A Wolfish Tryst at Christmas (3 page)

“
Punch would be lovely,
Captain Harrison, but I believe I saw someone in the foyer I simply
must talk with. If you’ll excuse me?” Heavy meaning clouded her
eyes.

“
Of course.” He gave her a
slight bow. “Thank you for the dance.”

“
You’re welcome. Perhaps
you’ll join me in fifteen minutes or so? I’m sure I’ll be settled
by then and my acquaintance will have moved on leaving me ready to
focus my full attention on partaking in a refreshment.” Her wink
was almost imperceptible. “Perhaps we can indulge in a sweet or two
together?”

“
I look forward to it.”
Warmth surged through Blake’s chest as Elizabeth exited the drawing
room. He adored her use of the double meaning. There was no
acquaintance waiting for her in the foyer. He’d bet his next
paycheck on it. In fact, Elizabeth would no doubt use the lead time
to furtively dart upstairs, perhaps to avail herself of an empty
guest room, and wait for him. The knowledge made him smile as the
opening strains of another dance—a quadrille this time—broke over
the buzz of conversation and laughter.

A young lady jostled his elbow, by
accident or design he couldn’t tell. He murmured an apology just
the same. It really didn’t matter. If she’d bumped him by design,
he’d decline anyway. His heart belonged to Elizabeth.

Quickly, he turned to a male
acquaintance and talked of vagaries such as the weather and the
state of the war. The last thing he wanted was an obligation to
take one of the young, simpering misses out onto the floor. He had
no interest in the company of a female who wasn’t Elizabeth. His
wolf had found her compatible and worthy, and he knew without a
doubt she was the one for him, and while he didn’t believe in fated
mates, the human man he was wanted to take her for a wife no matter
the obstacles he, she or the nation faced.

He would claim his woman
tonight.

Blake stifled an irritated sigh. Would
the time for their rendezvous never arrive?

****

Elizabeth’s heart raced, pounding so
hard she feared it might break free of her body. She’d made her way
upstairs as nonchalantly as she could, going the most circuitous
route she could think of, so no one would guess her destination.
Had Blake understood her veiled hint? Would he seek her out here,
in her private rooms—the bedroom in her uncle’s house she used
while in residence?

Flutters filled her belly. Of course
he would. She’d seen the spark of need in his eyes, read the desire
in his expression. It was the same way she felt. Heated
embarrassment jumped into her cheeks and chest. Had it really been
she who’d acted so forward downstairs, practically offering herself
up for his ravishment in front of everyone?

Oh yes, it had!

Over the last year, through their
correspondence, she’d come to know and understand him much deeper
than others of her acquaintance knew their beaus who they saw in
person on a regular basis. His personality had shown through his
writing and was as sterling and timeless as the most valuable
keepsake. She’d irrevocably fallen in love with Blake in real life
six months before, when he’d come to dinner while passing through
the area, but she’d known he was her soul mate after the first few
months of letter exchange. There’d been a certain intimacy in
exchanging letters, in discovering little tidbits about him that
she’d never have hope of doing under constant supervision during a
face-to-face courtship. It made the bond between them that much
stronger. Her fondest wish was that he felt the same
way.

She stripped off her gloves and then
after opening the door a crack, dropped them in the hall as a
breadcrumb. Once she’d closed the door, she moved across the room,
her slippers silent on the old floorboards. Not daring to light an
oil lamp and thereby possibly alert curious family members, she
threw open the drapes. The soft, silvery moonlight glowed with the
snow cover and provided romantic illumination.

Oh Blake, please
hurry!

A scratching at the door alerted her
to someone’s presence. The panel creaked, indicating it swung
inward. Elizabeth spun, and as if he’d heard her unspoken cry,
Blake slipped into the room then closed the door behind him. He
clutched her gloves in one hand.

“
You came.” She kept her
hands behind her and clutched at the cool windowsill.

“
How could I resist?” He
turned the key in the lock then tossed her gloves on the bureau
top. “This is our time, Elizabeth, a culmination of what we’ve come
to mean to each other through letters.”

