Chapter Eighteen #2
“Not yet. But even if it does, it will not linger long, not with such fresh meat for them to feast upon.” He gestured to himself. “I fear I have made the list of most eligible bachelors for the upcoming season.”
“You have always been on that list, Phillip,” Cassandra teased. “Why on earth would this season be any different?”
Phillip ducked his head almost bashfully, the tips of his ears turning red. “I—” He lifted his gaze and cleared his throat. “I may not be on the marriage mart for long, Mother.”
“Oh?” Delight suffused her, even though she attempted to suppress her excitement so as not to make her son uncomfortable. “Anyone I know?”
“No, Mother.” He shook his head. “But I promise, I will bring her to meet you as soon as I can manage it.”
“Good.” Pride filled her. “I cannot wait to meet the woman who stole my son’s heart.”
“You will like her.” His eyes sparkled.
“I know I will.” She took his hand and squeezed.
Reuben cleared his throat. “I believe dinner is prepared. Shall we?”
Phillip took her left arm and Reuben took her right. She glanced between them and grinned. This was her family. The loves of her life. She cherished them both and relished the fact that they were now of an accord.
Cassandra could think of nothing more fulfilling than this moment. Finally, there were no secrets. No lies. No fear. She could live—and she would do so to the fullest on her own terms.
*
After dinner, Phillip joined Cassandra in the parlor to discuss estate matters. Reuben took the opportunity to retreat and prepare a delightful surprise for his wife for after their guest departed.
Their time together had taught him one thing for certain. Cassandra reveled in her passion. Now that she had unleashed it, there was nothing she was not willing to try when it came to pleasure.
Up until this point, he had indulged her every desire, but tonight, he craved something more… familiar. He changed into one of his old uniforms. The jacket fit a bit snugly, but he still managed to look presentable.
When he heard the front door close, he took a final glimpse of himself in the mirror. Phillip had left. Finally, they were alone. A confident smile reflected back at him.
“Reuben,” Cassandra called out. “Where are—?” Her words evaporated when he stepped out onto the landing.
“How may I be of service, Your Grace?” he asked with a bow.
Cassandra slowly climbed the stairs, her eyes dark with unrestrained hunger. “What are you—?” She stopped on the landing a breath from him. “What farce is this?”
“No farce, madam.” He rose, holding her gaze. “Has the duke left?”
“Yes, Phillip has returned to London.” She studied him with suspicion. Her eyes widened. “That suit,” she said, her breath catching. “You wore it the night you found me in the study—after the funeral.”
Pride suffused him at her reaction. She remembered it as clearly as he did. He stepped closer. “You have a keen memory, madam.”
“I—” Cassandra licked her lips, reaching for his tie. Her fingertips brushed his chest as she tightened her hold on the thin fabric. “I remember everything from that night.”
“Is that so?” He stood firm as she ran her fingers along his lapels. Heat poured through him like molten steel, but he maintained his composure somehow.
Cassandra bit her lower lip and nodded, looking like a debutante a fraction of her age, and yet Reuben had never seen a woman as alluring as her. Aged like a fine wine, he wished to indulge until he drowned in her.
“You were not so coquettish that night,” he observed with a smirk.
“I was in mourning.” She tightened her grip on his tie. “How was I to know your true intentions?”
“What intentions?” he demurred. “I merely offered my services in whatever manner best befitted your desires in that moment.”
“Tell me the truth.” She raked a nail along his jaw. “If I would have been amenable, would you have seduced me that night?”
“You wish for my honest answer?”
“Of course.” Her lashes fluttered, but he saw the flare of heat behind her eyes.
“I would have done whatever you asked of me, madam.” His cock swelled at the memory of her from that night—and the intimacy of their present exchange.
“Well, then.” Cassandra released him. “Evans, I require your assistance.”
“As you wish, madam.” He followed her into the bedroom.
“Close the door.”
Reuben closed and secured the lock. When he turned, he stood at attention, awaiting her instruction. For the last eight years, he had craved this, and now she indulged him, playing into his fantasy. A fantasy he knew she shared, if their history were any indication.
“Would you like for me to send for Sidlow to help you undress?” he asked, his voice hoarse but steady.
“That will not be necessary,” Cassandra replied, methodically removing the pins holding her hair in place.
Her heavy tresses fell against her shoulders in a thick waterfall of chestnut curls.
She ran her hands through her hair and pulled the mass to one side, exposing the fastenings over her gown along her spine.
“If you will be so kind,” she directed, her gaze meeting his over her shoulder.
Maintaining his role, he reached for the fastenings. As he worked, he reminded himself of his part in this production. The servant aiding his mistress.
But it was more than that. It was a husband indulging his wife’s fantasy. A wife allowing her husband to bring their deepest desires to life. This was a culmination of their passion. The moment it had all begun.
