Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Somewhere between starting to walk in the moonlight and actually reaching the gazebo, the limits of Claire's patience had been reached. She had endured so many years of having to maintain a certain image both in public and in her private life that she wished for nothing more than to unleash herself.

She stood on the edge of the gazebo, helping to close the large gap in their heights. Claire grabbed Dorian's hands and placed them on her waist.

"And here I thought you actually invited me here to continue a conversation," Dorian said in a low voice as his eyebrow arched. She kept her hands on his, holding them in place as she smirked in response.

"You did not." Claire released his hands and they stayed in place, tightening enough to indent her skin in the best possible way.

"No," Dorian agreed. "I did not."

His hands moved up the curve of her waist to her breasts, one rounding forward to cup her and the other around her back to loosen the strings holding her gown in place.

"But here? Are you certain?" Dorian asked as if making sure he properly understood the situation. She appreciated the confirmation of consent but she was more than ready for him to have his way with her.

"It feels rather fitting, do you not think?" Claire pulled him closer, her lips near to his own as she spoke.

Dorian's nimble fingers loosened the back of her gown. The sleeves started to slip down her shoulders and he brushed against her bare skin. In turn, her fingers scraped lightly against the stubble of his beard and then up into his hair, pulling softly to tilt his head to hers where she wanted it.

"I cannot think of anywhere better, can you?"

Dorian said nothing, though she did not expect him to. She wanted for him to ravish her until the years all slipped away and there was only them and the places in which their bodies connected.

He kissed her softly at first, pulling the sleeves of her gown further down her shoulders.

"Dorian," Claire breathed. She did not know what she was asking for, but she wanted more.

"I have thought of you every day for the last seven years," he confessed between kisses, lips trailing down the corner of her mouth and over the curve of her jaw toward her neck. "I ached for you. It drove me mad not knowing if you were well, or how your life was faring. I longed to hear even the smallest word from you."

"Show me," Claire encouraged. "Show me how much you missed me."

She could feel him smiling into her skin as he slid down the bodice of her dress, pinning her arms to her sides as he kissed lower. Her skin warmed, and she allowed her eyes to close as her head fell back, relishing in the sensation of his lips on her skin. The soft brush of his teeth just before he freed her breast to the cool night air. Her nipple peaked for him before he covered it with the heat of his mouth.

His hands dropped to her skirts, pulling them up in haste as he groaned deeply against her. His hands found her stocking-covered legs and his fingers raked up her legs until he could grip her thighs tightly. Dorian lifted her up into the air, her legs easily wrapped around his waist as he carried her over to the bench of the gazebo and lowered her onto it.

It was a strangely powerful feeling to see such a large man as him on his knees for her. She would not deny that she liked the feeling a great amount. This was where he should have been. This was how he should have worshiped her for the last seven years. It was where Dorian belonged.

Looking at him now, she could see in his eyes that he felt the same way. He hooked his hands under the backs of her knees and pushed her legs up, her skirts bunched up around her thighs and waist. Claire pushed the fabric out of the way to give her a perfect view as he lowered his face to her sex.

He parted her with his tongue, running it along her folds and delving deeper. Claire's hand fisted his short hair, holding him to her but not guiding him. No, she let him choose how to please her. She asked him to prove that he had missed her, and he was. The eagerness of his tongue was going to drive her to madness. Pleasure pulsated through her, radiating from her core as her hips bucked up against Dorian's face.

It was going to be far more difficult than she imagined to keep quiet as needy moans of pleasure escaped her despite how she tried to clamp her lips together.

"Careful," Dorian teased. "It would not do to wake the whole house, would it?"

Claire attempted to close her thighs, a snarky remark on the tip of her tongue, but Dorian only held them open further. He made love to her with his tongue, her legs trembling as her head fell back.

Her hand migrated to her breast, recreating the feeling of his teeth on her skin with his fingertips as the fingers of his other hand sank inside of her. One finger, two, and her back was arched toward him, wanting more and desperately trying to ask for it with her body.

"Now, you said prove to it, and you are attempting to prevent it," Dorian teased as he swirled his tongue around the sensitive bundle of nerves at the apex of her thighs. Her grip in his hair tightened, and she attempted to pull him away from her. The sensation was building higher than she could handle.

"Dor… ple—" She panted, but he would not be moved. Dorian was intent on his mission as he consumed her. She could not breathe. She could not focus on anything but his fingers inside of her and how good it felt. She could feel her finish coming, and Dorian waited until the very last possible moment, right when she was moments away, to stop.

Her protest was instant. She started to move, lifting to her unstable, unsteady feet to demand attention only for Dorian to spin her around.

"Hands on the bannister, my love," Dorian commanded in her ear. She did as commanded, her back arched as he moved into position behind her.

She could feel him hard between her legs, sliding in her wetness, nudging against the same sensitive places that his tongue had just been moments before. His strong hands spread her thighs, making it easier to slip inside of her, filling her. She lifted onto her tiptoes to accommodate him, her grip on the bannister white-knuckled as she attempted to brace herself.

It was exactly what she wanted. He set a deep-thrusting, steady pace as he made love to her as if he could fuse their bodies together. He pulled her back into his chest, banding an arm around her to keep her upright. The other disappeared under her skirts between her legs to finish what he had started.

If only she could drag out this moment. If only she could keep from the pleasure at bay for a moment longer but she knew that she could not. "Dor—" she attempted, but his name died on her lips as all thoughts disappeared from her mind. He did not stop. Not for a moment as he thrust deep inside of her, letting her ride out the waves.

