Chapter 7 #2
She shrugged. “It will benefit you and means we’ll both be getting something out of this arrangement.” She leaned forward, her hands clasped together on her lap. “Please think about it, Max. You’d be doing me a great favor.”
He shot to his feet. “I don’t like this at all.”
She smiled sweetly. “Perhaps you could think it over on your walk? I’m going to take that nap.”
Dinner was a quiet affair. Allegra chatted away to the Joneses, while Max spoke only when necessary, his blue gaze fixed on her whenever he had the opportunity.
Allegra wasn’t quite sure where the idea for her preposterous proposal had come from, but she was convinced it was a good one.
She had nothing to lose, Max would hardly suffer, and she would not regret the loss of her maidenhood at all.
In fact, the more she thought about it, the more she liked the idea. But ultimately, it came down to Max. She wasn’t the kind of woman who could persuade him to bed using her beauty or wit, so practical blackmail would have to do.
After a hearty slice of apple pie and custard, Allegra wiped her mouth on her napkin and smiled at her hosts.
“Thank you; that was delightful.” She glanced over at Max. “Are you coming upstairs, brother? I can read to you from my book of John Wesley’s sermons.”
He stood when she did, his gaze steady. “I need to check the horse first, but I will see you presently.”
Allegra left Pippin in the kitchen and went upstairs.
She considered undressing and trying to look alluring so that when Max returned, he would cast all his doubts to the wind and ravish her with great enthusiasm.
She snorted. For one, she didn’t have the beauty to incite instant lust in a man, and secondly, it wasn’t that warm.
She had little appetite for sitting around in her petticoats awaiting a man who might choose to stay out for hours.
With a sigh, she went to sit in the chair beside the fireplace and took out her book of sermons.
For some reason, Wesley’s words didn’t inspire anything in her but a vague sense of irritation.
In theory, she was all for preserving her virginity for her husband, but in practical terms, it wasn’t very appealing.
She was just setting the book aside when Max came in and locked the door behind him. He looked his usual handsome self, his blue eyes glinting, the gold of his hair shining in the candlelight, but his smile was absent. He looked over at her as he removed his boots and set them by the hearth.
“I hope your reading has helped you change your mind.”
“Not at all,” Allegra said. “In fact, I was just thinking about how annoying it is when men preach to women about matters they cannot possibly understand.”
“How very radical of you. Next, you’ll be insisting women should preach the word of God.”
“Well, why not? We are half the population.”
He sat down opposite her and held her gaze. “I see that you are in an argumentative frame of mind.”
“No, I’m nervous, and I tend to babble when I’m unsure of how I’m being perceived,” Allegra retorted. “Perhaps if you gave me an answer to my proposition, I might feel somewhat better.”
He sighed. “Allegra …”
“Max, this is the only opportunity I am likely to have in my life to experience the delights of sexual congress. As someone who has actively made everything in my life worse, I think the least you could do is assist me in this matter.”
“You still might marry, and what will you tell your husband when he realizes you aren’t a virgin?”
“I’ll tell him to mind his own business, but from what my friends say, it’s highly unlikely he’ll notice.”
He went to speak, and she talked over him. “Come on, Max, you swore to me that you were good at this, and if I am to be a fallen woman, I’d like to be toppled by the best.”
The corner of his mouth twitched upward. Encouraged by this, Allegra leaned forward.
“Please, Max?”
He sighed. “Fine.”
Allegra leaped to her feet and punched the air. “Yes!” She rushed over to Max and threw her arms around him. “Thank you; you won’t regret it.”
“I’m regretting it already,” Max muttered as he put his finger under her chin and raised her face to his. “You’d better kiss me quickly before I change my mind.”
Allegra went up on tiptoes and placed her mouth against Max’s, his lips parted, and she kissed him deeply. His response was gratifying. He wrapped one arm around her hips, hauled her close, and kissed her back with an intensity that made everything female in her shout with joy.
The kiss went on for a long time, and Allegra learned how to breathe through her nose while her hands roamed over Max with a freedom she’d never experienced before.
He was all hard muscle, bone, and strength, and she wanted to yield to him.
She relished his groan as his hand cupped her bottom and pressed her against the hardness concealed behind his breeches.
“Clothes,” Allegra murmured. “Take them off. I want to feel your skin against mine.”
