Marriage Training Ch. 19

******

The wedding was painless, although perhaps not as swift as either Gabriel or Vivian would have liked. All of her doubts and insecurities had melted away when she'd entered the church and looked down the aisle to see him. Even from that distance she'd been able to recognize the look of possessive hunger on his face, the way he seemed to focus so completely on her that it was as if nothing else in the world mattered. And at that moment, nothing else had mattered to her but him and she'd practically floated on her father's arm. The other people's faces and shining clothes went by in a blur.

She didn't see her friend Emily dabbing at tears, or the jealous countenance of Lady Winifred, the lustful glances of several of the lords in attendance, or even the bouncing joy of her younger siblings. They were just part of the crowd, part of the scenery, that she must walk by to join Gabriel, standing at the alter watching her with an expression that made her feel rather breathless.

When she put her cool hand in his, heat surrounded her palm and fingers and she almost sighed as a feeling of rightness stole over her. Gabriel was just as affected, staring down into the fathomless depths of her emerald eyes, his gaze traveling over the modest mint green of her gown which still couldn't conceal the pleasing shape of her curves. From the moment she'd walked in the room, he hadn't been able to look anywhere else.

He barely heard a word of the ceremony, ignoring everything the priest said except for when he was expected to recite his vows and when Vivian made hers. The smile that crossed his face as she promised to love, honor and obey nearly made her falter; she knew from the predatory look in his eyes that when she said "obey" he heard it in an entirely different manner than most men would. And, as usual with Gabriel, that immediately made the area between her legs ache in a way that had become intensely familiar.

Their wedding breakfast was a torment, as Gabriel amused himself by never relinquishing his hold on her, whether it be her waist, her hip or her hand, and drawing small, teasing circles with his fingers tips over whatever part of her he happened to be touching. Once or twice he even managed to brush the side of her breasts, making her breath hitch. Fortunately no one seemed to notice how closely he was pushing the bounds of propriety - well, except for Lady Audrey who gave him a sharp look, but Vivian felt fairly sure that her new mother-in-law had only seen Vivian's reaction, not what Gabriel had actually done.

Some of the congratulations were heartfelt, such as Emily's and Gabriel's sisters'. Others, like Lady Winifred's, were said through clenched teeth. Vivian wished that Mrs. Banks had been able to attend, but she was not of the same social sphere and it wouldn't have been appropriate to invite her companion from Finishing School. It just felt quite strange for her not to be able to see Vivian's social triumph.

Not that the social triumph part mattered all that much to Vivian. She would have been enamored of Gabriel no matter what his station in life. But she was glad that his position had allowed for her family's financial stability.

Intent on getting Vivian alone and all to himself as soon as possible, it was only the look in his step-mother's eye that kept Gabriel from throwing his bride over his shoulder and storming off with her. After all, he didn't much care what Society thought or even what her parents thought at this point. She was his and he wanted to claim her, with all the barbaric lust of his ancestors that was currently surging through him. But he wouldn't put it past Audrey, or his sisters, to bodily place herself in front of him and make him return to the celebrations, which would embarrass Vivian and could possibly hurt her standing depending on how the gossips decided to tell it. Successfully carrying her off might be embarrassing as well, but she wouldn't have to face anyone right away.

Gabriel was far too amorous to feel the slightest bit embarrassed at all.

Which was probably why Audrey and his sisters were never more than ten feet away from him at any given time as he mingled with the wedding guests, gritting his teeth through a grin. His only satisfaction was in being able to keep his hands on Vivian's person without any outraged matron screeching about impropriety. As newlyweds, they were given much greater leeway with such things. Even if touching her was its own special brand of torture as it only emphasized the fact that she was fully clothed and that he wasn't going to have him to herself anytime soon.

By the time they'd made the rounds of all the guests and Audrey had finally given him a discreet nod of dismissal, amusement quite clear in her laughing hazel eyes, Gabriel had become quite adept as angling his body so that no one would notice the bulge that was pressing against his pants.

"Thank god," he muttered, immediately grasping Vivian just above her elbow and practically dragging her towards the exit.

