Chapter Nine
Amber had kissed several men over her twenty-five years. Several meaning exactly seven, not counting her relatives. The upstairs ladies had been very forthcoming about exactly what was involved in sex. And they had explained what was good and not good in hilarious terms. So, every year on her birthday starting at the age of eighteen, the ladies had arranged for her to kiss a gentleman they described as one of the best.
Her conclusion after all that vast experience? She found kissing to be either too wet or too much mashing of teeth together.
Not true with Elliott. Perhaps it was because he didn’t go straight to the kiss. He lingered in the dark, exploring her face with his fingertips, touching every inch of her cheeks, jaw, and even the slope of her nose. It made her giggle, and when she did, he released a sigh of delight.
“There it is. Like happiness wrapped up in sound,” he whispered. Then he pressed his lips so close to her ear that she felt the heat of his breath. “Do it again,” he urged.
“I can’t giggle on command,” she whispered back.
“Are you sure?” His finger traced down her nose once again.
She giggled at the feel. She giggled at the silliness of it all. And most of all, she laughed because he wanted her to. And as she relaxed, her head back, and he shifted until his mouth teased hers. Just at the edge of her lips, and he rubbed back and forth across hers.
No one had done that before, and her mouth felt like it was swelling with the sensation. Then he surprised her by licking her top lip. A quick dart of his tongue and she gasped, her entire body tightening with excitement. She wanted to wait to see what he would do next, but every part of her was straining forward. If this was the prelude, what would the kiss be like?
Unable to wait a moment longer, she echoed his movement, licking his upper lip, and while he smiled in reaction, she pressed her mouth to his. His lips were lush, his mouth firm, and his tongue teased against hers, following when she retreated.
Then he took over. He filled her mouth, dueling with her, brushing against teeth and the roof of her mouth. She fell back against the squabs, letting him press against her. He was a large man, certainly compared to her, and she felt him everywhere and yet not close enough. Her hands had been by her sides, but now she gripped his arms as she clutched him tighter.
It went on for a glorious age, but eventually, she broke away as she gasped for breath. What an experience! And while she knew it was wrong, she ached for him to do it again and so much more. Her breasts felt heavy, her body hot with desire. She knew the stages of arousal in general terms. Suddenly, she felt them quite specifically. The tight pull of her nipples, the heaviness in her belly, and the wetness between her thighs. The upstairs girls hadn’t said how delicious it felt.
“One,” he rasped against her ear.
One what? Oh!One kiss. And she’d allowed him two, so there was more.
“Yes,” she whispered.
He smiled. She could feel the curve of his mouth against her ear. “Have you ever been kissed before?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“On your mouth?”
“Yes.”
“Anywhere else?”
She swallowed. “No.”
“Would you like to experience it?”
Yes! A thousand times, yes!But she couldn’t say the words aloud. She could only nod.
He pressed his mouth to the bare flesh just below her ear. She felt the rough brush of his jaw against the curve of her neck.
“Has anyone ever kissed your breasts? Have you ever felt the quickening inside your belly?”
“No,” she said again.
“I can show you. I can do it, and you shall remain a virgin. But you will know—”
“Yes!” she gasped. She had heard of such things from the upstairs girls, and she wanted to know.
He moved until he knelt on the carriage floor before her. He tugged her upright enough to unbutton her gown and ease it down her shoulders. Her corset was a short one, tied in front. He pressed his lips to the flesh above her chest, scraping his teeth across the skin before soothing it with his tongue. She felt him loosen the ties, and she took a deep breath that pushed the corset open. He tugged on the ribbons even more until it gaped in front and fell away.
Then his hands were on her breasts, kneading them in a way she had never thought to experience. Not like this. Not with every part of her body lifting with his movements while lightning shot from her nipples through her belly. He pinched her breasts, and she cried out in delight. She was overwhelmed with the sensations, and yet she wanted more and more.