Page 36 of An Unwanted Widow for the Duke (The Unwanted Sisters #3)

Chapter Twenty-Seven

“ C ome inside,” Wilhelmina called.

That night, she heard a knock at the adjoining door.

Gerard had been trying his best to please her. It was quite something.

It was like Robert all over again, except her first husband only saw her as a friend. They were like a brother and a sister, keeping secrets from the rest of the world.

She could not help but brush her hair faster, anticipating Gerard’s entrance. It was late, judging by the dwindling fire.

The door creaked open, and there he was, looking a little shy. She could not help but grin at the sight. He looked so much like Hector when he was about to say something he didn’t think she’d like.

“Are you sleepy?” he asked.

“Mhm. I can’t say I am, but I will be as soon as I’m done brushing my hair. It’s a routine,” she replied, her heart fluttering.

“Do you always sleep late?” he asked, sitting on the edge of her bed.

Her breathing stuttered. “I… I do, especially in the city. I grow restless here. In the country, I slept earlier. There was always so much activity in the woods that by nightfall, we could not help but crave our beds. My father didn’t care much for London.”

The words were tumbling out faster than she had intended.

“He preferred to hunt. He was… domineering. Perhaps it was easier for him to hide his temper there. Fewer eyes to see how he wielded his cane.”

“Wilhelmina…”

“Oh, I apologize. I didn’t realize that… that he was still haunting me after his death. My mother might be overbearing, but Father… he was cruel.”

“I am sorry to hear that,” Gerard said softly.

“Well, I can bear it.” Wilhelmina then quickly changed the subject.

“It was easier to hide from Society in the country, but London has a vibrant scene—the shops, my family, even though everyone still finds a reason to go to the country for a respite. Please believe me when I say that I’ve made my peace. ”

She grew thoughtful. It seemed that her husband had a way of stirring some emotions she had thought were long dead. She wanted to know more about him, too, but instead of asking, she watched him.

Was that why he came to her bedchamber? He wanted someone to talk to, someone to share his thoughts with?

That was certainly what a marriage should be, and theirs was becoming more real with every passing moment. Or at least, it felt that way on her side.

That sobered her a little.

“My father was a soldier,” Gerard said at last, his voice flat. “He demanded perfection and would beat it into me if he thought he must. At least, that was what I told myself: that he must. Otherwise, I would have had to wonder why he did it at all. Likely, he only wanted an heir.”

“I know you tried your best?—”

“I did,” Gerard cut in, his jaw tight. “I followed every rule, every order. Still, it was never enough. When my mother died, I was sixteen. After that, it grew worse. When I was nineteen, he arranged my marriage to Pamela. Even then, he was dictating when we should have a child and how I should run my household. He died a year after Hector was born. Pamela died a few months after him.”

Wilhelmina’s throat ached with sorrow. She had only ever known the broad strokes—that he had lost his wife and that he raised Hector alone. She had not imagined the weight that lay beneath.

“I am so sorry, Duke,” she whispered. “I did not know.”

Gerard looked her in the eyes. “You are my wife, Mina,” he said, his voice steady. “Say my name, as you did when we made love. Keep it on your lips, always.”

His name had always hung on the tip of her tongue, but she was afraid. Even though she was hailed as a shrew when she was younger, the reality was that rules also governed her far more than she wanted them to.

But did he mean that? Made love? She supposed it was merely the proper way to call it. Would she rather he were crass?

Of course not.

She blushed at the thought.

“I understand why you didn’t know what to do with Hector. You are doing wonderfully now, Gerard. That’s what’s important.”

“Thank you, Mina.”

She put her brush down and turned around to face him. To focus on him. His eyes had that telltale sadness that she could not figure out. Some people might simply consider it snobbishness. He was, after all, a wealthy duke. But she had never really thought of him that way.

“We should be talking like this. It’s normal.” She gave him a lopsided smile.

She meant it to be ironic. After all, they had an arrangement, but they were trying to be as kind to each other as possible.