"Gabriel? Wait- what... where are we going?" she hissed at him in a frantic whisper, dragging her heels. That was cause for spanking, he decided immediately, and they were going to have a talk about letting him drag her off whenever and however he damned well pleased.

"To my - our - home for some privacy. Immediately," he said back, not bothering to keep his voice down. Off to the side he heard someone titter but he didn't look to see who it was; with all the rumors about their love match floating around London, no one expected him to be anything but impatient now that they'd lingered long enough to satisfy the social expectations.

"But... my family..." Vivian looked over her shoulder at them, they obviously hadn't noticed yet that she was being escorted out of the room, and then beseechingly up at him. He groaned as those wide green eyes stabbed straight to his heart. After the ceremony he hadn't missed his bride's joy in seeing her siblings, or her pleasure this past week at spending time with her parents.

Pulling her to him, he lowered his head to whisper in her ear. "You have fine minutes to make your farewells, and I promise we'll see them again both before we leave for our honeymoon and after we return. We'll spend as much time with them as you want, in fact, once we return. But right now you have five minutes and then I am taking you out of here, even if I have to put you over my shoulder to do it."

The harsh, ragged quality of his tone and the way his hand tightened on her hip emphasized his point. Vivian was shocked at how aroused she felt by the image he put in her mind, even though she knew she'd never live down the shame of it. Was this what the gossip had meant when they'd talked about Lord Cranborne's "wild" behavior? Would he truly do such a scandalous thing at his own wedding breakfast?

One look in his molten silver eyes as he pulled away and Vivian was quite sure that yes, yes he would. He wanted to do the things to her that he did when they were alone at night, only now they were married and it was the middle of the day. She hadn't realized that marital relations could be conducted before bedtime. Was he teasing her? "Five minutes," he intoned again, perfectly serious.

Her mouth worked for a moment and then she whirled away. Five minutes to make her farewells and then Gabriel was going to take her to her new home and do... do all the things he hadn't done to her yet. Make her a bride and a married woman in truth.

Warmth flooded her loins, heightening the color in her cheeks, as she hurried to her parents and siblings, her mind irrevocably focused on what might happen once she and Gabriel were alone again.

******

As soon as Gabriel settled himself into the seat of the carriage, he pulled Vivian onto his lap, ignoring her squeal of surprise. Although the carriage ride was only ten minutes long, he intended to put those ten minutes to good use. He was determined that by the time they arrived at his house, she would be as aroused and anxious as he was.

"Ga-"

He cut off his name with a kiss, smothering the words in her mouth with his lips and tongue. Vivian wriggled for a moment and then submitted, her body relaxing in his arms and inflaming his passions further at her quick acquiesce. She was warm and soft on his lap, one of her arms trapped against his body, the other pressing a hand to his chest as she kissed him back.

The bump and rolling of the carriage only served to press his groin against her soft bottom and he groaned as the pleasurable friction taunted him. Reaching up to cup her breast, Gabriel used his other hand to wrap around her waist and hold her securely against him. Vivian practically melted in his arms as he pinched her nipple through the fabric of her wedding dress. The small whimpers coming from her throat made him feel triumphantly wild.

She couldn't believe that Gabriel was touching her like this, in a carriage - even if it was closed - in the middle of the day. Somehow she hadn't thought that he would even be interested in such activities except at night time. After all, hadn't her mother said that her husband would visit her bed in the night? Hadn't her sessions at the school and his visitations always come in the evening?

Yet Gabriel's intent had been clear from the moment he'd wanted to leave their wedding breakfast. At first she'd almost thought that she'd misunderstood, but now she knew that she hadn't. She couldn't help but feel a heady rush of pleasure that he obviously wanted to touch and kiss her so badly, even if it was rather scandalous. The slightly shocked whispers as she'd been hurried from their guests should have bothered her, but they didn't.

"Oh!" she gasped, writhing slightly as his lips left her mouth and latched onto her neck. Her lips felt swollen from his passionate kiss, her pulse throbbed as he sucked on the delicate skin of her throat and she clung to him, her legs stirring restlessly as her thighs rubbed together in an attempt to ease the aching tension building between her legs. "Gabriel... is this... are we...?"

