Chapter Twenty-Eight
Juliana couldn’t believe the events of the day.
When she boarded her carriage to see Jude, she would only allow herself to have small hope they might find a way to work through whatever had sent him running from her.
In a matter of hours, she was betrothed, the future mother to a delightful little girl, and may carry the child of the man she loved more than life itself.
They told Rose that they intended to marry, and she threw herself into Juliana’s arms, chattering away about how she couldn’t wait for Juliana to live with them.
The little girl was so full of love. She imagined Rose was how Jude would have been as a child if he hadn’t been subjected to such a horrid father.
“Penny for your thoughts, my love?” Jude asked, pulling her from her reveries and reflecting on everything that had transpired.
“I just can’t believe we will be married soon. I was devastated when I received your note,” she said, biting her bottom lip and looking out the window of the carriage as they journeyed back to Marina’s.
He cringed next to her, and she immediately regretted saying the words. She didn’t intend to make him suffer more than he already had.
“Please forgive me, sweetheart,” he begged. “I believed I was doing the right thing, and I assure you, it wasn’t because of any doubt about my love for you. I have been miserable without you.”
“I heard,” she said, smirking at him.
His brow furrowed. “What do you mean? How could you know?”
“Marina sent me to you because Carter spoke with her during the visit she and Evan made.”
Jude ran his hand down his face, and she turned to face him beside her in the carriage.
“Please,” she said, “don’t be angry with Carter. He was only trying to help and was worried about you. He wished for you to be happy.”
Jude cupped her cheek. “I can’t be angry at him. Especially not when it brought us together.” He placed a soft kiss on her lips. “That doesn’t mean I can’t give him a hard time about it, though.”
She laughed and leaned against him, nuzzling her nose into his neck. Before she could stop herself, she was kissing his jaw. He released a soft moan when she caught his earlobe between her teeth and then suckled it.
Turning his head, he captured her lips with his. Scooping her up, he shifted her so that he laid her back on the seat.
“Jude.” She was wanton and wanted him again. The man who would soon be her husband. Never had she thought to do such wicked things in a carriage, and yet with Jude she couldn’t imagine not doing so.
Lifting her skirts, he knelt to the floor of the carriage. “I believe I promised you my tongue, and I am a man of my word,” he said. “Put your legs over my shoulders.”
She did as he said, and he adjusted her garments before his tongue on her pearl caused her to cry out. He placed his hand on her stomach to hold her still while he licked and lathed her most sensitive areas with his tongue.
Her hands shot to his head, grasping and holding him where she wanted his attention, while he slipped two fingers inside of her.
He lifted his head but continued moving his fingers inside of her.
“Do you want me to make you come?” he asked.
She nodded, panting from the growing need within her. He slowly pushed her to the peak.
“Do you want me to make you come again tonight?” He dipped his head and licked her pearl a single time before lifting his head again.
She nodded again.
“Tell me. Tell me what you want me to do to you tonight.”
She gulped. He smirked at her, waiting for her to speak.
“I want you to…” she moaned when he licked her again and increased the speed of his fingers. Her words trailing off.
He stopped and gazed up at her. “I can’t hear you.”
She closed her eyes when he placed his tongue against her nub again. “I want you to suck and lick my nipples.” She knew her face must be a deep red from speaking such wicked things out loud.
“I’m going to take you into my mouth,” she moaned. He groaned in response, and she knew he liked what she said. The embarrassment and nervousness dissipated, and she grabbed his head again, moving him with the rocking of her hips.
“Then you are going to enter me from behind and use your cock to make me come.” Her words came out between moans from his wicked attention.
As soon as she finished speaking, she arched her back and rode the waves of pleasure that washed over her when her orgasm overtook her.
She bucked underneath him, and he removed his fingers once she stilled.
He righted her dress and helped her to sit up so he could take his seat next to her. “I just saw my future, and it looks bright, indeed,” he said, smirking at her.
