No Other Love (21 page)

Before Madame Beauchamp, it had never occurred to her that women would wear such beautiful, expensive undergarments. Why bother, when no one saw them? But perhaps Luke would see them. She had little idea of what to expect on her wedding night, but somehow she doubted her new husband would patiently turn around or leave the room while she disrobed.

“Stand up, child,” Sally said, breaking into her reverie. “Let’s get you into this dress.” Obediently Rose stood and let the dress slide over her chemise, corset and petticoats and settle about her with a soft rustle.

Though the dressmaker had suggested a wedding dress in white, Rose was too practical to agree to such a thing. Instead she’d decided on something she could wear again – a lovely sage green silk so light it seemed to hover over her skin. Delicate flowers embroidered in pink and brown thread ran along the hem and neckline.

Rose grew quiet as the women fussed around her, smoothing the material and discussing what ribbon to use in her hair. She couldn’t help wishing her parents could have been with her. Her father should have been the one to speak to Luke, her mother to give her advice and calm her fears.

And yet, she would never have even met Luke if her father were still alive. Though perhaps, if they’d remained in Boston, all of them together, she would one day have met him, and they’d have married in that other life as well.

Rose gave a quick shake of her head. No more what-ifs today. Tomorrow was soon enough for those.

Expertly Sally dressed her hair, threading a green ribbon through the braided knot at the nape of her neck. The front of her hair was braided as well and pinned beind her ears. Rose slipped on satin slippers dyed to match the dress and then they all stood silently for a moment.

Rose looked at herself in the long oval mirror and could hardly believe what she saw. The dress was so beautifully made and of such a soft color, it seemed to cast its own glow. Her garnet ring shone even in the mellow light. Was this what a bride looked like?

“Oh, Rose,” Vivian breathed. “You’re so beautiful, you hardly seem real. I think Mr. Fletcher will be quite speechless when he sees you.”

Rose hugged Vivian. “Thank you for being such a good friend. I know it hasn’t always been easy for you.”

Now both girls were crying and hugging.

“Enough,” said Sally, looking a bit teary herself. “We can’t have Rose looking red and bleary from crying. But if you have to cry, at least have a handkerchief on hand,” she said, handing both Vivian and Rose a delicate square of linen.

The door chimed and the three women looked at each other. Sally gave Rose a quick once-over.

“Mr. Fletcher won’t know what hit him.” And with that she headed downstairs to welcome Luke and his father.

Rose and Vivian stood holding hands in awed silence, listening to the voices downstairs. In another moment the chime sounded again and Rose stood perfectly still as the minister entered and was greeted. Before she knew it Edward was at the door to fetch her. Rose felt as if she might break down in quite dramatic tears when he took her hands and kissed her cheek.

“Your mother and father would be so proud of you, Rose, as am I. I’ll be here for you, if ever you need me.”

Rose kissed Edward on the cheek, unable to speak, then quickly blotted her eyes. She breathed deeply in and out, and then nodded her head.

“I’m ready.”

The day took on a dreamlike quality as Rose listened to the minister explain the duties of matrimony. She was surprised by how vulnerable she felt, even with so few people present, as she looked Luke in the eye and repeated her vows.

Nothing could have prepared her for the sheer enormity of what they were doing. But she meant every word. Before the minister had a chance to say anything about a kiss, Luke cupped a hand behind her head, bent down and pressed his lips to hers. It was the most chaste kiss they’d ever shared, and yet it shook her to the core.

Luke kept her hand in his as they accepted the well wishes of the small party, and then they all moved into the dining room for the celebratory dinner Sally had prepared. Jonas Fletcher sat to Rose’s left, and though she felt awkward at first, he immediately put her at ease. Rose liked him very much and wished she weren’t causing so much discord in his household. She wouldn’t have blamed him if he’d acted less welcoming toward her, but she detected no resentment on his part.

For dessert Sally brought out a lemon cake frosted in buttercream that had everyone taking second helpings while listening to a story Mr. Fletcher told about the first train he’d ever ridden. Rose listened to it all with only half an ear, for she was terrified of what would happen when she left the safety of the March home.

