Epilogue
The dark night floated around his shoulders, a pang of longing throbbing in his lower belly. The air was warm and intoxicating as the full moon cast an eerie glow over the garden. His gaze swept the lawn before him. He stood on the stone steps overlooking the gardens at Wildwood.
No sign of her.
This was absolutely ridiculous, yet he was captivated with the need to find her. His nymph, his garden fairy in hiding.
Only if you can catch me.
Her beckoning voice taunted him as he worked in his study, poring over papers and ledgers.
His wife was well aware that he was a busy man, especially after the tumultuous few weeks they had lived.
Yet she swept in before him, looking breathtaking in her nearly transparent cotton chemise.
His mouth watered as his gaze dragged over his wife’s sultry curves.
He hardened immediately at the sight. How bold was she to be wandering the house in such a flimsy garment? The lateness of the hour almost guaranteed the vision was for his eyes only.
A devilish grin curved his lips.
Perfect. White would make her so easy to find in the night-cloaked garden.
Taking a step forward, he tried to hear past the chirping of crickets and the gentle lapping of the water nearby for signs of her presence.
The anticipation was so familiar, as though he had dreamed of a moment like this before.
The quickening beat of his heart only fed his eagerness as he quietly pushed aside bushes and walked along the pathway, attempting to hide his approach from his prey.
Fiddlesticks. She had hidden too well.
He would punish her for playing games once he found her.
She should know by now that he took his devotion to his wife very seriously.
Had he to do it all over again, he would have always chosen to take that bullet.
It couldn’t compare to the shot his heart had taken when he first laid eyes on Lottie again.
He would chase her to the ends of the earth and back again, because she was always meant to be his.
Curling his fists by his side, he swept the luxurious rose beds, fragrant in the warm night breeze, surrounding him with memories of the other roses and another moment they had enjoyed the intimacy of their private paradise.
Of course.
The little minx would hide where she would be concealed by a wildness that beckoned to her.
Picking up his pace, he bolted to the secret garden, pushing aside a wild clump of ivy that covered the entrance.
Upon opening the gate, he stood in silence, the darkness even more pronounced in this still-unkempt section of the garden.
Closing his eyes, Perry inhaled, the thrill of the chase flooding his body with heat. She was here.
He could almost taste her.
His body ached to have her.
There were many places to hide, old trees with thick trunks and wandering roots giving them a distinct charm.
Having a few options on where to look, Perry picked his way quietly through the grass, which had been freshly cut, he was pleased to note.
Peering behind the scraggly apple tree, he saw no sign of his wife.
Continuing on, he eyed a bush that seemed the perfect size to hide his nymph.
As he approached, Charlotte darted from behind the thick, untamed greenery with a giggle, running as fast as she could on bare feet toward the gate.
“I am done playing games, Lottie,” Perry shouted, his voice stern as he hastened to follow her footsteps.
Her laughter trailed behind her as she moved, brown hair tossing wildly in the night air. “I am not, my lord.”
His breath caught at her words, his cock aching to teach her a valuable lesson about teasing her husband. Lottie had much to learn. Her first lesson was that Perry was a fast runner.
She cried out as he caught up to her, her breath coming quickly as he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her to the ground beneath him.
He loved when she looked this way. A familiar sense of abandon flared between them.
Her cheeks were flushed with exertion and the long waves of her night-darkened hair spread beneath her like rays around the sun.
Charlotte was the sun, the center of his universe, and he burned to be consumed by her.
This night was so familiar, their passion so unchanged from the days when the meadows were tall with grass and wildflowers.
And he imagined his wife was just as eager for him as she had always been.
In a brusque motion, his hands found the bottom of her nightgown and yanked it up over her sumptuous breasts.
Lottie gasped. “How dare you tumble me in the grass like a common wench? I am a countess,” she threatened playfully, her palms running over the tense muscles in his chest.
“A countess who is begging to be fucked,” he murmured against her breast, latching his mouth over her smooth, moon-kissed skin.
Her taut nipple hardened in his mouth as he bathed it with his tongue.
Charlotte moaned as he moved toward the other breast, bestowing it with the same lavish attention.
His mouth sought her lips, hungrily devouring her kisses like a starved man.
Sliding his tongue against hers, he nibbled her bottom lip, aching for more, eager to claim his prize.
As he trailed kisses along the side of her cheek, the nape of her neck, and her collarbone, his hand wandered slowly down her quivering stomach to her honeyed core. Perry moaned as he slid a finger inside her, relishing the feel of her silken heat.
His eyes widened as he gazed upon her face. “I see my countess likes a good chase.”
Lottie smiled dreamily, catching his hair in her fingers and tugging his face down for another kiss.
A soft gasp escaped his lips as he slid another finger inside her tight sheath, entranced with the way her body opened to receive him.
Her legs fell further apart, eager for his tender ministrations as he moved inside her.
Her passage squeezed around him, pulling him in and melting around his fingers as he stroked her eager body.
His thumb teased and flicked her slippery little bundle of nerves, and she whimpered as her passion grew more frantic.
Lottie thrashed as the sensations overcame her, clutching at him and tossing her head back as he moved to suck on her soft, beckoning nipples. Oh, yes, his fiery woman was going to be ready for him to claim his prize.
“Perry…” she whispered, the words trailing into the night air. “I need you.”
“Not yet, my love. The countess needs to come on my fingers before she gets her reward. I need your pretty cunny to make a mess on my fingers, or I haven’t earned my prize for catching the fair maiden.”
Pressing her deeper into the lush grass, his strokes became more demanding, calling to her body to give him what he craved.
Her body tightened around him, and he made a triumphant sound as she cried out, her passage contracting eagerly around him.
