Page 18 of Love, the Duke (Say I Do #3)

C HAPTER 18

MAN’S PRACTICAL GUIDE TO APPREHENDING A THIEF

SIR BENTLY ASHTON ULLINGSWICK

Take help wherever you find it.

“All right,” she answered tentatively but knew she was fearful that something wasn’t right.

“I want to propose a toast.”

A toast?

That made the tightness in her chest ease a little. She nodded. A toast couldn’t be too bad, could it? Perhaps even appropriate for just the two of them, even though there had been several from his friends throughout the afternoon.

“I want you to know that while I didn’t agree to marry you when Winston approached me about the possibility, I am grateful fate later brought us together and I know that he had blessed our marriage long before it took place.”

Ophelia’s heart felt as if it melted into a puddle in his hands. The sentiment was so touching that for a moment she thought she might have tears glistening in her eyes.

“That is very kind of you to say and to remember Winston privately to me on this day. It means so much to me, and I believe that too. If he were here, he would be very happy. He wanted me to marry well, knowing if I was taken care of, so would our mother be.”

“Her home is with us for as long as she wants,” he assured her. They clinked their glasses, and each took a sip.

Hurst took a few steps away and leaned his back against the spiral bedpost. “I’m glad I can repay some of the kindness your mother showed to me when I was a boy. I’ve always felt she was protective of me.”

Once again, Ophelia felt the need to know more about his childhood, but sensed this wasn’t the right time to delve deeper into his past. Yet, she couldn’t stop herself from saying, “I asked Maman to tell me about you, but she didn’t tell me much except she was quite fond of you.”

“As I am of her. There’s no reason she couldn’t tell you anything she might know about me. Winston and I did the usual boy things. We rode your father’s horse and my uncle’s all over the meadow and bogs. We fished in the pond and looked for frogs.”

Ophelia laughed softly.

“I was always envious of your brother.”

The faraway look in his eyes caused Ophelia’s heart to squeeze. “If that is true, I’m sure Winston didn’t know.”

“Believe me. It is true. My father would leave me for months at the time and never once write and inquire about me while he was gone. And usually, he would be weeks late to return for me. Your father and mother were very protective of Winston. If we were going to leave the area around the vicarage, they wanted to know where we were going and they expected us to not change our plans without telling one of them. I didn’t understand that kind of caring but I wanted it. My father never worried about where I went or if I came home. Winston said his father wanted to know in case he ever had to go looking for us, so he’d know in which direction to go.”

It was difficult for Ophelia to imagine what it must have been like to not have the security of loving parents. Perhaps that is why Hurst had always seemed so protective of her. “It is comforting to know someone cares for you enough to worry. I suppose there were reasons your father was that way.”

Hurst straightened. “And I suppose you are right. Tell me, are you feeling more relaxed now that everyone is gone, and we are alone?”

Accepting his signal that he’d said all he was going to about his past, she answered, “Yes, I think so.” There was still the biggest part of the night to get through. She wasn’t dreading it, but she did wonder how it would all come about that they would end up in the same bed together.

“I want you to be settled. Continue to drink the champagne.”

She nodded and took another sip.

“Your hair is beautiful, Ophelia. I wondered how long it would be. I like the inviting way it spills around your shoulders and drapes down your back with waves and curls.”

“Your hair is beautiful too,” she replied in the same easy manner he’d spoken.

A chuckle rumbled in his chest.

“It’s true,” she said. “It feels like silk and the color is lovely. Especially when the sun sparkles off it.”

Hurst’s smile let her know he appreciated her compliment while his eyes narrowed with good humor. “You noticed that?”

“How could I not notice a sparkle? I find it very attrac tive the way you wear it low across your forehead.” She glanced at his hair again. “Lamplight sparkles off it too. So yes, it’s beautiful.”

“I have never seen a man with beautiful hair, Ophelia. Or beautiful anything or that matter.”

His mood and easy conversation relaxed her even more, while she enjoyed their inconsequential banter.

“That can’t be true. Most of the gentlemen I saw at your sporting club meeting were beautiful specimens of men.”

He grinned. “You were looking over the men in my club? And in my house?”

“I had no choice.” She countered his teasing with an innocently playful smile, and then took another drink from her glass. “You will remember I was looking for you among them. I couldn’t help but notice all were young and built very much like you through the chest and shoulders. All tall, and quite handsome too.”

“Handsome?” he quipped with a frown. “It’s a good thing I arrived when I did or you might have run away with one of them.”

Ophelia sipped her champagne before saying, “I doubt that would have been a possibility with the way I was dressed, but I was afraid Mr. Sawyer was going to ask me a sporting question I couldn’t possibly answer and realize I wasn’t part of the club before I could find you.”

“I will teach you anything you need to know about sports, and many other things as well,” he added with a twinkle in his eyes. “But I think it best I keep you away from the members of my club before you start eyeing them again.”

