A Vow Unsaid Ch. 03

"I thought...Kaitlyn, I am so sorry." I placed a finger to her lips.

"Sshhh, it was absolutely wonderful. A bit savage yes and quite unexpected but it was fantastic to be...claimed by you. Don't apologize Nora, I very much enjoyed it." I was touched by her desire to mark me as her own and knew it was out of a jealously that betrayed her unbridled love for me.

She leaned in and kissed me and I began to slowly unbutton her blouse. Shedding the remainder of our clothes, we kissed slowly and softly and Nora caressed my face, tracing my jawline and eyebrows with her fingertips. "My darling" she whispered in the dark and her hands found the inside of my thighs, rubbing them softly as she kissed me. I felt my pulse quicken and kissed her more urgently, tilting my hips toward her. She pulled me closer and slipped her fingers into me, gently rubbing her thumb over my sensitive nub. I moaned and arched toward her, twitching slightly. She closed her mouth over my nipple and I almost screamed. Torrents of desire swept over me and I lost control of my body, my hips straining against her delicate, dexterous hand. I felt the swelling between my legs begin to build once more when her fingers left me and she dropped her head between my legs.

"Oh Noraaaaa."

Her tongue probed inside of me, canvassing my sex and eliciting desperate pleas as my hips jogged involuntarily. She looked up at me, her eyes smiling and then circled my clitoris with her tongue. I felt every muscle in my body tense as I convulsed, seizing at the sensation, babbling Nora's name as my spine curved and my hips shot toward the ceiling. Nora rose from between my legs and knelt above me, holding my delirious gaze until she came within an inch from my face. She closed her eyes, her long, dark lashes fluttering and leaned in to kiss me. Breathless, I must have fainted.

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One year later:

I woke up just before dawn and blearily rubbed my eyes. I walked slowly into the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee before washing up with a pail of water from our well outside. I heard the faint cry of gulls, creaking of ships, the lapping of the waves and the chime of buoy bells as the Boston Harbor awoke, stretching and yawning in the early morning. I slipped into a simple cotton dress which had become a staple of my small wardrobe. I had grown fond of my humbler lifestyle in Boston, having never felt comfortable in the extravagant fashions of the South. It was chilly though, and damp, so I grabbed my wool pea coat, a gift from my late Aunt Rowan who had died three months after Nora and I arrived in Boston, leaving us everything. She contracted pneumonia shortly after we arrived and Nora tended to her day and night, providing her with the companionship she had sorely missed since the death of my great-uncle and the departure of my cousins. They grew quite close and just before her death, my Aunt Rowan told Nora she was more of a daughter than any of my cousins and that she loved her dearly. We lived in her small cottage with her, grateful for her poor hearing when we reached for one another in the dark.

Meanwhile, I had struck up a rapport with the privates who smuggled us to Boston. Finding me of reasonable intelligence, trustworthy and, as a woman, inconspicuous, they employed me to gather quinine, gunpowder and other goods I convinced sailors to sell to me as their cargo arrived at the harbor. Since I was getting thrice the returns on these investments, I had invested a bit of money into stocks and bonds under my great-uncle's name. These funds along with the inheritance from Aunt Rowan left Nora and I with plenty to secure in a private account.

I had corresponded with my family, primarily Elizabeth, through letters. My father, as I expected, exhibited a staunch refusal to entertain the idea of moving north but he wished me well. My mother was less cordial, believing Patrick too permissive and maintaining that I should be with him, trying to conceive a child. Although cool on the arrangements and cooler towards Nora, she sent us a few smuggled care packages, wishing us both well. I believe they thought her burdensome, imagining me caring for her out of duty to Patrick alone. Nora rarely corresponded with her father and never with her mother.

I fastened my coat and pulled back my blonde hair, looking into the mirror. Gray eyes peered back at me. Our first day in Boston, Nora said her favorite thing about the city was the way the color of the sky so closely matched the color of my eyes. I enjoyed Boston as well, that first day was particularly wonderful. Nora and I walked along the wharf and down the cobblestoned boulevard, arms linked. I found the salty smell invigorating and was comforted by the stooping wharf houses that kept vigil over the harbor. One could drink coffee here as well; in the South, coffee was considered a poor man's drink by some, too plebian to be served in most upper-class homes. After I poured myself a cup, I returned to the bedroom and kissed a sleeping Nora goodbye.

Sunrise on the harbor was undoubtedly my favorite time of the day. I thought back on all of the freedoms I had discovered in Boston. I bought my first piano here, (battered as it may be, it was mine) had complete control over my finances and could finally make love to Nora without concerning myself with who might hear us. This filled me with the most satisfaction and I smiled, watching the sailors unload their cargo on the wharf.

I found Simon, one of my suppliers, hauling the last few crates from a newly arrived freighter. He winked at me, asking when I was going to "have a night on the town with him." I smiled and shook my head, playing this game with all of my suppliers as I imagine it knocks down their prices a little bit. He handed me a covered basket in exchange for $50.

Having finished my work for the day, I bought a loaf of bread, two fish and a half dozen apples from the market and returned home. Smoke rose in thin wisps above the chimney, informing me that Nora was awake. She was frying eggs, her back to the door. Her thin night gown clung to her sensuously and her long black hair fell to her waist. She was humming, Vivaldi I would guess, she was becoming increasingly fond of his brighter concertos.

I hugged her from behind and she jumped in surprise before laughing and whirling around to kiss me. We sat down at our small table wedged against the bay window overlooking the harbor. Nora suggested we take a ferry ride to Langlee Island and I nodded reaching for her hand.

I didn't know what lay ahead for us but I knew I would never go back to the way it was before. Somehow I would tell Patrick and my family. I could never leave Nora after learning how wonderful it could be, the two of us sharing our peaceful life beside the sea.