He chuckled, pinching her nipple tightly between his fingers and tormenting both of them as she let out a whimper of pain that made his cock jerk against the swell of her buttocks.

"No sweet, I'm not going to deflower you in the carriage... but I am going to make you burn." The hand around her waist moved to her lower stomach, pressing erotically so close to the area that she yearned for pressure but not coming quite close enough. Vivian's body undulated, her hips reaching for his touch. "I'm going to make you burn for me and when we get to the house I'm going to take you to our room, to our bed, and then... I'm going to take my time."

Vivian couldn't find the words to tell him that she was already burning; as often as she'd had her passions roused since she'd begun her marriage training, she had never experienced the full onslaught of passion that Gabriel was unleashing now. Before this he'd always had to be so controlled, keeping his own lusts under a tight leash, and so had not been able to indulge himself as much as he'd wanted. Now his hands wandered, and even through the thick fabric of her wedding dress his touched burned her, every caress stroking the flames higher as she writhed for him.

Turning her slightly in his lap to give him better access to her body, Gabriel faced her away from him. He was disappointed that he couldn't see her face, but now he could cup both of her breasts in his hands, or slide his hand down between her legs. Arranging her so that she had one leg on either side of his, he spread his legs and forced hers to spread as well, under her skirts, allowing her no pressure or friction against the swollen, sodden folds of her pussy. Whimpering, Vivian instinctively arched her back, which ground her bottom against her husband's lap, his stiff rod nestled in the cleft of her cheeks.

One day, he promised himself, they would be in this position again, but her skirts would be lifted and she'd be riding his cock while he played with her bared breasts. Before a ball, so that she would spend the evening with his seed dripping down her legs; he had no doubt that she would entertain him all night with her blushes in such a situation.

Fortunately for both of them, the ride between his father's house and his own was not long, or he might have truly lost all control and lifted her skirts then and there to have her.

When the carriage rocked to a halt, Gabriel gave her full breasts one last firm squeeze before gently placing her back on her side of the carriage to give them both a moment to recover. She looked absolutely delicious, her cheeks flushed bright red, her lips swollen, and her hair just disheveled enough to soften the elaborate coiffure. Her breasts heaved with every breath she took, her lips slightly parted as she sucked in air. The slightly dazed look in his eyes had every one of his masculine sense singing with smugness.

"Come, sweet," he said, opening the door and stepping down before turning back to offer his hand. "Time to go inside."

The absolutely wolfish grin that accompanied his words would have caused many a proper matron to swoon, it was so clear what his intent was. Vivian could only gape at him, her senses whirling chaotically as the abrupt loss of his touch rendered her anxiously wanton. She wanted to throw herself on top of him, not step sedately out of the carriage like a lady. Right now she didn't feel at all like a proper lady should.

Blushing furiously, she accepted his hand and stepped down, trying not to look at the coachman - wondering how much he'd been able to hear. When they were in the carriage she'd completely forgotten about him, completely forgotten that they were somewhere that they could be overheard or discovered. Would there ever be a day when Gabriel didn't completely overcome her sense and sensibilities?

He didn't even look as though he had a hair out of place, his expression completely solemn except for the way his eyes burned whenever he looked at her. Other than that, he was the very image of propriety and solicitous husband. Whereas she felt wrinkled and rumpled, her face hot from blushing, out of breath, and completely discombobulated.

It truly wasn't fair.

Gabriel led her up the stairs before he swept her up in his arms to cross the threshold. Giggling, Vivian clung to him, but then she was only able to gasp in shock as he swept right past the servants who had gathered.

"I'll introduce you to your new mistress later, Mrs. Pringle," he called over his shoulder to the housekeeper who was watching him with obvious amusement as he carried Vivian up the stairs. Moaning with embarrassment, she buried her face in his shoulder as the housekeeper began to shoo the other servants away, doing her best to ignore the small encouraging cheers that followed them up to the second landing.