The sensuality in the way he looked at her with such intense desire made her want to kiss him for as long as she wanted. Still, she asked with a bit of seriousness to her tone, “You aren’t really worried about me being attracted to one of the men, are you?”

“No.” In one swallow he finished his drink and placed the glass on the table by the bed. With no warning, he pulled the tail of his shirt out of the waistband of his trousers, tugged it up over his head and tossed it onto the slipper chair in the corner.

Merciful heavens!

Ophelia gasped with pleasure at his boldness to bare his chest in front of her. Seeing him without a shirt caused a flutter in her stomach. She flushed. Golden light from the lamp made his skin appear a gorgeous shade of bronze. Her gaze raked over the wide span of his sculpted, rippled chest that looked as firm and prominent as the muscles in his arms. His skin appeared smooth, firm, and bulging with strength. There was no other way to put it. He was magnificent.

She couldn’t help saying, “I didn’t expect you’d be so, so—”

He smiled. “Tempting?”

That’s exactly what she was thinking but remained quiet as she continued to be mesmerized by his perfect physique.

Hurst closed the short distance between them. Taking the glass from her hand, he placed it beside his before lightly brushing her cheek with the pads of his fingers. Staring deeply into her eyes, he asked, “Do I tempt you when I touch you, Ophelia?”

“Yes,” she answered. “There is no mystery, no doubt. It is the simple truth.”

“Good. A man wants to tempt his wife to touch him. As you tempt me to caress your beautiful skin.”

Engulfed by the desire his words wrought, she ran her open hand softly from one end of his chest to the other, feeling the rise and dips of the various muscles along the way. She then let her hand wander down his rippled abdomen to the band of his trousers, and then up and over his shoulders and arms. Each muscle jerked and tensed as she felt the contours.

Thrills like she could have never imagined swept through her. It had never occurred to her she might one day touch a man as she was touching Hurst. His skin felt as smooth as it looked. Her fingers splayed, fanning out to take as much of his strong upper arm into her palm as she could to feel its weight. The muscle was hard and warm like a freshly picked apple on a hot and sunny summer afternoon.

Staring directly into his eyes, she whispered in a hushed breath, “Never again say you are not beautiful, sir. You are, but there is one thing about you that I’ve been wanting to see.”

His brows rose with interest. “Really?”

She nodded without reluctance.

Another teasing smile spread across his face. “Is this thing above my waist or below it?”

“You are being very naughty, Your Grace.”

He chuckled softly. “You are the one being inquisitive about my body, my wife.”

“Some of it for sure.” She grinned. “When you came to pay your respect to Maman, I overheard the two of you talking about a scar on your forehead from an injury when you were a boy and jumping over their fence.”

“So that is the part of me you haven’t seen that has enraptured your curiosity? I have to say I’m more than a bit disappointed.”

She loved his playfulness, and supposed it was proper now that they were married. “Can I see it?”

“The scar or the—”

“Don’t say it,” she said, putting her hands over her ears as she laughed. “Of course, the scar.”

He circled her in his arms again. “Lift my hair and look at it all you want and then we will talk about the other part of me that you should be curious about.”

Ophelia raised on her toes as she moved his hair aside. The scar ran about two inches and very close to his hairline. “That must have been quite a wound.”

“As best I remember it hurt for weeks. Thanks to your mother and father for tending to it so quickly I had no infection, and it healed quickly.”

“Is that why you’ve always worn your hair low on your forehead?”

“Probably and I’ve never had a reason to change it.”

“I’m glad. Not because you can’t see the scar, but because the way you wear it is very attractive.”

His smile let her know he would acquiesce to her compliment once again. She was happy he wasn’t worried about her eyeing any of the other members of his club. She was positive none of them could come close to the way she felt about Hurst. Certainly, none of them caused her breath to catch in her throat like her husband.

He put his hand to the back of her head and ran it down the length of her hair. Even in that small touch she felt gentle power in his hand.

Hurst reached over and kissed the side of her face near her ear and inhaled deeply. “You are the one who is very attractive and very enticing. I love to smell the sweet fragrance of your skin, your hair.”

She loved hearing him say those things and feeling his lips on hers. Emotions deep and earnest swirled inside her. She only wanted to experience and enjoy them.

“Are you cold?” he asked.

She shook her head.

“Raise your arms,” he said gruffly. “I want to hold you close to me without your dress between us,” he murmured.

Ophelia obeyed without question. He took hold of the hem of her sleeveless silk gown, lifted it up and over her head, and sent it the way of the other clothing. The fine cotton chemise came off as quickly and was discarded as easily, leaving her standing in her lace-trimmed stays and drawers that ended just above her knees.

His lips slowly eased into a smile as his gaze swept over her. “You are the beautiful one, my darling wife.”

