English Rose Ch. 06

"If you need anything else, my lady, just ring," Mary said kindly.

Joan nodded as the housekeeper let herself out of the room. She wasn't sure what she had expected but this wasn't it. Disappointed, Joan sat down to dine alone.

Marcus had spent the better part of the afternoon staring at a bottle of booze wondering what to do. He knew what was expected of him but had no idea how to go about doing it. Despite his years of experience he had no notion how to make love to his virgin bride.

Surprisingly, he hadn't had a drink since they arrived home. Something inside warned him that while intoxication was the answer to many things this wasn't one of them. Eventually the room grew dark and the shadows thick letting him know that there was no more delaying the inevitable.

Joan wasn't sure what alerted her to Marcus' presence. He certainly didn't knock nor announce his arrival. It was like a shiver of awareness, of going from the solitude of her room to knowing she was no longer alone. Slowly, she turned to find her husband watching her.

Marcus felt his heart hammer hard in his chest and his throat go dry as his wife unfolded her small frame the chair and stood. Already dressed for bed, she wore a white silk nightgown and her hair was down. He watched in fascination as her feet touched the floor causing her toes to curl against the cold. Seeing her again he suddenly found the thought of making love to her much easier to bare.

Joan felt the power of that intense gaze wash over her, a caress from head to toe that left her feeling hot and restless. Distracted as he was, she felt free to look her fill. Tall and lethal, Marcus stood head and shoulders above her. His blond hair was mussed, as if he'd run his fingers through it, and was too long to be considered fashionable. His eyes, which she'd thought were blue, appeared gray as they moved back up from staring at her feet.

"You look edible," he said, his eyes touching on her hips, thighs and breasts before coming to rest on her face. Marcus had enjoyed women of all shapes and sizes but never anyone as petite as Joan. He decided then and there that he liked the way her small size made him feel, made him want to protect her.

Feeling his desire start to rise, Marcus took a step into the room only to stop short as his wife noticeably tensed. Cursing, Marcus forced himself to remember that this was no jaded ton wife but his wife and that she lacked any experience when it came to love making.

Taking a deep breath, Marcus tried to think of the best way to approach the night with his wife. She was young, inexperienced and very likely frightened. They barely knew each other and, but for one mistake, likely never would have met. Realizing what an unlikely match they were, Marcus found himself struggling with feeling unworthy of someone so pure and obviously innocent.

Joan stood still, fighting the urge to flee at the look in her husband's eyes. She had never seen anyone so beautiful, the harshness around his eyes and jaw saving him from being pretty. Captivated as she was she wasn't aware that she'd taken a step forward until she saw his eyes go hot in response.

Marcus was on the verge of leaving, of swearing to never touch her, until she took a step towards him. At that moment all he wanted was to wrap himself in her purity and hope that it would ease his soul.

Stalking towards her he stripped out of his coat, tossed it on the chair and reached for her. She was soft beneath his hands, her bones so delicate he would have sworn he would break her.

Joan felt her breath catch as the heat of his hands wrapped around her upper arms and she found herself pulled up hard against his chest. She could feel his heart beating in his chest where her breasts pressed against him and felt his breath feathering across her cheek. For the space of several heartbeats he simply held her and searched her face. She couldn't fathom the thoughts that she saw reflected in the gray depths of his eyes but would have sworn she saw hunger mixed with pain. Unbidden, her hand rose to cup his cheek.

Marcus closed his eyes and leaned into her touch. It was the thing he needed to remind himself to take things slow. Taking a deep breath, he ruthlessly shoved his inner demon back into its cage.

Opening his eyes, he found his wife staring up at him with crystal clear blue eyes gone soft with concern. Slowly, he lowered his head and gently brushed his lips across her mouth. He was rewarded by a whispered sigh and the parting of her lips. By degrees he deepened the kiss, carefully caressing her mouth with his lips before tasting her for the first time with his tongue.

Joan shuddered and held on tight to Marcus. She'd been kissed before but never like this. This was a kiss designed to search and seek out all those dark, warm places that existed inside. Once found, those places were explored with long strokes of tongue and nipping teeth until she could no longer hold herself still.

