Chapter 22

CHAPTER22

When Jane woke up, she felt as if she were waking up from one dream then falling right into another. The curtains were still drawn, but thin strips of the morning sun were oozing into the room, revealing to her that Leo was already up and seated on a small armchair right by the window. She propped herself up on her hand, resting it on the elbow to take a better look at him.

“Did I wake you?” she heard him ask, adjusting himself in the chair.

“No,” she murmured. “I don’t remember the last time I slept this nicely.”

“I’m happy to hear that,” he said, getting up and pulling the curtains to the side. The sunlight exploded all about the room, and only then did she see that her husband was completely naked. Her cheeks flushed immediately, and she tried to look away, but his words prevented her from doing so.

“My body isn’t nearly as beautiful look at as yours,” he told her, slowly walking over to the bed.

While every rational part of her mind urged her to look away, she could not. She also could not agree with what he just said. His body was pure muscle, and his manhood hung between his legs like a satyr’s in heat. She swallowed heavily at the sight, hoping that her face would not reveal anything of what she was thinking, of what she was hoping would happen… again.

He lifted the cover off of her then slid back into the bed with her. His hands found the soft crevices of her body, caressing her softly.

“Mmm, it is so warm in here,” he murmured into her ear, awakening all of her senses once more.

She glanced at the window again. The sun was very bright. “Did we oversleep?” she asked as he kissed her earlobe. In fact, she did not care one bit whether they overslept or not; she was merely endeavoring to keep herself focused on anything else other than what he was doing to her.

“Does it matter?” His question echoed her own inner state of mind.

“But breakfast…” she tried, only for him to press his index finger to her lips.

He shook his head at her. “The only thing I intend on having right now is you.”

The thought exploded inside of her mind, the memory of the previous night lighting up more flames. She thought she had satiated her desire for him, but it turned out that she merely opened the door, and now that she passed through it, there was no satiating this desire. There was only calming it down for the time being. But she wanted him all the time, always, now and forever more.

“But it’s daytime…” she tried although her protests fell on deaf ears as she was hoping they would.

“So?” he murmured into her neck, his hot breath lifting all of her little hairs on end. “You are so beautiful, Jane. I want to make love to you and look at your breathtaking body, your sweet, tender face…”

He hugged her more tightly around the waist and pulled her ever closer. She giggled at the motion, and he suddenly stopped. She bit her tongue, thinking that perhaps she did not react the way she was supposed to have.

“Did I do something wrong?” she asked, already feeling guilty that she might have ruined the moment.

He shook his head at her again. “You have the most melodious laughter I have ever heard. I want to listen to it all the time.”

She smiled at his words, incredulous that he had such an effect on her, and she on him. That was what love did to people, she thought to herself. It made them weak but in a good way. It made them open up to each other. It made them vulnerable. Yet, she didn’t mind being vulnerable in front of him any longer. She didn’t feel the need to be always the strong one, always the one who could do and handle everything. She still believed that, but it felt good to know that no one would judge her for being soft, for being vulnerable, for being her pure self.

“I love you, Jane,” she heard him say in a voice that sank deep inside of her, a place she knew it would never leave again.

“I love you, too,” she replied in the only way she knew how. After all, it was the truth. She had loved him from the moment her eyes befell him. She pretended it was not so, but pretending did not undo the truth. It merely masked it for those involved. However, the truth always found a way to the surface as it did now.

Hearing her words, he pulled her even closer, locking his lips with hers. That same desire from the previous night took over, only this time, she felt like she knew exactly what she needed to do, but he surprised her once more. Instead of prolonging the kiss, he pulled away and sunk somewhere underneath the covers. It was then that she felt him spread her legs.

“Leo!” she exclaimed, gasping. “Surely, you don’t mean to—”

But she was unable to finish her sentence because his tongue started to flick over her still swollen bud. Instinctively, she spread her legs even wider for him, offering herself up for him. At first, he was merely licking her then those licks turned into sucking with her entire feminine flesh inside his mouth.

“Leo…” she moaned.

Pleasure struck her instantly, wild and unrestrained. She had to press her hand to her lips in an effort to stifle a loud cry. His tongue worked so effortlessly, knowing exactly where to lick, where to suck, where to pull, where to nip. He parted her folds, making her even wetter than she already was. When he introduced a finger which started to circle around her throbbing bud, she felt like he pushed her over the brink.

The sensation was beyond any description. Her entire body tightened, and once again, that heat, that molten lava started to course through her veins. She dug her fingers into his back, pushing him onto herself, demanding more as the last throbs of pleasure left her body. When he lifted his gaze from beneath the covers, she could see his lips glimmering from her dew. He was smiling.

“This is how we should always begin our every day,” he told her mischievously, and she couldn’t suppress another chuckle. Then, he turned serious, pulling himself up to her, his fingers still pressed to her quivering bud. “We’re still not done, Jane darling.”

She shivered at those words. How she longed to have more of him, much more.

