Chapter 9
CHAPTER 9
M aria’s eager kisses were like liniment to Jasper’s soul. Damn, but he’d been frightened for her. He could have wept with relief when he’d heard her voice after the pistol had been fired.
Her tongue delved deeper into his mouth, sending sparks of heat directly into his rapidly-stiffening cock, and his arms tightened reflexively around her waist. He needed to touch her everywhere, over her back and down to her hips, and bloody hell , her arse in those breeches!
She moaned into his mouth and ground her pelvis against his erection, and his eyes nearly rolled into the back of his head.
“ Christ , Maria,” he moaned. “I want to?—”
Unable to even process his desires, let alone voice them, Jasper cupped her painted jaw and brought his lips back down to hers.
“You want to what?” she whispered against his lips. “Tell me. Please?”
“I want to touch you,” he blurted. Once the words were out, however, he couldn’t seem to stop the flow, his voice low and unhurried “I want to tangle my fingers in your hair and have you with my mouth while I bring you to climax with my hands. I want to press you against this wall and kiss your intimate folds while I penetrate you with my fingers. Hell , Maria, I want to sink myself inside you and bring pleasure to us both.”
Her pupils dilated, her cheeks flushed, and her breath came fast between parted, reddened lips. Damn, but he could scarcely wait to taste them again.
“Then do it,” she breathed.
Jasper’s cock twitched, but he internally rebuked the eager thing. “I cannot take you in the street, no matter how much I might desire it. You deserve better.”
Her gaze was heavy-lidded and needy as she gripped him tighter about the shoulders. “The fog is too thick; no one can see. Please, Jasper.”
She kissed him again, and he could feel his resolve slipping. He couldn’t make love to her against a brick wall, but he could certainly satisfy some of their needs and give her pleasure—as long as the fog held. Indeed, in her men’s breeches, access to her with hands or mouth needn’t require removing any clothes at all. None of her skin would touch the brick facade, for with a gentle tug and a broader stance, she would be entirely bared for his delectation.
Quavering heat whirled in his belly and stiffened his cock to nigh-painful rigidity.
He broke off their kiss and clasped her gloved hand, leading her further into the darkened alcove, his pulse racing and breath coming hard. Next, his gloves; he tugged them off and swiftly stashed them in his coat pocket. Leaning his body gently against her, he let her feel the hard ridge of him pressing against her pelvis as he took her mouth in another searing kiss.
A sigh escaped her, her breath sweet and warm against his cheek, and his cock twitched once more.
His trembling fingers found the buttons of her falls, and unfastened them. Brushing aside the loose fabric to hang between her legs, he reached inside, and— holy hell , she didn’t wear small clothes. His pulse thrummed as his fingers hovered above her folds.
“Are you certain that you wish to do this?” he asked, unable to hide the needy desperation in his voice.
“Yes,” she whispered back. “Oh, Jasper, yes!”
His heart leapt, and he nudged Maria’s legs wider before he carefully delved one finger into her heat.
* * *
Somewhere in the back of Maria’s mind, the thought hovered that she ought to be concerned about her lack of modesty, but all she felt was the rush of anticipation and desire. She hadn’t the faintest notion of what he would do with her, but she trusted him.
Then a finger brushed through her intimate curls to spread her open, and all thoughts of modesty fled.
“ My God, Maria ,” he breathed reverently, his breath brushing against her lips. “You’re so wet for me.”
Before she could think of a response, he brushed a fingertip over her cleft, pulling a gasp from her lungs and sending a jolt of pleasure through to her core.
“That’s it,” Jasper whispered.
The knowledge that Jasper— Jasper, for pity’s sake! —was touching her so intimately was phantastic, indeed. But she wanted to touch him, too.
“Might I—” Her breath hitched as he dipped a finger inside her, gathering her wetness before returning his attention to her cleft. She moaned. “I want to touch you, if you’ll let me.”
His eyes slid closed on a groan and he nodded. “Yes. Please touch me, Maria. I need your hands on me.”
Emboldened by his open need, she made quick work of his falls and small clothes, all while his fingers explored and teased. His erection sprang free, thick and long, jutting from a nest of dense black curls. The head was reddened and leaking a clear fluid that glistened in the dim light.
She hadn’t the faintest notion of what to do. If that were to fit inside her, like his fingers— oh! —were doing at just that moment, she could presume that rubbing the exterior of his shaft would be akin to the sensation of being inside her. I need your hands on me , he’d said.
Assuaging her curiosity and acting on her assumption, she touched her fingers to his shaft. It bounced, and he grunted, his eyes dark.
His fingers moved, circling and whirling, tightening the coil of need inside her.