Max’s fingers went to the back of her gown and worked on the laces while she undid his cravat, pushed off his coat, and unbuttoned his waistcoat.
“Wait …” After her gown fell to the floor, he spun her around so that he could see the back of her stays. “Let me …”
His fingers were warm against her skin, and her breathing became erratic. When she turned back, he’d undone the placket of his breeches, and was pulling his long shirt over his head.
“Oh …” Allegra put her hand on his chest. “You are … beautiful.”
“Hardly,” Max said, and picked her up. He set her on the bed and climbed up after her, his expression serious. “Are you still sure about this?”
In answer, Allegra pulled off her shift.
His eyes widened, and he came down on top of her, the coarse fabric of his breeches igniting all kinds of sensations within her.
Her body seemed far more certain about what to do than she did, and for the first time in her life, she forgot about reason and went with her emotions.
Max kissed his way down her throat, cupped her breast, and set his mouth on her. Allegra almost cried out at the intense feelings he created within her; her hips rose off the bed, and Max took the opportunity to slide one hand between her thighs.
“You’re wet for me,” he murmured against her ear as his fingers did something incredible to her womanly parts.
“Don’t … stop,” Allegra begged him as he stroked her in time to his deep kisses. “That’s …”
He increased the speed and pressure of his touch, and she stiffened under his hands as the first burst of joy emanated through her.
“Max.”
He bit her ear as she came, and she shuddered in his arms.
“I should’ve known you’d be responsive,” Max said, his palm still pressed against her throbbing flesh. “You’re passionate about everything, aren’t you?”
Allegra looked at him. “Will you take your breeches off?”
He grinned at her. “All in good time, my lady. I have other things to explore first.”
“What could you possibly—?” Allegra gasped as Max lowered his head between her thighs. “You can’t mean to—”
She almost screamed as his finger penetrated her and his mouth settled over her throbbing bud, sucking it and tonguing it until she forgot about being ladylike and simply existed in the chaos of desperate need Max had aroused within her.
The second climax was more intense than the first, and Allegra didn’t even mind when Max added a second and then a third finger, stretching her for his future pleasure.
She knew she looked like a wanton, but she didn’t care. This was her time and her night, and whatever went on between her and Max was worth it.
“I’ve changed my mind,” Allegra said, which made Max raise his head to look at her.
“What?”
“You are the best kisser.”
“I know.” He shoved down his breeches, and Allegra got her first look at his fully erect cock. “Perhaps you should apologize.” He looked down at his cock. “On your knees.”
Allegra studied him. “You’re quite big.”
“I know,” he said again. He slicked a hand down his already wet shaft. “But I’ll make you ready for me, and you can help.”
“How so?”
His smile was pure lust. “You liked it when I licked and sucked you. My cock likes the same treatment.”
“You’ll allow me to do that?”
Max raised an eyebrow. “My dear girl. As long as you don’t bite, I expect it.”
He sat with his back against the headboard and looked at her. “If you crawl between my thighs, you will have all the access you require.”
“May I touch you first?”
“Be my guest.”
Allegra reached out and ran her finger down the thick shaft of Max’s cock.
Unlike the sculptures she’d viewed, it was not a pretty sight, but it was far more interesting.
To her surprise, it reacted to her touch, arching toward her, and pulsing, which somehow made her body clench with need.
She gently wrapped her fingers around his shaft and squeezed.
Max made a guttural sound. “Be gentle with me, fair maiden.”
“Oh.” Allegra eased her grip and bent to drop a kiss on the wet tip. “I do apologize.”
“If you work me too hard in your fist, I’ll come, and then we’ll have to start all over again.”
“Is that not a good thing?” Allegra asked as she played her fingers up and down his cock. “Or can you only perform once?”
“I can perform all night,” Max said.
“Then may I continue?” Allegra asked. “I am rather enjoying tormenting you.”
“Be my guest.”
She looked up at him. “I must admit that I am unsure how to proceed.”
“Place your hand on my shaft again,” Max said. He interlaced his fingers with hers. “Now move with me.”
Allegra did as he asked, learning the motion he liked and the pressure he needed to make him curse and gasp under his breath.
“Now you.” He was breathing heavily when he let go of his shaft. “And if you wish to suck me into your mouth, I wouldn’t object.”