He does feel the
same!

She swallowed around the lump in her
throat even as she savored the charming Southern drawl that had
clung to his words. Elizabeth cleared her throat. “You are aware
what this night means?”

Am I?
As she raked her gaze over his form, she nodded.
Most definitely I am.

She continued her perusal. He looked
so dashing in his dress uniform. Brass buttons decorated the dark
blue jacket along with a gold-embroidered patch on one shoulder.
The buckle on his belt gleamed in the dim light. The crimson sash
at his side gave the somber clothing an air of gaiety and
joy.

The saber at his side jingled as he
rested a hand on the hilt. “I am and have thought of nothing else
on the ride here.” Blake glanced around the room. “Are you? It’s a
weighty decision for both of us, and one I’m not willing to engage
in if only the physical is in play.” His long-legged strides
carried him to the connecting door of her dressing room. “I refuse
to use you merely to alleviate a need.”

A shiver raced down her spine. A
twinge of uncertainty chased about her stomach, but she banished
it. Now was not the time for her virgin fears to overshadow his
visit. Throughout the course of their correspondence, his words had
made her feel emotions she’d never experienced with any man. How
often had she dreamed of being intimate with him? “Perhaps I have a
need too.”

“
I understand.” He closed
the door and turned the key, effectively insuring their privacy.
“After all, I’ll be your first. If you are afraid, tell me now. The
future of our relationship does not hinge on physical
intimacy.”

Her heart trembled. He’d always put
her wants ahead of his own. “I know this.” Despite her
inexperience, heat pushed between her thighs. “I have no regrets,
and I want you to know I’m giving myself to you freely.” She
moistened her lips as he stared at her, his eyes glittering. “It’s
my Christmas gift to you since—” Sudden tears sprang into her eyes,
blurring her vision. She blinked them away, not wishing to mar the
evening.

He closed the distance between them
and cupped her cheek. “Why, Lizzie?”

Her heart quivered a bit more, from
the nickname only he used or his touch she couldn’t say, and she
didn’t want to analyze the cause. Elizabeth covered his hand with
hers and then pressed her lips to his palm. “Our future is
uncertain. Even you can’t deny that.” She smiled, though it
wobbled. “I refuse to send you back to the war without first
knowing the wonder of having been loved by you.” Was it really her
saying such bold words?

One of his dark eyebrows inched toward
his hairline. “I do love you. Surely you have guessed that by the
tone of my letters.”

“
Yes, but there’s
something more that words on paper can’t provide. I want the
physical culmination of that love.” She stepped into the willing
circle of his arms, thrilling to feel his hands at her waist. “I
want to experience the wonder of what a man and a woman share once
the heat consumes them.” She held his gaze while she clasped his
arms. “Give me this gift in the event you don’t return. Let me
remember you as the man, in addition to the letter writer, who has
stolen my heart.”

His eyes darkened. “I won’t lie and
say your words haven’t made me feel beyond ecstatic.” He pulled her
as close as her crinoline would allow. “I’ll admit, being with you
in person and talking to you face-to-face is wonderful indeed, but
having the opportunity to worship your body will be a happy side
effect.”

“
You have no idea how much
I’ve thought about this exact moment. I couldn’t wait to be with
you, couldn’t wait to feel your kiss and caress.” Tingles tickled
her heart and ebbed through her chest seconds before Blake crushed
her in his arms and fit his mouth to hers. They’d shared an embrace
six months ago, but it was nothing like this, and it had been in
parting besides. Now, she gave herself up to the firm feel of his
lips as he moved over her mouth, confident, determined, sure while
he nibbled at the corners or playfully nipped at her bottom lip.
His fingers played along her spine, working the row of tiny crystal
buttons on her gown.