Feeling more confident, she wrapped her hand around his length. He was soft as silk yet hard like stone; an entirely intoxicating combination. “Is this what you want?” she asked breathlessly, somehow already knowing the answer.
“ Yes ,” he hissed. “Stroke it. Please , Maria.”
She began a smooth pumping motion, and he let out a deep groan, his lips returning to trail kisses along her painted jaw.
Tingling heat swelled in her core as his fingers circled her little pleasure centre. She tilted her hips toward him, seeking more. And he readily obliged.
Sensation rocketed through her, her body buzzing as a keening moan pushed its way up from her chest.
“ Fuck , Maria!” he breathed in her ear. “What you do to me…”
“ Oh ,” she gasped. “ Jasper .”
Her knees began to tremble, and she pressed her back harder against the stone wall in an effort to keep her knees from buckling.
“Yes, Jasper,” she panted. “Like that.” She rocked her hips in time with his movements, the coil of her impending climax winding tighter, all while she continued a steady rhythm of strokes on his cock.
Abandoning her clitoris, he curved his fingers deep inside her, pulling a sob from her throat. He didn’t leave it untouched for long, however, for in addition to his fingers thrusting within her, his thumb resumed stroking her cleft.
She sighed. “ Yes …”
He nipped at her jaw, his breath laboured and his gaze devouring.
Pleasure built, tingling through her limbs and speeding her pulse. It was almost too much, the sensations nearly overwhelming. Her panting breaths became hitched, nearly dizzy from his ministrations. Then abruptly, the coil broke. Pleasure burst through her, stiffening her limbs and causing lights to dance behind her eyelids. Her back arched as a cry of gratification ripped from her chest.
“ Oh fuck, Maria .”
His erection throbbed in her hand and she tightened her hold, rubbing her thumb briefly over the clear liquid beading at the tip.
She blinked up at him. “I’ve never experienced the little death like that before.”
His two-toned gaze bore into hers. “You’ve had one before?”
“Yes,” she admitted. “By myself. I learned of them from a book.”
His eyelids drooped, but his pupils grew larger, and he groaned. “ Hell , that’s… My God, I— Damnation, I need to see you do that.” The veins in his neck bulged. “Maria, I’m going to— Fuck , I’m going to spend!”
Fingers fumbling, he unfastened his cravat and wrapped it around the head of his member. He bared his teeth in a silent snarl, and his body went rigid as he pulsed in her hand.
Maria watched in awe, her own pulse still racing, and the heat of desire thrumming through her. He was beautiful. And she most definitely needed to see him thusly again. Soon, preferably.
His forehead rested on hers before he took her lips in a passionate kiss. He flicked her tongue with his, and warmth settled through her.
The sound of footsteps and a cart rattling down the cobblestones had them springing apart. Maria glanced around, suddenly very aware of their public location. The fog was beginning to thin.
Jasper hurriedly wiped himself clean, tossed the cravat aside, and fastened his trousers as Maria hastily rebuttoned her falls and righted her queue. He gave her another quick buss and tugged at his coat sleeves.
“As much as I would love to remain in this alcove with you,” she said, “the fog is dissipating, and our shelter will soon be gone.”
He gave a sharp nod, his gaze penetrating. “Will you permit me to accompany you to my home? Your shift begins today, and…” He licked his bottom lip, his gaze raking her form. “I believe that we ought to have a discussion.”
Twisting her mouth, Maria considered him. Her shift did not begin until that evening, and while in other circumstances it would be easy for her to accept, she could not allow him to take her home like this . First, she must return to her apartments to remove her men’s attire. On the other hand, Jasper might grow suspicious if she sent him home with the promise to meet him there that evening. Perhaps he was already suspicious; he had, after all, just uncovered a rather large falsehood of hers. But could she trust him with the knowledge of her apartments…of Thomas ?
Mayhap discovering her brother and his obvious twitches would turn him off of the idea of marrying her.
There was the possibility, no matter how unlikely, that he had already learned of Thomas but had kept silent through the years. At the very least, he ought to have heard the rumours that had followed her family since Thomas began to exhibit signs of twitching in their youth. Despite her parents’ decision to leave their son anonymous in Bethlem Royal Hospital and to keep him secret, society was aware of his existence.
But was Jasper?
Despite society’s—and their parents’—assertion, Thomas was not mad. He was bright, amusing, caring, intelligent… And Jasper might very well fail to see that. In which case, the question of marriage would rather not be an issue at all, for an intolerant man she could not abide.
The warmth that had flooded her after their encounter swiftly fled, and she knew what she must do.
“Follow me,” she said.