Chapter 12
Pru
“Please don’t go. I—” her voice caught “—I do need your help. I want to know.”
Earlier when she had stumbled upon him in her room, rocking back on his heels as if to say, I’m here, she had wanted to toss him out the window. Or onto her bed. Confusing, that.
But now, for the first time, she could see the opportunity before her for what it was.
He twisted the ring on his pinky and cleared his throat. “What’s your question?”
She didn’t wait any longer. Didn’t count. Just blurted it out. “How does a woman get pregnant?”
His spluttering cough had her offering him some water. After taking a sip, he said, “I wasn’t expecting that one.”
“Coincidentally, often a woman isn’t either.” She smiled wryly. “I understand that the act…produces a baby. I just don’t know how.”
Mouth agape, eyes wide, hands on his thighs. This wasn’t promising behavior.
“Well…” Stalling, he twisted his ring and then dragged his hand through his hair.
“Just tell me, Soren. The details. It’s science, right?”
Dumbfounded, he looked at her. “Yes.” It took another pause before he plowed on. “When a man is aroused, he produces seed that can impregnate a woman.”
“What does her arousal produce?”
“What do you mean?”
“You said when a man is aroused, he produces seed. What does a woman need to do in order to receive it?”
“Actually…nothing.” Soren looked as stumped as she felt.
Ignoring the heat in her body, the overall unease within her, and again with the sweaty palms, she marched forward in the name of knowledge. “That hardly seems fair, doesn’t it?”
Soren reared back in clear shock. “What’s not fair?”
“To have a baby a man must be aroused and enjoy the experience while a woman gets nothing out of it.”
“Well…she does get a baby.”
“So does the man.”
“If it helps to know, if it’s done properly, she’ll enjoy it as well.”
“Being a rake, I suppose you always do it properly.” Good lord, what had possessed her to say that.
His blank stare back at her must be loudly—though inwardly—decrying the same sentiment.
“Never mind—”
But he cut her off with an intense look.
“I’d like to think I always do it properly.
” The air around her grew thick. Heavy. Something passed between them while they locked eyes.
Tension coiled in her stomach. Her shoulders sank down while her elbows locked in at her sides, pushing her breasts out. Her nipples sought…something.
“Prudence…” his husky voice shot straight between her legs.
“What?”
“Do you want release from the tension you feel?”
Oh God. He could read her mind and body. Breathless, she answered, “I don’t know.”
“Only if you want it. I can show you how to find it.”
“I don’t-I can’t kiss you.”
“That’s all right, my little librarian. You can do it yourself.”
“How?”
“Tell me what you feel.”
Her body shivered. One wave over her left leg. Another wave up her right arm. A dull throb at the apex of her thighs.
“There’s an ache.” She couldn’t believe she was saying it, but it felt right to tell him. Safe.
“Where?”
“Between my legs.”
“Show me. With your hands. Slowly.”
Her hands fisted the fabric of her nightrail atop her thighs and then one daring hand slowly swept up to the ache.
“That’s it. That’s your cunny. Rub where you feel the ache.”
Pru’s eyes burned from staring at Soren, but they grew bleary to the point she needed to close them when her fingers grazed over the throbbing between her legs. A quiet gasp sounded between them.
When she looked back at him, his eyes were black, and his tongue licked his bottom lip. She swallowed. Hard.
“That’s it, Pru. Make a small circle around the ache. I promise we’ll make it go away together.”
Her nipples screamed in delight. In yearning.
“Soren,” she pleaded.
And he was in front of her, on his knees. His spicy, familiar scent filled her senses.
“What do you need, Pru?”
“Touch me,” she whispered the daring words.
“I-I can’t. I want to, but I can’t. You can do this for yourself, my little librarian. You’re intelligent. Beautiful. You can know your body for yourself. Do this for you.”
“Uhhh…” she moaned longer as she rubbed another circle. “I need more.”
“Undo your nightrail. Here.” He pointed where the buttons enclosed her breasts. “Let them out.”
As if in a trance, she wantonly undid her buttons and her nightrail exposed the valley between her breasts.
“Open it up, darling.”
Her finger pushed aside the fabric and the cool air hitting her nipples made them pucker.
“God, you’re beautiful. If I could touch you, I’d hold those in my hand. Squeeze them.”
In an envelope of pleasure, she followed his guidance. Rubbing, squeezing. Letting her fingers reach for pleasure for the first time. Not allowing shame or expectations flood her mind. It was freeing to explore herself.
“I’d kiss you there, Pru. Lick you. Pinch you. Right. There. Yes, darling.”
At that, she tugged on her nipple and a cry shot of her like none had ever rung out before.
Closed eyes flung open and she stared at him. Unmoving.
His hands were braced at his sides. Clenched in tight fists. Then unclenched and moving down his thighs. And…oh God, she saw a large, new formation in his breeches. Like a tent. And it beckoned to her. She could feel in her body exactly where she needed him. Needed that.
She hadn’t expected floodgates to open up.
A wealth of knowledge and experience had just been poured atop her.
Not to drown her, but to cause her to float.
To rise with the tide of awareness. Like all her life she’d known about a library to which she possessed a card, and now a new one with entirely new books had opened up.
A secret one. And someone had just invited her.
Nominated her. For her very own card. God… what she had been missing.
“Soren…”
“Yes?”
“What about you? Isn’t it fair that you find pleasure?”
“This isn’t about what’s fair, darling.”
“Don’t you want…?”
“Yes. I want something. But I also found immense pleasure watching you.”
“You did?”
“Yes. You’re incredible.” Her body prickled all over at his perusal.
It struck her as odd that she felt so natural baring her breasts to him.
They wanted him. Her nipples still tingled, as if beckoning to him.
And at the same time, she wanted to reach out and touch him, but he didn’t feel like hers to touch.
Even in this moment. After what she’d just shared with him, she was cautious. But she did know one thing.
“Soren?”
“Yes, darling? Anything.”
“I want to know more.”