His fingertips brushed over her skin as he slowly unfastened her gown.
Removing each garment, piece by piece, layer by layer.
Savoring the sharp gasps and whimpered moans as he peeled the pieces from her body, exposing her one breath at a time.
He unclipped her garters and slid her stockings down with care.
Removed her shoes with a tender caress against her lovely ankles.
And when the final piece revealed her glorious curves, leaving her bare before him, he groaned in appreciation.
“Wife,” he muttered in reverence, breaking the spell between them.
“Is that what you wanted from the beginning?” she murmured, trailing her hand between her breasts. “To claim me as your own?”
Reuben caught her by the waist, unable to bear the tension a moment longer.
“I have always desired you. Craved your attention—your love. But never did I ever believe I could claim you as my own.” His gaze raked over her, his blood heating to a boiling point.
“You are not a prize to be won, not a treasure to be claimed. But if I could be your equal—your partner—I count myself as the wealthiest man in the world.”
Cassandra’s breath caught; her eyes shone with tears. “You have made me the happiest of women.”
“After all we have endured, we deserve it.” He nuzzled her jaw with his nose, pressing a tender kiss to the corner of her mouth.
She turned, catching his lips in a kiss. “Mine,” she growled, clinging to him. Her naked body pressed against him.
“Yours,” he murmured in response, barely breaking the kiss.
In a tangle of limbs, they embraced the onslaught of passion.
She tore at his clothes until he stood in the same state of undress.
Her hands skimmed down his shoulders, over his torso and hips, resting on his bare backside.
She squeezed his arse, earning a groan from him.
His cock sprang to attention, pressing insistently against her stomach.
Reuben spun her around and wrapped his arm around her waist. His lips teased the soft shell of her ear, earning him a delighted moan from deep within her.
“Place your hands on the bed, darling,” he whispered.
Cassandra obeyed, thrusting her arse toward him and arching her back. One glance revealed the glistening folds begging for his attention. He ran his hands over her hips. His thumb grazed the swollen center of her before he fit his cock to her sweet cunt.
“This”—he eased himself inside her in a fluid thrust—“is mine.”
Cassandra cried out as he pushed deep, her hands grasping the coverlet on the bed. “Yours.” She gasped at the invasion. “Always.”
Reuben could no longer hold back. He took her hips in his hands and pounded into her slick heat. She felt better than anything he remembered. Her body tightened around him, pulling him deeper, urging him to move faster.
The room echoed with the sweet aria of her frenzied cries and the erotic sounds of his flesh against hers.
He basked in it all, allowing it to guide him—to bring them both exquisite pleasure.
This was how it was meant to be between them.
Pleasure—without pain. Desire—without hiding behind the fickle whims of society.
There was only her and him and the beauty of their union.
When her cries evolved into erratic panting pleas, Reuben wrapped his arm around her waist and slid his hand between her thighs, teasing the bud at the apex of her sex. Cassandra swore and her cunt gripped him harder.
He quickened his pace, thrusting deep as he teased her with his fingers. His lips caressing her shoulder, his teeth gently teasing her skin. He fucked her harder, driving himself to the point of combustion.
“Reuben!” Cassandra shouted as her climax seized hold of her. Her body took her pleasure and in turn triggered his own.
He groaned her name as he came still buried deep inside of her.
Bound together, entwined and sated, they remained as their breathing slowed to a normal rhythm. Reuben leaned his head against her spine, placing a kiss in the center of her back before withdrawing.
As he helped her to her feet, Cassandra turned to face him. Her cheeks flushed a delicious rose hue, eyes bright and dazed by the effects of their passion. She grinned.
“If only you had been that attentive that night.” She rose up on her toes and kissed him tenderly.
“Believe me, it took all of my restraint not to seduce you.” He kissed the tip of her nose before backing away. “One moment.”
Reuben retreated to the washbasin and retrieved a wet cloth.
Once he’d cleaned her, he tucked her into bed.
Then he tidied himself and joined her. Tucked beneath the blankets, he drew her close, burying his face against the curve of her neck and allowing her scent to lull him into a peaceful slumber.
“Reuben.” Cassandra stirred him from his repose.
“Yes, darling?” He murmured in a daze.
“Thank you.”
He rose up on his elbow and stared down at her. “For what?”
“For loving me.” She cupped his cheek. “For protecting me.”
“I will always do both, until the day I die.” He kissed her palm. “You have my vow.”
Effervescent joy spread across her face, lingering in her smile. “I never thought I would marry again.”
“Is that so?”
“Mm-hmm.” She nodded. “You made me a believer.”
“In what?”
“Love.”
Reuben’s heart swelled to bursting. “That makes two of us.”
Cassandra kissed him again, and they recklessly tumbled into pleasure once more. A delightful conclusion to a complicated arrangement.