“Maybe just stay a little while longer,” she suggested and wound her leg around his, cradling him between her thighs and grinding to him. The lovely heat reasserted itself. Would she ever get enough of him, or would they want each other like this constantly?
“You’re trying to bamboozle me and I’m powerless against you,” he said and kissed her. As she relaxed into the kiss, he suddenly drew away from her and sprung out of bed. She felt cheated. “But you will have to wait until your wedding night, Miss Hennington.”
Walking silently, he pulled on his clothes. “And after tonight, I’ll stop having to come to you like a thief in the night, sneaking out with the dawn light.”
“You’re so devious, my lord,” she said teasingly as she rose to come to him. The warmth of him met her searching hands, and he took her face in his palms, stroking her cheeks with his thumbs.
“I am utterly bespelled by you,” he said softly. “I would brave a pit of vipers to come to you. I love you, Octavia Hennington. From today, you’ll be Lady Fortescue and you’ll be mine.” Leaning closer, he kissed her again and she felt the heat of his body to hers. On some level, she felt like she couldn’t breathe unless he was kissing her. She didn’t want him to go. One more day apart. Well, part of it. It would be an insanely busy day with the preparation, the wedding itself, and then lunch after, before they set off to the continent for a whole two months.
Moving to the window, he opened it and cold air seeped into the room. It assaulted her naked form, but she still wouldn’t leave him until she had to. Would it not be wonderful that they could always stay together from tonight on?
“Alright, fine, you are just too sensible,” she accused and held his hand a moment more as he swung his leg out the window. Taking her by the back of her neck, he drew her into another kiss. But he was right, it would be a tumultuous and trying day, but also utterly exciting, and she would enjoy it much more with an hour or two more sleep. “I love you,” she said. “Don’t fall.”
As he stepped out of the window, she closed it to conserve the room’s heat, but she stayed and watched as he climbed down to the garden where he looked up at her and blew a kiss. Maybe this was the moment where he was the handsomest she’d ever seen him. He looked happy and excited, so different from the man she’d first met. How in the world had she been so lucky?
As he disappeared out of sight, she knew she should get back into bed and get as much sleep as she could, but she took a moment and looked around the garden in the first light of dawn. It was a new day, a new chapter of her life. Not that she hadn’t utterly loved every moment of the last month. It had been thrilling and mischievous, and so utterly rewarding. Better than she’d even imagined it could be.
There was no doubt she was in love with him, and he was in love with her. Who would have thought after how they’d started?
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Other Books by Camille Oster
A Closed Heart – Julius Hennington got exactly what he’d bargained for in his marriage—an heir, advancement in the family fortunes and unprecedented connections. What he hadn’t gotten was happiness, nor what constituted an actual marriage. In fact, his wife, who had always been enamored with royalty, had taken up with an Italian prince somewhere on the continent. In all, he didn’t regret the choices he’d made. They had served the family name and that was of primary importance, even as his wife was now pressing him for a divorce.
Portrait commissions wasn’t work that Jane Brightly loved, but they paid handsomely. Typically they involved people she didn’t particularly like, or who were in any way interesting, and her impression of Lord Hennington was no different—a man she recalled meeting briefly some years before when she’d work for the charity school supply business run by her friend, Lady Warwick. Julius Hennington hadn’t been terribly welcoming then, but the man she met now was sterner and more solemn. Efficient, might be the better way of describing him. Closed off, even, and it made it hard to catch the light she sought in people’s eyes. With him, she couldn’t see it, and that bothered her.
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The Discarded Wife - Victorian London is a cruel place for a divorcee, but with the death of Sophie Duthie’s beloved second husband, she is now a widow, and independent for the first time in her life. She might not have much in terms of means, but with the help of her music shop, she can support herself and her son, Alfie. Even though her second marriage was happy, Sophie is done with husbands. Her first marriage taught her well that fairy tales are nothing more than illusions.
To Lord Aberley, his former wife is nothing but a scheming pariah, and unfortunately, his subsequent engagement wasn’t successful—not that he’s ever had much delusions about marriage. It is something he now wishes to avoid at all costs, but he needs an heir. It is the one duty he cannot overlook, so learning that his former wife’s son is six years old, creates serious doubt about his true parentage. Seeing the child only confirms it. Alfie Duthie is his child.
Amongst Silk and Spice - Sir Hugo Beauford had