Without realizing it she ate and drank far more slowly than everyone else, anxious to prolong the festivities for as along as possible. She’d barely touched her cake or sipped her tea when she looked around the table and realized that everyone else had cleaned every crumb from their plates quite some time ago.

Edward smiled at her, as if he understood, while Mr. Fletcher and Vivian requested yet more tea, as if to aid her delaying tactics. Luke smiled at her and said perhaps he would have more tea as well, adding that it was quite delicious, and where did Edward get such flavorful leaves? At this Rose came to her senses and realized she could not keep them there all day, drinking tea until they could barely remain at the table.

“I think I’ll forego more tea, though like everything else, it was wonderful,” she said, and nearly laughed at the relieved look on everyone’s faces. There was a rush of good wishes and several gifts thrust into their arms and then Luke led her from the March’s and into the golden October light filtering through the oaks and maples.

***

Luke couldn’t quite believe that the woman sitting next to him was now his wife. Every so often she glanced at him with a tentative, uncertain smile and then averted her gaze, unable to maintain eye contact.

He couldn’t take his eyes off her, the line of her throat and curve of her cheek, her lush eyelashes that masked and revealed her beautiful gray eyes. He’d spent the last four months wanting nothing but her, and now he was going to have her. Today, tonight, and every night hereafter.

Jeremy dashed out of the house for the horses as soon as they drew up in front of the house, as if he’d been standing at the window waiting.

“Welcome home, Mrs. Fletcher,” he said breathlessly, touching his cap before leaning in to take the gifts.

Rose’s eyes were wide in her face and she looked a bit pale, but she smiled at Jeremy as Luke took her arm and led her up the brick steps. She looked so beautiful and yet so unsure as they stood at the threshold of their new life together. Though he knew he ought to be thinking about all the ways his life was about to change, all he seemed able to think about was getting her into his bed. Immediately. Somehow he needed to get her straight upstairs to the bedroom without delay.

Just as Mrs. Williamson opened the door for them he realized the perfect solution. Sweeping Rose up in his arms he headed for the stairs, delighting in the feel of the curves he would soon uncover. Her eyes widened in surprise but she threw her arms around his neck and tucked her head into his chest.

He strode with her into the bedroom before setting her down on her feet. Much as he would have liked to toss her onto the bed and ravage her, that would have to wait for another time. Today required gentleness, patience. God willing he would have enough of both to keep from scaring her.

The question was, would she understand what he wanted, or would he have to explain himself? Just how innocent was she?

Rose looked at the bed and then back at him, her hands clasped tightly as if to control her agitation. He was just about to kiss her when she spoke.

“Luke,” she began tentatively, “is there perhaps a book I might read that would explain…that would detail the wedding night and what is expected of each party?”

Luke’s mind went utterly blank. He opened his mouth to reply only to realize he had no idea what to say.

A deep flush had worked its way up her neck and over her cheekbones, and she was wringing her hands in agitation. All at once he realized she must be utterly terrified.

A surge of tenderness and the desire to protect her, even from himself, moved through him. Though he was already desperately aroused, he didn’t want her fearing what he was so anticipating. Taking her hands in his he tried to quell her fears.

“All you need do is let me give you pleasure. If there’s something you don’t like, tell me and I’ll stop.”

He could see she was relieved by this, but still she looked unconvinced.

“Do you like how it feels when I kiss you?” he asked, leaning down to press a soft kiss to her lips.

“Of course,” she answered, and he was gratified to hear the breathlessness in her voice.

He reached up and caressed the delicate line of her jaw, traced the column of her throat. “And you like how I touch you?”

She nodded her head, her beautiful eyes going smoky and heavy-lidded.

“We’ll kiss and touch each other more, and I feel certain you’ll enjoy it.” He hesitated to continue, but clearly she wanted to know what to expect. It would be unfair not to tell her. “There is a part of making love that may be uncomfortable for you the first time. I’ll do everything I can to give you pleasure, but a woman’s first time often hurts.”

