The Officer's Temptation Ch. 15

"Oh!" her free hand rose to her mouth, covering those perfectly kissable lips as Marlowe reached into his pocket.

"I meant to do it more poetically," he confessed, drawing out the small ring he had fetched earlier that afternoon. It was a round blue sapphire surrounded by small diamonds. Slowly, he put it on her trembling hand. "But Kate, it's the truth. I think I was falling in love with you before I even knew it. And I don't want to live without you. so, Kate, my darling, I know I've been a reckless fool, an utter ass, even, but do you think you could ever consent to marry me?"

She looked down at her hand with wide eyes, her hand hovering like a butterfly near her face. "Oh, Marlowe!" she gasped.

"Is that a yes?" His heart beat thunderously in his chest. He dared not consider how much like a ass he would really feel if she said no.

"Yes!" she gasped. But then she took a step back, Her eyes went wide. "But I have conditions!" she declared holding up a finger.

"Then I am happy to meet them," he said without thinking. It did not matter what she asked as long as she would be his.

"Will you allow me to study painting? And pursue a career as a painter if I so choose, even though I'm a woman?"

"Woman, I would let you do whatever you wanted in this wide world! And I would follow you anywhere while you did it... even to France. We could be married this very week! I could stay with you through Paris. And then you wouldn't even have to argue with your parents over it."

She beamed at him and he thought that his heart would stop at the feeling of love that poured out.

"Please don't take this the wrong way." She fiddled with the ring nervously and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "But I can't marry you this week. I want a long engagement." She searched his face for protest, but when he was silent, she continued. "You are a ... somewhat impulsive man," she said wryly. "I want to wait long enough that you are certain that this is what you want. That... that I am not just some stepping stone from Arabella. Perhaps she was your distraction from what you suffered in the war. I will not be your distraction from her. And especially not if this is some gallant offer you're suggesting for," her voice dropped low, "taking my innocence. So, I consent, but not now. I'll continue on to Paris, and I shall meet with Monsieur Ponrigaud. And if he shall have me as a student, then I shall study with him for a year and then return to England. And if you still feel the same way in a year, then I will marry you."

The tension left his body. "I know I have been a fool, Kate, but not about this. I have never been more certain about anything. I want to be with you. And I will wait as long as you wish. And I will prove my love and devotion to you every day. And if in a year you decide that you wish to remain in France, then I will come to you and we will simply live as Parisiens. It matters not a whit to me what country I am in so long as I am in it with you."

"To be honest with you, I think I should miss home too much to live away for too long." She looked at him so nervously and so sweetly that he wanted to gather her into his arms. "Do you truly mean it, you want to marry me? That you love me?"

"I love you. More than anything," he whispered.

She smiled bashfully. A most charming blush had risen across her cheeks. "Then I suppose we must go tell our parents."

He smiled and gripped her more tightly. "I already told them. I asked your father for his blessing the morning after the duel, just after you snuck back into your room. I went to find a ring while you were still sleeping. Haven't you noticed how smug my mother has been? And in what a nervous state yours has been?"

Kate blinked and swatted his arm as she laughed. "You sly devil! I suppose Mother has been in a state, but she always is."

"And knowing that the whole family already knows my intentions and that there is no need to rush to tell them, do you suppose that you might let a fellow steal a kiss? Particularly if you are intending to deprive him of his fiancée for an entire year?" He drew her to him slowly, his voice rumbling low in his chest.

Kate blushed as she leaned into him, the soft weight of her pressing against the length of his body. "I suppose he could steal a bit more than a kiss if he were willing to visit the lady's room after midnight, when the whole house is asleep."

"Minx," he said throatily, but could not finish the thought, for her lips were on his and it was impossible to think of anything else.

A low fire crackled in the grate. Outside, rain pecked against the glass and gray mist swirled over the green grass that would shortly fade into the drab tones of autumn. Snug inside against the early chill, Marlowe balanced a tablet on his knee, sinking back into the leather chair. His pencil skimmed the paper he had clipped to the tablet, a drawing of a newel post to show to the woodworker. The master architect that he was apprenticing under was having him complete designs of some of the details that were being planned for an estate renovation and Marlowe was studying his drawing critically, looking for any potential weakness in his design.

He was quite absorbed in his work and therefore flinched mightily when he heard a tapping at the garden door. A blurry face was pressed against the rain-soaked glass which was now clouded over with the fog of close breath. He nearly fell out of his chair in shock before collecting his senses and rushing over.

As soon as he had unlatched the door, a rather soaked Miss Jennings flew inside.

"Kate!" he gaped. "Darling what are you doing here? You're not supposed to be back for another week!"

She looked up at him from under her dripping bonnet with an expression that hovered between embarrassment and joy. "I thought that I would surprise you!" she said uncertainly. She raised her arms slightly. "So... surprise?"

