chest against her breasts, the steely bunch of his thighs fitted between hers, and his rock-hard shaft slanted against the curve of her stomach.
'You're not responding like a proper wife.' He broke their kiss only to tug at her buttons.
' 'Tis hard to be proper with a man as wicked as you.' Her breath came fast and light. Her whole body felt aflame, ready to be engulfed by this sharp pounding need for him.
'So you blame me again?' he chuckled, rich and liquid warm as he dipped his head to draw her bared breast into his mouth.
'Aye. 'Tis all your fault.' Such thrilling pleasure. Tessa tipped her head back to rest against the wall, her eyes drifting shut. The sweet pressure of his mouth on her nipple drew taut a band of sensation low in her abdomen. Tingly and heavy and incredible, she was ready to surrender to him even in the light of day and let him strip off her clothes and make love to her until this heady need for him was sated.
A knock tapped at the closed door. 'Jonah?'
'Not now, Andy,' Jonah growled out, lifting his head from her breasts. 'I'm busy.'
'But 'tis Father.'
Jonah squeezed his eyes shut, the muscles standing out in his strong jaw and the column of his neck.
'I must go.' She pressed a kiss to Jonah's stubbled jaw, rough and so wondrously male. 'You can be wicked later, mayhap at nighttime when it's much more decent'
'Decency be damned.' His gaze clamped on her, intense and intimate, sparkling with a knowledge of what was to come.
Her heart skipped three beats, for she wanted to be held in his arms, pinned beneath him, and feel that spiraling pleasure only he could give her.
She hadn't known married life would be so wondrous. Mother had spoken of the pleasure of the marriage bed but only indirectly.
Tessa fastened her buttons, and Jonah stepped away. Still naked, still aroused, still wanting her, but sadness now snapped in his eyes and tightened the muscles of his jaw.
'Go to him. I'll get dressed and come help you.'
' 'Twill be interesting to see how your breeches fit,' she could not help teasing.
Imagine, her, Tessa Bradford, teasing. Never in her life had she felt this happy. And it was only one day, less than twenty-four hours of being Jonah's bride.
'Twas a very fine thing to be.
Jonah pushed open the door to Father's chamber. New candles burned on the stand by the bed, where the weak old man coughed fitfully. The hacking painful sound filled the room and the empty chambers of his cold dark heart.
'Yesterday was too exciting for him.' Tessa looked up when he entered the room. Her long hair was brushed but not yet tied back, caressing the delicate cut of her cheekbones and jaw, softening her features, rendering her beautiful.
If Tessa had worn her hair down and smiled just once, likely half the men in the village would have dropped to their knees before her. Even he had been guilty in seeing the worst in her, in this woman who had cared so dutifully for an ill and dying mother, as he had not done for his own father.
Aye, she was a woman of courage and strength, of more goodness and beauty than anyone he knew. Even now, she tended Father with tender hands, angelic hands, smoothing a cloth over the old man's wrinkled brow.
'I can't seem to catch air,' Father wheezed between dry, chest-deep coughs.
'I told you to take care, not to become overtired. You refused to listen, so don't expect any sympathy from me.' But the soft curve of her mouth gentled the words and the caring in her eyes, how mesmerizing it was.
'Jonah, will you bring me some boiling water? I would do it myself, but I don't want to leave him.'
He could only nod, his throat tight. Tight with fear for his father who appeared to be scarcely breathing. Tight with gratefulness for Tessa, who did not shirk her duty.
'I'll bring up your breakfast as well.' He resisted the urge to kiss her, to thank her for what she had done. This was all the proof he needed. He had made the right choice in marrying her.
He left with the image of her sitting at Father's side, candlelight sheening the ebony beauty of her hair. He tapped down the stairs, glad at least this worry he carried was groundless. Marriage might not prove to be so horrible after all.
'Quite a grin you're wearing, brother.' Thomas looked up from the hearth.
'Aye, 'tis amazing you are in such good humor.' Andy sat at the table, his plate heaped with baked goods.
'Look how at ease he is. I bet our sharp-tongued Mistress Tessa is not always so severe.' Thomas scooped fried eggs from a sizzling skillet. 'Comes as quite a surprise to me, but looks can be deceiving, eh, Jonah?'
'More than you know.' He grabbed an extra plate from the cupboard. 'Is that kettle boiling yet?'
' 'Tis done. I just set it off the heat.' Thomas set the platter of food on the table. 'How is Father?'
'His cough did not sound good.' Jonah filled a plate for Tessa. He didn't know what she liked, so he chose both ham and sausages to go with the eggs. And a slice of pumpkin bread and a piece of tasty looking streusel. 'I don't want you gluttons eating all the food whilst I'm gone.'
'If you walk away, you're taking your chances,' Andy teased with a mouthful of streusel.
'Strike me dead,' Thomas roared. 'I cannot believe our fearless hero of a brother is fixing a plate for his wife.'
'Aye, look how tenderly he set the sausages next to the egg.'
'Mayhap he is in love.'
'Enough,' Jonah commanded. 'Love has naught to do with it. Tessa is tending Father. She cannot care for him on an empty stomach.'
'See how he blushes?' Andy piped up. ' 'Tis lust then.'
'Lust is a safer emotion than love, my brother.' Jonah swiped a glass of cider from the table. 'Andy, you're eating all the sausages. Come with me and fetch the kettle from the hearth. Tessa needs hot water.'
'What I can't believe is that you seem satisfied with the match.' Thomas stood and handed Andy a hot pad. 'Jonah, I know you married her for Father.'
'Aye, and right now she is at his side. 'Tis a good match, brother. Try not to scare her with that ugly face of yours when you see her next.'
'Too late,' Andy quipped. ' 'Tis why she thinks you so handsome, Jonah. Poor Tessa looked at Thomas first and even you looked good in comparison.'
'How is he?'
Tessa wrung the last bit of herbed water from the basin. 'Resting now. He feels warm, but the fever has not returned, at least not yet. I fear it may.'
Jonah knelt beside her, both strong hands resting on his knees. 'I want him to recover.'
'As do I.' She saw the worry in his eyes, dark with fear. 'You know I will do all I can, for he is my father now, too.'
His throat worked. 'Aye, that he is. No one could tend him as well, Tessa. Or do so much. I'll always be grateful.'
'As will I.' The morning had stretched away, a weary time of worry and work, for she feared the worst. If the colonel worsened, then he was far too weak to fight another bout of fever. And yet, Jonah had been there, bringing her breakfast, fetching water and wood, letting her know she was so valued.
She'd tended many ill in this village over the years and had mostly been an outsider intruding into a family's circle, seeing their innermost struggles and problems. Now, for the first time, she belonged.
And all because of Jonah.
'A ship is in at the docks.' He reached up and brushed a straggle of hair from her eyes, such a tender gesture. One of a loving husband for a wife. 'I know Father is ill, but you have been here since dawn. Mayhap you want to go down and see what they have for sale.'
'There's nothing I need more than to take care of your father.' It touched her, that he would offer her this. 'He could worsen at any minute. Besides, another ship may dock tomorrow. Or next week. I have all I need.'
'But we're without a house servant and there may be some on board. I think you should decide if there is