Did she sometimes wish that he’d like her a little more? Yes, she did. But some things could not be forced, and when things happened just so, they could be more satisfying. It was just like this conversation. He came freely, and she was glad.

It was bittersweet.

“You’ve tried your best all your life. I may only know you based on what you show me, but I know you’re a good man, Gerard,” she added.

He rose to stand next to her and took her hand in his own. He looked at it in wonder, almost as if he could not believe it was there. His fingers gripped hers tightly.

“Solitude was my constant savior. Or so I thought,” he said. “Yet, these days, it makes me wonder. Whenever I hear you and Hector laugh, I want to be there, too. I want to find out what is making you so happy, and wish I could revel in it.”

Wilhelmina felt her heart swell.

“Perhaps we both learned things wrong,” she murmured.

His thumb traced her jaw. It was a slow, deliberate path that seemed to carry a question. She savored his touch, closing her eyes.

“Mina.” Her name sounded like a prayer.

She no longer knew who had invited whom first, but the space between them quickly vanished. Their lips met.

This time, it wasn’t a quick, claiming kiss. This was an exploration.

Wilhelmina melted into him, her hands pulling at the lapels of his robe. She liked how the rich velvet felt under her fingers, but she loved the heat of his body more. A strangled sound escaped her lips, and he deepened the kiss.

The taste of his tongue was intoxicating, with just a hint of brandy. She cupped the side of his neck, letting her thumb brush over the stubble on the line of his jaw. His pulse quickened under her touch, sending a thrill through her.

Eventually, he broke the kiss. “I have wanted to do that again for a long time. Every time you smiled. Every time you mentioned his name. I want you to forget everything else with my kiss, but that’s just being foolish.”

“No, that’s not foolish at all,” she whispered, her voice shaking a little.

“I was afraid that I would be frightening. Overwhelming. I can be.”

Her response was to pull him back to her and kiss him fervently. He kissed her back like a man starving, and she responded accordingly. It was hard to admit that she felt this strongly about him. But yes, she did.

His hands moved to the neckline of her nightdress, pulling at the buttons there. He paused, a silent question in his eyes.

She nodded.

Yes.

He undid the top buttons, revealing her breasts. She arched toward him, offering herself. With his eyes on hers, he licked a nipple. Slowly. Teasingly .

She bit her lip and whimpered as the strokes became more urgent. He was chipping away at her self-control bit by bit. Then, he sucked her nipple into his mouth. She bit back a scream.

Gerard was relentless. He released her nipple with a pop and moved to her other breast to give it the same attention, while he kneaded the first one.

Wilhelmina didn’t know that it could feel like this. He wasn’t even touching her anywhere else, but the pressure in her lower belly continued building, and soon she was panting his name.

His teeth grazed her nipple, before he moved further down her body. He pulled her down onto him as he lay on the floor. She giggled in surprise, straddling him. He was hard, deliciously so.

Trembling, she rushed to free his manhood.

“Come and take it,” he rasped.

She eased herself onto him, whimpering as she took him inch by inch. They both groaned when he was completely sheathed inside her.

“Ride me, Mina.”

Wilhelmina shivered as she peeled off her nightdress, letting herself follow his command.

At first, she was careful, testing the angle, finding the point that made her nerves sing. Slowly, deliberately, she guided him inside her, over and over, until she hit the perfect rhythm.

“Mina,” Gerard groaned, his hands seeking her breasts, lifting and squeezing as they bounced with every roll of her hips.

It felt like a dance, fluid and consuming. She let herself move entirely with him, surrendering to the heat building inside her. Faster, deeper—they were perfectly matched, each motion driving them both higher.

“Gerard, I…” she faltered, the sensations overtaking her mind.

“That’s it, darling. Take your pleasure. Be a good girl and do it for me,” he moaned, his words pushing her over the edge.

Then, stars erupted behind her eyelids. A wave of fire and ecstasy tore through her, leaving her breathless, trembling, and completely undone.

She collapsed onto him, their bodies slick and joined, hearts racing, the world beyond the bedchamber forgotten.

The night held them, and for that moment, only the two of them, and their embrace existed.