To Seduce a Bride

“If you should need me to-although you are fierce enough to do your own slaying in most instances.”

“I shall take that as a compliment.”

“It was intended to be,” Heath said, pressing a light kiss on her temple.

He did indeed mean his comment as praise, Heath thought, watching Lily blush at his intimate gesture. He wouldn’t change a thing about her, most certainly not her passionate nature. She would face villains with fists swinging, but she would be standing at his side. And she would love him with a fierce loyalty, he had no doubt.

He felt the same way about her. The love he felt for Lily was intense, ungovernable, while desire echoed fiercely in his heart.

Winifred happened to notice Lily’s flushed cheeks and boldly called the company’s attention to the fact that it was Lord and Lady Claybourne’s wedding day. “I believe we should take our leave and allow the lovebirds some privacy,” her ladyship said in her own blunt style.

Heath agreed wholeheartedly, yet it was nearly half an hour later before the wedding party broke up for good. By then his servants had finished packing up the remains of the celebration and loading the tables and chairs into wagons.

One by one the guests said their farewells to the bridal couple. Arabella and Roslyn were the last to go. Rather surprisingly, tears shone in Lily’s eyes as her sisters embraced her.

“Please don’t cry, dearest,” Roslyn implored, “or you will have me doing the same.”

“Nonsense,” Arabella said fondly. “Neither of you has any reason for tears. Lily, it isn’t as if we are abandoning you. We will see you in less than a fortnight in Brittany.”

Arabella and Marcus were planning a voyage to Brittany as well, so that the three sisters could hold a reunion with their mother. Both Roslyn and Lily had wed since Victoria and her French husband had visited England earlier this summer and attended Arabella’s nuptials.

“I know,” Lily replied, dashing the moisture from her eyes.

She let her sisters go eventually but stood watching as their husbands escorted them safely down the gangway to the quay to settle in their waiting carriages.

“Are you still sad about losing your sisters to matrimony?” Heath asked curiously.

Slipping her arm through his, Lily managed a bright smile. “No, not now. It is just that we are all beginning new lives apart from each other. But I cannot be sad when I have you.”

She stood at the railing another moment, watching as the carriages pulled away. Heath, however, watched her. He had frequently imagined Lily at the bow of this ship, sunlight burnishing her dark chestnut hair as it streamed out behind her in the wind. There was little wind just now, but the sun brought out the shimmering copper and gold in the strands.

When Heath dropped a kiss onto the crown of her head, Lily turned to look at him with an adoring glance. “You needn’t worry about my happiness, Heath. I could not be any happier. And I have no doubt that our wedding voyage will be the first of many wonderful adventures together.”

“It will be if I have any say in the matter.”

Reaching up, Lily entwined her arms around his neck. “Do you know what I think?”

“No, sweetheart, what do you think?”

“That love will be the grandest adventure of all.”

“I could easily be persuaded to agree.”

He captured her enchanting smile with a kiss and drew her close. It had been far too long since he’d last held her this way.

“Shall we go below to our cabin, my lady?” Heath murmured when he eventually broke off.

Lily raised a teasing eyebrow. “Oh? What did you have in mind?”

“I mean to seduce my bride. I promised you a memorable seduction on our wedding night, did I not?”

She felt a surge of heat at the desire she saw shimmering in his eyes. “Indeed you did. So why are we tarrying here?”

Of one accord, they turned to cross the deck. Her blood pulsing with anticipation and excitement, Lily allowed Heath to lead her below. By the time they reached their cabin, her heart was thudding against her ribs.

And the moment he shut the door behind them, they were in each other’s arms.

“At last,” Heath rasped before taking her mouth with the same fervency Lily was feeling. She responded fiercely to his every touch, his every kiss, his demanding lips, his masterful arms. With every breath she took, she wanted him more.

They were both wildly out of control as they shed their clothing…and then they were naked, gloriously naked.

Heath’s eyes blazed with desire, with love, as he urged Lily to the berth. They fell together onto the silken sheets, locked together in a sensual tangle, so fierce yet so tender. A shower of heat bathed them when he came into her body and became part of her.

Lily shuddered as Heath filled her to overflowing. The powerful feeling pulsed deep inside her-a happiness so sweet and rare, it felt like shimmering sunlight. She was full to bursting with joy and wonder. And as her body shattered, she carried Heath with her.

When it was over, they clung to each other, breathless and sated, glorying in their joining.

Finally Heath muttered an exhausted oath in her ear. “Damn, but I meant our consummation to go slowly. That was hardly a seduction.”

“No,” Lily agreed weakly. “It was a conflagration.”

They laughed softly into each other’s mouths as they kissed again. Then, easing his weight from her, Heath rolled onto his side and gathered Lily to him with heart-melting care.

“It was worth the wait,” he murmured hoarsely after another long interval. “I never realized that carnal pleasure could be so satisfying.”

“Mmmm,” she agreed dreamily.

It was true, Lily thought as she lay with her cheek against his heartbeat. Their passionate lovemaking as husband and wife was more satisfying, more thrilling, more joyous than as mere lovers.

And while she lay there savoring his warmth, another realization struck her: She was bound to Heath now, yet she had never felt so free. She had found freedom in his arms, much to her amazement. He had taught her about trusting. He had taught her the power of love.

She had no doubts now that their union would prosper. Heath was her husband; her friend and lover for always. The man whose smile could control the rhythm of her heart.

Lily pressed her lips tenderly against the warm bare skin of his chest. Nothing in her life had ever seemed this natural, this right. And when Heath’s arms tightened around her, she sighed at the magic of being treasured by such a special man. She was loved, deeply loved.

No woman could ask for more.

“Have I told you how thankful I am for your persistence?” Lily murmured at last, lifting her head so that she could see his face.

“Not lately, wife. Why don’t you tell me again?”

“I am thankful, Heath. I am profoundly grateful that you would not give up on me. And even more grateful that you came to love me.”

His eyebrow arched. “I have told you countless times, I don’t want your gratitude…but in this case, I will make an exception.”

Slipping his hand behind her nape, Heath favored her with an alluring male smile-that same wickedly charming smile she had come to cherish. “But now, my lovely bride,” he said provocatively, “what of this seduction I promised you?”

Lily flashed him a saucy smile. “Perhaps we should hold a contest to see who can best seduce whom.”

“I am more than willing to compete,” Heath agreed huskily, bringing her mouth closer to his. “But be warned, angel, I intend to win.”

Giving a laugh of elemental satisfaction, she bent her head. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”