Marcus moaned in pleasure as his wife came alive in his arms. Releasing her arms, he slid his hands around her waist, pulling her more firmly into him. Hearing her gasp against his mouth, Marcus knew that she could feel his erection pressed firmly against the flat of her stomach.

Part of him ached to reach down and release himself, to feel her wrap any part of her body - be it her passage or hand - around his cock. Ruthlessly, he tethered his desire, wanting to take his time and ensure her pleasure.

Joan whimpered and tried to move closer to her husband. Instinctively she knew that he was responsible for her current situation and the one that could grant her ease. "Oh!" she cried when Marcus bent and swept her up into his arms.

Striding to the bed, Marcus laid her down gently before stretching out beside her. Instantly, she turned to him so that they lay face to face. Resting his hand on her hip, he watched her face as he slowly gathered the material of her nightgown in his fist.

Joan shivered as the cool air caressed the exposed skin of her calves, knees and eventually her thighs. Part of her wanted to push the material back down around her ankles, covering herself against Marcus' gaze, while at the same time she longed to feel him touch her.

Marcus could see her apprehension and sought to ease it with another searing kiss. This time he rose up over her, pressing her back into the mattress and laying her open to him. He left her nightgown about the tops of her thighs while running his fingers over the tender skin on the inside of her knee. It was a relatively innocent touch but he would wager his estates that no man had ever touched her there.

Instinctively, Joan drew her knees together and tried to curl them up towards her body.

"Easy," Marcus whispered. "I won't hurt you."

Joan nodded but it was several heartbeats later before she finally eased her legs back down to the bed, allowing Marcus to part her thighs.

Marcus turned to watch his fingers as they trailed over the delicate line of her leg. Soft and pale, he found himself thinking about pressing a single kiss there but knew it was too soon. For now he hoped to give his wife pleasure and would leave the more...scandalous...intimacies for another time.

She was so small, even her thigh very nearly fitting into his hand, that he worried about seriously hurting her. Still, he knew the best thing would be to make sure that she was ready for him.

Joan watched Marcus' face as he stared down at her exposed legs. He had a look of fierce concentration tinged with something resembling wonder. Never before had she felt as beautiful or desired as she did in that moment.

Slowly, Marcus wrapped his hand around Joan's thigh just above the knee and raised it to rest against him. The position effectively opened her to him though she still remain hidden beneath her nightgown. Turning back to her face, he watched as he slid his hand up her thigh and touched her for the first time.

Joan startled and then moaned at the first touch of Marcus' hand on her. No one had ever touched her like this, not even herself, and she was wholly unprepared for the sensation. His hand felt foreign, almost an invasion but so powerful in pleasure that it had her arching into his touch.

"That's it," Marcus encouraged as she pushed herself more firmly against his hand. His entire body had clenched at finding her wet and swollen and he struggled to keep from rolling over and mounting her.

With agonizing slowness, Marcus caressed his wife, tracing the tips of his fingers over her folds and finding her clit. He could feel the small bud throbbing as he circled it, expirementing with different pressures and speeds until he found the one that seemed to give her the most pleasure.

Joan found she couldn't keep her hips from rising off the bed, her entire body seeming to need to move in time with Marcus' fingers. Opening her eyes, she whimpered at the unfamiliar sensation of her body growing tight and heavy.

"Let it go," Marcus encouraged, watching her face. "Don't fight it."

"I can't," she said, panting.

"Yes, you can," Marcus said. Without stopping, he shifted closer and pulled her into his arms. "Trust me."

Closing her eyes once more, Joan stopped trying to understand what her body was doing and just let it go.

Marcus felt Joan surrender and shifted his touch. Pressing the heel of his palm against her clit, he sought out the entrance to her body and gently slipped a single finger inside moaning at the exquisit tightness that immediately enveloped him.

Joan reached down and grabbed Marcus by the wrist, her eyes having gone wide with surprise. "No," she cried.

Marcus immediately pulled back and went back to stroking her clit. "It's okay," he cooed. "You're so tight I'm afraid I'll hurt you."

Vaugly, Joan started to understand that Marcus was hoping to ready her and nodded.