“Yes, I had heard that,” she replied, her eyes wide and serious. “For how long will it hurt?”

Now this was getting awkward.

“I suppose it’s different for every woman. But I swear to you, I’ll stop whenever you want me to.” Lord help him if she asked him to make good on his promise.

“Very well,” she said, squaring her shoulders in determination, as if she were a soldier going off to battle. “Let us begin.”

***

Rose stood ready, determined to do her best. She was an intelligent person, capable of learning things quickly. Surely she could do this.

Luke stepped toward her until he was nearly pressed against her. Gone was the tender sincerity of a moment ago. Now he looked at her with fierce hunger.

She felt as if he held her in a trance, so impossible was it for her to move. She waited breathlessly as he bent his head toward her, his lips brushing over hers as if to gentle her. As soon as she felt his mouth on hers she wanted more. Mindlessly she pressed against him, finally free to ask for everything she’d been wanting.

On a groan he pulled her closer, the hard length of him pressed to her curves as he rained kisses over her face and down her throat. The rough skin of his jaw abraded her into shivers of new awareness, every point of contact igniting her already scorched nerves. His teeth nipped her bottom lip before his tongue slipped inside, stroking her into pliancy before retreating.

Rose grasped his arms, afraid she’d melt into the floor. She could feel the tensed power of his muscles and ached to feel more of him. Tentatively she lifted her hand to his face, stroking his jaw before moving to his mouth, where her thumb ran over the curve of his lower lip. So full and soft, so devastating.

She felt him go still and looked up from her study of him to find his eyes blazing down at her. Then his hands were in her hair, pulling the pins out one by one until her hair cascaded down her back. Another kiss as his hands dove into her hair, tugging on the long tresses until her head fell back, offering him her throat.

Wordlessly he turned her around so that he was behind her. She felt her dress loosen as he released button after button, his fingers tracing the curve of her spine as it was revealed. Then he was in front of her again, his hands sliding the silky material down her arms, slowly grazing it over her hips until it pooled at her feet.

When she raised her eyes to his he was watching her with such intensity that for all her fear she could not look away. He said her name, as if in wonder, and bent towards her again, his kiss voracious, his mouth giving her no quarter. She didn’t want any. Her hands moved up his arms and she felt him tremble, felt how his whole body was coiled, ready to spring but holding back for her.

“Rose, my God, what you do to me.”

His searing gaze moved over her. Swiftly he undid the ties of her petticoats and they too fell. Then, deliberately, his breath coming faster now, he unlaced her corset until she stood only in her thin chemise.

A flush stained his cheekbones and a muscle moved in his clenched jaw, and all at once she saw how he had been reining in his desire, how even their most passionate kisses had been but a fraction of what he held back.

His eyes never leaving hers, he pulled the chemise over her head until she stood in the circle of her gown, naked but for her stockings. Cool air brushed over her skin, and she shivered at her sudden vulnerability. Not since she was a little girl had anyone seen her unclothed.

For the space of several heartbeats she couldn’t look at him, yet she could feel Luke in every pore, in every part of her. When she could bear it no longer she raised her gaze to his, breathless with her own desire.

Luke’s mouth took hers again as his hand closed over her breast. His thumb ran over the sensitive nipple as heat charged through her veins and her knees went weak. She heard herself moan, heard her own breath gasping and didn’t care.

Without a word Luke picked her up and carried her to the bed. Laying her down, he came to her side. His breathing had quickened and his hands shook ever so slightly as he untied the ribbons of her garters and slid her stockings down each leg, his fingers grazing the untouched skin of her thighs until they fell open of their own volition, his mouth following the retreating line of silk in a trail that set fire to every nerve ending.

By the time he slid the second stocking off she was beyond herself, her eyes at half-mast, her breathing labored. She didn’t know what he was doing to her, she only knew she needed more.

Luke’s weight left the bed and he began to shed his clothes.

“Let me,” she said. Beyond shyness, she wanted only to touch her new husband, to make him as wild for her as she was for him.