That was when it hit him that Kate was completely soaked through. Though the days were already cooling, she had chosen to wear what must have been her lightest, most summery gown--a delicate white muslin with yellow flowers. It was, unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately in his opinion, almost completely transparent with the moisture and clung to her like a second skin, sticking to the delectable swell of her breasts to expose the puckered caps of her nipples, contouring to the curve of her hips and thighs. Whatever shift she was wearing underneath was woefully unprepared to deal with this level of damp. He would have to order her something much more robust once they were married if she was going to be making such a habit out of these rainy strolls. Or perhaps, as her husband, he could ask that she forgo the use of undergarments at all. Now that was a tempting thought.

She cleared her throat. "Is it an unpleasant surprise? I thought you'd be happy to see me, but you're just standing there with your mouth open."

"Did you fall into a lake?" he teased, closing the distance between them in one prowling step.

"You devil," she said, biting her lip as he pulled her against him. She made a little gasp as their bodies met. He could do nothing to hide his rising excitement.

She started to say something else, but he pressed a hand over her mouth. "Sshh, I don't think anyone would have seen you come in. My parents are gone to London, not due back for another day and the staff's all down to tea. So if you are a good, quiet girl..."

"I'm never a good girl," she smirked, but her mischievous expression faded as she met his gaze and caught the heat burning in his eyes. Her lips parted, begging to be kissed.

He yanked the ribbon of her ridiculous dripping bonnet, and pulled it from her head. Her dark hair clung in little spirals to her wet skin and tickled his hand as he slid his palm up to the nape of her neck. Her mouth was warm and welcoming even as the wetness of her clothing began to penetrate through the cloth of his clothes. "You must be freezing," he said, nipping the tip of her ear with his lips and luxuriating in her familiar scent.

She shuddered. "I missed you."

"And I you," he purred, tracing his hand down the curve of her spine. "In every way."

"You said we were quite alone?"

His errant hand had made it to the delightful swell of her bottom, "Do you remember the first time you called upon me this way, soaked to the bone? I wanted to take you right then and there. I dreamed of it for weeks."

"Of course I remember. I was heartily embarrassed. And cold. And wet."

He left a trail of kisses down her neck. "And how are you now?"'

"Still cold and wet."

"Perhaps I could warm you up if we could get you out of these wet clothes."

She bit her lip. "That could be helpful."

He grinned at her. "Then follow me. Quietly, if you're willing to risk it."

She took his hand as he led her out the door. "What's there to risk? I'm to be married in only a week, you know. My fiancé shall never find out my reputation has been compromised by some rake," she whispered as they crept down the hall.

"Particularly if your fiancé is simultaneously having his reputation compromised by some temptress."

She snorted. "What reputation?"

He led her down a long hall, towards a different wing of the house. "I should swat your bottom for such naughty talk."

"Perhaps you shall," she said. They were sneaking up a staircase now, where there were no lamps lit in the hall. "Is this the way to your room?"

"No," he said, guiding her down another corridor. "Towards my sister Jane's old room. It's further away and the servants only go in to air it on Thursdays. No one shall hear us at all."

He fished a set of keys out of his pocket and led her into a suite of rooms, quietly locking it behind them. His hands nearly fumbled the lock, so excited was he to be alone with Kate. They passed through a sitting room and then through the double doors to the bedchamber. It was chilly and gray, the curtains pulled closed against the windows. Dust sheets were fitted over the furniture, but the room was stocked with firewood and not musty at all, as his mother kept it well-ordered for his sister's frequent visits.

He knelt quickly at the fireplace, struggling with the tinder box while Kate stood beside him, tracing a finger over the decorative plaster on the mantle. Finally the flame caught, and a tendril of fire licked over the logs. Kate held her hands out towards the spreading flames as he stood behind her, pulling her against his chest.

Her round bottom pressed against his throbbing erection, and he groaned against her neck. His hot fingers brushed her throat and cheek. His lips followed, warming her cool skin. She gasped as his fingers cupped over her breasts, thumbs gently teasing her nipples through the cloth. "Perhaps we should get you out of these things?" he said, with a devilish lift of his eyebrow.

Her back arched against him as he snuck a hand against her collarbone and then underneath the collar of her dress, grasping one ripe breast in his hand. Her skin was so hot and soft, pliant as he massaged her. The feel of her bare skin against his palm was too tempting. He needed to feel her, to taste her, to be buried inside her as he had not been in many months.

He yanked his hands to the buttons that ran down her back, undoing them hastily. The wet fabric did not want to be pried from her skin. He did not blame it, but fought impatiently with it nonetheless, quickly freeing her shoulders and torso of its clammy embrace, peeling it down until it finally fell compliantly away from her hips. He turned her around after she stepped out of it, and groaned to see her clad only in her clinging shift. It revealed every inch of her to perfection, completely translucent. His eyes licked over the dark dip of her navel, the budding pink tips of her breasts, the dark shadow of her pubis.