She glanced out the window, and they were only about five minutes from Marina’s. Facing him again, she placed a sweet kiss on his jaw. “Your future tomorrow looks bright, too, my love.”
“Oh, how so?” He arched his eyebrow and took her hand in his.
“We’re going to play this game again on the ride home, but with my head between your legs next time.”
He winked at her. “Promise?”
“Indeed. And you better not stop talking.”
He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. “I am the luckiest man in all of England. The world, as a matter of fact.”
“That you are,” she said, before laying her head on his shoulder.
*
Almost a week later, Juliana waited in her chamber with Marina. Well, it was the marchioness’ chamber that she would never sleep in, but it served as her dressing room.
“You are beautiful, dearest,” Marina said. “I am so glad that everything worked out for you both.”
She clasped her friend’s hands. “Well, we have you and Evan to thank, or we might not have ended up here.”
Marina wiped a tear from her eye. “I think you would have. It just might have taken you longer. It’s clear you two were meant to be together.”
Juliana fought her own tears but laughed. “When did you become such a romantic?”
“I blame my husband,” Marina said. “He’s wearing me down.”
They both laughed, and Juliana pulled her in for a tight hug.
“Thank you for standing up with me. It only seemed right for you and Evan to be our witnesses.”
Marina may downplay their role in bringing them together, but Juliana knew that if she hadn’t intervened, she may never have been willing to face Jude again. It would be nice to have them living nearby, especially since Jude and Evan were also so close.
There was a knock on the door, and Juliana’s father, Lord Morley, entered the room. “Are you ready?” he asked.
“Yes, Papa,” she replied. “More than ready.”
Her father believed she had been staying at Marina’s until everyone arrived for the ceremony.
Her choice of husband troubled her parents.
Given all of the gossip about Jude in the scandal sheets, she couldn’t blame them for questioning if he would be a faithful husband to her.
He seemed to have won them over from his professions of love, and it only made her love him more.
The rest of their friends had all been able to attend, which delighted both her and Jude. Their friends had become like family, given that among all of them, Juliana and Tabitha were the only ones who still had both of her parents.
Aside from Matt, each of them dropped their jaw in shock when they learnt the news.
He gave her a big hug and told her he was delighted for them both before giving Jude a hearty pat on the back.
They were lucky to have such wonderful people in their lives.
Everyone was smitten with Rose, and they all vowed to ensure the couple and Rose would not be shunned by society.
Between all of their relatives and friends, most members of the ton wouldn’t risk the cut direct from so many influential peers of the realm.
Marina and Juliana each took one of her father’s arms and he escorted them to the carriage where they rode to the church.
Juliana fought her blush, recalling her last time in a carriage.
Jude struggled harder than she did when they played their game, and then they acted on what he described as soon as they returned home.
When they reached the church, her father handed each of the ladies down and then Marina walked ahead to alert everyone of their arrival and to take her place beside where Juliana would meet her beloved at the end of the aisle.
She entered the doorway to the church on her father’s arm and locked eyes with Jude, who beamed at her. His eyes looked glassy, and she choked down her own emotion as she moved closer and closer to the man of her dreams.
Her father placed her hand in Jude’s and gave him a respectful nod. He clasped both of his hands around hers, and she knew the electricity between them would never subside and would only grow stronger in their marriage over the years.
They said their vows, and when he kissed her, everyone in the room cheered. They signed the registry, with Marina and Evan each signing as their witnesses. Once everything was official, Jude escorted Juliana down the aisle and to await their carriage.
She beamed up at him, still unable to believe she would spend the rest of her life with him and their children.
“Something on your mind, wife?” he asked.
“Just thinking about what the scandal sheets will have to say about this. The rake has been reformed.”
He laughed and pulled her against him for a kiss, not caring if anyone was watching. “I arranged for the carriage driver to drive quite slow on the way back home. I intend to thoroughly play our game. Then we shall make our appearance at our wedding breakfast quite brief.”
She giggled and bit her bottom lip. “Well, perhaps not completely reformed.”