He bent his head, closed his eyes, and kissed the pillowy rise of her breasts showing from beneath the lacy neckline of her white stays. The coolness of his lips on her warm skin was inviting. Luxuriant sensations stirred and mounted warmly inside her. Her breath grew short and fast. Ophelia kissed the warm space between his neck and shoulder and let her lips travel with short raindrop kisses to just beneath his jaw as if it was the most natural of things for her to do. She could tell it gave him breathtaking pleasure and her too.

Taking her into his arms, he kissed her slowly, delightfully, thrilling her. Her arms fell over his bare shoulders. Her hands caressed him as she returned his kisses, sweeping her tongue through his mouth as his fingers wove and tangled in the length of her hair while still holding her close to him.

She nestled against his chest as they settled into a mixture of slow, tender, and eager kisses that kept her softly panting. Hurst slid his hands up and down her spine until he found the laces of her stays. Quickly, he worked them loose, one after the other until the garment opened and fell at their feet. He hugged her close, hard chest to her soft bare breasts. Warm and strong, yet gentle. She could lose herself in the way he touched her, and the way his hands skimmed down her waist to the swell of her hips and down the sides of her thighs with tenderness.

He looked into her eyes. “You feel wonderful and as if you were made just for me.”

A slight laugh passed her lips. “For some reason, I was just feeling the same—as if I were made for you.”

“You were,” he whispered, his lips pressing against hers once more. “That makes us both right.”

“For a change,” she answered in a hushed tone with a smile upon her lips.

“I want you, Ophelia. No other woman. Just you for the rest of my life.”

“Just you for me too,” she answered, kissing over his jawline down his strong neck and over the curve of his shoulder.

“You’re not nervous, are you?” he asked as he cupped the back of her head in his hand.

“No.” She fit her body closer to him. “Not anymore.”

Keeping his gaze riveted on her eyes, he said huskily, “Long before the first time I kissed you, I recognized your sensuality. Ever since, I have longed to explore it with you, and I’m eager to bring it to life.”

His words filled her with anticipation of what was to come, and she watched as his trousers and her drawers were easily disposed of. Hurst helped her to lie down and then he joined her, fitting himself facing her with her breasts pressed against his chest. There was no doubt he was aroused, and the wedding night had begun.

Taking his time while they kissed and kissed, Hurst caressed her breasts with gentle loving strokes, the flat area of her stomach and navel, over her hips and down the plane of her slender thighs. Ophelia didn’t stop touching him either. Following his lead, she explored his body too.

Their lovemaking was frantic at times, but always tender and loving. There were moans, sighs, and gasps as he made her his. She wasn’t prepared for the shock of pleasure that rippled and lingered, but there was no doubt that she had become his wife in word and deed. When it was over, she was sure she’d just experienced her first miracle. It had to be one. How else could coupling bring such gratification to two people at the same time? The intense moment was explosive and left them both catching their breath.

The pleasure and awe of their coming together as husband and wife was almost more than she could bear.

When it was over, Hurst rolled onto his back and placed his arm underneath his head. Ophelia curled beside him with her hand on his chest. They lay quiet, happy, and sated.

After a while, she lifted her head to look at him and asked softly, “Did you know how wonderful it would be?”

“For two people enjoying each other in bed?” he asked with a patient smile. “I had an inkling or two. About being married to you—” He reached down and kissed her bare shoulder before looking into her eyes. “I knew it would be wonderful, and it far exceeded what I’d imagined.”

Ophelia smiled too. It felt intensely good to have his body against her. Sharing his heat, feeling his breathing from the rise and fall of his chest. “Will we share a bed often?”

He frowned and grumbled curiously, “Why would you suspect we wouldn’t?”

“We have separate rooms.”

His brows knitted closer as if he was thinking what he should answer. “It never dawned on me you might think of these chambers as mine and yours. It is ours. All of it.”

“Oh,” she answered.

“Separate rooms so I can get up in the mornings and dress without waking you. Whether we are in this bed or the one in the other room, have no worry, Ophelia. We will share it.” He quirked his head and added with a slight grin, “Besides, that is how babies are made.”

Dipping her head to kiss his collarbone, she nuzzled his skin and whispered earnestly, “I hope I give you a son.”

“Look at me,” he whispered as he lifted her chin with the tips of his fingers. “That will be if it’s destined to be.”

His voice was husky, persuasive, and his gaze was so penetrating she couldn’t have looked away if she’d wanted to. Her head tilted back, and she looked deeply into his eyes. “Then so be it.”

With the palm of his hand, he brushed her hair down the length of her spine, spreading his fingers wide so he could caress her tresses and her skin. “Along with all the other things you have on your mind tonight, and I know they are important to you. They are to me too but hear me. We will worry about them tomorrow when we can do something about them. Right now, I need to feel your heart beating next to mine. You make me want to forget about everything but you, and I want you to forget everything but me tonight.”

She smiled and rose up over him. Her hair fell softly to the front of her shoulders and then pooled against his skin as she whispered against his lips, “I already have.”