He needed her now. His mouth latched on to a nipple, sucking it through the sticky fabric while his other hand felt up her leg, untying her garters. In a moment's work, her stockings were down and he guided her out of them and her shoes. Sinking to his knees, he pulled up the hem of her shift, revealing inch after inch of her pale shapely legs. She helped him wrestle it over her head and stood before him, completely nude, as radiant as any of the marble statues of nymphs and goddesses that he had seen in Florence or Rome or Turin.

With a sound that was practically a growl, he stood and scooped her up into his arms, depositing her on the bed. He yanked off his cravat and tossed it to the side, unbuttoning his waistcoat with one hand even as he positioned himself above her. She was spread out so luxuriously beneath him, so lush and supple and inviting. He found himself kissing her taut stomach, the gentle jut of her hip bone, and then sinking his mouth to the hot jointure of her thighs. He flicked his tongue inside of her, drunk at the taste of her, at the sweet moans and shudders she made as his tongue slipped and skimmed her delicate folds. He drank from her greedily, letting his desire pulse like fire through his veins. His tongue rasped against her little bud and she knotted her fists in the coverlet, trembling as he brought a finger inside her.

She climaxed on him beautifully, her cheeks and chest flushed deep pink. His own needs could no longer be ignored and he hastily loosened his breeches, yanking out his cock which was already slick with beads of precum. Kate grabbed it immediately, and the feel of her palm on his shaft nearly drove him to the edge. He took a deep breath to steady himself as she slid her hand up and down the shaft. "I want you," she said throatily.

He lowered his hips to her, and her hands moved to yank up his shirt, a delicate process when he was supporting himself above her and his cock was so close to what it wanted. Still, he complied and helped her wrestle him free of the garment. He would not, however, be bothering with the breeches.

Her hands greedily swept over his muscled back, his biceps as Kate parted her legs for him. The tip of his cock brushed her entrance, trailing against her luxurious wetness. He gripped the coverlet tightly, feeling the muscles cord in his arms as he steeled himself. It had been far too long since he had been inside her. How could he possibly hope to last when her body welcomed him with such a silken warmth? Clenching his jaw, he entered her, causing a mewling sound to rush from her mouth.

The sound sent shivers down his spine as he sank all the way into her, watching the column of his straining flesh disappear into her mound. She felt so good, hot and tight around him, caressing him. Her eyes were closed tight, her cheeks flaming pink and her red lips parted. Her breasts bounced against her chest as he took her, plunging into her tight canal over and over. Her hips rose against his, her hands roved over his shoulders, his back, his arms. "Marlowe," she moaned. He was helpless to last for long against such a sweet welcome and fought against his own pleasure as they moved together.

He needed her to feel the intensity that he felt and slipped a finger between them, exploring her folds, brushing his thumb over her clit as he penetrated her. It was enough. She began to shake, biting her lips against a throaty moan. He felt her clench on his cock, almost immediately coming again.

He groaned and flipped her over, letting her sweet round ass curve against his hips. And then he was splitting her again, faster and faster, grasping her hips as he filled her. She arched into the bed, muffling her moans into a pillow and offering herself at an even sweeter angle. It was not long before he was overwhelmed. Something inside him collapsed and he felt a roar in his ears like the sound of water overflowing from a broken dam. It was all he could do to grab on to Kate, groaning as he was overpowered by his own climax.

He collapsed beside her afterwards, feeling her soft curves meld into the fold of his arms. She was breathing heavily. "I know that I've gone without you for several months, but Marlowe, perhaps we should apply for a special license. Now that I am here I don't know how I can be deprived of you for another week. How silly I was to insist upon such a long engagement," she laughed.

He chuckled lightly and turned to kiss her forehead. "Don't worry, darling, it is going to take hours for your dress to dry out, and then after that, although I doubt we will have many chances alone together, I will remind you that we will have the rest of our lives."

She laughed and kissed his cheek. "Then that will have to do."

"That it will," he said, pressing her tightly against his chest. In fact, he thought that it would do perfectly well indeed for as he held her there, chest filled with nothing but love and pride, he finally felt that all was right with the world and would be, so long as she was there with him.

Author's Note

Thanks to everyone who read and left comments on this story! I really appreciated all the kind words and just wanted to address some things.

I was writing this story as I posted chapters and worked on it over a long period of time. And because of that you may have noticed some inconsistencies that occurred when I a) forgot whatever it was that I was originally planning or b) came up with a cool new idea and then could not go back and edit previous chapters to make it make sense--for example, more details about Arabella's backstory. Oop. Thanks to the reader who mentioned that!

That being said, I am planning to edit this and make it a better story and I would love any constructive feedback that you'd like to give as a reader. And if you enjoyed it, also please leave a comment and let me know! I have a spin-off idea that I could work on if people were interested.

Thank you again for reading! I have appreciated the feedback and support!