She did not even grasp that he had lowered them to the ground, her on his lap, until her climax started to fade. Dorian's powerful thighs lifted her as his hands dropped to her hips, holding her in place as his own breathing became erratic, thrusting up into her and all she could do was hold on. She hoped his hands could be forever imprinted on her. Dorian's breathing hitched and heat flooded her, filling her.

"I love you so much," Dorian breathed against the shell of her ear as she sagged back into his chest.

Her contented hum of agreement was all she could manage as he slipped out of her and pulled her into his arms.

Claire could lay here in Dorian's arms forever.

His fingers trailed up and down any expanse of bare skin that he could reach as she lay contentedly on his chest. Dorian's strong, steady heartbeat was a soothing drum in her ear as she attempted to match the pace of her breathing to his. She felt boneless. Utterly relaxed.

"Would you tell me about her?" Dorian asked softly.

Claire lifted her head, shifting only so that she could place one hand on his chest and rest her chin upon her hand as she gazed at him. "Eleanor?"

Dorian nodded.

"Of course. She is my favorite subject to speak about, after all. What should you like to know?"

"Anything," Dorian said and then paused. "Everything. I should like to know what she likes, what she does not like, what foods she enjoys, and how she spends her days. When did she first learn to walk, what were her first words?"

Claire giggled and placed a hand over his mouth. "Slow down! We have plenty of time to figure it all out. You do not need to learn her every facet in one evening!"

"She has my mother's eyes." Dorian said proudly. "I knew when I met her that she had a familiar quality to her, but now I have placed it. She has my mother's eyes on your features. It turned out to be a lovely combination."

It warmed her heart to know that he was already so enamored with her. It was exactly as she hoped it would be.

"It rained the day she was born. An end to an unseasonably hot month. It cooled the temperatures down and revitalized the flowers. I like to think it was a good omen of her temperament. I remember breathing through labor listening to the heavy rain hitting the glass panes of the window.

I could not help but think that even God was eager to meet her. He wished to have a good look at her as quickly as possible. The pregnancy had been remarkably easy, or so I have been told when my friends tell me about their pregnancies."

Dorian regarded her carefully. "I wish I had been there to see you swollen with my child."

Claire bit back her comment. She was not quite so old that another was wholly outside of the realm of possibility. But she reminded herself to go slow. She did not wish to rush things and ruin this new opportunity for them before it even started.

"Eleanor nearly skipped the crawling stage entirely. She took to walking so quickly that she gave her governess gray hair from having to chase her around so much."

As she spoke, she could recall those cold winter days cooped up inside when all Eleanor wanted to do was run in the gardens now that she had learned to do so.

"I think a good deal of her hobbies are not quite suited for what would be considered traditional. But Richard always encouraged her to pursue what truly interested her, whether it was more common for young boys or not. As such, she loves to climb trees and hunt for lizards. I think perhaps in another life she might have been a cat."

Dorian grinned. "I seem to recall her mother doing something similar when she was a child."

Claire nudged him playfully. "It is rude to interrupt a lady telling a story."

"Very well, I beg your pardon then. Please, do go on."

"Well, now I have forgotten where I was!"

"What about her education? What subject does she seem to like the most?" Dorian asked.

"Ah, it is rather difficult to get her to sit still for a proper lesson. Richard used to walk the grounds with her while reading poetry; she seemed to absorb the most information that way. Otherwise I would say that anything that allows her to be outside. Such as her riding lessons."

"Yes, she did seem rather fond of horses. Do you keep them here?"

"We rent carriages as needed. There is one on the property, but it is in need of repair. The barn and stables as well. It is on my list of things to do that have been pushed to lesser priority without Richard here."

"I confess that it is infinitely easier to listen to you talk about him knowing there was nothing romantic between you."

"Are you jealous?"

She could have sworn Dorian was blushing. It was not something that she expected but it was adorable.

"I know I do not have any right to be."

Claire poked his cheek as he turned his face away from her. Even his ears were turning red.

"It could be your right, if you truly intend to stay," Claire said carefully.

Dorian looked back at her with knitted brows. "What do you mean?"

She did not think she would feel so nervous to say what was running through her mind. "If you step into her life in this capacity, then you cannot leave."

"I do not understand…"

"What I mean to say is that you need to be absolutely certain this is something you desire. You cannot come into her life and leave again. It will break her heart and I cannot allow it."

Claire could not meet his gaze. If he changed his mind in a month, or if he did not truly take the time to realize what all it would mean to be in Eleanor's life, then she would rather not endure it at all.

Dorian was silent.

Too silent.

Nerves started to set in. Claire started to push away from him but he caught her and pulled her back down onto his chest.

"Then I suppose we ought to get married. I cannot think of any more permanent promise to make than that."

Claire balked. Had she heard him correctly? Did he just propose to her? Again?

"What? How can you say such a thing so casually?"

"I could get on one knee, but I would rather have a ring for that. It would be more traditional," Dorian said with a wry smile. "Unless you are rejecting me? Because if you are not, then I wholly intend to spend the rest of my life making up for those lost years. I owe that to you and Eleanor both."

Claire could have sworn she could feel her dimples with how bright her answering smile was.

"Is that a yes?" Dorian said as he pulled her closer.

She cupped his face in her hands, bringing her face closer to his as she answered just before she kissed him. "Yes! Of course it is a yes!"