* * *

“You seem to be in a particularly good mood today,” Seth noticed although Leo was certain that it did not take an overly keen eye to put two and two together. He could not stop smiling, and he also did not fail to notice the look of surprise on Seth’s face the previous night at the ball when Leo informed him that he and Jane needed to return home earlier than expected.

The two men were now seated in their usual armchairs at White’s, the ones by the window where Seth would often glance outward, taking notice of the ladies passing by. As far as Leo was concerned, he had no particular preference regarding their seating arrangement, but they had been seated here ever since they started frequenting the place, so this time was no different.

“I have no reason not to be,” Leo said, careful not to reveal too much but still unable to keep completely quiet about the fact that Jane and he had become husband and wife in the truest sense of the word.

“I take it that your lovely wife has become… more accommodating then?” Seth asked, winking playfully. Both men knew exactly what he had been referring to.

“I believe that is the case for both of us,” Leo corrected him, leaning for his glass which rested on a small table that separated them. He wasn’t particularly keen on drinking in the early afternoons, but this time, he felt as if he had the best reason to celebrate, and who would he celebrate with if not with his best friend?

“That is all fine and dandy, old boy,” Seth said with much less playfulness to his voice this time as he leaned more comfortably in his armchair. “Just make sure not to make yourself the more accommodating one.”

Leo found nothing wrong with that. If Jane would reciprocate as she did the previous night and this morning, he would be more than happy to be the more accommodating one. However, he knew that Seth would not see it that way. He simply could not. His manner of perceiving women would not allow him that point of view.

“I do believe we have found a perfect balance,” Leo chose to say instead, taking the glass to his lips and partaking in a sip. The drink was mellow with a perfectly soft sting to it. He proceeded to put the glass back down then addressed his friend once more. “How about you? When do you plan on settling down?”

“Me?” Seth asked, a question which was followed by such roaring laughter that a few of the gentlemen who were seated not far from them turned around to see what all the ruckus was about. As usual, Seth did not pay any attention to them but focused on his own amusement with the question. “Do not be absurd, old boy. I still have plenty of years ahead of me before I finally find someone to settle down with—if such a thing ever happens. You know how picky I am.”

Leo nodded. To be quite honest, Seth was not picky. He was simply… mistaken in the way he perceived women. It was something that Leo had tried to rectify about his friend, but all effort was in vain. Seth was adamant in his belief that women were there for his amusement, and that they should be damn joyful about that. Leo could not understand how someone who had such reasonable outlooks in other regards could be so backwards in this one. Still, he tried not to let that affect their friendship.

Their conversation slowly took a turn in another direction, and Leo asked his friend regarding some investments he had been planning on making, but he noticed that he was finding it increasingly more difficult to focus. All he could think about was Jane and how he wanted to run back to her.

He would never cut his meeting with Seth short, of course. He did not want Seth to think him a whipped man so early in the marriage. He also did not wish Jane to think that he was unable to function without her now. Yet, in her arms was the only place he wished to be right now. Her voice was the only one he wished to listen to—her moans, her soft groans, her calling out his name. The separation was unbearable.

“Leo?” Seth’s voice echoed, bringing him back to the present moment. “Are you listening?”

“Sorry?” Leo asked, staring at his friend blankly.

“Goodness,” Seth shook his head. “You’ve got it worse than I thought.”

“Got what?” Leo asked naively.

“The love bug, old boy,” Seth teased. “It’s a good thing that you have me to keep you on the right track, lest you become a hen-pecked husband.” Seth laughed at his own words as if such a thing was even possible.

Leo, on the other hand, could never see himself becoming one of those with Jane. She was far too reasonable to allow such a thing. In addition, she was one of those women who expected her partner to meet them halfway rather than do everything the way she wanted. He had learned this early on about her, and it was one of the things he truly admired.

“Indeed,” Leo said, not willing to deepen this conversation because he knew that he and Seth would not see eye to eye. “Shall we be seeing you at the ball on Saturday?”

“Lord Willoughby’s ball?” Seth asked.

“Yes,” Leo nodded.

“I would not miss it for the world,” Seth informed him with a slight hint of something mysterious in his voice. Leo could not possibly imagine what that might be, but he decided to let it go. Perhaps some special lady would be in attendance, one of the latest ones Seth had his eye on. That would be enough to make this statement sound so mysterious. As for Leo, he was far too eager to return home to his wife.

“Then we shall be seeing you there,” Leo announced, getting up. “I need to go see my attorney now.”

Seth tilted his head. “Are you certain that isn’t just an excuse to leave here early, so you can go home and frolic in the bedchamber with that lovely wife of yours?” He was grinning.

“No,” Leo replied as seriously as he could. Now, he did really need to go see Mr. Higgins although he was not planning on doing any such thing today. “I need to discuss some urgent things with him.”

“Of course,” Seth nodded. It seemed that he was appeased. “Do send him my regards. And I shall be seeing both you and your lovely wife on Saturday.”