himself and find relief, but each time he attempted to pull his hands away, he found he could not.