Marcus waited until she released him before once again stroking at her entrance. This time she was prepared for the invasion and didn't fight against it. It didn't take long before her body was once again moving in time with his hand, her hips rolling up to meet the thrust of his finger in and out of her body.

Marcus felt sweat break out over his skin as he watched his wife. She was beautiful in passion with her head thrown back, eyes closed and legs spread beside him. Carefully, he joined a second finger with the first and felt her stretch to accommodate him. She was going to be tight and he knew then that no matter what he would likely cause her pain.

Joan's eyes flew open as the bed shifted beside her. She wasn't sure how but Marcus managed to undressed them both and was kneeling between her thighs before she could so much as think. His fingers still moved within her but his strokes slowed as his eyes looked up and down the length of her.

"My god," he said. "You're beautiful."

Joan flushed under his appraisal. "So are you," she said at seeing him for the first time.

Marcus didn't answer, couldn't answer as he stared down at her spread out before him. She was petite, that much he already knew, but she was also lush with unexpected curves and plump thighs. Her stomach was flat, her waist narrow but her breasts larger than expected.

Running his hand up her thigh, he leaned down and pressed a kiss to her stomach feeling the muscles jump in response. Bent over her as he was caused his erection to brush the inside of her thigh. His body shuddered at the brief contact and it was all he could do not to thrust into her.

Instead he focused on kissing her, touching her until she was once again moving restless beneath him. Slowly, he lowered himself, covering her with his body but still not entering her. He wanted her to feel him, to get used to the sensation of him between her thighs before moving any further.

Joan sighed as Marcus covered her. She had thought to feel trapped, pinned beneath someone obviously stronger than her. Instead she felt blanketed, protected...almost cherished. Tentative at first, she ran her hands up his forearms, across the span of his shoulders and down his back. She could feel the tension in him, the barely contained desire flowing just beneath the surface.

Marcus arched into her hands seeking to get closer to her touch. Leaning down, he captured her mouth in a kiss, sliding into her mouth as he positioned himself to slide into her body. Poised at her entrance, he could feel her heat searing the crown of his cock as he slowly pressed inside.

Joan sucked in a breath as Marcus pressed his way into her body. Immediately, she felt full, stretched unlike anything she'd every experienced before. It was not wholly unpleasant.

Marcus stopped before completely breaching her maidenhead gently pulling back before sliding in once more. Again and again he used slow, shallow strokes each one easing him further and further into her body. Eventually, she relaxed beneath him, her body once again growing warm and restless. Her hips rising to meet him, her hands skimming up his arms and down his back urging him on.

"Please," Joan said not entirely sure what she was asking for.

Marcus watched her face, felt his body respond to hers and let instinct take over. With one powerful thrust he broke through her maidenhead and buried himself to the base of his shaft.

Joan cried out and felt her body clamp down as the pleasant haze cleared with the piercing pain. Thankfully, Marcus held himself still giving her time to adjust. Sooner then she would have thought, the pain started to fade and in its place a sense of something left unfinished. Looking up at Marcus, she asked, "Are we done?"

"Not even close," Marcus said and started to move. It didn't take long for them to find a rhythm, their bodies coming together again and again. Feeling his release drawing near, Marcus reached down between them and stroked her.

Joan felt her body coil tight at his touch and then shatter sending wave after wave of pleasure flowing out from her womb. Instinctively, her thighs gripped at Marcus, holding him to her until the last of the tremors started to fade.

Marcus felt Joan tighten beneath him, her body flooding him with warmth as her passage gripped at his cock. The sensation of her coming apart in his arms drove him over the edge and he joined her in release.

Marcus woke sometime during the night, his wife's body pressed up against him as she slept. Watching her sleep he tried to think of what his life was about to become. He'd never kidded himself about the kind of man he was he. He'd grown up knowing what was in store for him having watched his father struggle and eventually lose out to the darkness. How had he ever thought that this was a good idea?

He had ventured too far down his path to turn back now. Sabrina was wrong, Joan wasn't his savior. And if he wasn't careful she would become another casualty of the accident that was Marcus' life.

Telling himself it was for the best, that he shouldn't encourage her towards tender feelings for him, Marcus slipped from his wife's bed. Letting himself into his room, Marcus closed the door behind him without a backwards glance.

To be continued...