Page 36 of Winter of Passion (Pride and Prejudice Variation)

Her hand encircled his waist, holding him close.

He briefly touched her lips with his, then traced warm kisses down her throat; his hand gently cupped her breasts, then his caresses grew more intense, and soon his mouth replaced his hands.

With every move, their naked bodies brushed against each other in a maddening awakening of their senses.

His hands travelled along her body, caressing her with a tenderness that soon grew into desire, and she could feel him growing harder against her thighs.

“My love, I cannot bear this any longer,” he moaned against her lips.

“I want to touch you too,” she begged through his kisses.

“Later, my love, later. I cannot wait any longer. I want to touch and taste every part of you.”

She thought she knew what he would do next, but she was proved wrong.

This time, his touches, his kisses, his strokes seemed driven by a demanding urgency.

His hands and lips ventured lower, tantalising her breasts, then lower again, brushing over her hips and thighs.

She held her breath in anticipation of the torturous pleasure he would soon give her again.

Her waiting was not in vain as his fingers gently slid between her thighs, caressing her.

She moaned and cried out his name, hoping that he would somehow extinguish the fire inside her, which grew stronger when she felt the softness of his lips upon the warmth between her legs.

When she believed she could not endure more pleasure, she begged him again, grabbing the sheets with her fists as her hips began to move instinctively.

When his tongue explored her core, tentatively at first then more daringly, tasting her, she bit her lips painfully, craving more.

A deep moan escaped her as she struggled for air, and she shook violently as chills ran across her burning skin.

His caresses returned up along her body; his greedy mouth returned to taste her breasts, her throat, her arms, then stopped to tantalise her ear.

“Are you well, my love?”

“How can you ask me that?” she whispered, her mouth finally joining his. “I cannot tell you how I feel…you cannot imagine…”

“What you feel cannot be more powerful than what I feel. Your pleasure gives me pleasure too, my beloved.”

He lay atop her again, and his hands parted her legs, then he placed himself between them. She quivered again and closed her eyes, which were heavy with passion.

“Would you open your eyes for me, my love?” he begged. “I want to watch you become my wife.”

She wanted to see him too, and she forced her eyes to meet his as his hand gently brushed between her thighs.

She felt his hardness pressing against her core and moaned with slight fear and thrilling anticipation.

She yearned to be united with him — completely.

Neither her body nor her mind could bear to wait longer, so her legs entwined around his waist, and she opened herself to him.

“It will be painful at first,” he said, and she nodded, her eyes still locked with his.

Slowly, gently, he entered her only a little, then with one strong, eager, powerful stroke he was inside her completely.

A cry escaped her lips, and her body arched against the pain, which was stronger and sharper than she had expected.

“My love,” he moaned, remaining still, trying to breathe steadily. His eyes caressed her face, and his hands entwined with hers in a tight grip. “You are mine now — completely mine,” he whispered, brushing his lips over hers.

The mixture of pain and strange pleasure overwhelmed her, filling her with a burning heat.

“I can feel you inside me,” she whispered.

“Is it painful? Should I stop?” he asked.

She replied with a timid smile. It was painful indeed, but the happiness of having him inside her, the bliss of finally becoming his wife, made it worth the while.

“Please do not stop…”

He moved slowly, watching her face intently.

“I love you so much, my beautiful wife.”

She moaned as the painful pleasure grew within her, and she caressed his handsome face. “I love you so, my husband.”

Her body tried to learn the rhythm, moving tentatively beneath him.

His slow movements soon became thrusts — faster, deeper, stronger — while his hand stroked her breasts tenderly, and his lips covered her with gentle kisses.

She lost control over her mind and her body; she heard him speaking but could not understand his words.

His ardent love overwhelmed her with a rhythm that grew wildly into a mixture of possessiveness, tenderness, and passion, to which she abandoned her entire being.

After a seemingly endless time, everything became dark around her, and his moans covered her soft cries, then he shook in release, spreading warm waves inside her trembling body.

Sometime later, breathless and exhausted, tightly embraced in their happiness, they lay in a silence as peaceful as their complete happiness.

Only the wind rattled the windows as if reminding them of the winter outside, so opposite from the heat inside them.

He tenderly kissed her hair, and she cuddled into his arms.

“How are you feeling, my love?” he asked.

“I feel complete,” she whispered. “I feel yours.”

The answer brought an expression of heartfelt delight to his face, and he looked at her, kissing her hands.

“I feel grateful beyond words that I have you,” he answered a few moments later.

“I once told you that I love you ardently. Then I thought I had lost you, and my only consolation was the ruby heart I purchased when I felt lonely and desolate. And when we became engaged, I believed I could not be happier. But only now do I feel the complete taste of happiness.”

“I love to taste the happiness on your lips, my beloved Mr Darcy. I promise you will never be lonely again. I shall always be here, in your arms. I am sure we are to be the happiest couple in the world.” She sighed, wrapped in his warm embrace.

As if in a dream, she heard the wind blowing and, before fatigue defeated her, she reflected that winter might become her favourite time of the year. As if guessing her thoughts, she heard him whispering into her ear, “I have never enjoyed winter as much as I do now.”

She smiled, and, only half awake, she found a comfortable place to rest her head upon his heart, then fell asleep.

Little did she know that Darcy needed much more time to calm his body and his mind and that he listened to the sound of winter for a long while, rejoicing in the bliss of protecting his wife’s rest.