Lottie clutched at his shoulders feverishly as her release overcame her.
Wasting no time, he entrapped her between his knees, untying the fastenings of his breeches.
Lottie tugged at his pants, his length hardening even more at her impatience.
Springing forth as it was released, his cock wept at the proximity of her saucy lips.
Taking the thick shaft in her hand, she stroked him, savoring the taste of his come on her lips.
Perry groaned, tossing his head back as his wife took him into her mouth, wrapping her plush lips around him as she took him all the way to the back of her throat. “Lottie, please,” he begged.
She chuckled softly around his cock, the vibrations making him clench his teeth as he attempted to prolong his pleasure. At this rate, he wasn’t going to last long.
Lottie hollowed out her cheeks as she pulled off his aching cock. “I see my lord likes a good chase,” she mused, her wide eyes locking with his as she suckled the tip of his length. “I wonder if he is also begging for a good fuck.”
Perry almost spent in her hand at her use of such vulgar language. Nodding dumbly, he watched as her mouth quirked up into a smile and she raised an eyebrow at him.
“Then what are you waiting for?” she asked as she leaned back, never more beautiful than when she gave herself to him. His hand moved down the luxurious, silken valleys of her chest, every inch a gift to be treasured.
Dragging himself down her body, he kissed the dewy skin of her breasts as he took his heavy length in his palm and poised it at her entrance.
Perhaps it would have been more proper to take his wife into the house and teach her a lesson, but he lacked the ability to restrain himself.
He wouldn’t dare be so rude as to keep the countess waiting.
He knew the sweet honey that awaited him in her slick passage.
Pressing himself against her, he inched his cock inside her, allowing her time to accommodate his size.
Lottie whimpered as he filled her, her heat wrapping around him like a silky glove.
Bracing himself, he took her hands and held them above her head, bottoming out, then sliding back out again. Her body was pure heaven.
Moving a hand to cup the side of her face, he kissed her thoroughly as their bodies moved in sync, their tongues tangling, devouring, and savouring.
His cock hardened impossibly at the way her passage fluttered around him.
Slipping a hand between them, he moved his fingers over her hardened bud, and she gasped.
Her passage clenched around him at the touch, and he continued to flick and tease her hot little bundle of nerves until a sharp cry came from her mouth.
Her release came abruptly, her tight passage choking his cock mercilessly until he could bear no more.
Pressing her into the earth with each uncontrollable thrust, he took what he needed.
Her body arched against him, beckoning and pulling him in deeper.
He chased his release mercilessly, unable to fight the way she made him come undone so effortlessly.
“Give it to me, Perry,” she begged, wrapping her legs around his waist and pulling him closer.
Her fingers teased beneath his shirt, her nails digging into the damp skin of his back.
Tossing his head back with an earthy growl, he pounded into her hot sheath, filling her to the brim.
Breathing heavily, he lowered himself to crush his body against hers, closing his eyes as he relished the feel of her surrounding him.
Upon opening them again, he took in her flushed skin, pale in the moonlight. Her irresistible smile coaxed a grin out of him as she tugged on his tresses and brought his lips against hers.
“I’m glad you found me,” she whispered, the words a warm caress against his mouth. Perry exhaled, pure pleasure flooding his body as he gazed at his countess. His love.
“There is not a place on this earth where I will not find you,” Perry said, his voice rough with emotion. “There is no me without you.”
“I love you,” she breathed, punctuating the sentence with a lingering kiss.
Inhaling her delicate essence intermingled with the subtle scent of roses in the air.
“I love you with all my heart. Except for the part I have saved for Aurelia,” he teased, pressing a hand on his chest.
A smile teased her lips and Perry groaned as she tugged on his hair. Having her fingers on him, anywhere, was pure torture.
“Are you trying to kill me with all this pleasure, Countess?” he asked, debating between pulling out of her and staying here for all eternity.
Lottie shook her head. “I am simply wondering…”
“What could you possibly be thinking about? My mind is scattered into pieces, all filled with visions of you.”
“I am wondering if you have perhaps, more space in your heart, let’s say…for another to love?” Her eyes sparkled in the starlight, dancing with a mixture of vulnerability and happiness. A soft laugh escaped her lips, and she brought a hand to her mouth.
Perry’s mouth dropped open. “Are you saying…? There will be another child?”
Eyes brimming with tears, she nodded. His heart soared at the news, and he remembered where they were and what they had been doing. His cock was still buried deep in his wife and he was crushing her with his body weight.
Surely, this was not safe behavior for a woman in her condition.
Lifting himself off her, he pushed her nightgown back down and tugged on his pants. With a frown, he took her hand, pulling her up on her feet.
“We mustn’t keep you out of doors, you might catch a chill in your delicate condition,” he spoke, his tone suddenly serious.
With a comely smile, she tapped a finger to his frowning bottom lip.
“Perry, do not forget, this is our second child. I can assure you, I feel fine.”
Flushing, he ran his fingers through his hair, overwhelmed by the sense of responsibility for the new life blooming within his wife. “Perhaps I was too rough with you. I apologize.”
Lottie laughed, smacking her hand on his chest. “If you think we are going to stop doing that, you are sorely mistaken. You may not know this, but pregnant women have certain urges…”
Clasping his hand over hers, Perry lowered his face to brush his lips against hers.
Desire washed over him, dizzying and insistent. He would never be able to resist his wife. “Tell me more about these urges…”
“I will,” Lottie pressed her lips firmly on his, then pulled away, leaving only the emptiness of the cool evening floating in her wake. “If you can catch me.” She gave him a push, leaving him dumfounded as she bolted toward the house.