When the dress sagged open and the
bodice hung loose, Elizabeth sighed. She burrowed more fully into
his embrace and pulled his head down for another kiss. Deep,
lingering, drugging, the kiss set fire to her blood and played
havoc with her insides, confirming what she’d already known. He
belonged to her. Heat pooled between her thighs while a foreign
throb started deep inside. She whimpered, not knowing how to
alleviate the ache, but desperate to find out.

Blake wrenched away, his breathing
uneven. “Damn, Lizzie, I knew you were passionate. Reading your
letters always put me in the moment you’d written them, but I had
no idea how powerful it could be with that passion behind an
embrace.”

What did he mean? “Is that a good
thing?” She frowned and a niggle of worry inched its way into her
chest. “I’m trying to follow your example by doing to you what you
do to me. Am I not kissing correctly?” She clutched the sagging
bodice to her breasts.

“
Oh, love, it’s a very
good thing, and yes, you’re doing exceedingly well.” He set her at
arm’s length. “Will you allow me the honor of undressing
you?”

“
Yes.” Her one-word
permission floated on a breathy sigh even though her heart felt as
if it would burst from her chest, it raced so fast. “Please hurry.
You’ve made me feel… urgent, as if I might break apart if I don’t
kiss you, touch you again.”

In fact, she couldn’t wait for him to
remove the uniform. What would he look like, smell like, taste
like? She fought a blush. Yes, she intended to kiss his skin. She
craved him no matter that it might be frowned upon in polite
circles. If this was her only chance to experience love making with
him, she wanted to enjoy it.

He sat on the trunk at the end of the
bed and removed his shiny dress boots before carefully aligning
them on the floor. A soft smile played about his sensual lips, in
direct contrast to the intense stare he pinned her with. “You’re
adorable in your innocence.”

Blake stood. He eased her hands from
her tight clasp on her dress and helped her out of the gown,
pulling it up and over her head. Yards and yards of fabric slid
over her skin before he dropped it nearby on the floor. “Yet also
in that innocence is the soul of a woman crying to be claimed by
her man. It humbles me.”

“
Yes, but I want to do the
same with you—claim you.” She trembled as his fingers unbuttoned
the embroidered petticoat. He tugged that over her head and tossed
it aside. “I hate there is so much fabric to keep you from
me.”

Blake’s baritone chuckle resonated in
her chest. “I am doing my best not to tear your clothes as I’m
certain rationing means no supplies for new gowns. But if you
continue to tempt me, I might not be as careful.”

“
You’re very considerate.”
She didn’t want to think of the war and its difficulties. She
wanted him. His proximity caused her to fumble at the strings of
the crinoline.

He brushed her fingers aside and
finished the task. “One layer closer to the prize.” His eyes
twinkled in the dim light. “To you.”

“
Naughty boy.” Elizabeth
gripped his shoulders and stepped out of the contraption. Despite
the urgency that guided her, she took the crinoline from him and
shoved it to one side of the room. No sense damaging it, as
replacing the thing would be more trouble than it was worth. “It
seems you have no patience.”

“
Not where you’re
concerned.” Gently, he turned her around. As each hook on the
corset was undone and each lace was loosened, her heart hammered,
her chest expanding with each breath. Finally, he pulled the stiff
garment from her body. It landed with a dull thump against the
hardwood, and Elizabeth pivoted to face him. “God, you’re
beautiful.”

“
So you say now. For all
intents and purpose, I’m mostly covered.” She still stood in two
additional petticoats, her camisole and drawers, all made of thin
cotton, yet flames licked along her skin in competition with the
goose flesh that chased over her arms. “I’ll finish here if you’ll
start your own disrobing.” Anticipation and worry lurked at the
back of her mind, but she ignored them. Tonight, she lived only for
the moment.

“
I adore your spirit,
Lizzie.” Blake unbuckled his belt and set it plus the saber on an
embroidered chair off to one side. “I pray every day I’ll come back
for you.”

A bit of her excitement faltered. “I
refuse to talk of the future right now.” Elizabeth tore at the
buttons on the other two petticoats. The cotton cool against her
fingers, she shoved the garments down her legs and from her
body.