Even so, she couldn't summon anger over his high-handed ways; indeed, part of her thrilled to it. She'd heard some of the whispers about the purported love match between them and she knew that it had become true on her side. If Gabriel's actions were any indication, there was certainly more than just an arrangement on his.

Vivian's suspicions were even more on point than she realized; Gabriel was almost shocked at his complete loss of control, the fact that his desire for her had overridden any sense of propriety. Not that his servants were upset about this turn of events; he'd heard more than one of them gleefully expounding on their winnings from servants in other households' as he'd headed up the stairs. Well he was happy to have helped them to win.

More than one bet was probably being settled at White's this afternoon, after the witnesses had seen him and Vivian off. The matrons might have been shocked at the indecent way he'd hurried his bride out the door, but the gentlemen had been settling their bets. Of course some bets were for after the marriage, contemplation of whether or not Gabriel would return to his rakish ways, but he knew he was going to disappoint those who thought a leopard couldn't change his spots.

All of his predatory instincts had become focused on one woman; on making her laugh, seeing her smile, hearing her whimpers and moans... theirs would not be the usual relationship. Perhaps the way he wanted to dominate her, to dangle her over the thin line between pain and pleasure was not the stuff of sweeping romance the way young misses on the marriage mart pictured it, but it was what worked for him... what worked for her.

"I'll never be able to look Mrs. Pringle in the face after this," Vivian whispered into his collar, clutching at his jacket.

Laughing, Gabriel shifted her weight in his arms as he strode down the hall to the room they'd be sharing. "Of course you will, sweet. And like a proper housekeeper she'll pretend that she never saw a thing. Besides, I'm sure she'd be thanking you if she thought it was appropriate."

"Thanking me? For what?" Vivian asked curiously. She peeked out of Gabriel's collar as he paused, realizing that they were now standing in front of a doorway, the door only partially open. Keeping her pressed against him, Gabriel shouldered it aside.

"For her winnings. I'll eat my hat if she's not one of the staff that bet on a love match."

So busy looking around the room, Vivian didn't take immediate notice of his words. There was plenty to distract her; the room was incredibly large and airy, her trunks had already been piled against one wall but the decor was decidedly masculine. Forest green velvet draped against the large windows on the far wall as well as the bed; muted orange and rust cushions adorned the cream colored window seat. A delicate ivory vanity, looking rather out of place against the darker woods of the other furniture, was set near one of the windows. Next to it was a chair that she recognized as having come directly from Mrs. Cunningham's Finishing School, and even as she shuddered, she felt her insides clench in anticipation.

As Gabriel set her down, the meaning of his words finally punctured her thoughts as she took in the details of the bedroom.

"What?" She asked, spinning to face him, tilting her head back to look him directly in the fact.

One dark eyebrow raised as he placed his hands on her hips. "I'm quite certain that Mrs. Pringle won quite a bit of money off of betting on a love match between us."

Warmth, completely different from the erotic flames that he had kindled earlier, bloomed in her belly, heading upwards as she stared hopefully up at him. Did he mean what she thought he did? She licked her lips, too afraid to ask, too afraid to bare her heart and appear vulnerable to him.

But she couldn't hide her emotions, not from him. Although she'd long since perfected a social mask, it didn't even occur to her to employ it now, and so all her hope, all her reciprocated love, all her adoration, flashed across her face along with her anxiety and uncertainty.

"This is a love match," Gabriel said gently, pressing his thumb to her lower lip, as if to leave an imprint on the full bow. "At least on my part. I think I might have loved you from the moment I saw you, although I didn't realize exactly what the emotion was. I only knew that I wanted you, that I had to have you, to be the one to awaken your passions, to receive your submission. And every moment since then, you've done nothing but draw me in deeper."

Lips brushed over her forehead as Vivian closed her eyes and made a small noise in the back of her throat. She felt frozen to the spot, held immobile by his hand on her hips and the fingers cupping her chin, the thumb that dipped into her mouth as she opened her lips to receive him. These flowery words, this confession, was nothing that she had ever expected from him. Even if he never said them again, she would hold them to her heart.